Computer simulations show that although adding aerosol particles to clouds can make them more reflective, the cooling effect from clouds is largely counterbalanced by a reduction in overall cloud cover.
Research Spotlights
Research spotlights are plain-language summaries of recent articles published in AGU’s suite of 24 journals.
Posted inResearch Spotlights
California Is the Driest It's Been in 2000 Years
Scientists reconstruct the paleohydrology of Tulare Lake to unravel the region's long-term drought history.
Posted inResearch Spotlights
Deep-Sea Microbes Can Leave Records of the Past
Researchers use carbon signatures within sea sediments to identify microbial activity and also to date earthquakes.
Posted inResearch Spotlights
Tracking the Fate of Antarctica's Ice
New, more accurate satellite data provide researchers with ice shelf thickness measurements that will allow for better ice loss monitoring.
Posted inResearch Spotlights
Modeling the Future of Dissolved Organic Carbon in Boreal Forests
Climate change and forest harvesting will increase the concentration and flow of dissolved organic carbon in boreal streams.
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Tracking Carbon in the Alaskan Arctic
Researchers trace carbon through Arctic soils and find an unlikely source of methane and surprisingly low methane oxidation in watersheds throughout northern Alaska.
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What Drives Pollutant Dispersion at Night?
Better understanding of waves and turbulence in calm air could improve predictions of weather and pollutant dispersion.
Posted inResearch Spotlights
Space Weather Gains National and International Attention
A heightened understanding of geomagnetic disturbances in a high-tech world encourages policy changes in the United States and abroad.
Posted inResearch Spotlights
Satellites Reveal a Temporary Carbon Sink over Australia
Satellite measurements of atmospheric carbon dioxide provide insights into how droughts and floods influence the carbon cycle on the semiarid continent of Australia.
Posted inResearch Spotlights
Can Meteorite Impacts Disturb a Planet's Magnetic Field?
Such disturbances probably do not occur on our own planet, but evidence for them might still exist elsewhere in the solar system.