“Human influence on the climate system is clear” was the key message from the report on the physical science of climate change from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). “We have come a long way since the first IPCC report was published in 1990,” a statement reiterated throughout the press conference for the release of the report. The IPCC were keen to register the significance of ...[Read More]
Climate: Past, Present & Future
Imaggeo on Mondays: Eddy covariance
This week’s Imaggeo on Mondays is brought to you by Jean-Daniel Paris, a meteorologist from the Climate and Environmental Sciences Laboratory (LSCE), France. He describes how new techniques like eddy covariance tell us about the flux of greenhouse gas emissions to the atmosphere… This picture was taken during a visit to the Hyytiälä research station in Finland in June 2010. This station runs flux ...[Read More]
Geosciences column: Playing back the Antarctic ice records
Satellites are keeping tabs on the state of Arctic and Antarctic sea ice, and have observed considerable declines in ice extent in many areas since records began, but what do we know of past sea ice extent? Ice cores keep an excellent record of climate change, but until recently, ice cores have not been used to quantify patterns in past sea ice extent because few reliable compounds are preserved i ...[Read More]
Applications for the 2014 GIFT workshop are open!
Every year, the EGU Committee on Education organises a workshop that spreads first-hand scientific information to teachers. The theme of this year’s Geosciences Information For Teachers (GIFT) workshop is Our Changing Planet and it will be taking place on April 27–30 2014 at the EGU General Assembly in Vienna, Austria. The workshop will explore some of the recent complex changes of our environment ...[Read More]
Letting the methane genie out of the bottle
Greenhouse gas levels and globally averaged surface temperatures are both on the rise. Whilst slow increases in temperatures are not easily perceived as threatening, and might even be welcomed by some, climate change can also include fast and sudden changes. These sudden changes could have disastrous effect on not only us humans, but also life on this planet more generally. When it comes to places ...[Read More]
GeoCinema Online: The extremes
In our final instalment of GeoCinema Online, we’ve put together a collection of climate and weather documentaries covering the incredibly hot and incredibly cold, together with the extreme events that shape our planet. Settle into your sofa and enjoy some scintillating science! Fennec: Into the Saharan Cauldron The central Sahara has one of the most extreme climates on Earth, but prior to th ...[Read More]
Geoengineering and (un)making the world we want to live in
Geoengineering and its policy implications were hot topics at this year’s Science in Public conference. The subject raised questions such as how is geoengineering portrayed in the media and what does this mean for the acceptance of geoengineering technologies? Dr Rusi Jaspal and Professor Brigitte Nerlich discuss their research into media representations of geoengineering and how these shape the ...[Read More]
Imaggeo on Mondays: Curaçao’s coral coastline
Easterly trade winds can carry warm moist air to the island of Curaçao, having picked up moisture while crossing the Atlantic Ocean. Lying just south of the hurricane belt, Curaçao can still suffer the effects of these storms. For the most part, though, the coast has experienced little damage, leading to great preservation of the fossil reefs that fringe its coast. The northern coast of Curaçao, w ...[Read More]
Geosciences Column: How curbing HFC emissions could reduce warming
Carbon dioxide is without a doubt the most famous of warming culprits. But would reducing emissions of this greenhouse gas be enough to mitigate climate change within this century? A recent paper published in Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics focuses on a less known substance that, if phased out, could avoid as much as 0.5 °C of warming by 2100. Hydroflurocarbons (HFCs) have an interesting history ...[Read More]
Geosciences Column: Just a drop in the ocean – river nutrients and Arctic plankton
The oceans are a big contributor to the global carbon cycle, with phytoplankton taking up carbon through photosynthesis and incorporating it into their shells. When these organisms die their shells sink and make a calcareous contribution to seafloor sediments. Of course, with the formation of limestone, this carbon is locked out of the atmosphere for long periods of geological time. Until recently ...[Read More]