Posts by geogadmin

The following article is by Joseph Stromberg, a science writer for smithsonianmag.com, posted February 26, 2014, with the title above: Sometime between six and nine million years ago, in a stretch of the Pacific Ocean just off of South America, something kept killing whales. Lots of them. At least thirty baleen whales died, their bodies washed onto a tidal mudflat and buried over time. Species of sperm whale and a walrus-like whale,...

California is experiencing one of the driest years on record. In 2013, Santa Barbara County received less than half of its average rainfall, and this year’s rainfall levels are currently 84% below normal. Lake Cachuma, our county’s main water source, is currently only filled to 39% of capacity. Regions all across the west are also experiencing extreme drought conditions, which prompted Governor Jerry Brown to declare a...

“Papahānaumokuākea Marine National Monument is the single largest conservation area under the U.S. flag, and one of the largest marine conservation areas in the world. It encompasses 139,797 square miles of the Pacific Ocean (362,073 square kilometers) – an area larger than all the country’s national parks combined. The Northwestern Hawaiian Islands Marine National Monument was established by Presidential...