All Stories by Sid Perkins
- Earth
Estimating a temblor’s strength on the fly
New analyses of ground motions caused by large earthquakes suggest that it may be possible to estimate the full magnitude of such quakes immediately after they start rumbling.
- Earth
Beyond the ABC’s: North Atlantic posts record hurricane season
The 2005 hurricane season in the North Atlantic shattered a number of records, including several that were decades old.
- Paleontology
Mammoth Findings: Asian elephant is closest living kin
DNA studies suggest that the woolly mammoth is more closely related to the Asian elephant than to the African elephant.
- Earth
Satellite makes finest map yet of Antarctica
Using data gathered by a satellite launched almost 3 years ago, scientists have assembled the most comprehensive high-resolution map of Antarctica that's ever been made.
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Counting on technology to count elephants
Researchers now spend large amounts of time in remote areas to count and monitor the movements of large animals such as elephants, but in the future they may use seismic instruments to do the job.
- Earth
Where steel-belted radials go to die
A new technique for analyzing satellite images may enable researchers to easily identify sites where large numbers of used tires have been dumped.
- Earth
Ozone hole might not recover until the year 2065
The ozone-free zone that develops high in the atmosphere over Antarctica each summer as the result of the presence of chlorine- and bromine-containing chemicals may not heal until 15 years later than previously projected.
- Earth
Lab tests hint at where xenon hides out
Results of recent experiments in which scientists squeezed a mixture of xenon and powdered quartz at high temperatures and pressures may explain why the gas is found at relatively low concentrations in the atmosphere.
- Earth
Glacial Change: Greenland’s ice loss doubled in 2005
A host of observations suggests that Greenland's ice sheet diminished this year at a rate more than twice that seen just a few years ago.
- Earth
Changes in the Air
Changes in the atmospheric concentration of oxygen through geologic time, some gradual and some drastic, have strongly shaped evolution among many types of creatures.
- Paleontology
New View: Fossil offers novel look at an ancient bird
A newly described specimen of an ancient creature that most scientists consider the oldest known bird is posed in a way that provides new viewing angles for several body features.
- Earth
Roots of Climate: Plants’ water transport cools Amazon basin
Field tests in the Amazon have for the first time measured daily and seasonal movements of soil moisture through the deep roots of trees.
