Geoengineering approaches to reduce climate change unlikely to succeed Press release 5 December 2013 Two German researchers used a simple energy balance analysis to explain how the Earth’s water cycle responds differently to heating by sunlight than it does to warming due to a stronger atmospheric greenhouse effect. Further, they show that this difference implies that reflecting sunlight to reduce temperatures may have unwanted effects on the Earth’s rainfall patterns. The results are now published in ESD. Read more
Results of the EGU Autumn 2013 elections 2 December 2013 The EGU election for the next EGU president/vice-president and general secretary closed on 01 December. The results are now available on the Elections page of this website. The EGU is thankful to all those who used their voting right. Active participation in elections ensures continuation of the well-established bottom-up structure of our Union! Read more
New edition of GeoQ out now! 2 December 2013 The December issue of the quarterly newsletter of the European Geosciences Union is dedicated to climate. Of highlight are the articles on new climate research and a piece from the European Commission Directorate-General for Climate Action. Read more
Using moving cars to measure rainfall Press release 28 November 2013 Drivers on a rainy day regulate the speed of their windshield wipers according to rain intensity: faster in heavy rain and slower in light rain. This simple observation has inspired researchers from the University of Hanover in Germany to come up with ‘RainCars’, an initiative that aims to use GPS-equipped moving cars as devices to measure rainfall. The most recent results of the project are now published in Hydrology and Earth System Sciences. Read more
GIFT goes to Africa! Applications now open for Southern African teachers to participate in the 2014 workshop 27 November 2013 Southern African teachers can now apply to participate in the first UNESCO-EGU-ESA Geosciences Information for Teachers (GIFT) workshop. Selected teachers will receive a travel/hotel stipend and free registration to the meeting, which is taking place in Port Elizabeth, South Africa, on 26–28 February 2014. The topic of the workshop is Climate Change and Human Adaptation. Read more
EGU2014: Applying for financial support to attend the General Assembly 12 November 2013 A limited amount of the overall budget of the EGU General Assembly is reserved to assist young scientists and established scientists from low and lower middle income countries who wish to present their work at the meeting. Scientists who wish to apply for financial support should submit an abstract, on which they are first authors, by 29 November 2013. Read more
How pigeons may smell their way home Press release 5 November 2013 Homing pigeons, like other birds, are extraordinary navigators, but how they manage to find their way back to their lofts is still debated. To navigate, birds require a ‘map’ (to tell them home is south, for example) and a ‘compass’ (to tell them where south is), with the sun and the Earth’s magnetic field being the preferred compass systems. A new Biogeosciences paper provides evidence that the information pigeons use as a map is in fact available in the atmosphere: odours and winds allow them to find their way home. Read more
Voting for the next EGU president/vice-president and general secretary 5 November 2013 From now until 1 December 2013, EGU members can vote in the Autumn 2013 EGU Election. If you are an active member of the Union, you should have already received an email with a personalised voting link. Remember that active participation in EGU elections ensures continuation of the well-established bottom-up structure of our Union! Read more
The oldest ice core – Finding a 1.5 million-year record of Earth’s climate Press release 5 November 2013 How far into the past can ice-core records go? Scientists have now identified regions in Antarctica they say could store information about Earth’s climate and greenhouse gases extending as far back as 1.5 million years, almost twice as old as the oldest ice core drilled to date. The results are published today in Climate of the Past. Read more
EGU journals to display article-level metrics 15 October 2013 Copernicus Publications, the publisher of the EGU open access journals, has just launched article-level metrics (ALMs) for all its journals. Read more
EGU Science Journalism Fellowships (up to €5k) – call for applications Press release 15 October 2013 The European Geosciences Union (EGU) is offering fellowships for journalists to report on ongoing research in the geosciences. Successful applicants will receive up to €5k to cover expenses related to their projects, including following scientists on location. Read more
EGU announces 2014 awards and medals 14 October 2013 The EGU has named the 43 recipients of next year’s Union Medals and Awards, Division Medals, and Division Outstanding Young Scientist Awards. Read more
Terrestrial ecosystems at risk of major shifts as temperatures increase Press release 8 October 2013 Over 80% of the world’s ice-free land is at risk of profound ecosystem transformation by 2100, a new study reveals. “Essentially, we would be leaving the world as we know it,” says Sebastian Ostberg of the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research, Germany. Ostberg and collaborators studied the critical impacts of climate change on landscapes and have now published their results in Earth System Dynamics. Read more
Tiny plankton could have big impact on climate Press release 13 September 2013 As the climate changes and oceans’ acidity increases, tiny plankton seem set to succeed. An international team of marine scientists has found that the smallest plankton groups thrive under elevated carbon dioxide (CO2) levels. This could cause an imbalance in the food web as well as decrease ocean CO2 uptake, an important regulator of global climate. The results of the study, conducted off the coast of Svalbard, Norway, in 2010, are now compiled in a special issue published in Biogeosciences. Read more
Educators: apply now to take part in the 2014 GIFT workshop! 10 September 2013 The Geosciences Information For Teachers workshop is taking place on April 27–30 2014 at the EGU General Assembly in Vienna, Austria. The topic of the 2014 edition of GIFT is Our Changing Planet and the workshop will explore some of the recent complex changes of our environment, particularly in the framework of the Fifth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). Read more
Using digital SLRs to measure the height of Northern Lights Press release 6 September 2013 Scientific research doesn’t often start from outreach projects. Yet, Ryuho Kataoka from the National Institute of Polar Research in Tokyo, Japan, came up with an idea for a new method to measure the height of aurora borealis after working on a 3D movie for a planetarium. Read more
New edition of GeoQ out now! 2 September 2013 The September issue of the quarterly newsletter of the European Geosciences Union is dedicated to young scientists. Of highlight are the articles, on young researchers’ work and a whole new Young Scientists section. Read more
Resource site for young scientists launched 20 August 2013 Early career researchers make up a large proportion of the EGU membership and (graduate and undergraduate) students regularly make up about a third of General Assembly participants. With so many young scientists involved in the EGU, we wanted to produce something that caters for them – the young scientists’ website. Read more
EGU journal implements new requirement for authors to provide computer code of their models 20 August 2013 The EGU journal Geoscientific Model Development (GMD) has implemented some radical new policies in terms of requirements of the published papers. The changes are highlighted in an editorial recently published in GMD. Read more
Six new blogs join the EGU Blog Network 8 August 2013 The new geoscience blogs cover mineralogy, climate change and volcanology as well as the atmospheric, Quaternary and soil sciences. Like other blogs on the network, their aim is to put complex scientific research into context and share recent findings beyond the usual suspects, opening science up to a much wider audience. Read more
EGU election for president/vice-president and general secretary: propose a candidate 1 August 2013 The autumn 2013 election, where 2013 EGU members will be able to vote for the next president/vice-president and general secretary, is taking place from 1 November to 1 December. From now until 30 September, you are kindly asked to propose a candidate to either vacancy. Read more
Could planting trees in the desert mitigate climate change? Press release 31 July 2013 As the world starts feeling the effects of increasing atmospheric carbon dioxide and consequent global temperature rise, researchers are looking for a Plan B to mitigate climate change. A group of German scientists has now come up with an environmentally friendly method that they say could do just that. Read more
Cluster spacecraft detects elusive space wind Press release 2 July 2013 A new study, published in EGU’s Annales Geophysicae, provides the first conclusive proof of the existence of a space wind first proposed theoretically over 20 years ago. Read more
New edition of GeoQ out now! 3 June 2013 The June issue of the quarterly newsletter of the European Geosciences Union is dedicated to the EGU 2013 General Assembly. Of highlight are the articles, on research published at the meeting, the letter from the Programme Committee Chair and interviews with GIFT teachers. Read more
GPS solution provides three-minute tsunami alerts Press release 17 May 2013 Researchers have shown that, by using global positioning systems (GPS) to measure ground deformation caused by a large underwater earthquake, they can provide accurate warning of the resulting tsunami in just a few minutes after the earthquake onset. Read more
Launching a new EGU interactive open access journal, ESurf 4 April 2013 Earth Surface Dynamics (ESurf) is the newest international scientific journal of the EGU. It is dedicated to the publication and discussion of high-quality research on the physical, chemical and biological processes shaping Earth’s surface and their interactions on all scales. Read more
Austrian Science and Research Minister at the EGU General Assembly 4 April 2013 Karlheinz Töchterle, the Austrian Federal Minister for Science and Research, will attend the EGU Award Ceremony where he will give a presentation on the future of geosciences in Europe. Read more
General Assembly 2013 Media Advisory 4 – On-site registration, press conferences streamed online Press release 2 April 2013 The General Assembly of the European Geosciences Union (EGU), a meeting with over 10,000 scientists that covers all disciplines of the Earth, planetary and space sciences, is taking place next week (07–12 April) in Vienna, Austria. Interested journalists can register on-site free of charge. Those who cannot make it to Vienna, can watch press conferences remotely through a web-streaming link. Media briefings include presentations on the latest Curiosity results, near-Earth objects and the Russian meteor, and the consequences of nuclear disasters. Another event of interest is the Great Debate on shale gas and fracking, which will also be streamed online. Read more
General Assembly 2013 Media Advisory 3 – Full press conference schedule, online registration closing tomorrow Press release 14 March 2013 The schedule of press conferences at the General Assembly of the European Geosciences Union (EGU), which includes briefings on the latest Curiosity results, near-Earth objects and the Russian meteor, and the consequences of nuclear disasters, is now available. The meeting will also feature a Great Debate on shale gas and fracking. Journalists interested in attending should register online by tomorrow. The EGU General Assembly is a meeting with over 10,000 scientists that covers all disciplines of the Earth, planetary and space sciences, and is taking place in Vienna, Austria from 07–12 April 2013. Read more
General Assembly 2013 Media Advisory 2 – Meeting programme online, provisional press conference topics Press release 4 March 2013 The programme for the General Assembly of the European Geosciences Union (EGU), a meeting with over 10,000 scientists that covers all disciplines of the Earth, planetary, and space sciences, is now online. This year’s conference features a Great Debate on shale gas and fracking. Press conferences will include presentations on near-Earth objects and the Russian meteor, the latest results from the Curiosity Mars Rover, and the consequences of nuclear accidents, among other topics. The event will be held on 07–12 April 2013 at the Austria Center Vienna. Read more
March edition of the EGU newsletter, GeoQ, now published! 4 March 2013 Don’t miss the Articles section, the letter from the EGU Awards Committee Chair Alberto Montanari in EGU Voice, and a very interesting Education article featuring micropalaeontology activities for the classroom. The pieces in the External News section are also of mention: one introduces the Future Earth initiative and the other a science policy programme from the other side of the Atlantic. Read more
Job opportunity at the EGU Executive Office: Educational Fellow 22 February 2013 We intend to appoint a Fellow to expand the Union’s educational programme with activities that are targeted directly at school students. These activities will complement our current efforts, such as the Geosciences Information for Teachers workshop (GIFT), which are aimed primarily at teachers. The Fellow will further assist our Education Committee with an EGU-UNESCO collaboration intended to expand GIFT to Africa. Read more
Unprecedented glacier melting in the Andes blamed on climate change Press release 22 January 2013 Glaciers in the tropical Andes have been retreating at increasing rate since the 1970s, scientists write in the most comprehensive review to date of Andean glacier observations. The researchers blame the melting on rising temperatures as the region has warmed about 0.7°C over the past 50 years (1950-1994). This unprecedented retreat could affect water supply to Andean populations in the near future. These conclusions are published today in The Cryosphere, an open access journal of the European Geosciences Union (EGU). Read more
Kate Ravilious and Liz Kalaugher awarded EGU Science Journalism Fellowship Press release 21 January 2013 The European Geosciences Union (EGU) has named journalists Kate Ravilious and Liz Kalaugher as the winners of its second Science Journalism Fellowship for projects on reporting continental earthquakes and climate-change effects on ecosystems, respectively. Read more
General Assembly 2013 Media Advisory 1 – Media registration now open Press release 12 December 2012 Journalists, science writers, and public information officers can now register online to the 2013 General Assembly of the European Geosciences Union (EGU). The meeting brings together over 10,000 scientists from all over the world and covers all disciplines of the Earth, planetary, and space sciences. Read more
Special edition of GeoQ dedicated to the 10 years of EGU 10 December 2012 The December issue of the EGU’s quarterly newsletter is now published online. This special edition of GeoQ celebrates a major milestone in the Union’s history, its 10th anniversary, by telling its story and showing a glimpse into its future. This issue further sheds light on the EGU’s unique relationship with conference-organiser and publisher Copernicus, and on the workings of our Munich office. Read more
Scientists pinpoint great-earthquake hotspots Press release 5 December 2012 The world’s largest earthquakes occur at subduction zones – locations where a tectonic plate slips under another. But where along these extended subduction areas are great earthquakes most likely to happen? Scientists have now found that regions where ‘scars’ on the seafloor, called fracture zones, meet subduction areas are at higher risk of generating powerful earthquakes. The results are published today in Solid Earth, an open access journal of the European Geosciences Union (EGU). Read more
Results of the EGU Autumn 2012 elections 4 December 2012 The EGU election for the next Treasurer and Division Presidents closed on 01 December. The results are now available on the Elections page of this website. The EGU is thankful to all those who used their voting right. Active participation in elections ensures continuation of the well-established bottom-up structure of our Union! Read more
EGU Science Journalism Fellowships (up to €5k) – application deadline extended Press release 14 November 2012 The European Geosciences Union (EGU) is offering fellowships for journalists to report on ongoing research in the geosciences. Successful applicants will receive up to €5k to cover expenses related to their projects, including following scientists on location. Read more
Applying for financial support to attend the General Assembly 9 November 2012 A limited amount of the overall budget of the EGU General Assembly is reserved to assist young scientists who wish to present at the meeting. Scientists who wish to apply for financial support should submit an abstract, on which they are first authors, by 30 November 2012. Read more
Voting for the next EGU Treasurer and Division Presidents now open! 2 November 2012 From now until 1 December 2012, EGU members can vote in the Autumn 2012 EGU Election. If you are an active member of the Union, you should have already received an email with a personalised voting link. Remember that active participation in EGU elections ensures continuation of the well-established bottom-up structure of our Union! Read more
EGU Seismology Division reacts to the L’Aquila verdict 25 October 2012 On Monday 22 October, an Italian judge sentenced seven members of Italy’s National Commission for the Forecast and Prevention of Major Risks, six scientists and a former government official, to six years in jail for manslaughter for providing “inexact, incomplete and contradictory” information to the public before an earthquake hit the town of L’Aquila, Italy, in 2009. The EGU’s Seismology Division has reacted to the verdict on their Division page with a statement that provides some insight on the possible consequences this case may have for the dialogue between science and society, and for scientific research itself. Read more
Job opportunity at the EGU Executive Office: Communications Assistant 22 October 2012 We are seeking to appoint a Communications Assistant to work with the EGU Media and Communications Officer in maintaining and further developing media-related and science information communications between the EGU and its membership, the working media, and the public at large. Read more
EGU announces 2013 Awards and Medals 22 October 2012 The EGU has named the 41 recipients of next year’s Union Medals and Awards, Division Medals, and Division Outstanding Young Scientist Awards. These individuals, honoured for their important contributions to the Earth, planetary, and space sciences, will receive their prizes at the 2013 EGU General Assembly taking place in Vienna on 7-12 April. Read more
Solid Earth indexed by Thomson Reuters 16 October 2012 The EGU open access journal Solid Earth is now indexed in Thomson Reuters (ISI) Web of Knowledge and will soon be listed in Science Citation Index Expanded and in Journal Citation Reports. The EGU is grateful to Solid Earth editors for their invaluable contribution to this achievement, as well as the scientific community for submitting their top research to this and other EGU journals. Read more
The EGU turns 10! 7 September 2012 Today, 7 September 2012, marks the 10th anniversary of the European Geosciences Union, Europe’s premier geosciences union. Read more
The third issue of GeoQ is out now! 3 September 2012 The September edition of the quarterly newsletter of the European Geosciences Union is now published online. This issue includes an article about Tohoku photographer Stephen Vaughan, who exhibited his work at the 2012 General Assembly, as well as articles on recent research in the Earth and planetary sciences. GeoQ#3 also features a report on EPOCA, the European Project on Ocean Acidification. Read more
EGU election for Division Presidents and Treasurer: propose a candidate 2 August 2012 From now until 15 September, you are kindly asked to propose a candidate for the vacancies of EGU Division Presidents and Treasurer by filling in the Candidate Proposal Form. Read more
Cut emissions further or face risks of high air pollution, study shows Press release 1 August 2012 Most of the world’s population will be subject to degraded air quality in 2050 if man-made emissions continue as usual. In this ‘business-as-usual’ scenario, the average world citizen 40 years from now will experience similar air pollution to that of today’s average East Asian citizen. Read more
Educators: apply now to take part in the 2013 GIFT workshop! 30 July 2012 The Geosciences Information For Teachers workshop is taking place on April 8-10 2013 at the EGU General Assembly in Vienna, Austria. The topic of the 2013 edition of GIFT is Natural Hazards, and the workshop will explore the complex relations between natural hazards – such as earthquakes, tsunamis, wildfires or floods – and society. Read more
