Earth Sciences15
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Tea Gardens to the Rescue
We switched to deploying our equipment for imaging faults and the structure beneath the surface to tea gardens to get away from power lines and buried the cables to protect them from gnawing foxes.
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Dealing With Rain and Rats
As we continued our geophysical measurements, we had to deal with heavy rains, flooding fields, and rats and foxes biting our cables. Many cables were broken soon after sunset, ruining the measurements.
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In Sediments Below Antarctic Ice, Scientists Discover a Giant Groundwater System
For the first time, scientists have mapped in detail water locked in a deep basin far under the Antarctic ice. The discovery could have implications for how the continent reacts to, or even contributes to, climate change.
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Fieldwork in Bangladesh During the End of Ramadan and Eid Festival
We have come to in Bangladesh in the pre-monsoon heat to better image the active faults beneath the surface using electromagnetic instruments. We are using the fallow fields from the just-harvested rice crop for our sites.
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Defying Some Expectations, Southern Ocean Did Not Increase Carbon Uptake in Ice Ages
In much of the world ocean, there is evidence that iron-rich dust blowing from land has fertilized algae during cold period, increasing uptake of carbon from the air, and keeping things frigid. Not here, says a new study.
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Struggling With Towed Equipment, Repairing GPS, and Home
We switched to a towed electromagnetic system to image the fresh and saline groundwater in Bangladesh, and ran into a variety of problems, including high winds, strong currents and running aground.
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A Key U.S. Earth-Sciences Official Visits Columbia to Explore Research Ideas
Oceanographer Richard Spinrad of NOAA participated in a town hall and discussed funding opportunities with Columbia Climate School researchers.
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Solar Energy Explains Fast Yearly Retreat of Southern Ocean Sea Ice
Sea ice in the Southern Ocean retreats each year much faster than it develops. This has puzzled scientists, but the explanation turns out to be simple.

By studying thousands of buildings and analyzing their electricity use, Columbia Climate School Dean Alexis Abramson has been able to uncover ways to significantly cut energy consumption and emissions. Watch the Video: “Engineering a Cooler Future Through Smarter Buildings“

