Climate Change
Warming the tundra
A lot of dead plant material is stored in the tundra soils of the far north. Most of it is frozen in permafrost, and inaccessible to the microbes that normally decompose organic matter in soils. [Read more…] about Warming the tundra
Thousands of little weathers
This summer, as parts of the country have faced extremely hot and rainy weather, it is easy to attribute these conditions to climate change. After all, these are exactly the conditions that scientists warn us to expect on a future, warmer planet. [Read more…] about Thousands of little weathers
Heavenly experiments
The Curiosity Lander is now roaming the surface of Mars, looking for evidence of life—past or present—on the red planet. Curiosity is a marvel of NASA’s engineering capabilities. It cost a lot of taxpayer dollars, but it embodies the human spirit to explore unknown lands. [Read more…] about Heavenly experiments
Heat waves and climate change
This summer has seen some particularly debilitating heat waves in many parts of the country. Some places have seen temperatures in the 120’s and the Northeast has boiled in hot, steamy weather for days and even weeks on end. [Read more…] about Heat waves and climate change
Trains, planes, and automobiles
When taking to the skies this summer, the environmentally-minded among us might feel a pang of guilt about the carbon footprint of our air travels. And, according to a report just published in the journal Environmental Science and Technology, that pang is justified. [Read more…] about Trains, planes, and automobiles
In defense of carbon dioxide
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A few weeks ago, an editorial appeared in the Wall Street Journal, entitled “In Defense of Carbon Dioxide.” Citing how carbon dioxide stimulates the growth of plants, the authors ask us to lighten up on our criticisms of rising carbon dioxide in Earth’s atmosphere, where it will lead to global warming. [Read more…] about In defense of carbon dioxide
Where do greenhouse gases come from?
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Greenhouse gases are responsible for our planet having the mild temperatures that make life as we know it possible. The most important ones – water vapor and carbon dioxide – have historic stable levels that are a result of a fine balance among various environmental processes on land and sea. [Read more…] about Where do greenhouse gases come from?
A weight loss program for the planet
A gallon of gas weighs 6.1 pounds. When that gas is burned, in your car, your leaf blower, or your lawnmower, it creates 18.2 pounds of carbon dioxide, or almost three times the weight of that original gallon of gas. [Read more…] about A weight loss program for the planet
A little black box with a voracious appetite
When you’re ready to buy a new computer, cell phone, TV, or tablet, you have many choices. You probably do a lot of research and choose a model with the features that you need the most. [Read more…] about A little black box with a voracious appetite
Nitrous oxide: It’s more than laughing gas
Nitrous oxide, also known as laughing gas, has largely been replaced by other anesthetics in the dentist’s office. This odorless and colorless gas makes up only a scant 320 parts per billion in Earth’s atmosphere. But it will play a big role in our planet’s future. [Read more…] about Nitrous oxide: It’s more than laughing gas
Predicting the forest of the future
We hear a lot about how climate change will affect forests. Some projections show wholesale loss of species in the western U.S., due to fire and pests. Sugar maple is thought likely to disappear from the eastern U.S., as conditions favorable to its survival move northward into Canada. [Read more…] about Predicting the forest of the future
Methane: It’s a natural gas
Natural gas is a fossil fuel derived from ancient hydrocarbon deposits. Natural gas is nearly pure methane—a small molecule with a central carbon atom bonded to four hydrogen atoms surrounding it. Methane is also produced by a variety of soil microbes, especially in wetland soils. [Read more…] about Methane: It’s a natural gas
Why flare it?
Natural gas is often found with oil. The high pressure of natural gas is often what causes oil to gush from the ground in oil fields. If it occurs near a market, natural gas is often captured and used as a fossil fuel itself. But, when natural gas is produced distant from markets, or the price of natural gas is low, it is vented to the atmosphere and burned. [Read more…] about Why flare it?
What we can learn from tree rings
All winter long, the tissues that normally carry water up a tree to its leaves alternately freeze and thaw. This causes air bubbles to form that would prevent the tree from transporting water to new leaves in the spring. So in early spring, the trees will begin to produce a new ring of woody tissue, using energy reserves from the previous summer. [Read more…] about What we can learn from tree rings
Climate change and invasive species
There has been much attention paid in recent times to the problem of invasive species and the potential harm that they cause. As a result, we have employed a variety of strategies to control the spread of non-native plants and animals that, in many instances, can disrupt local ecosystems and cause both ecological and economic damage. [Read more…] about Climate change and invasive species
The sound of spring
In the Northeast, one of the first signs of spring is the unmistakable calling of the spring peeper. While this small frog weighs only a few grams, its mating call is louder than that of many songbirds ten times its size. [Read more…] about The sound of spring
Carbon sequestration in soils and forests
Like other chemical elements, carbon is frequently on the move in nature. Natural processes transport it from the atmosphere, where it appears as carbon dioxide, to the oceans and on to land. On land, carbon can reside for hundreds of years in soil and in trees and other woody plants. [Read more…] about Carbon sequestration in soils and forests
The history and future of mass extinctions
Speciation and extinction are ordinary processes in the natural world. In speciation, new species evolve that are adapted to a particular ecological niche. In extinction, species are lost for good, often because changes in the environment deprive them of the food or habitat to which they are adapted. [Read more…] about The history and future of mass extinctions
An Oregon Mountain high
