In The News: Department of Geoscience
When a meteorite smashed into Mars eleven million years ago, pieces of the Red Planet hurtled into space—and some of them landed on Earth in the form of meteorites, depositing unparalleled evidence of the planet’s makeup. Now, scientists at Scripps Institution of Oceanography at UC San Diego have released a report after their detailed study of the Martian meteorites collected from locations across the world, including Africa and Antarctica.
Mars has a distinct structure in its mantle and crust with discernible reservoirs, and this is known thanks to meteorites that scientists at Scripps Institution of Oceanography at UC San Diego and colleagues have analyzed on Earth.
Three UNLV professors are working on an iron-production method that doesn’t generate carbon emissions, part of an effort to clean up one of the world’s dirtiest industries.
Three UNLV professors are working on an iron-production method that doesn’t generate carbon emissions, part of an effort to clean up one of the world’s dirtiest industries.
Two unknown people destroyed an ancient rock formation in Lake Mead National Recreation Area in Nevada, USA, in just a few seconds. A video showing the two men in the act has been circulating on X (formerly Twitter) since the beginning of April. The national park authorities have therefore initiated an investigation and are asking the public to help find the perpetrators.
A video posted to social media this month captured two men destroying ancient rock formations at Lake Mead National Recreation Area in Nevada. National park rangers are asking for the public’s help in identifying the visitors, who could face federal charges for vandalizing protected land.
Earlier this month, a video posted to social media captured two men destroying ancient rock formations at Lake Mead National Recreation Area in Nevada. National park rangers are asking for the public’s help in identifying the visitors, who could face federal charges for vandalizing protected land.
A push for nuclear power is fueling demand for uranium, spurring the opening of new mines. The industry says new technologies will eliminate pollution from uranium mining, but its toxic legacy, particularly in the U.S. Southwest, leaves many wary of an incipient mining boom.
This week the Environmental Protection Agency announced a ban on the use of chrysotile asbestos, the most common form of asbestos still used in the United States. Such a ban has been a long time coming, according to experts who contend that there are no safe levels of asbestos, a substance that still kills 40,000 people annually in the U.S. In all, over 50 countries have already banned the mineral, known to cause a laundry list of cancers including mesothelioma, a rare cancer of the membranes that line the lungs and abdomen. It’s also been shown to cause lung, larynx, ovarian, stomach, and colon cancer.
Modern humans dispersed from Africa multiple times, but the event that led to global expansion occurred less than 100,000 years ago. Some researchers hypothesize that dispersals were restricted to "green corridors" formed during humid intervals when food was abundant and human populations expanded in lockstep with their environments. But a new study in Nature, including ASU researchers Curtis Marean, Christopher Campisano, and Jayde Hirniak, suggests that humans also may have dispersed during arid intervals along "blue highways" created by seasonal rivers. Researchers also found evidence of cooking and stone tools that represent the oldest evidence of archery.
Modern humans dispersed from Africa on multiple occasions, but the event that led to global expansion occurred less than 100,000 years ago. Some researchers hypothesize that dispersals were limited to "green corridors" formed during wet intervals when food was plentiful and human populations expanded at the same rate as their environment.
The record-breaking rain soaking the Southwest U.S. in recent weeks still won't be enough to eliminate the megadrought status in the notoriously arid region completely, according to researchers.