New York ‘at risk’ as seas rise

New York ‘at risk’ as seas rise

New York is a major loser and Reykjavik a winner from new forecasts of sea level rise in different regions.The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) said in 2007 that sea levels would rise at least 28cm (1ft) by the year 2100. But this is a global average;

Scientists have calculated – Earth sees about 760 thunderstorms every hour

Scientists have calculated – Earth sees about 760 thunderstorms every hour

The figure, unveiled at the European Geosciences Union meeting in Vienna, is substantially lower than numbers that have been used for nearly a century. The new research uses a global network of monitoring stations that detect the electromagnetic pulses produced by

Pulsating planet: Superhot rocks make the Earth roll

Pulsating planet: Superhot rocks make the Earth roll

The river valleys are in the North Sea, north of Scotland, beneath a kilometre of water and a further 2 kilometres of sediment. The sea floor here has been slowly sinking ever since it formed. Yet 55 million years ago, something very strange happened. In a geological

Libya warns of disaster if ‘Great Man-Made River’ hit

Libya warns of disaster if ‘Great Man-Made River’ hit

Libya warned on Sunday that NATO-led air strikes could cause a “human and environmental disaster” if they damaged the country’s massive Great Man-Made River (GMMR) project.Built at a cost of 33 billion dollars, the GMMR extracts water from deep beneath the Sahara

Organic farmers sue Monsanto over GMO seeds

Organic farmers sue Monsanto over GMO seeds

A landmark lawsuit filed on March 29 in US federal court seeks to invalidate Monsanto’s patents on genetically modified seeds and to prohibit the company from suing those whose crops become genetically contaminated.The Public Patent Foundation filed suit on

Radiation in Japan Seas: Risk of Animal Death, Mutation?

Radiation in Japan Seas: Risk of Animal Death, Mutation?

In the past week, seawater samples taken near the nuclear power plant, on Japan’s eastern coast, have shown elevated levels of radioactive isotopes, including cesium 137 and iodine 131. All life on Earth and in the oceans lives with exposure to natural levels of

Thailand Flooding Impacts Nearly One Million

Thailand Flooding Impacts Nearly One Million

In what should be one of the hottest, driest times of the year, rainfall totals of more than 50 inches within little more than a week have left swaths of southern Thailand under water. Nearly 1 million people have now been impacted by the recent flooding.At least 25

Earth movements from Japan earthquake confirmed via satellites

Earth movements from Japan earthquake confirmed via satellites

Satellite images have been essential for helping relief efforts in Japan following the massive quake that struck on 11 March. Now scientists are using ESA’s space radars to improve our understanding of tectonic events.Scientists are calling on data from the

Our oceans are turning into plastic

Our oceans are turning into plastic

Last month researchers from the 5 Gyres Institute in Santa Monica, California, and the Algalita Marine Research Foundation in Long Beach, California, sailed into Piriápolis, Uruguay. They had just completed the third leg of the first expedition ever to study