Office of Research
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Astronomers discover the most Earthlike planet yet outside the solar system
A team of astronomers has reached a major milestone in the search for Earthlike planets with the discovery of the smallest planet ever detected beyond our solar system. About seven and a half times as massive as Earth, with less than twice the radius, it may be the first rocky planet ever found orbiting a…
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New findings show a slow recovery from extreme global warming episode 55 million years ago
Most of the excess carbon dioxide pouring into the atmosphere from the burning of fossil fuels will ultimately be absorbed by the oceans, but it will take about 100,000 years. That is how long it took for ocean chemistry to recover from a massive input of carbon dioxide 55 million years ago, according to a…
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Exploding star left no visible core
In 1987, earthbound observers saw a star explode in the nearby dwarf galaxy called the Large Magellanic Cloud. Astronomers eagerly studied this supernova–the closest seen in the past 300 years–and have continued to examine its remains. Although its blast wave lit up surrounding clouds of gas and dust, the supernova appears to have left no…
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Patented technology captures carbon dioxide from power plants
Researchers from the University of California, Santa Cruz (UCSC), and Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) have invented a new method for controlling the emission of carbon dioxide from power plants. The technique, which mimics natural weathering processes, converts carbon dioxide gas into soluble compounds that can be disposed of in the oceans. Any strategy for…
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UCSC engineering dean Steve Kang wins 2005 Van Valkenburg Award
Steve Kang, dean of the Baskin School of Engineering at the University of California, Santa Cruz, has been awarded the 2005 Mac Van Valkenburg Award from the Institute for Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) Circuits and Systems Society (CAS). The Van Valkenburg Award is the CAS society’s highest honor and is given to a person…
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UC Santa Cruz engineering students develop a coral reef monitoring system
Five senior engineering students at the University of California, Santa Cruz, are trying to push the limits of low-power wireless transmission to facilitate the monitoring of remote natural environments. The apparatus they are building will track conditions on coral reefs in distant locations and beam information back in real time to a land-based station. The…
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Seismologists publish detailed analysis of the great Sumatra-Andaman earthquake
The great Sumatra-Andaman earthquake of December 26, 2004, was an event of stunning proportions, both in its human dimensions–nearly 300,000 lives lost–and as a geological phenomenon. The sudden rupture of a huge fault beneath the Indian Ocean unleashed a devastating tsunami. It was the largest earthquake in the past 40 years and was followed by…
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UC Santa Cruz dedicates new Laboratory for Adaptive Optics facilities
Scientists in the Laboratory for Adaptive Optics at the University of California, Santa Cruz, are developing extraordinarily precise optical systems that will enable astronomers to capture images of planets far beyond our solar system and build the next generation of giant telescopes. On Tuesday, May 17, campus officials and distinguished visitors are dedicating new facilities…
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Astronomical Society of the Pacific awards highest honor to UC Santa Cruz astronomer Robert Kraft
The Astronomical Society of the Pacific has awarded the 2005 Catherine Wolfe Bruce Gold Medal to Robert P. Kraft, professor emeritus of astronomy and astrophysics at the University of California, Santa Cruz, and former director of the UC Observatories/Lick Observatory (UCO/Lick). Kraft is the sixth astronomer associated with the Lick Observatory to receive this award,…
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New book by literature professor melds criticism, poetry and fiction
Paracritical Hinge, a new book by UC Santa Cruz literature professor Nathaniel Mackey, offers commentary on the work of a number of artists as it simultaneously sheds light on the author’s own body of work. A collection of essays, talks, notes, and interviews covering a time frame from 1990 to 2000, the diverse, yet interrelated…
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Lacking a decent meal, killer whales reach for the popcorn
A study comparing the nutritional demands of killer whales with the caloric content of their prey has startling implications for the potential impact of these large predators on populations of other marine mammals. The study also raises issues relevant to the establishment of marine reserves and efforts to reintroduce large predators into terrestrial ecosystems, said…