You are browsing the archive for May 2012 - Page 2 of 2 - Dan's Wild Wild Science Journal.
14 May 2012
The World’s Water- An amazing image.
This image courtesy of the USGS: Some interesting facts I looked up regarding water: Virtually all of that blue blob is salt water and not drinkable. Only 2.5% of that blue marble of water s fresh and 70% of that 2.5% is frozen ice in Greenland, Antarctica, or on high mountaintops. Only .007% of Earth’s water is easily accessible for humans, a fact that I made much of when taught …
8 May 2012
Climate Change: It’s Not About the Politics
“Is it possible that a synthesis of all the world’s climate scientists is wrong about the science they spend their lives studying, and your favorite political commentators are right? Certainly it is. It’s probably not very likely, but if it does turn out to be the case, then the synthesis will evolve in the direction that pans out through experimentation and observation, and future IPCC reports will be even closer …
Are Helmets A Good Idea During Tornado Warnings? Well Duh!!
Russell Lewis at National Public Radio had an interesting report about wearing helmets during tornado warnings a few days ago and it caught my eye, because I’ve been telling viewers to do just that since the early 1990’s. Not only, that but I’ve also pushed the idea of making sure everyone has shoes on and a safe place to run to if the winds start to pick up. Frankly, I’m …
5 May 2012
A New Low For The Anti-Science Crowd
I’ve no idea what the best way to deal with climate change is, but you should know there are more scientists who think the Moon landing might have been a hoax (~5%) than who think climate change is (<2.5%). This bill board is certainly a new low for the anti-science Heartland crazies, and as the folks at Climate Central put it, “Heartland jumped the shark” with this one. I’ve …
1 May 2012
Pine Beetles Taking Advantage of Warming Climate?
I was shocked to see the extent of the pine beetle damage on my last two trips to Colorado. There seems to be growing evidence this latest infestation is being aided (perhaps greatly) by the warming climate. It seems that the extra 15 days above freezing each spring are allowing two generations of beetles per year. The result is a lot of dead trees. This may be a good example of how our …
Dan Satterfield has worked as an on air meteorologist for 32 years in Oklahoma, Florida and Alabama. Forecasting weather is Dan's job, but all of Earth Science is his passion. This journal is where Dan writes about things he has too little time for on air. Dan blogs about peer-reviewed Earth science for Junior High level audiences and up.