What It’s Really Like to Live in an Ecovillage Community

Treading lightly on the earth is very important to my … The post What It’s Really Like to Live in an Ecovillage Community appeared first on Earth911.com.

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What It’s Really Like to Live in an Ecovillage Community

Scientists just created a new "super wood" that’s stronger than steel

Spider silk has long held the record for being the strongest biomaterial on Earth — but that just changed. Scientists at KTH Royal Institute of Technology used wood nanofibers to create a new biomaterial that is even stronger than spider silk. Researchers “densified” wood to turn an already sturdy material into a “super wood” that is as strong as steel. To accomplish this, researchers aligned tiny cellulose nanofibrils (CNF) in the same direction to create tightly-packed little bundles. These bundles form a material that is super strong and could be used in everything from cars and planes to furniture. “This discovery is made possible by understanding and controlling the key fundamental parameters essential for perfect nanostructuring, such as particle size, interactions, alignment, diffusion, network formation and assembly,” said study co-author Daniel Söderberg. Related: Body armor could be made from genetically engineered spider silk “The bio-based nanocellulose fibers fabricated here are eight times stiffer and have strengths higher than natural dragline spider silk fibers, generally considered to be the strongest bio-based material,” Söderberg said. “The specific strength is exceeding that of metals, alloys, ceramics and E-glass fibers.” The study was published this week in the journal ACS NANO . + KTH Royal Institute of Technology Via New Atlas Image via KTH and Deposit Photos

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Scientists just created a new "super wood" that’s stronger than steel

Pick the Mother’s Day Gift That’s Best for Mother Earth

Ever since Mothering Sunday, a 17th-century British tradition, evolved into … The post Pick the Mother’s Day Gift That’s Best for Mother Earth appeared first on Earth911.com.

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Pick the Mother’s Day Gift That’s Best for Mother Earth

Massive sinkhole in New Zealand exposes earth from 60,000 years ago

After days of heavy rain last week, some New Zealand residents got a big surprise when a massive six-story sinkhole suddenly appeared. The sinkhole is one of largest ever spotted in the country – so big, in fact, that it exposed earth from the Paleolithic era. The astonishing fissure is 656 feet long, 66 feet deep and 16 feet wide. The sinkhole opened up near a dairy farm on the Bay of Plenty in New Zealand. While the farm has had nine “serious” sinkholes, known in New Zealand as “tomos,” the farmers weren’t quite prepared for something of this magnitude. The sinkhole formed along a known fault line in the area after a deluge of rain. Related: World’s largest cluster of massive sinkholes discovered in China #WATCH The incredible sinkhole that opened up on a Bay of Plenty farm is the biggest @gnsscience volcanologist @Eruptn has ever seen. It's revealed 60,000 year old soil and is threatening road access. @zacflemng reports. https://t.co/z0bJVbG00k — Checkpoint (@CheckpointRNZ) May 2, 2018 Brad Scott, a volcanologist, said that this is the largest sinkhole he’s ever seen. While images of the sinkhole might look like the aftermath of an earthquake , rain was the sole culprit. New Zealand experienced the heaviest rain it has had in 50 years, with some areas getting a month’s worth of rain in an hour. According to farm manager Colin Tremain, they plan to just leave the sinkhole as it is, because it would be a huge task to fill it. “I was watching it in the rain, huge amounts of water going in, it wasn’t even filling up with water, it’s just going straight out the bottom,” he said. Via The Mirror Image via Wikimedia

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Massive sinkhole in New Zealand exposes earth from 60,000 years ago

Hawaii’s Kilauea volcano erupts, forcing hundreds of residents to evacuate

Kilauea, the most active volcano on Hawaii’s Big Island, erupted late yesterday after a spate of earthquakes . The state’s governor, David Ige, declared a local state of emergency. There are active volcanic vents on the Makamae and Mohala streets, and hundreds of residents have been ordered to evacuate. The eruption on Thursday took place at Kilauea volcano’s East Rift Zone — and Hawaii News Now said Leilani Estates subdivision residents fled with little but the clothes they were wearing. There was another eruption on Friday, and at least a dozen more earthquakes have shaken the area. Related: After 250 earthquakes in 24 hours, Hawaii’s Kilauea volcano might erupt In the wake of the eruption, schools have closed, and so has a geothermal power plant. The Hawaii Fire Department reported “extremely high levels of dangerous sulfur dioxide gas detected in the evacuation area.” The County of Hawaii Civil Defense Agency has ordered mandatory evacuations for multiple subdivisions, and Gizmodo reported  that around 1,700 people reside in the immediate evacuation area, although more than 10,000 people live in the volcano’s vicinity. Emergency shelters opened at community centers. Ige has activated Hawaii’s National Guard, and Hawaii senator Brian Schatz said on Twitter that the Federal Emergency Management Agency is mobilizing resources and is monitoring “for forest fires , power outages, and water supply disruption.” Hawaii News Now spoke to Ikaika Marzo, who was one of the first people in Leilani Estates to see active lava , and he reportedly saw fountains about 100 feet high. Another local resident told the news outlet, “My family is safe, the rest of the stuff can be replaced. When I bought here 14 years, I knew that this day would eventually come. But the reality is sinking in now.” + County of Hawaii Via Hawaii News Now and Gizmodo Images via U.S. Geological Survey

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Hawaii’s Kilauea volcano erupts, forcing hundreds of residents to evacuate

Scientists just detected helium in an exoplanet’s atmosphere for the first time

For the first time, researchers have identified the presence of helium within the atmosphere of a planet beyond our solar system, offering yet another glimpse into the weather patterns of exoplanets. This discovery is particularly notable for the methods used to detect helium, demonstrating that it is possible to identify the atmospheric composition of some exoplanets with current technology. Although scientists have long expected to find helium on large exoplanets, its presence on planet WASP-107b has now been confirmed, thanks to a technique that involves analysis of the light spectrum of the upper levels of the planet’s atmosphere. “We hope to use this technique with the upcoming James Webb Space Telescope,” said lead researcher Jessica Spake in a statement. “For example, to learn what kind of planets have large envelopes of hydrogen and helium, and how long planets can hold on to their atmospheres . By measuring infrared light, we can see further out into space than if we were using ultraviolet light .” Related: The Earth-like planets orbiting this star could hold 250 times more water than Earth An ultra-low-density planet, WASP-107b is roughly equivalent to the size of Jupiter but only has 12 percent of that planet’s mass. WASP-107, the star around which WASP-107b orbits every six days, is so powerful that it is gradually dissolving the exoplanet’s atmosphere. As a result, WASP-107b leaves a comet-like trail of helium in its wake. “The helium we detected extends far out to space as a tenuous cloud surrounding the planet,” explained study co-author Tom Evans in a statement . “If smaller, Earth-sized planets have similar helium clouds, this new technique offers an exciting means to study their upper atmospheres in the very near future.” Via Space.com and Nature Images via Nature / EngineHouseVFX and ESA/Hubble, NASA, M. Kornmesser

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Scientists just detected helium in an exoplanet’s atmosphere for the first time

This prefab movable house can be assembled anywhere

On the go? Not a problem. This movable, prefab house from Swiss studio Rahbaran Hürzeler Architekten can be built and installed almost anywhere. The architects developed the project as an experiment in designing a space that can be assembled and transported easily and quickly. Every aspect of the project is designed around mobility, including the structure and floor plans. The house can stand alone or can connect to another building. Four timber cores are the only load-bearing structures that support the concrete roof. Related: zeroHouse offers luxurious living in a fully self-sustaining modular home The structure has four main areas organized around a circular central space, which establishes a flexibility that allows multiple occupants to adapt the design to their own needs and preferences. This also allows users to adjust the organization of the house to a specific site. The floor, made from concrete, can be hauled by truck. Four prefabricated timber cores stand on the floor and create five functional spaces — a kitchen, living room and two bedrooms. The first prototype of the movable home is slated for construction in Basel , Switzerland. It will feature a system of sensors that that allow the occupants to monitor the home’s performance over the course of one year. The architects plan to use this data to further develop and enhance the design. + Rahbaran Hürzeler Architekten Via Archinect

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This prefab movable house can be assembled anywhere

After 250 earthquakes in 24 hours, Hawaii’s Kilauea volcano might erupt

Out of the five volcanoes on Hawaii’s Big Island, Kilauea is the most active — and it’s threatening to erupt. After a collapse event at the Pu’u ‘?’? vent, in the volcano’s East Rift Zone, around 250 earthquakes happened. Authorities are warning people to remain on alert, because scientists observed magma flowing under a main road close to houses. Will Kilauea erupt? Seismic activity could result in a lava breakout, but Hawaiian Volcano Observatory scientists can’t say exactly what time or where it might happen. The crater collapse and earthquakes are “associated with the continued intrusion of magma into the East Rift Zone to locations east of Highway 130. An outbreak of lava from the lower East Rift Zone remains a possible outcome of the continued unrest,” according to the observatory. The Independent said there are homes in that part of the island, and Highway 130 leads to an access point enabling visitors to hike or cycle to a lava viewing area. Related: Mesmerizing volcano “skylights” give a glimpse under the Earth’s surface Local residents have noticed cracks in roads near the Leilani Estates subdivision, but so far neither heat nor steam have been observed escaping from the cracks, which are small. The Hawaii County Civil Defense Agency said areas that could be impacted are Leilani Estates, Nanawale Estates or Kapoho. The Hawaiian Volcano Observatory offered resources for those who want to stay updated about Kilauea ; sign up for notification emails from the Volcano Notification Service at this USGS website or sign up for the Civil Defense Emergency Notification System at the County of Hawaii website . The volcano’s activity hasn’t always been explosive in the past, but a 1924 eruption spewed ash and rocks into the air and killed one man. The summit crater gushed rock and lava across 75 acres in 2008, and a view point was damaged. + Hawaiian Volcano Observatory (1, 2) + County of Hawaii Via The Independent and CNN Images via Depositphotos and U.S. Geological Survey

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After 250 earthquakes in 24 hours, Hawaii’s Kilauea volcano might erupt

The Earth-like planets orbiting this star could hold 250 times more water than Earth

Recent research suggests that some of the Earth-size planets orbiting the star TRAPPIST-1 could carry more water than our own planet. TRAPPIST-1 is an ultra-cool red dwarf discovered in 1999, and its planets were first documented within the past few years. Scientists have measured the density of TRAPPIST-1’s planets and concluded that the mass of some of these planets may be composed of five percent water – roughly 250 times the amount of water found in our planet’s oceans. Stars such as TRAPPIST-1 are of particular interest to astronomers because their size and faintness allows for more in-depth study of orbiting planets. Through the European Union-funded SPECULOOS project, scientists have been able to focus on these planets as they search for life beyond Earth . Researchers have also observed differences based on the planets’ distance from their sun. For example, planets closest to TRAPPIST-1 may contain thick, steamy atmospheres while outer planets may be covered in ice. Perhaps most importantly, astronomers have concluded that the lack of a hydrogen -rich atmosphere on three planets indicates that they are not gaseous and therefore much more likely candidates for harboring extraterrestrial life. Related: Two Trappist-1 planets are highly likely to be habitable The intensive study of the TRAPPIST-1 system is only in its early stages. In 2020, NASA and the European Space Agency will launch the James Webb Space Telescope, which will be capable of detecting possible molecules of biological origin. “In the temperate – and potentially habitable – Earth-size regime, SPECULOOS’s detection potential should be significantly better,” Dr. Michaël Gillon from the University of Liège, Belgium told Science Magazine . “The next years are going to be very exciting!” Gillon plans on expanding the observation of Earth-like planets by searching through 1,000 stars similar to TRAPPIST-1. Via Phys.org Images via NASA (1)

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The Earth-like planets orbiting this star could hold 250 times more water than Earth

EU approves complete ban on bee-killing insecticides

In a monumental decision that has been years in the making , all member nations of the European Union have approved a total ban of neonicotinoids, the most widely used insecticide in the world and a well-documented danger to bees and other pollinators. The ban is expected to go into effect by the end of this year, though use of the insecticide will still be allowed in greenhouses . The rapidly declining population of pollinator species in recent years is in part due to the widespread use of harmful pesticides. The ban should result in a healthier pollinator population, which is essential for global food production. The vote follows recent studies that have confirmed the danger that neonicotinoids pose to pollinators, directly and through water and soil contamination. “The commission had proposed these measures months ago, on the basis of the scientific advice from [the EU ‘s scientific risk assessors],” Vytenis Andriukaitis, European commissioner for Health and Food Safety, told the Guardian . “Bee health remains of paramount importance for me since it concerns biodiversity, food production and the environment.” Related: NASA has a plan to put robot bees on Mars This policy change pleased activists. “Finally, our governments are listening to their citizens, the scientific evidence and farmers who know that bees can’t live with these chemicals, and we can’t live without bees,” Antonia Staats at Avaaz said. Meanwhile, industry representatives disapproved. “European agriculture will suffer as a result of this decision,” Graeme Taylor, of the European Crop Protection Association , said. “Perhaps not today, perhaps not tomorrow, but in time decision makers will see the clear impact of removing a vital tool for farmers.” Research suggests that Taylor’s concerns are unfounded, while the dramatic decline in pollinator populations — which will continue to occur without action — proves disastrous for food production. Via The Guardian Images via Depositphotos (1)

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EU approves complete ban on bee-killing insecticides

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