Arctic Science Journeys Radio (ASJ) is a free service that offers interesting stories about science, culture, and the environment of the far north. This audio file of a radio story describes the research of one scientist into the animals and plants that live within the ice of the Arctic Ocean. Full description.

This August 2003 news report describes the low water levels on Lakes Michigan, Huron, and Superior and their possible causes. It includes a brief interview with a NOAA hydrologist who points out the rain isn't the only factor affecting lake levels; temperatures and evaporation also figure in. Both audio and text versions of the report are available. The audio clip runs 50 seconds. Full description.

Two amateur paleontologists kept their eyes to the ground in Oregon on one of their recent hikes and discovered what are believed to be the first remains of a marine reptile called the plesiosaur to be unearthed in the Pacific Northwest. This radio broadcast reports on the discovery and what it could mean to the understanding of dinosaurs in the area. The clip is 5 minutes and 6 seconds in length. Full description.

This radio broadcast points out that, although the sun may seem steady and constant, it undergoes cyclic changes. Topics include the 11-year sunspot cycle and the 208-year cycle in the sun's total energy output, which may impact the climate of the Earth. This longer cycle may be the cause of droughts in Mexico and Central America. The clip is 2 minutes in length. Full description.

This radio show explains why the night sky appears dark in spite of the fact that almost all of the space inside our solar system is filled with the light of the sun. The show describes how the shadow of the Earth touches the moon during a lunar eclipse and how to observe the shadow of the Earth during the evening. The clip lasts 1 minute, 34 seconds. Full description.

Scientists study Viking stories and clam shells to learn more about the weather in Iceland a thousand years ago. This radio broadcast explains how old Viking sagas reveal colder summers and winters that hampered agricultural productivity and led to social conflict, and how the chemistry of clam shells also reveals the changing weather of Iceland. The clip is 2 minutes in length. Full description.

This radio broadcast discusses the recent issue of the increase and spread of tunicates (or 'sea squirts'), who have suddenly proliferated off the Atlantic Coast of the United States and Canada. The creatures, an invasive species likely from Asia or Europe, have carpeted the ocean floor and are smothering valuable shellfish. Full description.

These two radio broadcasts discuss ecosystem assessment and our over-packaged world. The ecosystem assessment broadcast discusses two reports on Earth ecosystems: the United Nations Millennium Ecosystem Assessment and the Millennium Project Task Force on Sustainability report. Researchers found that of the 24 ecosystem services they looked at (items such as capture fisheries, water supply, waste treatment ... Full description.

This radio broadcast discusses some exciting new experiments in gravity, and what might be learned from them. The show explains three experiments that test predictions of the General Theory of Relativity (GR): the LIGO (Laser Interferometer Gravitational Wave Observatory), Gravity Probe B (GPB), and the discovery of a binary neutron star system, which indirectly proved the existence of gravitational ... Full description.

This radio broadcast reports on the Sea, Air Land, Modeling and Observation Network (or SALMON) project, which aims to predict undersea conditions in Prince William Sound offshore southern Alaska. The goal is to place a host of scientific instruments into the Sound that would track in real time such things as ocean currents, temperature and salinity. The data would be used to create computer models ... Full description.