January 9, 2018
Down to Earth With: Wildfire meteorologist Craig Clements
Not many people are able to combine their work and hobbies the way Craig Clements, a meteorologist at San Jose State University in California, …
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1236 articles · Page 15 of 52
January 9, 2018
Dividing line: The past, present and future of the 100th Meridian
In 1878, without benefit of the Landsat program, GPS or Google, and just a decade after the creation of the National Weather Service, John Wesley …
January 9, 2018
A flammable planet: Fire finds its place in Earth history
We owe Earth as we know it to fire. Fire-prone ecosystems cover 40 percent of the land surface today, and fires play a key role in maintaining …
January 2, 2018
Down to Earth With Kateryna Klochko
Kateryna Klochko made a splash in the ocean geochemistry world as a doctoral student at the University of Maryland in College Park. She had been …
December 28, 2017
Driftwood reveals ancient Arctic currents and sea-ice levels
Arctic driftwood up to 12,000 years old is giving scientists a better understanding of how ocean currents and sea ice in the far north have …
December 18, 2017
Travels in Geology: Roaming the rocky coastline of Downeast Maine
Sitting atop the bald, pink granite ledges of Cadillac Mountain in Maine’s Acadia National Park, I watched the sunset from the highest point …
December 14, 2017
Benchmarks: January 25, 1968: The last firefall: A Yosemite tradition flames out
Fifty years ago this month, on Jan. 25, 1968, a massive bonfire built of red fir bark atop Glacier Point in Yosemite National Park was burned …
December 14, 2017
Ice (Re)Cap: January 2018
From Antarctica to the Arctic; from polar caps, permafrost and glaciers to ocean-rafted sea ice; and from burly bears to cold-loving microbes, …
December 14, 2017
Western wildfires affect water quality
Wildfires have burned increasing acreage in recent decades, a trend that’s expected to continue with global climate change. In the U.S. West, the …
December 14, 2017
Geologic Column: Celebrating Old Rock Day
Move over New Year’s: There’s a new favorite holiday in January, at least for geologists. Jan. 7 marks “Old Rock Day.” No, this is not the day to …
December 14, 2017
Impact signature in rock produced by lightning strikes
When a meteorite smashes into Earth’s rocky surface, the immense temperatures and pressures created can melt rock into glass and leave signatures …
December 14, 2017
In feats of tectonic strength, grain size matters
Plate tectonics involves some of the most powerful forces on Earth, but the lithosphere, of which the plates are made, is not infinitely strong: …
December 14, 2017
From space to village: NASA's SERVIR program brings a big picture to local communities
Life is tightly linked to weather in the Lower Mekong countries of Southeast Asia, and the weather is rarely still. In 2016, the Mekong River was …
December 14, 2017
In the lab, machine learning improves quake forecasts
The U.S. Geological Survey estimates that about 500,000 detectable earthquakes occur worldwide every year. But accurate forecasts of when quakes …
December 14, 2017
Turkey DNA reveals Mesa Verde denizens moved to New Mexico
The Mesa Verde region of southern Colorado was home to as many as 30,000 Puebloans through the middle of the 13th century, until severe drought …
December 14, 2017
Nautical charts reveal coral decline around Florida Keys
Coral reef cover is known to have decreased over the past few decades, but longer term estimates of coral cover have been difficult to …
December 14, 2017
Earthquakes shaped ancient Greek culture
In ancient Greece, earthquakes frequently shook the ground and devastated cities and temples. But time after time, people built — and rebuilt — …
December 14, 2017
Volcanism spiked global temps during past hothouse
Roughly 56 million years ago, global temperatures rose 5 degrees Celsius within a few thousand years in an event called the Paleocene-Eocene …
December 14, 2017
New Zealand quake triggers two large slow-slip events
On Nov. 14, 2016, a magnitude-7.8 earthquake struck near Kaikoura on New Zealand’s South Island, setting off a cascade of fault ruptures in the …
December 11, 2017
Geologic Column: Dams in distress
Catastrophic dam failures make news. The worst in U.S. history, the Johnstown Flood of 1889 in Pennsylvania, killed more than 2,200 people and …
December 11, 2017
Down to Earth With: Volcanologist Jess Phoenix
Field geologists usually love camping, hiking and all things outdoors. Today, Jess Phoenix is no different, but she wasn’t always that way. As a …
December 11, 2017
Comment: Making the first (and last) geoscience class count
Imagine that no one had ever taught a general education geoscience course for college students, and that you were given the job of designing such …
November 16, 2017
Travels in Geology: The geological riches of Quebec's Gaspé Peninsula
The geological and paleontological riches of Quebec’s Gaspé Peninsula have been known since 1844, when it was first explored by Sir William …
November 15, 2017
Geomedia: Gifts: Holiday Gift Guide
There’s never a shortage of geeky pop-culture merchandise and gift ideas available, but sometimes it’s hard to find clever items that are less …