Current Geology News and
Earth Science Articles

Geology news and current earth science articles from around the world. Stories are archived monthly.

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February 27, 2009

Lava fractures suggest Martian floods
Distinctive fractures in ancient lava flows on Mars suggest that water occasionally flooded portions of the planet's surface. The fractures, called columnar joints, are the first that have been observed on a planet other than Earth.

Huge gas storage facility proposed in Arizona
Multifuels LP is proposing a complex and controversial plan to inject fresh water into salt formations deep below ground. Then it would pump out the resulting saltwater and re-inject that water into a still-deeper, saltwater-dominated aquifer for ultimate disposal. The cavern left behind by the original water pumping would then be used to store natural gas that could be used by utilities such as Southwest Gas during peak usage periods.

February 26, 2009

Louisiana governor not keen on funding to USGS
In his response to President Obama's address, Jindal said he opposed the stimulus package's inclusion of $140 million for something called volcano monitoring. Instead of monitoring volcanoes, what Congress should be monitoring is the eruption of spending in Washington, D.C., Jindal said.

February 25, 2009

Utah to bury carbon
The University of Utah and a Utah company plan a joint operation to bury carbon dioxide from power plants deep beneath the ground. The work is in anticipation of nationwide limits -- not yet in place -- on carbon emissions, which are linked to the world's changing climate. Organizers said once those limits are in place, utilities will be looking for ways to reduce their pollution. One solution, they said, could be burying carbon dioxide beneath the ground.

February 23, 2009

Liquid water recently seen on Mars?
Strange globs seen on the landing strut of the Phoenix Mars lander could be the first proof that modern Mars hosts liquid water, a new paper reports. Images from the robotic craft show what appear to be liquid droplets growing, merging, and dripping on the lander's leg over the course of a Martian month.

Can we just bury our CO2 problem in the sand?
A research project is underway in Illinois to perform a large-scale test on a solution to carbon dioxide pollution: The gas is being pumped underground instead of being released into the atmosphere.

Gas from dry riverbed raises people's hopes in India
Scores of people assembled near Khuri river after news of gas emanating from the dry riverbed spread in the town. Sheikhpura district mines and geology department officer, Sanjay Kumar, was of the opinion that the gas could be coming out due to the trees or shrubs buried underneath a long time ago, which consequently might have turned into gas.

February 17, 2009

Exxon Mobil looks to Canada for heavy-duty project
With monster waves 40 feet high and icebergs as big as skyscrapers bobbing in the choppy seas, offshore Eastern Canada is one of the toughest drilling and production environments in the world. Exxon Mobil recently took over as operator of the Hebron field now under development 217 miles off St. John’s and not far from where the Titanic sank. The other stakeholders are a consortium of Chevron Corp., Petro-Canada, StatoilHydro and the provincial government of Newfoundland.

Frozen smoke: ultimate sponge for cleaning up oil spills
Scientists in Arizona and New Jersey are reporting that aerogels, a super-lightweight solid sometimes called “frozen smoke,” may serve as the ultimate sponge for capturing oil from wastewater and effectively soaking up environmental oil spills.

Drilling activity continues to fall in the U.S.
The U.S. rig count continued to plummet, down by 60 rotary rigs with 1,339 working this week, the lowest number since the week ended June 10, 2005.

U.S. stimulus bill likely to revive green power
The U.S. renewable energy sector, which has been hit hard by the banking crisis, will get a new lifeline from the economic stimulus package that is expected to pass the U.S. Congress on Friday. The flow of new wind and solar projects has slowed to a dribble in the past few months, forcing some solar companies to lay off workers and others to temporarily idle production lines as banks shut off capital flows to the industry.

February 12, 2009

Earthquake shakes Colombia-Venezuela border region
An earthquake measuring 5.1 on the Richter scale on Wednesday rocked the Colombian region of Norte de Santander, which borders Venezuela. he Geology and Mining Institute (Ingeominas) said the earthquake also affected cities like Bogota, Bucaramanga in the northeast and Manizales in central east.

Could carbon dioxide replace antibiotics in surgery?
Carbon dioxide could prevent airborne bacteria from reaching the wound and would also suffocate germs. CO2 is already used for this purpose in the food packaging business. Humidified CO2 would also keep the wound warm and moist, which should reduce tissue damage and speed-up healing.

February 11, 2009

Scotland inspired Darwin's work
While the Galapagos Islands are largely credited with providing the inspiration for Charles Darwin's theories, how far did his time in Scotland help shape his ideas? There can be no doubt that his early student days, his observations of natural history in Scotland and his connections with Scottish scientists influenced him greatly.

Cuba collaborates in Venezuelan mining projects
Cuba and Venezuela are developing more than ten collaboration projects in the Geology and Mining sectors as part of a comprehensive cooperation agreement between the two nations.

February 10, 2009

Syncrude execs may face time in jail
Shortly after Syncrude was charged Monday for failing to prevent the deaths last spring of 500 ducks, the federal environment minister revealed the government is considering dramatically increasing fines for environmental crimes. If convicted, the company faces a maximum of $800,000 in fines and its executives could be sent to jail for up to six months.

Nearly 50 new species of prehistoric creatures discovered in record time
In just four years a University of Portsmouth palaeontologist has discovered 48 new species from the age of the dinosaurs – while other scientists took 180 years to identify the same number. Dr. Steve Sweetman’s discoveries, found hidden in mud on the Isle of Wight, are around 130 million years old and shed valuable light on the poorly understood world in which well known dinosaurs roamed.

Uranium mining plan splits Pittsylvania County
Geologists say there may be nearly 120 million pounds of uranium, billions of dollars worth, in two large pockets about 6 miles northeast of Chatham. Urged by a group of more than 30 landowners who have formed Virginia Uranium Inc., the state is now preparing to study whether the uranium can be mined safely.

February 9, 2009

Scientists warn of increase in magnetic storms
The number of magnetic storms will steadily increase until 2011 with possible harm to people’s health and damage to electrical systems, warns the Geology and Physics Institute. There will be 15-20 storms this year with an intensity of 300-400nT (nano-tesla), a unit of magnetic density.

The 5 biggest projects taking on the world's water supply
As nations and regions all over the globe face too much polluted water and too little fresh water, they are turning to some of the largest, most technologically complex projects the world has ever seen. Here, we have compiled five of the biggest and most ambitious. But are they big enough to keep the taps flowing?

Is climate change aiding the spread of disease?
With this year on track to possibly outdo 1998 as the warmest year on record, according to the British Meteorological Office, it is clear that rising temperatures are enabling carriers of disease such as insects and rodents to expand their range and thus their ability to infect people.

February 6, 2009

Geological features in Martian craters suggest deposition and flow of water and/or ice
Scientists at the Tucson-based Planetary Science Institute have found further evidence for the large role that water has likely played in shaping the Martian landscape.

NASA fashions mountain climbing robot
NASA researchers today said they had built and tested a robot that can rappel off cliffs, travel over steep and rocky terrain and explore deep craters.

Alternative jet fuels put to the test
NASA and 11 other research groups are testing two non-petroleum-based jet fuels in the pursuit of alternative fuels that can power commercial jets and address rising oil costs. The tests, being run through Feb. 3 at NASA's Dryden Flight Research Center in California, will measure the performance and emissions of two synthetic fuels derived from coal and natural gas using the Fischer-Tropsch process. These fuels have drawn attention because they have the energy necessary for commercial flight.

U.S. scraps sale of oil, gas leases in Utah
In a high-profile reversal of the Bush administration, Interior Secretary Ken Salazar said Wednesday the government is scrapping the leases of 77 parcels of federal land for oil and gas drilling in Utah's Redrock country.

February 4, 2009

Listening to the Earth's belly in Yellowstone Park
A thousand ears are listening for the rumbling of earthquakes deep under the Earth's surface. This recent swarm of quakes amounted to the second biggest swarm in about a half-century of Yellowstone observations. There have been 69 swarms since 1989 alone. And the total amount of energy released in this swarm, says Smith, was the equivalent of just one magnitude 4.5 earthquake.

Ancient mineral reveals moon history
Research led by Curtin University of Technology has discovered the oldest lunar zircon dated at 4.42 billion years. The newly-discovered zircon sheds important light on the early formation of the Moon’s surface.

Mount Asana erupts
Mount Asana in Japan fulfilled the JMA forecast by erupting on a relatively small scale on Monday, producing a steam-and-ash plume to altitudes of around 2 km and throwing rocks as far as 1 km from the vent. Light ash fall took place over parts of Tokyo and reached as far as Yokohama.

February 3, 2009

Google Earth dives under the sea
Google has lifted the lid on its first major upgrade to its global mapping software, Google Earth. Google Ocean expands this map to include large swathes of the ocean floor and abyssal plain. The map also includes 20 content layers, containing information from the world's leading scientists, researchers, and ocean explorers.

Natural gas glut could hit U.S.
As many as seven massive natural gas export terminals are expected to start up overseas this year, expanding worldwide capacity by 20 percent and flooding markets with new supplies of the key power plant and heating fuel. Dozens of new tankers capable of carrying natural gas in a liquefied form are slated to hit the seas. Just as these new supplies come on line, worldwide demand is expected to drop as the global recession deepens.

New maps identify liquefaction hazard in Santa Clara Valley
These maps from the U.S. Geological Survey depict the likelihood of liquefaction based on three earthquake scenarios: a magnitude 7.8 on the northern segment of the San Andreas Fault, comparable to the 1906 San Francisco earthquake, a magnitude 6.7 on the Hayward Fault, comparable to the 1868 Hayward earthquake, and a magnitude 6.9 on the Calderas Fault.

February 2, 2009

Carbon capture grabs big chunk of energy spend
The Canadian federal government has promised major spending to support efforts by oil companies and coal-dependent utilities to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, and to boost Canada's nuclear industry. Of the $2.4-billion earmarked for clean energy and efficiency projects, much will go toward the development of CCS technology.

Turtle fossil shows how super-greenhouse effect created tropical Arctic
The discovery of a fossilized ancient turtle reveals the North Pole was once extremely warm and tropical. Animals migrated from Asia to North America directly across the formerly frost-free Arctic Ocean, new evidence shows.