Science News for Kids

Publication of the Society for Science & the Public

Skip to main content

Explore:

Tag Archives: Santa Cruz

Out-of-this-world atmospheres

By Stephen Ornes / March 29, 2013

This illustration depicts the planet HR 8799c (foreground) orbiting its star. Two other planets in the system can also be seen in the drawing.
Credit: Image courtesy of Dunlap Institute for Astronomy & Astrophysics; Mediafarm

Light from a distant, giant world offers clues to the gases in its atmosphere

Posted in Space | Tagged astronomy, atmosphere, Ben Oppenheimer, Earth, exoplanets, getinvolved, HR 8799, infrared, Jonathan Fortney, light, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Neptune, planets, Quinn Konopacky, radiation, Santa Cruz, Saturn, Smithsonian Institution, space, spectral lines, spectrometry, topstories, University of California, University of Toronto

Predators as climate helpers

By Janet Raloff / February 18, 2013

This freshwater stickleback eats the tiny animals in stream water that graze on plants and algae. This predation allows those plants and algae to collect and store carbon, rather than letting it escape into the atmosphere. Credit: Nicole Bedford, UBC

In lakes and streams, fish and insects can help protect aquatic plants that gobble up greenhouse gas

Posted in Earth & Sky, Environment & Pollution, Weather & Climate | Tagged algae, bromeliad, carbon dioxide, climate, damselfly, ecology, ecosystem, food chain, food web, getinvolved, global warming, grazers, greenhouse gases, James Estes, John Richardson, phytoplankton, ponds, predators, primary production, Santa Cruz, stickleback, stonefly, streams, topstories, Trisha Atwood, trophic levels, University of British Columbia, University of California, zooplankton

New planetary neighbor

By Stephen Ornes / November 5, 2012

Astronomers have found that our closest stellar neighbor has an Earth-sized planet orbiting it. This illustration shows what the pair might look like. Credit: ESO

Nearest star system has a world that’s Earthly in size, but too hot for human visitors

Posted in Space | Tagged aliens, Alpha Centauri, astronomy, Debra Fischer, exoplanet, extrasolar planet, Geoff Marcy, getinvolved, HARPS, rocky world, Santa Cruz, space, Stéphane Udry, telescopes, University of California, Yale University

Bye-bye, George

By Janet Raloff / June 27, 2012

Gone but not forgotten: Lonesome George died on June 24 at an estimated age of 100. Credit: Ecuador’s Ministry of the Environment

Ambassador of endangered species everywhere dies from old age

Posted in Animals | Tagged captive breeding, Chelonoidis, Edwin Naula, Española Island, Galápagos, getinvolved, Lonesome George, Pinta Island, Santa Cruz, tortoise, Volcan Wolf Galápagos tortoise