Blue-green algae bloom in Lake Erie’s summer conditions. Unfortunately for those looking to spend summer on the water, the dominant organism in this bloom produces a toxin that “can cause Keep reading
Tag: geophysics
Slushy Snow Affects Antarctic Ice Melt
More than a tenth of Antarctica’s ice projects out over the sea; this ice shelf preserves glacial ice that would otherwise fall into the Southern Ocean and raise global sea Keep reading
Underground Convection Thaws Permafrost Faster
In recent years, Arctic permafrost has thawed at a surprisingly fast pace. Much of that is, of course, due to the rapid warming caused by climate change. But some of Keep reading
Origins of Salt Polygons
Around the world, dry salt lakes are crisscrossed by thousands of meter-wide salt polygons. Although they resemble crack patterns, these structures are actually the result of convection occurring in the Keep reading
Trapped in a Taylor Column
The world’s largest iceberg, A23a, is stuck. It’s not beached; there are a thousand meters or more of water beneath it. But thanks to a quirk of the Earth’s rotation, Keep reading
Junggar Basin Aglow
The low sun angle in this astronaut photo of Junggar Basin shows off the wind- and water-carved landscape. Located in northwestern China, this region is covered in dune fields, appearing Keep reading
“Stomp-Rocket”: A New Type of Eruption
When Kilauea‘s caldera collapsed in 2018, it came with a sequence of 12 closely-timed eruptions that did not match either of the typical volcanic eruption types. Usually, eruptions are either Keep reading
Venusian Lava Flows
Venus is often known as Earth’s twin, given its similar size and proximity. But, thanks to its runaway greenhouse effect, Venus is a hellish landscape buried beneath a hot atmosphere Keep reading
Slipping Along Enceladus
Home to a sub-surface ocean, Saturn‘s moon Enceladus is a fascinating candidate for life in our solar system. As it orbits Saturn, plumes periodically shoot out long surface features known Keep reading
“Serenity”
Peering from directly above, landscapes take on a whole different aspect. That idea is the heart of Vadim Sherbakov’s “Serenity,” filmed by drone. From seething waters and meandering rivers to Keep reading