In some places in Arctic and Antarctic where sea ice should occur, open water appears instead and those persistent areas of open water amidst sea ice are known as polynyas. They can happen as a result of the upwelling of warm ocean water and also from winds.Recent
Hurricane Kenneth has formed in the eastern Pacific Ocean, a rare feat for this time of year. Officialy the hurricane season ends on November 30. Tropical Depression 13-E took shape Saturday afternoon and strengthened into Tropical Storm Kenneth about 24 hours
Latest projections indicates that state’s population will double to 46 million over the next half-century. It means that the days of cheap and abundant water are coming to an end, and where the additional supply will come from is not clear.Sixty years after the
The Suguta Valley is one of the driest places in Kenya, and may be one of the driest places near Earth’s Equator. The remote location limits field studies, but data indicate that annual precipitation is less than 300 millimeters (12 inches) a year, while evaporation
A possible filament eruption in the northwest quadrant on Sunday has generated a slow moving Coronal Mass Ejection (CME). You can watch the STEREO Ahead COR2 movie below and it looks like a portion of this cloud may be Earth directed. Stay tuned for more
Scientists and security specialists are in the midst of a fierce debate over recent experiments on a strain of bird flu virus that made it more contagious. The H5N1 virus has been circulating among birds and other animals in recent years. It’s also infected about
If communication with Russia’s troubled Phobos-Grunt is not established by November 21, the window for a trajectory to the Martian moon Phobos, will close, experts say. But Russian space expert Igor Lisov suggested that Phobos-Grunt could be sent to orbit the Moon
Mexico’s Popocatepetl volcano has spewed a burst of ash 3 miles (5 kilometers) into the air after breaking through a dome of lava. The Popocatepetl volcano erupted with a plume of ash after shaking for several minutes early on Friday. The volcano’s activity has
Much of interior Alaska experienced record-setting early winter season cold temperatures during the middle of November 2011. Frigid temperatures are not uncommon in Alaska this time of year, but the brutal cold currently gripping Fairbanks has reached a historical
On November 25th the Moon will pass in front of the sun, slightly off-center, producing a partial solar eclipse visible from Antarctica, Tasmania, and parts of South Africa and New Zealand. Maximum coverage occurs about 100 miles off the coast of Antarctica where the su
