https://phys.org/ en-us Latest news from Desert Research Institute While Reno families were celebrating the 1997 New Year, the Truckee River was surging into the city's downtown streets. A rainstorm was falling on the Sierra Nevada's deep snowpack, melting it rapidly and creating a hazardous situation for downstream communities. https://phys.org/news/2026-06-tool-communities-events-optimize-reservoir.html Earth Sciences Tue, 16 Jun 2026 07:40:01 EDT news700805461 Atmospheric rivers carry unfathomable amounts of water across the sky, bringing moisture to drought-stricken regions like the Western U.S. But whether a particular incoming atmospheric river storm will result in disastrous flooding has long been difficult for researchers to determine with confidence. Now, a new Desert Research Institute-led study demonstrates that accounting for soil saturation levels can substantially improve our early warning of potentially destructive flooding events. https://phys.org/news/2026-03-soil-saturation-sharpens-atmospheric-river.html Earth Sciences Mon, 02 Mar 2026 17:40:05 EST news691689025 The Nature Conservancy in Nevada (TNC in Nevada), DRI, and the University of Wisconsin—Madison (UW-Madison) have developed the Nevada GDE Water Needs Explorer Tool. This new online resource helps land and water managers understand how groundwater supports groundwater-dependent ecosystems (GDEs) and how changes in water levels can affect them. https://phys.org/news/2026-01-tool-nevada-critical-freshwater-sources.html Earth Sciences Tue, 27 Jan 2026 05:21:00 EST news688713602 Although sunlight is one of the cleanest forms of renewable energy available, clearing large swathes of desert habitat to build solar arrays has consequences for the plants and animals it displaces. Researchers are trying to find better ways to preserve desert landscapes without impeding solar energy development. Now, a new study demonstrates that with careful planning and consideration for the ecosystem around it, at least one desert plant is surviving—and thriving—amidst the solar panels helping to power Las Vegas. https://phys.org/news/2026-01-rare-benefits-sustainability-efforts-large.html Plants & Animals Thu, 15 Jan 2026 17:16:19 EST news687719761 Atmospheric dust plays an important role in the way Earth absorbs and reflects sunlight, impacting the global climate, cloud formation, and precipitation. Much of this dust comes from the continuous reshaping of Earth's surface through the erosion of rocks and sediments, and understanding how this process has shaped landscapes can help us decipher our planet's history—and its future. https://phys.org/news/2025-12-glimpse-years-climate-landscape-shifts.html Earth Sciences Wed, 03 Dec 2025 09:40:06 EST news683976723 The fabrics that fill our homes, from natural cotton towels and bedsheets, to clothes produced with synthetic materials, produce microscopic fibers as they break down over time. Previous research has shown that household washers collect and release these microfibers into the environment, and now a new study uses citizen science to demonstrate how dryer vents also produce microfibers under normal household use. https://phys.org/news/2025-10-household-dryers-significant-sources-microfiber.html Environment Wed, 15 Oct 2025 15:44:04 EDT news679761842 On September 5, 2020, California's Creek Fire grew so severe that it began producing its own weather system. The fire's extreme heat produced an explosive thunderhead that spewed lightning strikes and further fanned the roaring flames, making containment elusive and endangering the lives of firefighters on the ground. These wildfire-born storms have become a growing part of fire seasons across the West, with lasting impacts on air quality, weather, and climate. https://phys.org/news/2025-09-wildfire-thunderstorms-successfully-recreated-earth.html Earth Sciences Tue, 30 Sep 2025 11:07:03 EDT news678449221 Glaciers hold layers of history preserved in ice, offering unique insights into Earth's past that can also help us interpret the future. Trapped amidst the frozen water are microscopic deposits of dust, pollen, and even pollutants that scientists can use to examine environmental changes through time. https://phys.org/news/2025-07-scientists-ice-core-european-alps.html Earth Sciences Wed, 16 Jul 2025 07:30:02 EDT news671868207 The question of whether Earth is alone in harboring life has captivated humanity for millennia. In recent years, scientists have turned to Earth-like planets in other solar systems that may show the most promise, but many revolve around stars that emit much stronger solar radiation than our own. Now, a new study offers evidence that life as we know it may be able to thrive on those Earth-like exoplanets. https://phys.org/news/2025-06-lichen-evidence-possibility-life-planets.html Astrobiology Wed, 25 Jun 2025 08:54:04 EDT news670060441 Earth is hotter than it has been in 125,000 years, scientists say, and Las Vegas continues to break temperature records. The extreme heat claimed more than 500 lives in southern Nevada last year alone, and scientists and city officials are clamoring for solutions. https://phys.org/news/2025-06-analysis-benefits-offs-urban-street.html Earth Sciences Wed, 25 Jun 2025 04:54:03 EDT news670046041 Atmospheric rivers are responsible for most flooding on the West Coast of the U.S., but they also bring much-needed moisture to the region. The size of these storms doesn't always translate to flood risk, however, as other factors on the ground play important roles. Now, a new study helps untangle the other drivers of flooding to help communities and water managers better prepare. https://phys.org/news/2025-06-soils-atmospheric-river-storms.html Environment Thu, 12 Jun 2025 15:17:05 EDT news668960222 California's Central Valley—one of the nation's most critical agricultural regions and home to over 1.3 million people—is prone to flooding. Mapping the extent of winter floods has been challenging for experts, however, because clouds can obscure the view of satellites. https://phys.org/news/2025-06-winter-california-central-valley.html Earth Sciences Wed, 11 Jun 2025 07:07:04 EDT news668844421 With wildfires increasing in frequency, severity, and size in the Western U.S., researchers are determined to better understand how smoke impacts air quality, public health, and even the weather. https://phys.org/news/2025-05-reno-air-quality-illuminates-wider.html Environment Tue, 27 May 2025 15:57:44 EDT news667580261 Mountain snowpacks accumulate snow throughout the winter, building up stores of water that will supply communities across the American West throughout the long dry season. https://phys.org/news/2025-04-rocky-mountain-contamination.html Earth Sciences Wed, 02 Apr 2025 09:25:00 EDT news662804696 Nevada's desert landscape is filled with life that is hidden to human eyes. But when conditions are just right, typically following a particularly wet winter, billions of seeds burst to life in vibrant, colorful displays of blooms that can even be seen from space. https://phys.org/news/2025-03-blending-art-science-mojave-seedling.html Plants & Animals Thu, 20 Mar 2025 07:23:06 EDT news661674182 Lead exposure is responsible for a range of human health impacts, with even relatively low levels impacting the cognitive development of children. DRI scientists have previously used atmospheric pollution records preserved in Arctic ice cores to identify periods of lead pollution throughout the Roman Empire, and now new research expands on this finding to identify how this pollution may have affected the European population. https://phys.org/news/2025-01-pollution-widespread-iq-declines-ancient.html Archaeology Mon, 06 Jan 2025 15:00:01 EST news655374361 New research builds on scientific understanding of how air pollution and cancer risk are distributed throughout the U.S. Air pollution, often resulting from industrial or vehicle emissions, can travel for hundreds of miles and impact the health of communities through higher rates of asthma, respiratory infections, stroke, and lung cancer. https://phys.org/news/2024-12-nationwide-urban-areas-higher-cancer.html Environment Tue, 03 Dec 2024 12:24:04 EST news652451041 Drought is a widespread concern in the Western U.S., and water managers across the region are developing groundwater management plans to conserve the essential resource. Groundwater is often pumped to the surface to irrigate crops, and meters that measure the flow of pumped water have historically offered the best information on groundwater use. These meters are rare, however, so DRI scientists set out to determine whether OpenET, a platform that measures evapotranspiration using satellite data, could help fill this information gap. https://phys.org/news/2024-09-groundwater-accurately-satellites-remote-platform.html Environment Thu, 05 Sep 2024 16:15:03 EDT news644771701 Climate change is fueling more severe storms and floods, droughts and fires, and communities around the world are grappling with how to prepare. Emergency managers regularly meet to examine possible disasters and discuss preparations and responses for protecting the public, but often default to using past disasters as examples. This fails to capture the extent of potential damage from future weather extremes. https://phys.org/news/2024-09-scientists-guidance-emergency-weather-hazards.html Environment Thu, 05 Sep 2024 15:40:01 EDT news644769486 A few miles south of Yosemite's famed Glacier Point, ringed by striking granite domes, lies the Illilouette Basin. This small stretch of the Sierra Nevada Mountains has become a sort of fire laboratory, a place where natural wildfires have been allowed to burn since 1972. In contrast with the long-supported program of fire suppression that has dominated American forests since the late 19th century, resulting in dense and unhealthy forests, the Illilouette Basin's story is about the benefits that natural fire can bring to the landscape. https://phys.org/news/2024-08-tracking-effects-good.html Earth Sciences Thu, 08 Aug 2024 16:27:40 EDT news642353254 Where hidden water tables meet the Earth's surface, life can thrive even in the driest locations. Offering refuge during times of drought, shallow groundwater aquifers act like water savings accounts that can support ecosystems with the moisture required to survive, even as precipitation dwindles. https://phys.org/news/2024-07-ecosystems-threatened-declining-groundwater.html Earth Sciences Wed, 17 Jul 2024 11:00:02 EDT news640424821 The question of whether Mars ever supported life has captivated the imagination of scientists and the public for decades. Central to the discovery is gaining insight into the past climate of Earth's neighbor: Was the planet warm and wet, with seas and rivers much like those found on our own planet? Or was it frigid and icy, and therefore potentially less prone to supporting life as we know it? A new study finds evidence to support the latter by identifying similarities between soils found on Mars and those of Canada's Newfoundland, a cold subarctic climate. https://phys.org/news/2024-07-mars-cold-icy.html Planetary Sciences Wed, 10 Jul 2024 16:43:03 EDT news639848581 The Western U.S. is heavily reliant on mountain snowpacks and their gradual melt for water storage and supply, and climate change is expected to upend the reliability of this natural process. Many agricultural communities in this part of the country are examining ways to adapt to a future with less water, and new research shows that a focus on supplementing water supply by expanding reservoir capacity won't be enough to avert future water crises. https://phys.org/news/2024-06-western-agricultural-communities-strategies-future.html Earth Sciences Wed, 12 Jun 2024 16:03:14 EDT news637426989 The Colorado River makes life possible in many Western cities and supports agriculture that sustains people throughout the country. Most of the river's water begins as snowmelt from the mountainous watersheds of Colorado, Utah, and Wyoming, and a warming climate will drastically reduce these streamflows, new research finds. https://phys.org/news/2024-05-climate-streamflow-upper-colorado-river.html Earth Sciences Thu, 23 May 2024 11:00:02 EDT news635672101 At the dawn of the new year in 1997, the Truckee River transformed. The winter season had thus far been great for snow, but when a subtropical storm from near the Hawaiian Islands rolled in, it carried with it unseasonably warm rain. The warm rainfall combined with snowmelt to swell the rivers, with the Truckee burying much of downtown Reno under water. Two people were killed amidst the nearly $1 billion disaster, and it wasn't the first nor the last time that warm rains triggered severe flooding in the area. https://phys.org/news/2024-02-tool-california-nevada-communities.html Earth Sciences Wed, 21 Feb 2024 16:35:04 EST news627755701 Sustainable water management is an increasing concern in arid regions around the world, and scientists and regulators are turning to remote sensing tools like OpenET to help track and manage water resources. OpenET uses publicly available data produced by NASA and USGS Landsat and other satellite systems to calculate evapotranspiration (ET), or the amount of water lost to the atmosphere through soil evaporation and plant transpiration, at the level of individual fields. https://phys.org/news/2024-01-rigorous-remote-tool-accuracy-satellite.html Earth Sciences Tue, 16 Jan 2024 16:07:07 EST news624643624 Human activity, from burning fossil fuels and fireplaces to the contaminated dust produced by mining, alters Earth's atmosphere in countless ways. Records of these impacts over time are preserved in everlasting polar ice that serves as a sort of time capsule, allowing scientists and historians to link Earth's history with that of human societies. In a new study, ice cores from Antarctica show that lead and other toxic heavy metals linked to mining activities polluted the Southern Hemisphere as early as the 13th century. https://phys.org/news/2024-01-toxic-heavy-metal-pollution-southern.html Earth Sciences Thu, 11 Jan 2024 15:17:05 EST news624208621 Plastic litter is a growing problem around the world, and new research shows that the bottom of Lake Tahoe is no exception. In one of the first studies to utilize scuba divers to collect litter from a lakebed, 673 plastic items were counted from just a small fraction of the lake. https://phys.org/news/2024-01-survey-lake-tahoe-lakebed-high.html Environment Wed, 03 Jan 2024 11:30:03 EST news623503801 Wildfires are some of the most destructive natural disasters in the country, threatening lives, destroying homes and infrastructure, and creating air pollution. In order to properly forecast and manage wildfires, managers need to understand wildfire risk and allocate resources accordingly. A new study contributes scientific expertise to this effort. https://phys.org/news/2023-12-climate-wildfire-lengthen-seasons.html Earth Sciences Fri, 08 Dec 2023 13:48:03 EST news621265681 The summer of 2023 was the hottest on record. Climate change fueled destructive hurricanes in Florida, more intense monsoons in India, and melted sea ice to historically low levels in the Arctic and Antarctic. https://phys.org/news/2023-11-qa-scientific-ingenuity-clock-climate.html Earth Sciences Thu, 30 Nov 2023 17:15:06 EST news620586902