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Yahoo
24-04-2025
- Science
- Yahoo
How recently discovered giant magma 'cap' helps prevent eruption at Yellowstone National Park
MAMMOTH SPRINGS, Wyo. – Scientists found that a "cap" made of a supercritical fluid and magma stands between the magma reservoir underneath Yellowstone National Park and a volcanic eruption. In a recent article published in Nature, researchers were able to make this determination when they pinpointed the depth of the top of the reservoir for the first time, according to lead author Chenglong Duan. Duan and his team found the depth where the reservoir began by using a 53,000-pound vibroseis truck, a vehicle usually used for oil and gas exploration, to send seismic waves into the ground in Yellowstone. They then used more than 600 seismometers to record the signals from the truck. Based on the seismic readings, the research team determined that the reservoir began at just over 2 miles beneath the surface. Yellowstone National Park Gears Up For Summer Season "The motivation behind my research is to advance structural seismic imaging beyond the limits of conventional travel-time methods," said Duan, a postdoctoral research associate in the Department of Earth, Environmental and Planetary Sciences at Rice University. "Using a wave-equation imaging technique I developed during my Ph.D. for irregular seismic data, we made one of the first super clear images of the top of the magma reservoir beneath Yellowstone caldera." That image is featured below, with the magma reservoir cap noted with a black arrow. The research team also noticed something curious about the top of the reservoir. "Seeing such a strong reflector at that depth was a surprise," said co-author and Rice University Earth, Environmental and Planetary Sciences professor Brandon Schmandt. "It tells us that something physically distinct is happening there — likely a buildup of partially molten rock interspersed with gas bubbles." More accurately called "supercritical fluid" for their unique state in the magma chamber, Schmandt noted that those bubbles formed when volatiles, or small fractions of elements like hydrogen, carbon and sulfur, in the magma are released in the upper areas of the chamber. He likened the phenomenon to a soda can, which has bubbles that are dissolved in the liquid. When the can is opened, the bubbles come out of the liquid and rise to the top of the can. But also like the bubbles in a pressurized soda can, the bubbles dissolved in the magma underneath Yellowstone have the potential to build up and lead to a volcanic eruption. How To Watch Fox Weather However, researchers found that, in addition to the bubbles rising to the top of the magma chamber, the peculiar geology in the national park is preventing that from occurring. Schmandt noted that the park's systems of hydrothermal features provide passageways for the bubbles to escape the magma chamber and reduce the amount of pressure in the chamber. "Yellowstone's magma reservoir is a lively system that is not very far from the surface, just about 2 miles deep, and bubbles are rising through it," he said. "It's remarkable that we can get detailed information about the subsurface without directly breaking ground, and that technology is important for studying natural hazards and resources."Original article source: How recently discovered giant magma 'cap' helps prevent eruption at Yellowstone National Park
Yahoo
23-04-2025
- Science
- Yahoo
There's liquid on Titan, Saturn's largest moon. But something's missing and scientists are confused
When you buy through links on our articles, Future and its syndication partners may earn a commission. Scientists have known for a while that Saturn's largest moon, Titan, has rivers and seas of liquid methane on its surface. But it's strangely lacking in deltas, a new study suggests. On Earth, large rivers create deltas with sediment-filled wetlands. Deltas form when the mouth of a river empties into another body of water. Besides Earth, Titan is the only planetary body in our solar system with liquid flowing on the surface. Researchers recently looked for deltas on the big Saturn satellite but came up empty. "We take it for granted that if you have rivers and sediments, you get deltas," study leader Sam Birch, an assistant professor in the Department of Earth, Environmental and Planetary Sciences at Brown University in Rhode Island, said in a statement. "But Titan is weird. It's a playground for studying processes we thought we understood," he added. Related: Titan: Facts about Saturn's largest moon The researchers were hoping to find deltas on Titan, because these landforms feature lots of sediment. The sediment in deltas tends to come from a large area, and deltas gather it in one place. Studying such sediment could reveal insights about Titan's climate and tectonic histories — and perhaps even possible signs of alien life. "It's kind of disappointing as a geomorphologist, because deltas should preserve so much of Titan's history," Birch said. We know that Titan's surface has flowing liquid methane, because NASA's Cassini spacecraft spotted evidence of the stuff on multiple flybys. Cassini used synthetic aperture radar (SAR) to look through Titan's thick atmosphere during these close encounters and found channels and large flat areas that are consistent with large bodies of liquid. But shallow liquid methane is largely transparent in Cassini's SAR data. Scientists have therefore had a hard time studying Titan's coastal features, because it's hard to make out where the coast ends and the sea floor starts. So, Birch's team came up with a computer model that simulates what Cassini's SAR would see when looking at Earth. But the model replaced the water in Earth's rivers and oceans with Titan's liquid methane. "We basically made synthetic SAR images of Earth that assume properties of Titan's liquid instead of Earth's," Birch said. "Once we see SAR images of a landscape we know very well, we can go back to Titan and understand a bit better what we're looking at." Related stories: — The Cassini-Huygens mission: Exploring the Saturn system — The search for alien life — Largest sea on Saturn's mysterious moon Titan could be more than 1,000 feet deep The synthetic SAR images of Earth that they created "resolved large deltas and many other large coastal landscapes," according to the researchers. They say that new analysis of the Cassini SAR data also revealed other mysteries. For example, Titan's coasts appear to have pits of unknown origin deep within lakes and seas, and deep channels cut across the moon's sea floors offer no clue to how they got there. "This is really not what we expected," Birch said. "But Titan does this to us a lot. I think that's what makes it such an engaging place to study." The new study was published in the Journal of Geophysical Research: Planets on March 25.
Yahoo
21-04-2025
- Science
- Yahoo
NASA's Curiosity rover finds major clue that Mars was once habitable
When you buy through links on our articles, Future and its syndication partners may earn a commission. While slowly climbing the slopes of Mount Sharp — a towering peak inside Mars' Gale Crater — NASA's Curiosity rover made a remarkable discovery: large deposits of carbon locked away in carbonate minerals. That may sound a little dry at first, but in reality this find could be a major piece of the puzzle in our search for ancient life on the Red Planet. Carbonate minerals form when carbon dioxide interacts with water and rock, making them an important marker of past environmental conditions. Scientists have spotted these minerals before on Mars — by rovers on the ground, orbiters above, and even in Martian meteorites that fell to Earth — but Curiosity's latest data adds exciting new details. "It tells us that the planet was habitable and that the models for habitability are correct," said the study's lead author, Ben Tutolo, associate professor with the Department of Earth, Energy and Environment in the Faculty of Science at the University of Calgary, in a statement. The minerals found by the rover likely formed in extremely dry conditions through chemical reactions between water and rock followed by the process of evaporation. This process points to a time when Mars had a thick enough atmosphere, rich in carbon dioxide, to support liquid water on the surface. However, as the atmosphere thinned, that carbon dioxide would have begun turning into stone. One standout mineral in Curiosity's new discovery is siderite, an iron-rich carbonate found in surprisingly high amounts — between five and 10% by weight — alongside salts that dissolve easily in water. "The broader implications are the planet was habitable up until this time, but then, as the [carbon dioxide] that had been warming the planet started to precipitate as siderite, it likely impacted Mars' ability to stay warm," said Tutolo. What makes this find even more fascinating is the presence of iron oxyhydroxides in the same deposits. These minerals suggest Mars may have once also had a functioning carbon cycle — similar to Earth's — where some of the carbon dioxide locked in rocks eventually made its way back into the atmosphere. Related Stories: — NASA's Perseverance rover hits the Mars rock gold mine: 'It has been all we had hoped for and more' — Curiosity Mars rover discovers largest organic molecules ever seen on Red Planet — Curiosity rover rolls past 'Devil's Gate' on Mars: Space picture of the day By comparing Curiosity's findings with orbital data, scientists believe similar layers across the planet could have trapped up to 36 millibars' worth of atmospheric carbon dioxide — enough to dramatically change Mars' climate. This Martian discovery also ties in closely with work being done right here on Earth. Tutolo says he's been exploring ways to combat climate change by turning human-made carbon dioxide into stable carbonate minerals — essentially locking carbon away in rock. "What we're trying to do on Earth to fight climate change is something that nature may have already done on Mars," he said. "Learning about the mechanisms of making these minerals on Mars helps us to better understand how we can do it here. Studying the collapse of Mars' warm and wet early days also tells us that habitability is a very fragile thing."
Yahoo
12-02-2025
- Climate
- Yahoo
Why Climate Change Sometimes Brings Major Winter Storms
A person walks dogs as snow falls on Feb. 12, 2025 in Chicago, Illinois. The storm is part of a weather system passing over the central and eastern United States today, triggering winter storm warnings in 14 states. Credit - Scott Olson—Getty Images If the earth is warming, why are we still getting winter storms? Climate change is leading to shorter and warmer winters in North America, experts agree. But that doesn't mean that winter storms will become a thing of the past. In fact, climate change is making storms more intense. As the Earth's atmosphere warms, it's able to collect and hold more moisture—which means more precipitation. 'The atmosphere behaves a bit like a sponge, and that means that it can suck up more moisture when it's warmer, but also that when you wring the sponge out, more moisture can fall out of the sky in the form of precipitation, and in the winter, snowfall,' says Daniel Horton, associate professor in the Department of Earth, Environmental and Planetary Sciences at Northwestern University. As a result, some areas are beginning to get more precipitation year-over-year. 'Winter storms themselves are starting to produce a lot more extreme precipitation totals, freezing rain, sleet, even snowfall, in some of these areas,' says Jason Furtado, associate professor of meteorology at the University of Oklahoma. 'This year in particular, a lot of this snow is actually happening in places we don't think about it happening like New Orleans or on the Florida Gulf Coast.' As the Arctic warms, high pressure systems build in the region's atmosphere, displacing cold fronts and causing them to move south, creating stronger storms. Though the phenomenon has been occurring for years, warming temperatures means these intrusions are occurring more frequently. 'We start to get these big, large, high pressure systems that build across the Arctic, and that serves to actually displace and remove some of that cold air and start to surge it more into our latitudes,' says Furtado. Storms feed off of the temperature difference between the cold Arctic air and warmer lower latitudes. The result is two-fold, says Furtado: 'Now we will have more energetic storms that are able to also hold more moisture from oceans because the atmosphere is slightly warmer.' Lakeside regions—like New York and Michigan—will also find themselves vulnerable to a phenomenon called 'lake effect snow' as the regions see warmer temperatures. 'Our lakes are warming, and they stay warm longer through the winter season,' says Horton. Because of that, they don't ice over as much as they used to, and the warmer water evaporates into the passing cold fronts. 'They have more of a capacity to release their moisture when the cold, Arctic air flows over them.' It's just one example of how, around the United States, winters are no longer looking like they once did. 'We've been used to a certain climate regime for the past fifty plus years,' says Furtado. 'And we're going through this transition now where things are rapidly changing.' Write to Simmone Shah at
Yahoo
29-01-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Severe Weather Is Increasing the Cost of Living for Black Americans
As Los Angeles battled its largest wildfires in history, parts of the southern U.S. faced a very different kind of disaster — record-breaking snowstorms not seen in over 125 years. In LA, the Benn family didn't lose their home to the flames, but they did lose access to their livelihood. Their screen-printing business, which they've run in Altadena since 2007, is now in limbo. Before the fires, their community boasted the second-highest concentration of Black-owned businesses in LA County. Now, with no clear timeline for reopening the area, the Benns are struggling to make ends meet. Meanwhile, in New Orleans, Quelly, a hairstylist and mother of young children, lost three days of income when the snowstorm shut down her city for half a week. For someone self-employed, it's a blow that's hard to afford. Since January 2024, extreme weather events have hit harder and cost more than ever before. Disasters like these are piling up at an unprecedented rate. A new analysis puts the damage and economic losses at $799 billion — around 3% of the U.S. economy — thanks to wildfires, hurricanes, droughts, and winter storms. And while these crises affect everyone, Black Americans are feeling the impact the most. Underfunded communities are struggling to recover, jobs are disappearing, and insurance premiums are skyrocketing as the risk of displacement grows. These extreme weather events are disrupting industries you wouldn't normally associate with disasters, making it harder for Black families to access basic necessities like food and water. A recent report warns that without swift action to limit the impact of severe weather, it will cost children born in 2024 at least $500,000 up to $1 million over their lifetime. That's from higher living costs — like soaring housing costs and strained food supplies — and lower earnings from missed work. 'Quite clearly, if you're awake, everybody should understand, we're living in very dangerous times, and Black folks and people who are economically vulnerable, they're already facing heightened exposures to these events,' explained Lemir Teron, an associate professor in Howard University's Department of Earth, Environment, and Equity. 'Our resilience gets curtailed when we don't have the policies or the money to better protect ourselves.' Read More: Generational Black Homes in LA Reduced to Ash Amid Growing Wildfires In Florida, this month, Black farmers are grappling with the aftermath of an unprecedented winter storm that dumped record snow, sleet, and freezing rain across the region. Farmers say they've never faced such devastation — not even from Category 5 Hurricane Michael in 2018 — as 10 inches of snow leveled greenhouses and shattered irrigation systems. The fallout will be felt nationwide when the fruits and vegetables we depend on don't make it out of the Sunshine State. 'The cold snap and the snow showed us we have to be ready, and I don't think our states — the Southern states — are ready,' said Trenise Bryant, who is a food-service manager for Florida elementary-age children and a housing advocate across the state. 'I don't know if our infrastructure and ecosystems can withstand what's to come.' She said last year's hurricanes and this record storm showed the importance of government and community groups working together because 'if we can't get that funding for people that don't have access, people that are living on the street, that means no access to housing, food, and water for them.' 'It's the worst series of disasters since the Dust Bowl,' said Joel Myers, the founder of AccuWeather, the group that conducted the $799 billion damage and economic loss analysis. The fallout, he said, could drive a new wave of migration. For Black communities already facing systemic barriers, the road to recovery is anything but even, and as we've reported, migration doesn't always guarantee protection from these climate threats. Read More: Moving South, Black Americans Are Weathering Climate Change In Detroit, Sandra Turner-Handy has had to clean out bacteria-filled floodwaters from her home twice in recent years. Flooding has become more common in recent years due to much greater rainfalls than normal, leaving many residents dealing with the financial burdens of home improvements, loss of work, and mold-induced illnesses. 'We have experienced so much in the last year with the extreme heat, the cold, and the flooding,' Turner-Handy said. 'We can't escape it.' The Trump administration is taking aim at the Federal Emergency Management Agency, which is largely responsible for how America responds to weather events. During his first week back in office, he signed an executive order calling for a sweeping review of the agency and floating the idea of shutting it down altogether. In the executive order, Trump accused FEMA of political bias and mishandling disaster aid, claiming it's leaving Americans vulnerable. Last year, when Hurricane Helene dismantled the Southeast, Trump spread rumors that the agency was deliberately not giving aid to white conservatives. In reality, studies show that Black neighborhoods receive an estimated 10% less recovery aid than white ones. The aid discrepancy has substantially contributed to the racial wealth gap in the South. The Trump administration is also pushing to shift more disaster response costs to states, a move that critics warn could leave under-resourced communities, particularly Black and low-income areas, even more exposed to climate disasters. Read More: Hurricane Helene's Black Survivors Face Floods and Disinformation Trump has also paused spending benefitting Black and 'disadvantaged' communities from the Biden administration's two key spending pots: the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and the Inflation Reduction Act. These funds had been used to do things like replace lead pipes, improve access to electricity in Black rural communities, and fortify buildings and roads against flooding across the South. Analyses have shown that Trump-stronghold states like Georgia and the Carolinas benefited the most from this spending. 'We had started to understand that climate change has an impact [on] our city and that these issues relate not just to the heat and the cold, but can bring more illnesses and affect the amount of money in our pockets,' said Turner-Handy, who was awarded a grant through the IRA last fall, but was told last week that she will not be receiving the money under the Trump administration. The funding was meant to be used to install air quality monitors in her community. 'We're left ripe for more harm,' she said. With a leadership shake-up and the potential for states to shoulder a bigger burden, the debate over FEMA's future and climate spending comes as the country faces increasingly devastating hurricanes, wildfires, and floods. With more weather events on the horizon, Black Americans and other marginalized groups are still struggling to bounce back from previous disasters. 'Eventually, climate denialism is going to harm us all in the same way. Folks who have means will be exposed to things that they don't presently deal with,' said Teron, the professor who also pointed out how America's inability to address climate change will result in global issues like sea level rise in West Africa. 'These rollbacks on the federal level, the severity of extreme weather, it's going to harm us all,' he said. The post Severe Weather Is Increasing the Cost of Living for Black Americans appeared first on Capital B News.
