Preserving options: Short-term action required to avoid long-term climate damage
...ilizing the concentration of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere at 450 parts per million, with a corresponding inc...large amount of the carbon dioxide pumped into the atmosphere is reabsorbed and rendered harmless by forests and other natural systems. Rapid cutbacks in emission...The greening of the North: real, and caused by climate change
...red: The rate of increase of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere suddenly slowed down for two years. A full explanation for this (which probably involves temperate and tropical regions as well) has not yet been found. It was possible to engage the LSCE team, which has been using advanced mathematical tools to anal...New robotic microscope helps scientists track cells over time
...roblem has been the cells' need for the warmth and atmosphere of an incubator such that cells can only be taken out and viewed for brief periods of time. The robotic microscope, the brainchild of Steven Finkbeiner, MD, PhD, investigator in the Gladstone Institute of Neurological Disease and UCSF assistant profe...Large volcanic eruptions affect the 'greener greenhouse'
...mounts of tiny pollutant particles thrust into the atmosphere by large volcanic eruptions slow plant growth, but...f the tiny dust particles (aerosols) shot into the atmosphere by the eruption of Mount Pinatubo," said Ranga Myneni, co-author of the study, and professor at Bost...Science editor explores the role of environmental change on global security
...f carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases in the atmosphere have increased, causing average global temperatures to rise, Kennedy said. If climate models are correct, then the number of extreme weather events in this century will increase a situation that could have an especially serious impact on low-lying c...Los Alamos researcher conducts volcanic voyeurism
...he water vapor in the cloud effectively scrubs the atmosphere of hydrogen fluoride and hydrogen chloride, which are extremely soluble in water. Infrared remote sensing can only detect hydrogen fluoride and hydrogen chloride in their gaseous form; these chemicals become invisible when dissolved in water. Conse...Soil's love affair with carbon viewed with millimeter resolution
...bstantially reducing harmful carbon dioxide in the atmosphere could be facilitated through super-sharp analysis of tiny soil-core samples made possible by a portable, carbon-measuring laser system developed by a research team at the Department of Energy's Los Alamos National Laboratory. At the heart of the syst...End of 'free ride' on ecosystem CO2 absorption
...emissions, the carbon dioxide concentration in the atmosphere should be going up twice as fast as it currently is," said Jackson. "However, natural systems such as the regrowing Eastern forests are currently taking up that extra carbon dioxide, so we're really getting a free ride now. "Many of us, myself inclu...New grant supports research to reduce greenhouse gases
...will reduce the buildup of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere while improving America's farmland and the nation's agricultural economy. The federal government is supporting research in this area with a $15 million grant announced by U.S. Sen. Pat Roberts. Kansas State University is the lead institution in a co...Industry explores renewable resources, such as lignin
...ly-friendly. "Plants fix carbon dioxide out of our atmosphere using solar energy, and this generates between one and 10 gigatons of biomass a year. It's fantastic. Solar energy used by plants to cycle carbon into biomass energizes all forms of life at perpetuity. The amounts of materials we could harvest and tr...Imagine no restrictions on fossil-fuel usage and no global warming
...g buildup of the so-called "greenhouse gas" in the atmosphere and allowing it to be converted into fuel. A Los ... because it works on a dilute stream of CO2 in the atmosphere as opposed to capturing more concentrated forms found in power plant exhausts. The method uses ordi...Climate monitoring goes mobile
...the amount of solar energy transmitted through the atmosphere at multiple wavelengths. The total amount of sola...nergy interacts with the many variables within our atmosphere will help scientists better understand the earths climate and climate change. While instruments tha...April GEOLOGY and GSA TODAY media highlights
...ane between seafloor sediments, the ocean, and the atmosphere (where methane is a strong greenhouse gas) is an important part of understanding long-term climate variations, the potential of seafloor methane as a natural resource, and the risk of hydrates to conventional oil and gas production in the world's oce...Hurricanes impact carbon sequestration by forests
...easing amounts of carbon dioxide released into the atmosphere from human activities ranging from clearing land t...dead trees that decompose and return carbon to the atmosphere before it can be harvested. McNulty analyzed hurricane damage data collected between 1900 and 1996 t...Pollen productionand allergiesmay rise significantly over next 50 years
...earchers. The study found that ragweed grown in an atmosphere with double the current carbon dioxide levels produced 61 percent more pollen than normal. Such a doubling of atmospheric carbon dioxide is expected to occur between 2050 and 2100. "The side effects of carbon dioxide, as well as its impact on heat bu...'Mercury sunrise' phenomenon found in Antarctica
...of chemical reactions that dump mercury out of the atmosphere and into the pristine polar environments; hence th...tion releases about 6,500 tons of mercury into the atmosphere every year. This mercury vapor remains in the air, where it is carried to all parts of the globe, in...NSF/EPA team up on grants to treat pollution with plants
...ility of these plants to transport oxygen from the atmosphere to their below-ground root systems has the potential to enhance microbial degradation of organic pollutants, which can be limited by oxygen availability in anoxic, waterlogged soils. For more information on the EPA grants, contact: Estella Waldman, (...High CO2 levels hamper nitrate incorporation by plants
... increased concentrations of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere initially boost carbon intake and growth in plants but eventually the accelerated carbon assimilation declines," said Bloom, a professor in the UC Davis vegetable crops department. "The results from our study indicate that carbon dioxide inhibition o...US ecology dramatically altered by fertilizers and acid rain
... exchanged between plants, soil, waterways and the atmosphere -- in South America is more uniform than it is in the United States. "We found that even though there were some noticeable variations in South America, they were pretty small compared to the variations caused by air pollution. We live in a transient ...South American forests offer glimpse of U.S. ecosystems before industrial revolution
...nvented a process for extracting nitrogen from the atmosphere for use in making explosives. The Haber process al... exchanged between plants, soil, waterways and the atmosphere -- in South America is more uniform than it is in the United States. "We found that even though ther...