http://phys.org/ en-us Phys.org internet news portal provides the latest news on science including: Physics, Nanotechnology, Life Sciences, Space Science, Earth Science, Environment, Health and Medicine. The first comprehensive study of the biological effects of Antarctic icebergs shows that they fertilize the Southern Ocean, enhancing the growth of algae that take up carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and then, through marine food chains, transfer carbon into the deep sea. This process is detailed in 19 new research papers published electronically in a special issue of the journal Deep Sea Research Part II: Topical Studies in Oceanography. http://phys.org/news224336808.html Space & Earth Wed, 11 May 2011 12:47:15 EST news224336808 HIAPER, one of the nation's most advanced research aircraft, is scheduled to embark on an historic mission spanning the globe from the Arctic to the Antarctic. http://phys.org/news150572564.html Space & Earth Wed, 07 Jan 2009 17:42:44 EST news150572564 Mercury pollution has already spurred public health officials to advise eating less fish, but it could become a more pressing concern in a warmer world. http://phys.org/news150560491.html Space & Earth Wed, 07 Jan 2009 14:21:31 EST news150560491 (PhysOrg.com) -- Scientists have created an entirely natural and renewable method for producing hydrogen to generate electricity which could drastically reduce the dependency on fossil fuels in the future. http://phys.org/news150472856.html Chemistry Tue, 06 Jan 2009 14:00:56 EST news150472856 A new way to reduce carbon dioxide emissions and tackle climate change had been unveiled by leading economists. http://phys.org/news150446777.html Space & Earth Tue, 06 Jan 2009 06:46:17 EST news150446777 Eaton Corporation is using IBM modeling software to develop series hydraulic hybrid systems. Replacing a vehicle’s conventional drive train and transmission, the series hydraulic hybrid (SHH) system promises dramatic fuel savings and environmental benefits. The system uses hydraulic pumps and storage tanks to capture and store energy, similar to what is done with electric motors and batteries in a hybrid electric vehicle. http://phys.org/news149349584.html Technology Wed, 24 Dec 2008 13:59:44 EST news149349584 The power of viruses is well documented in human history. Swarms of little viral Davids have repeatedly laid low the great Goliaths of human civilization, most famously in the devastating pandemics that swept the New World during European conquest and settlement. http://phys.org/news148817103.html Space & Earth Thu, 18 Dec 2008 10:05:03 EST news148817103 The common wisdom is that the invention of the steam engine and the advent of the coal-fueled industrial age marked the beginning of human influence on global climate. http://phys.org/news148753200.html Space & Earth Wed, 17 Dec 2008 16:20:00 EST news148753200 (PhysOrg.com) -- NASA's Hubble Space Telescope has discovered carbon dioxide in the atmosphere of a planet orbiting another star. This is an important step along the trail of finding the chemical biotracers of extraterrestrial life as we know it. http://phys.org/news148053414.html Space & Earth Tue, 09 Dec 2008 13:56:54 EST news148053414 Contrary to earlier projections, few developing countries will be able to afford more efficient technologies to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in the next few decades, new research concludes. The study, by researchers at the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR) and the University of Colorado, warns that continuing economic and technological disparities will make it more difficult than anticipated to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, and it underscores the challenges that poorer nations face in trying to adapt to global warming. http://phys.org/news148051272.html Space & Earth Tue, 09 Dec 2008 13:21:12 EST news148051272 In the rainforests of equatorial Asia, a link between drought and deforestation is fueling global warming, finds an international study that includes a UC Irvine scientist. http://phys.org/news147979472.html Space & Earth Mon, 08 Dec 2008 17:24:32 EST news147979472 Animal feeding operations are an important emission source of air pollutants including methane and carbon dioxide—known greenhouse gases. Recent inventories suggest that animal manure makes a significant contribution to global methane emissions. As a consequence, greenhouse gas emissions can potentially become a limiting factor in the development and sustainability of animal production and technologies are needed to mitigate pollutant gas emissions. Oil spray has been used as a mitigation technique to reduce pollution from animal buildings. However, little is known about its effect on greenhouse gas emissions. http://phys.org/news147959093.html Space & Earth Mon, 08 Dec 2008 11:44:53 EST news147959093 Intensifying winds in the Southern Ocean have had little influence on the strength of the Southern Ocean circulation and therefore its ability to absorb carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, according to a study published in Nature Geoscience. http://phys.org/news147955224.html Space & Earth Mon, 08 Dec 2008 10:40:24 EST news147955224 Scientists from around the world proved their green credentials by participating in a conference on climate change and carbon dioxide storage in the virtual world, this week (3 December). http://phys.org/news147702946.html Technology Fri, 05 Dec 2008 12:35:46 EST news147702946 A recent ESA campaign has demonstrated how a technique using lasers could be employed to measure carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. The campaign supports one of the main objectives of the candidate Earth Explorer A-SCOPE mission. http://phys.org/news147530366.html Space & Earth Wed, 03 Dec 2008 12:39:26 EST news147530366 (PhysOrg.com) -- The planet’s present day greenhouse scourge, carbon dioxide, may have played a vital role in helping ancient Earth to escape from complete glaciation, say scientists in a paper published online today. http://phys.org/news147361639.html Space & Earth Mon, 01 Dec 2008 13:47:19 EST news147361639 Microorganisms in rivers and streams play a crucial role in the global carbon cycle that has not previously been considered. Freshwater ecologist Dr. Tom Battin, of the University of Vienna, told a COST ESF Frontiers of Science conference in October that our understanding of how rivers and streams deal with organic carbon has changed radically. http://phys.org/news147358157.html Space & Earth Mon, 01 Dec 2008 12:49:17 EST news147358157 University of Chicago scientists have documented that the ocean is growing more acidic faster than previously thought. In addition, they have found that the increasing acidity correlates with increasing levels of atmospheric carbon dioxide, according to a paper published online by the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences on Nov. 24. http://phys.org/news146753497.html Space & Earth Mon, 24 Nov 2008 12:51:37 EST news146753497 Scientists from the Scripps Research Institute have discovered the key chemical that signals Bacillus anthracis, the bacterium that causes anthrax, to become lethal. This finding opens up new avenues of exploration for the development of treatments for bacterial infections. http://phys.org/news146511558.html Biology Fri, 21 Nov 2008 17:39:18 EST news146511558 Of all the possible ways of reducing future greenhouse gas emissions, one of the most immediately feasible is carbon dioxide "sequestration," which involves compressing the gas into a liquid and piping it deep underground instead of releasing it into the atmosphere. The Earth has abundant geological formations known as saline aquifers that would seem to be ideal storage bins for such sequestered carbon. http://phys.org/news146333682.html Physics Wed, 19 Nov 2008 16:14:42 EST news146333682 (PhysOrg.com) -- A detailed analysis of black carbon -- the residue of burned organic matter -- in computer climate models suggests that those models may be overestimating global warming predictions. http://phys.org/news146244148.html Space & Earth Tue, 18 Nov 2008 15:22:28 EST news146244148 (PhysOrg.com) -- Water vapor is known to be Earth's most abundant greenhouse gas, but the extent of its contribution to global warming has been debated. Using recent NASA satellite data, researchers have estimated more precisely than ever the heat-trapping effect of water in the air, validating the role of the gas as a critical component of climate change. http://phys.org/news146160316.html Space & Earth Mon, 17 Nov 2008 16:05:16 EST news146160316 To prevent global warming, researchers and policymakers are exploring a variety of options to significantly cut the amount of carbon dioxide that reaches the atmosphere. One possible approach involves capturing greenhouse gases such as carbon dioxide at the source — an electric power plant, for example — and then injecting them underground. http://phys.org/news146145904.html Space & Earth Mon, 17 Nov 2008 12:05:04 EST news146145904 (PhysOrg.com) -- Scientists may have overcome a major hurdle to calculating how much carbon dioxide (CO2) is absorbed and released by plants, vital information for understanding how the biosphere responds to stress and for determining the amount of carbon that can be safely emitted by human activities. The problem is that ecosystems simultaneously take up and release CO2. The key finding is that the compound carbonyl sulfide, which plants consume in tandem with CO2, can be used to quantify gas flow into the plants during photosynthesis. The research is published in the November 14, issue of Science. http://phys.org/news145815134.html Space & Earth Thu, 13 Nov 2008 16:12:14 EST news145815134 Not much has changed in the last 2,000 years when it comes to suturing together cuts and wounds. Even with microsurgery techniques, infection and permanent scarring remain major concerns. To minimize these dangers, doctors tried using a carbon dioxide laser to seal wounds, but without the ability to control the heat of the laser, the technique created even greater risks. Until now. http://phys.org/news145542876.html Physics Mon, 10 Nov 2008 12:34:36 EST news145542876 The fight against climate warming has an unexpected ally in mushrooms growing in dry spruce forests covering Alaska, Canada, Scandinavia and other northern regions, a new UC Irvine study finds. http://phys.org/news144912822.html Biology Mon, 03 Nov 2008 05:33:42 EST news144912822 Carbon dioxide will continue to rise even if current national and international targets for reducing emissions are met, scientists warn. But, they say, strong action taken now – such as the 80% target recently announced by the UK government – will continue to have benefits a long time into the future. http://phys.org/news144419668.html Space & Earth Tue, 28 Oct 2008 13:34:28 EST news144419668 (PhysOrg.com) -- Good news has turned out to be bad. The ocean has helped slow global warming by absorbing much of the excess heat and heat-trapping carbon dioxide that has been going into the atmosphere since the start of the Industrial Revolution. http://phys.org/news144066924.html Space & Earth Fri, 24 Oct 2008 11:35:24 EST news144066924 With steelworks around the world emitting huge amounts of carbon dioxide, scientists are reporting that a byproduct of steel production could be used to absorb that greenhouse gas to help control global warming. The study is scheduled for the October 15 issue of ACS' Industrial & Engineering Chemistry Research. http://phys.org/news143112914.html Chemistry Mon, 13 Oct 2008 10:35:14 EST news143112914 (PhysOrg.com) -- A NASA/university team has published the first global satellite maps of the key greenhouse gas carbon dioxide in Earth's mid-troposphere, an area about 8 kilometers, or 5 miles, above Earth. The team's study reveals new information on how carbon dioxide, which directly contributes to climate change, is distributed in Earth's atmosphere and moves around our world. http://phys.org/news142861794.html Space & Earth Fri, 10 Oct 2008 12:49:54 EST news142861794