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Arctic Ocean Becoming Less Hospitable to Shelled Species

Jun 17, 2015 by News Staff

The surface waters of the Arctic Ocean could reach levels of acidity that threaten the ability of animals to build and maintain their shells by 2030, according...

Groundwater storage trends for world’s 37 largest aquifer systems. Of these, 21 have exceeded sustainability tipping points and are being depleted, with 13 considered significantly distressed, threatening regional water security and resilience. Image credit: University of California, Irvine / NASA / JPL-Caltech.

Earth’s Groundwater Reserves Likely Far Smaller than Thought

Jun 17, 2015 by News Staff

Two new studies using data from NASA’s GRACE satellites have found that 21 of planet’s 37 largest aquifers are being rapidly depleted by human consumption,...

Everest and Khumbu glacier in the Dudh Koshi basin. Image credit: Patrick Wagnon.

Everest Glaciers Very Sensitive to Global Warming, Researchers Say

May 28, 2015 by News Staff

According to a team of scientists led by Dr Joseph Shea of the International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development in Kathmandu, Nepal, if greenhouse-gas...

Nearly cloud-free view of the northern tip of the Antarctic Peninsula. Image credit: NASA / GSFC / MODIS Rapid Response Team.

Researchers Observe Sudden Increase of Ice Loss on Southern Antarctic Peninsula

May 22, 2015 by News Staff

Using measurements of the elevation of the Antarctic ice sheet made by a suite of satellites, a group of scientists led by Dr Bert Wouters from the University...

Bora Bora, the Society Islands of French Polynesia. Image credit: Maria Michelle.

Global Sea Level Rise is Accelerating, Says New Study

May 12, 2015 by News Staff

An analysis of satellite data collected during 1993-2014 has revealed a more accurate picture of global sea level rise, showing that it is happening much...

Kelvin-Helmholtz instability clouds. Image credit: Astronautilus, rodjonesphotography.co.uk / CC BY 2.0.

Kelvin-Helmholtz Waves Perturb Earth’s Magnetosphere, New Study Shows

May 12, 2015 by News Staff

According to a new study published in the journal Nature Communications, the underlying physical process that creates ‘breaking wave’ cloud patterns...

Tracy Arm Fjord, Alaska. Image credit: Maria Michelle.

Fjords Play Crucial Role in Regulation of Earth’s Climate

May 5, 2015 by News Staff

According to a new study in the journal Nature Geoscience, fjords absorb approximately 18 million tones of organic carbon each year, equivalent to 11 percent...

An ocean eddy (bottom of the image) as seen from space. Image credit: NASA Earth Observatory.

Scientists Find ‘Dead Zones’ in Atlantic Ocean

Apr 30, 2015 by News Staff

A group of researchers led by Dr Johannes Karstensen of the GEOMAR Helmholtz Centre for Ocean Research Kiel in Germany has discovered unexpectedly low...

A hydrothermal vent at Brothers volcano, Kermadec arc, New Zealand. Image credit: NOAA.

Hydrothermal Vents Able to Create Simple Organic Molecules, Study Says

Apr 29, 2015 by News Staff

According to a new study in the journal Chemical Communications, alkaline hydrothermal vents on the seabed are able to produce simple carbon-based molecules,...

The McMurdo Dry Valleys are a row of valleys west of McMurdo Sound, Antarctica, so named because of their extremely low humidity and lack of snow and ice cover. Photosynthetic bacteria have been found living in the relatively moist interior of rocks. Scientists consider the Dry Valleys to be the closest of any terrestrial environment to Mars. Image credit: NASA / GSFC / METI / ERSDAC / JAROS / ASTER Science Team.

Scientists Find Evidence for Salty Groundwater beneath McMurdo Dry Valleys

Apr 28, 2015 by News Staff

A team of researchers co-led by Dr Slawek Tulaczyk of the University of California, Santa Cruz, and Dr Jill Mikucki of the University of Tennessee, Knoxville,...

Lion Geyser and Heart Spring in Yellowstone National Park. Image credit: Brocken Inaglory / CC BY-SA 3.0.

Scientists Discover Gigantic Magma Reservoir beneath Yellowstone Supervolcano

Apr 24, 2015 by News Staff

A team of scientists led by Dr Hsin-Hua Huang of California Institute of Technology in Pasadena and the University of Utah has discovered a reservoir of...

The Totten Glacier catchment, outlined in blue, is a collection basin for ice and snow that flows through the glacier. It’s estimated to contain enough material to raise sea levels by at least 3.5 m. Image credit: Jamin Greenbaum / Australian Antarctic Division.

Totten Glacier: Scientists Identify New Threat to East Antarctic Ice

Mar 17, 2015 by News Staff

A team of researchers led by Jamin Greenbaum of the University of Texas at Austin has discovered two seafloor troughs that could allow warm ocean water...

Scientists calculated that 275 million metric tons of plastic waste was generated in 192 coastal countries in 2010, with 4.8 to 12.7 million metric tons entering the ocean. This map shows the estimated mass of mismanaged plastic waste from each coastal country; the darker the color, the larger the amount; countries shaded in white were not included. Image credit: University of California, Santa Barbara.

Study Estimates Amount of Plastic Waste Entering Ocean from Land

Feb 13, 2015 by News Staff

A new study, reported in the journal Science, has found that more than 4.8 million metric tons of plastic waste enters the oceans from land each year,...