A large number of people are concerned about the hydraulic fracturing methods now being used to produce natural gas from shale. The Environmental Protection Agency announced that it is going to study the potential impact on human health.
Scientists can determine the occurrence of past events such as drought or wildfire by studying the rings of tree trunks. This has led to the compilation of a California climate record that spans thousands of years, thanks in part to the giant sequoia trees.
During 2009 more than 40 million people were touched by Earth Science Week through events, lessons, educator tool kits, workshops, internet coverage and many other activities. Their “Highlights & News Clippings” document gives an overview of the event and its year-long promotion.
New research shows that modern dogs’ genomes are most similar to wolves from the Middle East (as opposed to wolves from East Asia). This article discusses the evolution of the dog.
Drillers in North Dakota have been extremely successful in producing oil from newly discovered fields. However, they have not been as successful in finding ways to get the crude to market – because there is not enough pipeline capacity for all of the oil. However, if they had more refining capacity the state could become a distribution point.
Researchers are gaining a new understanding of the San Andreas Fault. Stream channels on the Carrizo Plain in southern California were used to calculate the offset of past earthquakes – yielding some surprising results.
Rex Tillerson, CEO of Exxon Mobil, says refueling stations are the big problem for the widespread use of natural gas as a vehicle fuel. But, he also says that natural gas is becoming a much more important fuel for electricity generation.
The Pennsylvania Geological Survey has an informative publication on sinkholes that provides useful information that can be applied in areas far beyond the state. It includes information about how sinkholes form, where they might occur, how to identify them, the types of problems that they cause, remediation and lots of photos.
“Hydrogen sulfide erupted along the coast of Namibia in mid-March 2010. Pale-hued waters along the shore hinted at gaseous rumblings as the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) on NASA’s Terra satellite passed overhead and captured this true-color image on March 13, 2010.” Quoted from the Earth Observatory image release.
“A new study co-authored by a University of Virginia Curry School of Education professor finds that key experiences that sparked scientists’ initial interest in the subject may come earlier than middle school, as previously reported.” Quoted from the UVA news release
Exxon Mobil now has approval from both US and Dutch regulatory agencies for its purchase of XTO Energy. The significance of this deal is the entry of Exxon Mobil into the US onshore natural gas sector.
In this video CONSOL Energy CEO, Brett Harvey, talks about the company’s purchase of natural gas assets from Dominion Resources. He seems to think highly of the potential for natural gas. A quote: “Natural Gas will be the chosen fuel.” (Consol already owns a lot of coal mines between the surface and the Marcellus Shale which create conflicting land use problems when drilling for natural gas.)
“Using data from a NASA radar that flew aboard India’s Chandrayaan-1 spacecraft, scientists have detected ice deposits near the moon’s north pole. NASA’s Mini-SAR instrument, a lightweight, synthetic aperture radar, found more than 40 small craters with water ice. The craters range in size from 1 to 9 miles (2 to15 km) in diameter. Although the total amount of ice depends on its thickness in each crater, it’s estimated there could be at least 1.3 trillion pounds (600 million metric tons) of water ice.” Quoted from the NASA release.
“The Census of Marine Life is a global network of researchers in more than 80 nations engaged in a 10-year scientific initiative to assess and explain the diversity, distribution, and abudance of life in the global ocean.” Check out their photo gallery of some of the world’s most fascinating sea creatures.
The North Anatolian Fault in Turkey has been accumulating pressure near Istanbul for over two centuries. This article from EARTH Magazine explains what could be in store for the Marmara Sea fault region.
In Bangladesh, hundreds of people have initiated a hunger strike in front of the gates of a coal mining company. They are demanding compensation for subsidence damage that occurred to their homes above the company’s mine.
In China’s Xinjiang region, desert sands have concealed a mysterious burial ground for the last 4 millennia. In Small River Cemetery # 5, hundreds of European mummies in capsized boats were found buried in the sand, with huge wooden poles set up like a forest above the graves.
America’s largest shake table is at the University of California, San Diego. This video shows different test structures being shaken about, and explains how more earthquake-resistant buildings are being designed.
“Earth Science Week 2010 (October 10-16) won’t take place for some months – so now is the perfect time to start planning your activities! Don’t wait until the hectic first weeks of the next school year.” You can start your planning by visiting the Earth Science Week website or by checking out their March newsletter. The theme for 2010 is “Exploring Energy.”
How could a 300 million-year-old amphibian get a name like “FedEx”? Because he was found on land owned by the package carrier. The rare amphibian was found near Pittsburgh by an amateur fossil hunter.
The United States currently imports most of its rare earth minerals from China. However, China may stop exporting in the near future to assure its own needs. Unfortunately, the United States has very few rare earth mineral deposits. This article at MSNBC explores the importance of rare earth minerals and who owns the known U.S. deposits.
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Hobart King
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