Concrete, used in everything from streets to skyscrapers, needs sand, often mined from active rivers in developing countries with little oversight. Researchers can now use satellites to keep watch.
Mekong River
Posted inNews
Where Did All the Free-Flowing Rivers Go?
A map of the world’s free-flowing rivers shows a shrinking number can still meander as they please. New plans for hydropower will further constrain flow.
Posted inScience Updates
When Floods Cross Borders, Satellite Data Can Help
With so many eyes in the sky, residents living downstream from dams now have many ways to see—and prepare for—potential dangers.
Posted inNews
How Old Is the Mekong River Valley?
Granite samples collected from the Mekong River Valley reveal that the river’s path was incised roughly 17 million years ago, most likely by increased erosion from monsoon precipitation.
Posted inEditors' Highlights
Untangling Sediment Transport Through River Networks
A stochastic sediment routing model for river networks is inverted to determine sediment source areas based on point observations of grain size and sediment flux at the basin outlet.
Posted inResearch Spotlights
Mekong River Dams Could Bring Future Food Security Woes
The rapid development of dams in the Mekong River Basin could pose a threat to future environmental stability.