ScienceDaily: Earth & Climate News

Buckyballs offer environmental benefits Posted: 09 Feb 2015 01:15 PM PST Treated carbon-60 molecules have the ability to recover valuable metals from liquids, including water and potential pollutants. In testing various metals, researchers found that charge and ionic radius influence how the metals bind to the hydroxylated buckyballs.

Floods created home of Europe's biggest waterfall Posted: 09 Feb 2015 01:14 PM PST A massive canyon that is home to Europe's most powerful waterfall was created in a matter of days by extreme flooding, new research reveals.

Swimming reptiles make their mark in the Early Triassic Posted: 09 Feb 2015 11:35 AM PST Vertebrate tracks provide valuable information about animal behavior and environments. Swim tracks are a unique type of vertebrate track because they are produced underwater by buoyant trackmakers, and specific factors are required for their production and subsequent preservation. Early Triassic deposits contain the highest number of fossil swim track occurrences worldwide compared to other epochs, and this number becomes even greater when epoch duration and rock outcrop area are taken into account.

Combine solar thermal energy with biomass gasification for natural gas substitute Posted: 09 Feb 2015 10:07 AM PST A new study examining the financial viability of solar-heated biomass gasification technologies that produce a natural gas substitute product concludes that combining these renewable resources can make economic sense.

New evidence of global warming: Remote lakes in Ecuador not immune to climate change Posted: 09 Feb 2015 10:07 AM PST A study of three remote lakes in Ecuador has revealed the vulnerability of tropical high mountain lakes to global climate change -- the first study of its kind to show this. The data explains how the lakes are changing due to the water warming as the result of climate change.

Electricity from biomass with carbon capture could make western US carbon-negative Posted: 09 Feb 2015 10:07 AM PST Biomass conversion to electricity combined with technologies for capturing and storing carbon, which should become viable within 35 years, could result in a carbon-negative power grid in the western US by 2050. That prediction comes from an analysis of various fuel scenarios. Bioenergy with carbon capture and sequestration may be a better use of plant feedstocks than making biofuels.

World thunderstorm 'map' key to assessing climate change Posted: 09 Feb 2015 08:32 AM PST New research will likely be crucial to measuring the impact of climate change on thunderstorms -- one of the weather occurrences most problematic for human life on the planet. The varying frequency and intensity of thunderstorms have direct repercussions for the public, agriculture, and industry.

Earth's surprise inside: Geologists unlock mysteries of the planet's inner core Posted: 09 Feb 2015 08:32 AM PST Seismic waves are helping scientists to plumb the world's deepest mystery: the planet's inner core. Thanks to a novel application of earthquake-reading technology, researchers have found that the Earth's inner core has an inner core of its own, which has surprising properties that could reveal information about our planet.

The Sun’s activity in the 18th century was similar to that now Posted: 09 Feb 2015 06:49 AM PST Counting sunspots over time helps in knowing the activity of our star but the two indices used by scientists disagree on dates prior to 1885. Now an international team of researchers has tried to standardize the historical results and has discovered that, contrary to what one may think, the solar activity of our times is very similar to that of other times, such as the Enlightenment. Scientists have been counting sunspots since 1610 with small telescopes. Thus it has been verified that the Sun’s activity increases every eleven years, according to the interval in the growth of the number of darker and colder spots in comparison with the rest of its surface. The more spots that appear, the more luminous the surrounding areas are, and our star shines brighter.

Would federal lands takeover in Utah harm the public? Experts think so Posted: 06 Feb 2015 09:51 AM PST The transfer of 31 million acres of land managed by the federal government to Utah would hinder public land management reforms and harm the state, according to a newly released analysis.

New tools to breed cereal crops that survive flooding Posted: 06 Feb 2015 08:15 AM PST Scientists hope new research could lead to the introduction of cereal crops better able to tolerate flooding. They have identified the mechanism used by plants in stress conditions to sense low oxygen levels and used advanced breeding techniques to reduce yield loss in barley in water-logged conditions.

Many US wells tainted with arsenic Posted: 05 Feb 2015 02:49 PM PST Arsenic is the biggest public-health problem for water in the United States -- yet we pay far less attention to it than we do to lesser problems. Private wells present continuing risks. Even low doses of arsenic may reduce intelligence in children. There are also well-documented risks of cancer, heart disease, and reduced lung function.

Adding natural buffers to the farm landscape slows erosion and looks good too Posted: 05 Feb 2015 09:31 AM PST Researchers know that adding natural buffers to the farm landscape can stop soil from vanishing. Now a scientist has found that more buffers are better, both for pleasing the eye and slowing erosion.

High efficiency concentrating solar cells move to the rooftop Posted: 05 Feb 2015 09:31 AM PST Ultra-high efficiency solar cells similar to those used in space may now be possible on your rooftop thanks to a new microscale solar concentration technology developed by an international team of researchers.

Solar and wind power will be the cheapest forms of energy in the future Posted: 05 Feb 2015 05:30 AM PST A new study demonstrates that an energy system based completely on renewable forms of energy will be economically viable in the future. Within ten years, solar and wind power will be the cheapest forms of energy production for Asia's largest energy markets.