ScienceDaily: Earth & Climate News

Global sea ice diminishing, despite Antarctic gains Posted: 10 Feb 2015 01:01 PM PST Sea ice increases in Antarctica do not make up for the accelerated Arctic sea ice loss of the last decades, a new study finds. As a whole, the planet has been shedding sea ice at an average annual rate of 13,500 square miles (35,000 square kilometers) since 1979, the equivalent of losing an area of sea ice larger than the state of Maryland every year.

Geoengineering report: Scientists urge more research on climate intervention Posted: 10 Feb 2015 12:59 PM PST Deep cuts in greenhouse gas emissions, while necessary, may not happen soon enough to stave off climate catastrophe. So, in addition, the world may need to resort to so-called geoengineering approaches that aim to deliberately control the planet's climate.

Mesothelioma in southern Nevada likely result of asbestos in environment Posted: 10 Feb 2015 12:59 PM PST Malignant mesothelioma has been found at higher than expected levels in women and in individuals younger than 55 years old in the southern Nevada counties of Clark and Nye, likewise in the same region carcinogenic mineral fibers including actinolite asbestos, erionite, winchite, magnesioriebeckite and richterite were discovered. These data suggest that these elevated numbers of malignant mesothelioma cases are linked to environmental exposure of carcinogenic mineral fibers.

Earthquake activity linked to injection wells may vary by region Posted: 10 Feb 2015 12:59 PM PST The Williston Basin in north central US produced fewer earthquakes caused by wastewater injection than in Texas, suggesting the link between seismicity and production activities may vary by region, according to a new study.

Studying microscopic phytoplankton: Prototype ready for the open ocean Posted: 10 Feb 2015 10:32 AM PST Its name refers to one of the biggest animals in the sea, but ORCA, the Ocean Radiometer for Carbon Assessment instrument, will be observing the smallest. If selected for a flight mission, ORCA will study microscopic phytoplankton, tiny green plants that float in the upper layer of the ocean and make up the base of the marine food chain.

Coral reef symbiosis: Paying rent with sugar and fat Posted: 10 Feb 2015 10:31 AM PST Scientists have revealed how coral-dwelling microalgae harvest nutrients from the surrounding seawater and shuttle them out to their coral hosts, sustaining a fragile ecosystem that is under threat.

Scientist to gather greenhouse gas emissions from melting permafrost Posted: 10 Feb 2015 10:08 AM PST A NASA scientist who has developed a novel suitcase-size instrument to measure column carbon dioxide and methane is taking her recently patented instrument on the road this summer to comprehensively measure emissions of these important greenhouse gases from Alaska's melting permafrost.

NASA scientist advances methane sounder to measure another greenhouse gas Posted: 10 Feb 2015 09:57 AM PST A NASA scientist who has played a key role developing and demonstrating a new technique for gathering around-the-clock global carbon-dioxide measurements is applying the same general principles to develop a new laser instrument sensitive to another greenhouse gas -- methane.

Bionic leaf: Researchers use bacteria to convert solar energy into liquid fuel Posted: 09 Feb 2015 01:14 PM PST Solar energy can be harnessed using electricity from photovoltaic cells to yield hydrogen that can be stored in fuel cells. But hydrogen has failed to catch on as a practical fuel for cars or for power. Converting solar energy into liquid fuel could accelerate its adoption as a power source.

'Stressed' young bees could be the cause of colony collapse Posted: 09 Feb 2015 01:12 PM PST Colony Collapse Disorder (CCD) is a major threat to bee colonies around the world and affects their ability to perform vital human food crop pollination. It has been a cause of urgent concern for scientists and farmers around the world for at least a decade but a specific cause for the phenomenon has yet to be conclusively identified. Pressure on young bees to grow up too fast could be a major factor in explaining the disastrous declines in bee populations seen worldwide.

Flooding in U.S. Midwest more frequent, study finds; Research covered more than 50 years of data in 14 states Posted: 09 Feb 2015 01:11 PM PST The U.S. Midwest and surrounding states have endured increasingly more frequent flood episodes over the past half-century, according to a new study.

Earliest evidence of large-scale human-produced air pollution in South America found Posted: 09 Feb 2015 01:11 PM PST Researchers have uncovered the earliest evidence of widespread, human-produced air pollution in South America -- from the Spanish conquest of the Inca.

A centimeter of time: Cool clocks pave the way to new measurements of Earth Posted: 09 Feb 2015 08:30 AM PST Two cryogenically cooled optical lattice clocks that can be synchronized to a tremendous one part in 2.0 x 10-18--meaning that they would only go out of synch by a second in 16 billion years. This is nearly 1,000 times more precise than the current international timekeeping standard cesium atomic clock.

Industrial aerosol emissions has changed relationship between temperature and precipitation in northern tropics Posted: 09 Feb 2015 08:30 AM PST An international team of scientists has found that human-made aerosol emissions from industrial processes have changed the relationship between temperature and precipitation in the northing tropics. The findings may help to indicate the shifts in seasonal rainfall in Central America, which is critical for agriculture in the region.

A bright-yellow new species of water frog from the Peruvian Andes Posted: 04 Feb 2015 07:26 AM PST Scientists discovered a new water frog species from the Pacific slopes of the Andes in central Peru. The new species was discovered in the species-poor coastal valleys of central Peru, a region well studied but apparently still hiding surprises.

Fruitful collaboration yields insight on the tomato genome Posted: 03 Feb 2015 11:23 AM PST Plant biologists are discovering how wild and cultivated tomato species thrive in disparate environments. Researchers are helping the crop industry develop crops that can withstand periods of prolonged heat or drought.