Earth & Planetary Sciences
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UCSC hosts International Summer Institute for Modeling in Astrophysics
UCSC has launched a new summer institute that brings together scientists and students from a broad range of backgrounds to study current problems in theoretical astrophysics.
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UCSC researcher contributes to major hominid fossil find in South Africa
Researchers in South Africa have discovered two remarkably well-preserved fossil skeletons of an ancient human ancestor dating to almost 2 million years ago.
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UCSC ranked among top 20 worldwide in geosciences
In a recent survey of the top institutions in geosciences, UCSC ranked 18th in the world.
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Cassini data show Enceladus in motion
Blobs of warm ice that periodically rise to the surface and churn the icy crust on Saturn’s moon Enceladus explain the quirky heat behavior and intriguing surface of the moon’s south polar region.
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Global warming likely to be amplified by slow changes to Earth systems
The sensitivity of Earth’s temperature to increases in carbon dioxide in the atmosphere may be greater than has been expected on the basis of climate models.
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Three UCSC professors elected 2009 AAAS Fellows
Three professors at the University of California, Santa Cruz, have been awarded the distinction of AAAS Fellow by the American Association for the Advancement of Science.
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Pre-eruption earthquakes offer clues to volcano forecasters
Pre-eruption earthquakes give scientists an opportunity to study the tumult beneath a volcano and may help them improve the accuracy of eruption forecasts.
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Icy moons of Saturn and Jupiter may have conditions needed for life
Evidence from recent NASA missions suggests that conditions necessary for life may exist on the icy satellites of Saturn and Jupiter, according to planetary scientist Francis Nimmo.
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Legendary “man-eating” lions of Tsavo likely ate about 35 people–not 135, say scientists
The notorious “man-eating lions of Tsavo” that terrorized a railroad camp in Kenya in 1898 likely consumed about 35 people–far fewer than popular estimates.
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Researchers to study hidden lakes beneath West Antarctic ice sheet
UCSC researchers will drill through a half-mile of ice to penetrate subglacial Lake Whillans and study hidden processes that govern the dynamics of the West Antarctic ice sheet.
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Popular Science taps UCSC anthropologist Nathaniel Dominy for “Brilliant 10” issue
Popular Science names Nathaniel J. Dominy one of this year’s “Brilliant 10” young scientists and researchers.
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Loma Prieta led to better assessments of earthquake hazards
The 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake was a wakeup call to the Central Coast and San Francisco Bay Area, which had gone decades without a major earthquake. In the 20 years since then, increasingly sophisticated assessments of earthquake hazards have led to a better understanding of the seismic threat in the Bay Area and throughout California.