On East Coast, sea levels lean southward
Science News, February 2015Sea levels along North America’s East Coast tilt downward as you travel north up the coastline, concludes new research to be published in Geophysical Research Letters.
Ice ages boost production of new ocean crust
Science News, February 2015Lowered sea levels during ice ages can increase the amount of magma bubbling up at mid-ocean ridges, researchers propose online February 5 in Science. The work suggests that long stretches of thick oceanic crust called abyssal hills, among the most common landforms on the planet, are the result of worldwide climate changes.
Geologists discover tectonic plate’s slippery underbelly
Science News, February 2015Using ricocheted vibrations from dynamite blasts, researchers have glimpsed a layer of gooey material sandwiched between the Pacific tectonic plate and the underlying mantle. If present beneath all plates, the layer of partially melted rock could help explain how tectonic plates slide around Earth’s surface so easily, the researchers report in the Feb. 5 Nature.
Central American fires may intensify U.S. tornadoes
Science News, January 2015Smoke wafting across the Gulf of Mexico from Central America can help spawn intense twisters in and around North America’s Tornado Alley, new research suggests.
Adapted for Science News for Students.
The continental divide of 2014 temperature
Science News, January 2015While last year was the hottest on record worldwide, the contiguous United States experienced extremes on both ends of the thermometer.
Warming could nearly double rate of severe La Niña events
Science News, January 2015Thanks to climate change, El Niño’s meteorological sister will strike more intensely over the next century, a new study predicts.
Young asteroids generated long-lasting magnetism
Science News, January 2015Ancient meteorites reveal that young asteroids may have generated powerful magnetic fields for hundreds of millions of years longer than once thought. The finding could explain long-lasting magnetism elsewhere in the early solar system, such as on the young moon.
Faulty thermometers exaggerated western U.S. mountain warming
Science News, January 2015Observations of sharply rising high-elevation temperatures in the western United States were caused by faulty equipment, not climate change, new research suggests.
Warming climate will force airlines to shed weight, increase costs
Science News, January 2015More frequent sweltering summer days will force commercial aircraft to go on a diet, new research suggests.
Allergy-related Google searches follow pollen season ups and downs
Science News, January 2015Web searches about runny noses and allergy medications can help researchers track changes in pollen count, new research suggests.