Earth | Page 696 | Science Codex

NASA-NOAA's Suomi NPP satellite sees record-breaking Hurricane Patricia

At 8 a.m. EDT on October 23, 2015, the National Hurricane Center said that Hurricane Patricia had grown into a monster hurricane. In fact, it is the strongest eastern north pacific hurricane on record. NASA-NOAA's Suomi NPP satellite analyzed the temperatures and structure within the storm as it passed overhead.

On October 23, a Hurricane Warning was in effect from San Blas to Punta San Telmo. A Hurricane Watch was in effect from east of Punta San Telmo to Lazaro Cardenas and a Tropical Storm Warning was in effect from east of Punta San Telmo to Lazaro Cardenas.

NASA study shows that common coolants contribute to ozone depletion

A class of widely used chemical coolants known as hydrofluorocarbons (HFC) contributes to ozone depletion by a small but measurable amount, countering a decades-old assumption, according to a new NASA study.

The paper, published Oct. 22 in Geophysical Research Letters, a journal of the American Geophysical Union, is based on the results of a NASA-derived atmospheric chemistry climate model that projected the impacts of HFC gases on the atmosphere by the year 2050.

Japanese sea defense guidelines could assist other tsunami-prone nations, study suggests

Japan's lead in implementing sea defence improvements to guard against future disasters is an important reference point for other tsunami-prone nations, a study led by Plymouth University has suggested.

Before 2011, Japan was considered to be the best prepared nation on earth to withstand a large tsunami on its coasts, with structures specifically designed to afford sufficient protection to coastal settlements and critical infrastructure.

Is freshwater supply more dependent on good governance than geography?

Is freshwater supply more dependent on good governance than geography? Scientists have analysed 19 different characteristics critical to water supply management in 119 low per capita income countries and found that vulnerability is pervasive and commonly arises from relatively weak institutional controls.

Optical scanner shows potential for real-time 3-D breast cancer screening

The results are reported today, 23rd October 2015, in the journal Biomedical Physics & Engineering Express.

The device, developed primarily at Florida International University, uses a near-infrared laser diode source to produce an image of the breast tissues.

One advantage presented by the device is that it is more adaptable to breast shape and density, and that it allows imaging of the chest wall regions, which are harder to image with conventional techniques.

Physicists learn how to control the movement of electrons in a molecule

Researchers have, for the first time, been able to track the movement of an electron in a molecule in real time and have demonstrated that these processes can be controlled - in the future this will make it possible to directly control the progress of chemical reactions and biological processes and obtain a desired result literally at the touch of a button. The findings of the study have been published in the prestigious scientific journal Science (DOI: 10.1126/science.aab2160).

Reducing the sweetness to survive

Plants produce a large arsenal of toxic compounds in order fend off herbivorous insects. To make sure that the toxicity of these defensive substances will not harm the plants themselves, many plants add a sugar molecule to some of their toxins. Digestive enzymes called glycosidases in the insect gut usually cleave off this sugar to release the toxin ? with harmful effects on the insects.

Babies' babbles reflect their own involvement in language development

COLUMBIA, Mo. -- 'Dada' is a first word for many babies. Babbling sounds with consonant-vowel repetitions, such as 'dada,' are common among infants once they reach 8 months old; however, these sounds are not prevalent among infants who have profound hearing loss -- that is, until they receive cochlear implants. Now, University of Missouri research shows that babies' repetitive babbles primarily are motivated by infants' ability to hear themselves.

Deep-sea bacteria could help neutralize greenhouse gas, researchers find

GAINESVILLE, Fla. -- A type of bacteria plucked from the bottom of the ocean could be put to work neutralizing large amounts of industrial carbon dioxide in the Earth's atmosphere, a group of University of Florida researchers has found.

Deep-sea bacteria could help neutralize greenhouse gas, researchers find

A type of bacteria plucked from the bottom of the ocean could be put to work neutralizing large amounts of industrial carbon dioxide in the Earth's atmosphere, a group of University of Florida researchers has found.

Fish farming gobbles up phosphorus

The projected growth in aquaculture production in Norway could drastically increase phosphorus losses and emissions to water bodies and also make the country more dependent on imported raw materials.

But what if that phosphorus could be reused? Researchers at the Norwegian University of Science and Technology and Nibio, the Norwegian Institute of Bioeconomy Research say that finding a way to reuse this "waste" phosphorus could allow for new business opportunities as well as cut pollution from aquaculture.

One-third of imports of phosphorus go to fish feed

NASA's GPM checks rainfall rates in Category 4 Hurricane Olaf

Hurricane Olaf has been a Category 4 hurricane for three days in the Central Pacific Ocean. The Global Precipitation Measurement mission (GPM) analyzed rainfall rates occurring in the major hurricane.

On Oct. 19, 2015 Hurricane Olaf became the eighth category four hurricane in the busy 2015 Eastern Pacific hurricane season. The Global Precipitation Measurement mission or GPM core satellite analyzed rainfall and cloud heights in the powerful storm which remained a Category 4 storm on Oct.21.

Satellite sees Tropical Storm Patricia form near Western Mexico coast

The low pressure area that was designated as System 97E on October 20 developed into the Eastern Pacific Ocean's twentieth tropical depression of the season at 11 a.m. EDT. By 11 p.m. the depression became Tropical Storm Patricia and was seen strengthening by NOAA's GOES-West satellite.

An image of the tropical storm was captured by NOAA's GOES-West satellite that showed the storm near the coast. GOES-West is managed by NOAA, but the image was created by the NASA/NOAA GOES Project at the NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, Maryland.

California 2100: More frequent and more severe droughts and floods likely

RICHLAND, Wash. - In the future, the Pacific Ocean's temperature cycles could disrupt more than just December fishing. A study published in Nature Communications suggests that the weather patterns known as El Nino and La Nina could lead to at least a doubling of extreme droughts and floods in California later this century.

Metal defects can be eliminated by cyclic loading

CAMBRIDGE, Mass.--It's a well-known characteristic of metals that repeated bending in the same place can cause the material to weaken and eventually break; this phenomenon, known as metal fatigue, can cause serious damage to metal components subjected to repeated stress.

But now, researchers from MIT, Carnegie Mellon University, Xi'an Jiaotong University, and elsewhere have found that under certain conditions, repeated slight stretching of nanoscale metal pieces can actually strengthen a material by eliminating defects in its crystalline structure.