Scientists combined 82 satellite years of data to create a more comprehensive model of how plasma behaves in a region of Earth's magnetosphere with heavy spacecraft traffic.
Modeling
Posted inResearch Spotlights
Surface Climate Processes Keep Earth's Energy Balance in Check
Models show that an abrupt increase in carbon dioxide emissions would trigger feedback processes that would change Earth's hydrological cycle.
Posted inResearch Spotlights
Lightning "Impulses" Improve Models of Global Electrical Circuit
New simulations of how thunderstorms drive electrical currents through the Earth's atmosphere combine precision with computational speed.
Posted inResearch Spotlights
New Models Explain Unexpected Magnitude of China's Wenchuan Quake
The 2008 earthquake surprised scientists, but the inclusion of new variables reveals that Earth's crust under the Sichuan Province was under more strain than previously thought.
Posted inScience Updates
On the Rebound: Modeling Earth's Ever-Changing Shape
A new modeling tool easily computes the elastic response of changes in loading on Earth's surface to high resolution. Scientists test this tool using finely detailed data on glaciers' mass changes.
Posted inOpinions
Reality Check: Seismic Hazard Models You Can Trust
Probabilistic hazard assessments, even the most recent models, routinely underestimate earthquake effects. A neodeterministic approach comes closer to observed data.
Posted inScience Updates
Dispelling Clouds of Uncertainty
How do you build a climate model that accounts for cloud physics and the transitions between cloud regimes? Use MAGIC.
Posted inResearch Spotlights
Satellite Measurements May Help Real-Time Water Management
Upper Niger River study shows that satellite altimetry could help resource managers optimize reservoir releases even on ungauged rivers.
Posted inFeatures
Building Sandbars in the Grand Canyon
Annual controlled floods from one of America's largest dams are rebuilding the sandbars of the iconic Colorado River.
Posted inResearch Spotlights
Inflexibility of Some Hydrological Models Limits Accuracy
Reducing the number of fixed assumptions may improve the accuracy of complex process-based models.