The 28 million acres of natural and working lands across California provide a unique opportunity to meet greenhouse gas emission reduction goals through various land-use strategies, such as expanding urban forest areas or restoring woodlands. However, the need to mitigate wildfire severity is also a critical priority for California, and one that can increase emissions…
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As the planet continues to warm, the twin challenges of diminishing water supply and growing energy demand are intensifying. But because water and energy are inextricably linked, as we try to adapt to one challenge – say, by getting more water via desalination or water recycling – we may be worsening the other challenge by…
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EESA visiting postdoctoral fellow Sha Zhou led a recent study exploring why climate models do not project drylands will become substantially drier with climate change as scientists have long believed. A paper published yesterday in the journal Nature Climate Change, “Soil moisture-atmosphere feedbacks mitigate declining water availability in drylands,” describes the importance of long-term changes…
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As part of a DOE Science Undergraduate Laboratory Internship (SULI), Jeremy Snyder authored “Rocky Mountain Water: The stories of Natural, Impacted, and Managed water in the Upper Gunnison River Basin”. Using the ArcGIS StoryMaps platform and stunning visuals, the story focuses on the Colorado Upper Gunnison River Basin—home to the Watershed Function SFA’s study site, the…
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We are thankful to have received approval to do limited field work as Berkeley Lab continues working under COVID-19 requirements. As an example, last month research scientist Verónica Rodríguez Tribaldos along with Michelle Robertson and Todd Wood of the Geosciences Measurement Facility deployed a distributed acoustic sensing (DAS) system on a “dark fiber” at a…
Read MoreEarth’s critical zone spans from the top of the tree canopy to the depths of the subsurface. Scientists from multiple disciplines have traditionally used ground-based field campaigns to study complex interactions taking place between water, air, rock, and soil – hoping to reveal how factors like climate change could impact this life-sustaining critical zone. Now…
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Coast to Coast Using eddy covariance techniques, research into diverse coastal systems reveals ecosystems “on the edge” At a coastal North Carolina research location, fall storms regularly inundate entire original hardwood forests with 1-3 feet of water that drains by the time trees begin leafing out the following spring. Researchers have evaluated the Alligator River…
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Artist’s illustration of water molecules. A research team led by Berkeley Lab has designed a new crystalline material that targets and traps copper ions from wastewater with unprecedented precision and speed. (Credit: Sashkin/Shutterstock) We rely on water to quench our thirst and to irrigate bountiful farmland. But what do you do when that once pristine water…
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Although climate change is accelerating fastest at high latitudes, it is still uncertain how the carbon cycle within Alaskan tundra soils will respond over different periods of time. Arctic soils house vast stores of carbon, and the response of these ecosystems to warming could determine how much of the greenhouse gas carbon dioxide makes it…
Read MoreExhibit Hall Booth Hours EESA is participating in the AGU2020 Exhibit Hall. Our exhibit hall content is now available for attendees to view. While logged in to the AGU Fall Meeting, attendees can check out the booth by accessing Exhibits & Sponsors in the menu bar. Search for Berkeley Lab to view current EESA internship and…
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