Environment

LANL: Leaky Plumbing Impedes Greenland Ice Sheet Flow

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On the Greenland Ice Sheet, the ice flow more than doubles in speed in many regions during summer, as surface melt drains to the bed and lubricates the motion. This acceleration sends ice to the sea faster. However, the motion also slows down in late summer, fall, and winter, which largely offsets the summer speedup. New modeling data shows that a complex drainage system beneath the ice holds the giant sheet back more than previously understood. Courtesy/LANL

LANL News:

Surface meltwater that drains to the bed of the Greenland Ice Sheet each summer causes changes in ice flow that cannot be fully Read More

PEEC Bird Of The Week: The Hairy Woodpecker

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Hairy woodpecker. Courtesy photo
 
By BOB WALKER
PEEC

The Hairy Woodpecker (Picoides villosus) is one of the most common and abundant of the North American Woodpeckers.

They are not as common at the Los Alamos Nature Center as the Acorn Woodpeckers frequently seen, but there have been many reports of Hairy Woodpeckers in the area.

Slightly smaller than the Acorn Woodpecker, the Hairy Woodpecker enjoys the suet feeder and the various seed mixes we use. Away from feeders, they tend to be shyer than Acorn Woodpeckers.

The Hairy Woodpecker has a black-and-white striped face, all-white belly, Read More

WIPP Cleared To Resume Waste Emplacement

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WIPP News:

Today the Department of Energy (DOE) authorized Nuclear Waste Partnership (NWP) to resume waste emplacement in the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant.

This decision confirms that all pre-start corrective actions identified in the two operational readiness reviews have been completed and properly validated and other required actions were completed.

It is anticipated that the first waste emplacement will be completed in early January 2017 after final ground control preparations are completed.

Carlsbad Field Office (CBFO) Manager Todd Shrader said, “Extensive efforts to identify Read More

DOE Awards Cooperative Agreement To Nambe Pueblo

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CARLSBAD — The Department of Energy’s Carlsbad Field Office has awarded a $250,000 five-year cooperative agreement to the Nambe Pueblo for the coordination of activities to ensure the safe transportation of transuranic waste to the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP).

Activities under the cooperative agreement focus on technical assistance to be provided through training and exercises for the New Mexico Pueblo to prepare emergency responders and emergency management for continued assurance of safe and uneventful transportation of radioactive waste through the Pueblo Read More

PEEC And BBBS Ask For Help To Get Kids Outside

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Big Brothers and Big Sisters Mountain Region provides children facing adversity with strong and enduring, professionally supported one-to-one relationships that change their lives for the better, forever. Courtesy image
 
PEEC News:
 
Want to help kids get outside? The Pajarito Environmental Education Center (PEEC) and Big Brothers Big Sisters (BBBS) are providing an opportunity to make a difference in a powerful and personal way by starting a new program that can flourish with the help of volunteers.
 
BBBS has a long waiting list, especially for boys wanting a
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Letter To The Editor: Obama’s Last Chance To Protect Grand Canyon

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By Hannah Perkins and Dan McGuinness
Environment New Mexico, Golden Dawn Gallery
 
While climbing into ancient cavates and hiking through the beautiful wilderness of Bandelier National Monument a few weeks ago, I was struck by the thought, what if we hadn’t protected this?
 
What would have happened to sites of the ancestral pueblo culture and the miles of natural wonders if this hadn’t been designated as a national monument one hundred years ago?

Bandelier National Monument doesn’t just preserve history, culture, and nature. It also allows tourism to thrive in Los Alamos and other

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Daily Postcard: Snow Falls As Christmas Nears

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Daily Postcard: Snow is covering the area this morning including Aster Street in the Pinon Trails neighborhood in White Rock. The National Weather Service reports a daytime high of 35 with this morning’s snow likely turning to rain this afternoon. Total daytime snow accumulation of 1 to 2 inches is possible. Tonight’s low will reach around 31. Friday’s forecast includes a high of near 43 with a 30 percent chance of snow and a low of around 26. Photo by Carol A. Clark/ladailypost.com

 
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LANL’s Short Animation On Asteroid Ocean Impacts Takes A First Prize

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Asteroid visualization team. Courtesy photo
 
By ROGER SNODGRASS
Los Alamos Daily Post
 
For the second year in a row, a Los Alamos data visualization team won the Best Visualization and Data Analytics Showcase Award at Supercomputing 2016 in Salt Lake City last month.
 
The content of their 4-minute video illustrates varying degrees of threats from different types and sizes of asteroids landing in the ocean.
 
There’s a lot of traffic bustling about in the vicinity of Earth, not only the objects that orbit the planet, but also asteroids that
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Santa Fe National Forest Announces Holiday Closures

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SFNF News:
 
SANTA FE ― All Santa Fe National Forest (SFNF) offices will be closed Monday, Dec. 26 and Monday, Jan. 2 in observance of the Christmas and New Year’s Day holidays. 
 
Forest offices will resume regular business hours Tuesday, Dec. 27 and Jan. 3, respectively.
 
Cut-your-own Christmas tree permits are still available at SFNF offices and select vendors through Friday, Dec. 23. Fourth-graders with an Every Kid in a Park pass are entitled to a free Christmas tree permit. For more information, review the press
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