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This is an archive of AGU's GeoSpace blog through 1 July 2020. New content about AGU research can be found on Eos and the AGU newsroom.

You are browsing the archive for kramsayer, Author at GeoSpace - Page 5 of 10.

13 June 2012

Exploring where Earth’s crust rips apart

Þingvellir, Iceland – There aren’t many places in the world where you can walk along a “mid-ocean ridge” and still keep your feet dry. But here the separation of two vast slabs of Earth’s crust—a slow-moving drama usually hidden far below the ocean waves at the bottom of the sea—takes place in plain view.

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12 June 2012

Citizen-scientists answer call for Icelandic volcano ash samples

When Iceland’s Grímsvötn volcano erupted in May 2011, ejecting 0.7 cubic kilometers (0.2 cubic miles) of ash far up into the atmosphere, most of the material headed north to the pole. Computer models predicted the path of the plume, satellites beamed back images, but one researcher turned to a low-tech and inexpensive method of tracking the ash fall – cellophane sticky tape.

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Volcanic lightning examined through ash grains

GeoSpace is in Selfoss, Iceland this week, reporting from AGU’s Chapman Conference on Volcanism and the Atmosphere. Check back for posts on the science presented at the meeting, as well as field trips to nearby volcanoes and geologic features. Selfoss, Iceland — The awesome sight of explosive volcanic eruptions occasionally includes a light show as well. Lightning can be sparked throughout the eruption – as the ash, rocks and gases …

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11 June 2012

Planting trees in Iceland to shield against volcanic ash

Iceland is undertaking Europe’s largest reclamation project to replant birch and willows, especially in volcanically active areas, to help reduce erosion and improve the island’s ecological health.

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Potential Iceland eruption could pump acid into European airspace

A modern recurrence of an extraordinary type of volcanic eruption in Iceland could inject large quantities of hazardous gases into North Atlantic and European flight corridors, potentially for months at a time, a new study suggests. Using computer simulations, researchers are investigating the likely atmospheric effects if a “flood lava” eruption took place in Iceland today.

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5 June 2012

Volcanism & the thermal evolution of planets: An interview with Dr. Sue Smrekar

Dr. Sue Smrekar is the deputy project scientist for NASA’s Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter. At NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory she helps coordinate the efforts of researchers working on the mission’s scientific investigations. Besides Mars, one of her principal topics of research has been the volcanism on Venus, based on data from NASA’s Magellan mission.

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29 May 2012

Massive biofuel production could affect ozone layer

Already in doubt as an alternative to fossil fuels, biofuels might also contribute to destruction of the protective layer of ozone in the upper atmosphere, a new study says.

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25 May 2012

Dead Sea rising: how the lowest place on Earth is getting (slightly) higher

Declining water levels are causing the floor of the Dead Sea to rise, according to a new study. With less water to weigh it down, the sea’s bed is now rising at a rate of about 5 mm (0.2 in) per year, said Ran Nof, a PhD candidate at Israel’s Ben-Gurion University of the Negev

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21 May 2012

Monitoring earthquakes with GPS could yield faster disaster response

When the March 2011 earthquake shook Japan, scientists needed about 20 minutes to conduct a full analysis. But now, researchers have found a way to shrink that critical analysis time for large earthquakes to two minutes. The speedup results from using data from GPS networks for the initial evaluation, rather than readings of seismometers.

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4 May 2012

Building resilience as weather worsens

Two adjacent, brand-new houses – one was torn from its foundation by winds, the other stood strong. A mere $3,000 in building costs made the difference, including a simple wind-resistant measure: a front door that stays shut in a storm because it’s built to open outward rather than inward.

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