This is one of the pictures the year has left. In it, two Muslim militiamen armed with machetes are registering a Christian in the Miskine neighborhood, in Bangui (Central African Republic), December 13, 2013. About 1,600 and 3,000 French soldiers already there of the African MISCA international mission were not able to stop violence and chaos. Both in this case and in other armed conflicts, there ...[Read More]
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GeoLog
A dangerous fish in the lab and a Vibrocorer on the move – who said research was monotonous?
Earlier this month Jens Weiser set off aboard a research vessel fondly known as the Floating University to find out more about the oceans off southern Africa. After several weeks at sea, Weiser has some exciting findings to report back from FS Meteor as he and 14 other young scientists explore the region’s biology and geology… A certain routine has developed over the last week here on board. The t ...[Read More]
Soil System Sciences
Monday paper: A dual isotope approach to isolate soil carbon pools of different turnover times
Torn, M. S., Kleber, M., Zavaleta, E. S., Zhu, B., Field, C. B., Trumbore, S. E. 2013. A dual isotope approach to isolate soil carbon pools of different turnover times. Biogeosciences, 10, 8067-8081. DOI: 10.5194/bg-10-8067-2013. Abstract Soils are globally significant sources and sinks of atmospheric CO2. Increasing the resolution of soil carbon turnover estimates is important for predicting the ...[Read More]
GeoLog
Imaggeo on Mondays: A feast of pancakes
The thought of pancake ice always makes me a little hungry – I just can’t help thinking about stacks of syrup-drowned pancakes, or crepes covered wish sugar and doused with lemon juice – but the science of pancake ice is quite a tempting topic too! Pancake ice occurs in areas where ice formation is repeatedly disturbed by water movement. In the Southern Ocean, the water extremely open and the swel ...[Read More]
Soil System Sciences
Monday paper: Combined use of stable isotopes and fallout radionuclides as soil erosion indicators in a forested mountain site, South Korea
Meusburger, K., Mabit, L., Park, J.-H., Sandor, T., Alewell, C. 2013. Combined use of stable isotopes and fallout radionuclides as soil erosion indicators in a forested mountain site, South Korea. Biogeosciences 10, 5627-5638. DOI: 10.5194/bg-10-5627-2013, 20133 Abstract The aim of this study is to assess and to validate the suitability of the stable nitrogen and carbon isotope signature as soil e ...[Read More]
Soil System Sciences
Cold soil in the groove
Often, soils from cold regions, such as Arctic soils, show polygonal forms in their surface. These polygons are formed because of the freeze-thaw cycle, characteristic of permafrost. What is permafrost? Permafrost is a subsurface soil layer which stays permanently frozen (below 0 oC) during long periods of time, usually more than two consecutive years. Most extensive permafrost areas can be found ...[Read More]
GeoLog
Dense rocks rise higher because isostasy says so
From space, the Brandberg Igneous Complex looks like a coffee-coloured birthmark set upon the bony complexion of the Namibian desert. Perfectly circular, its peaks soar in a ring of mighty topography, its massive granite cliffs etched with the muscular definition of spheroidal weathering. Its bulk seems to rise out of the barren landscape, driven upward by some unseen force. In fact, granite intru ...[Read More]
Soil System Sciences
Monday paper: Modelling soil organic carbon stocks in global change scenarios: a CarboSOIL application
Muñoz-Rojas, M., Jordán, A., Zavala, L. M., González-Peñaloza, F. A., De la Rosa, D., Pino-Mejias, R., and Anaya-Romero, M. 2013. Modelling soil organic carbon stocks in global change scenarios: a CarboSOIL application. Biogeosciences, 10, 8253-8268, DOI: 10.5194/bg-10-8253-2013. Abstract Global climate change, as a consequence of the increasing levels of atmospheric CO2 concentration, may ...[Read More]
GeoLog
Imaggeo on Mondays: Carving polar canyons
This week Ian Joughin, a research scientist from the Polar Science Center at the University of Washington, takes us on the polar express to put glacial processes into perspective and find out what makes a moulin… This canyon formed when a melt lake on the surface of the Greenland Ice Sheet overflowed and created a stream that extended out toward a crevasse field. This outflow stream filled a creva ...[Read More]
Soil System Sciences
Monday paper: Managing soil nitrate with cover crops and buffer strips in Sicilian vineyards
A. Novara, L. Gristina, F. Guaitoli, A. Santoro, A. Cerdà. 2013. Managing soil nitrate with cover crops and buffer strips in Sicilian vineyards. Solid Earth, 4, 255-262, doi:10.5194/se-4-255-2013 Abstract When soil nitrate levels are low, plants suffer nitrogen (N) deficiency but when the levels are excessive, soil nitrates can pollute surface and subsurface waters. Strategies to reduce the nitrat ...[Read More]