A Catalyst article explaining how carbon capture and storage can reduce the amount of carbon dioxide entering the atmosphere and may reduce the effects of climate change. Burning fossil fuels releases carbon dioxide into the atmosphere. This is a major contributor to climate change but can CO2 be captured and...

A Catalyst article about carbon dioxide which can be used as a solvent in industry, or as a regulator of blood pH. This article looks at some other uses of carbon dioxide and considers its importance in global warming. It also explains how the greenhouse effect is a natural part of the operation of the Earth's...

A Catalyst article investigating what nitrogen and its compounds are used for. Nitrogen is colourless, odourless, non-toxic and inert, and has a wide range of uses. Nitrogen makes up seventy eight per cent of the Earth’s atmosphere by volume and has a considerable influence on respiration in plants and animals. The...

This issue of Catalyst includes the following articles:

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This Catalyst article investigates the research into artificial photosynthetic systems.

With the world’s population ever-expanding, energy demand is expected to double by 2050 and triple by 2100. In only 200 years, mankind has squandered what nature has taken hundreds of millions of years to lay down as...

A Catalyst article about designing, building and testing a spacecraft. There are thousands of man-made satellites orbiting the Earth. Some are only a few hundred kilometres above the Earth and complete one orbit roughly every 90 minutes. Geostationary satellites are located around 40 000 kilometres from the surface...

This Catalyst article looks at NASA's Mars Curiosity rover, the automated chemistry lab which landed safely on Mars in August 2012. Capable of analysing samples from the planet's surface and atmosphere, the rover will undertake two years of experiments in the hope of discovering even more about our neighbouring...

A Catalyst article about ice cores from Antarctica which contain air bubbles which record the changing atmosphere. The Antarctic ice sheet is over 3 kilometres thick; ice cores enable scientists to sample each year of snow fall in sequence. This evidence is vital in understanding how the climate is changing. The...

A Catalyst article explaining how weather forecasts can help keep the public safe in extreme situations by providing advance warnings: for example, airline pilots rely on accurate information about the development of thunderstorms to help them decide which routes might be at risk from lightning or violent...

A Catalyst article about increased levels of carbon dioxide causing global warming. The atmosphere is being polluted when fossil fuels such as petrol are burnt releasing carbon dioxide. Despite concern about global warming, it seems nobody wants to use their cars less. The article looks at what can be done to...

A Catalyst article describing the species that have had the greatest impact on planet Earth during its billions of years of history. Which come out on top of the 'league table of life'? As hominids have only walked the Earth for part of its existence the article looks at the history of life, from the dawn of...

This edition of space:UK, from the UK Space Agency, looks at the Rosetta mission to land on Comet 67P, how Inmarsat satellites provide broadband internet across remote areas of the globe, and a profile of European missions designed to investigate our changing planet. Articles include: *Recent news: including Europe...

This Catalyst article describes how the human body is affected by low atmospheric pressure at high altitudes. The article looks at the dangers that await the unwary traveller and explains how, if people understand their bodies, they can avoid the worst problems of life at high altitudes.

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