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A new wrinkle to the limits of life on Earth
May 29th, 2018Glacial retreat in cold, high-altitude ecosystems exposes environments that are extremely sensitive to phosphorus input, new CU Boulder-led research shows. The finding upends previous ecological assumptions, helps scientists understand plant and microbe responses to climate change and could expand scientists’ understanding of the limits to life on Earth.
Winds carry oil, gas pollutants into Boulder County, CU researchers say
May 28th, 2018Researchers from INSTAAR's Atmospheric Research Lab found strong correlation between winds from Weld County and increased levels of certain air pollutants after monitoring air quality at the Boulder Reservoir for 15 months around the clock.
The catastrophe that killed the dinosaurs created a global hothouse for 100,000 years, study says
May 25th, 201866 million years ago, a mountain-sized asteroid slammed into Earth, initiating a cascade of calamities that eradicated three-fourths of the species on the planet, including the non-avian dinosaurs. Scientists have long theorized that an initial pulse of heat was followed by a devastating global winter. After that, as carbon dioxide in the atmosphere surged, the planet became a hothouse. A new study published Thursday in the journal Science has produced hard data to support that global warming hypothesis, and it may have unnerving implications for the world we live in today.
Chicxulub Asteroid: Dinosaur-killing impact caused 100,000 years of climate change
May 25th, 2018In a new study published in the journal Science, a team of scientists use the chemical fingerprint in fish debris to measure dramatic temperature changes caused by the massive asteroid impact about 65 million years ago. They say that the results could teach us what to expect from our own forays into the large-scale release of climate-altering gases.
CU Boulder working to save apple trees
May 23rd, 20189NEWS reports on the project to catalog and save historic apple trees, led by Katie Suding. The ultimate goal of the project is to create an urban orchard for the trees and to use them as teaching laboratories for CU students.
Government sea level rise report released after charges of censorship
May 22nd, 2018INSTAAR researchers created data for the long-delayed study that examines the potential for rising seas to damage national parks.