Climate

GeoPolicy: IPCC decides on fresh approach for next major report

Sarah Connors September 27, 2017

Opening session at the 46th IPCC Plenary, Montreal, Canada. Credit: Mike Muzurakis (distributed via IISD/ENB).

This month’s GeoPolicy post is a guest post from Sarah Connors, a Science Officer in the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) Working Group 1 Technical Support Unit (and former EGU Science Policy Officer). The IPCC is starting its sixth cycle, in which hundreds of scientists take stock of the world’s climate change knowledge by assessing the current scientific literature and then summa ...[Read More]

Imaggeo on Mondays: Isolated atoll

Laura Roberts-Artal September 25, 2017

Isolated . Credit: Fulvia Favaro (distributed via imaggeo.egu.eu)

Covering a total area of 298 km², the idylic natural atolls and reefs of the Maldives stretch across the Indian Ocean. The tropical nation is famous for it’s crystal clear waters and picture perfect white sand beaches, but how did the 26 ring-shaped atolls and over 1000 coral islands form? Coral reefs commonly form immediately around an island, creating a fringe which projects seawards from the sh ...[Read More]

GeoSciences Column: Catch of the day – what seabirds can tell us about the marine environment

Laura Roberts-Artal September 22, 2017

An adult northern gannet mid-flight . Credit: Andreas Trepte , distributed via Wikimedia Commons .

Off the coast of Germany, a male northern gannet (for ease, we’ll call him Pete) soars above the cold waters of the North Sea. He’s on the hunt for a shoal of fish. Some 40km due south east, Pete’s mate and chick await, patiently, for him to return to the nest with a belly full of food. Glints of silver just below the waves; the fish have arrived. Pete readies himself. Body rigid, wings tucked in ...[Read More]

Imaggeo on Mondays: A prehistoric forest

Laura Roberts-Artal September 11, 2017

1.6 hectares of wilderness. Give me more . Credit: Vytas Huth (distributed via imaggeo.egu.eu)

This stunning vista encompasses the south-western wilderness of Tasmania as seen from the Tahune air walk 60 m above the Huon river valley. In front lies the beginning of a huge UNESCO World Heritage Site, covering almost a fourth of the area of Tasmania. The site mostly consists of a pristine, temperate rainforest of Gondwanan origin that is home to the tallest flowering trees in the world; Eucal ...[Read More]