. Earth Science News .
Scientists Study 'Snowball Earth'

Snowball Earth.
by Staff Writers
UPI Correspondent
Victoria (UPI) Nov 28, 2006
Canadian scientists have determined the factors involved in ending a severe ice age 750 million years ago that nearly completely froze Earth's oceans. Since the factors initiating a so-called "Snowball Earth" era have been the subject of much study, Jeffrey Lewis and colleagues at the University of Victoria focused on determining the factors that pulled Earth from its snowball state.

Noting that accepted values for both snow and ice albedo -- the ratio of incident to reflected solar radiation -- cover a wide range, the researchers sought to quantify the relative sensitivity of various surface albedos on the same climate model as it emerges from a snowball state.

They found the range of ice, snow, and land albedos and the resulting minimum carbon dioxide greenhouse forcing required for deglaciation of the Neoproterozoic snowball Earth. They also found greenhouse forcing can vary by nearly an order of magnitude within the accepted albedo ranges, suggesting the physics of deglaciation in terms of radiation budgets, snow and ice dynamics, and atmospheric processes needs to be better modeled.

The study is detailed in the journal Geophysical Research Letters.

Source: United Press International

Related Links
University of Victoria

Study Shows Growing Role Of Asia As Source Of Arctic Pollution
Helsinki (AFP) Nov 16, 2006
Europe has succeeded in reducing toxic emissions that pollute the Arctic, but Asia is playing an increasing role in damaging the environmentally-sensitive region, the Arctic Council said in a study published on Thursday. Over the past 15 years, "the reduction of emissions in Europe has had a cleaning effect on the Arctic," the Arctic Monitoring and Assessment Programme (AMAP) said in its report.







  • Red Cross Calls For Disaster Cash Boost
  • Red Cross Calls For Stronger Alliances To Fight Disasters
  • NIST Test Fans The Flames For High-Rise Fire Safety
  • UN Official Laments Darfur Aid

  • Prominent Researchers Advocate Creation Of National Climate Service
  • Lessons Learnt From Drought Deaths 40,000 Years Ago
  • 'Divided' Countries Could Leave Climate Deal In 'Tatters'
  • Seven-Year Stabilization Of Methane May Slow Global Warming

  • 'Enact Space Law To Govern Use Of Remote Sensing Data'
  • European Space Agency And Google Earth Showcase Our Planet
  • GeoEye-1 Will Use SGI Technology To Process Image Data
  • SciSys Wins Software Role For CryoSat-2 Mission

  • Scientists Solve Mystery of How Largest Cellular Motor Protein Powers Movement
  • China Moves Ahead With Project To Rival Three Gorges In Size
  • Complex Order Parameter In Ruthenate Superconductors Confirmed
  • Putting Plant Life In The Energy Pipeline

  • Flu Vaccines Plentiful Amid Low Demand
  • Setting The Stage To Find Drugs Against SARS
  • Pattern Of Human Ebola Outbreaks Linked To Wildlife And Climate
  • UGA Researchers Use Laser, Nanotechnology To Rapidly Detect Viruses

  • Night Of The Living Enzyme
  • Fragmentation Rapidly Erodes Amazonian Biodiversity
  • Could Global Warming Be Crushing Blow To Crocodiles
  • Ethiopia's Famed Black-Maned Lions Being Stuffed For Lack Of Cash

  • Chinese Pollution A Rising Health Threat
  • UN Seeks Help To Clean Up Deadly Ivorian Toxic Waste Dumps
  • Man Jailed In China For Dumping Chemical Waste
  • Police Fire Teargas To Break Toxic Waste Demo

  • First Map Of Structural Variation In The Human Genome Under Construction
  • Genetic Variation Shows We're More Different Than We Thought
  • Neanderthal Genome Sequencing Yields Surprising Results
  • Dad Inspired 'Jurassic Park,' Son Inspires 'Jurassic Poop'

  • The content herein, unless otherwise known to be public domain, are Copyright 1995-2006 - SpaceDaily.AFP and UPI Wire Stories are copyright Agence France-Presse and United Press International. ESA PortalReports are copyright European Space Agency. All NASA sourced material is public domain. Additionalcopyrights may apply in whole or part to other bona fide parties. Advertising does not imply endorsement,agreement or approval of any opinions, statements or information provided by SpaceDaily on any Web page published or hosted by SpaceDaily. Privacy Statement