Science
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Study tracks fishing boats to see how heat waves affect fish distribution
“We have so much data on fishing vessel activity,” study lead author Heather Welch, a marine spatial ecologist at the University of California, Santa Cruz, said in a statement. “These data are traditionally used for surveillance, and it is exciting that they may also be useful for understanding ecosystem health.”
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Bay Area researchers hope to unlock the secrets of coastal fog
A team led by environmental chemist Peter Weiss-Penzias of UC Santa Cruz will study the fog’s composition, looking for toxic chemicals.
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Experts examine how climate change will create more king tides in Bay Area
Video from the UC Santa Cruz Center for Coastal Climate Resilience shows a visualization of San Mateo County, an area that faces significant sea-level rise impacts. It is their projection during a 100-year storm. Professor Mike Beck, the Director of the Center, is watching this closely. Additional coverage by CBS News Bay Area, NBC Bay…
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How can nature protect us from the effects of climate change
UC Santa Cruz economics professor Galina Hale hosts Center for Coastal Climate Resilience Director Mike Beck on the radio show “Cutting Edge,” to discuss their new study on nature-based solutions for climate adaptation.
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This Diminutive Reptile Plays Rock-Paper-Scissors
Dr. Sinervo, who later joined the faculty at the University of California, Santa Cruz, and who died in 2021, grew fascinated by the strange mating habits of the lizards. At the start of every breeding season, the males developed one of three colors on their throats: blue, orange or yellow. And depending on their color,…
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Wind-battered Lick Observatory rushes to shield historic telescope after dome damage
The damage threatens one of the Bay Area’s most significant scientific landmarks — a telescope that helped shape modern astronomy and still draws thousands of visitors each year to the mountaintop east of San Jose. Additional coverage in KTVU News, The Mercury News, NBC Bay Area, KSBW, SF Gate, and Lookout Santa Cruz.
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‘Super-Jupiter’ exoplanet is not so Jupiter-like, UCSC study finds
Xi Zhang, a professor of Earth and planetary science at UC Santa Cruz, has discovered that an exoplanet classed as a “super-Jupiter” has substantial differences from our solar system’s largest planet — and in fact, has much in common with Mars. Exoplanet VHS 1256b, located 40 light years away from Earth, was identified in 2015.
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Researchers awarded over $500,000 to use diamonds in new project: ‘We have sought to get off the ground for several years’
As reported by UC Santa Cruz, researchers with the Santa Cruz Institute for Particle Physics will receive $550,000 in funding to develop advanced diamond-based sensors to monitor intense radiation in future fusion energy reactors. Picked up by Yahoo.
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A ‘Third State’ Exists Between Life and Death—And That Suggests Your Cells Are Conscious, Some Scientists Say
“This is nothing new,” University of California, Santa Cruz plant biologist Lincoln Taiz, PhD and co-author of the letter, said in an email.
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First elephant seal pup of the season born in SLO County.
Supermoms account for more than half (55%) of the total pups born. Supermoms live longer, breed more frequently and raise bigger pups. Bernie LeBoeuf, now professor emeritus at UC Santa Cruz, led a research team that identified Supermoms in a 2019 scientific paper. Gingerbread’s mother chose a nice dry spot on the south beach.
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Residents near Moss Landing fire provide samples to measure health impact
UC Santa Cruz toxicology professor Donald Smith says hair samples submitted by the Moss Landing community will contribute to a growing body of toxicology research. Smith’s lab will analyze the hair samples for manganese concentrations, but cannot yet interpret those results to connect exposure to symptoms without more long-term data.
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Why Brown Dwarfs May Explain the Main Differences Between Stars and Planets
The atmospheres of brown dwarfs can be surprisingly similar to those of gas giant planets, too, complete with multi-layered clouds and powerful wind-driven storms. That makes them great windows into the atmospheric processes that shape our own solar system’s giant planets, as well as the super-Jupiter exoplanets discovered outside our stellar neighborhood, according to a…