Ms. Wilson's eighth-grade classes launched rockets for science at Grand County Middle School as part of a science unit studying potential and kinetic energy. “The kids engineered rockets to send an egg into the atmosphere and try to have it safely return with a parachute,” said Ms. Wilson. N…

Miguel Becerra and Kyla Jackman, both seniors, are Grand County High School’s October student-of-the-month recipients.

Mr. Secrist's eighth-grade English classes celebrated finishing the classic young adult novel "The Outsiders" by S.E. Hinton by dressing up like 1960s “greasers” on Nov. 17. Pictured above are Elisabeth Knight, Hope Shumway, and Legacy Blake.

The Colorado Plateau is home to research projects, scientific inquiries and a lot of western science, but there is also long-held Indigenous knowledge that is centered on knowing and understanding the cliffs and canyons of this place. Here, Science Moab speaks with Jim Enote about these two …

Caption: Underdog Animal Rescue and Rehab’s Mutt of the Week is Hughie, a one-year-old lab-heeler-hound mix who was rescued as a pup in September of 2019. Last month, Hughie’s first adopter surrendered them back to our rescue. Our ranch staff spent many hours feeding Hughie treats by hand an…

Moab’s Youth Garden Project said goodbye to their 2020 full season intern crew on Nov. 13. “THANK YOU for giving it your all during this wild year, and thanks for growing at YGP,” the nonprofit wrote in a Facebook statement. “We couldn't have done it without you!”

Steven Kirk Hansen, age 74, passed away peacefully in his sleep at Mercy Regional Medical Center in Durango, Colorado.

As a translator and consultant for Utah Diné Bikéyah, Woody Lee collected stories. Traveling throughout the Navajo Nation for nearly two years, he listened to elders and experts on traditional hunting, foods, farming, and creation narratives relating to the Bears Ears area for the nonprofit …

Hi, this is Cosmo, the Library Cat. This week, I asked some of my librarians here at the Grand County Public Library to recommend something to read or listen to. Mary Adair, the children's library assistant, suggested “Play in the Wild: How Baby Animals Like to Have Fun” by Lita Judge. This …

This past spring, when the reality of the coronavirus pandemic was planting uncertainty and fear of the future in people’s minds and hearts, the Moab Seventh-day Adventist Church planted potatoes in a local field (see “Feeding the people,” Moab Sun News, April 28, 2020 edition).

“Eagle Eye Trail is now complete and open to the public!” announced Maddie Logowitz, director of the Grand County Active Transportation and Trails Division. The 2.3 mile trail, described as “fast and swoopy,” officially opened on Nov. 13.

City and county officials recently passed measures to address UTV noise in town, including a moratorium on licenses for new UTV rental and guide businesses and slower speed limits for off-road vehicles. It remains to be seen how effective these measures will be in reducing noise and improvin…

Seventh-grade student of the month: Ivón Rodriguez

“Desertified” and “degraded” are words often used when talking about deserts or drylands. What do these words actually mean and how do they shape the ways we think about managing and restoring drylands? Science Moab talks with Dr. Brandon Bestelmeyer, who has studied deserts both in the Sout…

When Jaylyn Hawks entered local government six years ago, she didn’t imagine that her tenure would end with a pandemic and a trip to Japan. Now that her husband, Steve Hawks, has accepted a visiting professorship across the Pacific Ocean, she will have to leave Grand County behind.

Hello and meow everyone. It’s Cosmo, the Library Cat! I’ve never been to school, but I’m always curious and interested in learning new things. Because of this, I’ve been checking out the Grand County Public Library's online Learning Express Library and its School Center collection. You can a…

Ron Irvin, commander of American Legion Post 54 Moab, stands with Lloyd and Keith Holyoak to mark Veterans Day outside the Grand County Administrative Building. [Brady Packard / Moab Sun News]

The 2020 Trail Marathon National Championships were held in Moab last weekend, Nov. 7 and 8. In spite of necessary COVID-19 mitigation measures, race organizer Danelle Ballengee said things went “really smooth,” and runners were excited for the chance to participate in the race known for its…

Congrats to the students of the month for October! Pictured are Moab Mayor Emily Niehaus, sixth-grader Christian Nelson, fifth-grader Jaylee O'Donnal, third-grader Baylee Blake, second-grader Beckham Niesen, first-grader Gracen Smith, kindergartener Rowan Black and HMK Principal Mrs. Jill Ta…

The Moab Valley Multicultural Center observed Day of the Dead on Nov. 1, opening its property for visitors to see art and cultural installations and remember the lives of loved ones who have passed on. [Photo: Moab Valley Multicultural Center Facebook]

The Grand County Sheriff’s Search and Rescue team reported that the crew has responded to 105 incidents this year, with four calls this Halloween including a helicopter-assisted evacuation from a rugged route up Parriott Mesa in Castle Valley. “October 31st capped off a very busy month that …

Grand County Middle School celebrated Halloween on Oct. 30 with a costume contest, where each class was visited by three judges. A total of 45 prizes were given out, with Best Overall awards (pictured above) going to eighth-graders Trace York and John Lewis who dressed as Rapunzel and Flynn …

Hello everyone, it’s Cosmo the Library Cat. I’ve noticed that some humans like to create arts and crafts, especially during a time that is coming up that they call “the holidays.” I decided I wanted to try, but I didn’t know how to get started. Then my librarians told me about a site called …

Indigenous rock art and cultural artifacts are common around Moab. Through studying the art left behind on the landscape, Elizabeth Hora-Cook tells Science Moab how she tries to understand what society may have been like for the Fremont, an Indigenous group that lived in Utah 2,000-700 years ago.

Fossils discovered in the Petrified Forest National Park in Arizona have revealed a new species of early mammal, according to a research article published in the journal Biology Letters. The creature, Kataigidodon venetus, was about the size of a hamster and lived in the Upper Triassic (~220…

Richard Allen Spence, 58, passed over the rainbow on Nov. 1, 2020, surrounded by his loved ones. Richard was born in Fort Stockton, Texas, to John Curry Spence and Jane (Bowman) Spence.

Yvonne “Frenchie” Roark, 88, passed from this world to the next on Oct. 26, 2020.

Debra Owen Guinand Kirwan died on the rise of a blue moon on Oct. 30, 2020, after a very full life that was cut too short after a more than two-year battle with ovarian cancer. She was born to William (Bill) Owen and Dorothy Kirk in Denver, Colorado, on March 21, 1959.

Granville Hakes cast a provisional ballot on Nov. 3. Hakes said he is in his 60s and this is his first time voting. [Photo by Heila Ershadi / Moab Sun News]

Castle Valley resident Eddie Weeks and his dog, Missy, act as nonpartisan, volunteer poll watchers at the ballot drop-off box outside the Grand County Courthouse on Nov. 3. Election Protection is a national, nonpartisan coalition formed to ensure that all voters can participate in the politi…

In 2016, the National Park Service celebrated its centennial anniversary. Karla Morton, the 2010 Texas Poet Laureate, envisioned a deeply engaging way to honor America’s cherished national parks: she decided to visit each one and produce a book of poetry dedicated to them. She recruited her …

Amidst a pandemic, contentious campaigns and many gripping local issues, Election Day arrived in Utah on Tuesday, Nov. 3. Thousands of Utahns voted by mail for city, county, state and national candidates while many cast their votes in person.

Birds rely on riparian areas of Southeast Utah and the Colorado Plateau. As the ecosystems change along the banks of these rivers, there is real impact on bird populations and species. Dr. Sean Mahoney spoke with Science Moab about his work with birds that inhabit and migrate through the riv…