science wire

Rebecca Merkelbach (Department of Anglo-Saxon, Norse & Celtic) discusses the monstrous heroes of Scandinavian mythology and literature.

ESA Space in Images Title Kilimanjaro imaged by Proba-V Released 21/10/2015 10:52 am Copyright ESA/Belspo - produced by VITO Description A view of the glacier atop Africa's highest peak, as observed by ESA's Proba-V minisatellite.

Oxia Planum has been recommended as the primary candidate for the landing site of the ExoMars 2018 mission.

The tree of life of cyanobacteria, a key group of microorganisms widely considered to be the most successful on Earth, which emphasises cyanobacteria from extremely cold habitats such as the Poles an

It is well known that an earthquake in one part of the world can trigger others thousands of kilometers away.

The deformed lunar zircon at center was brought from the moon by Apollo astronauts. The fractures characteristic of meteorite impact are not seen in most lunar zircons, so the ages they record probably reflect heating by molten rock, not impact. Photo: Apollo 17/Nicholas E. Timms Phenomenally durable crystals called zircons are used to date some of the earliest and most dramatic cataclysms of the solar system.

Zachary Brown defends his thesis, then travels 2,300 miles by foot and by kayak to establish an Alaskan field school, where he hopes to inspire the next generation's understanding of the environment.

ESA Space in Images Title Deep blue Red Sea reefs Released 16/10/2015 10:00 am Copyright Copernicus Sentinel data (2015)/ESA Description This beautiful true-colour image features the Red Sea coral reefs off the coast of Saudi Arabia.

Researchers from the University of Liverpool, working as part of the ESRC Consumer Data Research Centre (CDRC), have built a data portal for every local authority in the UK.

Catastrophic flooding triggered by ice melting from the heat of volcanic activity is thought to be responsible for the chaotic scenery depicted in this region of the Mangala Valles channel network.

Mangrove forests around the Indo-Pacific region could be submerged by 2070, according to international research published today.

Simon Redfern from the Department of Earth Sciences discusses a study that has recreated the conditions experienced during the meteor strike that formed the Barringer Crater in Arizona.

Girija Godbole travels to a remote village in western India to understand the effects of the increasing incidence of land sale on a rural society, and makes the acquaintance of a naughty goat.

On Oct. 15, journalists from national and local media including NPR, The Washington Post, The Christian Science Monitor will hold a panel discussion on how the media is changing and what it means for communicating science to the public and policymakers.

ESA Space in Images Title Azore islands Released 09/10/2015 10:00 am Copyright Copernicus Sentinel data (2015)/ESA Description This Sentinel-1A radar image was processed to depict water in blue and land in earthen colours.

Four research projects will receive $1.24 million in funding via the Minnesota Terrestrial Plants and Pests Center (MITPPC) at the University of Minnesota, a critical step in finding new techn

Professor Ugo Bardi, of the Club of Rome, and author of Extracted: How the Quest for Mineral Wealth is Plundering the Planet , will be giving a public lecture next week.

Some of the most ancient birds were capable of performing aerodynamic feats in a manner similar to many living birds, according to a new study of the fossil wing of a primitive bird, led by a PhD student at the University of Bristol.

New findings released today show substantial bodies of water likely existed on the surface of the planet in its early history. "Skeptics have often asserted that evidence of water on Mars could be attributed to ephemeral, local wet episodes," said Roger Wiens, a scientist at Los Alamos National Laboratory who is a co-author on the paper.

Professor Stephen Bevan and Professor Michael West have been voted in the top 20 of HR Magazine's 'Most Influential Thinker 2015' list.

Microbes may seem small and insignificant, but in evolutionary terms the tiny organisms punch far above their weight.

Drew Mulholland, who is composer in residence in the School of Geographical and Earth Sciences and department of Physics and Astronomy, has marked the 100th anniversary of the Battle of Loos by premiering a new work.

Berkeley geologists have uncovered compelling evidence that an asteroid impact on Earth 66 million years ago accelerated the eruptions of volcanoes in India for hundreds of thousands of years, and th

Months of warning signs from Mauna Loa, on Hawaii's Big Island, prompted the U.S. Geological Society to recently start releasing weekly updates on activity at the world's largest active volcano. For now, such warning signs can only rely on external clues, like earthquakes and gas emissions.

Has Australia's climate always been so dry? Have the tropical reefs around Australia always been there? What will happen to Australia's climate and reefs in the future? The answers lie deep under the ocean, millions of years into the past. A group of leading international scientists have today concluded a two-month research expedition off the coast of Western Australia where they have been drilling into the seabed to gain valuable insight into our climate future.

Coho salmon, Pacific halibut and even the dogfish shark are familiar faces to many people in the Salish Sea region.

Postdoctoral researcher Robyn Tuerena and PhD student Charlotte Smith from the University of Liverpool's School of Environmental Sciences have set off on  a research cruise aboard RRS James Clark Ros

UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. Whether or not a coastal city floods during a hurricane depends on the storm, tide and sea level, and now a team of climate scientists show that the risk of New York City flooding has increased dramatically during the industrial era as a result of human-caused climate change.

Volcanologist Dr Hugh Tuffen has helped the BBC make Patagonia: Earth's Secret Paradise. Dr Hugh Tuffen , from Lancaster Environment Centre, was a scientific advisor on the first programme in the three-part series, which starts tomorrow.

Fluctuating sea levels and global cooling caused a significant decline in the number of crocodylian species over millions of years. Crocodylians include present-day species of crocodiles, alligators, caimans and gavials and their extinct ancestors. Crocodylians first appeared in the Late Cretaceous period, approximately 85 million years ago, and the 250 million year fossil record of their extinct relatives reveals a diverse evolutionary history.

As if life wasn't hard enough during the last Ice Age, research led by the University of Queensland has found Australia's first human inhabitants had to contend with giant killer lizards UQ vertebrate palaeoecologist Dr Gilbert Price said researchers working in Central Queensland were amazed when they unearthed the first evidence that Australia's early human inhabitants and giant apex predator lizards had overlapped.

During the 2015 Cross Surfzone/Inner-shelf Dye Exchange (CSIDE) project (as in 2009, shown on map), researchers will release non-toxic bright pink fluorescent dye into beach waters and track its movements along the coast. In an ambitious binational effort to investigate how pollution and other contaminants travel across and along beach waters, scientists from both sides of the border are leading a novel experiment at Imperial Beach and Coronado (south of San Diego), Calif., and Tijuana, Mexico.

A huge volcanic eruption in Iceland emitted on average three times as much of a toxic gas as all European industry combined, a study led by the University of Leeds has revealed. Discharge of lava from the eruption at Bárðarbunga volcano, starting in August 2014, released a huge mass – up to 120,000 tonnes per day – of sulphur dioxide gas.

In a perfect world, we'd all be as prepared for an earthquake as Jennifer Strauss. In a perfect world, we'd also have an early-warning system to give us vital seconds to protect ourselves and our family from harm when the shaking starts.

ESA Space in Images Title Chile earthquake on the radar Released 21/09/2015 2:29 pm Copyright Contains modified Copernicus Sentinel data (2015)/ESA SEOM INSARAP study PPO.labs/NORUT Descriptio

A problem recently discovered in two sensors in the propulsion system of the entry, descent and landing demonstrator module has prompted the recommendation to move the launch of the ExoMars 2016 mission, initially foreseen in January, to March, still within the launch window of early 2016.

Kicking off on 20 September, a conservation project in Norfolk is highlighting the vital role of ponds in the English countryside as part of a "seven ponds in seven days" restoration challenge.

Around 252 million years ago, life on Earth collapsed in spectacular and unprecedented fashion, as more than 96 percent of marine species and 70 percent of land species disappeared in a geological instant.

With a background in meteorology at UW-Madison and experience as a weatherman on WKOW Channel 27, Terry Kelly was ideally positioned to serve weather forecasts and graphics to the American TV industry.

An international study led by a University of Queensland researcher has revealed more than half the world's sea turtles have ingested plastic or other human rubbish. The study, led by Dr Qamar Schuyler from UQ's School of Biological Sciences , found the east coasts of Australia and North America, Southeast Asia, southern Africa, and Hawaii were particularly dangerous for turtles due to a combination of debris loads and high species diversity.

The extraordinary strength of the present El Niño may lead to a particularly wet winter in California, but Noah Diffenbaugh and Daniel Swain say that it might not be enough to end California's worst drought on record.

Scientists believe that about 4 billion years ago, during a period called the Late Heavy Bombardment, the moon took a severe beating, as an army of asteroids pelted its surface, carving out craters and opening deep fissures in its crust. Such sustained impacts increased the moon's porosity, opening up a network of large seams beneath the lunar surface.

One of the biggest ever citizen science projects needs volunteers from Manchester to help measure air pollution in our environment.

Santa Ana fires burn with more intensity, and they do their worst in a shorter period of time than summer fires UCLA Newsroom University of California climate scientists analyzed and unraveled the pe

In August 2015, more than 150 scientists interested in the exploration of Mars attended a conference at a hotel in Arcadia, California, to evaluate 21 potential landing sites for NASA's next Mars rover, a mission called Mars 2020.

Far above the wildfires raging in Washington's forests, a less noticeable consequence of this dry year is taking place in mountain ponds.

Michael Willis, Cornell earth and atmospheric sciences research associate, has been named to the ArcticDEM scientific team that will - for the first time - create high-resolution topographical Arctic maps.

The Penn State College of Earth and Mineral Sciences has restored a historic map depicting Pennsylvania's geology, geography, and extractive industry.

Ways to improve monitoring of carbon capture and storage (CCS) sites are being investigated by three University of Bristol seismologists as part of a new international collaborative research initiative.