Geosciences Column

Geosciences Column: Spatial seismic hazard in western Indonesia – a new, adaptive, approach

Louisa Brotherson October 30, 2020

Riski boat in Risky Bali. Credit: David Fernández-Blanco (distributed via imaggeo.egu.eu)

A Natural Hazards Earth System Sciences (NHESS) paper proposes a new sampling method for reducing uncertainty in geographical location in seismic hazard risk analysis, with implications for the insurance industry and risk communication in general. Globally, rapid urbanisation is increasing the risk of exposure of human populations and infrastructure to natural hazards, including earthquakes ...[Read More]

Don’t leaf it to the trees: Amazonian soils also work to store carbon.

Hazel Gibson August 26, 2020

'Yasuní National Park' by Jose Schreckinger (distributed via imaggeo.egu.eu)

The Amazon rainforest covers an area of 5.5 million km² and is well known for being an invaluable global resource for carbon storage. But it’s not just the trees and vegetation of the Amazonian rainforest that lock in and store carbon – the very soil in these forests can do the same thing, according to research published in EGU’s journal SOIL earlier this year. In this study Carlos Alberto Quesada ...[Read More]

Geosciences Column: Thunderstorm asthma, the unexpected impact of lightning storms on pollen allergies.

Hazel Gibson June 26, 2020

Image credit: Michiel Baatsen, (distributed via imaggeo)

In October 2015 a series of massive thunderstorms rolled across the Eastern Mediterranean. In the hours and days that followed many people living along the Israeli coast had to go to their nearest medical centre because they were experiencing respiratory problems, which appeared very similar to asthma. But what could have caused these breathing problems? Well in research recently published in Natu ...[Read More]

LGBTQIA+ in the field

Hazel Gibson June 19, 2020

Image credit: François Dulac, (distributed via imaggeo)

As a part of any field-based science work, whether it be as an individual scientist, research team or with students, we must first conduct a risk assessment. This often focuses on the physical dangers that you, your colleagues or students may encounter whilst working in stressful and sometimes unfamiliar environments. More recently, field-based risk assessments for physical/environmental scientist ...[Read More]