NASA image captures ice pile up on Lake Michigan

Eric Anderson, associate professor, civil and environmental engineering, is quoted in this Newsweek article focusing on a recent satellite image that revealed the aftermath of a brutal cold snap that gripped Chicago between January 19 and 24, leaving Lake Michigan covered with ice. Anderson said improved ice measurements could enhance weather forecasting and provide valuable insights into changes in Earth's surface freshwater systems.
January 29, 2025

Springy poles and forehead straps: How to carry more than your own bodyweight

Jeffrey Ackerman, associate teaching professor in mechanical engineering who studies load carrying, is quoted in this BBC piece. "Our bodies are adapted to carrying our own body mass, then when you add a lot of weight, you really need to be doing strength training in a consistent way to grow your bigger load-carrying muscles," Ackerman said.
January 27, 2025

A path to US Tribal energy sovereignty

In this Letter in the journal Science, a number of Payne Institute associates discuss how energy resources on tribal lands should be utilized to the benefit of the tribes that own the land. Payne Institute authors include Richard Luarkie, director, Native American Mining and Energy Sovereignty Initiative (NAMES); Richard Tallman, program manager, NAMES; Brooke Bowser, communications associate; and Morgan Bazilian, Payne director.
January 23, 2025

Interlune plans to gather scarce lunar Helium-3 for quantum computing on Earth

Chris Dreyer, director of engineering at Mines' Center for Space Resources, is quoted in this article about Helium-3. The gas is needed to achieve the cold temperatures required by quantum computers. The article discusses mining the moon to obtain additional quantities of the precious and expensive substance.
January 23, 2025

The coldest place in the known universe is at Colorado School of Mines

A first of its kind dilution refrigerator is being built in Mines' Labriola Innovation Hub. When operating, the The Big Fridge can achieve a temperature as cold as any place in the known universe.
January 23, 2025

One of the coldest places in the universe is inside a quantum fridge at Colorado School of Mines

The first of its kind Big Fridge being built by Maybell Quantum in Mines' Labriola Innovation Hub is designed to house a quantum computer and provide the machine with the extremely cold environment it needs to operate.
January 22, 2025

Study finds winter days on the Great Lakes growing shorter due to climate change

Eric Anderson, associate professor of civil and environmental engineering, discusses the findings of his new study, recently published in Environmental Research Letters.
January 21, 2025

Simple ways to save money and stay warm

Paulo Tabares-Velasco, associate professor of mechanical engineering, explains why keeping the blinds and drapes closed can help keep more heat in your home in this Next with Kyle Clark segment.
January 17, 2025

New facility to support quantum research coming to Colorado

Mines PhD student Sam Saiter talks about why he got into quantum engineering in this segment, filmed in the quantum clean room on the Mines campus.
January 17, 2025

A new frontier in the voluntary carbon market: Old, leaky oil wells

Brad Handler, program director of the Energy Finance Lab​ at the Payne Institute for Public Policy, discusses the methodologies used for methane emissions and how they may change in the future in this article.
January 16, 2025

In a first, the E.P.A. warns of ‘forever chemicals’ in sludge fertilizer

Christopher P. Higgins, professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering, is quoted in this article that notes levels of PFAS in sewage sludge used as fertilizer can pose risks that sometimes exceed EPA safety thresholds by several orders of magnitude.
January 14, 2025

This is how scientists measure global temperature

The temperature change between two nearby locations is remarkably consistent, said Nathan Lenssen, a climate scientist at the Colorado School of Mines and the National Center for Atmospheric Research. “When it’s 2 degrees warmer than normal in Denver, it’s going to be 2 degrees warmer than normal at the top of Bear Peak.”
January 14, 2025