Crash and Splash for NASA’s CO2 Science Craft

It was a somber day for NASA and countless researchers who had been working for 9 years to send the CO2 observatory into the atmosphere.

A technical problem caused the rocket not to release its heavy outer shell. The extra weight ruined its chances of orbit and sent it crashing back down into the frigid ocean.

This innovative craft would have allowed researchers a chance to better understand how our climate works.

“Data from the satellite would have helped researchers better understand distribution of the greenhouse gas, possibly improving climate models,” National Geographic reported.

The cost and time put into this climate craft means major set backs for space CO2 emission measurements.

Pine Beetle Pictures

The Mountain Pine Beetle (Dendroctonus ponderosae) attacks weak lodgepole pines at first. Trees are weakened by stresses like drought, fire and root disease. Then as the outbreak grows the beetles attack healthy trees.

Kurt Chowanski, a climatologist for the Mountain Research Station says the outbreak spreads in a rings from the infected tree out. Once a tree has been hit by the beetle nothing can be done to save it.

In the photos below you will notice rust-colored trees that have been attacked. Also, the photo of the sap oozing out of the tree is a good example of how lodgepole pines try to defend themselves from the beetles by drowning them in resis.n.

These are some photos of taken by a classmate of mine in Steamboat Springs, Colo. We think these are photos of  Mountain Pine Beetles and lodgepole pines. If you know otherwise please let us know in the comment section below.

Tree with sap, photo courtesy of Eric Gordon

Beetle in sap, photo courtesy of Eric Gordon

Beetle killed trees, photo courtesy of Eric Gordon

Excess Nitrogen in the Alpine

Liquid Nitrogen Flowers Photo Credit: kasi metcalfe

Nitrogen is one of the key ingredients for life on earth, the “N” in DNA and what gardeners use to fertilize their plots. But extra Nitrogen from pollution is causing robust changes in high-elevation ecosystems.

“80 percent of the atmosphere is Nitrogen. We are breathing Nitrogen right now,” said Professor Mark Williams of INSTAAR and the University of Colorado, Boulder.

Nitrogen comes in two forms:

1. Nitrate
2. Ammonium

Williams has been studying how nitrogen changes alpine environments. He says many alpine plants and species are adapted to live in a nitrogen limited or nitrogen poor environment. In Colorado Williams was surprised by the levels of Nitrogen he saw in a traditionally limited system.

” When I moved to Colorado what I discovered is that we had way more nitrogen in the system. In the actual streams at 11,000 and 12,000 feet. Normally you don’t see any nitrate in the streams because the plants use it all and they don’t let any of it go,” he said.

This excess nitrogen was coming from the sky as rain and snow and falling onto Niwot Ridge. “There is way more than should be there,” he said. This Nitrogen is coming from human activities.

The four main sources of Nitrogen are:
1. Feedlots
2. Fertilizer
3. Car
4. Power Plants

Niwot Ridge share air with Denver and Greeley, Colo. On windy upslope days locals in Boulder, Colo. can smell the feedlots. “Everything emitted in Denver and in that area ends up in the mountains. Bad air rises,” he said.

Check back for why it matters soon!

Equipment Failure, Freezing Temps and Bitter Wind are Just Some of the Problems Alpine Researchers Face

Mark Williams Photo Credit: Joanna Nasar

INSTAAR scientist, professor and backcountry guru Mark Williams studies alpine environments.  Research in the alpine means collecting data in freezing temperatures, facing avalanche danger (for the record Williams has survived two), forgoing the comforts of a lab and adapting equipment to withstand the extremes.

“Most people when they ski five miles are like ‘Wheres the wine?  Wheres the cheese?’ But at that point you have just gotten to work, and you have to be comfortable doing that,” Williams said of research in difficult to reach high-elevation systems.

Over the years Williams has braved the conditions and pioneered new research techniques. “When I started people didn’t care about snow covered areas, but now we care for lots of different reasons,” he said.

Before becoming a scientist he owned and operated a backcountry ski lodge in Alaska and said, “I’ve had about every job, or most jobs you can to support yourself in the mountains.”

Williams rich life experience combined with his knowhow in the mountains has lead him to conduct interesting snow, nitrogen and water quality research in alpine environments.

Pika Protection Considered

Pikas in the High Sierras of California may be protected. The Center for Biological Diversity sued the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service for not considering the Pika for protection status as mandated by the Endangered Species Act.

Now, the agency must make a decision by May about the protection of these animals.

“By May, the agency must complete its investigation, and decide if the animal deserves protection under the Endangered Species Act, which would result in strategies to raise its declining populations. The polar bear is the only mammal that has been put under the law because of threats from changing climate,” reported SFgate.com.

Check out my earlier blog post for more information about the lawsuit and the American Pika.

Movie Night!

Check out my movie!

Dot Alpine Podcast: Check Out the First Installment!

David Inouye, Professor, Director of CONS Program at the University of Maryland Photo Credit: Photo from David Inouye

In these segments Professor David Inouye discusses why alpine environments are so unique and important to study. Click here to listen!

The Alpine Buzz

Bumblebee (Bombus nevadensis) Moves Up in Elevation

Bumblebees are buzzing higher and higher into thin air as away of coping with climate change. “We do have evidence now that bumble bees are moving up in altitude,” Professor David Inouye said. Bumblebees are moving up the mountainside rather than adapting to the changes occurring at lower elevations.

One species of bumblebee (Bombus nevadensis) that was once considered a relatively low elevation species of bee has made the most dramatic move. In a time span of 30-years the Bombus nevadensis bee has moved up in altitude 1,000 feet. “It is one of about a dozen species that is making the move,” said Inouye, ” but a couple 1,000 feet is pretty significant over that 30 year period.”

The way this move will impact other pre-existing high elevation species has not yet been studied, but Inouye said that these results raise the question of competition among species (Happy Birthday Darwin).

There is more to a bumblebee than its simple black and gold stripes. Different species of bumblebees have different length tongues and live at different elevations. So when one species of bee moves higher it is akin to the whole population of Boulder, Colo. descending on a tiny mountain town. It is possible that there will be enough room for the entire population but there may not be. Only more research can answer that question.

“The species that we have seen that has moved up so far is a long tongue species but they were already some long tongue high altitude species so the question comes up what does that mean? Does that mean that there is going to be increased completion for the species that historically had long tongues or are they some how going to be able to coexist but we haven’t done the research so we don’t know,” he said.

Coping: Bumblebees fly higher while marmots and wildflowers emerge earlier

"Bumble-bee?" Photo Credit:Olivier Bruchez

Meet University of Maryland Professor David Inouye. For nearly 40 years he has been researching long term changes in alpine environments at the Rocky Mountain Biological Laboratory. Over the years Inouye has noticed a few specific changes.

1. Wildflowers appear to be flowering earlier.
2. Species of plants seem to be changing. “I’m not exactly sure what that is in response too,” Inouye added.
3. Alpine bumblebee species are moving higher up the altitudinal gradient.
4. Certain animals are emerging  from hibernation or appearing in the area at different times than they have in the past.

Climate change has played a role in these changes Inouye has observed.

Climate change has played a role in causing earlier snow melt dates, which in itself would not necessarily be a problem to wildflowers. But the last day that frost hits the area has not changed.

“If you have an early snow melt that means the growing season starts early and the plants that might normally otherwise be under snow and dormant start developing and then are likely to be hit by frost because the date of the last frost is not changing,” explained Inouye over the phone.

Marmots have also been peeping their head out of snow covered hole earlier. A whole month earlier according to billy barr’s (prefers named in lower case) predictions. This could spell trouble for the population if it continues to happen for two reason Inouye said.

1. Increased predation because they only have one burrow hole dug and thus only one way of escaping.
2. Increased starvation risks because if they emerge too early they might not have anything to eat. ” they could run the risk of starving because they haven’t eaten for 8 months,” he said.

These changes are impacting not only how the alpine environment looks and sounds rapidly.

More to come on why change happens more rapidly in alpine environments and what makes them unique.

‘Apocalyptic’ Climate Change Predictions Misleading

The Met Office Hadley Centre reports that the public has been mislead by climate change studies and by the media. Drastic end of the world climate change scenarios misrepresent scientific data and could lead the public to think that carbon cutting measures are worthless.

“Having to rein in extraordinary claims that the latest extreme [event] is all due to climate change is at best hugely frustrating and at worse enormously distracting. Overplaying natural variations in the weather as climate change is just as much a distortion of science as underplaying them to claim that climate change has stopped or is not happening,” wrote Dr. Vicky Pope, head of climate change advice at the Met Office in a Guardian article.

I think the take away message here is the public deserves to hear the truth about climate change even if that means making the issue more complicated.  

But this can be hard when the science is moving at lighting speed and journalists are still trying to figure out the carbon molecule! Still, journalist need to ask scientists what other factors, besides climate change could play a role in x story they are reporting. 

This does not mean giving wait to crackpot theories, but it does mean investigating solid peer-reviewed science.  Climate change is real and has already had real impacts on places and people across the globe. But science has yet to prove it is the end of the world.

 

"underwater church" Photo Credit: JunCTionS

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

What do you think? Has the media mislead the public? What could they do better? Let me know in the comment section below.