September 2, 2014
Shallow crust magma with a dash of salt and peperite
Magma and salt are not often paired on the menu of geology. But, occasionally, the two do mix — with surprising results. Researchers explored …
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1236 articles · Page 45 of 52
September 2, 2014
Methane lingered after Gulf blowout
Between April 20, 2010, when BP’s Macondo oil well blew out, and July 15, when the well was finally capped, more than 4 million barrels of oil …
September 2, 2014
Boron proxies detail past ocean acidification
Pockmarked plankton shells and dead coral are becoming the hallmark images of ocean acidification. But this isn’t the first time seawater has …
September 2, 2014
Climate impacting a few of our favorite foodstuffs
Less fog means trouble for Central Valley fruits and nuts Researchers have found that the number of foggy winter days in California’s …
September 2, 2014
Seeing beneath Greenland's ice
Save the handful of Vikings who settled an ice-free stretch of Greenland’s southwest coast during the Medieval Warm Period a millennia ago, few …
September 2, 2014
Of char and carbon: The story of a buried soil
The so-called Brady soil — a dark horizon up to a meter thick that underlies much of Kansas and Nebraska — is widespread but often unseen. The …
September 2, 2014
Calculating America's energy landscape
Studying the landscape-scale impact of energy development, especially renewable energies, requires working at the interface where policy, …
September 2, 2014
Benchmarks: October 10, 1913: Atlantic and Pacific waters meet in the Panama Canal
On Oct. 10, 1913, U.S. President Woodrow Wilson pressed a button in his Washington, D.C., office. At that moment, more than 6,400 kilometers …
September 2, 2014
Geologic Column: Combining art and geology in the sand
Every summer, millions of people descend on beaches, many intent on building sand sculptures — some even with the hopes of winning fame or …
September 2, 2014
Comment: Building sanctuaries to increase civilization's resilience
Asteroid impacts, supervolcano eruptions, global pandemics, nuclear war and cyberterrorism are a few examples of scenarios that could cripple or …
September 2, 2014
Energy Notes: April 2013 - 2014
U.S. Oil & Petroleum Imports (million of barrels per day) Oil and petroleum imports data are preliminary numbers taken from the American …
September 2, 2014
Mineral Resource of the Month: Vermiculite
Arnold O. Tanner, a mineral commodity specialist for the U.S. Geological Survey, compiled the following information on vermiculite, which is used …
September 2, 2014
Getting there and getting around in Tucson
Both Phoenix and Tucson are good arrival points for exploring southeastern Arizona, but it’s best to base yourself in Tucson to visit the …
September 2, 2014
Searching the stars
Thanks to its dry climate and soaring peaks, the Tucson region offers some of the best night-sky viewing in the world. Perched high in the …
August 29, 2014
Down to Earth With: Kerry Sieh
After more than 30 years as a professor and researcher at Caltech, earthquake geologist Kerry Sieh (pronounced “sea”) surprised his colleagues …
August 29, 2014
Travels in Geology: Winter sun and tectonic tales in Tucson
Late last March, seeking warm sun and a verdant landscape after a cold, snowy Colorado winter, our family headed south during the spring school …
August 29, 2014
How the Spanish invasion altered the Peruvian coast
When Francisco Pizarro landed in Peru in 1532, his band of Spanish conquistadors set off a chain of far-reaching consequences for the people and …
August 29, 2014
Santiaguito Volcano's clockwork behavior provides an exceptional laboratory
If Earth breathes, Santiaguito Volcano in the Western Highlands of Guatemala could be its mouth. Roughly every half hour, like volcanic …
August 28, 2014
Virtual water: Tracking the unseen water in goods and resources
China is a thirsty nation. Rapid economic growth and urbanization among its nearly 1.4 billion people in recent decades, as well as a growing …
August 28, 2014
Down to Earth With: Tom Malloy
Butte, Mont., is home to one of the nation’s largest Superfund sites — a 300-meter-deep lake of acidic, heavy metal-contaminated water known as …
August 22, 2014
Minimizing the risk
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, for those working in the field or living in the endemic area, it is very difficult …
August 21, 2014
Infrasound reveals lava lake levels
The rises and falls of volcanic lava lakes are not easily tracked, especially when the lakes aren’t visible from crater rims. But recently, …
August 19, 2014
All the world's glaciers in one global inventory
Earth is home to about 198,000 glaciers, which have now all been mapped. The first global inventory of alpine glaciers, including their …
August 19, 2014
New off-the-shelf aerial imaging technique trumps lidar
In recent years lidar has become the gold standard for people looking to make high-resolution aerial maps — from archaeologists studying ruins …