Oceanography
International mission aims to measure saltiness of sea
June 6, 2011 5:33 am | by Alicia Chang, AP Science Writer | News | CommentsIn response to the growing need for oceanic data in climate models, an Argentine-built spacecraft carrying instruments from the United States and other nations is set to launch Thursday in California. The craft will use a NASA-built instrument, the Aquarius, to map weekly changes in the levels of brine in the sea, and it is so sensitive it can detect changes down to a dash of salt in a gallon of water.
Mysterious background signal could improve tsunami detection
June 3, 2011 12:36 pm | News | CommentsAn unusual signal detected by the ultra-sensitive seismometers at the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute's research facility on a small island in the Panama Canal was recently traced to the phenomena of “seiches”, or standing waves in the lake. Mapping these waves has allowed researchers to better understand signals in the ocean, which could in turn improve tsunami forecasting.
New map reveals giant fjords beneath East Antarctic ice sheet
June 2, 2011 9:16 am | News | CommentsOne of the last uncharted regions of Earth, the Aurora Subglacial Basin, has been unlocked with ice-penetrating radar by a team from the U.S. UK, and Australia. The immense ice-buried lowland lies kilometers below sea level and their work has revealed some of the largest fjords on Earth.
Unusual earthquake gave Japan tsunami extra punch
May 24, 2011 11:54 am | by Louis Bergeron | News | CommentsThe earthquake and tsunami that hit Japan on March 11 were generated on a fault that didn't rupture in the usual fashion, according to a study by researchers at Stanford Univ. and the Univ. of Tokyo. The quake’s motion amplified fault slip near the surface, causing violent seafloor sediment deformations previously seen only in computer simulations.
How much radioactivity is in the oceans?
May 24, 2011 6:25 am | News | CommentsSome scientists have debated the actual severity of the nuclear power plant incident at Fukushima Dai-ichi, but its impact on the ocean is no question much greater than that of Chernobyl. Now, researchers at Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution are starting to build a global database of baseline levels of marine radionuclides so they can be more accurately tracked in the future.
Lab in a can: an R & D 100 winner goes mobile
May 23, 2011 1:49 pm | News | CommentsThe Environmental Sample Processor, which won an R&D 100 Award in 2009, looks a lot like a garbage can, but is actually a fully functioning laboratory, thrown overboard, to analyze water samples in the open ocean. Invented by scientists at the Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute, these mobile labs might one day crisscross our oceans, monitoring for problems such as oil spills.
Antarctic icebergs help ocean take up carbon dioxide
May 12, 2011 8:31 am | News | CommentsThe first comprehensive study of the biological effects of Antarctic icebergs shows that they fertilize the Southern Ocean, enhancing the growth of algae that take up carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and then, through marine food chains, transfer carbon into the deep sea.
Discovery: Marine diatoms use nitrogen and carbon from environment
May 12, 2011 6:33 am | News | CommentsA new study led by the J. Craig Venter Institute provides fascinating insights into how marine phytoplankton have evolved to become the dominant primary producers in many ocean regions. The urea cycle, which was originally thought to have originated in animals, has now been found to exist in diatoms.
Genome of cyanobacteria reveals hidden secrets
May 10, 2011 5:50 am | News | CommentsAn international team of researchers led by scientists at Scripps Institution of Oceanography at UC San Diego has deciphered the genome of a tropical marine organism known to produce substances potentially useful against human diseases.
Results are in from the first microbial subsurface observatory experiment
May 3, 2011 4:46 am | News | CommentsThe first experiment to study the dynamic microbial life inside the Earth’s crust deep undersea, in situ, attracted television cameras from The History Channel for the filming of “Journey to the Earth’s Core”. It also required new technology, known as the Circulation Obviation Retrofit Kit, which seals the sub-surface borehole for undisturbed observations of the natural hydrogeological state and microbial ecosystem inside Earth’s crust.
New submersible capable of return to deepest ocean depths
April 27, 2011 7:03 am | News | CommentsTriton Submarines this week announced the impending release of their Triton 36,000 full ocean depth submersible. Featuring passenger cockpit approximately six feet in diameter and made entirely of borosilicate glass developed using a new process from Rayotek Scientific, the sub will offer the possibility of a return to the deepest part of the ocean in more than 50 years.
Richard Branson plans deep-ocean submarine dives
April 6, 2011 4:52 am | by Noaki Schwartz, Associated Press | News | CommentsOver the next two years, billionaire adventurer Richard Branson will plumb the deepest depths of the world’s five oceans with a new 18-foot-long Virgin Oceanic submarine that was unveiled Tuesday in Newport Beach, Calif. He has partnered with Scripps Institution of Oceanography and several other research laboratories to add scientific clout to his plans.
Tweaking the climate to save it: Who decides?
April 4, 2011 6:48 am | by Charles J. Hanley, AP Special Correspondent | News | CommentsMeeting recently at the 300-year-old Royal Society, Britain’s national science academy, some of the world’s top physicists, geochemists, environmentalists, lawyers, psychologists, and policy experts debated the merits of “geoengineering”. Acting on the premise that we are completely unprepared if the climate changes dramatically, experts discussed the feasibility of various “sunshade” schemes.
Digging through the discontinuity
March 30, 2011 9:23 am | by Paul Livingstone | Blogs | CommentsIn the late 1950s and early 1960s, some of the last hurdles in human exploration of the globe were overthrown, notably the scaling of Mt. Everest and the plumbing of the depths of the Marianas Trench. They paved the way for planting a flag on the Moon. But one notable project went underfunded and eventually forgotten.
Researchers use freshwater and seawater to generate electricity
March 29, 2011 4:56 am | by Louis Bergeron | News | CommentsStanford researchers have developed a rechargeable battery that uses freshwater and seawater to create electricity. Aided by nanotechnology, the battery employs the difference in salinity between fresh and saltwater to generate a current. A power station might be built wherever a river flows into the ocean.
Japan earthquake, tsunami spell need for preparedness
March 29, 2011 4:23 am | News | CommentsPerhaps lost in the recent debates related to the earthquake and tsunami in Japan is that natural disasters and not nuclear energy should be the focus, says Oak Ridge National Laboratory's John Sorensen, an emergency preparedness expert.
Japan quake ranks as 5th largest since 1900
March 11, 2011 6:40 am | by Alicia Chang,AP Science Writer | News | CommentsAs the tsunami waves reach coastlines in Hawaii and the U.S., Japan collects itself after being hit with one of the largest magnitude earthquakes in recorded history. The magnitude-8.9 "megathrust" quake is similar to what happened during the 2004 Sumatra quake.
Tsunami waves hit Hawaii, sweep across islands
March 11, 2011 4:17 am | by Jaymes Song and Mark Niessee, Associated Press | News | CommentsThe Pacific Tsunami Warning Center said Kauai was the first of the Hawaiian islands hit by the tsunami. Waves about 3 feet high were recorded on Oahu and Kauai, and officials warned that the waves would continue and could become larger.
Hundreds killed in tsunami after 8.9 Japan quake
March 11, 2011 4:13 am | by Malcolm Foster | News | CommentsA ferocious tsunami spawned by one of the largest earthquakes ever recorded slammed Japan's eastern coast Friday, killing hundreds of people as it swept away boats, cars and homes while widespread fires burned out of control.
Estimation of organic carbon in surface water now possible
March 4, 2011 5:39 am | News | CommentsA new carbon model developed by researchers with the U.S. Geological Survey now allows scientists to estimate sources and losses of organic carbon in surface waters in the United States. Study results indicate that streams act as both sources and sinks for organic carbon.
Scientists say ocean currents cause microbes to filter light
February 25, 2011 6:26 am | by Denise Brehm, Civil and Environmental Engineering | News | CommentsScientists now say that fluid flow probably a more significant effect on marine optics than previously realized. In much the same way that particles can be added to fluid to reveal current flow, researchers have studied the way phytoplankton arrange themselves at the ocean’s surface depending on current. These organisms have a substantial effect on filtered light, which in turn affects growth rates.
Oldest fossils of large plants and animals tell story of ancient oxygen
February 17, 2011 6:21 am | News | CommentsAlmost 600 million years ago, before the rapid evolution of life forms known as the Cambrian explosion, a community of seaweeds and worm-like animals lived in a quiet deep-water niche near what a small village in south China. Preserved in a nearly pristine state, these fossils hold valuable information about the time when oxygen in the oceans was rare and sporadic.
The irresistability of the end
August 26, 2010 8:52 am | Blogs | CommentsWhat is it about doomsday scenarios? Every once in a while, it seems, the general public can’t get enough of predictions about impending disaster. And the most recent spate of disaster ruminations seems more pervasive than ever.
Pacific Crest Introduces Next Generation Advanced Data Link Radios
July 28, 2009 9:57 am | Product Releases | CommentsPacific Crest announced the new Advanced Data Link (ADL) generation of radios with the introduction of ADL Foundation, a 0.1 -1.0 Watt programmable transceiver.
