SYDNEY (Reuters) - Elephant seals wearing head sensors and swimming deep beneath Antarctic ice have helped scientists better understand how the ocean's coldest, deepest waters are formed, providing vital clues to understanding its role in the world's climate.
The tagged seals, along with sophisticated satellite data and moorings in ocean canyons, all played a role in providing data from the extreme Antarctic environment, where observations are very rare and ships could not go, said researchers at the Antarctic Climate & Ecosystem CRC in Tasmania.
Scientists have long known of the existence of 'Antarctic bottom water,' a dense, deep layer of water near the ocean floor that has a significant impact on the movement of the world's oceans.
Three areas where this water is formed were known of, and the existence of a fourth suspected for decades, but the area was far too inaccessible, until now, thanks to the seals.
'The seals went to an area of the coastline that no ship was ever going to get to,' said Guy Williams, ACE CRC Sea Ice specialist and co-author of the study.
'This is a particular form of Antarctic water called Antarctic bottom water production, one of the engines that drives ocean circulation,' he told Reuters. 'What we've done is found another piston in that engine.'
Southern Ocean Elephant seals are the largest of all seals, with males growing up to six meters (20 feet) long and weighing up to 4,000 kilograms (8,800 lbs).
Twenty of the seals were deployed from Davis Station in east Antarctica in 2011 with a sensor, weighing about 100 to 200 grams, on their head. Each of the sensors had a small satellite relay which transmitted data on a daily basis during the five to 10 minute intervals when the seals surfaced.
'We get four dives worth of data a day but they're actually doing up to 60 dives,' he said.
'The elephant seals ... went to the very source and found this very cold, very saline dense water in the middle of winter beneath a polynya, which is what we call an ice factory around the coast of Antarctica,' Williams added.
Previous studies have shown that there are 50-year-long trends in the properties of the Antarctic bottom water, and Williams said the latest study will help better assess those changes, perhaps providing clues for climate change modeling.
'Several of the seals foraged on the continental slope as far down as 1,800 meters (1.1 miles), punching through into a layer of this dense water cascading down the abyss,' he said in a statement. 'They gave us very rare and valuable wintertime measurements of this process.'
(Reporting by Pauline Askin, Editing by Elaine Lies and Michael Perry)
Tuesday, February 26, 2013
Monday, February 25, 2013
Extreme Weather Linked to Giant Waves in Atmosphere
Extreme weather events have been on the rise in the last few decades, and man-made climate change may be causing them by interfering with global air-flow patterns, according to new research.
The Northern Hemisphere has taken a beating from extreme weather in recent years - the 2003 European heat wave, the 2010 Pakistan flood and the 2011 heat wave in the United States, for example. These events, in a general sense, are the result of the global movement of air.
Giant waves of air in the atmosphere normally even out the climate, by bringing warm air north from the tropics and cold air south from the Arctic. But a new study suggests these colossal waves have gotten stuck in place during extreme weather events.
'What we found is that during several recent extreme weather events these planetary waves almost freeze in their tracks for weeks,' lead author Vladimir Petoukhov, of the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research (PIK) in Germany, said in a statement. 'So instead of bringing in cool air after having brought warm air in before, the heat just stays.'
How long these weather extremes last is critical, the researchers say. While two or three days of 86 degrees Fahrenheit (30 degrees Celsius) pose little threat, 20 days or more can lead to extreme heat stress, which can trigger deaths, forest fires and lost harvests. [The World's 10 Weirdest Weather Events]
Monster Waves
The researchers created equations to model the motion of the massive air waves, determining what it takes to make the waves plough to a stop and build up. The team then used these models to crunch daily weather data from the U.S. National Centers for Environmental Prediction.
During extreme weather events, the waves were indeed trapped and amplified, the scientists found. They also saw a significant increase in the occurrence of these trapped waves.
Here's how the waves may be getting trapped: The burning of fossil fuels causes more warming in the Arctic than in other latitudes, because the loss of snow and ice means heat gets absorbed by the darker ground, not reflected (as it would by the white snow). This warming lessens the temperature difference between the Arctic and northern latitudes like Europe. Since these differences drive air flow, a smaller difference means less air movement. Also, land areas warm and cool more easily than oceans. The result is an unnatural pattern of air flow that prevents the air waves from circulating over land.
The study's results help explain the spike in summer weather extremes. Previous research had shown a link between climate change and extreme weather, but did not identify the mechanism.
'This is quite a breakthrough, even though things are not at all simple - the suggested physical process increases the probability of weather extremes, but additional factors certainly play a role as well, including natural variability,' study co-author Hans Joachim Schellnhuber, also of PIK, said in a statement.
The 32-year period studied provides a good explanation of past extreme weather events, the researchers say, but is too short to make predictions about how often such events may occur in the future.
The findings were reported online today (Feb. 25) in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
Follow LiveScience on Twitter @livescience. We're also on Facebook & Google+.
The Northern Hemisphere has taken a beating from extreme weather in recent years - the 2003 European heat wave, the 2010 Pakistan flood and the 2011 heat wave in the United States, for example. These events, in a general sense, are the result of the global movement of air.
Giant waves of air in the atmosphere normally even out the climate, by bringing warm air north from the tropics and cold air south from the Arctic. But a new study suggests these colossal waves have gotten stuck in place during extreme weather events.
'What we found is that during several recent extreme weather events these planetary waves almost freeze in their tracks for weeks,' lead author Vladimir Petoukhov, of the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research (PIK) in Germany, said in a statement. 'So instead of bringing in cool air after having brought warm air in before, the heat just stays.'
How long these weather extremes last is critical, the researchers say. While two or three days of 86 degrees Fahrenheit (30 degrees Celsius) pose little threat, 20 days or more can lead to extreme heat stress, which can trigger deaths, forest fires and lost harvests. [The World's 10 Weirdest Weather Events]
Monster Waves
The researchers created equations to model the motion of the massive air waves, determining what it takes to make the waves plough to a stop and build up. The team then used these models to crunch daily weather data from the U.S. National Centers for Environmental Prediction.
During extreme weather events, the waves were indeed trapped and amplified, the scientists found. They also saw a significant increase in the occurrence of these trapped waves.
Here's how the waves may be getting trapped: The burning of fossil fuels causes more warming in the Arctic than in other latitudes, because the loss of snow and ice means heat gets absorbed by the darker ground, not reflected (as it would by the white snow). This warming lessens the temperature difference between the Arctic and northern latitudes like Europe. Since these differences drive air flow, a smaller difference means less air movement. Also, land areas warm and cool more easily than oceans. The result is an unnatural pattern of air flow that prevents the air waves from circulating over land.
The study's results help explain the spike in summer weather extremes. Previous research had shown a link between climate change and extreme weather, but did not identify the mechanism.
'This is quite a breakthrough, even though things are not at all simple - the suggested physical process increases the probability of weather extremes, but additional factors certainly play a role as well, including natural variability,' study co-author Hans Joachim Schellnhuber, also of PIK, said in a statement.
The 32-year period studied provides a good explanation of past extreme weather events, the researchers say, but is too short to make predictions about how often such events may occur in the future.
The findings were reported online today (Feb. 25) in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
Follow LiveScience on Twitter @livescience. We're also on Facebook & Google+.
- 10 Weird Ways Weather Changed History
- Infographic: Earth's Atmosphere Top to Bottom
- The Reality of Climate Change: 10 Myths Busted
Sunday, February 24, 2013
Rare Baby Crocs Released into Wild
Nineteen baby Siamese crocodiles are being let loose in the wetlands of Laos, the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) announced this week. The effort gives a boost to the critically endangered species, which is thought to include just 250 individuals in the wild.
The rare reptiles' eggs had been incubated at the Laos Zoo after being recovered during wildlife surveys in the wetlands of Savannakhet Province, and they hatched in the summer of 2011.
The baby crocs are being let go near the same spot where they were found, but they will stay in a 'soft release' pen for several months. There they will get used to their surroundings and receive supplementary food and protection from community members, according to the WCS. Rising water levels at the start of the rainy season will eventually let the crocodiles swim away on their own, but they will be monitored occasionally by conservationists.
Siamese crocodiles grow up to 10 feet (3 meters) in length, but right now, these toothy creatures of the Laos Zoo measure only about 27 inches (70 cm). The crocs have never been known to attack humans, according to the conservation agency Fauna & Flora International. Classified as critically endangered by the International Union for Conservation of Nature, the Siamese crocodile population has been cut down by overhunting and habitat loss across much of its former range through Southeast Asia and parts of Indonesia.
The release effort was organized by the WCS's Laos branch as part of a community-based program to recover the local Siamese crocodile population and restore the associated wetlands, with a focus on incentives that improve local livelihoods.
'We are extremely pleased with the success of this collaborative program and believe it is an important step in contributing to the conservation of the species by involving local communities in long-term wetland management,' Alex McWilliam, a WCS conservation biologist, said in a statement. 'The head starting component of this integrated WCS program represents a significant contribution to the conservation of this magnificent animal in the wild.'
Follow LiveScience on Twitter @livescience. We're also on Facebook & Google+.
The rare reptiles' eggs had been incubated at the Laos Zoo after being recovered during wildlife surveys in the wetlands of Savannakhet Province, and they hatched in the summer of 2011.
The baby crocs are being let go near the same spot where they were found, but they will stay in a 'soft release' pen for several months. There they will get used to their surroundings and receive supplementary food and protection from community members, according to the WCS. Rising water levels at the start of the rainy season will eventually let the crocodiles swim away on their own, but they will be monitored occasionally by conservationists.
Siamese crocodiles grow up to 10 feet (3 meters) in length, but right now, these toothy creatures of the Laos Zoo measure only about 27 inches (70 cm). The crocs have never been known to attack humans, according to the conservation agency Fauna & Flora International. Classified as critically endangered by the International Union for Conservation of Nature, the Siamese crocodile population has been cut down by overhunting and habitat loss across much of its former range through Southeast Asia and parts of Indonesia.
The release effort was organized by the WCS's Laos branch as part of a community-based program to recover the local Siamese crocodile population and restore the associated wetlands, with a focus on incentives that improve local livelihoods.
'We are extremely pleased with the success of this collaborative program and believe it is an important step in contributing to the conservation of the species by involving local communities in long-term wetland management,' Alex McWilliam, a WCS conservation biologist, said in a statement. 'The head starting component of this integrated WCS program represents a significant contribution to the conservation of this magnificent animal in the wild.'
Follow LiveScience on Twitter @livescience. We're also on Facebook & Google+.
- World's Cutest Baby Wild Animals
- The 10 Weirdest Animal Discoveries of 2012
- Alligators vs. Crocodiles: Photos Reveal Who's Who
Thursday, February 21, 2013
Mysterious Birth of Common Pollutants Revealed
The chaotic steps that give rise to microscopic particles in the atmosphere called aerosols were witnessed for the first time in a verdant forest in Finland, an important step in understanding how the particles affect Earth's climate.
Aerosols are solid and liquid droplets tiny enough to float in the air. They can come from soot, dust and chemicals from cars, factories and farming, or natural sources like deserts, sea spray and plants. The particles are a major pollution source, and can affect human health.
How aerosols form, and their role in climate, remains poorly understood, but scientists would like to know more so they can better understand the implications for future climate change. Aerosols seed cloud formation and can reflect the sun's heat, cooling the Earth, said Markku Kulmala, an aerosol physicist at the University of Helsinki in Finland and lead author of the study of aerosol formation. The study is detailed in today's (Feb. 21) issue of the journal Science.
In the Hyytiälä forest in Finland, set aside decades ago to monitor nuclear fallout from the 1986 Chernobyl disaster, Kulmala and his colleagues built the world's most sensitive aerosol-particle detector. The instrument helped them watch the smallest aerosol precursors in the atmosphere, which had never been seen before.
How aerosols form
The instrument saw that as gas molecules of sulfuric acid smashed together with organic molecules, they formed incredibly small clusters, less than two nanometers in diameter. Lined up side-by-side, about 25,000 of these clusters would still be smaller than the width of a human hair.
The neutrally charged clusters grew slowly at first, until they reached a critical size (about 3 nanometers), the study found. Then, in a burst of activity, the neutral clusters quickly added a heavy coat of organic molecules. 'What is most exciting is that the growth of small clusters [is] size-dependent,' Kulmala told OurAmazingPlanet in an email interview. 'This means that the formation of new aerosol particles is limited by the vapors participating on the growth of 1.5- to 3-nanometer particles.'
Understanding the buildup of clusters, and how they grow, is key to predicting aerosol formation and their effect on climate. 'The importance of neutral clusters and their growth has significant effect on [the] global aerosol load, and also to global cloud droplet concentrations,' Kulmala said.
Impacts on climate
The study site is boreal forest, which covers about 8 percent of the planet's northern latitudes and is expected to expand with global warming. [Top 10 Surprising Results of Global Warming]
The aerosol-forming processes in the planet's tropical forests and urban regions may be different. 'We still have to see if the results can be generalized to other places,' said atmospheric chemist Meinrat Andrae of the Max Planck Institute for Chemistry in Germany, who was not involved in the study.
Andrae also cautioned that the small particles analyzed in the study must grow bigger before they can affect health or climate. 'The particles that are formed at this step (a few nanometers in size) are still a long way away from the size range where they have climate or health relevance,' he told OurAmazingPlanet in an email interview.
Reach Becky Oskin at boskin@techmedianetwork.com. Follow her on Twitter @beckyoskin. Follow OurAmazingPlanet on Twitter @OAPlanet. We're also on Facebook and Google+.
Aerosols are solid and liquid droplets tiny enough to float in the air. They can come from soot, dust and chemicals from cars, factories and farming, or natural sources like deserts, sea spray and plants. The particles are a major pollution source, and can affect human health.
How aerosols form, and their role in climate, remains poorly understood, but scientists would like to know more so they can better understand the implications for future climate change. Aerosols seed cloud formation and can reflect the sun's heat, cooling the Earth, said Markku Kulmala, an aerosol physicist at the University of Helsinki in Finland and lead author of the study of aerosol formation. The study is detailed in today's (Feb. 21) issue of the journal Science.
In the Hyytiälä forest in Finland, set aside decades ago to monitor nuclear fallout from the 1986 Chernobyl disaster, Kulmala and his colleagues built the world's most sensitive aerosol-particle detector. The instrument helped them watch the smallest aerosol precursors in the atmosphere, which had never been seen before.
How aerosols form
The instrument saw that as gas molecules of sulfuric acid smashed together with organic molecules, they formed incredibly small clusters, less than two nanometers in diameter. Lined up side-by-side, about 25,000 of these clusters would still be smaller than the width of a human hair.
The neutrally charged clusters grew slowly at first, until they reached a critical size (about 3 nanometers), the study found. Then, in a burst of activity, the neutral clusters quickly added a heavy coat of organic molecules. 'What is most exciting is that the growth of small clusters [is] size-dependent,' Kulmala told OurAmazingPlanet in an email interview. 'This means that the formation of new aerosol particles is limited by the vapors participating on the growth of 1.5- to 3-nanometer particles.'
Understanding the buildup of clusters, and how they grow, is key to predicting aerosol formation and their effect on climate. 'The importance of neutral clusters and their growth has significant effect on [the] global aerosol load, and also to global cloud droplet concentrations,' Kulmala said.
Impacts on climate
The study site is boreal forest, which covers about 8 percent of the planet's northern latitudes and is expected to expand with global warming. [Top 10 Surprising Results of Global Warming]
The aerosol-forming processes in the planet's tropical forests and urban regions may be different. 'We still have to see if the results can be generalized to other places,' said atmospheric chemist Meinrat Andrae of the Max Planck Institute for Chemistry in Germany, who was not involved in the study.
Andrae also cautioned that the small particles analyzed in the study must grow bigger before they can affect health or climate. 'The particles that are formed at this step (a few nanometers in size) are still a long way away from the size range where they have climate or health relevance,' he told OurAmazingPlanet in an email interview.
Reach Becky Oskin at boskin@techmedianetwork.com. Follow her on Twitter @beckyoskin. Follow OurAmazingPlanet on Twitter @OAPlanet. We're also on Facebook and Google+.
- Image Gallery: Curious Clouds
- Earth in the Balance: 7 Crucial Tipping Points
- Video: The Painterly Mixing of Aerosols In Our Atmosphere
Wednesday, February 20, 2013
Report: Failure of Glory climate satellite unknown
VANDENBERG AIR FORCE BASE, Calif. (AP) - A group of experts investigating the launch failure of a NASA climate satellite has failed to come up with a reason.
The Glory satellite plummeted into the Pacific in 2011 shortly after lifting off from the Vandenberg Air Force Base along the California coast.
The panel's report released Wednesday found the rocket's clamshell-shaped covering over the satellite never fully opened. But the experts said they were unable to determine why. The covering surrounds the satellite as it flies through the atmosphere.
The loss of the $424 million mission was an embarrassment for NASA, which similarly lost another climate satellite in 2009.
The rocket was a Taurus XL from Orbital Sciences Corp.
NASA only released a summary of the accident report, citing U.S. security regulations and proprietary company information.
The Glory satellite plummeted into the Pacific in 2011 shortly after lifting off from the Vandenberg Air Force Base along the California coast.
The panel's report released Wednesday found the rocket's clamshell-shaped covering over the satellite never fully opened. But the experts said they were unable to determine why. The covering surrounds the satellite as it flies through the atmosphere.
The loss of the $424 million mission was an embarrassment for NASA, which similarly lost another climate satellite in 2009.
The rocket was a Taurus XL from Orbital Sciences Corp.
NASA only released a summary of the accident report, citing U.S. security regulations and proprietary company information.
Florida man charged with harassing manatee after posting photos
MIAMI (Reuters) - A Florida man posted photos on Facebook showing himself hugging a baby manatee and was arrested on charges of harassing the endangered sea cow, wildlife officials said on Wednesday.
A tipster saw the photos and alerted the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, which arrested Ryan William Waterman on a misdemeanor charge punishable by up to six months in jail and a $500 fine.
Waterman, 21, was released from the St. Lucie County Jail on Monday on $2,500 bond, jail records showed. He told television station WPEC that he meant no harm and did not know it was illegal to touch a manatee.
The Florida Manatee Sanctuary Act prohibits molesting, harassing or disturbing manatees, which are classified as endangered in Florida and are also protected by federal laws.
The photos were taken at Taylor Creek, near Fort Pierce in southeast Florida in January. One showed Waterman lifting the baby manatee part way out of the water and hugging it. Others showed his two young daughters petting the manatee, and one of them sitting on the animal.
Wildlife agents said that could have caused severe stress to the manatee calf, which was likely still dependent on its mother. The large, slow-moving animals gather in warm coastal waters and rivers during the winter.
'The calf also appeared to be experiencing manatee cold-stress syndrome, a condition that can lead to death in extreme cases,' said Dr. Thomas Reinert, a manatee biologist with the wildlife commission. 'Taking the calf out of the water may have worsened its situation.'
A Florida woman was arrested on a similar charge in the St. Petersburg area in November, after she was photographed riding an endangered manatee.
(Editing by Dan Grebler)
A tipster saw the photos and alerted the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, which arrested Ryan William Waterman on a misdemeanor charge punishable by up to six months in jail and a $500 fine.
Waterman, 21, was released from the St. Lucie County Jail on Monday on $2,500 bond, jail records showed. He told television station WPEC that he meant no harm and did not know it was illegal to touch a manatee.
The Florida Manatee Sanctuary Act prohibits molesting, harassing or disturbing manatees, which are classified as endangered in Florida and are also protected by federal laws.
The photos were taken at Taylor Creek, near Fort Pierce in southeast Florida in January. One showed Waterman lifting the baby manatee part way out of the water and hugging it. Others showed his two young daughters petting the manatee, and one of them sitting on the animal.
Wildlife agents said that could have caused severe stress to the manatee calf, which was likely still dependent on its mother. The large, slow-moving animals gather in warm coastal waters and rivers during the winter.
'The calf also appeared to be experiencing manatee cold-stress syndrome, a condition that can lead to death in extreme cases,' said Dr. Thomas Reinert, a manatee biologist with the wildlife commission. 'Taking the calf out of the water may have worsened its situation.'
A Florida woman was arrested on a similar charge in the St. Petersburg area in November, after she was photographed riding an endangered manatee.
(Editing by Dan Grebler)
Tuesday, February 19, 2013
NVIDIA unveils new Tegra 4i processor with built-in LTE
NVIDIA (NVDA) on Tuesday announced its first Tegra processor with an integrated LTE chip. The 2.3GHz quad-core Tegra 4i, which brings the company in closer competition with Qualcomm (QCOM) and its line of Snapdragon CPUs, is equipped with 60 custom GPU cores, a fifth processing core for battery conservation and an integrated NVIDIA i500 LTE modem. It also includes NVIDIA's Chimera camera technology that is capable of capturing HDR panorama shots without requiring a single-direction sweep. The company calls its the new processor the most efficient, highest performance CPU core on the market, noting that it will provide "amazing computing power, world-class phone capabilities, and exceptionally long battery life." NVIDIA's press release follows below.
[More from BGR: Do or die: Hands on with the HTC One]
This article was originally published on BGR.com
[More from BGR: Do or die: Hands on with the HTC One]
NVIDIA Introduces Its First Integrated Tegra LTE Processor
Tegra 4i Delivers Highest Performance of Any Single-Chip Smartphone Processor
[More from BGR: iOS 6.1.2 jailbreak set to be released later today]
SANTA CLARA, Calif.-February 19, 2013- NVIDIA today introduced its first fully integrated 4G LTE mobile processor, the NVIDIA® Tegra® 4i, which is significantly faster yet half the size of its nearest competitor.
Previously codenamed "Project Grey," the Tegra 4i processor features 60 custom NVIDIA GPU cores; a quad-core CPU based on ARM's newest and most efficient core- the R4 Cortex-A9 CPU- plus a fifth battery saver core; and a version of the NVIDIA i500 LTE modem optimized for integration. The result: an extremely power efficient, compact, high- performance mobile processor that enables smartphone performance and capability previously available only in expensive super phones.
"NVIDIA is delivering for the first time a single, integrated processor that powers all the major functions of a smartphone," said Phil Carmack, senior vice president of the Mobile business at NVIDIA. "Tegra 4i phones will provide amazing computing power, world-class phone capabilities, and exceptionally long battery life."
Tegra 4i's new 2.3 GHz CPU was jointly designed by NVIDIA and ARM, and is the most efficient, highest performance CPU core on the market.
"Tegra 4i is the very latest SoC solution based on the ARM Cortex-A9 processor and demonstrates the ability of ARM and our partners to continue to push the performance of technology and create exciting user experiences," says Tom Cronk, executive vice president and general manager, processor division, ARM. "ARM and NVIDIA worked closely to further optimize the Cortex-A9 processor to drive performance and efficiency in areas such as streaming and responsiveness. This is an example of the collaboration and innovation that enables ARM technology-based solutions to be market drivers through multiple generations of SoC solutions."
Utilizing the same architecture as Tegra 4's GPU, Tegra 4i features five times the number of GPU cores of Tegra 3 for high-quality, console-quality gaming experiences and full 1080p HD displays. It also integrates an optimized version of the NVIDIA i500 software-defined radio modem which provides LTE capabilities, and makes networking upgradability and scalability fast and easy.
"NVIDIA's Tegra 4i appears to outperform the leading integrated LTE chip significantly, and also benefits from an integrated 'soft-modem' that can be re-programmed over-the-air to support new frequencies and air interfaces - something other modem vendors can only dream of," said Stuart Robinson, director, Handset Component Technologies Program at Strategy Analytics."
Tegra 4i mobile processor's camera capabilities include the NVIDIA ChimeraT Computational Photography Architecture recently announced in Tegra 4. This delivers many advanced features, including the world's first always-on high dynamic range (HDR) capabilities, first tap to track functionality and first panoramic photos with HDR.
NVIDIA also introduced its reference smartphone platform code-named "Phoenix" for the Tegra 4i processor to demonstrate its unique mobile technologies. Phoenix is a blueprint that phone makers can reference in designing and building future Tegra 4i smartphones to help get them to market quicker.
The Tegra 4i mobile processor will be demonstrated in the NVIDIA booth in Hall 7, Stand #C110, at the 2013 Mobile World Congress show in Barcelona, Spain, on Feb. 25-28.
This article was originally published on BGR.com
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