ScienceDaily: Top Environment News

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• Expedition to undersea mountain yields new information about sub-seafloor structure
• Geologists correct a 'rift' in Africa
• Deep-ocean impact of the Deepwater Horizon explosion revealed
• Butterfly wings' 'art of blackness' could boost production of green fuels
• Slime mold mimics Canadian highway network
• Some Gulf dolphins severely ill after Gulf oil spill
• New synthetic biology technique boosts microbial production of diesel fuel
• Hammerhead shark double whammy
• Saving habitat key to songbird's survival
• Tagged lice help researchers study social interactions of shy brown mouse lemurs
• James Cameron makes first ever successful solo dive to Mariana Trench -- ocean's deepest point
• New research can save tropical forests
• Huge hamsters and pint-sized porcupines thrive on islands: Researchers test 'island rule' of rodent evolution
• NASA measures impact of huge solar flare on Earth's atmosphere

Expedition to undersea mountain yields new information about sub-seafloor structure Posted: 26 Mar 2012 01:09 PM PDT Scientists recently concluded an expedition aboard the research vessel JOIDES Resolution to learn more about Atlantis Massif, an undersea mountain, or seamount, that formed in a very different way than the majority of the seafloor in the oceans.

Geologists correct a 'rift' in Africa Posted: 26 Mar 2012 01:09 PM PDT The huge changes in the Earth's crust that influenced human evolution are being redefined, according to new research. The Great Rift Valley of East Africa -- the birthplace of the human species -- may have taken much longer to develop than previously believed.

Deep-ocean impact of the Deepwater Horizon explosion revealed Posted: 26 Mar 2012 01:08 PM PDT Scientists have discovered compelling evidence of the impact of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill on deep-sea corals. The researchers used a wide range of underwater vehicles, including the research submarine Alvin, as well as comprehensive chemical-analysis techniques to determine precisely the source of the petroleum hydrocarbons they found on the corals.

Butterfly wings' 'art of blackness' could boost production of green fuels Posted: 26 Mar 2012 01:06 PM PDT Butterfly wings may rank among the most delicate structures in nature, but they have given researchers powerful inspiration for new technology that doubles production of hydrogen gas — a green fuel of the future — from water and sunlight.

Slime mold mimics Canadian highway network Posted: 26 Mar 2012 10:36 AM PDT A researcher placed rolled oats on a map of Canada, covering the major urban areas. One urban area held the slime mold. The slime mold reached out for the food, creating thin tubes that eventually formed a network mirroring the Canadian highway system.

Some Gulf dolphins severely ill after Gulf oil spill Posted: 26 Mar 2012 10:36 AM PDT Bottlenose dolphins in Barataria Bay, Louisiana, are showing signs of severe ill health, according to marine mammal biologists. Barataria Bay, located in the northern Gulf of Mexico, received heavy and prolonged exposure to oil during the Deepwater Horizon oil spill.

New synthetic biology technique boosts microbial production of diesel fuel Posted: 26 Mar 2012 10:35 AM PDT Researchers have developed a "dynamic sensor-regulator system" that can detect metabolic changes in microbes during the production of fatty acid-based fuels or chemicals and control the expression of genes affecting that production. The result in one demonstration was a threefold increase in the microbial production of biodiesel from glucose.

Hammerhead shark double whammy Posted: 26 Mar 2012 10:28 AM PDT A new look-alike species may muddy the water for an endangered hammerhead.

Saving habitat key to songbird's survival Posted: 26 Mar 2012 08:31 AM PDT The golden-winged warbler – already long gone from Ohio – is disappearing from regions across the United States. The population of this little, gray songbird with bright yellow patches on its wings and head has been in precipitous decline since 1966. And, as of yet, it remains unprotected by the federal Endangered Species Act of 1973.

Tagged lice help researchers study social interactions of shy brown mouse lemurs Posted: 26 Mar 2012 08:29 AM PDT It can be difficult to uncover the behavior of small, shy, nocturnal primates like the brown mouse lemur, especially in the dense rainforests of Madagascar where this lemur lives. New research shows that the social interactions of brown mouse lemurs can be monitored by mapping the transfer of tagged lice.

James Cameron makes first ever successful solo dive to Mariana Trench -- ocean's deepest point Posted: 26 Mar 2012 06:12 AM PDT Filmmaker James Cameron descended 35,756 feet (6.77 miles/10.89 km) to reach the "Challenger Deep," the ocean's deepest point located in the Mariana Trench, in his specially designed submersible DEEPSEA CHALLENGER. The attempt was part of DEEPSEA CHALLENGE, a joint scientific expedition by Cameron, National Geographic and Rolex to conduct deep-ocean research and exploration. Cameron is the only individual ever to complete the dive in a solo vehicle and the first person since 1960 to reach the very bottom of the world in a manned submersible.

New research can save tropical forests Posted: 25 Mar 2012 07:26 AM PDT Scientists have investigated how much carbon the natural forests of Sri Lanka contain. The results are important for work to reduce deforestation of tropical countries, and for international negotiations in climate policy relating to a new climate agreement.

Huge hamsters and pint-sized porcupines thrive on islands: Researchers test 'island rule' of rodent evolution Posted: 23 Mar 2012 10:49 AM PDT From miniature elephants to monster mice, and even Hobbit-sized humans, size changes in island animals are well known to science. Biologists have long believed that large animals evolving on islands tend to get smaller, while small animals tend to get bigger, a generalization they call "the island rule." A new study puts that old idea to the test in island and mainland rodents.

NASA measures impact of huge solar flare on Earth's atmosphere Posted: 23 Mar 2012 08:11 AM PDT A key NASA instrument that can directly measure the impact of solar events on Earth's upper atmosphere has weighed in on the huge flare that impacted Earth last week.

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