News By Location

News from WA

Select a state to view local articles and features

Tethys: A robust source of information on marine energy, offshore wind projects

DOE/Pacific Northwest National Laboratory

Wondering what the impact on killer whales might be from a turbine installed under the sea? Check out Tethys, a robust online resource available for free to anyone interested in ocean energy and offshore wind resources. Tethys focuses on the environmental effects of energy projects that are proposed, underway or completed in the ocean and above it.

What lies beneath

DOE/Environmental Molecular Sciences Laboratory

The effects of biogeochemical and geochemical processes in the ground under us are on massive scales. Understanding what's going on down there and how it effects what's going on up here is an enormous undertaking. Scientists working at EMSL are getting a handle on these gigantic macroscopic processes by focusing on the microscopic scale. By creating micromodels and incorporating supercomputer simulations, researchers are connecting the molecular level with processes that affect our entire ecosystem.

Whales hear us more than we realize

DOE/Pacific Northwest National Laboratory
Peer-Reviewed Publication

Killer whales and other marine mammals likely hear sonar signals more than we've known. That's because commercially available sonar systems, which are designed to create signals beyond the range of hearing of such animals, also emit signals known to be within their hearing range, scientists have discovered.

Journal: PLOS One
Funder: US Department of Energy's Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy

How a plant beckons the bacteria that will do it harm

DOE/Pacific Northwest National Laboratory
Peer-Reviewed Publication

A common plant puts out a welcome mat to bacteria seeking to invade, and scientists have discovered the mat's molecular mix. The team showed that the humble and oft-studied plant Arabidopsis puts out a molecular signal that invites an attack from a pathogen. The study reveals new targets during the battle between microbe, which often infects tomatoes, and host that researchers can exploit to protect plants.

Journal: Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences
Funder: National Science Foundation

Halving hydrogen

DOE/Pacific Northwest National Laboratory
Peer-Reviewed Publication

Like a hungry diner ripping open a dinner roll, a fuel cell catalyst that converts hydrogen into electricity must tear open a hydrogen molecule. Now researchers have captured a view of such a catalyst holding onto the two halves of its hydrogen feast. The view confirms previous hypotheses and provides insight into how to make the catalyst work better for alternative energy uses, researchers reported in Angewandte Chemie International Edition.

Journal: Angewandte Chemie International Edition
Funder: DOE/US Department of Energy

Significant baseline levels of arsenic found in Ohio soils are due to natural processes

DOE/Pacific Northwest National Laboratory
Peer-Reviewed Publication

Geologic and soil processes are to blame for significant baseline levels of arsenic in soil throughout Ohio, according to a new study. The findings pose a challenge for regulators, who must determine what levels should trigger action when natural arsenic levels everywhere are above suggested screening standards.

Journal: Journal of Environmental Quality
Funder: Ohio Department of Natural Resources-Division of Wildlife, Division of Geological Survey, US Geological Survey

Relieving electric vehicle range anxiety with improved batteries

DOE/Pacific Northwest National Laboratory
Peer-Reviewed Publication

A new, PNNL-developed nanomaterial called a metal organic framework could extend the lifespan of lithium-sulfur batteries, which could be used to increase the driving range of electric vehicles.

Journal: Nano Letters
Funder: DOE/US Department of Energy

Making dams safer for fish around the world

DOE/Pacific Northwest National Laboratory
Peer-Reviewed Publication

The pressure changes that many fish experience when they travel through the turbulent waters near a dam can seriously injure or kill the fish. Scientists from around the world, including areas like Southeast Asia and Brazil where huge dams are planned or under construction, are working together to protect fish from the phenomenon, known as barotrauma.

Journal: Fisheries
Funder: DOE/US Department of Energy, US Army Corps of Engineers Institute for Water Resources

Tapping into the metabolome

DOE/Pacific Northwest National Laboratory

Metabolomics -- a field often called "the last 'omics frontier" -- seeks to understand the fundamental metabolic workings of a cell in a changing environment. Scientists at EMSL use mass spectrometers, nuclear magnetic resonance, imaging devices and other cutting-edge instruments to glean the information to help produce better fuels, crops and other bioproducts.

The rush to rain

DOE/Pacific Northwest National Laboratory
Peer-Reviewed Publication

A new analysis of satellite data reveals a link between dust in North Africa and West Asia and stronger Indian monsoons. The study in Nature Geoscience shows that dust in the air absorbs sunlight west of India, warming the air and strengthening the winds carrying moisture eastward, raining down in India about a week later. The results explain one way that dust can affect the climate, filling in previously unknown details about the Earth system.

Journal: Nature Geoscience
Funder: Department of Energy

55
56
57
58
59