Water on EARTH Magazine

Red Planet Roundup: March 2019

Wed, 13 Feb 2019 16:34:23 -0500

The pale green regions in this map of Gale Crater geology are portions of the Hummocky Plains Unit, which contains conglomerate rock strata featuring large cross beds and ridges that researchers think were formed by glacial outburst flooding. Credit: Ezat Heydari et al., GSA Meeting, November 2018.

With two rovers and a lander on the surface of Mars, six spacecraft orbiting above it, and scientists here on Earth studying the Red Planet from afar, new findings are announced often. Here are a few of the latest updates.

Some of Earth's water originated in the solar system's birth

Wed, 13 Feb 2019 15:52:20 -0500

Some of Earth's water may have originated as hydrogen in the solar nebula — the gas and dust left over after the sun's formation. Credit: NASA.

When Earth first formed, the oceans of water we know today were nowhere in sight. The long-standing consensus about where our planet’s water came from posits that it was not present during Earth’s formation and that it was later brought by chondritic materials like meteorites, asteroids and comets. But new research suggests some also came from the solar nebula — the gas and dust left over from the formation of the sun that created the planets.

Travels in Geology: Finding Florida's hidden freshwater gems

Wed, 13 Feb 2019 14:29:26 -0500

The largest of the 30 springs at Florida's Silver Springs State Park is called Mammoth, or Main, Spring. No swimming is allowed here, but visitors can view the spring from a glass-bottom boat tour. Credit: Bethany Augliere.

As a child, my family and I often traveled to Florida to escape the chilly Virginia winters and enjoy the Sunshine State’s warm sunny beaches. Occasionally, we’d make a trip to Orlando to visit one of the theme parks or stop at Everglades National Park to search for alligators, snakes and birds.

Seismic waves are blind to water

Tue, 03 Jul 2018 11:42:26 -0400

Volcanic eruptions, like those at Alaska's Redoubt Volcano, can generate seismic waves that researchers use to interpret Earth's interior. Credit: U.S. Geological Survey.

Geoscientists use the seismic waves produced by earthquakes to image the internal structure of the planet. Some seismic waves travel through liquids, while others do not, which is how we know, for instance, that Earth has a solid inner core and a liquid outer core. Scientists had thought they could use these properties of seismic waves to image the distribution of water within the planet, mainly water within the crystal structures of rocks. But in a new study, researchers reveal that may not be the case.

Lunar isotopes suggest early water on Earth

Tue, 03 Jul 2018 11:23:27 -0400

An artist's rendering of the collision that could have created the moon. Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech.

The moon is a child of catastrophe, born from a massive collision between the young proto-Earth and a Mars-sized object during the formation of the solar system. A new study looking at isotopes in both lunar and Earth rocks is refining the timing of this event and revealing new information about when Earth became a watery planet.

Diamonds reveal water in deep mantle

Tue, 05 Jun 2018 17:05:30 -0400

A new study analyzing the structural and chemical properties of diamonds from various locations in Africa and China found inclusions of ice-VII, a form of crystallized water created under very high pressure that has never before been found in nature. Credit: Marilyn Chung/Berkeley Lab.

Inclusions in diamonds often render them undesirable to consumers, but they can provide researchers with striking insights into Earth’s composition. Recently, scientists probing diamond samples for the presence of carbon dioxide stumbled instead upon inclusions of ice-VII — a type of crystallized water that forms at very high pressures, and has never before been found in nature.

"Greening" stormwater in Philadelphia

Tue, 01 May 2018 12:04:17 -0400

When environmental geologist David Wilcots joined Sci-Tek Consultants in 2014, he became involved with the Philadelphia Water Department’s Green Stormwater Infrastructure project. Sci-Tek’s goal was to redesign certain areas of the city’s urban landscape so that “less stormwater goes into the sewage system” and more goes into the ground, explains Wilcots. Doing so not only helps prevent flooding, but also lightens the load on sewage treatment plants. He manages a team of designers, data analysts and environmental scientists who are “gathering the stormwater flow data from around the city at hundreds of locations.”

Beavers preserve wetlands in water-stressed areas

Wed, 10 Jan 2018 10:44:23 -0500

Once considered detrimental to ecosystems and nuisances where, for example, dams flooded farmland, beavers have been rhetorically touted in recent years as a potential boon for wetland health and water conservation. Anecdotal accounts and qualitative findings have suggested beavers improve water quality and availability in drought-stressed ecosystems, but just how much influence they have was not known. In new research, scientists have examined two creeks in Nevada to directly measure how effective beaver dams are at slowing water flows and storing water through the dry summer months.

Red Planet Roundup: December 2017

Wed, 15 Nov 2017 14:58:41 -0500

NASA scientists produced a new map of Mars' crustal thickness based on a combined analysis of gravity and topographic data. The work suggests that the planet's crust is less dense on average and that variations in thickness between thicker (red) and thinner (blue) portions of crust are smaller than previously thought. Credit: NASA/Goddard/UMBC/MIT/E. Mazarico.

With two rovers patrolling the surface of Mars, six spacecraft orbiting above it, and scientists here on Earth studying the Red Planet from afar, new findings are announced often. Here are a few of the latest updates.

Red Planet Roundup: October 2017

Tue, 19 Sep 2017 11:45:46 -0400

A network of valleys, outlined in white, surrounds Lyot Crater in this computer-rendered illustration. New research suggests the water that carved these valleys likely melted from an ice sheet covering the area when an impact occurred. Credit: David Weiss/Brown/NASA.

Comment: A pitch to study BREW: The beer-renewable energy-water nexus

Wed, 16 Aug 2017 11:31:36 -0400

K. Cantner, AGI

Over the past few years, the food-energy-water nexus has become trendy for multidisciplinary systems-level research as it ties together three of the most critical elements of a modern society. Food security, energy security and water security are all inextricably linked, and the demand for all three is increasing. In recent years, the U.S. National Science Foundation has set aside $72 million to support research that spans these three topics. While I applaud this research path, I would like to suggest another topic that also warrants dedication from researchers: the beer-renewable energy-water nexus, or BREW. And I would further like to be the first to volunteer to personally collect field data at pubs and breweries nationwide.

Evidence of devastating drought found beneath the Dead Sea

Wed, 19 Jul 2017 11:52:18 -0400

The Dead Sea region experienced at least two droughts in the past 200,000 years that were far worse than any in recorded human history. Credit: David Shankbone, CC BY-SA 3.0.

The Dead Sea, a landlocked lake bordered by Israel, Jordan and Palestine, is nearly 10 times saltier than the ocean. And it’s getting saltier. Since the beginning of the 20th century, the water level has dropped by nearly 30 meters, largely because of diversions of the Jordan River, the lake’s primary tributary and the arid region’s main source of fresh water.

In a position to lead: How military technology and innovation can ease the world's water challenges

Fri, 14 Jul 2017 12:15:13 -0400

Water is run through a solar-powered water filtration system at Forward Operating Base (FOB) Hammer in Iraq. Credit: U.S. Army photo by Pvt. Jared Gehmann.

The U.S. military is spread across more than 500 installations worldwide, from small Forward Operating Bases (FOBs) in Afghanistan and Iraq that resemble remote villages without water treatment or sanitation infrastructure, to large domestic bases that operate like established municipalities with aging infrastructure. No matter the size or location of a particular installation, though, the military needs a lot of water.

Martian channels carved by lava, not water?

Mon, 19 Jun 2017 13:16:18 -0400

Part of Mangala Valles runs across the bottom of this image, which was taken with the High Resolution Stereo Camera aboard Mars Express in July 2015. (Note that north is to the right in the image.) Credit: ESA/DLR/FU Berlin, CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO.

A complex system of river-like channels on Mars widely thought to have been formed by flowing water could instead have been carved by a huge lava flow, according to a new study. The findings could affect our understanding of how supportive Mars might have been for life in the past.

Ceres' homemade organic materials

Wed, 17 May 2017 12:22:13 -0400

Researchers analyzing data from NASA’s Dawn spacecraft have found signs of organic compounds that arose on the surface of Ceres, a dwarf planet one-fourth the diameter of our moon in the asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter. The compounds’ origins may provide clues about how life on Earth got started.

Red Planet Roundup: April 2017

Thu, 06 Apr 2017 10:16:45 -0400

These images, taken at different times and locations, are thought to represent stages in the development of araneiform, or spider-like, terrains near Mars' south pole. Over multiple winters, an initially isolated furrow becomes increasingly dendritic as new tributaries branch off older troughs. Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/University of Arizona.

Beneath one volcano, enough water to fill Lake Superior

Thu, 16 Feb 2017 10:54:04 -0500

Beneath a Bolivian volcano called Cerro Uturuncu sits one of Earth’s largest-known magma reservoirs, the Altiplano-Puna Magma Body (APMB), which may have a volume as large as 500,000 cubic kilometers. Dissolved in the APMB magma, scientists report in a new study in Earth and Planetary Science Letters, is enough water to fill Lake Superior or Lake Huron — two of the largest lakes in the world.

Earthquake-resilient pipes aim to keep L.A.'s water flowing

Tue, 27 Dec 2016 18:13:33 -0500

Southern California is notoriously dry, and the city of Los Angeles imports its water from Northern California. But there’s a potentially disastrous hurdle to cross: The San Andreas Fault runs just north of Los Angeles, slicing across all four of the major aqueducts that deliver water to the city. In the event of a major earthquake, water supplies to 4 million people could be cut altogether. The Los Angeles Department of Water and Power (LADWP) is working to disaster-proof the aqueducts as well as the 12,000 kilometers of pipelines that run throughout the city. A recent round of testing of a new type of earthquake-resilient pipeline at a specially designed laboratory at Cornell University is reassuring the LADWP that they’re on the right track.

Celebrity climb

Tue, 27 Sep 2016 09:40:58 -0400

Located along the path to Mawenzi peak is Zebra Rock, a dark lava outcrop with white streaks of varying width formed from the leaching of overlying white calcium carbonate rocks. Credit: Zahra Hirji.

One billion people are without access to clean water today. When glacial deposits like the one atop Kilimanjaro melt away, that number will increase, some researchers say. To raise awareness about what some people are calling the global clean water crisis, a team of celebrities climbed Mount Kilimanjaro in January in the “Summit On The Summit.”

Water use soared as workers flocked to North Dakota's oilfields

Tue, 20 Sep 2016 15:13:27 -0400

Pump trucks transport water from Lake Sakakawea in North Dakota's Bakken region to oil well production sites. Credit: Rob Horner.

Amid North Dakota’s oil boom, about 24,000 temporary oilfield workers moved to Williams County — in the state’s Bakken oil shale region — between 2010 and 2012, almost doubling the area’s population. In a new study, researchers found that those workers have been responsible for the region’s skyrocketing water use almost as much as hydraulic fracturing by the oil industry itself.

Thirsty business: How the tech industry is bracing for a water-scarce future

Tue, 13 Sep 2016 09:37:37 -0400

Servers at the Facebook data center in Prineville, Ore., one of the world's most environmentally friendly data centers, use 70 percent less water than Facebook's other data centers. Credit: Facebook, Inc.

Prineville is a sleepy town nestled in the sagebrush desert between the snowy peaks of Cascade volcanoes and the rumpled hills of the Ochoco Mountains. Stunted juniper and shaggy shrubs dot the flat-topped hills that rise above the community of 9,000 people in central Oregon. A narrow ribbon of green — the Crooked River Valley — winds through the parched, buff-colored landscape. It’s striking, but not an obvious place to escape a drought.

'P' is for phosphate: Could urine solve a fertilizer shortage?

Thu, 16 Jun 2016 09:26:37 -0400

Researchers at the Rich Earth Institute are experimenting with using urine-derived fertilizer to grow crops. Here, institute researcher Abe Noe-Hays adds sanitized urine fertilizer to lettuce. Credit: Marcin Szczepanski.

Whether you’re enjoying a juicy burger from a fast-food drive-thru or digging into a brightly colored salad at a backyard barbecue, your meal likely started life on a farm. Each day, agriculture around the world produces an average of 27.3 million tons of food, enough to feed Earth’s current population of about 7.3 billion — although not all of that food reaches people.

Red Planet Roundup: May 2016

Thu, 21 Apr 2016 16:48:06 -0400

Seasonal carbon dioxide frost fills gullies amid hilly terrain in a crater on Mars' northern plains. Sublimation of the frost, rather than flowing water, may be responsible for carving the gullies. Credit: NASA/JPL/University of Arizona.

With two rovers patrolling the surface of Mars, five spacecraft orbiting above it, and scientists here on Earth studying the Red Planet from afar, new findings are announced often. Here are a few of the latest updates.

Red Planet Roundup: January 2016

Wed, 23 Dec 2015 13:47:58 -0500

The dark streaks in this false-color image, created by draping a two-dimensional photo of the Martian surface over a digital terrain model, are features called recurring slope lineae (RSL). A new study has found that RSL are created by transient flows of salty liquid water. Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/Univ. of Arizona.

Enceladus' extremely alkaline underground ocean

Mon, 02 Nov 2015 11:58:47 -0500

A diagram illustrating the possible interior of Saturn's moon Enceladus, including the ocean and plumes in the south polar region. Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech.

Saturn’s moon Enceladus is home to a vast underground ocean that erupts to the surface at the moon’s south pole in a giant plume of gas, ice and dust. Scientists studying observational data of this plume collected by the Cassini spacecraft, which has been orbiting Saturn since 2004, have recently learned more about the chemistry of Enceladus’ hidden ocean.

Red Planet Roundup: November 2015

Fri, 23 Oct 2015 11:54:42 -0400

Light-colored and silica-rich quartz and feldspar crystals appear in this dioritic rock photographed recently by Curiosity's Mars Hand Lens Imager. Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS.

Flaring our way out of a water crisis

Thu, 22 Oct 2015 13:08:39 -0400

Natural gas is flared as oil is produced in North Dakota. Credit: Tim Evanson, CC BY-SA 2.0.

In the process of providing the energy we consume, oil and gas producers around the world use large quantities of clean water, generate massive amounts of wastewater, and purposefully set ablaze a portion of their natural gas production. The volume of water is tremendous, and enough energy is “flared” to power more than 50 million U.S. homes every year. In many places in the world, the freshwater needed for such operations is scarce; and natural gas flaring releases greenhouse gases and produces light pollution. Given the recent boom in oil and gas production in the U.S., it seems that these issues may not be going away anytime soon. However, with some clever engineering, we could pit these environmental liabilities — wastewater production, overuse of freshwater and gas flaring — against one another to solve all three at once.

Northern Cyprus' "Peace Water" Pipeline

Thu, 22 Oct 2015 11:57:03 -0400

A pipeline, shown here under construction in May 2014, will bring water from Turkey to Cyprus. Credit: ©Shutterstock.com/muratart.

With its semi-arid climate and growing population, Cyprus suffers from the highest level of water stress in Europe and is ranked in the top five most water-stressed countries in the world, according to the World Resources Institute. Demand in the larger southern Republic of Cyprus is predicted to increase to 314 million cubic meters per year by 2020, up from 266 million cubic meters in 2004.

Travertine buildup reflects ancient Rome's water usage

Thu, 08 Oct 2015 10:28:56 -0400

The Anio Novus aqueduct, which now lies in ruins, once supplied Rome with copious amounts of water. Credit: Duncan Keenan-Jones.

By the third century, Rome had 11 aqueducts — engineered rivers enclosed by masonry — that supplied water to more than a million people in the metropolis, as well as to the city’s many extravagant public baths and fountains. But just how much water was being sourced from distant rivers, lakes and mountain springs has long been a mystery. Now, scientists are putting some impressive numbers to ancient Rome’s water usage based on a study of travertine deposits that built up over time in the Anio Novus aqueduct as freshwater flowed through it to the city.

Declining U.S. water use a challenge for models

Fri, 04 Sep 2015 10:56:58 -0400

In 2013, the desert city of Tucson, Ariz., delivered the same amount of water to its customers as it did in 1989, when the population was roughly 30 percent lower, thanks in part to the increasing popularity of xeriscaping and smaller pools and lawns. Credit: sonorangardensinc.com/xeriscapes-tucson.

Americans are using less water today than they have at any time since 1970, according to a report by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), which has tracked water use since 1950 and issues reports every five years.

A pair of moons with underground oceans

Mon, 06 Jul 2015 13:34:09 -0400

Interactions between deep ocean water and hot rock on Saturn's moon Enceladus are thought to result in hydrothermal plumes that erupt through the moon's icy crust. Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech.

Jupiter and Saturn are both gas giants boasting multiple moons. Now, two separate studies have identified another similarity: Each appears to have a moon with hidden underground oceans.

Geologic Column: Jack and Jill: The sequel

Mon, 08 Jun 2015 12:04:41 -0400

Cachuma Reservoir supplies about one-third of the water for Santa Barbara County. It is projected to set a new record-low volume by October. Credit: Claudia Schwab.

“Jack and Jill went up the hill to fetch a pail of water.” So begins the nursery rhyme. In California, it’s apropos, given that so much of the state’s water comes from “up the hill” — meaning the Sierras and Rockies. But due to the ongoing drought, Jack and Jill — or in this case, most of the populated and agricultural regions in the state — may have to come up with another plan.

Exoplanets could have long-lived oceans

Mon, 01 Jun 2015 10:08:42 -0400

An artist's rendition of an exoplanet named Kepler- 186f, the first Earth-sized planet confirmed to orbit within the habitable zone of its star. Credit: David A. Aguilar (CfA).

At last count, the Kepler spacecraft had identified more than 1,000 confirmed exoplanets in the Milky Way Galaxy. Some of these bodies orbit their parent stars in the so-called habitable zone, where liquid water, and thus, life, could survive. But scientists say favorable surface temperatures may not be enough to foster life. Exoplanets also need to generate and maintain liquid water at the surface, raising the question: Do exoplanets have stable oceans?

Iraq's biggest dam on unsure footing

Thu, 14 May 2015 11:42:37 -0400

Mosul Dam (left of center) impounds a large reservoir on the Tigris River and provides much of Iraq's power and water. Credit: ©Ali Haidar Khan, CC BY-SA 3.0.

The main spillway at Mosul Dam. Credit: U.S. Army photo by Staff Sgt. Brendan Stephens.

Much of Iraq’s national power grid, as well as its irrigation and municipal water supplies, depend on Mosul Dam, a large earthen structure on the Tigris River about 70 kilometers upstream from Mosul, Iraq’s third-largest city. However, the dam, constructed in the 1980s, was built upon a geologically weak foundation, raising worries about its safety.

Comet water unlike Earth's

Mon, 20 Apr 2015 10:26:32 -0400

Comet 67P as seen by the Rosetta spacecraft on Aug. 7, 2014. Credit: European Space Agency.

Scientists have long suspected that much of the water that fills our planet’s oceans may have come from asteroids or comets that collided with the early Earth. Now, recently reported data from the European Space Agency’s Rosetta mission, which landed its Philae probe on comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko in November, appears to favor an asteroid origin story for Earth’s water.

Wedge approach proposed to lower water stress

Mon, 20 Apr 2015 10:03:46 -0400

About 30 percent of the world's people live in water-stressed parts of the world, where more than 40 percent of available water resources are being used. Credit: CC0 1.0

Roughly 30 percent of the global population — or about 2.2 billion people — lives in water-stressed parts of the world, where high freshwater withdrawals endanger ecosystems, agriculture and drinking-water supplies. If current population and water usage trends persist, this fraction could rise to about one-half by the century’s end. In a recent study, researchers — taking a page from the climate-change mitigation literature — have proposed a “wedge” approach to address global water stress, laying out how various tactics could ease the growing problem.

Rome's hidden water trade led to glory, maybe ruin

Mon, 09 Mar 2015 12:07:12 -0400

Crumbling aqueducts crisscross the lands that once belonged to Rome, relics of a water system that sustained an empire. But now, research suggests that much of the water that flowed into Roman cities did not come gurgling down a conduit — it came in copious quantities of grain, imported to feed a growing population.

A dry and ravaged land: Investigating water resources in Afghanistan

Mon, 08 Dec 2014 10:15:48 -0500

A tale of three Afghanistans: Deserts, mountain streams and growing cities. Credit: top and middle: Thomas J. Mack, USGS; bottom: ©iStockphoto.com/MieAhmt.

Aside from the front-page issues of war and politics, one of Afghanistan’s most critical national needs is safe and reliable supplies of water. The United Nations estimates that Afghanistan’s current population of about 31 million will increase by nearly 80 percent by the year 2050 to approximately 56 million. Such an increase will raise demand on the country’s already stressed water resources. In addition, recent research suggests that global climate change could alter precipitation patterns in Afghanistan. In particular, both the amount and the timing of snowfall received at higher elevations could change, impacting the major source of water for many areas in Afghanistan.

November 10, 1934: Arizona declares war against California at Parker Dam

Wed, 03 Dec 2014 14:01:44 -0500

From above, tiny green irrigation circles draw a narrow buffer along the 2,300-kilometer course of the Colorado River like the brush strokes of a zoomed-in pointillist painting. These vibrant green dots stand out against the buff and ochre hues of the desert palette, a testament to the river’s life-giving waters. Less obvious are the 6.4 billion cubic meters of water that flow, or are pumped, more than 390 kilometers from the Colorado’s gorge through tunnels and canals, up and down hills, to the agricultural and population centers of Southern California each year, and the additional 3.4 billion cubic meters that gurgle toward Phoenix and central Arizona annually.

Can renewable energy and desalination tackle two problems at once?

Thu, 02 Oct 2014 13:31:03 -0400

Credit: ©Shutterstock.com/Pati Photo.

Over the past four years, a record-setting drought has impacted Texas, the second-most populous state in the U.S. The drought started in October 2010, and 2011 was the driest year on record for Texas, with an average of less than 40 centimeters of rain falling across the state. Today, more than 60 percent of the state is still experiencing some degree of drought, leaving reservoirs less than two-thirds full and impacting more than 15 million people. Stories of dry riverbeds and cities using their wastewater as a source for drinking water fill the headlines. Meanwhile, the state has continued to grow faster than all but two other parts of the U.S. (North Dakota and the District of Columbia), and electric grid operators worry about meeting demand.

Virtual water: Tracking the unseen water in goods and resources

Thu, 28 Aug 2014 13:57:57 -0400

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 taste for meat, have created an ever-growing demand for freshwater. And in the cities, industrial centers and farmlands of the more populous, more arid north, available resources — rivers, lakes and aquifers — are drying up.

Ancient seawater found in Chesapeake Bay impact crater

Fri, 18 Jul 2014 17:38:17 -0400

When the bolide struck in the Late Eocene, it shattered the bedrock, truncated aquifers and left a crater roughly twice the size of Rhode Island and nearly as deep as the Grand Canyon. The resulting structural low is likely responsible for the formation of the Chesapeake Bay.

A watery surprise from Earth's depths: Mineral provides first direct evidence for water in mantle's transition zone

Thu, 10 Jul 2014 12:58:05 -0400

This half-centimeter-wide diamond contains a speck of ringwoodite, the first known water-bearing mineral from Earth's transition zone. Credit: Graham Pearson, University of Alberta.

Studies of seismic waves traveling through Earth have long suggested that the mantle is like a layer cake, with regions of differing composition. In a layer known as the transition zone, between depths of about 410 to 660 kilometers, much of the rock is thought to be composed of pressure-squeezed variants of the common mineral olivine. One of these hypothesized forms is ringwoodite, which forms blue, cube-shaped crystals. Ringwoodite synthesized in the lab under high pressure can contain up to 2 percent water by weight, suggesting the transition zone could hold massive amounts of water. But direct evidence of this water had been nonexistent as no one had observed ringwoodite from the mantle; the only naturally occurring specimens had come from meteorites.

Mars Monthly

Mon, 23 Jun 2014 18:08:09 -0400

An ancient river channel can be seen entering Gusev Crater on Mars in the upper left of this photo mosaic. Credit: NASA/JPL/Arizona State University.

Scientists have speculated that billions of years ago Mars had a much thicker atmosphere, which warmed the surface enough to maintain large amounts of liquid water. To test that idea, researchers used data from MRO to analyze hundreds of impact craters, formed at about the same time as rocky deposits and features left behind by flowing water, in the roughly 3.6-billion-year-old Aeolis Dorsa region of Mars (near where Curiosity is currently exploring). Because incoming asteroids and meteorites are ablated, or eroded, by atmospheric friction, the thicker an atmosphere, the larger the minimum-size impactor able to reach the surface will be — and hence, the larger the minimum-size crater created will be. Based on the minimum size of the preserved craters observed, Edwin Kite of Caltech and colleagues reported in Nature Geoscience that Mars’ long-term average atmospheric pressure back then was, at most, 1 to 2 bars. This is similar to the average atmospheric pressure at Earth’s surface today (roughly 1 bar), but far lower than levels thought to be necessary to keep water from freezing billions of years ago on Mars. In a commentary also in Nature Geoscience, Sanjoy M. Som of the Blue Marble Space Institute of Science and NASA Ames wrote that the researchers “effectively rule out a long-lasting thick atmosphere.” But it is still possible, he wrote, “that transient intervals of dense atmosphere periodically permitted liquid water to flow.”

Geomedia: California's climatic catastrophes detailed in "The West Without Water"

Wed, 23 Apr 2014 14:45:55 -0400

On a drought map of California for this past winter, the colors graded from yellow to deep red, indicating drought ranging from abnormally dry to exceptionally dry. The rest of the West is also dry, but the drought epicenter is California, where in January the governor declared an emergency and called for water use reductions to delay the nearly inevitable rationing to come.

Harvesting fog could bring water to millions

Mon, 13 Jan 2014 13:17:37 -0500

Fog collectors resemble volleyball nets with tighter weaves. Standard fog collectors are getting a boost with an optimized stainless steel mesh, as shown here near Pena Blanca, Chile. Water is collected in the white plastic drum. K.C. Park

In northern Chile, as in many other parts of the world, freshwater is a limited commodity, but heavy fogs are a regular occurrence. For at least two decades, people in such areas have turned to fine mesh nets to harvest moisture from fog, but to date the nets have never been terribly efficient. Now, new research could greatly improve the nets’ efficiency, increasing the amount of water they’re able to capture.

Geologic Column: Beer's secret ingredient: geology

Wed, 20 Nov 2013 11:55:19 -0500

Geologists have a long history with beer. Earlier this year, I decided to raise my own beer appreciation to the next level and take a class on the subject. I attended the beer school at the Anheuser-Busch Brewery in St. Louis. A few minutes into the class, our instructor noted that the beer-brewing process uses clean water, which, he said, is basically the same no matter where you are. Unfortunately, that got us off on the wrong foot. As anyone in the beer business should know, water — and what’s in the water, courtesy of the geology through which it percolates — can make all the difference in an end product.

Caspian Sea: Negotiation Support System

Tue, 15 Oct 2013 10:15:40 -0400

A digitized map of the Caspian Sea used in the Negotiation Support System showing the locations of proven oil and gas deposits (green). Courtesy of Kaveh Madani

Sample outputs (optimum nautical boundaries) created by the NSS follow the stipulation that either each portion of the sea is allotted to the country to which it is physically closest (left), or that each country receives an equal areal portion (i.e., 20 percent) of the sea (right). Courtesy of Kaveh Madani

To supplement their efforts at modeling the Caspian conflict using game theory and, potentially, to aid the five littoral countries as they continue to negotiate over how to govern and apportion the sea and its resources, Kaveh Madani, a civil engineer at the University of Central Florida, and his colleagues have developed a computer model dubbed the Caspian Sea Negotiation Support System (NSS).

Gaming the system in the Caspian Sea: Can game theory solve a decades-old dispute?

Tue, 15 Oct 2013 10:00:27 -0400

Kathleen Cantner, AGI

Water-rights disputes are never easy. Whether they are over pumping from aquifers shared among adjacent landowners, allocation of resources at the municipal, county or state level, or division of a river or lake shared between neighboring countries, there is an inevitable push and pull among stakeholders over who gets what and how much. In the end, resolutions tend to be compromises — often meted out by governing authorities — which, while not ideal from any one party’s standpoint, appeal to the desire of the group for stability over strife.

The energy-water nexus: Managing water in an energy-constrained world

Thu, 13 Jun 2013 11:06:16 -0400

Global water resource availability: The majority of Earth's water is in a form that is not convenient for human use. Only about 3 percent of it is freshwater, and nearly two-thirds of that exists as ice and permanent snow cover. The vast majority of the remaining freshwater exists in groundwater aquifers, much of which cannot be practically extracted. Kathleen Cantner, AGI

Water can be tricky. With too little, crops die, industries move away, power plants fail, ecosystems suffer and people go thirsty. With too much, floods ruin infrastructure, destroy crops, spread waterborne diseases, and disrupt flows of clean water, wastewater, power and transportation. We want water at the right time and in the right place because moving and storing water require effort. We also want it at the right quality and the right temperature. Saline water, brackish water and polluted water are abundant but costly to treat. Water that’s too warm won’t cool power plants effectively and can damage ecosystems, while water that’s too cold can burst pipes and damage infrastructure.

Sun provides water to the moon?

Sun, 14 Oct 2012 17:48:20 -0400

The moon passes in front of the sun. New research suggests solar wind may be responsible for water on the moon. NASA

Until recently, the consensus in the scientific community was that the moon was bone-dry. Scientists thought that the massive impact responsible for the moon’s creation would have driven away the hydrogen needed to form water. In the past four years, however, that view has melted away. The first suggestion of water was in 2008, when researchers identified the presence of water in volcanic lunar glass. In 2009, satellites orbiting high above the moon identified water on its surface. Also in 2009, in a moment of spectacular showmanship, NASA crashed a spacecraft into the south pole of the moon, liberating large quantities of water from ice. Determining the source of lunar water is the new frontier. Now, new research on microscopic grains of lunar glass suggests that much of the lunar surface is rich with water, and that the water comes from the sun.

Neutralizing the rain: After much success in the battle against acid rain, challenges remain

Wed, 20 Jun 2012 14:17:43 -0400

Hundreds of ponds and lakes in the Adirondacks, such as Blue Mountain Lake, once were devoid of life. Now they are being restocked, and so far, the fish are surviving. Copyright Mwanner, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported

Each of the 250 national and international stations must meet the same criteria to eliminate collection bias. Surrounding vegetation must be lower than 0.6 meters, which means the collectors sometimes must be placed on platforms, such as this one located in Northern California. National Atmospheric Deposition Program

Precipitation collections are analyzed each week at the National Atmospheric Deposition Program lab in Illinois. Scientists have been collecting data since 1978. National Atmospheric Deposition Program

Ecosystems are not the only things impacted by acid rain. Buildings and statues also show telltale acid rain damage. Copyright Nino Barbieri, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported

Every Tuesday at 9 a.m., Dave Warner collects water from a white plastic 3.5-gallon tub that sits on a strip of tall grass between two cornfields at the University of Nebraska Agricultural Research and Development Center near Mead, Neb. For more than 30 years, the bucket has collected all forms of precipitation — from hail to rain to snow — to be analyzed for nitric and sulfur oxides, the main components of acid rain.

'The Big Necessity' Reclaiming feces

Thu, 05 Jan 2012 06:41:58 -0500

'The Big Necessity,' a new book by freelance journalist Rose George, was released on Oct. 14. Courtesy of Metropolitan Books

Displays like this from the German Toilet Organization attempt to raise awareness about the importance of human waste management. Courtesy of the German Toilet Organization

In her new book, "The Big Necessity: The Unmentionable World of Human Waste and Why It Matters," freelance journalist Rose George argues that experts and citizens alike must overcome their aversion to all things fecal — or else face one of the most serious public health risks on the planet. If handled properly, George says, waste water can even be reclaimed as potable water. Recently, EARTH contributor Brian Fisher Johnson talked with George about her book, which was released on Oct. 14.

Afghanistan's mineral wealth

Thu, 05 Jan 2012 06:41:58 -0500

Blogging on EARTH

On Monday, a spokesman for Afghanistan's President Hamid Karzai, Waheed Omar, told reporters that the USGS survey of Afghanistan's mineral resources found they are worth about $1 trillion. And on Wednesday, USGS will host a press conference in which scientists will discuss water issues in Afghanistan.

All that glitters... Acid mine drainage: The toxic legacy of gold mining in South Africa

Thu, 05 Jan 2012 06:41:58 -0500

Acid mine drainage coats the hippos at Hippo Dam at the Krugersdorp Game Reserve. © Stephan du Toit, 2011

Mining communities in the Witwatersrand goldfields are often built near, or on top of, tailings piles that contain uranium dust. © Stephan du Toit, 2011

Pumps at the Grootvlei Mine in South Africa's Easter Basin before pumping ceased in early 2011. South African Water Research Commission

In 1947, in a dolomite cave 50 kilometers northwest of Johannesburg, South Africa, anthropologist Robert Broom discovered a 2.05-millionyear- old adult australopithecine skull, one of the oldest and most important hominid fossils ever found. The caves of the Sterkfontein Valley have since produced a treasure trove of australopithecine fossils along with evidence of the early use of stone tools and fire, prompting UNESCO in 1999 to name it the Cradle of Humankind World Heritage Site. For 2 million years, the site has preserved evidence of human origins and evolution — but the activities of modern humans are now threatening its existence.

Beads of water on the moon

Thu, 05 Jan 2012 06:41:58 -0500

Scientists used these small volcanic glass beads to determine that the moon's mantle once held water (and possibly still does). NASA

During the Apollo missions, NASA astronauts shoveled, bagged and sent back to Earth close to 400 kilograms of lunar rocks and soil. But researchers studying these samples never found water. Now, after decades of coming up dry, scientists have found evidence that the moon’s interior once held — and perhaps still holds — water.

Biophysical economics: The Mississippi Delta as a lens for global issues

Thu, 05 Jan 2012 06:41:58 -0500

U.S. Geological Survey

Torbjorn Tornqvist

With a global economic slowdown and growing environmental concerns, it is worthwhile to take a look at the future and think about how we can better manage development relative to society, natural ecosystems, climate and energy. These global issues can be viewed through the lens of the Mississippi Delta.

Blogging on Earth: Driveway sealants add PAHs to environment

Thu, 05 Jan 2012 06:41:58 -0500

Pavement dust with coal-tar-based sealant has PAH concentrations hundreds to thousands of times higher than dust from pavement with no sealant or asphalt-based sealant. USGS

Winter is hard on asphalt: Water that seeps into tiny cracks freezes and expands, breaking the asphalt apart. That’s why homeowners and business owners across the U.S. use sealants to protect their driveways and parking lots.

Clearing roadways: A little salt goes a long way

Thu, 05 Jan 2012 06:41:58 -0500

In the 'Snow Roadeo,' snowplow and truck drivers maneuver through an obstacle course, and are judged for safety, accuracy and efficiency. Courtesy of the APWA Western Snow and Ice Conference

Snow removal in Lake Ann, Mich. Bill Kelso

Although winter in the Northern Hemisphere does not technically begin for another month, snowfalls and icy conditions are already making driving hazardous. When winter weather strikes, most states spread salt to clear roadways. However, more and more studies are showing that salt has lasting environmental repercussions, which may force a winter roadway maintenance overhaul. But if not salt, then what?

Dry dock to wet tap: Old ships become floating desalination plants

Thu, 05 Jan 2012 06:41:58 -0500

Last year’s hurricane season was not kind to Haiti. First, tropical storms Fay, Gustav and Hanna hit the Caribbean nation; then Hurricane Ike pummeled the island, flooding much of the country, wrecking roads and bridges and leaving Haitians desperate for food, water and other basics. To help the battered country, the United States sent hundreds of metric tons of supplies and hygiene kits aboard the aircraft carrier USS Kearsarge. The Navy deployed helicopters, landing craft and personnel to help local residents. And they brought in thousands of gallons of freshwater.

Endangered snow: how climate change threatens West Coast water supplies

Thu, 05 Jan 2012 06:41:58 -0500

Natural Resources Conservation Service employees conduct a snow survey near Mount Hood in Oregon. Photo by Ron Nichols, USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service

The Bonneville Dam sits on the Columbia River between Oregon and Washington. Changes in snowpack could affect hydropower generation throughout the Pacific Northwest. Photo by Ron Nichols, USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service

Portland receives much of its water from the Bull Run River Watershed, near Mount Hood. Cacophony, Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported

If you turn the tap on in Seattle, the water flowing from the faucet likely originated as a clump of snow. In winter, snowflakes fall in the Cascades, accumulating in thick snowpack. The snowpack stores water in winter and slowly releases it in spring and summer as temperatures warm and snow melts. As snowmelt flows down the mountains, some of it is diverted and collected in reservoirs — destined to arrive in the homes of more than 1 million people.

Finding water in the heart of darkness: Afghanistan's ongoing water challenges

Thu, 05 Jan 2012 06:41:58 -0500

Locals cross a stream in Faryab Province in northern Afghanistan. Kristin Enstad

Fieldwork in Afghanistan is not like most geology fieldwork. “When I landed, the first thing I had to do was to put on a bulletproof vest,” says Tom Mack. He was part of a U.S. Geological Survey team that evaluated water resources in the Kabul Basin, in the north-central part of eastern Afghanistan, a couple of years ago. “It was strange to wear the vest, but eventually you get used to it.” There was a lot to get used to, he says. No matter where Mack went, he had to get special permission to be there. His team also always had to travel with a special security team in a reinforced vehicle mainly limited to the city of Kabul.

Geoscientists Without Borders: Geologists Lend a Hand

Thu, 05 Jan 2012 06:41:58 -0500

Seismic profiling in Chiang Mai, Thailand. Boise State University - Geoscientists _Without_ Borders

Boise State University student Eric Rothwell collects sediment cores in northern Thailand. Spencer Wood

Rothwell and Chiang Mai University student Tharaporn Bundarnsin collect magnetic data at an archaeological site in northern Thailand. Spencer Wood

Craig Beasley’s one-year term as president of the Society for Exploration Geophysicists had a challenging start. After about two months in office, a magnitude-9-plus earthquake struck off the coast of Sumatra on Dec. 26, 2004, triggering a powerful tsunami that killed more than 225,000 people and left hundreds of thousands homeless.

Getting a master's in social geology

Thu, 05 Jan 2012 06:41:58 -0500

Guatemalan teachers and John Lyons (left) conduct a workshop on earthquakes prior to conducting the first school-wide earthquake drill in locals schools near Fuego volcano. Courtesy of John Lyons

Peace Corps Master's International students Julie Herrick (left) and Karinne Knutsen and advisor Bill Rose (far right) examine an andesite lava flow from Volcán Baru in Panama. Courtesy of Julie Herrick

Jesse Silverman and several locals plant citaria grass as an erosion barrier in Tectitán, Guatemala. Courtesy of Jesse Silverman

York Lewis works with students in El Salvador to create a world map mural. Courtesy of York Lewis

At first glance, it seems like an obvious solution to a problem: Villagers need vegetables and an aid organization has money to buy tools and seeds. Striving to create a sustainable program, the aid organization develops a training plan to teach the villagers how to garden, invests in local workshops, and purchases tools to distribute to the participants. All plans seem in order and the project is poised for success. However, the project’s managers encounter the first of potentially many obstacles when they realize that shovels are impossible to use if you don’t have shoes.

GSA meeting: Water, water everywhere ... creating some to drink

Thu, 05 Jan 2012 06:41:58 -0500

HOUSTON – The Geological Society of America’s joint meeting kicked off Sunday, beginning a week filled with thousands of presentations on soil science, atmospheric science, education and evolution, paleontological discoveries, energy issues and Hurricanes Gustav and Ike — made particularly poignant by the Houston, Texas, setting.

Gustav and the rising waters

Thu, 05 Jan 2012 06:41:58 -0500

Hurricane Gustav slams into the U.S. Gulf Coast. NOAA

Right now, Hurricane Gustav is lashing the Gulf Coast with its Category-2 (177 kph/110-mph) winds. Around 11 a.m. this morning, the hurricane made landfall, slamming into the coast about 110 kilometers to the southwest of New Orleans instead of driving straight into the city.

How oil and water helped the U.S. win World War II

Thu, 05 Jan 2012 06:41:58 -0500

U.S. Navy Douglas SBD-5 Dauntless dive bombers over aircraft carrier USS Enterprise after strikes against Palau in March 1944. U.S. Navy

The Spindletop oil discovery in eastern Texas in 1901. Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division

World War II U.S. Gen. Omar Bradley is often cited as the originator of the famous military quote: “Amateurs study tactics, professionals study logistics.” Irrespective of its origins, the adage holds true for most extended conflicts — and World War II is no exception. Managing logistics for the production, movement and consumption of energy was one of the critical determinants of success during the war.

Impossible Odds, Irrepressible Hope: Pakistan's water woes and the science that can solve them

Thu, 05 Jan 2012 06:41:58 -0500

U.S. Geological Survey researchers work with Pakistani researchers to collect water samples. Courtesy of Ingrid Verstraeten, USGS

A water researcher examines water dyed from cotton production in Faisalabad, Pakistan. Courtesy of Ingrid Verstraeten, USGS

Pakistani and USGS scientists reviewing sampling techniques near Islamabad. Courtesy of Ingrid Verstraeten, USGS

At a demonstration farm near Islamabad, researchers work to improve irrigation efficiency. Courtesy of Ingrid Verstraeten, USGS

Most residents of developed countries don’t think about their water running out or worry about their water leading to the death of their children. In Pakistan, those are distinct possibilities.

June 9, 1938: Huang He Diversion: Largest Act of Environmental Warfare in History

Thu, 05 Jan 2012 06:41:58 -0500

The Huang He (Yellow River) has been called “China’s Sorrow.” The name pays tribute to the millions killed by the river’s churning, muddy waters in a long history of dramatic diversions and massive floods. One of the most notable recent events in the river’s troubled history occurred in June 1938, when the Nationalist Chinese Army diverted the river to block invading Japanese troops. In both number of deaths and geographic scale, this event was the largest act of environmental warfare in modern history.

Lack of water threatens "Garden of Eden"

Thu, 05 Jan 2012 06:41:58 -0500

Iraq's marshes in 2003. Today, the marshes are drying up due to a drought and competition over limited water supplies. Hassan Janali, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers

A two-year drought and competition over limited water supplies threaten Iraq's marshes, including this one pictured here in December 2008. University of Basrah, courtesy of Dr. Hussain

A two-year drought and competition over limited water supplies threatens Iraq's marshes, including this one pictured here in 2008. Note the dike in the background. University of Basrah, courtesy of Dr. Hussain

Since the downfall of Saddam Hussein in 2003, Iraqis and scientists from around the world have been working hard to restore Iraq’s once-lush marshes. But after several years of measurable improvement, drought and competition over limited water supplies threaten to reverse this progress. Those working on the marshes are confident that the marshes can come back — but whether the people who rely on these wetlands for their livelihood will be as resilient remains to be seen.

Mapping safer drinking water

Thu, 05 Jan 2012 06:41:58 -0500

Warmer colors represent a higher risk of arsenic-contaminated groundwater, while blues represent low-risk areas. Winkel L., Berg M., Amini M., Hug S.J., Johnson C.A., Nature Geoscience 1, 536-542 (2008)

Beginning in the 1970s, international aid agencies dug hundreds of thousands of wells in Bangladesh to help people access clean drinking water. The effort curbed diarrheal diseases, but it led to a new problem: arsenic poisoning.

Mars' ice is pure, not dirty

Thu, 05 Jan 2012 06:41:58 -0500

Blogging on EARTH

Finding signs of water on Mars feels nearly old hat by now. We know Mars had a lot more water in its past, has polar ice deposits and even has a kind of water cycle, driven by the formation of water-ice clouds in the Martian atmosphere. Scientists have also found signs of "dirty ice" — a 50-50 mix of ice and soil — revealed to be lurking beneath the upper layers of Martian soil by the impacts of meteorites. So when the Phoenix lander recently discovered pure water ice in the subsurface, that was exciting — but it was still thought to be an anomaly.

Mining for iron oxides in coal mine sludge

Thu, 05 Jan 2012 06:41:58 -0500

A young miner in Pittston, Pa., in 1911. Over the past 200 years, miners have extracted billions of tons of coal in Pennsylvania, but drainage from abandoned mines has left the waterways polluted. Library of Congress

Large settling ponds aerate mine discharge, allowing dissolved iron to oxidize. Over time, iron oxide settles to the bottom and the clear water flow out. Courtesy of Method Media

These troughs spread and slow the water's flow, giving it time for chemical reactions to occur and for the iron oxide to settle to the bottom. Courtesy of Method Media

A passive treatment system at the abandoned Marchand mine in Pennsylvania reduces the water's iron, turning its color from bright orange to clear, as shown here. Bob Hedin

The billions of tons of coal that miners extracted from Pennsylvania’s ground over the past two centuries have long gone up in smoke, but their legacy lives on in the state’s rivers and waterways. Nasty discharge — often with sky-high metal concentrations — from thousands of abandoned coal mines has been polluting Pennsylvania’s streams and groundwater.

Mississippi Delta drowning

Thu, 05 Jan 2012 06:41:58 -0500

What researchers predict the delta may look like in 2100. Courtesy of M. Blum, original image from NASA's GeoCover Data

Mississippi River Delta in 2000. Courtesy of M. Blum, original image from NASA's GeoCover Data

The Mississippi River Delta is arguably the most geologically (and politically) dynamic delta in the United States. Subsidence, sedimentation, sea-level change and human manipulation constantly alter the landscape at the end of North America’s longest river. But now, researchers say, the beloved delta may be irrevocably shrinking.

Moon much wetter than thought

Thu, 05 Jan 2012 06:41:58 -0500

The moon isn’t quite the bone-dry place scientists once thought; instead, its surface is covered in water, according to a landmark finding announced by scientists at NASA today. Teams from three different NASA missions — the Moon Mineralogy Mapper (M3) mission that launched with the Indian Chandrayaan-1 satellite currently in orbit around the moon, the Deep Impact mission and the Cassini mission — pooled their data to confirm a finding that M3 principal investigator Carle Pieters said was “completely conclusive.”

NASA's LCROSS crashes on the moon

Thu, 05 Jan 2012 06:41:58 -0500

The first LCROSS rocket nears impact while the second spacecraft follows. NASA

LCROSS enroute to the moon. NASA

Blogging on EARTH

Usually, NASA hopes its space probes land safely at their destinations. This morning, the agency was planning for a big explosion on the moon — all in the hopes of confirming the presence of water on our nearest neighbor.

Raindrop study splashes old assumptions

Thu, 05 Jan 2012 06:41:58 -0500

Wikimedia Commons

Predicting the weather has been central to human civilization since the Babylonians started studying cloud patterns in 650 B.C. The key to weather predictions is making correct assumptions. Today, instruments like Doppler radar that measure rainfall work under the assumption that raindrops fall at their terminal velocity. A new study, however, shows that some raindrops fall faster than they should, indicating rainfall instruments — and by extension, weather forecasts — may need some tweaking.

Rebuilding Afghanistan

Thu, 05 Jan 2012 06:41:58 -0500

Locals cross a stream in Faryab Province in northern Afghanistan. Kristin Enstad

Ravaged by war, drought and natural hazards such as earthquakes and landslides, Afghanistan’s people face many challenges. But the country also has untapped resources — great natural beauty , deep supplies of groundwater and a vast mineral wealth, including coal, gems like emeralds and metals like copper and iron.

Rewriting rivers: What it means for river restoration

Thu, 05 Jan 2012 06:41:58 -0500

Great Seneca Creek in Germantown, Md., looking upriver from the remnants of Black Rock Mill. The floodplain shows the typical forest-stabilized landscape that emerged after the milldam removal. Christopher M. Keane

The remnants of the milldam for Black Rock Mill on Great Seneca Creek in Germantown, Md., are only visible through residual riffle. Christopher M. Keane

A millstone commonly used in the mid-Atlantic region of the U.S. Christopher M. Keane

A meandering stream near Seneca Creek in Maryland. Christopher M. Keane

Black Rock Mill along Seneca Creek, as seen today. Christopher M. Keane

The mill race that was blasted out of the bedrock connected the millpond to Black Rock Mill itself. Christopher M. Keane

Clopper Mill, a saw- and gristmill, was erected in the early 18th century. Courtesy of Frank Ierardi

Like many rivers in the mid-Atlantic, Seneca Creek hosted numerous mills and their dams for more than a century, including Clopper Mill. Courtesy of Frank Ierardi

A milldam on the West Branch of the Little Conestoga River in Lancaster County, Pa., circa 1919. Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection

Dorothy Merritts surveys along a streambank in Watkin's Mill Park on Great Seneca Creek in Montgomery County, Md. Robert Walter

Mike Rahnis holds a stadia rod by a streambank on Mountain Creek in Cumberland County, Pa. Robert Walter

In 1702, Francis Chadsey and his family bought 200 hectares of meadow and upland on the banks of the Brandywine Creek in southeastern Pennsylvania. Within a year, he built a mill for grinding wheat, oats and barley. Like other landowners in the region, Chadsey also built a small dam on the creek. He most likely used local stone to erect the 2.5- to 3.5-meter-high structure, behind which a small pond sprang up. From the pond, a conduit carried water that spilled over a wheel to produce power to run the mill.

Saving Energy and Water Through Superior Sanitation

Thu, 05 Jan 2012 06:41:58 -0500

A Clivus Multrum waterless toilet. Courtesy of Clivus Multrum

The Solaire, an apartment building in lower Manhattan, has a wastewater treatment plant in the basement. Creative Image

Recycled wastewater from Manhattan's Solaire apartment building is used in air conditioning, toilets and irrigation. American Water

Gillette Stadium, home of the New England Patriots, has its own water recycling plant. The recycled water is used to flush toilets. American Water

Have you ever thought about using your urine to fertilize your tomatoes and cucumbers? Full of nutrients like phosphorus, potassium and nitrogen, urine can work wonders in your garden. How about composting your feces — packed with rich organic matter just waiting to be decomposed — to help your rose bushes and oak trees grow? If you don’t use feces for composting, then it could be a source of natural gas and hydrogen for use as an alternative energy supply. Or perhaps you would be more comfortable with the thought of reusing the water you wash your clothes in to flush your toilets?

Science and soccer: They're both child's play

Thu, 05 Jan 2012 06:41:58 -0500

Claire studies water samples in the UCSC laboratory. Jim Metzner

Collecting runoff samples from a turf field... 2009 by Deanna Hodgin

...and from a grass field. 2009 by Deanna Hodgin

It’s late in the afternoon, and by now, 9-year-old Claire Dworsky has already answered questions like mine many times over. But, when I approach the crowd of people standing by her poster at the American Geophysical Union’s (AGU) annual meeting in San Francisco, Calif., she jumps up from her chair and politely gives me her full attention. I ask her to explain her project, and she launches into her explanation, never turning to look at the poster behind her for backup, or at the adults nearby who are watching her with pride. Dressed in a red soccer uniform and fidgeting just a bit — it has been a long day — she outlines why she chose this project, which examines the water quality of artificial turf and natural grass soccer fields.

Sea sprawl: Into the blue frontier of ocean development

Thu, 05 Jan 2012 06:41:58 -0500

Picture it: Dozens of kilometers off the coast of Texas, a giant polygon-shaped cage constructed of steel ribs and mesh netting floats 30 or so meters beneath the waves. The cage, moored to the seafloor, is filled with tens of thousands of teeming, silvery fish. Several kilometers away, offshore wind turbines sprout from the sea surface in a curving line, their spindly white arms churning the atmosphere. Still farther along the horizon, a massive oil platform squats heavily on four stumpy legs over its parcel of ocean, pipes plunging 11 kilometers into deep reservoirs within the seafloor. In the open waters between these industries, tankers and commercial fishermen follow snaking shipping lanes that lead them toward the coast.

Strategies to meet our water and energy needs: Insight from a Texas "Treemap"

Thu, 05 Jan 2012 06:41:58 -0500

Texas, divided into 16 Regional Water Planning Areas, colored according to water availability in 2010 (minimum is greener, maximum is pinker). Planners use these to construct 'treemaps,' visual models to compare water and energy data. Data sources: Texas Water Development Board, Water for Texas, 2007 and Stillwell et al., Energy-Water Nexus in Texas, 2009

"This is our generation’s Sputnik moment," declared President Barack Obama in the 2011 State of the Union address, challenging the nation to pursue a future of cleaner energy.

Thirsty Cities: Water management in a changing environment

Thu, 05 Jan 2012 06:41:58 -0500

The lush green backyard of a Beaufort, S.C., manor. Water is not usually a big concern in the southeastern United States. Nate Burgess, AGI

A member of SWAT (Save Water Atlanta Team) conducts a water meter investigation. City of Atlanta Department of Watershed Management

A 1930s advertisement on a streetcar in Denver, Colo. Water has been a concern in Denver since the town was founded. Denver Water

A Denver Water employee conducts an irrigation audit. Denver Water

Filled recharge basin in Tucson in January 2009. Lisa Song

A dry recharge basin in Tucson, Ariz., in March 2009. Tucson collects water in these basins for future use. Lisa Song

On a clear day in November 2007, the governor of Georgia held an unusual public vigil. Before the doors of his state capitol, Gov. Sonny Perdue bowed his head, took his wife’s hand and prayed for rain.

Toxic tide

Thu, 05 Jan 2012 06:41:58 -0500

A scanning electron microscope image of _Karenia brevis_, the algae responsible for producing red tides in the Gulf of Mexico, and a computer model of brevetoxin that highlights the two reactive sites that bind DNA. Courtesy of John Ramsdell, photo by Karen Steidinger

Algae blooms called red tides lend the water a reddish tint. NOAA

In the Gulf of Mexico lurk menacing masses of single-celled organisms known as red tides. Scientists have long known that the potent toxin they produce can kill fish and birds, wreak havoc on the human nervous system and cause wheezing, sneezing and asthma flare-ups. But new research suggests that it can also damage DNA, which could lead to more subtle, longer-term health consequences.

Travels in Geology: Chesapeake Bay, from impact craters to executive orders

Thu, 05 Jan 2012 06:41:58 -0500

NASA's Landsat satellite mosaic of the Chesapeake Bay. NASA

Sharps Island lighthouse, in Chesapeake Bay, is partially submerged. Skip Willits

Scenic and fragile, tidal wetlands are a crucial part of the Chesapeake Bay ecology. Copyright January 2006 Jennifer Schmidt.

The lower part of the Chesapeake Bay offers more than crab cakes and boating. Today, the bay is central to one of country’s largest environmental campaigns. But an excursion around the Virginian coasts provides an amazing peek into the mid-Atlantic region’s rich geological, environmental and cultural history, spanning impact events, glaciation, early colonial settlements and modern struggles with pollution and rising sea level.

Venus' gentler, Earth-like past

Thu, 05 Jan 2012 06:41:58 -0500

Using infrared 'windows' in Venus' atmosphere - narrow bands in the atmospheric spectrum - the Venus Express spacecraft can see through the planet's thick cloud cover to study the land surface. ESA-AOES Medialab

Today, the surface of Venus is a hellhole, seared by scorching temperatures, crushing pressures and a toxic atmosphere of carbon dioxide with occasional clouds of sulfuric acid. But evidence is mounting that billions of years ago, Earth’s evil twin planet was a much more pleasant place — a second blue marble covered by water. The latest data come from the European Space Agency’s Venus Express spacecraft, which has spent three years constructing a detailed map of the surface of the planet’s southern hemisphere and finding new evidence for Earth-like plate tectonics and a watery past.

West Virginia Coal: Dirty water, dirtier politics - but will there be a cleaner future?

Thu, 05 Jan 2012 06:41:58 -0500

Glade Creek in Raleigh County, W.Va., has not been impacted by mining. Mary Caperton Morton

Reclaimed mountaintop mine areas are put to a variety of uses. Engineering Consulting Services, Inc.

Coal has always been king in West Virginia. For more than 250 years, the mining industry has ruled the Mountain State, sometimes running roughshod over worker’s rights, public safety and West Virginia’s mountain ecosystems in the push for higher yields. Coal mining is not without its benefits: West Virginia’s mines produce 15 percent of our country’s coal and half of our coal exports. And the industry provides 40,000 jobs and contributes $3.5 billion to the Mountain State’s economy. Now with U.S. energy demands increasing and oil and natural gas prices soaring, coal’s proponents are calling for even more vigorous mining of West Virginia’s remaining estimated 52 billion tons of recoverable coal. But the energy crisis isn’t the only trend influencing the coal industry. Mining pollution is also garnering widespread attention, and new regulations are forcing mining companies to strike a better balance between protecting the environment and increasing yields.