NSTA WebNews Digest

Science News: Earth Science

Would-Be Geoengineers Call for Research Guidelines

3/18/2013 - Scientific American
Two researchers argue that governments need to coordinate a legal framework to allow for geoengineering experiments.

Earth May Not Be Ready for the Next Close Encounter

2/15/2013 - International Herald Tribune
Scientists have warned that greater international cooperation is needed if humanity is to avoid the fate of the dinosaurs, believed to have been wiped out after an asteroid struck what is now Mexico 66 million years ago. Space-watchers are already keeping a close eye on 1999 RQ36, a 1,837-feet giant that has a one in a thousand chance of hitting Earth on its next close encounter in 2182.

April Sumatra Quakes Signal Indian Ocean Plate Break-Up

9/27/2012 - BBC News
The sequence of huge earthquakes that struck off the coast of Sumatra in April may signal the creation of a new tectonic plate boundary.

Solar Flare's Red Glare: Sun Unleashes Early Fourth of July Fireworks

7/4/2012 - Yahoo! News
The sun erupted with a powerful solar flare Monday in an early solar fireworks display just in time for the Fourth of July. A wave of plasma from the flare could reach Earth by the U.S. Independence Day holiday on Wednesday, July 4.

Took 10 Million Years for Life on Earth to ‘Re-set’ After Mass Extinction

5/30/2012 - Voice of America
More than 250 million years ago, most life on Earth was wiped out by a catastrophic event called the Permian–Triassic extinction. New research suggests it took our planet 10 million years to recover from what is now known as “The Great Dying.”

The Enigma 1,800 Miles Below Us

5/29/2012 - The New York Times (requires free registration)
Existing models of the Earth's core, for all their drama, may not be dramatic enough. Reporting recently in the journal Nature, Dario Alfè of University College London and his colleagues presented evidence that iron in the outer layers of the core is frittering away heat through the wasteful process called conduction at two to three times the rate of previous estimates. The theoretical consequences of this discrepancy are far-reaching.

UK Industry to Build Solar Orbiter Satellite

4/27/2012 - BBC News
British industry will lead the production of Solar Orbiter, a spacecraft that will travel closer to the Sun than any satellite to date.

Strong Solar Storm Heading for Earth

3/8/2012 - Reuters
A strong geomagnetic storm is racing from the Sun toward Earth, and its expected arrival on Thursday could affect power grids, airplane routes, and space-based satellite navigation systems, U.S. space weather experts say.

Scientists Abuzz Over 'Black Beauty' Martian rock

1/4/2012 - CBCNews
Scientists are abuzz about a coal-colored rock from Mars that landed in the Sahara desert: A yearlong analysis revealed it's quite different from other Martian meteorites.

Impossible Crystals Are 'From Space'

1/3/2012 - BBC News
Examples of a crystal previously thought to be impossible in nature may have come from space, a study shows.

Can a Planet Survive the Death of Its Sun? Scientists Find Two That Did

12/29/2011 - TIME
In the KOI 55 system, the Kepler probe finds evidence that two dry-roasted planets survived the fiery death-throes of their parent sun.

A Rare Discovery: 15 Baby Dinosaurs in One Nest

11/17/2011 - MSNBC.com
70 million years ago, juveniles were entombed by sand in Mongolia, experts say.

Most Popular Skywatching Misconceptions Explained

11/15/2011 - Scientific American
Astronomy columnist explains why it's hot in July, why we can see satellites with the unaided eye, and why the North Star isn't the brightest among other topics.

Public Awareness of Geoengineering Science Increasing

10/24/2011 - ScienceInsider
Geoengineering may not be a household name just yet, but its celebrity status seems to be on the rise. A new survey finds that public awareness of strategies aimed at manipulating Earth's climate is higher than earlier surveys suggested.

Study: Global Warming Is Real

10/21/2011 - U.S. News & World Report
"Global warming is real," a team of scientists at the University of California at Berkeley said Friday. Since the 1950s, the Earth has warmed about 1° C.

Comet's Water Like That of Earth's Oceans

10/6/2011 - BBC News
Comet Hartley 2 is found to contain water like that in our oceans, challenging the notion that Earth's water did not come from comet impacts.

Europe to Lead Daring Sun Mission

10/4/2011 - BBC News
Europe is to lead the most ambitious space mission ever undertaken to study the behavior of the Sun.

Asteroid Thought to Kill Dinosaurs May Not Be Guilty

9/21/2011 - BBC News
New data from space have cast into doubt the identity of the asteroid that led to the extinction of the dinosaurs.

Sea Levels Much Less Stable Than Earlier Believed, New Coral Dating Method Suggests

9/12/2011 - ScienceDaily
New evidence of sea-level oscillations during a warm period that started about 125,000 years ago raises the possibility of a similar scenario if the planet continues its more recent warming trend.

Are Category 6 Hurricanes Coming Soon?

8/23/2011 - Scientific American
Tropical cyclones like Irene are predicted to be more powerful this year, thanks to natural conditions, but researchers disagree on how to rate that intensity.

Light Shed On South Pole Dinosaurs

8/5/2011 - ScienceDaily
Bones of South Pole dinosaurs grew like the bones of other dinosaurs, helping explain why dinosaurs were able to dominate the planet for 160 million years, new research shows.

Magnetic Waves Bake the Sun's Corona

8/1/2011 - ScienceNews
Scientists are getting warmer in their hunt for a reason why the sun’s outer atmosphere is so hot. The key may be magnetic waves long sought but only recently spotted, an international team reports.

Triceratops Was Last Dinosaur Standing

7/13/2011 - Discovery News
A 65 million-year-old find suggests a meteor may have wiped out the dinosaurs in a sudden catastrophic event.

The Last Great Global Warming

7/1/2011 - Scientific American
Surprising new evidence suggests the pace of Earth's most abrupt prehistoric warm-up paled in comparison with what we face today.

Close Shave: Asteroid to Just Miss Earth Today

6/27/2011 - Yahoo! News
An asteroid the size of a tour bus will fly past Earth today (June 27) so closely it will be beneath some of the planet's satellites.

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