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from Environment Forum:
So long, sardines? Lake Tanganyika hasn’t been this warm in 1,500 years
East Africa's Lake Tanganyika might be getting too hot for sardines.
The little fish have been an economic and nutritional mainstay for some 10 million people in neighboring Burundi, Tanzania, Zambia and the Democratic Republic of Congo -- four of the poorest countries on Earth. They also depend on Lake Tanganyika for drinking water.
But that could change, according to research published in the online version of the journal Nature Geoscience. Using samples of the lakebed that chart a 1,500-year history of the lake's surface water temperature, the scientists found the current temperature -- 78.8 degrees F (26 degrees C) -- is the warmest it's been in a millennium and a half. And that could play havoc with sardines and other fish the local people depend on.
The scientists also found that the lake saw its biggest warm-up in the 20th century.
This unprecedented warm water could interfere with the lake's unique ecosystem, which relies on nutrients churned up from the bottom of the lake to feed the algae that form the base of the lake's food web. As Lake Tanganyika heats up, the mixing of waters is lessened and fewer nutrients get to the top level where algae and fish feed. More warming at the surface magnifies the difference between the two lake levels and even more wind is needed to churn the waters enough to get nutrients to the upper layer.
from Photographers Blog:
Freezing the volcano’s lightning
Lightning streaks across the sky as lava flows from a volcano in Eyjafjallajokul April 17, 2010. REUTERS/Lucas Jackson
I realize that this photograph is pretty much the attention grabber from all those that I have taken in Iceland on this trip so I figured I would write up a little about what it took to get the image. As soon as I got this assignment, a photograph of a volcano erupting with lightning inside of the ash plume was on my mind. I had seen one a couple of years ago from a volcano in South America so I knew it happened. When I was watching the ash during the first dusk I saw plenty of lightning so I knew I had a shot at making this picture.
from Oddly Enough Blog:
Way down upon the Swanie River
Blog Guy, you seem to know a lot about nature. Can swans fly?
No. They can neither fly nor swim.
What? Hold on, I've SEEN swans swimming in lakes and rivers and stuff!
No, you've seen swans, which have very long legs, PRETENDING to swim. Mostly, though, they prefer to travel by boat.
I
s that right? And where are they going in these photos?
Well, first they're going to the doctor, and then for a treat they're going to the ballet.
from UK News:
Online vote to decide Saatchi show finalists
The Saatchi Gallery in London, known for its role in launching conceptual Britart in the 1990s, is collaborating with Google to exhibit the work of winners of an international online photography prize competition.
More than 3,500 student photographers from around the world submitted images to try and win a chance to show their work at Saatchi, a trip to London, 5,000 pounds and to illustrate personalised iGoogle Internet homepages.
from Environment Forum:
Will Obama like his lichen?
A scientist at the University of California, Riverside has named a newly discovered lichen after President Obama, a gesture he clearly intends as an honor.
Kerry Knudsen, lichen curator at UCR's Herbarium, says he discovered the hardy orange organism on Santa Rosa Island, off the California coast, and "named it Caloplaca obamae to show my appreciation for the president's support of science and science education."
from Our Take on Your Take:
Dive right in
With this well-composed shot, Fiona Brophy captures the emotions of a young girl anticipating a dive. The diver's parallel position to the waterline adds directional movement to this still image.
View this week's You Witness slideshow here.
from Environment Forum:
Greenhouse gases: saints, villains or future saviours from an Ice Age?
It's not often that greenhouse gases spewed out by human activities get praise as potential saviours of the planet in a leading scientific journal -- they're normally viewed as villains for causing global warming.
But a study in Nature today shows that heat-trapping gases such as carbon dioxide can help avert an even worse problem in thousands of years' time -- a shift to a freeze worse than an Ice Age that could blanket much of the northern hemisphere with ice (see picture on the left and story here).
