Here’s a roundup of some of the latest Earth science news from NASA.
ANATOMY OF A TSUNAMI
When it comes to generating a tsunami, it’s not just the vertical movement of the seafloor that matters. Research performed in a giant tank showed that horizontal movement also contributes to the formation and strength of these potentially destructive waves. See the wave tank in the video below, and read more about the research here.
SPRING IS FOR FIELDWORK
Spring in the northern hemisphere can be a good time to hit the field for some ground- and air-based research. Among the myriad projects, NASA scientists are collecting atmospheric data atop a volcano in Hawaii and over the Mid-Atlantic area, and continuing airborne surveys of snow and ice over Earth’s arctic regions.
THE SKINNY ON GREENLAND’S THINNING GLACIERS
NASA data contributed to a study led by University of Texas researchers, which shows that the amount of ice lost by glaciers in Greenland depends on their shape. They found that the thick, wide parts of glaciers lose ice more easily than the thin, steep portions. Read more here.
SATELLITE SEES A SOLITARY CONTRAIL
And last but not least, check out this image from Landsat 8 posted to Twitter by @andrewmiskelly. The scene shows a “solitary contrail” over western Queensland, Australia.
Western Queensland , Australia , as shown in photo,
has been subjected to severe mud volcanic activities.
A partially closed peripheral stream around a mud volcanic
Crater or dome can be near the bottom of the photo .
Interpreted by geological engineer from Thailand .
A mud volcanic dome can be seen near the bottom of the photo .