Supported by a $531,902 grant from the National Science Foundation, a team of App State researchers in the Appalachian Atmospheric Interdisciplinary Research (AppalAIR) program will conduct a three-year study on aerosols and how they affect Earth's climate.

This article in The Conversation about glacial lake outburst floods cites a new study conducted by Dr. William Armstrong, an assistant professor in App State’s Department of Geological and Environmental Sciences, which finds that of the 120 glacier-dammed lakes in Alaska, 106 of them have drained at least once since 1985. The study finds that due to globally rising temperatures, these lakes have decreased in volume over time. New lakes have the potential to develop in mountain valleys from glacier melt, resulting in new potential hazards.

New research suggests that fossilized human footprints found in New Mexico’s White Sands National Park were made more than 20,000 years ago. The study, conducted by geologists in the U.S. Geological Survey, challenges decades of thinking about when humans arrived in North America. Cynthia Liutkus-Pierce — a professor in App State’s Department of Geological and Environmental Sciences who has studied ancient human footprints in Tanzania — explains how this study further supports the presence of humans in North America during the last ice age.

Undergraduate students across the U.S., including those at App State, have greater access to enriched neuroscience education — and are engaging in real-world research — as part of an App State-led project funded by nearly $500,000 from the National Science Foundation.

App State professors Dr. Baker Perry and Dr. Brian Raichle conducted weather station maintenance with a group of elite climbing Sherpas on Mount Everest as part of a National Geographic Society expedition, supported by Rolex and its Perpetual Planet Initiative.

App State astrophysicist Dr. Richard Gray has completed the installation of a spectrograph he designed and built for Boyden Observatory’s 1.5-meter telescope. The new instrument will allow App State and UFS scientists and students to gain new insights into the origins and evolution of celestial objects.

The Appalachian Energy Summit continues toward the established 2025 goal of $2 billion in avoided energy costs for the UNC System and state agencies. Since 2002–03, the System and its partners have collectively avoided $1.75 billion in energy costs.

Construction for App State’s Conservatory for Biodiversity Education and Research — the first academic building of the university’s Innovation District — is set to begin in July. The facility, offering classroom, office, laboratory and event space, will be built to the rigorous sustainability standards of the Living Building Challenge.