Earth Wise

According to a new study published in the journal Geophysical Research Letters, warming ocean waters have caused a drop in the brightness of the earth. Researchers measure the earth’s albedo by observing the light reflected from earth that illuminates the surface of the moon as well as with satellite measurements. The earth reflects about 30% […]

Lake Powell is the second largest reservoir by capacity in the United States.  It straddles the border of southeastern Utah and northeastern Arizona and was created by the Glen Canyon Dam, completed in 1963.  The reservoir serves as a bank account of water that is drawn upon in times of drought and has made it […]

It seems like the news is always filled with stories about storms, heatwaves, drought, and forest fires.  This is because these things are happening with unprecedented frequency. According to a new report from the World Meteorological Organization, weather disasters have become five times more common since 1970, in large part a result of climate change.  […]

Two massive California wildfires that erupted during a lightning storm on September 9 have continued to threaten groves of giant sequoia trees in the southern Sierra Nevada mountains.  As of the beginning of October, flames from the KNP Complex fire had burned in or passed through 11 sequoia groves, including the famed Giant Forest in […]

The spotted lanternfly is an invasive pest from Asia that arrived in the United States seven years ago.  It is a handsome and colorful insect, but it feeds on the sap of more than 70 plant species, leaving them susceptible to disease and destruction from other natural antagonists.  It destroys fruit crops, trees, and plants […]

New York’s largest community choice clean energy program has been activated in the City of Rochester.   The program, offered by Rochester Community Power, offers 57,000 residences and small businesses access to clean energy from hydropower and wind sources.  It requires customers to opt out rather than enroll in order to provide clean energy to the […]

The warming of the Atlantic Ocean has driven the critically endangered North Atlantic right whale population from its traditional and protected habitat.  This has exposed the whales to more lethal ship collisions, increased entanglements with commercial fishing gear, and greatly reduced calving rates. Since 2010, the calving rate has declined, and the right whale population […]

Ammonia is the second most produced chemical in the world.  More than half of it is used in agriculture to produce various kinds of fertilizer, to produce cotton defoliants that make cotton easier to pick, and to make antifungal agents for fruits.  Globally, ammonia represents more than a $50 billion a year market. Current methods […]

The accelerating adoption of wind and solar energy is driving a growing interest in energy storage technologies.  An electric grid dominated by intermittent power sources will need large-scale energy storage.  Grid-scale energy storage is expected to increase at least 10 times over the next decade and this will require nearly $300 billion in investments over […]

A recent study from Lancaster University in the UK has concluded that global computing is likely to be responsible for a greater share of greenhouse gas emissions than previously thought and that share is continuing to grow. Previous calculations of the contributions from information and communications technology (or ICT) estimated that globally it accounts for […]