Ukraine Shale Gas
May 15, 2012 | Reuters
Royal Dutch Shell and Chevron may receive rights to develop shale gas fields in Ukraine. The country currently imports most of its natural gas from Russia. |
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North Sakhalin Basin Oil and Gas
May 7, 2012 | USGS
“Using a geology-based assessment methodology, the U.S. Geological Survey estimated volumes of undiscovered, technically recoverable, conventional petroleum resources for the North Sakhalin Basin Province of Russia. The mean volumes were estimated at 5.3 billion barrels of crude oil, 43.8 trillion cubic feet of natural gas, and 0.8 billion barrels of natural gas liquids.” |
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91% of 2011 Uranium Consumption was Imported
May 3, 2012 | Energy Information Administration
Civilian nuclear power plant owners in the United States purchased 55 million pounds U3O8e in 2011 at an average price of $55.64 per pound U3O8e. Foreign-origin uranium accounted for 91% of the purchases and was sourced mainly from Kazakhstan, Russia, Uzbekistan, Brazil, China, Malawi, Namibia, Niger, South Africa, and Ukraine. Prices were up sharply. |
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Oldest Worm Burrows
April 23, 2012 | ScienceNews.org
The oldest worm burrow trace fossils have been found in shallow marine rocks that are 550 million years old in central Siberia. |
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$2 Billion in Marine Treasure?
March 5, 2012 | The Sydney Morning Herald
Marine treasure hunters claim to have located the SS Port Nicholson, a Britsh ship that was torpedoed by a German submarine in 1942. It was carrying over $2 billion in precious metals and industrial diamonds. |
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Oil and Gas: South Siberian Craton
March 5, 2012 | USGS
“Using a geology-based assessment methodology, the U.S. Geological Survey estimated volumes of undiscovered, technically recoverable, conventional petroleum resources for the southern Siberian craton provinces of Russia.” Quoted from the USGS publication release.
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Pyroclastic Flow on Shiveluch Volcano
February 28, 2012 | NASA Earth Observatory
“Dark volcanic debris mars the otherwise pristine lower flanks of Shiveluch Volcano in this false-color satellite image. The debris traveled about 10 kilometers (6 miles) from Shiveluch’s growing lava dome. Rock falls and pyroclastic flows (avalanches of hot volcanic material) are common at Shiveluch, due to the steep sides and unstable rock of the growing dome.” Quoted from the Earth Observatory image release. |
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Oil and Natural Gas in the Arctic
February 13, 2012 |
The area above the Arctic Circle is underlain by sedimentary basins and continental shelves that hold enormous oil and natural gas resources. The United States Geological Survey estimates that the Arctic contains approximately 13 percent of the world’s undiscovered conventional oil resources and about 30 percent of its undiscovered conventional natural gas resources. |
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Links Between Asians and the Earliest Native Americans
February 1, 2012 | University of Pennsylvania
“A tiny mountainous region in southern Siberia may have been the genetic source of the earliest Native Americans, according to new research by a University of Pennsylvania-led team of anthropologists.” Quoted from the NSF press release. |
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Eruption at Kizimen Continues
January 16, 2012 | Earth Observatory
NASA’s Earth Observatory has a new satellite image of the eruption of Kizimen Volcano on Russia’s Kamchatka peninsula. It shows a gas-steam plume and lava flow on the eastern flank of the mountain. |
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Russian Runoff and Arctic Ocean Salinity
January 4, 2012 | NASA
“A new NASA and University of Washington study allays concerns that melting Arctic sea ice could be increasing the amount of freshwater in the Arctic enough to have an impact on the global ocean conveyor belt’ that redistributes heat around our planet.” Quoted from the NASA press release.
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Snow on Erupting Kizimen Volcano
January 4, 2012 | Earth Observatory
Kizimen Volcano on Russia’s Kamchatka Peninsula has been erupting since November 2010. Earth Observatory has a satellite image of the volcano showing ash-covered snow, a lava flow and steam plumes from the summit and a fumarole. |
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Selenga River – Largest River into Lake Baikal
December 21, 2011 | Geology.com
The Selenga is the primary contributor of water to Lake Baikal and its tributaries drain approximately 80 percent of the lake’s watershed. |
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Russian Platform Capsizes Near Sakhalin
December 18, 2011 | Washington Post
Russia’s Kolskaya drilling platform capsized while being towed during a storm through icy waters near Sakhalin Island off of Russia’s east coast. |
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Russian Satellite Falling Out of Orbit
December 18, 2011 | LA Times
A Russian satellite is falling out of orbit after a mission to Phobos, a moon of Mars failed last month. It is one of the heaviest satellites ever launched and is expected to reenter Earth’s atmosphere in early January. |
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Which Countries Produce the Most Diamonds?
December 13, 2011 | Geology.com
Botswana, Russia, Canada and Angola continue as the world’s leading producers of gem-quality diamonds.
Data from USGS Mineral Commodity Summary
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Should the US Ratify the Law of the Sea Treaty?
November 8, 2011 | Wall Street Journal
The Law of the Sea Treaty is an agreement that allocates the seafloor resources under the Arctic Ocean. A debate in the Wall Street Journal has arguments in favor and against.
Related article: Who Owns the Arctic? |
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Russia’s Diamond Resources and Markets
October 25, 2011 | Frost & Sullivan
Frost & Sullivan has published a review of Russian diamond resources and markets. Russia is the world’s leading producer of rough diamonds. |
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Oil Exploration in the Arctic
October 19, 2011 | FuelFix.com
An article on the FuelFix.com website describes some of the current activity, ideas and plans related to oil exploration on the Arctic continental shelves. |
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Fog Fills the Lake Baikal Basin
September 27, 2011 | Earth Observatory
“When cold air flows over warm water, some surface water evaporates into the cold air and saturates it, raising its relative humidity to 100 percent. The phenomenon is alternately known as evaporation fog, steam fog, even sea smoke, explains Michael Pidwirny of the University of British Columbia.
On September 22, 2011, fog formed over Lake Baikal in southeastern Siberia. [...] The fog almost perfectly mimics the lake’s area, only thinning at the southwestern end, and leaving a few parts of the water surface fog-free.” Quoted from the NASA image release. |
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Kizimen Volcano Before and After a Year of Activity
September 14, 2011 | Earth Observatory
“A prominent lava flow descends the eastern flank of Kamchatka’s Kizimen Volcano in this false-color satellite image acquired on September 4, 2011. An image of the peak from September 6, 2009, shows the extent of the changes that have occurred since Kizimen began erupting in late 2010.” Quoted from the Earth Observatory image release.
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The Largest Recorded Meteorite Fall
September 13, 2011 | MeteoriteBlog
“The February, 1947 fall of the Sikhote-Alin iron in a remote part of eastern Siberia was, by far, the largest recorded meteorite event in history.” Quoted from MeteoriteBlog.org. (great photos!)
Related: What are Meteorites? |
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Mining in Antarctica?
September 12, 2011 | Mining Australia
Russia and China are very interested in the mineral resources of Antarctica and hope that the current ban on mining will be lifted in 2048. They currently have seafloor exploration projects on ocean ridges that approach the continent. |
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Russia Opens Gas Pipeline to Germany
September 9, 2011 | BBC
Russia has opened the Nord Stream Baltic gas pipeline that will transport natural gas under the Baltic Sea to Germany. |
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Mapping Space Junk
September 3, 2011 | NASA
NASA has a small collection of computer-generated images that represent “maps” of objects in Earth orbit that are currently being tracked. Nearly all of the objects are orbital debris and not functional satellites. The image here is an oblique view of Earth showing a large number of mostly Russian objects in high-inclination orbit. |
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Exxon Mobil to Drill the Russian Arctic
August 31, 2011 | New York Times
Exxon Mobil has reached an agreement with Rosneft, the Russian state oil company, to explore for oil in the Russian Arctic. As part of the deal, Rosneft will receive assets from Exxon which include deepwater drilling rights in the Gulf of Mexico and onshore rights in Texas.
Related: Who owns the Arctic? |
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Northwest Passage and Northern Sea Route: Viable for Shipping?
August 29, 2011 | Alaska Dispatch
Climate change is opening the Northwest Passage and Northern Sea Route but one question remails: will Russia and Canada have enough interest and resources to develop the infrastructure needed to make them viable shipping routes? |
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Thawing Permafrost Could Accelerate Climate Change by 2100
August 26, 2011 | Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory
“The study also found that soil in high-latitude regions could shift from being a sink to a source of carbon dioxide by the end of the 21st century as the soil warms in response to climate change.” Quoted from the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory news release. |
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Russia: Well-Preserved Baby Mammoth Discovered
August 22, 2011 | MSNBC
A reindeer herder discovered a well-preserved baby mammoth in the Russian Arctic. This find is similar to the baby mammoth named “Lyuba” which was found in the permafrost of the same region in 2007. |
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Australia’s Claim to the Australian Antarctic Territory
August 12, 2011 | AFP
Australia currently has a claim to the Australian Antarctic Territory, covering 42% of Antarctica. However, an influential thinktank believes that their claim is in jeopardy because they have limited presence and capabilities there. At the same time Russia and China are increasing their Antarctic capabilities. The energy and mineral resource potential of the Australian Antarctic Territory is believed to be significant. |
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Thick Ash Plume from Shiveluch Volcano, Kamchatka
August 7, 2011 | Earth Observatory
Five volcanoes on the Kamchatka Peninsula are either erupting or showing signs of impending eruption. In this image a thick plume of ash streams from a lava dome on Shiveluch Volcano.
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Northern Sea Route Connects Atlantic and Pacific Oceans
August 5, 2011 | Reuters
Russia’s climate agency said that ice cover in the Arctic Ocean has melted over 50% more than average allowing commercial shipping through the Northern Sea Route that connects the Atlantic Ocean with the Pacific along the Siberian coastline. Sovcomflot is transporting cargoes of natural gas concentrate on the route. |
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Central Banks Purchasing Tonnes of Gold
August 4, 2011 | Reuters
An article on the Reuters website reports that central banks around the world have purchased about 180 tonnes of gold during 2011 – while gold prices are setting all-time records. Thailand, Mexico, Russia and Korea have been very aggressive gold buyers. |
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Coal from the South Gobi Desert
July 5, 2011 | AFP @ Google
Peabody Energy, a US company, will be working with a Chinese company and a Russian company to develop the Tavan Tolgoi coal deposits in the south Gobi Desert of Mongolia. The Tavan Tolgoi is one of the largest coal deposits in the world. |
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