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Wednesday, 01 September 2010 18:00 |
The horseshoe crab is one of the most ancient animals on the planet today. They have survived massive upheavals throughout the Earth's history and have remained intact and unchanged. Recently their numbers have been in decline, and this is thought to be due to coastal habitat destruction and over-harvesting; they are often used as bait, in fertilizer, or by pharmaceutical companies. However, new research from the US Geological Survey (USGS) indicates that their population size also parallels changes in the climate. With predicted climate change in the future, their numbers may continue to decline.
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Monday, 05 July 2010 16:00 |
Environmental groups, BP and the U.S. Coast Guard reached tentative agreement on Friday on measures to prevent sea turtles from being incinerated alive in controlled burns of spilled oil in the Gulf of Mexico.
The deal would settle a lawsuit accusing BP of violating the U.S. Endangered Species Act and terms of its lease with the federal government for the deep-sea well that ruptured on April 20, unleashing the worst offshore spill in U.S. history.
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Sunday, 04 July 2010 18:00 |
The dark deeps of the ocean has always been mysterious because they are dark (of course) as well hard to visit and see what is down there. For example the Coelacanth, long thought extinct, lives down deep and was only discovered in 1938 as well the elusive giant squids of legend. A study of the occurrence of fishes in the ocean's deepest reaches (the hadal zone, below 20,000 feet)has provided evidence that some species of fishes are more numerous at such depths than experts had thought. The authors of the study, which is published in the July/August issue of BioScience, observed 10 to 20 snailfish congregating at a depth of 25,000 feet around a baited video lander in the Japan Trench. The observation period lasted only five hours, so the occurrence of so many snailfish was a surprise.
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Friday, 25 June 2010 17:00 |
It is getting more and more difficult to deny that global warming is occurring. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) released a report recently about the state of the global climate, and the results were not pretty. It turns out the combined global land and ocean surface temperatures set a record in May. In fact, from March to May, it was the hottest spring on record. Furthermore, the whole first half of the year, from January to May was also the warmest on record.
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Friday, 25 June 2010 02:00 |
NOAA has opened more than 8,000 square miles of previously closed fishing area in the Gulf of Mexico, because the agency has not observed oil in the area. The most significant opening is an area due south of Mississippi which was closed Monday, June 21. Additionally, some smaller areas were opened off the Louisiana and central Florida coasts.
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Friday, 11 June 2010 14:03 |
China and Nepal sign a Memorandum of Understanding on environment and biodiversity conservation, made between the State Forestry Administration of the People’s Republic of China and the Ministry of Forests and Soil Conservation of the Government of Nepal.
The WWF notes that this is a historic moment for both countries as their governments have joined hands for the first time to promote cooperation in the field of biodiversity conservation, management of forest resources and protection of wildlife.
The two countries agreed to implement the obligations of international multilateral environmental agreements and conventions to protect the environment and conserve biodiversity.
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Friday, 11 June 2010 14:03 |
BP Plc said on Tuesday it was capturing more oil from its ruptured Gulf of Mexico well while U.S. scientists tried to figure out just how much crude was still pouring out.
The London-based company's share price closed down 5 percent in London after U.S. President Barack Obama said he wanted to know "whose ass to kick" over the massive spill.
The on-going disaster remains at the top of Obama's crowded domestic agenda, a point underscored by his strong comments and Tuesday's announcement that he will head back to the Gulf coast next week to inspect efforts to contain the spill.
Obama will visit Mississippi, Alabama and Florida during a two-day trip beginning on Monday, the White House said.
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Friday, 11 June 2010 14:03 |
Scientists have located the ideal drill site for the first ever exploration of an Antarctic sub-glacial lake, a development that it likely to facilitate a revolution in climate change research and which may lead to the discovery of life forms cut off from the main line of evolution for millions of years. Far below in the isolated dark strange life forms may have evolved isolated form the mainstream. Also down there are frozen relics of bygone ages and climates.
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Friday, 11 June 2010 14:03 |
While the Deepwater Horizon oil gusher continues to mire the Gulf of Mexico, another threat could be growing below the oil slicked surface. This is the "Dead Zone". Currently the most well known dead zone is about 8,500 square miles in size and lies in the Gulf of Mexico, where the Mississippi River dumps high nutrient runoff from its vast drainage basin, which includes the heart of the U.S. agriculture business from the Midwest. This is equivalent to a dead zone the size of New Jersey. Dead zones are hypoxic (low oxygen) areas in the world's oceans, the observed incidences of which have been increasing since oceanographers began noting them in the 1970s.
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Friday, 11 June 2010 14:03 |
The oil crisis in the Gulf of Mexico has steadily taken its toll on the waters of the gulf and surrounding coastlines. However, the prevailing currents will not allow the oil to be stationary. The Loop Current, which is a clockwise current in the Gulf that originates from Caribbean waters that flow north along the Yucatan, around the Gulf, and out to the Atlantic, will bring the oil around the southern tip of Florida. Then, the stronger Gulf Stream current will take it along the eastern seaboard and deep into the North Atlantic by as early as mid-July.
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