earth

Picture of the outter-banks from the beach

Keepers of Our Coast

North Carolina’s barrier islands are dynamic landforms in a state of constant change. UNC researchers...
Elsemarie deVries flies a kite out on the beach with a camera attached to conduct an aerial survey

A Day in the Field

How does a beach recover after a hurricane? What are the outcomes of natural processes...
A pelican rests, overlooking the Malecon near Academy Bay

Celebrating Darwin Day

For over a decade, UNC scientists have committed to sustaining and protecting the unique species...
Weida Gong collects a water sample for sequencing from the Neuse River

Sequencing the Sea

Marine scientists at UNC are taking a new approach to figuring out why and how...
Berk Biryol observes a large, gray rock.

Detective Work Deep in the Earth

UNC College of Arts & Sciences seismologist Berk Biryol takes a crack at understanding how...
Photo of the wondersphere with flowers in it.

World of Wonder

The North Carolina Botanical Garden’s Katie Stoudemire brings the outdoors inside, making nature safe for...
Tamlin Pavelsky stands in front of a NASA KingAir B200

The Weight of the Water on Their Shoulders

From rivers in the backcountry of Alaska, down the Sierra mountains, up into space, and...
Infographic: Some Research notes on the Sharks of North Carolina by the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill. The blacknose and Atlantic sharpenose are some of the most common shark species observed by UNC Researchers. Blacknose shark averages 8.3 feet and the Atlantic sharpnose shark averages 2.4 feet. Sharks have been on Earth over 400 million year. 50 different shark species can be found in North Carolina waters. Large sharks in North Carolina are down by 50% since the 1970s. Commercial and recreational fishing have contributed to decreasing shark populations. In the past 45 years, UNC has surveyed approximately 7,000 sharks; the average shark studies is 3 feet long. The UNC institute of Marine Sciences has studies sharks in North Carolina waters since 1972, making it the longest running shark research program in the nation. To learn more about shark research in North Carolina, visit imc dot unc dot edu.

Uncharted Territory: Using Drones to Detect Sharks

Ever since he was a kid, Martín Benavides has viewed sharks a little differently than...
Infographic showing the flow of UNC's drinking water. Step 1: Water is pumped from University Lake and Cane Creek Reservoir. Step 2: It is then treated at the Orange Water and Sewer Authority on Jones Ferry Road. Step 3: After treatment, it heads to the UNC campus.

Reconstituting Rain, Revitalizing Rivers

Water experts within the UNC Sustainability Office and Institute for the Environment strive to make...