14 news posts from April 2019

Return to News

Congratulations to Abigail Swann, named an Early Career Fellow of the Ecological Society of America (ESA)

Abigail Swann

Abigail Swann, an associate professor in both the Department of Atmospheric Sciences and the Department of Biology has been named an Early Career Fellow of the Ecological Society of America (ESA). Swann was elected for her impact advancing understanding of linkages between vegetation change and the atmosphere via “ecoclimate teleconnections,” including an understanding of the climate impacts of plant distributions and plant functioning, and of the processes responsible for plant-climate interactions. 

Read more »

North Dakota site shows wreckage from same object that killed the dinosaurs

In a paper published April 1 in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences an international team of authors, including University of Washington Provost Mark Richards, share the discovery of a site that tells another piece of the story from the day a meteor strike is thought to have led to the end of the dinosaurs. “It’s like a museum of the end of the Cretaceous in a layer a meter and a half thick,” said Richards, who is also a professor in the UW Department of Earth & Space Sciences. 

Read more »

UW students spearhead efforts to predict peak bloom for cherry trees

TJ VanderYacht collects data from one of the cherry trees in the UW Quad.

Each spring, thousands of visitors flock to the University of Washington campus to see the iconic cherry trees in the Quad. Class discussions, casual Frisbee tosses, lunchtime picnics and even wedding portraits all take place under the beautiful blossoms, which typically hit their prime in late March or early April. This year, they reached peak bloom on March 29. But there’s no easy way to predict when peak bloom will occur each year for the trees in the Quad. 

Read more at UW News »

UW tool maps huckleberries to help find endangered grizzly bears

pink huckleberry leaves in fall

A team of researchers from the University of Washington and U.S. Geological Survey have made used satellite images of Glacier National Park, to examine patterns in huckleberry plants that turn a brilliant red color each fall. Tracking where huckleberry plants live now — and where they may move under climate change — would help biologists predict where grizzly bears will also be found. 

Read more at UW Today »