Humanity Needs Urgent Action to Stop Species Loss

Posted on October 18, 2010 by Rashid Faridi

The United Nations says the world is facing the worst extinction rate since the dinosaurs vanished 65 million years ago, a crisis that needs to be addressed by governments, businesses and communities.

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Posted in BIODIVERSITY | Leave a comment

Super Typhoon Megi hits Philippines

Posted on October 18, 2010 by Rashid Faridi

The Philippines declared a state of calamity in a northern province after super typhoon Megi made landfall on Monday, cutting off power, forcing flight cancellations and putting the region’s rice crop at risk.Megi, the 10th and strongest typhoon to hit the Philippines this year, hit Isabela province at 11:25 a.m. (0325 GMT) and was heading west-southwest across the north of the main island of Luzon with winds of 190 kph (117 mph) near the center, forecasters said.

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Carbon Dioxide Controls Earth’s Temperature

Posted on October 16, 2010 by Rashid Faridi

 

Various atmospheric components differ in their contributions to the greenhouse effect, some through feedbacks and some through forcings. Without carbon dioxide and other non-condensing greenhouse gases, water vapor and clouds would be unable to provide the feedback mechanisms that amplify the greenhouse effect. (Credit: NASA GISS)

 

Water vapor and clouds are the major contributors to Earth’s greenhouse effect, but a new atmosphere-ocean climate modeling study shows that the planet’s temperature ultimately depends on the atmospheric level of carbon dioxide.

The study, conducted by Andrew Lacis and colleagues at NASA’s Goddard Institute for Space Studies (GISS) in New York, examined the nature of Earth’s greenhouse effect and clarified the role that greenhouse gases and clouds play in absorbing outgoing infrared radiation. Notably, the team identified non-condensing greenhouse gases — such as carbon dioxide, methane, nitrous oxide, ozone, and chlorofluorocarbons — as providing the core support for the terrestrial greenhouse effect.

Without non-condensing greenhouse gases, water vapor and clouds would be unable to provide the feedback mechanisms that amplify the greenhouse effect. The study’s results are published Oct. 15 inScience.

Source:http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/10/101014171146.htm

Posted in Global Warming | 1 Comment

Oceanic Volcanos

Posted on October 15, 2010 by Rashid Faridi

Though unseen the ocean floor is a volcanic hot bed where the tectonic plates collide and spread apart. New research reveals that when two parts of the Earth’s crust break apart, this does not always cause massive volcanic eruptions. The study, published  in the journal Nature, explains why some parts of the world saw massive volcanic eruptions millions of years ago and others did not. The Earth’s crust is broken into plates that are in constant motion over timescales of millions of years. Plates occasionally collide and fuse, or they can break apart to form new ones. When the latter plates break apart, a plume of hot rock can rise from deep within the Earth’s interior, which can cause massive volcanic activity on the surface (sort of like blood from a skin cut).

Volcanoes are generally found where tectonic plates are diverging or converging. A mid-oceanic ridge, for example the Mid-Atlantic Ridge, has examples of volcanoes caused by divergent tectonic plates pulling apart; the Pacific Ring of Fire has examples of volcanoes caused by convergent tectonic plates coming together. By contrast, volcanoes are usually not created where two tectonic plates slide past one another.

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