7/17/24: Tree rings reveal climate impacts of the Paektu Volcano’s “Millennium Eruption”

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A blue lake is surrounded by mountainous peaks. A blue sky and white clouds are in the background.

The Paektu (Changbaishan) Volcano is located on the border of China and North Korea. An eruption of the volcano over one thousand years ago was likely larger than the 1815 Tambora eruption, which created “a year without a summer” when huge quantities of volcano debris were blasted into the atmosphere. Credit: Wikimedia commons/ Laika ac/ CC BY-SA 2.0

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Tree rings reveal climate impacts of the Paektu (Changbaishan) Volcano’s “Millennium Eruption”
The “Millennium Eruption” of the Paektu Volcano on the border of China and North Korea lowered temperatures and changed precipitation patterns across Asia, new research reveals. Researchers used tree rings, historical records and comparisons between ice core and petrogeochemical data to determine climate impacts and revise the date of the eruption from 946 to 945 CE. [JGR Atmospheres research] 

Climate change, fires and deforestation have shrunk carbon stores in the West
The total mass of living trees and plants declined by up to 25% across the western United States between 2005 and 2019, most likely due to fire, drought and deforestation. During that time, the Pacific Northwest had the greatest total live carbon, or living plant matter, while the Southwest had the least. [Earth’s Future research][Cary Institute press release]  

Small hydropower plants need to plan for drought, economic instability
Climate change is expected to increase the frequency of droughts in some parts of the world. New research finds that small hydropower plants should account for variable water levels and socio-economic factors to be reliable and financially viable in the future. [Water Resources Research research] 

AI can help distinguish between earthquakes and explosions
Earthquakes and explosions both send acoustic waves through the ground and the air, making it hard for detection stations to differentiate what caused the waves. A new AI model uses inputs from both seismic (ground-based) and infrasound (air-based) waves to determine the source of disturbances on the Korean Peninsula. [Geophysical Research Letters research] 

Woody plants’ ranges across the Great Plains will shift as the climate warms
The spread of trees and other woody plants into grasslands in Texas, Oklahoma and Kansas limits the amount of land available for cattle and reduces the region’s water supply. As the climate continues to warm, honey mesquite will spread farther north and east into the Great Plains, while the ranges of other woody plants in the region will decrease, new research finds. [Earth’s Future research] 

Mosquitoes without borders
Using regional systems based on ecology, not geopolitical boundaries, can give scientists a better picture of the potential spread of West Nile virus. [Eos research spotlight][GeoHealth research] 

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7/10/24: New moonquakes found in Apollo-era data

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Shiny white clouds hang in a dark blue sky, reflected in a body of water below. City lights are visible in the background.

Highly reflective noctilucent clouds, formed from large amounts of water vapor in the upper atmosphere, hang over Germany. New research finds that injections of water vapor into the upper atmosphere during space launches can form these icy clouds over the Arctic. Credit: Wikimedia commons/ Matthias Süßen/CC BY-SA 4.0

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Weather “whiplash” taxes California’s water system
California relies on reservoirs and dams to generate power, fuel agriculture and feed waterways. Strong atmospheric river storms can end droughts, but rapid increases in reservoir water levels threaten dam infrastructure and reduce power generation. Future infrastructure projects should focus on creating more resilient reservoirs and recharging groundwater, according to a new study. [Water Resources Research research] 

Space launches spawn noctilucent summer clouds in the Arctic
Space traffic take-offs release large water vapor plumes. Within days, winds carry this vapor into the Arctic Circle, new research finds. In July, when the upper atmosphere is coldest, the water vapor can form noctilucent or “night shining” clouds 50 miles above the Earth. [Earth and Space Science research] 

A new look at old moon data: Apollo-era moonquakes more common than previously thought
New analysis of an archive of messy lunar quake observations, collected at Apollo landing sites between 1969 and 1977, finds that the Moon had 2.6 times more quakes during that period than previously known. The moon’s northern hemisphere was also more seismically active than its southern hemisphere, where NASA plans to land its Artemis III mission. [JGR Planets research] 

Cosmic electron beams could interfere with measurements of Europa’s ocean
Powerful electron beams discovered near Europa by the Juno spacecraft may affect the space environment surrounding the moon, which could alter how scientists measure Europa’s subsurface ocean. [Geophysical Research Letters research] 

Dim and slow meteors can still generate luminous trains
Meteors leave behind self-illuminating “trains” as they hurtle through the atmosphere. New observations of approximately 7,000 meteors reveal that meteor trains are more common than previously thought, and that slower-moving meteors leave trains just as frequently as faster-moving meteors. [JGR Space Physics research] 

Supersharp images reveal scars of major eruption on Io
Jupiter’s volcanic moon is captured in exquisite detail by an instrument atop a mountain in Arizona. [Eos research spotlight][Geophysical Research Letters research] 

Dry, cracked ground can “breathe” as environmental conditions change
Researchers used a network of fiber-optic cables to detect soil cracking in dry conditions, and found that soil cracks can expand and contract based on climate conditions. [Eos editor’s highlight][JGR Earth’s Surface research] 

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