PEEC Laser Light Shows Are Canceled
PEEC News:
The Pajarito Environmental Education Center (PEEC) is very sad to announce that the laser light show machine arrived damaged, and all shows are cancelled.
PEEC will be issuing refunds during normal open hours at the Los Alamos Nature Center. Prismatic Magic apologizes to the people of Los Alamos, and have promised to deliver to PEEC a fixed and working machine for the first few weeks of August, so check PEEC’s website at that time to find out the new schedule. www.peecnature.org. Read More
Explore Mesa De Cuba Badlands With PEEC
Mesa de Cuba Badlands. Photo by Rod McCradyPEEC News:
Traveling to Cuba along N.M. 550 is certainly a visual treat. This rugged, multi-colored landscape is home to the relatively new San Juan Basin Badlands Recreation Area.
Created in the last few years to offer protection to this sometimes haunting, but always breathtaking scenery, the Badlands have no real trail system, food or potable water. To help visitors navigate this exceptional terrain, join geologist Patrick Rowe Saturday, July 18 to explore one of the five badlands in the Recreation Area, the Mesa de Cuba Badlands.
This hike offers Read More
Spots Still Available For YMCA Earth Service Corps
YESC busy at work and having fun. Courtesy photo
YESC getting it done. Courtesy photo‘Fantastic Fractals’ Screens At Nature Center July 18
Fractal created by Wolfgang Beyer. Courtesy/Wikimedia CommonsPEEC News:
To get in the spirit of ScienceFest, PEEC is screening Fantastic Fractals.
Join host and Fractal Foundation Executive Director Jonathan Wolfe as he presents a full-dome planetarium show that explores infinitely complex mathematical fractals in nature. This award-winning program features original music, and is educational, entertaining, and amazing.
This planetarium show is $5, and will screen at 2 p.m. and 7 p.m. Saturday, July 18 at the Los Alamos Nature Center. Seating is limited. It is suitable for ages three Read More
Family Night Campfire Fun At Nature Center Tuesday
Enjoy campfire fun during Family Night at the Nature Center. Courtesy photo
PEEC News:
Tuesday, July 14 is Family Night at the Los Alamos Nature Center.
The center will be open for exploring the exhibits until 8 p.m., and there will be games, activities, experiments, crafts and more for families to enjoy. Family Nights at the Nature Center are sponsored by the Kiwanis Club of Los Alamos. They are free to attend.
In July and August, there will be extra special family campfire fun! Join Melissa Mackey for songs, stories and a little science 5:30-6:30 p.m.
For more information about this and other PEEC Read More
Los Alamos Scientist Claudia Mora New President Elect Of Geological Society Of America
Los Alamos Scientist Claudia Mora
LANL News:
The Geological Society of America (GSA) recently tapped Los Alamos National Laboratory scientist Claudia Mora as president elect.
Mora is a stable-isotope geochemist whose research spans the traditional fields of geology, soil science and climate science. At Los Alamos, she heads the Earth and Environmental Sciences Division’s (EES) largest group, Earth System Observations. This group’s research is broad and far-reaching, intersecting geology, ecology and atmospheric sciences.
“GSA welcomes Dr. Mora and we are confident that she will Read More
Letter To The Editor: A Few Numbers For Rain Harvest
By RICHARD NEBELI have been harvesting rainwater for several years here in Los Alamos, and I know many other people have been doing the same.
Before investing in a system to do that, it’s worthwhile to run the numbers. First of all, we have about 18 inches of rainfall annually in Los Alamos. For a typical home, that translates into about 20,000 gallons of water that hits your roof every year.
A standard water sprinkler puts out about 5 gallons a minute. I water my garden for about half an hour every other day. That’s 150 gallons per watering. I would like to store enough water to Read More
PEEC Class Teaches How To Identify Wildflowers
Local wildflower, dusky penstemon. Courtesy/PEECPEEC News:
What a difference a little rain makes. The roadsides and hillsides are green, and yellow, red, pink and purple flowers dot the landscape.
“How to Identify Wildflowers” is the name of a five-week class offered 5:30-7:30 p.m. beginning Tuesday, July 14 at the Los Alamos Nature Center.
This is an opportunity to get outside, to be curious, and learn more about the area and the flora. Longtime residents and experts Craig Martin and Teralene (Terry) Foxx will teach the class.
Foxx is a plant ecologist, writer and artist. She taught plant Read More
Rattlesnake Museum Talk At Nature Center July 15
Rattlesnake. Photo by Bob MyersPEEC News:
Living in New Mexico means sharing the outdoors with many different kinds of reptiles.
To help explain how humans can cohabitate with these scaly neighbors, join Bob Myers, director of the International Rattlesnake Museum at 6:30 p.m. Wednesday July 15 at the Los Alamos Nature Center.
Discover what snakes and other reptiles live in New Mexico, how to identify them, what to do if you find a dangerous species in your backyard, some stories and legends about snakes, and snakebite prevention and treatment. Come to learn more about these fascinating creatures Read More
Global Synthesis Of Large Wildland Fires Shows Ecological Benefit
Natural fire mosaic, southwest Oregon, 10 years post-fire. Courtesy/Geos InstituteGovernor Announces KAFB Jet Fuel Spill Treatment
Gov. Susana Martinez“Protecting our precious water supply is non-negotiable,” Martinez said. “We have taken the necessary steps to begin addressing the Kirtland fuel
Amateur Naturalist: Looking And Caring For Ospreys
An osprey parent flying from its nest. Photo by Robert Dryja
By ROBERT DRYJAWe are fortunate in that Fenton Lake is not too distant from Los Alamos. It is the home of a nesting pair of Ospreys. Ospreys have been reported there regularly since 1989.
Ospreys are a fish eating species of eagle and Fenton Lake provides one source of fish. The nearby Seven Springs Fish Hatchery had been a second source. The fish hatchery has long narrow breeding tanks where trout are raised. An osprey simply had to swoop along the length of a tank to pick up a trout. This easy source of food lasted until fencing Read More
NMED Terminates Compliance Order For Chupadero
NMED News:PEEC Summer Family Evening Is All About Goats
Goats like this one will visit the Nature Center Wednesday, July 8. Courtesy/PEECPEEC News:
What is it like to raise goats on a small scale farm? What uses are there for goat milk?
At this week’s Summer Family Evening at 6:30 p.m. Wednesday, July 8 at the Nature Center, Jessie Ross of Gypsy Mountain Ranch and Deb Wood of Second Bloom Farm will be around to answer these questions.
Learn how to make cheese, lotion, soap, and more. Even better, the presenters will bring some of their goats – both big and small – to demonstrate the different breeds that thrive on the Pajarito Plateau.
Summer Read More
NASA Grant To Help Control Mosquitoes
NASA News:Laser Light Shows Coming To Nature Center
‘Laser Beatles’ is one of 12 laser light shows offered at the Nature Center. Courtesy/PEEC
PEEC News:
PEEC will host 12 laser light shows in its new planetarium during July.
Thursday, July 9 through Wednesday, July 15, there will be at least two laser light shows daily. Experience a feast for the senses in these dazzling and captivating laser light programs. Classic music fans will see how laser light transforms favorite bands, with separate shows dedicated to the music of the Beatles, Led Zeppelin, U2, Pink Floyd: “Dark Side of the Moon” and Pink Floyd: “The Best of Echoes.”
Family friendly Read More
Take A Virtual Wildflower Walk Tuesday
An example of the specimens on display at the Jemez Mountain Herbarium. Photo by Chick KellerPEEC News:
Spring and summer are wonderful times to enjoy the abundant wildflowers.
Sometimes however, the weather does not cooperate, or a wildflower blooms at a time or location that is not convenient for viewing. But this shouldn’t stop local residents from knowing local wildflowers!
The Jemez Mountain Herbarium houses 950 species of local plants. Its curator, Chick Keller, is offering to take interested visitors on a virtual wildflower walk using specimens from this collection, allowing visitors Read More
Nature on Tap at UnQuarked Tonight
CREATIVE DISTRICT News:
Nature On Tap is 5:30 p.m. today at UnQuarked Wine Room, at 145 Central Park Square in downtown Los Alamos.
The speaker is Jessica Clayton, who will be discussing the science and beauty of the aurora borealis. Nature performs beautiful light shows that dance across the sky. The group will hear about the science behind this mysterious phenomenon, known as the aurora borealis. The group will discuss what causes aurora to display such striking colors and why we need scientists to study them.
Clayton is a physicist and educator. She earned a Ph.D. in physics from the University Read More
Macaw Skeletons Signal Hierarchy At Chaco
This skull of a scarlet macaw (Ara macao) was excavated from Pueblo Bonito in New Mexico by researchers from the American Museum of Natural History in 1897. Courtesy/@AMNH/D.Finnin
SCIENCE News:
New work on the skeletal remains of scarlet macaws found in an ancient Pueblo settlement indicates that social and political hierarchies may have emerged in the American Southwest earlier than previously thought.
Researchers determined that the macaws, whose brilliant red and blue feathers are highly prized in Pueblo culture, were persistently traded hundreds of miles north from Mesoamerica
Udall Hosts Deputy Interior Secretary At Chaco Site
U.S. Sen. Tom Udall hosts U.S. Department of the Interior Deputy Secretary Mike Connor on a tour today of Chaco Culture National Historical Park. Courtesy/Udall
U.S. Sen. Tom Udall, standing on rock, and Interior Deputy Secretary Mike Connor, in front, break out the binoculars during a tour today of Chaco Culture National Historical Park. Courtesy/Udall
STATE News:
- Connor’s visit is in response to Udall’s request that an Interior official visit Chaco site
ALBUQUERQUE – Today, U.S. Sen. Tom Udall thanked U.S. Department of the Interior Deputy Secretary Mike Connor for joining Read More
