2006 News Archives
Seismologists measure heat flow from Earth's molten core into the lower mantle
November 22, 2006
"This is the first time we've had a 'thermometer' that tells us the temperature half-way down to the center of the Earth," said Thorne Lay, professor of Earth and planetary sciences at the University of California, Santa Cruz, and first author of the paper.
New book looks at Santa Cruz coast 'then and now'
September 19, 2006
A new book by Gary Griggs, professor of Earth and planetary sciences at UC Santa Cruz, and local architect Deepika Shrestha Ross offers a unique look at the Santa Cruz coastline.
Increased flow of groundwater after earthquakes suggests oil extraction applications
June 28, 2006
The enhanced permeability caused by seismic shaking could potentially be harnessed to help extract oil from natural reservoirs, said Emily Brodsky, assistant professor of Earth sciences at the University of California, Santa Cruz.
Study shows earthquake shaking triggers aftershocks
June 7, 2006
The triggering of aftershocks by shaking may seem obvious, but is in fact a surprising result, said Emily Brodsky, assistant professor of Earth sciences at the University of California, Santa Cruz.
Academic Senate announces 2005-06 Excellence in Teaching Awards
June 7, 2006
Hilde Schwartz, Earth sciences, received the Ron Ruby Award for Teaching Excellence in the Division of Physical and Biological Sciences.
Saturn's moon Enceladus may have rolled over to put a hot spot at the pole
May 31, 2006
"When we saw the Cassini results, we were surprised that this hot spot was located at the pole. So we set out to explain how it could end up at the pole if it didn't start there," said Francis Nimmo, assistant professor of Earth sciences at the University of California, Santa Cruz.
Seismologists detect a sunken slab of ocean floor deep in the Earth
May 17, 2006
"If you imagine cold honey pouring onto a plate, you would see ripples and folds as it piles up and spreads out, and that's what we think we are seeing at the base of the mantle," said Alex Hutko, a graduate student in Earth sciences at UCSC and first author of a paper describing the new findings in the May 18 issue of the journal Nature.
New capture scenario explains origin of Neptune's oddball moon Triton
May 10, 2006
In the May 11 issue of the journal Nature, planetary scientists Craig Agnor of the University of California, Santa Cruz, and Douglas Hamilton of the University of Maryland describe a new model for the capture of planetary satellites involving a three-body gravitational encounter between a binary and a planet.
April lecture series marks centennial of 1906 San Francisco earthquake
March 15, 2006
On Wednesday, April 19, local historian Sandy Lydon and UC Santa Cruz geologist Gary Griggs will discuss the earthquake history and present-day geological realities of central California.
Graduate Student Dana Wingfield to receive Friends of Long Marine Lab Student Research Award
March 7, 2006
Wingfield, who works with UCSC professor of Earth sciences Gary Griggs, is elucidating habitat use of foraging juvenile loggerhead turtles in Baja California Sur, Mexico.
UCSC presents free public lecture on 1906 San Francisco earthquake on Wednesday, March 15
February 26, 2006
Zoback's talk, sponsored by UCSC's Center for the Study of Imaging and Dynamics of the Earth (CSIDE), is part of the Distinguished Lecture Series of the Incorporated Research Institutions for Seismology and the Seismological Society of America. CSIDE director Susan Schwartz, professor of Earth sciences and director of the Keck Seismological Laboratory at UCSC, will introduce Zoback.
Studies of ancient climates suggest Earth is now on a fast track to global warming
February 16, 2006
James Zachos, professor of Earth sciences, presented his findings this week at the annual meeting of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) in St. Louis. He is a leading expert on the episode of global warming known as the Paleocene-Eocene Thermal Maximum (PETM), when global temperatures shot up by 5 degrees Celsius (9 degrees Fahrenheit).
New study highlights role of hit-and-run collisions in the formation of planets, asteroids, and meteorites
January 10, 2006
But when planets collide, they don't always stick together. About half the time, a planet-sized impactor hitting another planet-sized body will bounce off, and these hit-and-run collisions have drastic consequences for the impactor, said Erik Asphaug, associate professor of Earth sciences at UCSC and first author of the Nature paper.
