on September 27, 2022
Why isn’t Dorian raining on the southeast side?
Earth scienceAsked by: Lisa Carney Where is Hurricane Dorian headed? He is heading for an opium den, where old sins are forgotten and new ones found. Dorian craves opium. He feels afraid, and he is certain that there is no way to atone for his sins. The best he can hope for is to forget. Is
on September 27, 2022
Measurement of groundwater levels
Earth scienceAsked by: Cindy Rogers Groundwater level measurement is mostly performed by a submersible pressure transmitter. These hydrostatic level transmitters are small in diameter and directly suspended by their cable into the well, borehole, deep bore well or monitoring well. How is water level measured? Air lines measure water levels by first measuring the pressure of
on September 27, 2022
Using salinity to predict rainfall
Earth scienceAsked by: Cindy Rogers How does rainfall affect salinity? Where more rain or snow falls over the ocean, it dilutes the salts in the seawater there. As a result, the water becomes fresher with time. If seawater becomes saltier, it may mean that rates of evaporation have increased or that precipitation has decreased over time.
on September 27, 2022
Could glacial melt alter plate tectonic movement?
Earth scienceAsked by: Katelyn Roy Are glaciers related to plate tectonics? According to new research, the transition to plate tectonics started with the help of lubricating sediments, scraped by glaciers from the slopes of Earth’s first continents. Can melting glaciers cause earthquakes? Scientists have known for decades that melting glaciers have caused earthquakes in otherwise tectonically
on September 27, 2022
Where can I find a data set containing wetland loss by decade
Earth scienceAsked by: Jim Greenwood What percentage of all wetlands has been lost? It has been frequently stated, but without provision of supporting evidence, that the world has lost 50% of its wetlands (or 50% since 1900 AD). How much wetland has been lost in the US? It is esti- mated that, on average, over 60
on September 27, 2022
Do ice crystals form in running super-cold water?
Earth scienceAsked by: Ellen Belanger At what temperature do ice crystals form? Fig. 1. At temperatures above 0°C, water remains a liquid. Between 0 and about -36°C, water only crystallises into ice if coerced e.g. by making freezing more likely by there being an ice nucleus, such as a dust particle, present in the water. How
on September 27, 2022
Weather station data
Earth scienceAsked by: Ellen Belanger Where can I download weather station data? Where can I find this information? Check out NCEI’s station locator at: https://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/cdo-web/datatools/findstation or the Historical Observing Metadata Repository (HOMR) at NCEI at: https://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/homr/. What data do weather stations collect? weather stations in the United States measure weather conditions many times every day. Each
on September 27, 2022
What factors determine the number of Hadley cells for a planet?
Earth scienceAsked by: Philip Page So the number of cells will be determined by the winds that start either at the equator or the pole and the distance that they can cover before being deflected into completely zonal direction. What are global atmospheric circulation cells made of? The global circulation can be described as the world-wide
on September 27, 2022
Does the snow come from local moisture or transported moisture?
Earth scienceAsked by: Philip Page The moisture comes from nearby water bodies, and then it’s transported to where it’s going to precipitate. It is local and transported moisture. Is there moisture in snow? Liquid equivalent is the amount of measurable moisture if the snow were to have fallen as rain. This is where the infamous “10-to-1”
on September 27, 2022
Why does the earliest sunset time not coincide with the shortest day of the year?
Earth scienceAsked by: Quintin Prestige It changes throughout the year because the earth’s axis is tilted with respect to its orbit around the sun, and the earth’s orbit is an ellipse. The longer-than-average solar day around the solstices causes both earliest sunset and latest sunrise to not fall on the solstice. What is the earliest sunset