Utah Coal Mining community slowly slipping away

A small community in Utah has recently been notified that the coal industry will be coming to an end.  For many, the coal industry is the only job out there. Coal is basically is how majority of the population is employed. New laws and regulations is what is now creating this problem in the coal industry and the government wants to move towards cleaner and more environmentally friendly energy sources. Many people in this community can't wrap their heads around this new idea because the coal industry has been around for a hundred plus years. Now many coal workers will now have to retire early or look for other jobs when this coal industry closes down in around 2015.

http://www.nytimes.com/2013/11/28/us/a-part-of-utah-built-on-coal-wonders-what-comes-next.html?ref=earth

Meteor over California

A bright fireball lit up the sky from California to as far as Utah and Arizona. There were many calls and reports of a very bright fireball that streaked across the sky through several social media platforms. It was nothing in comparison to the meteor that came across Russia in February. Scientists say that instead of possible meteors coming through once or twice every hundred years, it is possible that it could occur every decade. It is very dangerous considering the potential effects including shattered glass, falling of buildings and skin burns. Now, new research is being encouraged for planetary defense from these potentially harmful events.

http://thelede.blogs.nytimes.com/2013/11/07/possible-meteor-over-california-has-social-media-abuzz/?ref=space

Earthworms invade New England

Recent studies show that there are 16 species of earthworms in the New England area of the United States. All of those species are exotic; Fourteen are from Europe and two from Asia. Many people are studying these earthworms trying to figure out if they are actually helping the environment they have come to or have they put a negative impact on it. Right now, the earthworms are changing the basic layering of the forest floors by redistributing more carbon than ever before. This is changing the plants and trees that depend on the normal system and aren't expected to be seen at all soon. But, it is said that at first earthworms create dramatic changes that could be seen as negative but slowly, the change becomes positive. The soil aggregates from the earthworms could potentially protect the organic carbon inside, creating a barrier that will protect it from other organisms that could break it down in the future. The question still remains if the earthworms in New England are helping or hurting the environment but time will just have to tell.

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/10/131029133126.htm