Green Earth Facts » Rivers & Oceans

“City of Gonads” Jellyfish Discovered

Green Earth Facts — Tue, 18 May 2010 23:45:10 +0000

"City of Gonads" Jellyfish Discovered

Sporting a reproductive “skyline,” a new species of jellyfish is like nothing else known under the sea, a new study says.

Shaped like flying saucers, both males and females of the new jellyfish have gonads on the outsides of their bodies, unlike any of the approximately 3,000 other jellyfish species known to science.

Gonads are the reproductive glands that produce sperm in males and eggs in females.

Via National Geographic

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Gulf oil spill 5x larger than expected

Green Earth Facts — Thu, 29 Apr 2010 12:06:25 +0000

Gulf oil spill. Source: BBC

US coastguard says 5,000 barrels a day of oil are spewing from a well beneath site of the Deepwater Horizon rig explosion.

Five times more oil a day than previously believed is spewing into the Gulf of Mexico from the blown-out well of the Deepwater Horizon drilling rig, the US coastguard has said. Coastguard Rear Admiral Mary Landry said National Oceanic Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) experts now estimate that 5,000 barrels a day of oil are spilling into the gulf – far more than the previous estimate of 1,000 barrels a day. Robot submarines have so far failed to shut off the flow, 1,500m (5,000ft) below the surface, but the coastguard said a test burn on an isolated area of the spill was successful.

Watch the video on Guardian
10 animals at risk from the spill

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Bottlenose dolphins mud-ring feeding

Green Earth Facts — Thu, 28 Jan 2010 15:00:36 +0000

www.youtube.com/watch?v=pQ50PYMXDCQ

A pod of bottlenose dolphins off the coast of Florida have developed a remarkable hunting strategy in order to catch fish. Another awesome thing about this technique is that only one female in the pod can create this ring.

From the first episode (Challenges of Life) of the new BBC series Life. http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b00lbpcy

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Sinking deltas threaten millions of lives

Green Earth Facts — Mon, 21 Sep 2009 15:01:12 +0000

deltas are sinking, increasing the flood risk faced by hundreds of millions of people, scientists report.

Damming and diverting rivers means that much less sediment now reaches many delta areas, while extraction of gas and groundwater also lowers the land.

Rivers affected include the Colorado, Nile, Pearl, Rhone and Yangtze.

About half a billion people live in these regions, the researchers note in the journal Nature Geoscience.

They calculate that 85% of major deltas have seen severe flooding in recent years, and that the area of land vulnerable to flooding will increase by about 50% in the next 40 years as land sinks and climate change causes sea levels to rise.

Lena river delta (NASA)

Most of the world’s major river deltas are sinking, increasing the flood risk faced by hundreds of millions of people, scientists report.

Damming and diverting rivers means that much less sediment now reaches many delta areas, while extraction of gas and groundwater also lowers the land.

Rivers affected include the Colorado, Nile, Pearl, Rhone and Yangtze.

About half a billion people live in these regions, the researchers note in the journal Nature Geoscience.

They calculate that 85% of major deltas have seen severe flooding in recent years, and that the area of land vulnerable to flooding will increase by about 50% in the next 40 years as land sinks and climate change causes sea levels to rise.

Read the rest on BBC News

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Climate change opens up a Northeast passage in the Arctic

Green Earth Facts — Mon, 24 Aug 2009 10:46:48 +0000

Arctic Northeast Passage

Two German ships set off on Friday on the first commercial journey from Asia to western Europe via the Arctic through the fabled Northeast Passage – a trip made possible by climate change. Niels Stolberg, president and CEO of Bremen-based Beluga Shipping, said the Northern Sea Route will cut thousands of nautical miles off the ships’ journey from South Korea to the Netherlands, reducing fuel consumption and emissions of greenhouse gas.

Read the rest on Reuters

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Jellyfish stir up the ocean as they move

Green Earth Facts — Thu, 30 Jul 2009 15:26:18 +0000

Jellyfish help to stir up the ocean as they move, researchers have found.

Using a green dye, scientists showed how the animals’ umbrella-shaped bodies were a key factor in this mixing.

The distribution of heat, nutrients and chemicals helps maintain the marine environment and has an important influence on global climate. Reporting in the journal Nature, the researchers said that marine animals of many shapes and sizes contributed to ocean turbulence.

Jellyfish stir up the ocean as they move

www.youtube.com/watch?v=poAQljx_sfU

Jellyfish help to stir up the ocean as they move, researchers have found.

Using a green dye, scientists showed how the animals’ umbrella-shaped bodies were a key factor in this mixing.

The distribution of heat, nutrients and chemicals helps maintain the marine environment and has an important influence on global climate. Reporting in the journal Nature, the researchers said that marine animals of many shapes and sizes contributed to ocean turbulence.

Read the rest on BBC News

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10 incredible water facts

Green Earth Facts — Wed, 22 Jul 2009 15:34:21 +0000

Up to 60% of the human body is water – the brain is composed of 70% water, blood is 82% water, and the lungs are nearly 90% water.
Water use in the 20th century increased more than sixfold, and continues to increase about twice as fast as the human population is increasing
Currently, on a global basis, 69% of all water withdrawn for human use on an annual basis is soaked up by agriculture (mostly in the form of irrigation); industry accounts for 23% and domestic use (household, drinking water, sanitation) accounts for about 8%. These global averages vary a great deal between regions. In Africa, for instance, agriculture consumes 88% of all water withdrawn for human use, while domestic use accounts for 7% and industry for 5%. In Europe, most water is used in industry (54%), while agriculture and domestic use take 33% and 13% respectively.
The current average North American diet requires over 1 800 m3 of water per person per year from both natural rainfall and irrigation; the diet of an average African living in the sub-Saharan region is produced with less than 650 m3 of water per person per year.
A child born in the developed world consumes thirty to fifty times the water resources that a child in the developing world consumes.
It takes 39 090 gallons (about 148 000 litres) of water to manufacture a new car, including new tires.
It takes 62 600 gallons of water to produce one ton of steel. That’s about 215 000 litres of water to produce one metric ton of steel.
It takes 9.3 gallons (about 35 litres) of water to process one can of fruit or vegetables.
It takes nearly 14 gallons (about 53 litres) of water to grow a medium-sized orange (4.6 ounces/130 grams) and to prepare it, in a packing plant, for market.
It takes 48.3 gallons (about 183 litres) of water to produce one eight-ounce glass of milk when you add together the amounts of water needed to provide food and water for the cows, to keep the dairy barns clean, and to process the milk.

A precious resource

Sources: World Water Council. 2003 International Year of Freshwater Web site. Facts and Figures: The Different Water Users. Gleick, Peter H. The World’s Water 2000-2001. Washington, D.C.: Island Press, 2000, p. 65. UNESCO, World Water Assessment Programme. Water for People, Water for Life. United Nations World Water Development Report, 2003, p.5. Centre for Ecology and Hydrology (CEH). The Water Povery Index. US Environmental Protection Agency. Office of Water. Fun Facts Matching Game – Answers. Feb. 2006. California Farm Bureau Federation. Water Quiz.
Photo: José Manuel Suárez

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World’s largest garbage dump

Green Earth Facts — Wed, 22 Jul 2009 14:39:47 +0000

The Great Pacific Garbage Patch, also described as the Eastern Garbage Patch or the Pacific Trash Vortex, is the world’s largest garbage dump -- a gyre of marine litter in the central North Pacific Ocean located roughly between 135° to 155°W and 35° to 42°N and estimated to be twice the size of Texas. The patch is characterized by exceptionally high concentrations of suspended plastic and other debris that have been trapped by the currents of the North Pacific Gyre. Despite its size and density, the patch is not visible from satellite photography.

The world's largest garbage dump - The Great Pacific Garbage Patch

www.youtube.com/watch?v=k-CVRFzLoEY

Source: Bradshaw, Kate (January 29, 2009), “The Great Garbage Swirl”, Mautime Weekly (Maui)
Image: Interactive diagram of the trash vortex by Greenpeace

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Endangered species capital of the world

Green Earth Facts — Wed, 22 Jul 2009 14:24:56 +0000

Hawaii is the endangered species capital of the world. With 100s of plants and animals listed as Endangered or Threatened, there are more endangered species per square mile on these islands than any other place on the planet. Occupying just 0.2% of the total land area of the United States, Hawaii is both the endangered species capital of the world and the extinction capital of the United States with over 72% of our country’s extirpated species. The islands are in the midst of an ecological catastrophe and the world is losing one of its great biological masterpieces.

The Hawaii Biological Survey compiles information on all of these species.

Endangered species capital of the world - Hawaii

Source: The Hawaii Biological Survey

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