Science

AGU: New Research Finds Tornadoes Form From The Ground Up, Contrary To Popular Thought

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A tornado May 25, 2012 in Galatia, Kansas as it was decaying. Courtesy/Jana Houser
 
Shot of the EF-3 tornado near maximum width and peak intensity May 31, 2013 in El Reno, Okla. Courtesy/Nick Nolte, CC-BY-3.0
 
AGU News:
 
WASHINGTON, D.C. — New research challenges existing assumptions about how tornadoes form.
 
Historically, scientists assumed tornado rotation began in storm clouds, creating a funnel that travels downwards. This theory matches what storm chasers commonly observe visually in the field. Viewers often report seeing funnel clouds gradually descending
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Science On Tap: Tapping Into Algal Diversity For Biofuels Discussion At UnQuarked Dec. 17

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Amanda Barry. Courtesy photo
 
CREATIVE DISTRICT News:
 
Join the Bradbury Science Museum and the Los Alamos Creative District for Science On Tap at 5:30 p.m., Monday, Dec. 17, at UnQuarked Wine Room.
 
The discussion will feature Amanda Barry of the Los Alamos National Laboratory and her research on algal diversity.
 
Algae is not the first thing that comes to mind when most people think of Los Alamos or its global security mission. However, for Amanda Barry of the Lab’s Bioenergy and Biome Sciences group, algae is the answer to one of the world’s most pressing issues – energy
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Unknown Trove Of Planets Found Hiding In Dust

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The Taurus Molecular Cloud, pictured here by ESA’s Herschel Space Observatory, is a star-forming region about 450 light-years away. The image frame covers roughly 14 by 16 light-years and shows the glow of cosmic dust in the interstellar material that pervades the cloud, revealing an intricate pattern of filaments dotted with a few compact, bright cores — the seeds of future stars. Courtesy/ESA/Herschel/PACS, SPIRE/Gould Belt survey Key Programme/Palmeirim et al.
 
UA News:
 
TUCSON, Ariz. — “Super-Earths” and Neptune-sized planets could be forming around young stars
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UA-Led OSIRIS-REx Discovers Water On Asteroid, Confirms Bennu As Excellent Mission Target

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This mosaic image of asteroid Bennu is composed of 12 PolyCam images collected Dec. 2 by the OSIRIS-REx spacecraft from a range of 15 miles (24 km). Courtesy/NASA/Goddard/UA
 
UA News:
 
TUCSON, Ariz. — Fst through early December, the OSIRIS-REx spacecraft aimed three of its science instruments toward Bennu and began making the mission’s first observations of the asteroid.
 
During this period, the spacecraft traveled the last 1.4 million miles (2.2 million km) of its outbound journey to arrive Dec. 3 at a spot 12 miles (19 km) from Bennu. The science obtained from these
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AGU: Scientists Brew Lava And Blow It Up To Better Understand Volcanoes

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Scientists cooking up 10-gallon batches of molten rock to inject with water. Courtesy/AGU

Scientists study what happens when they inject water into molten rock. Courtesy/AGU

AGU News:

The first results are published from experiments that aim to illuminate the physics of lava-water interactions, which can sometimes make eruptions more dangerous

WASHINGTON, D.C. — What happens when lava and water meet? Explosive experiments with manmade lava are helping to answer this important question.

By cooking up 10-gallon batches of molten rock and injecting them with water, scientists at the State Read More

LANL Director Thom Mason Works With Students During Hour Of Code Project At School In Española

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Los Alamos National Laboratory Director Thom Mason volunteered for the Hour Of Code project this afternoon at Tony E. Quintana Elementary in Española. The program was presented to the combined 6th grade classes of Nancy Martinez and Danita Quintana. This program provides a one-hour introduction to computer science designed to demystify ‘code’ and show that anyone can learn the basics. Laboratory volunteers Aimee Hungerford and Hari Khalsa have been working with local schools on the initiative since 2015. This year, they received requests from 25 schools and 65 teachers from across northern Read More

NIST Performance Tests For Aerial Response Robots Become National Standard

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An aerial emergency response robot ready to begin the NIST performance test course. Courtesy/NIST
 
An emergency response drone approaches a bucket-shaped target on the NIST performance test course. Both the capabilities of the robot and the skills of its pilot can be evaluated using the standardized system. Courtesy/NIST
 
NIST News:
 
Tracking the spread of a wildfire. Searching for a missing person. Detecting toxic fumes after an explosion before sending in rescue workers.
 
These are just three of the many tasks being assigned to flying robots known as small unmanned
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Following Recent Federal Climate Report, Udall Urges Immediate Action To Combat Climate Change

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U.S. Sen. Tom Udall
 
U.S. SENATE News:
 
WASHINGTON, D.C. ― Following the recent release of a federal climate report, U.S. Sen. Tom Udall (D-N.M.) joined a group of his Senate colleagues in calling for bold action to combat climate change.
 
Along with U.S. Sen. Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.), Udall and 23 other senators introduced a resolution affirming findings from the recent National Climate Assessment, along with the Intergovernmental Panel On Climate Change (IPCC) report, and urging decisive action to drastically reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
 
Oct. 8, the IPCC released
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AGU: The Oldest Water On Earth

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Salty water deep below the surface of the Earth that hasn’t seen the light of day in millions or even billions of years. Courtesy/AGU

AGU News:

Thousands of feet below the surface of the Earth is salty water that hasn’t seen the light of day in millions or even billions of years.

Miners working deep underground had encountered and wondered about the origin of this water for decades, but it wasn’t until the 1980s that scientists started to investigate where this water was coming from and what it might contain – giving researchers clues into how life survives in the deepest parts of our planet.

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LANL: Arctic Ice Model Upgrade To Benefit Polar Research, Industry And Military

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LANL scientist Elizabeth Hunke and her team have released an update to the sea-ice computer model, CICE, that has been a key part of the Arctic predictive capability for the U.S. Navy, NOAA and the National Ice Center. CICE also is widely used for earth-system research in academic and government institutions worldwide. Courtesy/E. Hunke.

 

LANL News:

  • Polar conditions modeled more accurately for naval and commercial safety improvements

An update for an internationally vital sea-ice computer model developed at Los Alamos National Laboratory with several collaborating groups, called Read More