Earth

International study shows asteroids as past, possible future water source

Published: February 8, 2021 | 4:23 pm | Posted in: Science & Technology

A Florida State University geochemist was part of an international team that published startling evidence that a type of meteorite — fragments of ancient asteroids that land on Earth — shows signs it contained liquid water no more than a million years ago. Scientists have long hypothesized meteorites delivered water from asteroids to Earth in the solar system’s infancy. […]

FSU Research: Strong storms often generate earthquake-like seismic activity

Published: October 15, 2019 | 9:15 am | Posted in: Science & Technology

A Florida State University researcher has uncovered a new geophysical phenomenon where a hurricane or other strong storm can spark seismic events in the nearby ocean as strong as a 3.5 magnitude earthquake. “We’re calling them ‘stormquakes,’” said lead author Wenyuan Fan, an assistant professor of Earth, Ocean and Atmospheric Science. “This involves coupling of […]

Kīlauea lava fuels phytoplankton bloom off Hawai‘i Island

Published: September 11, 2019 | 2:25 pm | Posted in: Science & Technology

When Kīlauea Volcano erupted in 2018, it injected millions of cubic feet of molten lava into the nutrient-poor waters off the Big Island of Hawai‘i. The lava-impacted seawater contained high concentrations of nutrients that stimulated phytoplankton growth, resulting in an extensive plume of microbes that was detectable by satellite. A Florida State University researcher was […]

Deepwater Horizon oil buried in Gulf Coast beaches could take more than 30 years to biodegrade

Published: September 10, 2019 | 1:31 pm | Posted in: Science & Technology

Golf ball-size clods of weathered crude oil originating from the 2010 Deepwater Horizon catastrophe could remain buried in sandy Gulf Coast beaches for decades, according to a new study by ecologists at Florida State University. In a paper published in the journal Scientific Reports, FSU Professor of Oceanography Markus Huettel and graduate student Ioana Bociu […]

FSU researcher makes deep-sea coral reef discovery in depths of North Pacific

Published: July 14, 2017 | 9:00 am | Posted in: Science & Technology

Associate Professor of Earth, Ocean and Atmospheric Science Amy Baco-Taylor next to a submersible in which she has conducted research.

Scientists have long believed that the waters of the Central and Northeast Pacific Ocean were inhospitable to deep-sea scleractinian coral, but a Florida State University professor’s discovery of an odd chain of reefs suggests there are mysteries about the development and durability of coral colonies yet to be uncovered. Associate Professor of Earth, Ocean and […]

FSU’s Geophysical Fluid Dynamics Institute celebrates 50 years of pioneering research

Published: June 21, 2017 | 10:58 am | Posted in: Science & Technology

For half a century, the Florida State University Geophysical Fluid Dynamics Institute (GFDI) has been a global leader in the study of fluid flow and motion — the ways that the circulation of liquids and gases influence our oceans, atmosphere and groundwater. Since its start in 1967, the GFDI has cemented its position as the […]

FSU scientist’s findings on carbon cycle feed climate research

Published: January 23, 2017 | 3:36 pm | Posted in: Science & Technology

Michael Stukel, assistant professor of Earth, Ocean and Atmospheric Science

A Florida State University researcher is taking a deep dive into the carbon cycle and investigating how carbon moves from the ocean surface to greater depths and then remains there for hundreds of years. Those findings could be critical as scientists work to better understand climate change and how much carbon the Earth’s atmosphere and […]

FSU researcher targeting mysteries of deep Earth

Published: November 21, 2016 | 3:00 pm | Posted in: Science & Technology

Mainak Mookherjee, assistant professor of geology at FSU

Water covers about 70 percent of the Earth’s surface, but scientists also want to know how much lies inside the planet. A mineral called brucite may hold part of that answer, according to a Florida State University researcher. In a paper published this week in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, FSU Assistant […]

FSU breaks ground on new Earth, Ocean and Atmospheric Science building

Published: October 27, 2016 | 3:32 pm | Posted in: Science & Technology, University News

A rendering of FSU's new Earth, Ocean and Atmospheric Science building.

Florida State University officials and the university’s Board of Trustees broke ground on a new building Thursday that will house the university’s nationally recognized Earth, Ocean and Atmospheric Science department. At completion, the facility will include offices, classrooms, teaching labs, research labs and academic support spaces for the department that comprises the fields of environmental […]

FSU geologist explores minerals below Earth’s surface

Published: October 13, 2016 | 9:07 am | Posted in: Science & Technology

Mainak Mookherjee, assistant professor of geology

A Florida State University geology researcher is going deep below the Earth’s surface to understand how some of the most abundant minerals that comprise the Earth’s crust change under pressure. In a paper published today in Scientific Reports, Assistant Professor of Geology Mainak Mookherjee explores how feldspar, one of the most important minerals in the […]

Lightning strikes: Thunderstorms spread mercury pollution

Published: August 30, 2016 | 12:40 pm | Posted in: Science & Technology

In the southern United States, an afternoon thunderstorm is part of a regular summer day. But new research shows those storms might be doing more than bringing some scary thunder and lightning. In fact, these storms are moving significant amounts of mercury to the ground. In a new study published in the journal Environmental Science […]

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