Geology

The Arctic's Surprising Chemical Cocktail

In the Arctic in spring, the snow cover gives off nitrogen oxides. This phenomenon, the extent of which had not been previously realized, is the source of one third of the nitrates present in the Arctic atmosphere, according to researchers from CNRS, the U ...

Article - News Staff - Nov 8 2008 - 8:57pm

Minerals Evolved Too- And Here's How

Evolution isn't just for living organisms. Scientists at the Carnegie Institution have found that the mineral kingdom co-evolved with life, and that up to two thirds of the more than 4,000 known types of minerals on Earth can be directly or indirectly ...

Article - News Staff - Nov 13 2008 - 6:50pm

Enceladus- Saturn Moon May Have Underground Water

Saturn's moon Enceladus may indeed hide an underground reservoir of water. Scientists at Jet Propulsion Lab in California, the University of Colorado and the University of Central Florida in Orlando teamed up to analyze the plumes of water vapor and i ...

Article - News Staff - Nov 26 2008 - 2:45pm

New Study Says Plate Tectonics Began 500 Million Years Earlier Than Believed

A new picture of the early Earth is emerging, including the surprising finding that plate tectonics may have started more than 4 billion years ago — much earlier than scientists had believed, according to new research by UCLA geochemists.  "We are pro ...

Article - News Staff - Dec 1 2008 - 1:30am

Europa's Dynamic Ocean May Have The Right Stuff To Support Life, Says Physicist

One of the moons in our solar system that scientists think has the potential to harbor life may have a far more dynamic ocean than previously thought.   If Europa is tilted on its axis even slightly as it orbits the giant planet Jupiter, then Jupiter' ...

Article - News Staff - Dec 12 2008 - 10:58am

A Warm Plasma Cloak- New Region Of Magnetosphere Discovered

A detailed analysis of the measurements of five different satellites has revealed the existence of the warm plasma cloak, a new region of the magnetosphere, which is the invisible shield of magnetic fields and electrically charged particles that surround a ...

Article - News Staff - Dec 13 2008 - 9:37am

Climate Change Is Shedding Light On Geologic Change, Say Researchers

As ice melts away from Antarctica, parts of the continental bedrock are rising in response-- and other parts are sinking, scientists have discovered, and the finding will give much needed perspective to satellite instruments that measure ice loss on the co ...

Article - News Staff - Dec 15 2008 - 11:02am

Saturn Moon Enceladus Has Icy Crust That Moves Like A 'Conveyor Belt'

The closer scientists look at Saturn's small moon Enceladus, the more they find evidence of an active world. The most recent flybys of Enceladus made by NASA's Cassini spacecraft have provided new signs of ongoing changes on and around the moon. ...

Article - News Staff - Dec 15 2008 - 6:22pm

Where Did The Water On Venus Go?

Venus Express has made the first detection of an atmospheric loss process on Venus's day-side. Last year, the spacecraft revealed that most of the lost atmosphere escapes from the night-side. Together, these discoveries bring planetary scientists clos ...

Article - News Staff - Dec 18 2008 - 9:47am

Life On Mars- Multiple Watery Environments Bring The Idea Back From The Dead

Over the last several years, scientists have built a very convincing case that Mars hosted water, at least early in its history. Recent observations from the Mars Phoenix lander and other spacecraft show that the planet still holds vast deposits of water a ...

Article - News Staff - Dec 19 2008 - 10:42am