bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Earthquake off Japan could generate strong tsunami arrays
Authors: Hsu Shu‐Kun , Sibuet Jean‐Claude
Published: October 2006

The 26 December 2004 earthquake off Sumatra induced a disastrous tsunami that struck in South Asian countries. In a similar context, a potential great earthquake off Japan might occur and generate a strong tsunami in East Asia.

The 2004 Sumatra earthquake is the second biggest earthquake (Mw = 9.3) recorded during the last century. It occurred at a depth of 20–30 km, close to an indentation of the Indonesian forearc (Figure l). The rupture propagated about 1200 km northward and terminated north of Andaman Islands.
The Interaction of Ocean Waves and Wind
Authors: Ardhuin Fabrice
Published: October 2006

The practical importance of wind‐wave interactions can hardly be overstated. Activities at sea and on the coast depend on accurate wind and wave forecasts and statistics, from planning shipping activities to designing dikes and harbors. Because waves are only weakly nonlinear, they lend themselves to elegant mathematical descriptions that reach an accuracy not often found when dealing with the fluid envelopes of our planet. Yet, in spite of the common experience of the casual observer that waves are generated by the wind, grow, and break, a quantitative description of the processes involved is extremely difficult. Further, if wave conditions depend obviously on the wind fields, winds and weather systems are in turn are affected by the waves.
Colloid retention behavior in environmental porous media challenges existing theory
Authors: Johnson W. P. , Li Xiqing , Tong Meiping
Published: October 2006

Chances are the quality of your drinking water was improved by filtration through porous media at some point before it reached your tap, perhaps naturally by transport through the subsurface, or purposefully by passage through an engineered sand filter.

Engineered filtration processes have been utilized for decades, and these processes are monitored to ensure the removal of a required degree of particles, e.g., colloids (biological and non‐biological particles ranging between a few tens of nanometers to ten microns), from water. Filtration is manifest in both natural and engineered contexts, e.g., by the relatively high quality of spring water, and by the difficulty of targeting the delivery of microbes, zero‐valent iron, and other colloids with novel properties to contaminated locales in the subsurface for the purpose of remediation.
Space‐based measurement of river runoff
Authors: Brakenridge G. Robert , Nghiem Son V. , Anderson Elaine , Chien Steven
Published: October 2006

Observations of river inundation areas, water levels, and flow variability from orbital sensors have the potential to directly measure the runoff component of the Earth's hydrologic cycle [Birkett et al., 2002; Brakenridge et al., 1998; Sippel et al., 1994, 1998; Townsend, 2001]. A remote‐sensing‐based measurement strategy for rivers and streams is emerging: Surface water data can be collected, their accuracy evaluated, and the results disseminated without regard to political boundaries. The results can be used to address a wide variety of applications.

In this article, the needs for such measurements, a river reach‐based methodology for their collection, and some sample results are presented. Because the international observational capability is increasing, some future opportunities for improving this strategy are also described.
Comment on “Color schemes for improved data graphics,” by A. Light and P.J. Bartlein
Authors: Stephenson David B.
Published: October 2006

As a color‐blind climatologist, I very much appreciated the important color‐awareness issues raised by A. Light and P. J. Bartlein in their recent Eos article titled “The End of the Rainbow? Color Schemes for Improved Data Graphics,” (55(40), 5 October 2004, p.385).

Meteorological and climate information is frequently communicated in the form of highly colored spatial maps (e.g., daily weather forecasts). The use of color is so endemic in climate research that it would be unthinkable to present scientific work at a climate conference without using color! The color schemes generally chosen to create such maps follow no universal convention and often consist of colors that cause confusion to both color‐impaired and non‐color‐impaired people.
Reply [to “Comment on ‘Color schemes for improved data graphics,” by A. Light and P.J. Bartlein”]
Authors: Light Adam , Bartlein Patrick J.
Published: October 2006

By calling attention to the perception of data graphics among color‐impaired readers, we hoped to raise awareness of an even more prevalent phenomenon: the misuse of spectral, or “rainbow,” color schemes. David B. Stephenson is quite right regarding the incidence of different forms of color‐vision impairment, which varies among racial and ethnic groups and is much lower for females [Sharpe et al., 1999]. Our article highlighted simulations of the less common protanopia to dramatize the general peril of spectral schemes.

Figure 1 shows simulations of spectral, diverging, and progressive color schemes as they might appear to readers with either of the most common forms of color deficiency Figures 1a and 1b illustrate why the adage “red and green should never be seen” is a good one. The simulations in the right‐hand column show how deuteranopes may find it difficult or impossible to distinguish between red and green.
Bringing space physics concepts into introductory electromagnetism
Authors: Belcher John W.
Published: October 2006

Many of the concepts that have arisen in space plasma research over the last four decades can be profitably incorporated into the teaching of introductory physics. In this article is an example of how research concepts can inform and improve instruction in basic science courses. There are other examples of this transference, and the community of space physics researchers should make an effort to publicize the ways in which this research can be used to improve instruction in the educational system.

Space physicists regularly use a concept that is unfamiliar to the majority of professional physicists: the concept of moving electromagnetic field lines. Space physicists state that "magnetic flux is eroded from the dayside magnetosphere" or "the magnetic field lines in the vicinity of Io move with Io and not with Jupiter."
Rapid determination of earthquake size for hazard warning
Authors: Lomax Anthony , Michelini Alberto
Published: October 2006

The 26 December 2004 M9 Sumatra‐Andaman Islands earthquake caused a tsunami that devastated Indian Ocean coasts within three hours after the earthquake. Improved tsunami warning and emergency response for future great earthquakes require knowing an earthquake's size within minutes after the event. Although the hypocenter of a distant earthquake is routinely determined from the first seismic P waves within about 15 min, several hours may pass before a reliable size determination for very large earthquakes is available (e.g., for the 2004 Sumatra‐Andaman earthquake see Menke and Levin [2005]).

Seismologists specify the size of an earthquake using seismic scalar moment (M0), a physical quantity proportional to the product of fault area and mean slip on the fault. Currently, analyses of long‐period seismograms (period >100 s) provide reliable estimates of M0 for very large events [e.g., Harvard Centroid‐Moment Tensor (CMT), Dziewonski et al., 1981], but these seismograms are not available until an hour or more after the event.
Space policy and humanities policy
Authors: Frodeman Robert
Published: October 2006

In his 14 January 2004 speech on the future of space exploration, U.S. President George W. Bush proposed a return to the Moon followed by “human missions to Mars and to worlds beyond.” Bush's proposal called for robotic missions and new manned space vehicles to replace an aging set of space shuttles, and sought a new justification for space exploration. In the words of former NASA Administrator Sean O'Keefe, in The Vision for Space Exploration, this plan is not “merely for the sake of adventure, however exciting that might be, but seeks answers to profound scientific and philosophic questions.”

Bush's proposal stimulated renewed reflection on the goals of our nation's space policy and on the means (financial and otherwise) for achieving these goals. A return to such first‐order questioning of our goals for space has been long overdue. The Columbia Accident Investigation Board, which was convened by NASA in 2003 following the shuttle disaster, described “a lack, over the past three decades, of any national mandate providing NASA a compelling mission requiring human presence in space” [Keiper, 2003].
Subglacial environments: Focus for a new U.S. research program
Authors: Kennicutt Mahlon
Published: October 2006

Subglacial Antarctic lake environments (SALE) have attracted great scientific and lay public interest during the last decade. “Subglacial” is broadly defined as those localities under substantial (kilometer‐scale) ice overburdens that cause long‐term (at least thousands of years) isolation from direct subaerial contact. Subglacial environments are at or below the ice‐bed interface of glaciers and ice sheets, including ice‐water contacts above subglacial lakes and below ice shelves.

For the next decade or more, SALE exploration and research will be a focus of intense interest in Antarctica as one of the last remaining unexplored and difficult to access environments on Earth. SALE is also a primary focus for the International Polar Year (IPY) 2007—2008 scientific theme, “exploring new frontiers.”
U.S. volcano early warning system
Authors: Showstack Randy
Published: October 2006

The U.S. Geological Survey on 29 April released a comprehensive review of the 169 U.S. volcanoes, and established a framework for a National Volcano Early Warning System that is being formulated by the Consortium of U.S. Volcano Observatories. The framework proposes an around‐the‐clock Volcano Watch Office and improved instrumentation and monitoring at targeted volcanoes.

The report, authored by USGS scientists John Ewert, Marianne Guffanti, and Thomas Murray, notes that although a few U.S. volcanoes are well‐monitored, half of the most threatening volcanoes are monitored at a basic level and some hazardous volcanoes have no ground‐based monitoring.
The Volcano Adventure Guide
Authors: Goff Fraser
Published: October 2006

Adventure travels to volcanoes offer chance encounters with danger, excitement, and romance, plus opportunities to experience scientific enlightenment and culture. To witness a violently erupting volcano and its resulting impacts on landscape, climate, and humanity is a powerful personal encounter with gigantic planetary forces. To study volcano processes and products during eruptions is to walk in the footsteps of Pliny himself. To tour the splendors and horrors of 25 preeminent volcanoes might be the experience of a lifetime, for scientists and nonscientists alike.
Peat land oxidation enhances subsidence in the Venice watershed
Authors: Gambolati Giuseppe , Putti Mario , Teatini Pietro , Camporese Matteo , Ferraris Stefano , Stori Giuseppe Gasparetto , Nicoletti Vincenzo , Silvestri Sonia , Rizzetto Federica , Tosi Luigi
Published: October 2006

The southernmost part of the Venice Lagoon catchment was progressively reclaimed from marshland starting from the end of the 19th century and finishing in the late 1930s (Figure 1). As a major result, the area was turned into a fertile farmland. At present, the area is kept dry by a distributed drainage system that collects the water from a capillary network of ditches, and pumps it into the lagoon or the sea. By its very origin, this area lies below sea level and progressively sinks mainly because of bio‐oxidation of the histosols (soils with high organic content) that represent a large fraction of the outcropping soil in the area. The bio‐oxidation process occurs in close connection with the agricultural practices and is currently responsible for a subsidence rate of between 1.5 and 2 cm/yr.
Hydrologic extremes in central‐southwest Asia
Authors: Barlow Mathew , Salstein David , Cullen Heidi
Published: October 2006

Recent research has suggested that there is significant predictability of hydrologic extremes, on timescales from synoptic to interannual, in a region encompassing the central Asian republics and a southern tier of countries ranging from Iraq to northwestern India (approximately 40°–80°E, 25°–55°N). Water scarcity irrigation demand, and a combination of other factors make the population of this semiarid region particularly vulnerable to hydrologic variability and predictions of this variability would be of great societal benefit.

The investigation of the hydroclimatic variability of the region poses a number of scientific and practical challenges due to data scarcity, high mountains, complex land surface characteristics, and key physical processes that remain poorly understood.To review progress in understanding and predicting hydrologic variability, survey available data, consider societal applications, and identify key challenges, a U.S. National Science Foundation (NSF) workshop,“Hydrology of Central‐Southwest Asia,” recently was held in San Diego, California.
Council adopts two major statements
Authors: Anonymous
Published: October 2006

On 27 May, the AGU Council approved an update to the Union's vision statement and adopted a position statement concerning the U.S. plans for a Moon‐Mars initiative.

The vision statement, which is reproduced in this section of Eos, describes what the AGU is expected to look like 10 years in the future. The Planning Committee, under the chairmanship of President‐elect Tim Killeen,and with input from the policy committees, Sections, and Focus Groups, is updating AGU's strategic plan, which is intended to move measurably toward the vision.
Moon‐Mars Initiative
Authors: Anonymous
Published: October 2006

On 27 May, the AGU Council unanimously adopted a position statement on NASA' strategic plan: "A New Age of Exploration: NASA' Direction for 2005 and Beyond." A statement for Council consideration was prepared by a panel of AGU members chaired by Eric Barron and composed of Rafael Bras, Catherine Constable, Marianne Guffanti, Jean Bernard Minster, Frank Muller‐Karger, Atsuhiro Nishida, Marc Parmentier, Patrick Pinet, Sherwood Rowland, and David Stevenson.
Integrative acoustic mapping reveals Hudson River sediment processes and habitats
Authors: Nitsche F. O. , Bell R. , Carbotte S. M. , Ryan W. B. F. , Slagle A. , Chillrud S. , Kenna T. , Flood R. , Ferrini V. , Cerrato R. , McHugh C. , Strayer D.
Published: October 2006

Rivers and estuaries around the world are the focus of human settlements and activities. Needs for clean water, ecosystem preservation, commercial navigation, industrial development, and recreational access compete for the use of estuaries, and management of these resources requires a detailed understanding of estuarine morphology and sediment dynamics.

This article presents an overview of the first estuary‐wide study of a heavily used estuary the Hudson River, based on high‐resolution acoustic mapping of the river bottom. The integration of three high‐resolution acoustic methods with extensive sampling reveals an unexpected complexity of bottom features and allows detailed classification of the benthic environment in terms of riverbed morphology, sediment type, and sedimentary processes.
Seasonal climate forecasts and adoption by agriculture
Authors: Garbrecht Jurgen , Meinke Holger , Sivakumar Mannava V. K. , Motha Raymond P. , Salinger Michael J.
Published: October 2006

Recent advances in atmospheric and ocean sciences and a better understanding of the global climate have led to skillful climate forecasts at seasonal to interannual timescales, even in midlatitudes. These scientific advances and forecasting capabilities have opened the door to practical applications that benefit society. The benefits include the reduction of weather/climate related risks and vulnerability, increased economic opportunities, enhanced food security, mitigation of adverse climate impacts, protection of environmental quality, and so forth.

Agriculture in particular can benefit substantially from accurate long‐lead seasonal climate forecasts. Indeed, agricultural production very much depends on weather, climate, and water availability, and unexpected departures from anticipated climate conditions can thwart the best laid management plans. Timely climate forecasts offer means to reduce losses in drought years, increase profitability in good years, deal more effectively with climate variability, and choose from targeted risk‐management strategies. In addition to benefiting farmers, forecasts can also help marketing systems and downstream users prepare for anticipated production outcomes and associated consequences.
The Great Betrayal: Fraud in Science
Authors: Galvin Cyril
Published: October 2006

Fraud has general and specific meanings: In general conversation, fraud is a deception; in law, it can be a felony. In The Great Betrayal: Fraud in Science, Horace Freeland Judson usually implies the general meaning, but he discusses the legal setting.

The significant fraud that Judson sees in science is plagiarism in the broad sense by those who review grant proposals and journal manuscripts, and fabrication and falsification by scientists who write the proposals and manuscripts. To get at this, he begins with twentieth‐century business and social fraud: investment trusts developed in the years leading to the Great Crash of 1929, the exuberance of the 1990s, inventive reporting of Jayson Blair at the New York Times, corruption of the U.S. Olympic Committee, and scandal in the Catholic Church.
Science academies issue climate change statement
Authors: Anonymous
Published: October 2006

Eleven national science academies have issued a joint statement on climate change, in advance of the 6–8 July summit meeting of leaders of the G8 in Perthshire, Scotland.

The statement, issued on 7 June, reads, in part, “The scientific understanding of climate change is now sufficiently clear to justify nations taking prompt action…As the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) recognizes, a lack of full scientific certainty about some aspects of climate change is not a reason for delaying an immediate response that will, at a reasonable cost, prevent dangerous anthropogenic interference with the climate system.”
Aswathanarayana receives 2005 Excellence in Geophysical Education Award
Authors: Krishnamurti T. N. , Aswathanarayana Uppugunduri
Published: October 2006

Uppugunduri Aswathanarayana received the Excellence in Geophysical Education Award at the Joint Assembly Honors Ceremony, which was held on 25 May 2005, in New Orleans, Louisiana. The award honors “a sustained commitment to excellence in geophysical education by a team, individual, or group.”
Kluger receives 2005 David Perlman Award for Excellence in Science Journalism‐News
Authors: Ferber Nadine , Kluger Jeffrey
Published: October 2006

Jeffrey Kluger received the Perlman Award at the Joint Assembly Honors Ceremony, which was held on 25 May 2005, in New Orleans, Louisiana. Kluger was honored for his Time magazine article “The Secrets of the Rings.”
Jupiter: The Planet, Satellites and Magnetosphere
Authors: Beebe Reta
Published: October 2006

In June 2001, with the Galileo mission ending and the Cassini mission having encountered Jupiter on its way to Saturn, a conference (titled “Jupiter: The Planet, Satellites and Magnetosphere,” sponsored by NASA, the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Ball Aerospace, Southwest Research Institute, and the University of Colorado) was held on 25–30 June 2001, in Boulder, Colorado, to provide a framework for generating a comprehensive volume that would summarize current knowledge of the Jovian system. Three years later, this encyclopedic volume, Jupiter: The Planet, Satellites and Magnetosphere, was published, presenting an impressive detailed guide for understanding this complex system.
Forecasting and monitoring a subglacial eruption in Iceland
Authors: Vogfjörd K. S. , Jakobsdóttir S. S. , Gudmundsson G. B. , Roberts M. J. , Ágústsson K. , Arason T. , Geirsson H. , Karlsdóttir S. , Hjaltadóttir S. , Ólafsdóttir U. , Thorbjarnardóttir B. , Hafsteinsson G. , Sveinbjörnsson H. , Stefánsson R. , Jónsson T. V.
Published: October 2006

The recognition of geophysical precursors to volcanic activity is a primary challenge in volcano monitoring. That challenge was successfully met by scientists at the Icelandic Meteorological Office (IMO) before the 1 November 2004 eruption of Grímsvötn, a subglacial volcano beneath the Vatnajökull ice cap,Iceland (Figure 1).

Seismic and geodetic precursors were properly recognized, leading to a timely eruption forecast and warning announcements. During the eruption, IMO's monitoring capability was greatly expanded by employing geophysical and meteorological observation tools, which enabled real‐time hazard assessment.
Innovative tephra studies in the East African Rift System
Authors: WoldeGabriel Giday , Hart William K. , Heiken Grant
Published: October 2006

Geosciences investigations form the foundation for paleoanthropological research in the East African Rift System. However, innovative applications of tephra studies for constraining spatial and temporal relations of diverse geological processes, biostratigraphic records, and paleoenvironmental conditions within the East African Rift System were fueled by paleoanthropological investigations into the origin and evolution of hominids and material culture. Tephra is a collective, size‐independent term used for any material ejected during an explosive volcanic eruption.

The East African Rift System has become a magnet for paleoanthropological research ever since the discovery of the first hominids at Olduvai Gorge, in Tanzania, in the 1950s [Leakey et al., 1961]. Currently, numerous multidisciplinary scientific teams from academic institutions in the United States and Western Europe make annual pilgrimages for a couple of months to conduct paleoanthropological field research in the fossil‐rich sedimentary deposits of the East African Rift System in Ethiopia, Kenya, and Tanzania. The field expedition consists of geological, paleontological, archaeological, and paleoenvironmental investigations.
On the academic job hunt, is there not a better way?
Authors: Yeager Kevin
Published: October 2006

After a decade or more of higher education, postdoctoral experience, the papers, proposals, rejections, and successes, one might think that earning a post as an assistant professor would not be so tough. Wrong.

Many consider academia the pinnacle of the job market for Ph.D.s, particularly in the sciences. If we are not the best that we can be, we will not be funded, publish in well‐read journals, or land that sought after job in the ivory tower, if that is our desire. Unfortunately the academic job hunt, particularly in the United States, is a labor‐intensive, time‐consuming, feedback‐less, and drawn‐out affair where excellence in one's chosen field and likely successful fulfillment of the job requirements are often not the determining factors as to whether a candidate is made the offer.
Raising the ante on the climate debate
Authors: Crowley Thomas J.
Published: October 2006

Almost alone in the world of science, there is a substantial U.S. effort to discredit some basic conclusions in the global warming debate. There are always legitimate reasons to query scientific conclusions, but the tenor of the debate has taken on a flavor of its own. Since the epicenter of the dispute is in Washington, D.C., the suspicion arises that not all of the discussion is business‐as‐usual scientific disagreement.

The most recent example of the heightening level of the dispute involves a 23 June 2005 letter from U.S. Rep. Joe Barton (R‐Tex.), chair of the House Committee on Energy and Commerce, to Michael Mann (University of Virginia) and his collaborators, Raymond Bradley (University of Massachusetts) and Malcolm Hughes (University of Arizona). The dispute centers on the much discussed “hockey stick” reconstruction of Mann et al. [1998,1999]. In those reconstructions, the twentieth century warming stands well above Northern Hemisphere temperature fluctuations of the last 1000 years. Other investigators, using some of the same data but with different approaches, have also reconstructed temperatures of the last millennium (see Mann et al. [2003] for a summary discussion). In general, there is more agreement than disagreement among the various reconstructions. The differences stem mainly from the scaling of the oscillations, but in all cases the late twentieth century is anomalous in a millennial context.
Cross validating ocean prediction and monitoring systems
Authors: Mooers C. N. K. , Meinin C. S. , Baringer M. O. , Bang I. , Rhodes R. , Barron C. N. , Bub F.
Published: October 2006

With the ongoing development of ocean circulation models and real‐time observing systems, routine estimation of the synoptic state of the ocean is becoming feasible for practical and scientific purposes. The models can assist in ocean monitoring and regional dynamics studies, but only after they have been validated.

For the first time, beginning 1 November 2004, independent ocean model estimates of the Florida Current (FC) volume transport are available, in real time, for cross validation with observed transport variations forced by cold front passages, tropical cyclones, and other weather systems. The FC flows poleward through the Straits of Florida and ultimately becomes the Gulf Stream. The FC originates from both the large‐scale, wind‐driven circulation of the North Atlantic subtropical gyre and the trans‐equatorial Atlantic thermohaline overturning circulation (i.e., the “global conveyor belt”). The FC is constrained by Florida to the north and/or west and by Cuba and the Bahamas to the south and east, respectively (Figure 1).
Chapman Conference on Magnetospheric ULF Waves
Authors: Takahashi K. , Chi P. J. , Denton R. E. , Yeoman T. K. , Pilipenko V. A.
Published: October 2006

Waves in the ultra‐low‐frequency (ULF) band (periods of 1 to 1000 s) are a permanent feature in the region called the magnetosphere, where the behavior of charged particles is influenced by the Earth's intrinsic magnetic field. These waves transport momentum and energy from the solar wind to the magnetosphere and farther down to the ionosphere. In addition, the waves interact with charged particles in the magnetosphere and modify their energy and direction of motion with important consequences for dynamic processes such as geomagnetic storms and the formation of auroral arcs.

The physics of magnetospheric ULF waves is far from being completely understood primarily because many ULF waves have a wavelength comparable to the size of the magnetosphere, which is of the order of 10 Earth radii (RE). Just establishing the structure of such waves from observations is a daunting task. The source mechanisms for the waves are also often difficult to determine.
Nominees for AGU 2006–2008 election of officers
Authors: Anonymous
Published: October 2006

The nominees below listed below constitute the slate approved by the AGU Council for the election of officers for the next biennium.

President‐elect—Timothy L. Grove and Soroosh Sorooshian.
R/V Maurice Ewing retires
Authors: Diebold John
Published: October 2006

The R/V Maurice Ewing came into port for the last time on 10 March 2005, tying up at Quonset Point, R.I., astern of the ship slated to be her replacement (Figure 1). M/V Western Legend (Figure 1, left) will, during fall and winter of 2005–2006, be converted as R/V Marcus G. Langseth, and will replace the Maurice Ewing (Figure 1, right) as the primary seismic research vessel within the U.S. academic research vessel fleet.

During its distinguished 15‐year career, Ewing's operations added fundamentally to the knowledge and understanding of solid Earth dynamics and structure. Ewing began life as the M/V Bernier, and performed seismic offshore exploration for Petro Canada. In an innovative process, which included initialization provided by Columbia University, the U.S. National Science Foundation (NSF) acquired Bernier in 1989, and the ship's title passed to NSF in 1990. Bernier was converted into R/V Ewing for a total expenditure (approximately $12 million) far below the cost of building and outfitting a new seismic research ship.
Studying the seismogenic coupling zone with a passive seismic array
Authors: Rietbrock A. , Haberland C. , Bataille K. , Dahm T. , Oncken O.
Published: October 2006

Subduction zones generate the world's largest and most destructive earthquakes and most of the world's destructive tsunamis, as has been recently shown by the devastating Andaman‐Sumatra event on 26 December 2004. Understanding the factors leading to Earth's largest and most destructive earthquakes is not only an “obviously important” goal, as stated in the U.S. National Science Foundation's Margins Science Report 2004, but it is also an “utmost important” goal for the whole geoscience community

Interrelated with this topic are still unsolved questions in seismology: Why do subduction zones occasionally generate the largest known (Mw>9) earthquakes? And why are only a few subduction zones capable of generating Mw 9 earthquakes while the rest only produce up to Mw 7.5?
President Bush advocates teaching “intelligent design“
Authors: Showstack Randy
Published: October 2006

U.S. President George W. Bush has come out in favor of the teaching of “intelligent design” alongside the teaching of the theory of evolution in public schools. Intelligent design includes the tenet that life on Earth is too complex to have evolved on its own and must therefore be the work of an intelligent designer.

In a 1 August press briefing, Bush said that “both sides ought to be properly taught…so people can understand what the debate is about.” He added, “Part of education is to expose people to different schools of thought… You're asking me whether or not people ought to be exposed to different ideas, and the answer is yes.”
Natural Hazards, Second Edition
Authors: Rouhban Badaoui
Published: October 2006

Natural disaster loss is on the rise, and the vulnerability of the human and physical environment to the violent forces of nature is increasing. In many parts of the world, disasters caused by natural hazards such as earthquakes, floods, landslides, drought, wildfires, intense windstorms, tsunami, and volcanic eruptions have caused the loss of human lives, injury, homelessness, and the destruction of economic and social infrastructure. Over the last few years, there has been an increase in the occurrence, severity, and intensity of disasters, culminating with the devastating tsunami of 26 December 2004 in South East Asia.

Natural hazards are often unexpected or uncontrollable natural events of varying magnitude. Understanding their mechanisms and assessing their distribution in time and space are necessary for refining risk mitigation measures. This second edition of Natural Hazards, (following a first edition published in 1991 by Cambridge University Press), written by Edward Bryant, associate dean of science at Wollongong University, Australia, grapples with this crucial issue, aspects of hazard prediction, and other issues. The book presents a comprehensive analysis of different categories of hazards of climatic and geological origin.
Coral poaching worsens tsunami destruction in Sri Lanka
Authors: Fernando H. J. S. , McCulley J. L. , Mendis S. G. , Perera K.
Published: October 2006

Observations of the trail of destruction of the Sumatra tsunami of 26 December 2004 indicate remarkable, small‐scale spatial variations, of the order of a few kilometers, of water inundation and destruction in southwestern Sri Lanka [Shiermeier, 2005; Liu et al., 2005] that are much smaller than the tsunami wavelength of ∼100 km.

For example, the town of Peraliya, was awash with an approximately 1.5‐km water inundation from a wave of 10 m in height; the inundation there carried the passenger train Samudra Devi (the “Ocean Queen”) inland some 50 m, killing 1700 people. Yet,∼3 km south, in Hikkaduwa, there was a mere 2–3 m wave height, 50‐m inundation and no deaths.
Manned space exploration can provide great scientific benefits
Authors: Singer S. Fred
Published: October 2006

An AGU Council statement (NASA: Earth and space sciences at risk, available at http://www.agu.org/sci_soc/policy/positions/earthspace_risk.shtml) and an Eos editorial [Barron, 2005], addressing NASA's envisioned manned Moon‐Mars initiative, implicitly assume a zero‐sum situation between manned and unmanned space programs. They also imply that the NASA initiative will not contribute significantly to science but will “impact on the current and future health of Earth and space science research.” I wish to respond to these concerns.

It is generally agreed that the International Space Station and shuttle program have limited value and need to be terminated. But one should not assume that funds freed up by elimination of manned programs will accrue to unmanned programs. On the contrary, without a manned component, NASA will probably cease to exist. Congress likely will not continue to fund unmanned planetary exploration over the long term, and Earth and space researchers will then have to compete for support with scientists using non‐space techniques.
Comment on “Comparison between probabilistic seismic hazard analysis and flood frequency analysis”
Authors: Holzer Thomas L.
Published: October 2006

Despite providing an exceptionally clear example of the basics of probabilistic seismic hazard analysis (PSHA), Wang and Ormsbee [2005] nevertheless conclude that “…using PSHA for risk analysis is not only confusing, but is also inappropriate.” I argue here that (1) the results of a PSHA analysis are not confusing and have physical meaning, and (2) the authors' basis for declaring PSHA “inappropriate” is misguided. I note in passing that the authors consistently confuse “risk” with “hazard.” Both PSHA and flood frequency analysis provide estimates of hazard. Risk is the product of hazard, vulnerability and exposure. This discussion is only concerned with hazard.
Reply to Comment by T. L Holzer [on “Comparison between probabilistic seismic hazard analysis and flood frequency analysis”]
Authors: Wang Zhenming
Published: October 2006

Risk discussed by Wang and Ormsbee [2005] may differ from that of Holzer. Although there are some different definitions of risk among different professions, it is quantified by three terms: probability hazard (loss or others), and exposure. For example, in health sciences, risk is defined as the probability of getting cancer if an average daily dose of a hazardous substance (hazard) is taken over a 70‐year lifetime (exposure). In the financial world, risk is defined as the probability of losing a certain amount of money (loss) over a period of time.

Wang and Ormsbee defined seismic risk as the probability of a structure being damaged one or more times (at least once) in t years (exposure) by an earthquake or ground motion (hazard) generated by the earthquake. This definition is consistent with that of Cornell [1968]. This is also consistent with those used in building codes, such as the International Building Code [ICC, 2000].
Geohazards Graduate Study With the U.S. Peace Corps
Authors: Rose William I. , Bluth Gregg J.S.
Published: October 2006

A unique, new educational program that focuses on geological natural hazards, U.S. Peace Corps field work, and on‐campus study has begun its second year at Michigan Technological University, in Houghton, Michigan.

While “Masters International” programs that combine Peace Corps service with a graduate degree program are available at 49 different universities in a variety of fields, the program at Michigan Tech is the only one with a natural hazards focus offering geological degree programs.
Yucca Mountain could face greater volcanic threat
Authors: Smith Eugene I. , Keenan Deborah L.
Published: October 2006

Locating a radioactive waste repository in the United States has been the subject of over 20 years of scientific research, political wrangling, and court decisions. If a nuclear waste repository is constructed at Yucca Mountain, Nevada, 70,000 metric tons of spent nuclear fuel will be buried 300 m below the surface.

Because eight Quaternary basalt volcanoes erupted within 50 km of the proposed repository in the past million years, future volcanism is an important issue. The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) is currently using an expert panel to evaluate current models [Perry et al., 1998] and consider alternative models. This article presents an alternative model, developed independently of DOE and the expert panel, and reviews new information pertinent to volcanic hazard studies. Additionally, this article suggests that the size of the Yucca Mountain volcanic field is not presently well known.
Deep infrasound radiated by the Sumatra earthquake and tsunami
Authors: Garcés M. , Caron P. , Hetzer C. , Le Pichon A. , Bass H. , Drob D. , Bhattacharyya J.
Published: October 2006

Infrasound arrays in the Pacific and Indian oceans that are part of the International Monitoring System (IMS) of the Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty (CTBT) recorded distinct signatures associated with the 26 December 2004 Sumatra earthquake (M/9, http://earthquake.usgs.gov/) and tsunami. Although the radiation of infrasound from large continental earthquakes is established [e.g., Le Pichon et al., 2003], the results presented in the present article indicate that islands undergoing significant surface displacements from submarine earthquakes can produce infrasound.

Far more intriguing is the possibility that the initiation and propagation of a tsunami may produce low‐frequency sound near the source as well as along coastlines and basins. Since distant sound effectively propagates at ˜300 m/s and tsunamis propagate at ˜200 m/s, precursory sound could potentially be used as a discriminant for tsunami genesis.
Novel interpretation for shift between eruptive styles in some volcanoes
Authors: Polacci Margherita , Rosi Mauro , Landi Patrizia , Di Muro Andrea , Papale Paolo
Published: October 2006

The transition from effusive, low mass flow rate to explosive, high mass flow rate eruptive behavior is a common aspect of the activity of calc‐alkaline volcanoes. However, the process driving the shift between the two eruptive styles is at present debatable and represents a topical theme in the volcanological literature.

The main challenge is to understand the mechanism that allows a high mass flow rate when eruptions of highly porphyritic (40 vol % crystals) and viscous magmas (≥106 Pas, pascal second) occur. In this article, volcanological, compositional, and textural observations are used to demonstrate that viscous dissipation, a process that develops heating within flowing magma in a boundary layer near the conduit walls due to friction, is responsible for the long‐lasting, sustained explosive phases of this eruption type, as well as for the transition from effusive to explosive behavior.
Oceanographic telecommuting: Going to sea virtually
Authors: Smith Deborah K. , Lemmond Peter
Published: October 2006

Oceanography in the 21st century is on the verge of changing the way it does business. Telecommuting from office to sea is about to make the same impact as telecommuting between home and the office did 20 years ago.

A recent geophysical survey highlighted the role that telecommuting will soon play in ocean research. In June 2005, R/V Knorr was in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean conducting a geophysical survey of a region centered at 13°N along the Mid‐Atlantic Ridge in the general area of the diffuse triple junction between the North America (NA), Africa (AF),and South America (SA) plates. This region is particularly notable because of a unique zone of seismicity that occurs ∼70 km west of the ridge axis between 14°20′N and 12°50′N. The survey conducted on this cruise (KN182–3) was a first step toward understanding how slow spreading lithosphere is deforming in the NA‐SA‐AF triple junction region.
Katrina's wake
Authors: Bossak Brian H.
Published: October 2006

Residents and community leaders in New Orleans, Louisiana, “the Big Easy,” have long feared the “Big One,” the almost‐mythical “ubercane” predicted to one day destroy the city in a torrent of rushing water and violent winds.

On the morning of Monday, 29 August 2005, Hurricane Katrina made landfall as a Category 4 storm on the Saffir‐Simpson scale, first to the south of New Orleans along the Mississippi delta, and then just to the east of New Orleans near Bay St. Louis, Mississippi. Only hours earlier, Hurricane Katrina, which weakened before landfall, had possessed sustained winds of 281 kph, with gusts over 321 kph.
Hurricane Katrina and New Orleans: “I told you so” is not enough
Authors: Groat Charles
Published: October 2006

There has not been a major natural‐hazard‐related disaster in modern times that wasn't preceded by warnings from scientists about the potential consequences of the intersection of populations, infrastructure, and extreme natural events. We have taken our understanding of the frequency of these events and the processes associated with them to the table as earthquake‐prone cities have contemplated zoning regulations and building standards, floodplain communities and government agencies have sought to improve flood insurance programs, and settlement has moved into wildland fire danger zones.

We have celebrated when we were heeded, but more often we have been frustrated when the impacts of a natural hazard were as we predicted and the opportunity for scientific understanding to have reduced consequences of the event was missed by decision‐makers.
Reply to Comment by M. Dumberry [on “Could the Mw> = 9.3 Sumatra Earthquake trigger a geomagnetic jerk?”]
Authors: Florindo Fabio , De Michelis Paola , Piersanti Antonio , Boschi Enzo
Published: October 2006

We thank M. Dumberry for providing the opportunity to discuss further the article [Florindo et al., 2005] in which we suggested that the Sumatra earthquake could have triggered a geomagnetic jerk. Dumberry is against our hypothesis for different reasons: (1) The displacement pattern produced by this earthquake is incompatible with the core‐mantle boundary (CMB) deformations required for a torsional oscillation; (2) most of the deformations occurred locally, producing an actual mass displacement that has not involved the entire Earth; and (3) no abrupt change in the length of day (LOD) has been observed after this event.
Space Weather: The Physics Behind a Slogan
Authors: Moldwin Mark
Published: October 2006

Space weather is an emerging field of space physics that has as its focus the understanding of the societal and technological impacts of the solar‐terrestrial relationship. The variable Sun's electromagnetic and charged particle outflows affect the Earth's space environment and the satellites, communications systems, electrical power grids, astronauts, and airline passengers that operate within it. The energy mass, and momentum outflow from the Sun changes over all timescales and gives rise to dynamics of the magnetic field and plasma environment around the Earth.

Many terms used in space physics have been borrowed from meteorology: The mass outflow of the Sun is called the “solar wind,” and the constant drizzle of energetic electrons into the polar cap is called “polar rain.” In the last decade, the term “space weather” has become the umbrella term to describe space physics research.
The future of high‐pressure mineral physics
Authors: Liebermann Robert C.
Published: October 2006

Research in mineral physics is essential in interpreting observational data from many other disciplines in the Earth sciences, including geodynamics, seismology, geochemistry petrology geomagnetism, and planetary science, as well as materials science and climate studies, as illustrated in Figure l. The field of high‐pressure mineral physics is highly interdisciplinary and fundamentally multidisciplinary mineral physicists do not always study minerals or use only physics; they study the science of materials that compose the Earth and other planets, and employ concepts and techniques from chemistry physics, materials science, and biology.

A dramatic example of this interdisciplinarity in action occurred during the past year. The experimental discovery and theoretical confirmation in 2004 of a new phase of magnesium metasilicate (MgSiO3) stable only at pressures above 100 Gigapascals (and termed the postperovskite phase) has had an immediate and profound impact on multidisciplinary studies of the deep mantle of the Earth (see article by Lay et al. in the 4 January 2005 issue of Eos).
Reply to the Comment by N. L. Dias [on “The need for better contacts between hydrologists in the two Americas”]
Authors: Clarke Robin T.
Published: October 2006

It is a pleasure to acknowledge Nelson Luis Dias' supportive comments on my Eos article (despite his overstatement of its author's eminence). I agree with Dias on the important role that the IAI can, and should, play in developing closer collaboration in hydrology across the Americas. I recently participated in a panel which evaluated potential projects submitted for IAI funding, and I was impressed by the strength and variety of North, Central, and South American collaboration demonstrated in the submissions.

Many of these potential projects contained a hydrologic component, in particular with regard to the effects of increasing population pressure on the quantity and quality of water resources, an issue that is frequently difficult to study due to the limited length and often fragmentary nature of hydrologic records available in many South American countries.
Outstanding student paper awards from the 2005 joint assembly
Authors: Anonymous
Published: October 2006

The Following Members Received Outstanding Student Paper Awards at the 2005 Joint Assembly in New Orleans, Louisiana.
Are natural hazards and disaster losses in the U.S. increasing?
Authors: Cutter Susan L. , Emrich Christopher
Published: October 2006

More than 35 major Presidential disaster declarations, including those for hurricanes Katrina and Rita, already have been declared across the United States in 2005. This is a harbinger of another costly year for natural disasters.

While losses from the 2004 hurricane season are still being tallied, estimates suggest that each Florida hurricane last year was responsible for more than $5 billion in damages (http://www.ncdc.gov/oa/reports/billionz. html). This year (2005) may prove to be the costliest ever. To see whether the years 2004–2005 are unique or are the continuation of an increasing trend in disaster losses over time, spatial and temporal trends in natural hazards losses for the United States (1960–2003) were examined and compared with the geographic patterns of Presidential disaster declarations.
Monitoring carbon from space
Authors: Plummer Stephen , Rayner Peter , Raupach Michael , Ciais Philippe , Dargaville Roger
Published: October 2006

Over the past two centuries, there have been great changes in the atmospheric concentrations of greenhouse gases including carbon dioxide, methane, and carbon monoxide (CO2, CH4, and CO). The natural cycles of these gases have been strongly affected by human actions such as fossil fuel burning, land use change, and fire management.

While there will always be uncertainty in understanding a system as complex as the world's climate, there is strong evidence that global warming is occurring and is being caused by increases in greenhouse gases in the atmosphere. The effects of such warming are already significant, and they are certain to accelerate in future decades as the magnitudes and feedback effects of the causative human actions increase.