Central heating system found in Penguins

A heat retaining adaptation in Penguins' wings has ensured their survival in the coldest and most inhospitable places on Earth.

Read more at
http://tinyurl.com/4rx3emu

"Snowfalls are now just a thing of the past"

How times change. The title is from an article, written in March 2000, highlighting the decreasing Snowfall in the UK. It makes interesting reading as it blames Climate Change for the lack of snow, whereas the heavy snow Britain has had over the last two winters has also been blamed by Climate Change. One thing is for sure, forecasting weather is unpredictable.
The article can be found here http://tinyurl.com/yz8urac
The image below was taken by Nasa's Terra Satellite early January 2010. It shows a completely snow covered UK.

Where Icebergs go to die

South Georgia is the place where colossal icebergs go to die.

The huge tabular blocks of ice that frequently break off Antarctica get swept towards the Atlantic and then ground on the shallow continental shelf that surrounds the 170km-long island.

As they crumble and melt, they dump billions of tonnes of freshwater into the local marine environment.

UK scientists say the giants have quite dramatic impacts, even altering the food webs for South Georgia's animals.

For more on this report visit the BBC website

Nevado del Ruiz - 25th anniversary of eruption

Although the eruption of Nevado del Ruiz (or Mount Ruiz) on November 13, 1985, was relatively small, the ensuing mudslides caused by melting ice and snow resulted in the the death of 23,000 people and the destruction of the town of Armero. Most of the residents would have survived had they moved to higher ground. This eruption brought attention to the fact that growing numbers of people live within the danger zones of the world's volcanoes.

Nevado del Ruiz Volcano is located approximately 140 kilometers to the northwest of Colombia’s capital, Bogotá. Covering over 200 square kilometers, Nevado del Ruiz is a large stratovolcano built from successive layers of lava, ash, and pyroclastic flow deposits. The volcano is fed by magma generated above the boundary between the subducting Nazca and overriding South American tectonic plates. The historical record of eruptions at the volcano extends back to 1570, but the most damaging eruption in recent times took place in 1985.

To mark this anniversary, the LRC has put together a display. The following links also provide you with more information about the 1985 eruption and devasting lahar plus information about the volcano and eruptions throughout its history.

BBCNEWS On this Day
How Volcanoes Work (Nevado del Ruiz
Earth Observatory
Nevado del Ruiz eruption history.
Nevado del Ruiz Eruption and Lahar 1985 (USGS)

Mapping future Global water stress

An extremely interesting article about the future of water available to nature and humans.

"About 80% of the world's population lives in areas where the fresh water supply is not secure, according to a new global analysis.

Researchers compiled a composite index of "water threats" that includes issues such as scarcity and pollution.

The most severe threat category encompasses 3.4 billion people.

Writing in the journal Nature, they say that in western countries, conserving water for people through reservoirs and dams works for people, but not nature.

They urge developing countries not to follow the same path.

"What we're able to outline is a planet-wide pattern of threat”
Charles Vorosmarty, City College of New York.

Instead, they say governments should work to invest in water management strategies that combine infrastructure with "natural" options such as safeguarding watersheds, wetlands and flood plains.

for more on the story go to BBC Environment

Gulf oil leak: Biggest ever, but how bad?

Following release of the US government's latest estimate, the Deepwater Horizon disaster is confirmed as the biggest ever accidental release of oil into the oceans.

It exceeds the 1979 Ixtoc I leak - also in the Gulf of Mexico. It's comfortably bigger than tanker releases such as the Torrey Canyon and Amoco Cadiz, and 20 times the size of the 1989 Exxon Valdez spill with which it is often compared.

Now that BP finally appears to have the flow under control, an important question - perhaps the most important of all - is being asked: it may have been the biggest, but was it the worst?

BBCNews and environment continues the debate and for more information on the BP Oil Spillage visit this excellent site dealing with all aspects of the impact of the oil spill.

2010: International Year of Biodiversity

The UN has launched the International Year of Biodiversity, warning that the ongoing loss of species around the world is affecting human well-being.
Eight years ago, governments pledged to reduce the rate of biodiversity loss by 2010, but the pledge will not be met.
Richard Black(Environment correspondent, BBC News website) reports further on the BBC Environment website