Read the latest news about research conducted by investigators in the College of Earth and Mineral Sciences. Our faculty and students are continually advancing technology, creating solutions and expanding knowledge with new and innovative research.
News
72 undergraduate students awarded Erickson Discovery Grants
The list of 2018 Erickson Discovery Grants has been released, and 72 students from Penn State campuses will have their work bolstered by a $3,500 grant from the Office of Undergraduate Education.
Stay ahead of frost with new prediction tools developed by Penn State students
Four enterprising Penn State students are determined to further merge meteorologists with industry by delivering critical weather information to decision makers using advanced visualization techniques.
Deep Italian cave provides clues for how to detect life on Mars
What can a massive cave in Italy tell us about life on Mars and other planets? According to new research by Penn State scientists, a whole lot. In work published in Astrobiology, Penn State researchers identified biosignatures — or signs of the presence of life — about 1,300 feet below ground in the Frasassi Caves in central Italy.
Fighting fire with societal norms
There are a few statistics about women firefighters that stand out to Penn State researcher Lorraine Dowler. Women account for about 7 percent of firefighters nationwide. Men and women firefighters have the same average age, but women are paid $10,000 less, on average, according to U.S. Census Bureau data.
One-fifth of carbon entering coastal waters of eastern North America is buried
Coastal waters play an important role in the carbon cycle by transferring carbon to the open ocean or burying it in wetland soils and ocean sediments, a new study shows.
New sodium-ion electrolyte may find use in solid-state batteries
A newly discovered structure of a sodium-based material allows the materials to be used as an electrolyte in solid-state batteries, according to researchers from Penn State and Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL). The team is fine-tuning the material using an iterative design approach that they hope will shave years off the time from research to everyday use.
Earth and mineral sciences grad students lauded at annual research exhibition
Batteries, earthquakes, Earth science modeling, water flow and natural gas leakage — these are the research topics of the five graduate students in the College of Earth and Mineral Sciences who received honors in Penn State's 33rd annual Research Exhibition.
Wider coverage of satellite data better detects magma supply to volcanoes
Using satellite imaging, Penn State researchers for the first time identified a major magma supply into a reservoir extending almost 2 miles from the crater of a volcano in Nicaragua.
41 graduate students earn awards at 33rd annual Graduate Exhibition
Forty-one graduate students received awards for their research and creative scholarship in the 33rd annual Graduate Exhibition, held March 23 and 25 on Penn State's University Park campus. A complete list of winners is available below.
Designing a new material for improved ultrasound
Development of a theoretical basis for ultrahigh piezoelectricity in ferroelectric materials led to a new material with twice the piezo response of any existing commercial ferroelectric ceramics, according to an international team of researchers from Penn State, China and Australia.