Nature & Environment : Science World Report

May 21, 2012 01:32 PM EDT

Mercury in Dolphins: Study Compares Toxin Levels in Captive and Wild Sea Mammals

Amid growing concerns about the spread of harmful mercury in plants and animals, a new study by researchers from The Johns Hopkins University and The National Aquarium has compared levels of the chemical in captive dolphins with dolphins found in the wild.

May 21, 2012 12:04 PM EDT

Toxic Mercury, Accumulating in the Arctic, Springs from a Hidden Source

Environmental scientists at Harvard have discovered that the Arctic accumulation of mercury, a toxic element, is caused by both atmospheric forces and the flow of circumpolar rivers that carry the element north into the Arctic Ocean.

May 21, 2012 10:35 AM EDT

U.S.-Japan Scientific Cooperation Strengthened with Launch of New Environmental Monitoring Satellite

NOAA scientists will use data from a new Japanese polar-orbiting satellite launched earlier today from Tanegashima Space Center, Japan, to help forecast severe storms, monitor the decline of Arctic sea ice, and predict the onset of El NiÃ±o, La NiÃ±a and other global climate phenomena. Once deem...

May 21, 2012 09:51 AM EDT

Latest Southern Ocean Research Shows Continuing Deep Ocean Change

New research by teams of Australian and US scientists has found there has been a massive reduction in the amount of Antarctic Bottom Water found off the coast of Antarctica. Comparing detailed measurements taken during the Australian Antarctic program's 2012 Southern Ocean marine science voyage to h...

May 21, 2012 09:41 AM EDT

Earth's Water Cycle Intensifying with Atmospheric Warming

A clear change in salinity has been detected in the world's oceans, signalling shifts and an acceleration in the global rainfall and evaporation cycle.

May 21, 2012 09:01 AM EDT

Oxygen-separation Membranes could Aid in CO2 Reduction

It may seem counterintuitive, but one way to reduce carbon dioxide emissions to the atmosphere may be to produce pure carbon dioxide in powerplants that burn fossil fuels. In this way, greenhouse gases - once isolated within a plant - could be captured and stored in natural reservoirs, deep in the E...

May 21, 2012 08:36 AM EDT

Launch of IMPACT World+

IMPACT World+, the first worldwide regionalized life cycle impact assessment (LCIA) methodology was launched today in Berlin, Germany during the 6th SETAC World Congress / SETAC Europe 22nd Annual Meeting. The event featured the results of this innovative undertaking spearheaded by a team of leading...

May 20, 2012 03:08 PM EDT

New Facilities Spotlight Next-generation Biofuels

After a decade of promise, advanced biofuels makers are entering a crucial make-or-break period with the first of a new generation of production facilities about to come on line.

May 18, 2012 04:14 PM EDT

Earthquake Hits Eastern Japan, No Tsunami Warning Issued

An earthquake with a preliminary magnitude of 4.8 hit eastern Japan on Friday, shaking buildings in the capital Tokyo.

May 18, 2012 12:46 PM EDT

Finding Fingerprints in Sea Level Rise

It was used to help Apollo astronauts navigate in space, and has since been applied to problems as diverse as economics and weather forecasting, but Harvard scientists are now using a powerful statistical tool to not only track sea level rise over time, but to determine where the water causing the r...

May 18, 2012 10:54 AM EDT

â€œWarming Holeâ€ Over the Eastern U.S. Due to Air Pollution

Temperatures are increasing on a global scale, but at the regional level, the story gets complicated. In the central and eastern United States, for example, warming has not kept pace with other parts of the world over much of the last century.

May 18, 2012 10:23 AM EDT

Climate Engineering Report Ranked among Top Government Priorities by Copenhagen Consensus Center

The effect of global warming could potentially be ameliorated by engineering ways to reflect more sunlight back into space, according to a report by a professor at The University of Texas at Austin.