Though they cover 30 percent of Earth’s total land area, we know remarkably little about how much biomass and carbon are contained in the planet’s forests. A new satellite will be launched by the European Space Agency (ESA) in an attempt to expand this area of knowledge, and learn more about the viability of current and future conservation tactics. The satellite, named Biomass, will use advanced sensors to map and monitor every tree-covered portion of the planet, “weighing” their biomass and hidden carbon. ESA scientists hope new data collected by the satellites will help researchers understand better the role trees play in the cycling of carbon on Earth and, by extension, the influence this has on the planet’s climate.

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Post tags: biomass, carbon storage, Climate Change, conservation, european space agency, global warming, Satellite, Trees

Read the rest of Foster + Partners Unveil Plans for 3D-Printed Moon Base!

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Post tags: 3d printed lunar base, Alta SpA, eco design, esa, european space agency, Foster and Partners, green design, Monolite U, moon colonization, Scuola Superiore Sant'Anna, sustainable design

The European Space Agency (ESA) just launched its second polar-orbiting weather satellite into space. The MetOp-B satellite, which is about the size of a bus, will ensure the continuity of the weather and atmospheric monitoring service provided by its predecessor MetOp-A. The older satellite has been circling the globe from pole to pole, 14 times a day, since 2006 and it has now exceeded its design lifetime. Upon deployment in space, MetOp-B will deliver next-generation weather imagery and global information about the planet’s ever-changing climate systems.

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Post tags: atmosphere monitoring, Climate Change, esa, european space agency, global warming, MetOp-A, MetOp-B, Satellite, weather monitoring, weather satellite

The UK’s Environmental Audit Committee has released a report titled “Protecting the Arctic” in which Members of Parliament call for a halt on oil drilling in the region until several concerns are addressed. The concerns include the need for a pan-Arctic oil spill response standard, stricter financial liability regimes for oil and gas operations that require companies to prove that they can meet the costs of cleaning up, and an internationally recognized environmental sanctuary established in at least part of the Arctic.

Read the rest of UK Politicians Call For Ban On Arctic Drilling Due To Safety Concerns

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Post tags: Arctic Drilling, arctic ice, arctic ocean, arctic oil drilling, arctic summer sea ice, cryosat 2, environmental audit commitee, esa, european space agency, joan walley, summer ice, UK government, UK MPs, university college of london

Back in August, the US National Snow and Ice Data Center (NSIDC)) reported that over 900 cubic kilometers of summer sea ice had disappeared from the Arctic ocean over the past year. At the time, that was a loss 50% greater than figures predicted by most polar scientists. However, now the NSIDC is reporting that the Arctic sea ice has reached its minimum extent for the year, equal to 1.32 million square miles. This is the lowest seasonal minimum extent noted in the satellite record since 1979.

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Post tags: arctic ice, arctic ocean, arctic sea ice, arctic summer sea ice, cryosat 2, esa, european space agency, summer ice, university college of london, us national snow and ice data center

The problem with nuclear energy has always been the radioactive waste that it produces. However the UK’s National Nuclear Laboratory has decided to take a large store of waste plutonium at the Sellafield nuclear reprocessing site and use it to crate nuclear batteries to power the European Space Agency‘s spacecraft.

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Post tags: curiousity rover, esa, european space agency, national nuclear laboratory, nuclear batteries, nuclear energy, nuclear power, nuclear waste, plutonium, sellafield nuclear reprocessing site, space batteries, spacecraft

After the Gulf of Mexico disaster revealed the perils of deep water drilling to the public, there was a lot of opposition to similar projects proposed in the Arctic. Now, after six years of campaigning, oil company Shell has begun its Arctic exploration campaign despite worldwide protests. However the oil company is facing problems with the $4.5 billion project; a 30 mile by 12 mile block of ice is heading its way.

Read the rest of Shell’s Arctic Oil Drilling Efforts Halted by Massive Rogue Iceberg

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Post tags: arctic exploration campaign, arctic ice, arctic ocean, arctic sea ice, arctic summer sea ice, cryosat 2, esa, european space agency, gulf of mexico disaster, offshore drilling, rogue iceberg, Shell, shell oil exploration, summer ice, university college of london, us national snow and ice data center

Satellites recently showed that Arctic ice is melting 50% faster than expected, and that sea ice levels are set to hit a record low. Now ice scientist Professor Peter Wadhams has revealed to BBC Newsnight that if the planet was to lose the Arctic ice then the impact would “effectively doubl[e] mankind’s contribution to global warming”.

Read the rest of Impact of Melting Arctic Ice Will Be Equal to Unleashing 20 Years Of CO2 Emissions

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Post tags: arctic ice, arctic melting rate, arctic ocean, arctic sea ice, arctic summer sea ice, CO2 emissions, cryosat 2, esa, european space agency, peter wadhams, summer ice, university college of london, us national snow and ice data center

Last week we reported that The European Space Agency’s CryoSat 2 probe had completed its 18-month-long mission and revealed that over 900 cubic kilometers of summer sea ice had disappeared from the Arctic ocean over the past year. That’s a loss 50% greater than figures predicted by most polar scientists. Now scientists at the US National Snow and Ice Data Center have stated that Arctic sea ice is set to hit a record low by the end of this month.

Read the rest of Arctic Sea Ice to Hit Record Low This Month According to US National Snow and Ice Data Center Reports

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Post tags: arctic ice, arctic ocean, arctic sea ice, arctic summer sea ice, cryosat 2, esa, european space agency, summer ice, university college of london, us national snow and ice data center

The European Space Agency’s CryoSat 2 probe has completed its 18-month-long mission and the results are disturbing. According to data being analyzed at the Centre for Polar Observation and Modelling at University College London (UCL), over 900 cubic kilometres of summer sea ice has disappeared from the Arctic ocean over the past year. That’s a loss 50% greater than figures predicted by most polar scientists.

Read the rest of CryoSat 2 Probe Shows Summer Arctic Sea Ice Melting 50% Faster Than Expected

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Post tags: arctic ice, arctic ocean, arctic summer sea ice, cryosat 2, esa, european space agency, summer ice, university college of london

What if you could launch into space using a conventional runway and a hydrogen-powered engine with no booster rockets? That’s the idea behind Reaction Engines’ new green Skylon space plane concept. And the European Space Agency is taking the idea seriously, having just given their approval to the plans for the Skylon during a recent technical review. The ESA said of the Skylon, “ESA has not identified any critical topics that would prevent a successful development of the engine.”

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Post tags: alternative transportation, european space agency, Reaction Engines, rocket plane, Skylon Space Plane, space plane

Thanks to space travel and the European Space Agency, glass is now being produced more efficiently than ever before. Now you would be forgiven for thinking glass production was already quite green –  you need sand and heat and that’s it, so what could the ESA do to make it even more efficient? Well it seems that the technology used in space is being utilized to produce super-efficient energy-saving windows that protect occupants against heat loss during cold weather and against overheating on warm summer days.

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Post tags: ESCUBE, european space agency, glass production, hammer escube, international space station, space glass, space sensors

When we’re told about newly released satellite images of our Earth, we imagine beautiful swathes of green and blue with the occasional white of swirling storm clouds or snow-topped mountain ranges. But rarely do we picture a multi-colored root vegetable. ‘Potato Earth’ is the name being given to the new images of the globe as created by the European Space Agency’s (ESA) incredibly sleek GOCE satellite. The new map, known as a ‘geoid,’ traces the varying degrees of influence that the pull of gravity from the mass of rock under our feet has on the earth’s surface with unrivaled precision.

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Post tags: Climate Change, daniel c jones, earthquakes, esa goce, esa goce satellite, european space agency, goce geoid, goce satellite, gravitational pull, ocean currents, potato earth

Ever wonder what the shift to a global agricultural system has done to vegetation levels? The European Space Agency plans to find out with Proba-V, a laboratory table-sized microsatellite that can provide an overview of the planet’s vegetation growth on a daily basis.

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Post tags: eco design, esa, european space agency, green design, pproba v, Satellite, space, sustainable design, vegetation