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1500 questions
15
votes
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Naming convention for sea ice thickness per unit area of ice or ocean
When defining an area average of sea ice thickness, it is important to distinguish between an average taken over an ocean area
$$h_1 = \sum \frac{\text{sea ice thickness (in area)}}{\text{area}_\text{ice} + \text{area}_\text{water}}$$
and an average…
BHF
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15
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How does a 'fire tornado' form?
A 'Fire tornado' or 'Firenado' or 'Fire whirl' are a fearful feature of forest fires world wide. Having seen one up close, I can attest that they are both awesome and utterly terrifying, but I am aware that these vortices are not strictly speaking,…
user889
15
votes
3 answers
Are there known ore deposits under cities?
Occasionally there are news about a major ore deposit for a specific commodity being found. Some of these recent discoveries are underground, and the "geophysics" aspect of their exploration is more important than the "geology" aspect.
This makes me…
Gimelist
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15
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Do other terrestrial planets have "earthquakes"?
I know some planets have storms akin to what we have on Earth although obviously varying in nature.
I was wondering if other planets have earthquakes? Since this comes down to plate tectonics (right?), I guess I am also asking if other planets have…
Stan Shunpike
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What is the meaning of -999 degrees Celsius?
I was checking the weather forecast just now, and it is showing that it "feels like -999 °C". I never heard or saw -999 °C before. I searched other weather channels, and they were showing that it feels like 2 °C. What is the meaning of -999 °C,…
eLg
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What type of cloud formation are these dark low-hanging clouds?
I was thinking it could have been a non-rotating wall cloud, but I'm not sure.
YouTube video
Picture taken on September 9 2014... between 5-7 pm in North Georgia, about 40 miles north of Atlanta.
Kaz
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What, if any, paleoclimate data can be derived from igneous rocks?
Paleoclimate data often derives from sedimentary rocks. Metamorphic rocks can also contribute to paleoclimate information in a wide variety of ways.
What about igneous rocks? I guess that this can question be divided into two, about intrusive and…
Gimelist
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15
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What is El Niño Modoki?
What are the characteristics that distinguishes a El Niño Modoki from a "normal" El Niño?
What are the effects of El Niño Modoki on atmospheric and oceanic processes? How does it affect weather systems?
What are the mechanisms that determine…
arkaia
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What is hydraulic diffusivity?
I'm having trouble grasping which properties of the soil are described by hydraulic diffusivity (sometimes referred to as soil-moisture diffusivity which is based on the diffusion equation).
What does hydraulic diffusivity describe and how is it…
Bprodz
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Sea Level in Paleogeographic Maps
Most paleogeographic maps available (C. R. Scotese or R. Blakey maps for instance) show not only the shape of the continents during the concerned period but also the level of the seas and oceans (i. e. the coastlines, the epicontinental seas, etc.).…
plannapus
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How are Earth's rotational changes due to large earthquakes calculated?
According to NASA (and many other sources), Japan Quake May Have Shortened Earth Days, Moved Axis and in the answers to the question here What geophysical events can (temporarily) increase the Earth's rate of rotation?, that major earthquakes result…
user889
15
votes
1 answer
Break in human nitrogen input in 1990s
I'm in an AP Environmental Science course, and while reading part of the chapter in my textbook about the nitrogen cycle, I saw this picture.
What I was wondering is what caused that dip in the nitrogen input in about 1995? I've researched online,…
Kyranstar
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Interpretation of a seismogram (three components)
In most cases (as shown in the figure below), a seismogram shows data from three components:
North-South
East-West
Vertical/depth(z)
However, if these components are not marked and all we have are three figures, then is there a way to identity…
shrey
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What is a typical value of the Péclet number for internal waves?
Defining the Péclet number as:
$Pe = \frac{U \lambda}{\kappa}$
Where $U$ is the characteristic fluid velocity, $\lambda$ is the wavelength of the internal wave and $\kappa$ is the turbulent eddy diffusivity. I found in Moum et al. (2003) that…
Isopycnal Oscillation
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15
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Does the heating of the oceans due to greenhouse effect negate the acidification due to increased CO2 levels?
As I understand, the dissolving of carbon dioxide leads to increased acidification of the oceans, and thus increased atmospheric CO2 levels would lead to more dissolution in the oceans and thus increased levels of carbonic acid.
However, also as…
AlexLipp
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