Enormous reservoirs of the potent greenhouse gas methane could lurk beneath the Antarctic ice sheet, hastening the rate of global warming if portions of the sheet collapse, according to a study published Thursday in the journal Nature. http://www.latimes.com/news/science/sciencenow/la-sci-sn-methane-reservoirs-20120829,0,5490124.story?track=rss
Article courtesy of The Los Angeles Times/Science Now by Monte Morin
WASHINGTON — The Obama administration announced fuel economy standards Tuesday that would require car makers to almost double the average gas mileage for passenger vehicles to 54.5 miles per gallon by 2025. http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/la-na-fuel-standards-20120829,0,6043250.story
Article courtesy of The Los Angeles Times by Neela Banerjee-Washington Bureau
The area of floating sea ice in the Arctic has fallen to its lowest size ever observed, researchers said Monday. Moreover, the ice is still shrinking and is not expected to reach its minimum until sometime in September. The average shrinkage of the ice has been increasing steadily since 2007, and researchers attribute the loss to global warming, which is causing warmer temperatures in the region. http://www.latimes.com/news/science/sciencenow/la-sci-sn-arctic-sea-ice-20120827,0,5241680.story?track=rss
Article courtesy of The Los Angeles Times by Thomas H. Maugh II
Zipcar Inc., the Cambridge-based car-sharing company, said it will expand its Zipvan cargo van service across North American, launching today in Seattle, Los Angeles, Philadelphia and Portland, Ore.
Zipcar said it will roll out the service to its remaining metro markets throughout the country over the next 12 months. http://bostonherald.com/business/automotive/view/20220821zipcar_expands_van_service_across_continent/srvc=home&position=also
Article courtesy of The Boston Herald by Ira Kantor
PITTSBURGH (AP) — In a surprising turnaround, the amount of carbon dioxide being released into the atmosphere in the U.S. has fallen dramatically to its lowest level in 20 years, and government officials say the biggest reason is that cheap and plentiful natural gas has led many power plant operators to switch from dirtier-burning coal.
CLE ELUM, Wash.—The extreme fire conditions across the West came to bear in a rural part of Washington state when three separate blazes were sparked in just 90 minutes.
Firefighters snuffed two quickly, but the third exploded across more than 40 square miles of grassland, timber and sagebrush on the east slope of the Cascades. It left authorities scrambling to evacuate hundreds of residents. http://www.boston.com/news/nation/articles/2012/08/15/it_just_shot_up_so_fast_fires_blaze_across_west/
Article courtesy of Boston.com from the Associated Press by Shannon Dininny
The annual Perseid meteor shower begins late Friday night, with the peak occurring in the early hours of Sunday morning local time. The number of visible meteors is generally lower than during December's Geminid meteor shower, but the Perseids are frequently more observed because they occur during warmer weather and in a vacation month. http://www.latimes.com/news/science/sciencenow/la-sci-sn-perseid-meteor-shower-20120810,0,2891603.story?track=rss
Article courtesy of The Los Angeles Times –Science Now posted by Thomas H Maugh II
Images from the latest Mars rover’s navigation cameras reveal a remarkably familiar landscape -- one that looks like the California desert.
Black-and-white photos stitched together from the Curiosity rover’s Navcams show gravelly terrain with what looks like well-cut, pyramidal mountains in the background – the kind of terrain found in the Mojave, said John Grotzinger, lead scientist for the Mars Science Laboratory mission. http://www.latimes.com/news/science/sciencenow/la-sci-sn-curiosity-images-mojave-nasa-jpl-20120808,0,160461.story?track=rss
Article courtesy of The Los Angeles Times by Amina Khan
In a nondescript hangar at Edwards Air Force Base in the Mojave Desert, a team of aerospace engineers has been putting the finishing touches on a lightning-quick experimental aircraft designed to fly above the Pacific Ocean at 3,600 mph. A passenger aircraft traveling at that speed could fly from Los Angeles to New York in 46 minutes. http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-hypersonic-revolution-20120813,0,4998122.story
Article courtesy of The Los Angeles Times by W. J.Hennigan
A report by a longtime global warming researcher has concluded that recent extreme summer weather was linked to climate change. The study by a team led by James E. Hansen, director of NASA's Goddard Institute for Space Studies, was published Monday in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. http://www.latimes.com/news/science/sciencenow/la-sci-sn-extreme-summer-heat-global-warming-20120808,0,2385187.story?track=rss
Article courtesy of The Los Angeles Times –Science Now by Rosie Mestel
WELLINGTON, New Zealand—A volcano quiet for more than a century erupted in a New Zealand national park, spreading thick ash for several kilometers (miles) and causing some residents to evacuate their homes. Some domestic flights were canceled Tuesday. http://www.boston.com/news/world/asia/articles/2012/08/07/volcano_erupts_with_ash_cloud_in_new_zealand_park/
Article courtesy of The Boston Globe by Nick Perry Associated Press
Protonex Technology Corp., a Southborough company that specializes in lightweight power systems to the military, said it is looking to develop oxygen generators for use in undersea power systems.
In a press release, Protonex announced its exclusive collaboration with Eric Wernimont, a former principal of General Kinetics Inc. and present owner of relevant intellectual property, on the development of oxygen generation systems based on the controlled decomposition of hydrogen peroxide. http://www.boston.com/businessupdates/2012/08/07/protonex-collaborate-underwater-power-systems/esBPPECv6Na8BYVnZJ8O6L/story.html
Article courtesy of The Boston Globe by Chris Reidy Globe Staff
If you're still skeptical that a tan can be dangerous, consider this: Scientists have found that wild fish are getting skin cancer from ultraviolet radiation.
Article courtesy of The Los Angeles Times by Jon Bardin
The Earth's ability to soak up man-made carbon dioxide emissions is a crucial yet poorly understood process with profound implications for climate change.
Among the questions that have vexed climate scientists is whether the planet can keep pace with humanity's production of greenhouse gases. The loss of this natural damper would carry dire consequences for global warming.
A study published in Thursday's edition of the journal Nature concludes that these reservoirs are continuing to increase their uptake of carbon — and show no sign of diminishing. http://www.latimes.com/news/science/la-sci-land-ocean-carbon-sinks-20120802,0,1935104.story
Article courtesy of The Los Angeles Times by Monte Morin
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