Geography News

November 7, 2016

Great Pacific Garbage Patch Worse Than Expected

My Contribution to Arctic Sea Ice Melt

Enormous Dome in Andes Driven by Magma Below

58% Decline in Global Wildlife Populations

Latest Headlines

updated 4:57pm EST

New Understanding of Rip Currents Could Help to Save Lives

Nov. 7, 2016 — A new link between breaking waves and the hazard posed by rip currents has been uncovered by a new study. The research could result in more lives being saved, ... read more

2016 Ties With 2007 for Second Lowest Arctic Sea Ice Minimum

Sep. 15, 2016 — The Arctic's ice cover appears to have reached its minimum extent on September 10, 2016, according to scientists. Arctic sea ice extent on that day stood at 4.14 million ... read more

'Tug of War' Keeps Scientists Working on Storm Tracks

Sep. 2, 2016 — A new analysis finds that human-induced climate change complicates projecting the future position ... read more

3-D Elevation Maps of Alaska for Released for White House Arctic Initiative

Sep. 1, 2016 — Less than one year after President Barack Obama announced a White House Arctic Initiative that included better mapping of the area, a team of researchers has released the ... read more

'Anthropocene': Potential New Geological Time Interval

Aug. 29, 2016 — The Working Group on the 'Anthropocene' (AWG) will provide its summary of evidence and its provisional recommendations on a potential new geological time ... read more

'Ecosystem Canaries' Provide Early Warning Signs of Catastrophic Changes to Ecosystems

Aug. 18, 2016 — 'Ecosystem canaries' can provide early warning signals of large, potentially catastrophic, changes or tipping points in ... read more

Will Temperature Extremes Increase in Northeast Asia?

Nov. 3, 2016 — Scientists are examining the drivers and physical processes behind abrupt summer warming and changes in temperature extremes over Northeast Asia since ... read more

Yesterday's Silk Road Could Be Tomorrow's Environmental Superhighway

Nov. 4, 2016 — While China is building a gigantic modern-day upgrade of the famed ancient Silk Road resplendent in global cooperation in the name of economic expansion, a group of ... read more

Bioluminescence Breakthrough in the Arctic

Nov. 2, 2016 — 100 feet below the surface of the ocean is a critical depth for ecological activity in the Arctic polar night -- a period of near continuous winter darkness. There, ... read more

Algal Fat Opens Window to Past Arctic Temperatures

Nov. 4, 2016 — A new paper uses alkenones from the Svalbard islands and is among the first studies that present Arctic summer temperature change over the period from the end of the last Ice ... read more

World's Largest Marine Park to Be Created in Antarctic Ocean

Deal Reached on Antarctic Sanctuary

U.S. Hopeful It Can Win Russia's Agreement on Antarctic Ocean Deal

The "Ocean Warrior", Sea Shepherd's New Weapon Against Whalers

Soil Could Become a Significant Source of Carbon Dioxide

Nov. 3, 2016 — If people continue using and changing the land over the next century in the same way they currently do, soils will have limited potential to counter the effect of climate change and will become a net ... read more

Crack Discovered in Earth's Magnetic Shield

Nov. 3, 2016 — The GRAPES-3 muon telescope recorded a burst of galactic cosmic rays of about 20 GeV, on 22 June 2015 lasting for two hours. The burst occurred when a giant cloud of plasma ejected from the solar ... read more

Global Hot Spot Maps Link Consumers With Impacts

Nov. 3, 2016 — A new model creates global hot spot maps to illuminate how what we buy pollutes the planet and where. The idea is to help governments, industries and individuals target areas for ... read more

Safe Navigation Through the Northwest Passage

Nov. 3, 2016 — The Northwest Passage is becoming navigable for longer periods of the year. Ship traffic, however, still bears hazardous risks. A German-Canadian research team wants to change that: it is conducting ... read more

Simulation Brings Global 100% Renewable Electricity System Alive for the First Time

Nov. 3, 2016 — A new model shows how an electricity system mainly based on solar and wind works in all regions of the world. It shows the functioning of an electricity system that fulfils the targets set by the ... read more

New, Space-Based View of Human-Made Carbon Dioxide

Nov. 1, 2016 — Scientists have produced the first global maps of human emissions of carbon dioxide ever made solely from satellite observations of the greenhouse gas. The maps, based on data from NASA's ... read more

Losing Its Cool: Will Ice Melt Heat Up Naval Operations in Arctic Ocean?

Nov. 1, 2016 — As diminishing sea ice in the Arctic Ocean expands navigable waters, scientists have traveled to the region to study the changing environment—and provide new tools to help the U.S. Navy operate in ... read more

West Coast Record Low Snowpack in 2015 Influenced by High Temperatures

Nov. 1, 2016 — The western-most region of the continental United States set records for low snowpack levels in 2015 and scientists, through a new study, point the finger at high temperatures, not the low ... read more

Carbon Levy Could Limit Impact of Climate Change, Study Suggests

Nov. 1, 2016 — A decades-old tax system may offer an economical solution to the problem of catastrophic climate change, according to a new study. A consumer tax levy on fossil fuels could provide a means of ... read more

Cloudy Feedback on Global Warming

Nov. 1, 2016 — Researchers have identified a mechanism that causes low clouds – and their influence on Earth’s energy balance – to respond differently to global warming depending on their spatial pattern and ... read more

See How Arctic Sea Ice Is Losing Its Bulwark Against Warming Summers

Oct. 28, 2016 — Arctic sea ice, the vast sheath of frozen seawater floating on the Arctic Ocean and its neighboring seas, has been hit with a double whammy over the past decades: as its extent shrunk, the oldest and ... read more

Early Pacific Seafarers Likely Latched Onto El Nino, Other Climate Patterns

Oct. 28, 2016 — Researchers employed computer simulations and climatic data to help them explore the travels that led to the settlement of islands in Remote ... read more

Conundrum of Missing Iron in Oxygen Minimum Zones Solved

Oct. 28, 2016 — Iron is an essential nutrient for biological productivity in the oceans. However, dissolved iron quickly combines with oxygen and is then no longer usable by organisms. For a long time it has been a ... read more

Microplastics in Agricultural Soils: A Reason to Worry?

Oct. 28, 2016 — Microplastics are increasingly seen as an environmental problem of global proportions. While the focus to date has been on microplastics in the ocean and their effects on marine life, microplastics ... read more

Discovery of 'Lost' Early Satellite Data to Aid Understanding of the Earth's Climate

Oct. 27, 2016 — Serendipity, expertise, foresight and the equivalent of an Earth observation data archaeological dig have led to recovery of almost-40-year-old satellite imagery - thought lost forever - which will ... read more

Strong Link Between Atmospheric Forcing, Deep Convection, Ocean Ventilation and Anthropogenic Carbon Sequestration

Oct. 27, 2016 — Based on a unique dataset collected during a research cruise to the Irminger Sea in April 2015, a new article reveals a strong link between atmospheric forcing, deep convection, ocean ventilation and ... read more

Arctic Found to Play Unexpectedly Large Role in Removing Nitrogen

Oct. 26, 2016 — Areas of the Arctic play a larger role than previously thought in the global nitrogen cycle—the process responsible for keeping a critical element necessary for life flowing between the atmosphere, ... read more

Indirect Effects of Rising Carbon Dioxide Levels on Ecosystems More Important Than Previously Thought

Oct. 26, 2016 — The indirect effects of rising atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO2) levels, such as changes in soil moisture and plant structure, can have a bigger impact on ecosystems than previously thought ... read more

Extreme Cold Winters Fuelled by Jet Stream and Climate Change

Oct. 26, 2016 — Scientists agree for first time that climate change may be intensifying the effects of the jet stream, causing extreme cold weather in the UK and US. Their study could improve long-term forecasting ... read more