Earth

Earth: Exploring Our Planet

Measuring the Health of a Marsh

August 2, 2017

Carter Smith, a PhD candidate at the UNC Institute of Marine Sciences, uses underwater sonar to count fish in low-visibility environments - a good indicator for the overall health of a marsh ecosystem.

Eyes in the Sky

July 20, 2017

Ever since the Wright brothers flew at Kitty Hawk, North Carolina has proudly proclaimed to be “first in flight." Less well-known is Carolina’s connection to deep space — from the first astronomical observatory on a college campus, to the first planetarium in the South, to one of the first administrators at NASA, UNC scientists have long been connected to and inspired by the night sky.

The 0.3 Percent

June 7, 2017

From the basalt lava fields of Hawaii to the vast white expanse of Antarctica, UNC alumna Zena Cardman has ventured to some of Earth’s most unique and remote places. Now she’s setting her sights on the ultimate frontier — space. Over 18,000 people applied to be in NASA’s newest class of astronauts, and Cardman found out on May 25 that she was among the top 12 accepted. She reports to NASA’s Johnson Space Center in August to begin her training.

Utilizing Geophysics to Uncover History

May 17, 2017

Central North Carolina is home to a vast array of historic landscapes that weave in and out of our day-to-day paths. On Saturday, April 30, Mike Shore’s Geological Archaeology class spent a day investigating the historic Ayr Mount site in Hillsborough, where several structures that once stood above ground now lie beneath the surface.

A Volcanologist’s Vigilance

May 11, 2017

As director of Ecuador’s Geophysical Institute, Mario Ruiz has monitored some of the most active (and potentially destructive) volcanoes in South America. After earning his PhD at UNC 10 years ago, Ruiz has come back to Carolina to sift through data from the recent eruption of the Cotopaxi volcano.

A RAPID Response to Hurricane Matthew

May 10, 2017

In the months following one of the most destructive hurricanes of the past decade, UNC researchers had to act fast. Using a unique grant from the NSF, they’re testing water quality in Lumberton — one of the hardest-hit places during the storm.

Keepers of Our Coast

April 11, 2017

North Carolina’s barrier islands are dynamic landforms in a state of constant change. UNC researchers want to better understand how those changes happen and what they mean for the future of our coast.

A Day in the Field

March 14, 2017

How does a beach recover after a hurricane? What are the outcomes of natural processes versus man-made interventions? These are some of the questions posed by Elsemarie deVries, a PhD student in the UNC Coastal Environmental Change Lab. Using a variety of approaches, deVries investigates the interactions between different dune-building processes. Now she is taking her expertise to a South Carolina beach recovering from the effects of Hurricane Matthew.

Celebrating Darwin Day

February 13, 2017

For over a decade, UNC scientists have committed to sustaining and protecting the unique species and ecosystems in the Galápagos Islands. In honor of Darwin Day — a celebration of the renowned naturalist's research — here’s a look at some of the iconic wildlife and cutting-edge research found in this archipelago. (photos by Mary Lide Parker)