News Category: DoodleBugger Article

The BBC has recently reported that a robotic boat, Sea-Kit’s USV Maxlimer, will be deployed to the Tonga region of the Pacific Ocean to study Hunga-Tonga Hunga-Ha’apai, an underwater volcano that erupted in January. The Hunga-Tonga Hunga-Ha’apai eruption in early 2022 was one of the strongest volcanic eruptions in nearly a century, creating a plume of ash and vapor that extended, by some estimates, approximately 35 miles into the atmosphere and triggered dramatic lightning flashes.

Readers of the bi-weekly SEG Doodlebugger Newsletter may have noticed a few changes over the last few months. The newsletter team has been searching for ways to improve the newsletter with information that is more relevant to our members and with content that helps our members better connect and engage with each other. With that goal in mind, the team is adding a new section to the Doodlebugger this week called “A GEO PERSPECTIVE. The

As the push to reduce greenhouse gases gains momentum, new research out of Oregon State University shows promise to help solve the CO2 emissions problem. A recent article in the Journal of Materials Chemistry A reveals that a new lanthanide metal organic framework (MOF) loaded with propylene oxide can scrub CO2 from factory flue gases and creates commercially useful compounds as a byproduct. The study outlines how the MOF — loaded with propylene oxide — accelerates the

As the geoscience community continues to evolve with our planet’s changing needs, new applications for old techniques are finding their way into other realms of science. While some remote-sensing technologies have been used in agriculture since the 1950s, a fundamental shift has been occurring in the biology community as they study ecosystems and fight to preserve them. One example of this shift is the recent US$25 million grant from the National Science Foundation allowing researchers

Researchers have discovered the secret to how pearls form in perfect symmetry, despite forming around asymmetrical debris inside a clam, oyster, or other mollusk. Each seemingly random layer formed around a pearl is actually dependent upon the previous layer, a phenomenon known as pink noise or 1/f noise — the same phenomenon at work in seismic activity. When debris enters the mollusk, a substance called nacre is formed around the debris as a protective response.

One of SEG’s great traditions is the special recognition of individuals and organizations for their contributions to geophysics and to the Society. The 2021 recipients were honored during a ceremony on 28 September 2021 at the International Meeting for Applied Geophysics (IMAGE). Hosted by Past President John Bradford, the ceremony celebrated the wonderful contributions our members have made to the world of geophysics. Rosemary Knight was the recipient of the Maurice Ewing Award—the highest honor.

On Monday 27 September, the Landsat 9 satellite was launched from Vandenberg Space Force Base in southern California. Since 1972, the Landsat mission — a joint effort by NASA and the USGS — has been collecting images of the earth from an orbit approximately 700km above our planet. The data collected thus far on Earth’s forests, oceans, farms, cities, and polar ice caps is the longest satellite record of its kind with nearly 50 years

Scientists from the Istituto Nazionale di Geofisica e Vulcanologia in Italy have presented evidence that Mt. Etna was in an extreme state of overpressurization and was exhibiting signs of degassing in the months prior to erupting on Christmas Eve 2018. Using remote-sensing techniques the group measured gas output of the volcano and identified fluctuations in various gas ratios. They suggest this could indicate magma pressure buildup leading to an eruption. Previous research has shown that

European physicists have developed a plan to build a massive gravitational wave observatory, based on a novel triangular subterranean design, in order to sense tiny fleeting ripples in space. Studying these waves will allow researchers to observe massive astrophysical objects such as black holes. The plan for the observatory jumped a giant hurdle last month when the European Strategy Forum on Research Infrastructures (ESFRI) included the unique plan in “Roadmap 2021,” a list of large

The earth’s magnetic field has been used since ancient times for navigation, and it continues to serve this important function in modern systems, which help navigate aircraft, submarines, mineral exploration, directional drilling, and location services on smartphones. The study of these fields (geomagnetism) is one of the oldest areas of geophysical research. These magnetic fields are not stagnant. They actually vary day to day and even minute by minute as the electrical currents that run