Ecosystems have a long memory. That may not be a good thing.
What scientists have learned is that extreme climate events like drought and heat waves don’t just negatively impact plants, trees and other vegetation while they’re ongoing. The effects of climate extremes, especially droughts,… Read more
Pancakes, flying fish and stunning sunsets: An average day on board an oceanographic research vessel
For most of us landlubbers in Flagstaff, living on a research ship in the middle of the Pacific Ocean seems as foreign as living on a spaceship. But for NAU professor Jim Gaherty and his students (like grad student Joey Phillips, pictured below)—who study plate tectonics on the seafloor… Read more
Earthquake seismologist launches international study of oceanic plate
Expedition will explore ocean depths to gather seismic data off coast of Central America
Most of the major natural hazards associated with geological activity—including major earthquakes, volcanic eruptions and tsunamis—occur when the rigid tectonic plates in the planet’s lithosphere, or outer layer, collide. Beneath the plates lies the asthenosphere, a 200-mile-thick layer of the Earth’s upper mantle made of very hot material,… Read more
Paleoclimatologists awarded private funding to continue studying effects of dust and drought on climate change in the Four Corners region
Team will deploy drones and weather balloons to chase dust storms and track the flow of dust into the atmosphere
Atmospheric dust plays a key role in Earth’s climate system. While it can have a positive impact, such as fertilizing the soils, dust can also have a negative impact on… Read more
Understanding human-elephant conflict and vulnerability in the face of climate change
Funded by an NSF grant, team uses interdisciplinary approaches to better analyze complex issues across the world’s largest terrestrial transboundary conservation area
Human-wildlife conflict is a central issue in the conservation sciences. Whether it be reintroducing wolves into key ecosystems… Read more
Let’s talk about the 1,800-plus ‘young’ volcanoes in the U.S. Southwest
They’re born. They live once, erupting for a period that might last for days, years or decades. Then, they go dark and die.
And in Flagstaff and throughout the Southwest, they are our neighbors.
This is the life of a monogenetic volcano, a type of volcanic hazard that can pose important dangers despite an ephemeral existence. The… Read more