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Categories: Ecology: Trees, Geoscience: Geology

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Environmental: Ecosystems Environmental: Water Geoscience: Earth Science Geoscience: Environmental Issues Geoscience: Geology Paleontology: Climate
Published

Great Bas­in: His­tory of water sup­ply in one of the dri­est regions in the USA      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

An international team has reconstructed the evolution of groundwater in the Great Basin, USA -- one of the driest regions on Earth -- up to 350,000 years into the past with unprecedented accuracy. The results shed new light on the effects of climate change on water supply and provide important insights for the sustainable use of groundwater resources.

Biology: Biochemistry Biology: Marine Biology: Microbiology Environmental: General Geoscience: Earth Science Geoscience: Geochemistry Geoscience: Geography Geoscience: Geology
Published

How life and geology worked together to forge Earth's nutrient rich crust      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Around 500 million years ago life in the oceans rapidly diversified. In the blink of an eye -- at least in geological terms -- life transformed from simple, soft-bodied creatures to complex multicellular organisms with shells and skeletons. Now, research has shown that the diversification of life at this time also led to a drastic change in the chemistry of Earth's crust -- the uppermost layer we walk on and, crucially, the layer which provides many of the nutrients essential to life.

Biology: Zoology Ecology: Trees Environmental: Ecosystems
Published

Preserving pine forests by understanding beetle flight      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Researchers study the flight performance of the mountain pine beetle from a fluid mechanics and an entomological perspective. Understanding these aspects of the insect's flight could improve estimates of its spread through the environment and preserve pine forests. To examine insect flight, the team employed a type of model previously used for idealized airfoils. They showed that it can be successfully applied to multiple individual animals across biological sex, insect age, and body size. In doing so, the model can predict how these factors impact flight characteristics.

Biology: Botany Biology: Microbiology Ecology: General Ecology: Nature Ecology: Research Ecology: Trees Environmental: Biodiversity Environmental: Ecosystems Environmental: General Geoscience: Geochemistry Offbeat: Earth and Climate Offbeat: General Offbeat: Plants and Animals
Published

Exploring the underground connections between trees      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Fungal networks interconnecting trees in a forest is a key factor that determines the nature of forests and their response to climate change. These networks have also been viewed as a means for trees to help their offspring and other tree-friends, according to the increasingly popular 'mother-tree hypothesis'. An international group of researchers re-examined the evidence for and against this hypothesis in a new study.

Environmental: General Geoscience: Earth Science Geoscience: Geology
Published

New clues about the rise of Earth's continents      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

New research deepens the understanding of Earth's crust by testing and ultimately eliminating one popular hypothesis about why continental crust is lower in iron and more oxidized compared to oceanic crust. The iron-poor composition of continental crust is a major reason why vast portions of the Earth's surface stand above sea level as dry land, making terrestrial life possible today. The study uses laboratory experiments to show that the iron-depleted, oxidized chemistry typical of Earth's continental crust likely did not come from crystallization of the mineral garnet, as a popular explanation proposed in 2018.

Biology: Botany Biology: Microbiology Ecology: Trees Environmental: Ecosystems Environmental: General Geoscience: Environmental Issues Geoscience: Geochemistry Offbeat: Earth and Climate Offbeat: General Offbeat: Plants and Animals
Published

Mushrooms and their post-rain, electrical conversations      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Certain types of fungi can communicate with each other via electrical signals. But much remains unknown about how and when they do so. A group of researchers recently headed to the forest to measure the electrical signals of Laccaria bicolor mushrooms, finding that their electrical signals increased following rainfall.

Biology: Botany Biology: Zoology Ecology: Animals Ecology: Endangered Species Ecology: Extinction Ecology: Invasive Species Ecology: Nature Ecology: Trees Environmental: Biodiversity Environmental: Ecosystems Geoscience: Geochemistry
Published

Ant mounds are more important for biodiversity than previously thought      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

The ant mounds on the heath, in the forest and in your garden are oases for life. The heat and nutrients from ant mounds make them the perfect home for unique plant and animal species, according to new research.

Biology: Botany Ecology: General Ecology: Invasive Species Ecology: Nature Ecology: Research Ecology: Trees Environmental: Ecosystems Environmental: General Geoscience: Environmental Issues Geoscience: Geography
Published

How the Amazon rainforest is likely to cope with the effect of future drought      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

A major collaboration involving 80 scientists from Europe and South America has identified the regions of the Amazon rainforest where trees are most likely to face the greatest risk from drier conditions brought about by climate change. Based on the analysis, the scientists predict trees in the western and southern Amazon face the greatest risk of dying. They also warn that previous scientific investigations may have underestimated the impact of drought on the rainforest because those studies focused on the central-eastern part of the forest, which is the least vulnerable to drought.

Geoscience: Earth Science Geoscience: Earthquakes Geoscience: Geography Geoscience: Geology
Published

Ridgecrest faults increasingly sensitive to solid Earth tides before earthquakes      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Faults in the Ridgecrest, California area were very sensitive to solid earth tidal stresses in the year and a half before the July 2019 Ridgecrest earthquake sequence.

Environmental: General Geoscience: Earth Science Geoscience: Earthquakes Geoscience: Geology
Published

Turkey's next quake: Research shows where, how bad -- but not 'when'      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Using remote sensing, geophysicists have documented the massive Feb. 6 quake that killed more than 50,000 people in Eastern Turkey and toppled more than 100,000 buildings. Alarmingly, researchers found that a section of the fault remains unbroken and locked -- a sign that the plates there may, when friction intensifies, generate another magnitude 6.8 earthquake when it finally gives way.

Geoscience: Earth Science Geoscience: Earthquakes Geoscience: Geography Geoscience: Geology
Published

Plate tectonic processes in the Pacific and Atlantic during the Cretaceous period have shaped the Caribbean region to this day      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Earthquakes and volcanism occur as a result of plate tectonics. The movement of tectonic plates themselves is largely driven by the process known as subduction. The question of how new active subduction zones come into being, however, is still under debate. An example of this is the volcanic Lesser Antilles arc in the Caribbean. A research team recently developed models that simulated the occurrences in the Caribbean region during the Cretaceous, when a subduction event in the Eastern Pacific led to the formation of a new subduction zone in the Atlantic. The computer simulations show how the collision of the old Caribbean plateau with the Greater Antilles arc contributed to the creation of this new Atlantic subduction zone. Some 86 million years ago, the triggered processes subsequently resulted in a major mantle flow and thus to the development of the Caribbean large igneous province.

Biology: Botany Biology: General Ecology: Endangered Species Ecology: Extinction Ecology: General Ecology: Invasive Species Ecology: Nature Ecology: Research Ecology: Trees Environmental: Biodiversity Environmental: Ecosystems Environmental: General Geoscience: Earth Science Geoscience: Environmental Issues Paleontology: Climate
Published

The diversity of present tree species is shaped by climate change in the last 21,000 years      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

A new global survey of 1000 forest areas shows how climate change since the peak of the last ice age has had a major impact on the diversity and distribution of tree species we see today. The results can help us predict how ecosystems will react to future changes, thus having an impact on conservation management around the globe.

Geoscience: Earth Science Geoscience: Geography Geoscience: Geology
Published

How did the Andes Mountains get so huge? A new geological research method may hold the answer      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

How did the Andes -- the world's longest mountain range -- reach its enormous size? This is just one of the geological questions that a new method may be able to answer. With unprecedented precision, the method allows researchers to estimate how Earth's tectonic plates changed speed over the past millions of years.

Environmental: Water Geoscience: Earth Science Geoscience: Geochemistry Geoscience: Geology Space: Astronomy Space: Astrophysics Space: General Space: Structures and Features Space: The Solar System
Published

How did Earth get its water?      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Our planet's water could have originated from interactions between the hydrogen-rich atmospheres and magma oceans of the planetary embryos that comprised Earth's formative years.

Ecology: General Environmental: Ecosystems Environmental: General Geoscience: Earth Science Geoscience: Environmental Issues Geoscience: Geochemistry Geoscience: Geology Offbeat: Earth and Climate Offbeat: General Offbeat: Space Space: Astronomy Space: Astrophysics Space: Exploration Space: General Space: The Solar System
Published

Humans need Earth-like ecosystem for deep-space living      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Can humans endure long-term living in deep space? The answer is a lukewarm maybe, according to a new theory describing the complexity of maintaining gravity and oxygen, obtaining water, developing agriculture and handling waste far from Earth.

Environmental: General Environmental: Water Geoscience: Earth Science Geoscience: Geography Geoscience: Geology
Published

Critical observations of sinking coasts      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Using satellite-obtained data from 2007-21, researchers mapped the entire East Coast to demonstrate how the inclusion of land subsidence reveals many areas to be more vulnerable to floods and erosion than previously thought.

Archaeology: General Environmental: Water Geoscience: Earth Science Geoscience: Geology Geoscience: Oceanography Geoscience: Volcanoes Paleontology: Climate
Published

Study re-evaluates hazards and climate impacts of massive underwater volcanic eruptions      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Material left on the seafloor by bronze-age underwater volcanic eruptions is helping researchers better understand the size, hazards and climate impact of their parent eruptions, according to new research.

Chemistry: General Environmental: General Geoscience: Earth Science Geoscience: Geochemistry Geoscience: Geology Geoscience: Severe Weather Offbeat: Earth and Climate Offbeat: General Offbeat: Space Space: Astrophysics Space: Exploration Space: General Space: The Solar System
Published

Lightning strike creates phosphorus material      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

A lightning strike in New Port Richey, Florida, led to a chemical reaction creating a new material that is transitional between space minerals and minerals found on Earth. High-energy events, such as lightning, can cause unique chemical reactions. In this instance, the result is a new material -- one that is transitional between space minerals and minerals found on Earth.

Biology: Biochemistry Biology: Botany Biology: General Ecology: Invasive Species Ecology: Nature Ecology: Trees Environmental: Biodiversity Environmental: Ecosystems Environmental: General Geoscience: Severe Weather
Published

Trees in areas prone to hurricanes have strong ability to survive even after severe damage      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

The island of Dominica took a direct hit from Category 5 Hurricane Maria. Nine months afterward, researchers found that while 89% percent of trees located in nine previously documented forest stands were damaged, but only 10 percent had immediately died. The most common damage was stem snapping and major branch damage. The damage with the highest rates of mortality were uprooting and being crushed by a neighboring tree. Large individual trees and species with lower wood density were susceptible to snapping, uprooting and mortality. Those on steeper slopes were more prone to being crushed by neighboring trees.