Durante los últimos seis años, los investigadores de la Universidad Politécnica de Valencia (UPV) han estado estudiando el rendimiento de doce variedades de pino carrasco (especie arbórea de la familia de las pináceas, género Pinus, NT) nativas de diferentes regiones de España en campañas de reforestación a través de tres áreas forestales nacionales. Las diferentes variedades o genotipos tienen diferentes niveles de resistencia al frío y la sequía, que influyen en lo bien que subsisten en una región geográfica determinada y los investigadores querían saber qué variedades funcionaban mejor y dónde.
articles
Why the Himalayas keep growing
An international team of scientists has shed new light on the earthquake that devastated Nepal in April 2015, killing more than 8,000 people.
In a study published in the journal Nature Geoscience, the scientists show that a kink in the regional fault line below Nepal explains why the highest mountains in the Himalayas are seen to grow between earthquakes.
NASA published amazing images of dwarf planet Ceres
This image from NASA's Dawn spacecraft shows Kupalo Crater, one of the youngest craters on Ceres. Image Credit: NASA/JPL Caltech/UCLA/MPS/DLR/IDA
Features on dwarf planet Ceres that piqued the interest of scientists throughout 2015 stand out in exquisite detail in the latest images from NASA's Dawn spacecraft, which recently reached its lowest-ever altitude at Ceres.
Dawn took these images near its current altitude of 240 miles (385 kilometers) from Ceres, between Dec. 19 and 23, 2015.
Kupalo Crater, one of the youngest craters on Ceres, shows off many fascinating attributes at the high image resolution of 120 feet (35 meters) per pixel. The crater has bright material exposed on its rim, which could be salts, and its flat floor likely formed from impact melt and debris. Researchers will be looking closely at whether this material is related to the "bright spots" of Occator Crater. Kupalo, which measures 16 miles (26 kilometers) across and is located at southern mid-latitudes, is named for the Slavic god of vegetation and harvest.
Cloud cover found significant factor in Greenland Ice Sheet melt
The Greenland Ice Sheet is the second largest ice sheet in the world and it's melting rapidly, likely driving almost a third of global sea level rise.
A new study shows clouds are playing a larger role in that process than scientists previously believed.
"Over the next 80 years, we could be dealing with another foot of sea level rise around the world," says Tristan L'Ecuyer, professor in the Department of Atmospheric and Oceanic Sciences at the University of Wisconsin-Madison and co-author of the study. "Parts of Miami and New York City are less than two feet above sea level; another foot of sea level rise and suddenly you have water in the city."
Acoustic Sanctuaries for Marine Mammals
Imagine living in an environment of constant noise where you cannot get anything accomplished. Ocean noise pollution caused by shipping, oil and gas development, and other human activities is making this the reality for marine mammals in many places, interfering with their ability to detect prey and communicate with one another. Yet some areas of the ocean remain refuges of quiet. A new study has identified some of these acoustic sanctuaries off the coast of British Columbia in the hope that they may be protected.
The Porter Ranch gas leak update
Senators Kevin de León and Fran Pavley announced a package of new legislation that builds on Gov. Brown’s state of emergency declaration to ensure protections for Californians impacted by the natural gas leak in Porter Ranch.
The new legislation will require:
- a moratorium on new injections into the Aliso Canyon storage facility until experts determine it is safe to resume and a study to see whether it makes sense to continue using the facility. (SB 875)
- that response costs – such as greenhouse gas mitigation, relocation, and emergency response costs – will be funded by the Gas Company shareholders, not the ratepayers who are suffering from this disaster. (SB 876)
- stronger laws regulating gas storage facilities, including increased inspections and health and safety measures. (SB 877)
- setting state climate pollution reduction targets and holding polluters accountable for meeting those targets. (SB 878)