Earth
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Earth
A Gemstone’s Wild Ride
Diamonds may be carried to the surface in explosions of gas and rock fizzing up from deep within Earth's mantle.
By Sid Perkins -
Earth
Tree rings tell tale of megadroughts
Tree rings in ancient timber show that the Colorado Plateau experienced a 60-year drought in the 12th century.
By Sid Perkins -
Earth
Storm Center
Scientists aboard planes that flew into the cores of Katrina and other hurricanes in 2005 collected unprecedented data on the structure and development of the massive storms.
By Sid Perkins -
Earth
Trouble for forests of the northern U.S. Rockies?
Climate change over the coming decades may cause forests in northern portions of the U.S. Rockies to stop absorbing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and instead become net emitters of the gas.
By Sid Perkins -
Earth
Darker days during Arctic summer
Satellite observations indicate that Arctic regions reflected less sunlight into space in the summer of 2006 than in other recent years, a change that may exacerbate the warming of Earth's climate.
By Sid Perkins -
Earth
Dust Bowl affected midwestern climate
During the Dust Bowl of the 1930s, immense clouds of airborne soil blocked so much sunlight that much of the Great Plains region was significantly cooler than normal during summer months.
By Sid Perkins -
Earth
Age and gender affect soot’s toxic impact
Except in young females, small blood vessels in rodents lost the ability to precisely regulate blood flow after exposure to an oily constituent of diesel soot.
By Janet Raloff -
Earth
Wildfire, Walleyes, and Wine
An international panel's latest report on the impacts of climate change highlights an overlooked need: preparing for droughts, floods, heat waves, and other disasters.
By Susan Milius -
Earth
Storm Norms: Caribbean corals and sediments yield clues to hurricane frequency
The recent increase in hurricane activity in the North Atlantic, a phenomenon that some scientists blame on climate change, actually reflects a return to normal after a lull in the 1970s and 1980s.
By Sid Perkins -
Earth
Guidelines for wind farms
National policies to maximize the benefits of wind farms while lessening their environmental impacts may be needed.
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Earth
NOAA’s Virtual World
Players of the virtual reality game Second Life can now soar through a virtual hurricane, experience rising through the atmosphere atop a weather balloon, and more at the National Atmospheric Administration’s new site. Go to: http://www.esrl.noaa.gov/outreach/sl/
By Science News -
Earth
Ice Age Ends Smashingly: Did a comet blow up over eastern Canada?
An extraterrestrial object apparently exploded above Canada about 12,900 years ago, sparking devastating wildfires and triggering a millennium-long cold spell.
By Sid Perkins