Climate Spurs Bristlecone Pine Growth
November 20, 2009 | University of Arizona
Higher temperatures in recent decades have encouraged the growth of bristlecone pines along the tree line in California and Nevada. Since the ancient pines preserve growth records in their rings, researchers can tell that rapid growth like this has not occurred in thousands of years. This article links to a slideshow from the NSF with further information.
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Video: Regulating Big-Screen TVs
November 17, 2009 | MSNBC
As the popularity of the big-screen TV rises, their collective energy consumption is increasing. Should regulations be placed on television sets to make them more efficient?
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UCDavis Image
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Stalagmite Data and Climate Change
November 17, 2009 | UCDavis
“California experienced centuries-long droughts in the past 20,000 years that coincided with the thawing of ice caps in the Arctic, according to a new study by UC Davis doctoral student Jessica Oster and geology professor Isabel Montañez.” Quoted from the UCDavis press release.
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Frictional Behavior of San Andreas Fault Materials
November 9, 2009 | San Andreas Fault Observatory at Depth
Researchers with the San Andreas Fault Observatory at Depth project are testing the frictional behavior of materials that are known to be in contact along the fault to determine their role in the earthquake mechanics of the fault zone.
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Can Changes in Air Pressure Trigger Landslides?
November 2, 2009 | Nature.com
An article on the Nature.com website reports that USGS researches have linked motion in the Slumgullion landslide of California with changes in air pressure known as “air tides”.
Related: Landslide Hazard Fact Sheet
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Smallest Dinosaur in North America
October 29, 2009 | National History Museum of Los Angeles County
This .pdf from the National History Museum of Los Angeles County announces the unveiling of Fruitadens haagarorum. Found in the Morrison Formation of Colorado, it is the smallest dinosaur discovered in North America to date. Weighing slightly less than a kilogram (2 pounds), the creature was quick and nimble, and possibly had an omnivorous diet.
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Trying to Understand California Landslides
October 25, 2009 | New York Times
A New York Times article reports on how USGS and others are trying to understand landslides in areas burned by California wildfires.
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The New California Gold Rush
October 25, 2009 | SFGate.com
“Gold mining permits, or claims, on file with the U.S. Bureau of Land Management for California have shot from 15,606 in 2005 to 23,974 this year.” Quoted from the SFGate article.
Article: The Many Uses of Gold
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October 17, 1989 Earthquake: Are We Better Prepared Today?
October 17, 2009 | Time.com
On October 17, 1989 a 6.9-magnitude earthquake struck the San Francisco area. It killed 63 people and caused over $6 billion in property damage. It was the largest earthquake to occur on the San Andreas fault since the great San Francisco earthquake of April 1906. This article at Time.com asks if the Bay area is better prepared for an earthquake today.
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Who Buys Earthquake Insurance?
October 12, 2009 | Mercury News
An article on the Mercury News website reports that many people in California do not buy earthquake insurance. They don’t buy it for a variety of reasons. Some think that their homeowners insurance provides coverage (it usually doesn’t) while others think that it is too expensive or just take a chance on going without it.
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California Hydroelectric Dams To Be Removed
October 6, 2009 | LA TImes
Four PacifiCorp hydroelectric dams on the Klamath River will be decommissioned. Environmentalists are pleased because the dams reduced water quality and salmon will be able to swim upstream to their historic spawning areas.
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California Board for Geologists and Geophysicists Abolished
October 4, 2009 | Arizona Geology
California Assembly Bill No. 20, 4th Extraordinary Session will abolish the Board for Geologists and Geophysicists effective October 23, 2009. More details and references at Arizona Geology Blog.
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Mount Soledad Landslide Suit Settled
October 2, 2009 | 10News.com
San Diego homeowners sued city government because they claimed a water leak from city lines caused the slide. A story on the 10News.com website explains why the judge ruled in favor of the city.
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Can a Large Earthquake Trigger Global Seismic Activity?
October 1, 2009 | Rice University
Researchers at Rice University have evidence that the world’s largest earthquakes can weaken fault zones worldwide and trigger periods of increased global seismic activity.
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Another Yosemite Rockfall
October 1, 2009 | Mercury News
A rockfall in the Curry Village area of Yosemite National Park caused a lot of dust but fortunately did not cause injuries.
Related: Spectacular Yosemite rockfall photo sequence from 2006 by Herb Dunn.

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Urban Wind Power in San Francisco?
October 1, 2009 | SFGate.com
An article at SFGate explores the possibilities of producing wind power in the city of San Francisco. On a light note the article also includes a proposal to harness the “hot air” in city hall.
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Electric Utilities Are Nervous About Building More Coal Plants
September 29, 2009 | New York Times
Fearing potential problems with carbon legislation electric companies in the southwest states such as Arizona, Nevada and southern California are looking harder at renewable sources of electricity instead of coal.
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Station Fire Burn Area Satellite Image
September 22, 2009 | NASA Earth Observatory
This image from NASA’s Earth Observatory shows the burn scar of California’s Station Fire as an irregular patch of reddish-brown in contrast to the urban street pattern of the city of Los Angeles below the burn area.

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Interesting Petroglyph Photos
September 11, 2009 | Geology.com
Petroglyphs, sometimes known as “rock art,” are images cut into or scribed onto a stone surface by people. They are often produced as a form or art or communication. This photo gallery features petroglyphs from worldwide locations including: Arizona, British Columbia, California, Chile, Hawaii, India, Mexico, Namibia, Nevada, New Mexico, Norway, Ontario, Russia, Spain, Sweden, Utah, Virgin Islands, Washington.
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Station Fire Burn Area
September 10, 2009 | Earth Observatory
The Station Fire, north of Los Angeles, is the ninth largest fire in California since 1933 – it burned more than 250 square miles (about 650 square kilometers). This NASA Earth Observatory image, captured on September 6, shows the extent of the burned area. The false-color image shows burned areas in black, plants as dark red, and urban areas as blue and white.
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California Subsidence Study
September 7, 2009 | USGS
USGS will be using “the latest satellite tracking data to gain a better understanding of how land subsidence is affecting the state-owned California Aqueduct in California’s San Joaquin Valley.”
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Station Fire Satellite Images
September 7, 2009 | Earth Observatory
Earth Observatory has an interesting satellite image pair of an area within the Station Fire, which burned near Los Angeles. A true-color image shows a smoke covered landscape but the false-color image combines shortwave-infrared light, near-infrared light, and green light to reveal burn scars, burn fronts and hotspots.

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Hurricane Jimena Approaches Baja
September 1, 2009 | National Hurricane Center
Hurricane Jimena is approaching the Baja California Peninsula as a dangerous Category four hurricane. It is expected to weaken slightly as it approaches landfall.
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Hurricane Jimena Satellite Image
September 1, 2009 | Earth Observatory
Earth Observatory has a satellite image of Hurricane Jimena as it was heading west-northwest toward Mexico’s Baja Peninsula on August 30, 2009.
The image shows a well developed “eye” and clouds from the storm stretching out over a several hundred kilometer radius.
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Los Angeles Fires Satellite Image
September 1, 2009 | Earth Observatory
Earth Observatory has a satellite image of wildfires burning north of Los Angeles on August 29, 2009. The Station Fire has burned over 35,000 acres and destroyed several residences. The Morris Fire has burned over 2000 acres.

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Hurricane Jimena Track Map
August 31, 2009 | National Hurricane Information Center
Early in the day on Tuesday Hurricane Jimena is expected to make landfall on the west side of the Baja Peninsula. The National Hurricane Information Center calls Jimena “an extremely dangerous category four hurricane“.
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Mount Wilson Observatory
August 31, 2009 | LA Times
An article on the LA Times websites presents some history about the Mount Wilson Observatory near Pasadena, California. There Edwin Hubble discovered that the universe is much larger than anyone ever imagined and that it is expanding.
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Station Fire Map and WebCams
August 30, 2009 | Google Maps Mania
Google Maps Mania has links to several websites related to California’s Station Fire. Three link to maps that detail the extent of the fire, the third links to the WebCams Travel site where you can see images from the Mount Wilson and Altadena stations.
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Station Fire at La Canada Flintridge
August 30, 2009 | Los Angeles Times
The Los Angeles Times has a photo gallery with some spectacular scenes from the Station Fire at La Cañada Flintridge which has burned over 20,000 acres north of Los Angeles.
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Benitoite Field Trip
August 28, 2009 | Great Basin Minerals
Benitoite is the state gemstone of California and a nice tiny crystal can be worth a lot of money. Scott Kleine of Great Basin Minerals shares some of his photos from a Benitoite fee mining trip.
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