Geology News
Africa Current Events

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.

Royal Dutch Shell has made major investments in developing conventional and unconventional natural gas resources in several parts of the world, building LNG terminals to prepare it for distant markets, develop the first floating LNG facility and develop new methods to convert natural gas into liquid fuels.

Some researchers believe that Australopithecus sediba should occupy the position of the most immediate ancestor of humans.

The Association of American Geographers, the United States Geological Survey, NatureServe and The Regional Centre for Mapping of Resources for Development are major contributors to a collection of standardized terrestrial ecosystem maps for the African continent.

Russian state-controlled diamond producer, Alrosa, hopes to explore for new primary diamond deposits in Angola, Botswana and Zimbabwe.

A green meteorite found in Morocco is believed to have originated either from the planet Mercury or from an unknown body in the solar system.

“A paleontological expedition to the Tugen Hills in Kenya, led by LMU’s Professor Bettina Reichenbacher, has discovered assemblages of fossil fish at eight previously unexplored localities. “Not only is it very rare to uncover so many specimens of fossil fish, those we have found are also very well preserved,” says Reichenbacher.” Quoted from the Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München press release.

“A dust storm blew through Egypt on March 22, 2013, obscuring parts of the Nile River and the Gulf of Suez.” Quoted from the NASA Earth Observatory image release.

UPI.com reports on oil discoveries off the coast of Ghana by Hess Corporation and Tullow Oil.

Botswana has been one of the world’s leaders in the production of gem-quality diamonds but production levels are not sustainable. To diversify their mineral industry the plan is to focus on coal.

Related: What countries produce gem-quality diamonds?

“Since peak production in 1997, oil output in Gabon has declined by one-third, as large oil fields have matured. Consequently, Gabon has fallen from the third largest oil producer in Sub-Saharan Africa to the sixth.” Quoted from the Energy Information Administration.

Congo (Brazzaville), also known as the Republic of the Congo, is a mature oil producer with declining output at most of its fields; however, new offshore production in 2008 has recently revived oil output.

BP’s work in the Marte Field off the coast of Angola is the deepest offshore development in Africa at a depth of about 2,000 meters.

An article on the FuelFix.com website explores some of the security dangers faced by the people who work at oil and gas facilities in volatile parts of the world.

“Most of the oil consumed in South Africa, used mainly in the transportation sector, is imported from large producers in the Middle East and West Africa and is locally refined. South Africa also has a highly developed synthetic fuels industry, producing gasoline and diesel fuels from coal and natural gas.” Quoted from the Energy Information Administration country report.

Many energy companies would like to export natural gas as LNG from the United States to countries where market prices are much higher. However, United States manufacturers object because they fear that LNG exports will raise domestic prices.

Not mentioned in the FuelFix article are: 1) many new conventional gas discoveries in Africa, Australia, South America and Indonesia that could compete with LNG exports from the United States; 2) the enormous untapped shale gas potential in other parts of the world; and, 3) natural gas throughout the world that is currently being flared. Will LNG export terminals for United States gas make economic sense five years from now?

Angola is the second-largest oil producer in Sub-Saharan Africa behind Nigeria, and recent exploration suggests that Angola’s reserves may be larger than initially estimated. Crude oil is the primary energy export but about 350 billion cubic feet per year of natural gas is being flared.

NASA-funded researchers analyzing a small meteorite that may be the first discovered from the Martian surface or crust have found it contains 10 times more water than other Martian meteorites from unknown origins.

This new class of meteorite was found in 2011 in the Sahara Desert. Designated Northwest Africa (NWA) 7034, and nicknamed “Black Beauty,” it weighs approximately 11 ounces (320 grams). After more than a year of intensive study, a team of U.S. scientists determined the meteorite formed 2.1 billion years ago during the beginning of the most recent geologic period on Mars, known as the Amazonian.

Statoil had made three big natural gas discoveries off the coast of Tanzania this year. The company is very close to having the necessary resources to support a LNG plant for Asian export.

Anadarko and Eni reached an agreement to develop an LNG facility on the northern shore of Mozambique to export natural gas from three large discoveries in the Rovuma Basin.

Large gas discoveries with LNG plants are being developed in Africa, Asia and Australia. Will there still be a market for all of the LNG proposals brewing in the United States?

Although many groups oppose large-scale natural gas exports for a variety of reasons, a government study finds that the exports would be a net benefit to the economy.

We wonder if there is going to be an oversupply of LNG because several large LNG plants with dedicated gas fields are being built off the coasts of Africa, Australia and Indonesia – and the same shale bonanza that occurred in the United States has yet to begin in other parts of the world. US LNG could arrive late and at a transport disadvantage.

The Los Angeles Times has an interesting article about the Tissint Meteorite that broke into a number of pieces as it fell through Earth’s atmosphere over southern Morocco in June of 2011.

“Watch where you jump in for a swim or where your bath water comes from, especially if you live in Africa, Asia or South America. Snails that live in tropical freshwater in these locations are intermediaries between disease-causing parasitic worms and humans.” Quoted from the National Science Foundation press release.

Archaeologists working near Mossel Bay, South Africa have found small stone tools with an estimated age of 71,000 years. Prior to this, the earliest tools found have an age of about 65,000 years.

Related: Uses of Flint

“Nigeria is the largest oil producer in Africa and has been a member of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries since 1971. The oil industry is primarily located in the Niger Delta where it has been a source of conflict. Local groups seeking a share of the oil wealth often attack the oil infrastructure and staff, forcing companies to declare force majeure on oil shipments.” Quoted from the Energy Information Administration country report.

An article in the Los Angeles Times reports on the Tissint Meteorite that fell in Morocco on July 18, 2011.

This article explores the lack of research telescopes in the Southern Hemisphere where conditions for observations are exceptional. Hakeem Oluseyi, an astronomer at the Florida Institute of Technology believes that every country should have at least one research telescope – today only three nations in Africa have one.

This interesting article reviews some of the world’s important chokepoints for the transport of crude oil.

From the article: “Chokepoints are narrow channels along widely used global sea routes, some so narrow that restrictions are placed on the size of the vessel that can navigate through them. They are a critical part of global energy security due to the high volume of oil traded through their narrow straits.”

Archaeologists may have found the “Lost Army of Cambyses II” that perished in the Egyptian desert at about 500 BC.

Ancient pollen and charcoal preserved in deeply buried sediments in Egypt’s Nile Delta document the region’s ancient droughts and fires, including a huge drought 4,200 years ago associated with the demise of Egypt’s Old Kingdom, the era known as the pyramid-building time.