Sierra Club Threatens To Sue Coal-Fired Power Plants
May 10 | Arizona Geology
The Sierra Club is not satisfied with the environmental protection measures of coal-fired power plants in seven states. The Club’s most recent effort targets plants in Arizona, Georgia, Kentucky, North Carolina, Texas, Missouri and Wyoming for failing to include adequate pollution controls for mercury and other toxics.
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North Carolina Tornado
May 9 | CNN News
There are news reports of tornadoes in North Carolina on Thursday evening and Friday morning. One person is reported killed and others injured. High winds caused significant damage to homes, cars, airport facilities and utility lines.
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Emeralds Found in North Carolina
March 31 | The-Vug.com
DId you know that emeralds have been mined in North Carolina? How about Hiddenite? The-Vug.com has photos of the North Carolina Emerald/Hiddenite exhibit from the Tucson Gem and Mineral Show. You will be surprised at the size of some of these specimens.
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Wolfpack in Antarctica Blog
March 13 | Wolfpack in Antarctica Blog
Students and faculty from North Carolina State University are doing environmental field work in Antarctica. They have been posting lots of photos and short reports about their work and experience on their “Wolfpack in Antarctica” blog. They have been posting since January and their trip ends on March 17th.
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North Carolina Has Extremely Low Streamflows
September 11 | USGS Newsroom
From the article: “The lowest average August streamflow in 110 years of record was recorded on the Tar River at Tarboro. The lowest average August streamflow on record was measured at 12 other monitoring stations in the state, with 9 of those sites located in central North Carolina, 2 sites in the coastal plain, and 2 sites in the mountains. All of these sites have at least 35 years of record, and most of the sites have more than 50 years of record.”
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Tropical Storm Gabrielle Predicted Path
September 8 | National Hurrican Center
Tropical Storm Gabrielle is moving towards the coast of North Carolina. It’s outer bands are over the Outer Banks and its center could arrive there on Sunday afternoon. Tropical Storm warnings are in effect for the entire North Carolina coastline and the southeastern coast of Virginia.
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Piranha Caught in Catawba River
July 6 | MSNBC
A fisherman caught a one pound, four ounce piranha in North Carolina’s Catawba River. Piranhas are carnivorous freshwater fish that you don’t want to swim or wade with. They are native to South America and should not be found in the Catawba or any other United States river. Biologists believe that the fish was kept as a pet and then later released when it was no longer wanted. Releasing “exotic species” into the wild is irresponsible and can have adverse impacts on local species and environments.
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Cape Hatteras Threatened by Hurricanes
June 4 | WRAL
Beach erosion will wipe out extensive parts of the Cape Hatteras area the next time a large hurricane strikes. A Katrina-size storm could wash away 75% of the North Carolina Outer Banks. When Hurricane Isabel struck the Outer Banks in 2003, the Category 2 hurricane’s 8-foot storm surge and waves removed a stretch of Hatteras Island a third of a mile wide. Imagine what a Category 5 storm could do with 25-foot waves. (Includes a video about the 1999 lighthouse move.)
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Judges Go to Science Class
May 5 | Topix
Judges from across the southeast gathered at the University of North Carolina to learn about science topics of relevance to their court decisions. The explosion of forensic evidence has given science an important and increasingly common presence in the courts. The docket was heavy with topics related to medicine and genetics. Cheers for these judges, almost all of whom have undergraduate majors outside of the sciences!
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Google Earth
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Free High Resolution Satellite Images - Google Earth
Promotion | Geology.com
Google Earth is a free download that will allow you to view recent satellite images of Earth in 3D. Worldwide coverage. Fly over landscapes and cities, or zoom in on your house! This is the same program used by national news networks to give you great satellite images. Free download.
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