News
November 16, 2016
The earthquake that struck New Zealand shortly after midnight local time on 14 November, killing two people, is a stark reminder that New Zealand's seismic activity "is a lot more complicated than we thought," says James Goff, a seismologist and tsunami expert at the University of New South Wales in Sydney, Australia. The ruptured fault is not along the tectonic plate boundaries where major quakes are expected. "We are finding out again that there is seismic activity that we didn't really know about," Goff says.
November 15, 2016
New Zealand is continuing to shake after being hit by a magnitude 7.5 earthquake, and there are fears the underground stress could set off even bigger tremors nearby. “We currently calculate a 12 per cent probability of a magnitude 7 or larger earthquake within the next day, and 32 per cent within the next 30 days,” says John Ristau at GNS Science, New Zealand’s geoscience research and consultancy firm.
November 07, 2016
A sharp earthquake centered near one of the world's key oil hubs Sunday night triggered fears that the magnitude 5.0 temblor might have damaged key infrastructure in addition to causing what police described as "quite a bit of damage" in the Oklahoma prairie town of Cushing. City Manager Steve Spears said a few minor injuries were reported and questioned whether some of the community's century-old buildings might be unsafe. Police cordoned off older parts of the town to keep away gawkers. "Stay out of the area," Spears told residents during a late-night news conference.
November 06, 2016
International Association for Geoethics – IAGETH - has incorporated two new National Chapters (Colombia and Perú). We are now 45 countries! National Chapters are extremely important for the working of IAGETH. A strong network of national groups would make it possible to emphasize in each country the more appropriate and needed fields of activities (with possible liaisons to already existing local organisations with a similar orientation). A National Chapter of IAGETH may also be part of a recognised association of earth scientists (e.g.
November 02, 2016
Standing Rock Chair: Obama Could Stop the Dakota Pipeline Today & Preserve Indigenous Sacred Sites. President Obama says the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is considering rerouting the $3.8 billion Dakota Access pipeline, amid months of resistance from the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe and members of more than 200 other Native American nations and tribes from across the Americas. "My view is that there is a way for us to accommodate sacred lands of Native Americans," Obama said.
October 31, 2016
Prof. Lopo Vasconcelos, awarded by the Higher Institute of Science and Technology of Mozambique.
October 31, 2016
Oil Production Could Have Caused Century-Old California Earthquakes. If so, California’s “natural” quakes may be less frequent than thought. Southern California suffered a number of big earthquakes in the early 1900s, a pattern that prompted experts to declare the state an earthquake hazard. But new work shows some of the biggest temblors might have been caused by oil and gas production, not nature. The finding could ultimately change scientists’ predictions for earthquakes in the Los Angeles Basin, and how well they understand man-made, or “induced,” earthquakes around the country.
October 28, 2016
Delegates from 24 countries and the European Union have agreed that the Ross Sea in Antarctica will become the world's largest marine protected area (MPA). Some 1.57m sq km (600,000 sq miles) of the Southern Ocean will gain protection from commerical fishing for 35 years. Environmentalists have welcomed the move to protect what's said to be the Earth's most pristine marine ecosystem. They hope it will be the first of many such zones in international waters.
October 21, 2016
Preparation to a new Asteroid Mining Mission!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SbdQXi7rKDw&feature=youtu.be
October 10, 2016
Three great places to live on Mars. Assuming that SpaceX can refuel an orbiting spacecraft, build boosters capable of launching 1,000 times over, establish a propellant factory on another planet and of course, that you've got US$100,000 to spare, you could soon be faced with some pretty tough life choices. Earlier this week Elon Musk outlined his plan to send one million people off to colonize Mars, but there is a lot to consider when sizing up your own little patch of rock and dust.