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Ever-changing Earth: How the atmosphere can affect planet's shape, rotation, gravitational field Wed, 10 Mar 2010 11:00:00 EST Researchers in Austria are investigating the effects of the Earth's atmosphere on our planet's shape, its rotation and its gravitational field. The researchers' aim is to develop a better understanding of the Earth's system and to support the development of the Global Geodetic Observing System (GGOS).

Increased solar radiation requires additional CO2 reduction of 50 million tonnes, analysis finds Tue, 09 Mar 2010 14:00:00 EST The recently observed reduction in air pollution implies that more solar radiation reaches Earth’s surface. This could lead to a far more rapid increase in Earth’s temperature in the coming decades than has previously been expected. In order to successfully combat global warming, it is crucial that scientists incorporate increases in CO2 emissions reductions as well as reductions in air pollution in the calculations, according to a new analysis based on unique solar radiation data collected from weather stations between 1959 and 2002.

Sources of pollution in waterways Tue, 09 Mar 2010 00:00:00 EST A new study reviews the possible sources of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) pollution to the New York/New Jersey Harbor.

Carbon emissions 'outsourced' to developing countries Mon, 08 Mar 2010 00:00:00 EST Scientists report that over a third of carbon dioxide emissions associated with consumption of goods and services in many developed countries are actually emitted outside their borders. The study finds that, per person, about 2.5 tons of carbon dioxide are consumed in the US but produced somewhere else. For Europeans, the figure can exceed four tons per person. Most of these emissions are outsourced to developing countries, especially China.

Climate fluctuations 115,000 years ago: Were short warm periods typical for transitions to glacial epochs? Sun, 07 Mar 2010 17:00:00 EST At the end of the last interglacial epoch, around 115,000 years ago, there were significant climate fluctuations. In Central and Eastern Europe, the slow transition from the Eemian Interglacial to the Weichselian Glacial was marked by a growing instability in vegetation trends with possibly at least two warming events. This is the finding of German and Russian climate researchers who have evaluated geochemical and pollen analyses of lake sediments in Saxony-Anhalt, Brandenburg and Russia.

Women more affected than men by air pollution when running marathons Fri, 05 Mar 2010 20:00:00 EST Findings come from a comprehensive study that evaluated marathon race results, weather data, and air pollutant concentrations in seven marathons over a period of 8 to 28 years. The top three male and female finishing times were compared with the course record and contrasted with air pollutant levels, taking high temperatures that were detrimental to performance into consideration.

Methane releases from Arctic shelf may be much larger and faster than anticipated Fri, 05 Mar 2010 08:00:00 EST A section of the Arctic Ocean seafloor that holds vast stores of frozen methane is showing signs of instability and widespread venting of the powerful greenhouse gas, according to new research.