Tag: "mercury"
Geological Outings Around the Bay: New Almaden
The New Almaden area looms large in Gold Rush history. Today it's an open-air museum of California mining practices and quicksilver geology.
Post on Mar 15, 2012 by Andrew Alden from QUEST Northern California
Got Mercury? The New EPA Ruling And The San Francisco Bay
This week, after decades of legal delays and foot dragging by the coal and power industry, the EPA unveiled a new rule protecting public health from mercury and other toxins.
Post on Dec 23, 2011 by David McGuire from QUEST Northern California
Bay Area Mercury
The Bay Area's mercury problem arises from the special geology of the Coast Range that concentrates the metal in the mineral cinnabar.
Post on Jul 21, 2011 by Andrew Alden from QUEST Northern California
The Word From Mercury: MESSENGER Has Been Delivered
History has been made yet again: NASA's MESSENGER spacecraft is now in orbit around the solar system's innermost planet!
Post on Apr 08, 2011 by Ben Burress
Producer's Notes: Mercury in San Francisco Bay
Because there wasn't time in the QUEST TV segment on mercury in the bay to include information on safe fish eating practices, below are the guidelines, along with web links, to help you get plenty of Omega 3s and still keep your mercury levels low.
Post on Oct 06, 2009 by Sarah Kass
How toxic is a busted compact florescent bulb?
Which is worse for you, a can of tuna or a broken CFL bulb? Sorry, Charlie…
Post on Jun 12, 2009 by Jim Gunshinan
Mercury MESSENGER: The View Is Great; Wish You Were Here
NASA's MESSENGER spacecraft has made yet another swing past our Solar System's innermost planet, Mercury. But, like the traveler who just can't seem to get enough sightseeing in, this was another whirlwind flyby set to the furious tempo of a camera snapping pics–about 1200 in all…
Post on Oct 22, 2008 by Ben Burress
R.I.P. for CFLs? LEDs to Light our Future
I've been a cheerleader for compact fluorescent lamps (CFL) in this blog and will abandon the technology in a millisecond. When it comes to technology, my loyalties are short lived.
Post on Aug 22, 2008 by Jim Gunshinan
Messages from Mercury
MESSENGER is the space probe that NASA sent to Mercury to give the Solar System's innermost planet the first up-close look since 1975, when Mariner 10 flew by. The MESSENGER's main mission will begin in earnest when it returns to Mercury and finally settles into an orbit around the planet, on March 18th 2011.
Post on Jul 30, 2008 by Ben Burress
Planetary Robotic Roundup
NASA's MESSENGER spacecraft at Mercury-artist concept. Photo by: NASA I've been waiting for the "whole story" on Martian ice at the Phoenix lander site to unfold more completely, but the chemical analyses have not yet run their full courses-so I've decided to widen the focus on this blog to give a status report on current [...]
Post on Jul 04, 2008 by Ben Burress
Come Together, Bright Planets, Over Me….
Depiction of a major alignment of the five visible planets in 1059 BCE. Photo By Ben Burress There are some pretty good "lineups" coming soon to skies above you. First of all, "lineups," or alignments, go on in the heavens all the time, though most often they are alignments of objects too faint to easily [...]
Post on Jun 20, 2008 by Ben Burress
Vaccines: One Small Risk for a Child, One Giant Benefit for Mankind
You're as likely to be struck by lightningas to have a severe reaction to a vaccine. I was reading an article in Time last week about parents not vaccinating their children. The story was about how this phenomenon is becoming more widespread. These kinds of stories are weird to me because vaccines are pretty safe. [...]
Post on Jun 06, 2008 by Dr. Barry Starr
Mountain-top telescopes and stars that don't twinkle
Infrared image of a zebra from the London Zoo. Credit: Steve Lowe Right now I am very excited about the possibility of working on a new small telescope in southern Utah. This telescope was funded by a private donation and will be run by the University of Utah. We even found a mountain top in [...]
Post on May 05, 2008 by Kyle S. Dawson
Reporter's Notes: Mercury in the Bay – Part 2
Last week on QUEST, we took a look at the history of the San Francisco Bay's most dangerous toxin: mercury. This week, now that the mercury is here in the bay, how is it affecting us? The obvious place to go was the Berkeley Marina, one of the bay's most popular fishing spots. On the [...]
Post on Apr 25, 2008 by Amy Standen
Reporter's Notes: Mercury in the Bay – Part 1
View Larger Map In honor of Earth Day, we wanted to take a big look at a chronic environmental issue in the Bay Area, tracing it from its origins to the contemporary strategies to solve it. Mercury was the obvious choice: It's been flowing into the Bay since before California joined the union, and it [...]
Post on Apr 18, 2008 by Amy Standen
Cement – A Dirty Business
Thought California has consigned coal-burning to the scrap bin? Think again! California has 11 coal-fired power plants, all used to heat limestone into cement — making us one of the biggest cement-producing states in the country. In addition to cement, these kilns produce 95% of the state's airborne mercury pollution and 2% of its greenhouse [...]
Post on Apr 04, 2008 by Amy Standen
