Volcanoes Key to Earth's Oxygen Atmosphere
August 29 — A switch from predominantly undersea volcanoes to a mix of undersea and terrestrial ones shifted the Earth's atmosphere from devoid of oxygen to one with free oxygen, according to geologists. (Pennsylvania State University press release) More

Greenhouse Gases Likely Drove Near-Record Warmth
August 28 — Greenhouse gases likely accounted for more than half of the widespread warmth across the continental United States last year, according to a new study. (NOAA press release) More

European Hot Spots and Fires Identified From Space
August 27 — Hot spots across Southeastern Europe Aug. 21-26 have been detected with instruments aboard European Space Agency satellites, which have been continuously surveying fires burning across the Earth's surface for a decade. (European Space Agency press release) More

European Hot Spots and Fires Identified From Space
August 27 — Hot spots across Southeastern Europe Aug. 21-26 have been detected with instruments aboard European Space Agency satellites, which have been continuously surveying fires burning across the Earth's surface for a decade. (European Space Agency press release) More

No Large Northern Hemisphere Ice Sheets 41 Million Years Ago
August 22 — New research to test global ice volume approximately 41.6 million years ago shows that ice caps at this time, if they existed at all, would have been small and easily accommodated on Antarctica. (Joint Oceanographic Institutions press release) More

Corals and Climate Change
August 22 — A new lab is the first of its kind to tackle the global problem of climate change impacts on corals, and will be used to study how corals respond to the combined stress of greenhouse warming and ocean acidification. (University of Miami press release) More

Scientists Verify Predictive Model for Winter Weather
August 20 — Scientists have verified the accuracy of a model that uses October snow cover in Siberia to predict upcoming winter temperatures and snowfall for the high- and mid-latitudes of the Northern Hemisphere. (National Science Foundation press release) More

Record Low Arctic Sea Ice Extent Forecasted for 2007
August 16 — Researchers are now forecasting a 92 percent chance that the 2007 September minimum extent of sea ice across the Arctic region will set an all-time record low. (University of Colorado at Boulder press release) More

Irrigation May not Cool the Globe in the Future
August 13 — Expansion of irrigation has masked greenhouse warming in California’s Central Valley, but irrigation may not make much of a difference in the future, according to a new study. (National Science Foundation press release) More

Climate Change, Permafrost Thaw Alter Emissions
August 8 — Rising atmospheric temperatures are accelerating rates of permafrost thaw in northern regions, which can have complex impacts on greenhouse gas fluxes from wetlands in the area. (Michigan State University) More

Indo-Pacific Reefs Disappearing Rapidly
August 7 — Corals in the central and western Pacific ocean are dying faster than previously thought, researchers have found. (University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill press release) More

Space-Borne Sensors Help Africa Tackle Water Shortage Problems
August 3 — Zambian water authorities are integrating information based on satellite imagery to alleviate water shortages. (European Space Agency press release) More

Forecasting System Provides Flood Warnings to Bangladesh
August 2 — As catastrophic floods worsen in Bangladesh, a pilot forecasting program is being used to warn thousands of residents in selected flood-prone regions. (University Corporation for Atmospheric Research press release) More

Plate Motion Reversal Unlikely To Have Eased Seismic Strain
August 2 — A reversal of tectonic plate motion between Acapulco and Mexico City in the last half of 2006 probably didn’t ease seismic strain in the region or the specter of a major earthquake anticipated there in the coming decades, researchers suggest. (University of Colorado at Boulder press release) More

Pollution, Warming Trends to Jeopardize Asian Water Supplies
August 1 — August 1- The combined heating effect of greenhouse gases and brown clouds is enough to account for the retreat of Himalayan glaciers observed in the past half century, which supply water to major Asian rivers. (University of California, San Diego press release) More

Alaskan Earthquake Set Off Vancouver Island Tremors
August 1 — Tremors rippled the landscape of Vancouver Island, the westernmost part of British Columbia, during a major Alaskan earthquake and geoscientists have found clear evidence that the two events were related. (University of Washington press release) More

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