News By Location

News from WA

Select a state to view local articles and features

Error correction means California's future wetter winters may never come

DOE/Pacific Northwest National Laboratory
Peer-Reviewed Publication

After probing a persistent error in widely used models, PNNL researchers estimate that California will likely experience drier winters in the future than projected by some climate models, meaning residents may see less spring runoff, higher spring temperatures, and an increased risk of wildfire in coming years.

Funder: Department of Energy Office of Science Biological and Environmental Research, Regional and Global Modeling and Analysis program area.
Meeting: AGU's fall meeting

Urban land and aerosols amplify hazardous weather, steer storms toward cities

DOE/Pacific Northwest National Laboratory
Peer-Reviewed Publication

Urban landscapes and human-made aerosols have the potential to not only make gusts stronger and hail larger; they can also start storms sooner and even pull them toward cities, according to new research exploring the impact of urban development on hazardous weather.

Journal: Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics
Funder: DOE's Office of Science and the National Science Foundation, a DOE Office of Science user facility. Additional support for DESI is provided by the U.S. National Science Foundation, National Energy Research Scientific Computing Center
Meeting: AGU's fall meeting

Stronger cobalt for fuel cells

DOE/Pacific Northwest National Laboratory

A multi-institutional effort led to the design of a highly active and more durable catalyst made from cobalt, which sets the foundation for fuel cells to power transportation, stationary and backup power, and more.

Renewable energy advances in marine clean energy

DOE/Pacific Northwest National Laboratory

A special issue of the Marine Technology Society Journal focuses on research and development efforts among industry, academia, and national laboratories, including PNNL. The issue was guest edited by Alicia Gorton, a project manager and ocean engineer at PNNL.

Single-crystal technology holds promise for next-generation lithium-ion batteries

DOE/Pacific Northwest National Laboratory
Peer-Reviewed Publication

Scientists have improved a promising battery technology, creating a single-crystal, nickel-rich cathode that is hardier and more efficient than before. It's one step toward improved lithium-ion batteries that are common in electric vehicles today. Increasing nickel content in the cathode is on the drawing board of lithium-ion battery makers largely because of its relatively low cost, wide availability and low toxicity compared to other key battery materials, such as cobalt.

Journal: Science
Funder: US Department of Energy's Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy's Vehicle Technologies Office

Managing ecosystem restoration: What does success look like?

DOE/Pacific Northwest National Laboratory

A PNNL-led study is noting a strategic approach is needed for advancing effective large-scale ecosystem restoration outcomes to maximize both ecological and economic benefits.

Wildfire risk rising as scientists determine which conditions beget blazes

DOE/Pacific Northwest National Laboratory
Peer-Reviewed Publication

As wildfires burn more often across the Western U.S., PNNL researchers are working to understand how extensively blazes burn. Their investigation, aided by machine learning techniques that sort fires by the conditions that precede them, not only reveals that the risk of wildfire is rising, but also spells out the role moisture plays in estimating fire risk.

Funder: DOE/US Department of Energy
Meeting: American Geophysical Union's 2020 fall meeting

New machine learning tool tracks urban traffic congestion

DOE/Pacific Northwest National Laboratory
Peer-Reviewed Publication

Using public data from the entire 1,500-square-mile Los Angeles metropolitan area, PNNL researchers reduced the time needed to create a traffic congestion model by an order of magnitude, from hours to minutes.

Funder: Energy Efficient Mobility Systems Program., The project was supported by the U.S. Department of Energy's Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy's Vehicle Technologies Office
Meeting: Urban Computing Workshop as part of the Knowledge Discovery and Data Mining (SIGKDD)

Wind power off the Oregon coast could provide more than electricity

DOE/Pacific Northwest National Laboratory

A recent study found that 2 to 3 gigawatts of electricity from winds off the coast of Oregon could be carried by current transmission lines. That's enough to power up to 1 million homes--a significant number since there are 1.5 million homes in Oregon. But just as significantly, it also means that delivering that power would not require much additional investment in new transmission infrastructure.

PNNL scientists elected AAAS fellows

DOE/Pacific Northwest National Laboratory
Grant and Award Announcement

Two Pacific Northwest National Laboratory researchers, one a world-leading authority on microorganisms and their impact on soil and human health, and the other an expert on coastal ecosystem restoration, have been elected fellows of the American Association for the Advancement of Science.

30
31
32
33
34