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  • Irish Chronicles Document Links Between Volcanoes and Weather
    A study of over 40,000 written entries in Irish Annals and ice core measurements shows a strong corr...Read more

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    Irish Chronicles Document Links Between Volcanoes and Weather

    A study of over 40,000 written entries in Irish Annals and ice core measurements shows a strong correlation between the occurrence of volcanic eruptions and extreme cold weather in Ireland over a 1200 year period. Data analyzed in this study cover the period from 431 to 1649, during which time up to 48 volcanic eruptions are identified in Greenland ice core records through deposition of volcanic sulfate in annual layers of ice. You can find the study (open access), published on 6 June 2013 in IOP Publishing's journal Environmental Research Letters, at http://iopscience.iop.org/1748-9326/8/2/024035/article. Find out more about how volcanoes can influence climate.
  • EF-5 Tornado in El Reno, Oklahoma Widest Ever Recorded in US
    The EF-5 tornado that hit El Reno, Oklahoma on May 31st was the widest ever recorded in the US, acco...Read more

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    EF-5 Tornado in El Reno, Oklahoma Widest Ever Recorded in US

    The EF-5 tornado that hit El Reno, Oklahoma on May 31st was the widest ever recorded in the US, according to the National Weather Service in Norman Oklahoma. The tornado, which remained on the ground for 40 minutes and reached 2.6 miles across (4.2 km), took the lives of 18 people including storm chasers Tim Samaras, Paul Samaras and Carl Young. For more information on the tornado, visit http://ow.ly/i/2hfDG.
  • Atmospheric CO2 Level Tops 400 ppm
    During the week of May 13th, the CO2 level at the Mauna Loa Observatory in Hawaii topped 400 ppm rep...Read more

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    Atmospheric CO2 Level Tops 400 ppm

    During the week of May 13th, the CO2 level at the Mauna Loa Observatory in Hawaii topped 400 ppm repeatedly. Daily levels of CO2 can vary due to weather, and there are seasonal trends as well. The level of atmospheric greenhouse gases continues to increase, now over 120 ppm since the Industrial Revolution began. For more on the Keeling Curve, see http://keelingcurve.ucsd.edu/. Find out more about greenhouse gases and warming.

    Image Courtesy of Rhea George

From: Rhea George
El Morro, Arica, Chile, November 3, 2008

Run, Scruff, Run!

A couple of weeks ago, a local Arica newspaper had a headline that stated "Scientists take over Hotel Arica." Now that the British groups have arrived, one could say this is true about downtown Arica as well. We are everywhere, and we run into each other often - in random restaurants, at the empanada store, at the laundromat, and to me most wonderfully, on El Morro.

El Morro is a steep hill rising hundreds of feet above the city, a great direction-orienting point of reference, and was the site of a dramatic battle between the Peruvians and the Chileans in 1880. It is also a very dramatic battle to run to the top of it.

A footpath leads straight up to the top, with only one switchback. The distance is not far, but it has such a steep incline it makes even the most athletic person huff and puff. Many people go for daily runs here, which works very effectively to balance the mental effort the daily science brings.

This photo shows three of us on our standard El Morro run. We gasp our way up to the top of the hill, and are rewarded with an incredibly exhilarating downhill sprint in the soft sand. On many days a local stray dog we've named "Scruff" joins us, and his natural joyfulness helps us run faster.

The combination of scientific activity and physical activity is making this field campaign an amazingly wonderful experience. We haven't actually 'taken over' the city, but our presence is definitely noticeable.

Postcards from the Field: Climate Science from the Southeast Pacific

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