Earth

  1. Earth

    Shelter from Space Storms: Energy rebounds from Earth

    NASA satellite observations show that Earth's outer atmosphere interacts dramatically with the solar wind and shields the planet from it.

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  2. Earth

    Honey may pose hidden toxic risk

    Many honeys may contain potentially toxic traces of potent liver-damaging compounds produced naturally by a broad range of flowering plants.

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  3. Earth

    September’s Science: Shutdown of airlines aided contrail studies

    The shutdown of commerical aviation within the United States for 3 days after Sept. 11, 2001, provided scientists with a unique opportunity to study the influence of high-flying jet aircraft on Earth's climate.

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  4. Earth

    Tornado Alley, USA

    A new model that simulates 30,000 years worth of tornadoes in the United States finds that the place not to be if you fear funnel clouds is southeastern Oklahoma, where any particular spot can expect to get damaged once every 4,000 years.

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  5. Earth

    Breath-Taking Popcorn

    To most people, the scent of hot buttered popcorn brings to mind excursions to the local movie theater for big-screen viewings or recalls quiet winter respites before a crackling fire. To those who toil in the plants that package microwave popcorn, the same smell can not only be overpowering but also signal lung dangers, according […]

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  6. Earth

    In case of temblor, run downhill

    Computer models of the ground motions measured on a shallow hill during an earthquake suggest that, in certain circumstances, the ground movements could be magnified by as much as 10 times those measured on flat areas nearby.

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  7. Earth

    Monitors get weird vibes from Antarctic

    In late 2000, seismometers on islands in the South Pacific picked up vibrations that were eventually traced to a large iceberg drifting in the Ross Sea north of Antarctica.

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  8. Earth

    Symbionts affect coral’s chemistry

    The presence of symbiotic organisms in the tiny animals that build coral reefs changes the rates at which the animals take in minerals from the water, a finding that may affect the results of many research projects that have used chemical analyses of coral remains to infer past sea-surface temperatures.

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  9. Earth

    The Silent Type: Pacific Northwest hit routinely by nonquakes

    Once every 14 months or so, portions of coastal British Columbia and northwestern Washington State experience a slow ground motion that, if released all at once, would generate an earthquake measuring more than 6 on the Richter scale.

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  10. Earth

    Smog’s ozone spawns funky carpet smells

    Strange, unpleasant odors may emanate from carpets for years due to reactions caused by exposure to smoggy air.

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  11. Earth

    Feminized Frogs: Herbicide disrupts sexual growth

    At concentrations currently found in water, the widely used weed killer atrazine hormonally strips male frogs of their masculinity and may be partly responsible for global amphibian declines.

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  12. Earth

    Motion of ice across Lake Vostok revealed

    New measurements of the movement of the Antarctic ice sheet across a lake that harbors microbial life beneath 4 kilometers of ice could help scientists determine where to drill to get the freshest samples of frozen water without contaminating the lake.

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