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EarthDate

EarthDate

Von: Switch Energy Alliance
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 EarthDate is a short-format weekly audio program delivering concise, science-based stories about the Earth: its geology, environments, and the processes that shape our planet over deep time and today. Beginning in 2026, EarthDate is managed by Switch Energy Alliance and hosted by SEA's founder Dr. Scott W. Tinker. Together, we explore earth systems, natural resources, and their relevance to everyday life, with a focus on clear, accessible science education for broad audiences. EarthDate is written and directed by Emmy-winning filmmaker Harry Lynch, and researched by Lynn Kistler. We search for captivating stories to remind listeners that science can enlighten, educate and entertain.Copyright 2026 EarthDate
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  • California’s Sinking Valley

    California’s Sinking Valley
    Feb 24 2026
    California’s Central Valley is an agricultural bonanza, producing a third of America’s food crops. But it’s facing serious water challenges. The valley floor is 20,000 sq miles of some of the most fertile soil on Earth. Here, the sun shines 300 days a year. More than 250 different crops grow, worth $17 billion per year. The valley was developed into farmland around the turn of the twentieth century. When farmers arrived, they began to drill wells into the fresh-water aquifers below. By the 1930s, scientists began to notice an impact. Some of the aquifers, with their water levels and pressure drawn down, compacted. This meant they would never refill to earlier levels, and the land above them subsided. This continued into the 1970s, when sinking land, up to 30 ft in parts of the valley, had damaged roads, bridges, and buildings so dramatically that California spent millions to repair them and built canals to bring in water. The problem was alleviated—until conservation elsewhere in the state reduced water in the canals and valley farmers pulled hard on their wells again. The wells remained unregulated until 2012, when California passed serious water legislation. It will be decades before it’s fully phased in, but the hardest-hit areas are being addressed now. In the meantime, the valley floor and the water table continue to fall.
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    2 Min.
  • Stories Hidden in Pollen

    Stories Hidden in Pollen
    Feb 24 2026
    Grains of pollen are like Mother Nature’s fingerprints, allowing scientists to track the migratory paths of dinosaurs and solve long-cold murder cases. Flowering plants evolved 100 million years ago, and within 30 million years dominated the planet. Today, there are almost 400,000 species. One reason for their global success is their remarkable fertilization system. A single flower can produce hundreds of thousands of pollen grains, which can be distributed by the wind, insects, or animals, fertilizing other plants miles away. Each plant produces a distinct-looking pollen grain. And each place on Earth, even each square block or backyard garden, has a distinct mix of plants. By studying the mix of pollen grains found on a person, animal, or object, scientists can now tell precisely where they have been. And since pollen is highly durable, outlasting the plants that produced it by thousands of years and surviving in the fossil record for millions, scientists can use it for ancient detective work. Recently, paleontologists used fossil pollen in the digestive tracts of dinosaurs to tell what they ate and where. Forensic palynologists now use pollen found on murder victims and suspects to place them in the same location, or even to discover where bodies have been hidden. The new science of palynology is cross-pollinating many other fields, allowing a deeper understanding of Earth.
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    2 Min.
  • Melting Permafrost

    Melting Permafrost
    Feb 24 2026
    Since 2000, the Arctic has warmed more than other areas, up to 5°F. And that’s beginning to melt the permafrost. In the Arctic winter, the earth is frozen, from tens to thousands of feet down. In summer, the top several feet melt, creating a so-called active layer where plants can take root. Below that is permafrost: frozen soil that contains a great deal of ice. For these regions, it’s like bedrock—stabilizing the active layer and providing a solid footing for buildings. But as the melting reaches deeper into the ground, the permafrost is not so permanent and is becoming unstable. Roads in Alaska and Canada are beginning to undulate and ripple, and runways are at risk. Foundations are shifting, making some buildings and houses unusable. Surface water drains and floods unpredictably. What widespread effects could this have? Permafrost, like regular soil, contains organic material from dead plants and animals. As it melts, the organic matter decays, releasing CO2 and methane, both greenhouse gases. This could create a feedback loop of continued greenhouse gas release and further warming. But melting permafrost is also creating a deeper soil layer, which may allow forests to replace tundra. In other places, it’s toppling existing forests and replacing them with wetlands. These would absorb CO2. With permafrost covering nearly a quarter of the Northern Hemisphere, scientists are keeping a close eye on these changes and how they impact climate models.
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    2 Min.
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