Earth | Page 913 | Science Codex

UCLA scientists explain the formation of unusual ring of radiation in space

Since the discovery of the Van Allen radiation belts in 1958, space scientists have believed these belts encircling the Earth consist of two doughnut-shaped rings of highly charged particles — an inner ring of high-energy electrons and energetic positive ions and an outer ring of high-energy electrons.

In February of this year, a team of scientists reported the surprising discovery of a previously unknown third radiation ring — a narrow one that briefly appeared between the inner and outer rings in September 2012 and persisted for a month.

Creating electricity with caged atoms

A lot of energy is wasted when machines turn hot, unnecessarily heating up their environment. Some of this thermal energy could be harvested using thermoelectric materials; they create electric current when they are used to bridge hot and cold objects. At the Vienna University of Technology (TU Vienna), a new and considerably more efficient class of thermoelectric materials can now be produced. It is the material's very special crystal structure that does the trick, in connection with an astonishing new physical effect; in countless tiny cages within the crystal, cerium atoms are enclosed.

Pioneering black carbon researcher receives UN 'Champion of the Earth' award

Veerabhadran Ramanathan, a distinguished professor of climate and atmospheric sciences at Scripps Institution of Oceanography, UC San Diego, whose landmark research showed that cutting emissions of black carbon and other short lived climate pollutants can significantly lessen the impacts of regional and global climate change, improve the health of millions of rural poor, and avoid crop losses, will receive tonight a 2013 Champions of the Earth award, the United Nations's highest environmental accolade.

Seismologists puzzle over largest deep earthquake ever recorded

A magnitude 8.3 earthquake that struck deep beneath the Sea of Okhotsk on May 24, 2013, has left seismologists struggling to explain how it happened. At a depth of about 609 kilometers (378 miles), the intense pressure on the fault should inhibit the kind of rupture that took place.

"It's a mystery how these earthquakes happen. How can rock slide against rock so fast while squeezed by the pressure from 610 kilometers of overlying rock?" said Thorne Lay, professor of Earth and planetary sciences at the University of California, Santa Cruz.

Geologists simulate deep earthquakes in the laboratory

RIVERSIDE, Calif. — More than 20 years ago, geologist Harry Green, now a distinguished professor of the graduate division at the University of California, Riverside, and colleagues discovered a high-pressure failure mechanism that they proposed then was the long-sought mechanism of very deep earthquakes (earthquakes occurring at more than 400 km depth).

Overfishing of sharks is harming coral reefs

A team of scientists from Canada and Australia has discovered that a decline in shark populations is detrimental to coral reefs.

"Where shark numbers are reduced due to commercial fishing, there is also a decrease in the herbivorous fishes which play a key role in promoting reef health," said Jonathan Ruppert, a recent University of Toronto PhD graduate. Ruppert was part of a team engaged in long-term monitoring of reefs off Australia's northwest coast.

Densest array of carbon nanotubes grown to date

WASHINGTON, D.C. Sept. 20, 2013 -- Carbon nanotubes' outstanding mechanical, electrical and thermal properties make them an alluring material to electronics manufacturers. However, until recently scientists believed that growing the high density of tiny graphene cylinders needed for many microelectronics applications would be difficult.

Lithosphere interprets earth

Boulder, Colo., USA -- The October 2013 Lithosphere is now online. Locations studied include the Central Iberian Massif in Spain; Arctic Alaska; the Wet Mountains of Central Colorado, USA; the Basgo Formation in northwest India; Crystal Geyser in southeastern Utah, USA; Knight Inlet in the southwestern Coast Mountains Batholith, British Columbia, Canada; and three crustal-scale shear zones in the western Canadian Shield of northern Saskatchewan. Lithosphere is published bimonthly in hardcopy; articles are posted online as they become available.

Testing sequence stratigraphic models by drilling Miocene foresets on the New Jersey shallow shelf

Kenneth Miller and colleagues present seismic, core, log, and chronologic data on three early to middle Miocene sequences sampled across a transect of seismic clinothems (prograding sigmoidal sequences) in topset, foreset, and bottomset locations beneath the New Jersey shallow continental shelf (Integrated Ocean Drilling Program Expedition 313, Sites M27-M29). They recognize stratal surfaces and systems tracts by integrating seismic stratigraphy, lithofacies successions, gamma logs, and foraminiferal paleodepth trends.

Warming ocean thawing Antarctica glacier, researchers say

Fairbanks, Alaska— For the first time, researchers completed an extensive exploration of how quickly ice is melting underneath a rapidly changing Antarctic glacier, possibly the biggest source of uncertainty in global sea level projections.

Martin Truffer, a physics professor at the University of Alaska Fairbanks, and Tim Stanton, an oceanographer with the Naval Postgraduate School, were able to look underneath the Pine Island Glacier on the West Antarctic Ice Sheet and take exact measurements of the undersea melting process.

Container's material properties affect the viscosity of water at the nanoscale

Water pours into a cup at about the same rate regardless of whether the water bottle is made of glass or plastic.

But at nanometer-size scales for water and potentially other fluids, whether the container is made of glass or plastic does make a significant difference. A new study shows that in nanoscopic channels, the effective viscosity of water in channels made of glass can be twice as high as water in plastic channels. Nanoscopic glass channels can make water flow more like ketchup than ordinary H2O.

After the storms, a different opinion on climate change

Extreme weather may lead people to think more seriously about climate change, according to new research. In the wake of Hurricanes Irene and Sandy, New Jersey residents were more likely to show support for a politician running on a "green" platform, and expressed a greater belief that climate change is caused by human activity.

Study suggests overfishing of sharks is harming coral reefs

A team of scientists from Canada and Australia have discovered that the decline in shark populations is detrimental to coral reefs.

"Where shark numbers are reduced due to commercial fishing, there is also a decrease in the herbivorous fishes which play a key role in promoting reef health," said Jonathan Ruppert, a recent University of Toronto PhD graduate. Ruppert was part of a team engaged in long-term monitoring of reefs off Australians northwest coast.

Beyond quantum simulation: JILA physicists create 'crystal' of spin-swapping ultracold gas molecules

Physicists at JILA have created a crystal-like arrangement of ultracold gas molecules that can swap quantum "spin" properties with nearby and distant partners. The novel structure might be used to simulate or even invent new materials that derive exotic properties from quantum spin behavior, for electronics or other practical applications.

X-ray science taps bug biology to design better materials and reduce pollution

Bug spray, citronella candles, mosquito netting – most people will do anything they can to stay away from insects during the warmer months. But those creepy crawlers we try so hard to avoid may offer substantial solutions to some of life's problems.