Scientists know a lot about the Earth’s climate. Over the past sixty years, they have collected temperature and precipitation information, measured the amount of carbon dioxide in Earth’s atmosphere, and charted the changing weather. But what if we want to compare today’s climate to past climates—say, a million years ago or more? Traces of those past climates—referred to as paleoclimates—remain in rocks and ice as particles that once made up the ancient atmosphere, rain and soil.
Read more »Small but mighty: five small things that have big impacts
To better understand big picture issues, it can sometimes be useful to bust out the magnifying glass and zoom in on the smaller details. Over the years, University of Washington College of the Environment researchers have discovered a multitude of ways in which seemingly small things can have giant impacts on much larger systems. We’ve compiled a list of five of the best examples of things UW researchers discovered that are small, but mighty.
Read more »This is UW Environment
Have you ever wondered how our world works? Are you interested in how science connects to communities? At the University of Washington’s College of the Environment, you can explore the environment from the Earth’s core to outer space using high tech approaches to solve sustainability issues.
Learn more about our programs »World Tsunami Awareness Day: what are the risks and how can we prepare?
In the depths of the Pacific Ocean, just off the upper West Coast of the United States, a collision between an unstoppable force and an immovable object has been gathering energy for hundreds of years. The Cascadia Subduction Zone (CSZ), where the Juan de Fuca and North American tectonic plates meet, must release this pent up energy eventually in an event many refer to as “the really big one”.
Read more »Swordfish as oceanographers? Satellite tags allow research of ocean’s ‘twilight zone’ off Florida
Researchers from the University of Washington are using high-tech tags to record the movements of swordfish — big, deep-water, migratory, open-ocean fish that are poorly studied — and get a window into the ocean depths they inhabit. The researchers tagged five swordfish in late August off the coast of Miami: Max, Simone, Anthony, Rex and Oliver. Their movements can now be viewed in near-real time.
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