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| September 24, 2013 |
 Seismologists puzzle over largest deep earthquake ever recorded Santa Cruz CA (SPX) Sep 24, 2013 - 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 ... more |  |
 Current pledges put over 600 million people at risk of higher water scarcity London, UK (SPX) Sep 24, 2013 - Our current pledges to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, which are projected to set the global mean temperature increase at around 3.5 C above pre-industrial levels, will expose 668 million people worldwide to new or aggravated water scarcity. This is according to a new study published in IOP Publishing's journal Environmental Research Letters, which has calculated that a further 11 per cen ... more |  |
 Research minimizes effects of federal produce standards on mushroom industry University Park PA (SPX) Sep 24, 2013 - Strict requirements on the use of animal manures in fresh produce production imposed by the new federal food-safety law threatened to adversely impact the mushroom industry, which relies on horse and poultry manure for a specialized growth substrate. But a new study shows that heat generated during the traditional composting process - originally developed to kill insect and fungal pests o ... more |  |
 Immune to ageing Dresden, Germany (SPX) Sep 24, 2013 - While ageing remains an inevitable fact of life, Max Planck researchers have discovered a microbe that stays forever young by rejuvenating every time it reproduces. The findings provide fundamental insights into the mechanisms of ageing. In general, even symmetrically dividing microbes do not split into two exactly identical halves. Detailed investigations revealed that there are mechanism ... more |  |
 Tropical forests 'fix' themselves Panama City, Panama (SPX) Sep 24, 2013 - Tropical forests speed their own recovery, capturing nitrogen and carbon faster after being logged or cleared for agriculture. Researchers working at the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute in Panama think the discovery that trees "turn up" their ability to capture or "fix" nitrogen from the air and release it into the soil as the forest makes a comeback has far-reaching implications for for ... more |  |
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 Greenland snowpack shows Carbon monoxide levels drop since 1950s Rochester NY (SPX) Sep 24, 2013 - A first-ever study of air trapped in the deep snowpack of Greenland shows that atmospheric levels of carbon monoxide (CO) in the 1950s were actually slightly higher than what we have today. This is a surprise because current computer models predict much higher CO concentrations over Greenland today than in 1950. Now it appears the opposite is in fact true. In a paper recently published in ... more |  |
 New rat genus discovered in the birthplace of the theory of evolution Copenhagen, Denmark (SPX) Sep 24, 2013 - A prominent tuft of spiny hair on the back, a white tail tip and three pairs of teats represent the unique set of characteristics describing a new genus of rat which has been discovered in the Moluccan province of Indonesia. This region had a profound influence on the British Naturalist Alfred Russell Wallace who independently developed the theory of evolution alongside Charles Darwin. The ... more |  |
 Legacy Soil Pollution Higher lead levels may lie just below surface Providence RI (SPX) Sep 24, 2013 - newly published analysis of data from hundreds of soil samples from 31 properties around southern Rhode Island finds that the lead concentration in soil at the surface is not always a reliable indicator of the contamination a foot deeper. The study, led by Brown University Superfund Research Program researchers at the request of the Rhode Island Department of Health (RIDOH), informs ongoing effo ... more |  |
Algorithm finds missing phytoplankton in Southern Ocean Canberra, Australia (SPX) Sep 24, 2013 - NASA satellites may have missed more than 50% of the phytoplankton in the Southern Ocean, making it far more difficult to estimate the carbon capture potential of this vast area of sea. But now, new research published in the Journal of Geophysical Research, Three improved satellite chlorophyll algorithms for the Southern Ocean (doi:10.1002/jgrc.20270), has led to the development of an algo ... more |  |
 Undersea mountains provide crucial piece in climate prediction puzzle Exeter, UK (SPX) Sep 24, 2013 - A mystery in the ocean near Antarctica has been solved by researchers who have long puzzled over how deep and mid-depth ocean waters are mixed. They found that sea water mixes dramatically as it rushes over undersea mountains in Drake Passage - the channel between the southern tip of South America and the Antarctic continent. Mixing of water layers in the oceans is crucial in regulating the Eart ... more |  |
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'Cascade of events' caused sudden explosion of animal life Oxford, UK (SPX) Sep 24, 2013 - The explosion of animal life on Earth around 520 million years ago was the result of a combination of interlinked factors rather than a single underlying cause, according to a new study. Dozens of individual theories have been put forward over the past few decades for this rapid diversification of animal species in the early Cambrian period of geological time. But a paper by Professor Paul ... more |  |
Worst watershed stresses may become the new normal Boulder CO (SPX) Sep 24, 2013 - Nearly one in 10 U.S. watersheds is "stressed," with demand for water exceeding natural supply, according to a new analysis of surface water in the United States. What's more, the lowest water flow seasons of recent years-times of great stress on rivers, streams, and sectors that use their waters-are likely to become typical as climates continue to warm. "By midcentury, we expect to see le ... more |  |
Calcium key to restoring acid rain-damaged forests Berkeley CA (SPX) Sep 24, 2013 - Calcium can do much more than strengthen bones. The mineral is a critical nutrient for healthy tree growth, and new research shows that adding it to the soil helps reverse the decades-long decline of forests ailing from the effects of acid rain. The paper, published today (Thursday, Sept. 19), in the journal Environmental Science and Technology (EST) Letters, and led by John Battles, profe ... more |  |
 Achilles' heel of ice shelves is beneath the water, scientists reveal Bristol, UK (SPX) Sep 24, 2013 - New research has revealed that more ice leaves Antarctica by melting from the underside of submerged ice shelves than was previously thought, accounting for as much as 90 per cent of ice loss in some areas. Iceberg production and melting causes 2,800 cubic kilometres of ice to leave the Antarctic ice sheet every year. Most of this is replaced by snowfall but any imbalance contributes to a ... more |  |
Virginia Tech scientists show why traumatized trees don't 'bleed' to death Blacksburg VA (SPX) Sep 24, 2013 - Why don't trees "bleed" to death when they are injured? Researchers from Virginia Tech, the Georg-August University of Gottingen, Germany, and the Jackson Laboratory of Bar Harbor, Maine, have discovered how "check valves" in wood cells control sap flow and protect trees when they are injured. The study, featured on the cover of the September issue of the American Journal of Botany, used a ... more |  |
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 US Navy moves to tighten security checks after shooting Washington (AFP) Sept 24, 2013 - The US Navy said Monday it is pushing for more rigorous background checks after a review showed gaps in the case of a former sailor who went on a shooting rampage last week. Officials acknowledged that the Navy Yard shooter, Aaron Alexis, did not disclose an arrest or a number of debts when he applied for a security clearance when he joined the Navy as a reservist in 2007. But he was given t ... more |  |
 Fire scars big nature reserve in Ecuador's capital Quito (AFP) Sept 23, 2013 - /> Fire blamed on arson has charred vast areas of a nature reserve in Ecuador's capital, officials said Monday as they declared the blaze under control. It broke out Sunday in a huge expanse of Quito known as the Parque Metropolitano and it took 800 firefighters, police and soldiers backed by water-dumping planes nearly 24 hours to bring it under control. A community of some 400 indigen ... more |  |
Australians should be told of boat turn-backs, ex-navy chief Sydney (AFP) Sept 24, 2013 - A retired Australian navy chief, who once led the turning back of asylum-seeker boats, Tuesday criticised the government's decision to keep operations to repel vessels under wraps. Australia's new conservative government led by Prime Minister Tony Abbott has promised to turn back asylum-seeker boats when it is safe to do so, but revealed on Monday that the public will be kept in the dark abo ... more |  |
In Mexico, storms dredge up human errors Mexico City (AFP) Sept 24, 2013 - Human nature is sharing the blame with Mother Nature in Mexico for the destruction spawned by twin storms, with critics pointing to shoddy construction, endemic corruption and political wheeling-and-dealing. The country was thrashed last week by a rare tag team of tropical storms on opposite coasts, Manuel and Ingrid, that killed at least 123 people, damaged 72 roads and affected 1.5 million ... more |  |
Global panel to make economic case on climate change New York City (AFP) Sept 24, 2013 - Mexico's former president Felipe Calderon said that climate action can boost both developed and emerging countries as he led a new commission bringing together government and business leaders. In an initiative being launched Tuesday on the sidelines of the annual UN General Assembly, Calderon will chair a report that aims to make the business case for addressing climate change. Calderon ... more |  |
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