Geology News
Earth Science Current Events

“A new study by scientists at Duke University and the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) finds no evidence of groundwater contamination from shale gas production in Arkansas.” Quoted from the Duke University press release.

“While 99 percent of Earth’s land ice is locked up in the Greenland and Antarctic ice sheets, the remaining ice in the world’s glaciers contributed just as much to sea rise as the two ice sheets combined from 2003 to 2009.” Quoted from the University of Colorado Boulder press release.

An article on The Guardian website reports that 97% of peer-reviewed papers support a human cause for global climate change.

The Indiana Geological Survey is helping students (and news reporters) learn about the earthquake history of Indiana and experience simulated ground shaking of up to magnitude 7.0.

Since 1972 the “Roadside Geology” series has provided introductory information on the geology of states and small regions of the United States.

The books provide a combination of maps, travel logs, photos and commentary for the geology that can be seen along highways or visited at parks and public viewing areas. They are popular with geologists, teachers, students and others who are interested in the Earth.

“Mount St. Helens seized the world’s attention in 1980 when the largest historical landslide on Earth and a powerful explosive eruption reshaped the volcano, created its distinctive crater, and dramatically modified the surrounding landscape.” Quoted from the USGS Fact Sheet titled…. Mount St. Helens, 1980 to Now—What’s Going On?

USGS has redesigned their PDF topo maps! Just released are complete map sets for Tennessee (694 maps) and Kentucky (671 maps) with more states coming soon (Alaska and Hawaii).

These maps are beautiful. If you want to see a sample we have Mammoth Cave, Kentucky unzipped and ready for you to download – but be warned that it is a really big file (30 megs) and will take quite a while to download – but well worth the wait…

If you have Adobe Reader or equivalent software, click here, get the download started, go for coffee, come back to a great map. Be sure to zoom in to see the great detail.

Today, Raha Muharraq became the first woman from Saudi Arabia to reach the summit of Mount Everest.

The UK is the largest producer of oil and the second largest producer of natural gas in the European Union; however, they still are a net importer of both of these fuels.

Research at the University of Southampton determined that the 2010 eruption of Eyjafjallajökull supplied dissolved iron to a large area of the North Atlantic. This stimulated photoplankton growth but the abundance of iron caused the rapid removal of biological nitrate which applied a throttle on the phytoplankton.

NOAA has published a Google Map that displays near-real-time coastal water temperatures in degrees Fahrenheit for hundreds of locations around the United States.

“Warmer spring temperatures since 1980 are causing an estimated 20 percent loss of snow cover across the Rocky Mountains of western North America. [...] Runoff from Rocky Mountain winter snowpack accounts for 60 to 80 percent of the annual water supply for more than 70 million people living in the western U.S.

Why Natural Gas Cars are Selling Slowly

What is Sunstone?

Natural Gas Could Kill Fuel Diversity

Large Hurricane on Saturn

Who Becomes Dominant After a Mass Extinction?

Diamond Dust over Saskatoon

The Bone Worm

The Canadian government is spending millions of dollars to rally support for the Keystone XL pipeline from US lawmakers.

Researchers have discovered evidence of life 500 meters below the seafloor of the Juan de Fuca Ridge. “They found genetic evidence of Methanosarcinales, anaerobic archaea known to metabolize methane. Further experiments showed that microbes have affected the chemical signature of sulfur in the host basalt, suggesting they could harness energy from the breakdown of sulfates.” Quoted from the Deep Carbon Observatory press release.

Exactly where the extra methane, a powerful greenhouse gas, is coming from in Los Angeles has finally been identified. [...] The research explains why the estimates of methane given off by various sources are 35 percent lower than the levels that have actually been measured in the atmosphere.

The Los Angeles Times has an article about how some invasive organisms get to the United States by hitching a ride on container ships.

Energy companies have submitted permit requests for 20 natural gas export projects. The projects will create jobs, income for natural gas companies and property owners, and improve our trade balance. Opponents believe that exports will increase prices and accelerate the landscape impact of drilling activity.

Strong winds carry plumes of dust from parts of Namibia where dry soil and a lack of vegetation allow the wind to pick up dust from the gravel-covered plains.

Researchers at Keele University are developing new methods of finding clandestine graves using geophysical methods. Some of their methods are being adopted for use in forensic cases.

NASA’s Earth Observatory has a satellite image showing how strong winds in Argentina are removing dust from inland lake beds and streaming it out over the Atlantic.

A natural gas pipeline between the Utica Shale in Ohio and natural gas consumers in Ontario, Canada has been proposed by a group of transmission companies.

2007 Eruption

“Seismic activity at Pavlof Volcano increased this morning commensurate with the presence of an intense thermal anomaly at the summit observed in latest satellite imagery. Similar patterns of seismicity and elevated surface temperatures have previously signaled the onset of eruptive activity at Pavlof. Although not yet visually confirmed, a low-level eruption of lava has likely begun from a summit vent.” Quoted from the Alaska Volcano Observatory.

A RigZone.com article explains why the natural gas from shale boom that has occurred in the United States is not making much of a bang in many other countries.

Honeybee populations have been falling rapidly as colony collapse disorder reduces the number of hives that commercial beekeepers have for pollinating essential food crops.

Carbon dioxide levels reported at Mauna Loa Observatory and several other locations are breaking the 400 PPM level. Researchers believe that carbon dioxide levels have not been this high for millions of years.

The city of Aspen has been trying to get a geothermal project off of the ground for nearly two years but drilling has not been successful.

Google now has a website that uses satellite images to document landscape changes over time. With it you can see lakes shrinking, cities expanding, glaciers retreating and mining activities advancing.

The National Weather Service has a weather site that has a variety of maps, lots of data, serves quickly and is easy to understand. Check it out and explore the site a little to discover a lot.

What happens when minute flakes of copper in a common orientation are scattered through a piece of transparent feldspar?

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