Heat and Cold Damage Coral in Different Ways
February 9, 2012 | UC San Diego
“Around the world coral reefs are facing threats brought by climate change and dramatic shifts in sea temperatures. While warming has been the primary focus for scientists and ocean policy managers, cold can also cause significant damage.” Quoted from the NSF press release. |
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Mapping Undersea Gas Seeps
October 11, 2011 | University of New Hampshire
“A technology commonly used to map the bottom of the deep ocean can also detect gas seeps in the water column.” Quoted from the University of New Hampshire news release. |
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Earthquake and Tsunami Hazards of the Caribbean
October 7, 2011 | USGS
“Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands are located at an active plate boundary between the North American plate and the northeast corner of the Caribbean plate. Plate movements there have caused large magnitude earthquakes and devastating tsunamis, but scientists have so far failed to explain the deformation of this complex region in a coherent and predictable picture, and this has hampered their ability to assess the seismic and tsunami hazards.” Quoted from the USGS website.
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World Bank: Landslide Mitigation Project in Jamaica
September 26, 2011 | Jamaica Observer
The World Bank is spending over $2 million on a landslide risk reduction project for several communities in Jamaica. |
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Hurricane Irene Hits the Bahamas
August 24, 2011 | National Hurricane Center
From the National Hurricane Center…
“THE CORE OF IRENE WILL MOVE ACROSS THE SOUTHEASTERN AND CENTRAL BAHAMAS TODAY AND OVER THE NORTHWESTERN BAHAMAS ON THURSDAY. [...] IRENE IS A CATEGORY TWO HURRICANE ON THE SAFFIR-SIMPSON SCALE. STRENGTHENING IS FORECAST…AND IRENE WILL LIKELY BECOME A MAJOR HURRICANE LATER TODAY. [...] AN EXTREMELY DANGEROUS STORM SURGE WILL RAISE WATER LEVELS BY AS MUCH AS 7 TO 11 FEET ABOVE NORMAL TIDE LEVELS OVER THE CENTRAL AND NORTHWESTERN BAHAMAS…AND BY AS MUCH AS 5 TO 8 FEET ABOVE NORMAL TIDE LEVELS OVER THE SOUTHEASTERN BAHAMAS AND THE TURKS AND CAICOS ISLANDS. NEAR THE COAST…THE SURGE WILL BE ACCOMPANIED BY LARGE AND DANGEROUS WAVES.” |
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Hurricane Irene – Category Two and Strengthening
August 22, 2011 | National Weather Service
Hurricane Irene is moving along the northern coast of the Dominican Republic. The National Weather Service reports:
“IRENE IS A CATEGORY TWO HURRICANE ON THE SAFFIR-SIMPSON SCALE. ADDITIONAL STRENGTHENING IS FORECAST DURING THE NEXT 48 HOURS…AND IRENE COULD BECOME A MAJOR HURRICANE ON TUESDAY.” |
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Hurricane Irene – Up to 20 Inches of Rain
August 22, 2011 | National Hurricane Center
Hurricane Irene is expected to drop heavy rain on the Caribbean area today and reach Florida later this week. The National Hurricane Center forecast from Monday morning includes:
“RAINFALL…IRENE IS EXPECTED TO PRODUCE TOTAL RAINFALL ACCUMULATIONS OF 5 TO 10 INCHES ACROSS PUERTO RICO…THE VIRGIN ISLANDS…THE DOMINICAN REPUBLIC…HAITI…THE SOUTHEASTERN BAHAMAS AND THE TURKS AND CAICOS ISLANDS. ISOLATED MAXIMUM AMOUNTS OF UP TO 20 INCHES ARE POSSIBLE. THESE RAINS COULD CAUSE LIFE-THREATENING FLASH FLOODS AND MUD SLIDES IN AREAS OF STEEP TERRAIN.” |
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Big Mountains and Faults at Slow-Spreading Mid-Ocean Ridges
August 15, 2011 | NOAA Ocean Explorer
“Mid-ocean ridges are the topographic manifestation of where the Earth’s tectonic plates separate and spread apart and new oceanic crust is created. The Mid-Cayman Rise is an example of one of these ridges and forms part of the boundary between the North American and Caribbean tectonic plates.” Quoted from the Ocean Explorer website.
Profiles of Mt Dent on west of the Mid-Cayman Spreading Center (red) and Mt Everest (yellow) shown at the same scale. Mt Dent is clearly a big (undersea) mountain. |
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Today’s Tides are Quite Different than Ancient Tides
August 4, 2011 | Oregon State University
“The ebb and flow of the ocean tides, generally thought to be one of the most predictable forces on Earth, are actually quite variable over long time periods, in ways that have not been adequately accounted for in most evaluations of prehistoric sea level changes.” Quoted from the Oregon State University news release. |
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Soufriere Hills Dome Collapse Deposits
April 27, 2011 | AGU Blogosphere / Magma Cum Laude
Jessica Ball has posted a collection of interesting photos that illustrate deposits from the 2010 dome collapse at Soufriere Hills volcano. |
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Caribbean: Oil and Gas Analysis
April 5, 2011 | Energy Information Administration
“Although most Caribbean countries are energy importers, the Caribbean has important centers for oil refining and storage, and Trinidad and Tobago is one of the largest LNG exporters in the world.” Quoted from the Energy Information Administration regional analysis brief. |
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Corals as Climate Recorders
March 9, 2011 | USGS
The U.S. Geological Survey Coral Reef Ecosystem Studies Project is analyzing corals from various sites in the Caribbean region, Dry Tortugas National Park, Biscayne National Park, other areas of the Florida Keys, and the Virgin Islands. The objective of this project is to develop records of past environmental change to better our understanding of climate variability. The records are being used to document changes over the last few centuries and to determine how corals and coral reefs have responded to any changes. |
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Jamaica’s Energy Dilema
January 18, 2011 | The Gleaner
Growing energy demand in Jamaica has the island nation rushing to find short term solutions. Coal, oil and LNG can fill demand quickly but renewable sources are more attractive from an environmental perspective. This article explores positive and negative sides of different energy strategies. |
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Bahamas Platform: Tidal Flats and Tidal Channels
January 2, 2011 |
Earth Observatory has a spectacular astronaut photo of tidal flats and tidal channels on the Bahamas Platform. The Bahamas is one of Earth best examples of a carbonate environment where the sediments that might eventually form limestone are deposited.
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