Sunday, 19 May, 2013

As molten rock gathers underground, a huge volcanic field in Chile is the fastest-rising land on Earth. The biggest eruptions at Laguna del Maule, if they happened today, would change our climate and planet. Scientists are racing to understand a strange unrest in a bizarre landscape.

What are sinkholes, and how dangerous are they? Can we detect and prevent them? Should you be asking more questions about the ground we’re standing on?

The first ocean wave energy-capturing device with a permit to connect back to a public power grid will enter the Pacific next month. How much power could the U.S. potentially harness from the waves crashing into its the coastline? According to researchers, wave energy might be one of our best renewable resources.

A long debate about these giant ice streams has gyrated wildly. Now, satellite data show a moderate loss of mass for a recent six-year period. For inaccessible glaciers, satellites may be the best thing since the ice axe!

Volcanic eruptions are unpredictable, but here’s a new view of the historic eruption of a Mediterranean monster. About 3,500 years ago, Santorini’s eruption left a giant caldera and 60-meter layers of pumice. A new study of tiny crystals tracks the movement of molten magma before the cataclysm.

Seismic study shows crust thinning as continent divides, giving another view of our restless planet, showing tectonic movement in action, and highlighting a major real-estate investment opportunity.

New instruments are giving a better view of how those astonishingly strong lightning bolts form inside clouds – and we are also getting a better picture of the many ways that lightning can harm us.

A new report on the ancient universe shows that most galaxies – even all of them – had a black hole at the center, much like modern galaxies. We can understand why a black hole would need to be surrounded by millions of stars, but why should galaxies require black holes?

Could an offshore earthquake start a deadly tsunami, as in Sumatra and Japan? Where do tsunamis get their power? How do warning systems work?

Military technology supports atmospheric and ocean science! 1: a robot sub smart enough to find stuff in the deep ocean 2: a metal fish glides for weeks under the ice 3: an electric sinker-bobber that never needs recharging 4: a research jet that flies miles above airliners.

Are extreme heat, wicked cyclones and record rainfalls signs of climate change, or just more changes in the weather? Will warming eliminate record cold days? Will hurricanes get bigger?

How do rocks move? What governs how long and violent an earthquake will be? Should we worry about a powder between the grinding rocks? Why do a few earthquakes grow into monsters?

Aftershocks and triggered earthquakes both follow a large earthquake, and they don’t happen at random. Can lessons about the sequence and timing of quakes improve safety?

New analysis uses light to distinguish one diamond from another. Technique may help jewelers, but won’t help the battle against the “conflict diamonds” that are fueling wars in Africa.

What are earthquakes? How do we study them? Are we any closer to accurate predictions?