Publications
These publications showcase the significant science conducted in our Science Centers.
Filter Total Items: 16785
Methane hydrates and contemporary climate change
As the evidence for warming climate became better established in the latter part of the 20th century (IPCC 2001), some scientists raised the alarm that large quantities of methane (CH4) might be liberated by widespread destabilization of climate-sensitive gas hydrate deposits trapped in marine and permafrost-associated sediments (Bohannon 2008, Krey et al. 2009, Mascarelli 2009). Even if only a fr
Authors
Carolyn D. Ruppel
Modelling the distribution of domestic ducks in Monsoon Asia
Domestic ducks are considered to be an important reservoir of highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI), as shown by a number of geospatial studies in which they have been identified as a significant risk factor associated with disease presence. Despite their importance in HPAI epidemiology, their large-scale distribution in Monsoon Asia is poorly understood. In this study, we created a spatial dat
Authors
Thomas P. Van Bockel, Diann Prosser, Gianluca Franceschini, Chandra Biradar, William Wint, Tim Robinson, Marius Gilbert
Methane hydrates and the future of natural gas
For decades, gas hydrates have been discussed as a potential resource, particularly for countries with limited access to conventional hydrocarbons or a strategic interest in establishing alternative, unconventional gas reserves. Methane has never been produced from gas hydrates at a commercial scale and, barring major changes in the economics of natural gas supply and demand, commercial producti
Authors
Carolyn Ruppel
An introduction to adaptive management for threatened and endangered species
Management of threatened and endangered species would seem to be a perfect context for adaptive management. Many of the decisions are recurrent and plagued by uncertainty, exactly the conditions that warrant an adaptive approach. But although the potential of adaptive management in these settings has been extolled, there are limited applications in practice. The impediments to practical implementa
Authors
Michael C. Runge
Cover sequences at the northern margin of the Antongil Craton, NE Madagascar
The island of Madagascar is a collage of Precambrian, generally high-grade metamorphic basement domains, that are locally overlain by unmetamorphosed sedimentary rocks and poorly understood low-grade metasediments. In the Antalaha area of NE Madagascar, two distinct cover sequences rest on high-grade metamorphic and igneous basement rocks of the Archaean Antongil craton and the Neoproterozoic Bema
Authors
W. Bauer, G. J. Walsh, B. De Waele, Ronald J. Thomas, M. S. A. Horstwood, L. Bracciali, D. I. Schofield, U. Wollenberg, D. J. Lidke, I.T. Rasaona, M.H. Rabarimanana
Implementation and modification of a three-dimensional radiation stress formulation for surf zone and rip-current applications
Regional Ocean Modeling System (ROMS v 3.0), a three-dimensional numerical ocean model, was previously enhanced for shallow water applications by including wave-induced radiation stress forcing provided through coupling to wave propagation models (SWAN, REF/DIF). This enhancement made it suitable for surf zone applications as demonstrated using examples of obliquely incident waves on a planar beac
Authors
N. Kumar, G. Voulgaris, John C. Warner
Precision of two methods for estimating age from burbot otoliths
Lower reproductive success and older age structure are associated with many burbot (Lota lota L.) populations that are declining or of conservation concern. Therefore, reliable methods for estimating the age of burbot are critical for effective assessment and management. In Lake Erie, burbot populations have declined in recent years due to the combined effects of an aging population (&xmacr; = 10
Authors
W.H. Edwards, M.A. Stapanian, A.T. Stoneman
Groupers on the edge: Shelf edge spawning habitat in and around marine reserves of the northeastern Gulf of Mexico
The northeastern Gulf of Mexico contains some of the most diverse and productive marine habitat in the United States. Much of this habitat, located on the shelf edge in depths of 50 to 120 m, supports spawning for many economically important species, including groupers. Here, we couple acoustic surveys with georeferenced videography to describe the primary spatial and geologic features of spawning
Authors
Felicia C. Coleman, Kathryn M. Scanlon, Christopher C. Koenig
Evaluation of single and two-stage adaptive sampling designs for estimation of density and abundance of freshwater mussels in a large river
Reliable estimates of abundance are needed to assess consequences of proposed habitat restoration and enhancement projects on freshwater mussels in the Upper Mississippi River (UMR). Although there is general guidance on sampling techniques for population assessment of freshwater mussels, the actual performance of sampling designs can depend critically on the population density and spatial distrib
Authors
D. R. Smith, J. T. Rogala, B. R. Gray, S. J. Zigler, T.J. Newton
Structural stability of methane hydrate at high pressures
The structural stability of methane hydrate under pressure at room temperature was examined by both in-situ single-crystal and powder X-ray diffraction techniques on samples with structure types I, II, and H in diamond-anvil cells. The diffraction data for types II (sII) and H (sH) were refined to the known structures with space groups Fd3m and P63/mmc, respectively. Upon compression, sI methane h
Authors
J. Shu, X. Chen, I-Ming Chou, W. Yang, Jiawen Hu, R.J. Hemley, Ho-kwang Mao
Comparative performance of CO2 measuring methods: marine aquaculture recirculation system application
Many methods are available for the measurement of dissolved carbon dioxide in an aqueous environment. Standard titration is the typical field method for measuring dissolved CO2 in aquaculture systems. However, titrimetric determination of dissolved CO2 in marine water aquaculture systems is unsuitable because of the high dissolved solids, silicates, and other dissolved minerals that interfere with
Authors
T.J. Pfeiffer, S.T. Summerfelt, B.J. Watten
Adaptive management in the U.S. National Wildlife Refuge System: Science-management partnerships for conservation delivery
Adaptive management is an approach to recurrent decision making in which uncertainty about the decision is reduced over time through comparison of outcomes predicted by competing models against observed values of those outcomes. The National Wildlife Refuge System (NWRS) of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is a large land management program charged with making natural resource management decisio
Authors
C. T. Moore, E. V. Lonsdorf, M. G. Knutson, H. P. Laskowski, S. K. Lor