Climate Change More Rapid than Ever
September 30 — Scientists report that a new study shows the climate will change more than ever during the next 100 years. (Max Planck Society press release) More

Oxygen Increase Caused Mammals to Triumph, Researchers Say
September 29 — The first high-resolution continuous record of oxygen concentration in the Earth's atmosphere shows that a sharp rise in oxygen about 50 million years ago gave mammals the evolutionary boost they needed to dominate the planet, researchers say. (Rutgers University press release) More

Study Casts Doubt on 'Snowball Earth' Theory
September 29 — A study that applied innovative techniques to previously unexamined rock formations has turned up strong evidence on the "Slushball Earth" side of a decades-long scientific argument. (University of Southern California press release) More

CryoSat Ready to be Launched
September 29 — The European Space Agency's CryoSat spacecraft will be launched next week and promises to measure the ice at the Earth's poles with previously unattained accuracy. (European Space Agency press release) More

Meteorites Offer Glimpse of the Early Earth
September 28 — Important clues to the environment in which the early Earth formed may be emerging from Purdue University scientists' recent study of a particular class of meteorites. (Purdue University press release) More

UNC Computer, Marine Scientists Collaborate to Predict Flow of Toxic Waters from Katrina
September 28 — A group of researchers has developed a three-dimensional computer program to model water levels and flow. (University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill press release) More

Climate Change Transforming Alaska's Landscape
September 27 — Lakes and wetlands in the Kenai Peninsula of south-central Alaska are drying at a significant rate. The shift seems to be driven by climate change, scientists say. (National Research Council of Canada press release) More

Mapping the Risks of Hurricane Disasters
September 26 — The Natural Disaster Hotspots report released earlier this year showed that the U.S. Gulf Coast is among the world's most at-risk regions in terms of human mortality and economic loss due to storms like Katrina and Rita. (The Earth Institute at Columbia University press release) More

Envisat and ERS-2 Reveal Hidden Side of Hurricane Rita
September 23 — As Hurricane Rita entered the Gulf of Mexico, ESA's Envisat satellite was able to pierce through swirling clouds to show how the storm churned the sea surface. (European Space Agency press release) More

Coming to the Arctic near You: The Longer, Hotter Summer
September 22 — A new study shows dramatic summer warming in arctic Alaska, where a longer snow-free season has strongly contributed to atmospheric heating. (University of Alaska-Fairbanks press release) More

Ocean Search and Rescue Aided by Near Real-Time Weather Forecasts
September 21 — An e-Science project is enabling the use of near real-time Met Office forecasts to predict the drift of a person who has fallen overboard. (Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council press release) More

Impact of Global Warming on Weather Patterns Underestimated
September 21 — The impact of global warming on European weather patterns has been underestimated, according to a new report. (University of East Anglia press release) More

Seeing the Eye: Weather Model Advances Hurricane Intensity Prediction
September 21 — An advanced research weather model is following Hurricane Rita to give scientists a taste of how well forecast models of the future may predict hurricane track, intensity, and important rain and wind features. (National Center for Atmospheric Research press release) More

Experts Develop Global Action Plan to Save Amphibians Facing Extinction
September 20 — Leading scientists have agreed to an action plan intended to save hundreds of frogs, salamanders and other amphibians facing extinction from familiar threats such as pollution and habitat destruction, as well as a little-known fungus wiping out their populations. (Conservation International press release) More

Researcher: Toxic Flood Lifts Lid on Common Urban Pollution Problem
September 19 — Although broken sewers and flooded industrial plants contributed to poisoning the waters after hurricane Katrina hit New Orleans, another pollution source is toxins common in most urban environments that made their way en masse into the water as it stagnated atop the city. (University of Florida press release) More

Believe It or Not, More Rain Would Benefit New Orleans, Ecologist Says
September 16 — In the wake of Hurricane Katrina -- probably the greatest natural disaster in U.S. history -- a leading ecologist says that one of the best things that could happen to New Orleans and the rest of southern Louisiana and Mississippi would be more rain. (University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill press release) More

Researchers Studying Storm Surge Effects of Hurricanes on Florida Cities
September 15 — A Category 4 hurricane could cause a storm surge of as much as 25 feet in Tampa Bay, according to a University of Central Florida researcher who is looking at the risks Florida cities face from tidal surges and flooding. (University of Central Florida press release) More

Hurricanes Are Getting Stronger, Study Says
September 15 — The number of Category 4 and 5 hurricanes worldwide has nearly doubled over the past 35 years, even though the total number of hurricanes has dropped since the 1990s, according to a new study. (National Center for Atmospheric Research press release) More

New Tools Help Track Hurricane Ophelia
September 14 — As Hurricane Ophelia is set to make landfall on the North Carolina coast, analysis techniques developed by researchers at the University of Wisconsin-Madison Tropical Cyclones group are helping to predict the anticipated path of the storm. (University of Wisconsin-Madison press release) More

Breaking New Ground While Treading Gently on the Alaskan Tundra
September 14 — A University of Cincinnati team is interviewing Alaskan Inupiaq elders and working with them as partners in order to better understand and predict future environmental changes for all of us. (University of Cincinnati press release) More

Dartmouth Flood Observatory Tracks the Aftermath of Katrina
September 12 — Researchers with the Dartmouth Flood Observatory have been working to help map and analyze the flooding in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. (Dartmouth College press release) More

Climate Researchers Meet to Simulate Flight Operations for Storm Cloud Experiment
September 12 — A team of scientists is conducting a three-day planning simulation at Sandia National Laboratories in Livermore, California, to prepare for a complex experiment that will result in the most detailed data sets ever collected for tropical convection. (Department of Energy/Sandia National Laboratories press release) More

NIEHS Launches Website with Information for Assessing Environmental Hazards from Hurricane Katrina
September 9 — A new website with a Global Information System will provide valuable information for assessing environmental hazards caused by Hurricane Katrina. (NIH/National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences press release) More

Methane Gyrations Last 2,000 Years Show Human Influence on Atmosphere
September 8 — Humans have been tinkering with greenhouse gas levels in Earth's atmosphere for at least 2,000 years and probably longer, according to a new study of methane trapped in Antarctic ice cores conducted by an international research team. (University of Colorado at Boulder press release) More

Climate Change Will Affect Carbon Sequestration in Oceans, Model Shows
September 7 — An Earth System model developed by researchers at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign indicates that the best location to store carbon dioxide in the deep ocean will change with climate change. (University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign press release) More

Researchers Take 'LEAD' to Improve Hurricane, Tornado Predictions
September 7 — Indiana University School of Informatics researchers are part of a national team devising technology that more accurately predicts and tracks large-scale weather events such as Hurricane Katrina. (Indiana University press release) More

Vegetation Growth May Quickly Raise Arctic Temperatures
September 6 — Warming in the Arctic is stimulating the growth of vegetation and could affect the delicate energy balance there, causing an additional climate warming of several degrees over the next few decades. (American Geophysical Union press release) More

Using Satellite Observations to Investigate 'Greening' Trends across Canada and Alaska
September 5 — Recent research results from scientists at the Woods Hole Research Center suggest that 'greening' has begun to decline in the high latitude forested areas of North America. (Woods Hole Research Center press release) More

Roadways and Parking Lots Threaten Freshwater Quality in the Northeastern U.S.
September 5 — Paved roads and parking spaces come in handy for our nation's drivers, but they also come with a serious unforeseen cost--the degradation of freshwater ecosystems. (Institute of Ecosystem Studies press release) More

UCF, Georgia Researchers Project Hurricane Effects on Oil, Gas Production
September 1 — About 86 percent of oil production in the Gulf of Mexico and 59 percent of the natural gas output is being disrupted by Hurricane Katrina, according to a new prediction model. (University of Central Florida press release) More

Deep-sea Exploration beneath Katrina's Wake
September 1 — Despite having to evade Hurricane Katrina, a team of scientists is returning to port with new tales from the deep sea after completing their second annual Deep Scope expedition. (Harbor Branch Oceanographic Institution press release) More

Breath of the Dragon: ERS-2 and Envisat Reveal Impact of Economic Growth on China's Air Quality
September 1 — China's spectacular economic growth during the last decade has brought many benefits--and some challenges, shows satellite data from the European Space Agency. (European Space Agency press release) More

Lethal Needle Blight Epidemic May Be Related to Climate Change
September 1 — Biologists present strong evidence that a lethal outbreak of needle blight that is killing lodgepole pines in British Columbia is caused by climate change. (American Institute of Biological Sciences press release) More

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