News

A new computational framework developed in collaboration with Oak Ridge National Laboratory scientist Jiafu Mao provides a detailed assessment of ammonia emissions from global croplands and identifies practices that could curb release of the gas. Croplands are the largest single source of atmospheric ammonia, emitted from fields treated with nitrogen

nitrogen

Nitrogen, represented by the symbol N and atomic number 7, is a colorless, odorless, and tasteless gas that constitutes approximately 78% of Earth's atmosphere. It is vital for all life forms, as it is a fundamental part of amino acids, proteins, and DNA.

Source: Source

fertilizer. Ammonia can harm human health, acidify soil and waterways and contribute to biodiversity loss, food insecurity and climate change.

climate change

A change in the average conditions — such as temperature and rainfall — in a region over a long period of time.

Source: NASA Climate Kids Source

Scientists at Oak Ridge National Laboratory and the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, have developed an algorithm to predict electric grid stability using signals from pumped storage hydropower

hydropower

One of the oldest and largest sources of renewable energy, which uses the natural flow of moving water to generate electricity

Source: U.S. Department of Energy Source

projects. The method provides critical situational awareness as the grid increasingly shifts to intermittent renewable power. Hydropower is a renewable energy

renewable energy

Renewable energy comes from unlimited, naturally replenished resources, such as the sun, tides, and wind. Renewable energy can be used for electricity generation, space and water heating and cooling, and transportation.

Source: U.S Department of Energy Source

source directly connected to the grid, providing inertia as water spins large turbines. In times of high demand, the projects generate electricity as water is routed back to the lower reservoir

reservoir

A manmade lake that is created when a dam is built on a river. River water backs up behind the dam creating a reservoir.

Source: USGS Source

through the turbines.

Invented more than 100 years ago, the opposed-piston engine had its heyday during World War II, powering submarines and aircraft carriers. Despite its exceptional fuel efficiency, the engine never took hold on a broader scale, primarily due to tightening emissions standards. In recent years, advanced technology and engineering have given the opposed-piston engine new life as scientists explore its potential role in a zero-carbon transportation system.

The Atmospheric Radiation Measurement (ARM) user facility, supported by the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE’s) Office of Science, is now accepting preliminary proposals from scientists to deploy an ARM Mobile Facility (AMF) for field campaigns to support the Biological and Environmental Research (BER) program’s interests in advancing the fundamental understanding of atmospheric processes to improve regional and global earth system models.

earth system model (ESM)

A model that simulates how chemistry, biology, and physical forces work together. These models are similar to, but much more comprehensive than, global climate models.

Source: U.S. Department of Energy Source

Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory's (LLNL) popular lecture series, “Science on Saturday,” returns Feb. 3 and runs through Feb. 24. The series offers four different lectures with the theme, “Magic of Materials.” Each lecture is presented by leading LLNL researchers who are joined by high-school science teachers. The presentations are targeted to middle and high school students and are offered each Saturday in February from 10-11 a.m.

For more than 50 years, the National Hurricane Center has used the Saffir-Simpson Windscale to communicate the risk of property damage; it labels a hurricane on a scale from Category 1 (wind speeds between 74 – 95 mph) to Category 5 (wind speeds of 158 mph or greater). But as increasing ocean temperatures contribute to ever more intense and destructive hurricanes, climate scientists Michael Wehner and James Kossin wondered whether the open-ended Category 5 is sufficient to communicate the risk of hurricane damage in a warming climate.

Research from Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley Lab), Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL), and UC Davis sheds new light on how to access the sugars locked up in plants to produce petroleum-free fuels, chemicals, and medicines. Using microbes

microbe

Microbes are tiny living things that are found all around us and are too small to be seen by the naked eye. They live in water, soil, and in the air.

Source: NIH Source

to convert grasses, weeds, wood, and other plant residues into sustainable products will be key to achieving carbon neutrality and could even help eliminate drug shortages.

Climate models are essential to predicting and addressing climate change, but can fail to adequately represent soil microbes, a critical player in ecosystem

ecosystem

A natural community of plants, animals, and other living organisms and the physical environment in which they live and interact.

Source: A student's guide to Global Climate Change Source

soil carbon sequestration

carbon sequestration

The process of capturing and storing atmospheric carbon dioxide.

Source: USGS Source

that affects the global carbon cycle.

carbon cycle

The movement and exchange of carbon through living organisms, the ocean, the atmosphere, rocks and minerals, and other parts of the Earth.

Source: a student's guide to Global Climate Change Source

A team of scientists led by the Department of Energy’s Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley Lab) has developed a new model that incorporates genetic information from microbes.

The waste in our water could soon generate new waves of clean energy development, job creation and economic growth across the Great Lakes thanks to a new regional innovation and economic development initiative launched by the U.S. National Science Foundation (NSF). The initiative will fund efforts to find new ways to recover clean water, nutrients and materials for clean energy technologies from wastewater — all while removing dangerous chemicals.

Pacific Northwest may face increase in summer heat-dome-like stationary waves. Heat-dome-like stationary waves often lead to extreme heat events, such as the unprecedented summer 2021 heat wave in the Pacific Northwest. However, future changes in summertime stationary waves over the Pacific Northwest and the underlying driving factors remain unclear. Researchers investigated projected changes in the anticyclonic stationary wave circulation over the Pacific Northwest using data from the Coupled Model Intercomparison Project Phase 6.

Bolstering our environment and coastal communities with their talents and passion. Three scientists at Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) are lending more than 50 years of expertise to lead efforts to advance the nation’s Blue Economy. Simon Geerlofs is chair of the Board of Directors for Maritime Blue. Katie Arkema and Christian Meinig are appointed to the Washington Coastal and Marine Advisory Council in the Office of the Governor.

A specialized microbial community composed of fungus, leafcutter ants, and bacteria is known to naturally degrade plants, turning them into nutrients and other components that are absorbed and used by surrounding organisms and systems. But identifying all components and biochemical reactions needed for the process remained a significant challenge—until now.