UJ sets the pace in Geology Research

University sets the pace in geology research: Creamer Media's Mining Weekly, South Africa - 12 Jun 2008

Geology research in South Africa is growing significantly and the internationally competitive analytical infrastructure provided at the University of Johannesburg’s (UJ’s) analytical facility is engaged in more than a dozen collaborative research programmes, with close ties being forged with the mining and industrial sectors, reports UJ geology head of department (HOD) Professor Bruce Cairncross. “Geology at UJ has consistently had an excellent international profile, particularly since it took the leading role in the Agouron Geobiology research project during recent years,” mentions Cairncross....

The analytical infrastructure of the UJ’s Faculty of Science has a unique, centralised analytical facility, housing over R75-million worth of analytical apparatus, much of which is used by geologists and mining-exploration commercial enterprises. The UJ Geology Department’s palaeomagnetic laboratory, by way of the approved upgrade and the acquisition of an automated superconducting rock magneto- meter (ASRM) will create the only fully functional, properly magnetically shielded room in Africa. The ASRM will permit the UJ geology department to become part of a consortium of palaeomagnetic laboratories collaborating with similar facilities at Caltech, MIT, Yale, and the University of Texas, in Austin, Occidental College and the US Geological Survey.

Chaiten Volcano: Images

It could be the scene from a movie: huge plumes of ash and gas rising during a ferocious volcanic eruption, sparking off a dazzling lightning storm; lightning bolts thundering to life inside and out of the hot cloud. However, this is the reality down on the ground for the people living near the Chaiten Volcano, southern Chile, who have been evacuated since the volcano erupted on Friday. Activity continues to increase, producing these terrifying, yet mesmerizing scenes… UK's Daily Mail.

WHAT A PICTURES!

Ten Questions Shaping 21st-century Earth Science Identified

ScienceDaily (Mar. 15, 2008) — Ten questions driving the geological and planetary sciences were have been identified in a new report by the National Research Council. Aimed at reflecting the major scientific issues facing earth science at the start of the 21st century, the questions represent where the field stands, how it arrived at this point, and where it may be headed.

* How did earth and other planets form?

* What happened during earth's "dark age" (the first 500 million years)?

* How did life begin?

* How does earth's interior work, and how does it affect the surface?

* Why does earth have plate tectonics and continents?

* How are earth processes controlled by material properties?

* What causes climate to change -- and how much can it change?

* How has life shaped earth -- and how has earth shaped life?

* Can earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, and their consequences be predicted?

* How do fluid flow and transport affect the human environment?

Adapted from materials provided by The National Academies