A new study has revealed an intriguing phenomenon that could be contributing to the increasing consumption of plastic waste by whales. 



It all starts within the mysterious depths of the ocean where sunlight does not venture. This is where the likes of <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/where-have-the-sperm-whales-gulf-gone-gulf-jumbo-squid-scientists-think-they-know/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">sperm whales</a> and goose-beaked whales forage for food, relying on their intricate soundwave-based navigation system to find their next meal.



But there seems to be a hitch - a torn plastic party balloon can sound remarkably similar to a delicious squid in these lightless depths.



A recent study has found a potential reason why whales might mistake plastic for prey – they sound the same underwater.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-acoustic-signatures-in-the-deep-sea">Acoustic signatures in the deep sea</h2>



What exactly are these acoustic signatures? Well, when a <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/blue-whales-continue-their-battle-for-survival/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">whale</a> sends out clicks and buzzes from a vocal cord-like structure near their blowholes, the sounds bounce off objects in the water. 



The sounds that return carry information about the size, shape, and nature of those objects. This is how the whales "see" and interpret their surroundings. And to their acoustic perception, their favorite squid sounds eerily similar to a plastic bag.



"There are hundreds of types of plastic, and the various material properties including polymer (chemical) composition, additives, shape, size, age/weathering, and degree of fouling likely play a role in the frequency-specific responses observed," noted the study authors.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-plastic-pollution-and-whales">Plastic pollution and whales </h2>



Now, it's crucial to mention that the whales' sound-based navigation system is not a new kid on the evolutionary block. This sophisticated system has been helping whales find food in the pitch-dark ocean depths for the past 25 million years.



However, plastic pollution is a relatively new challenge faced by whales, and according to Merrill's findings, it's messing with their ultrasonic grocery shopping.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-plastic-debris-around-whales">Plastic debris around whales</h2>



Merrill and his team collected typical plastic trash items like shopping bags, ropes, bottles, and balloons from beaches in Beaufort and Atlantic Beach, North Carolina.



These items were then suspended underwater and subjected to sonar transponder tests on Duke Marine Lab's ship, the R/V Shearwater. 



The team performed acoustic testing on these items at three varying sonar frequencies that span the range of 'clicks' emitted by different species of deep-diving <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/how-a-warming-climate-will-change-the-humpback-whales-diet/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">whales</a>.



The sounds of real squid (albeit deceased ones) and pieces of squid beak were also recorded for comparison.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-whales-mistake-plastic-for-prey">Whales mistake plastic for prey</h2>



The results were as alarming as they were surprising. The plastic debris almost always sounded like food, especially plastic films and fragments, which are among the most commonly found items in the stomachs of deceased whales.



Merrill suggests that we could consider re-engineering some plastics to not have an acoustic signature. But he also warns of potential risks. 



For instance, if fishing net and fishing line became "acoustically invisible," that could lead to increased entanglements where whales wouldn't be able to identify and avoid these threats.



For this pioneering study, Merrill collaborated with scientists from neighboring marine labs operated by NOAA, NC State University, and UNC – Chapel Hill.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-implications-for-conservation-efforts">Implications for conservation efforts</h2>



The findings from Merrill's study have profound implications for marine conservation strategies aimed at protecting whales. 



Traditional approaches have largely focused on reducing the amount of plastic that enters the oceans - a task vital to the health of marine ecosystems.



However, understanding that plastic can acoustically resemble prey to whales suggests that addressing the challenge could require innovative solutions within the manufacturing sector as well. 



This could involve developing materials that emit distinct acoustic signatures detectable by marine life without posing any risk of ingestion. 



Such multidisciplinary cooperation between conservationists and material scientists could pave the way for groundbreaking strategies to safeguard these majestic creatures.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-addressing-the-plastic-crisis">Addressing the plastic crisis</h2>



In light of these revelations, there is an urgent need to collectively address the plastic pollution crisis. Reducing our reliance on harmful plastics and advancing research into safer alternatives is paramount.



Moreover, stringent regulations on plastic manufacturing could play a crucial role in mitigating this crisis. By innovating responsibly and enforcing global standards, we can not only protect marine biodiversity but also ensure a healthier planet. 



While technological innovations and alternatives to plastic are critical in addressing this issue of <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/worlds-rarest-whale-found-on-new-zealand-beach/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">whales</a>, perhaps the more immediate and straightforward action we can all take is responsible disposal of our waste.



The study is published in the journal <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0025326X24010464?via%3Dihub" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Marine Pollution Bulletin</a>.



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Plastic trash sounds just like food to deep-diving whales

A new study has revealed an intriguing phenomenon that could be contributing to the increasing consumption of plastic waste by whales. It all starts within the mysterious depths of the ocean where sunlight does not venture. This is where the likes of sperm whales and goose-beaked whales forage for food, relying on their intricate soundwave-based navigation system to find their next meal. But there seems to be a hitch - a torn plastic party balloon can sound remarkably similar to a delicious squid in these lightless depths....

Red squirrels in Britain and Ireland are carrying the two types of bacteria that cause leprosy in humans, according to scientists from the <a href="http://www.ed.ac.uk/" target="_blank">University of Edinburgh</a> and <a href="https://www.epfl.ch/" target="_blank">Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne</a>.

The <a href="http://science.sciencemag.org/content/354/6313/744" target="_blank">new study</a> was conducted after poor red squirrels with strange growths on their faces and extremities were observed by researchers. Scientists found that squirrels with the growths were infected with one or both of two leprosy strains that were once seen in humans, Mycobacterium leprae and Mycobacterium lepromatosis.

They also found that a number of squirrels without the growths were carrying the bacteria as well.

The researchers studied 110 red squirrels from Ireland, Scotland and England. They found most were infected with at least one strain of leprosy, unfortunately. 

Squirrels from Brownsea Island off of England’s south coast were found to be carrying a strain of M. leprae that hasn’t been seen in humans since 730 years ago!

Squirrels in Ireland and Scotland carried M. lepromatosis, which has been connected to human infections in Mexico, who likely didn’t contract it from the furry creatures: indeed, genetic testing of the strain carried by the squirrels showed that it likely diverged from the strain found in Mexico 27,000 years ago.

Leprosy was once rampant among humans, but infection rates in Europe began declining at the end of the Medieval period – scientists don’t yet have an explanation as to why. Although rates are much lower than they were 500 years ago, more than 200,000 human cases of leprosy are still reported worldwide. In China, it was a feared disease until the past three decades; the country hopes to <a href="http://usa.chinadaily.com.cn/epaper/2016-09/21/content_26853249.htm" target="_blank">eradicate leprosy</a> by 2020.

However, as human infections decline, the disease has been found to affect some animal species. For example, armadillos can carry the disease, and cases of transmission from armadillos to humans have been reported – so don’t cuddle with them too much. The risk of human transmission from red squirrels in Europe is low because hunting them is banned in most places (thank goodness) and contact with human populations is low.

Leprosy affects the skin, upper respiratory tract, eyes and peripheral nervous system. Symptoms include disfiguring skin sores or bumps that don’t go away, muscle weakness and loss of feeling in arms and legs. The incubation period is 3 to 5 years, although cases have been reported in which a patient developed symptoms as much as 20 years after contact. It is diagnosed by biopsy of the affected skin. 

The study, published in Science, shows that disease-causing bacteria can remain undetected in a region for centuries after a disease is eradicated.

The scientists plan to study red squirrels outside of the UK next. We’re crossing our fingers for the little guys.

Red squirrels in Britain infected with 730-year-old leprosy strain

Red squirrels in Britain and Ireland are carrying the two...

Fruit flies are often thought of as a nuisance, but it turns out they may actually help us understand  better how humans respond to the common cold.

A team of scientists from <a href="http://www.cbn-atl.org" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Georgia State University</a> led by Dr. Daniel N. Cox have learned that fruit flies, otherwise known as Drosophila melanogaster, have cold-sensing neurons that can trigger adverse behaviors thanks to Transient Receptor Potential (TPR) ion channels. As a result, fruit flies can be a significant tool to help scientists better understand the cellular processes of cold perception. 

The team conducted a study surrounding the idea of nociception, where the nervous system can perceive potentially threatening stimuli through the use of sensory nerve cells. Nociception warns the body of environmental dangers and triggers a response, often resulting in the sensation of pain.

The study, published in Current Biology, found that one of the TRP channel genes called Pkd2 has been linked to autosomal dominant kidney disease. Pkd2 ion channels behave as cold sensors that can also serve as mechanosensors for touch, showing that these ion channels, along with TRP channels, are multimodal (transmitting signals for more than one sense). But how do neurons and ion channels differentiate between harmful and innocuous stimuli?

The team showed that the flies’ sensory neurons have varied activation thresholds. Cold has a high threshold, while touch has a low threshold, and this is what determines the body’s behavioral response.

According to Cox, "This new model sets the stage for uncovering evolutionarily conserved molecular control of nociception. It also provides a powerful genetic platform for unraveling the neural circuitry and molecular mechanisms that integrate multimodal sensory input to produce specific behaviors in response to diverse environmental stimuli."

---

By <a href="mailto:oliviagharvey24@gmail.com">Olivia Harvey</a>, <a href="http://earth.com">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Fruit flies teach humans about the common cold in new study

Fruit flies are often thought of as a nuisance, but...

Dead fish in Oregon rivers are a great source for wildlife biologists’ newest tool to monitor bear populations: bear spit.

According to <a href="http://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0165259" target="_blank" rel="noopener">a new study</a> published in the journal <a href="http://journals.plos.org/plosone/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">PLOS ONE</a>, using saliva samples found on half-eaten fish is an even better way to monitor the bears than the feces and hair upon which the biologists previously relied.

Non-invasive DNA testing is a tool frequently used by wildlife biologists, often in the form of testing hairs snared on trees, bushes and other features, or testing of discovered scat (fecal matter). This so-called environmental DNA, or eDNA, can be expensive (in the case of hair) or not particularly effective (scat).

But when salmon populations are up, the bears that hunt them don’t generally eat the whole fish, said Dr. Rachel Wheat, the study’s lead author, who recently received her doctorate from the <a href="https://www.ucsc.edu/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">University of California, Santa Cruz</a>. They often prefer to eat the brains and throw away the rest, she said.

Wheat and other scientists wondered if they could collect DNA from bear spit left in the braincases of the fish carcasses. Turns out they could, and the method is a more effective, easier and less expensive tool for monitoring brown bear DNA.

eDNA sampling allows researchers to distinguish between individual brown bears, offering valuable estimates of how many bears are hunting in a particular area, allowing them to track the population and spot any major changes.

The scientists hope this method of tracking wildlife populations can spread to other bears and even other animal species, suggesting wildlife biologists consider using saliva on food remains or bait as a cheap, effective way to monitor animal populations.

Tracking animal populations is vital when it comes to spotting any potential illnesses, problems in their habitats, or other conservation threats.

Bear spit provides scientists a rich new source of data

Dead fish in Oregon rivers are a great source for...

The dinosaur fossil of a "mud dragon" discovered at a construction site in southern China is offering new clues about bird-like dinosaurs: they were evolving just before an asteroid struck the Earth 66 million years ago, causing a mass extinction.

The dinosaur fossil is of a previously unknown species of oviraptorosaur, a type of feathered dinosaur with two legs, wings and a beak. Scientists have named it Tongtianlong limosus: “muddy dragon on the road to heaven” or “mud dragon” for short.

The <a href="http://www.nature.com/articles/srep35780" target="_blank" rel="noopener">discovery of T. limosus</a>, along with several other discoveries of new species of oviraptorosaurs in recent decades, shows that the feathered dinosaurs were rapidly evolving into new and separate species just before the asteroid wiped out most life on Earth. 

The oviraptors could have been among the last dinosaurs to have a growing, diversifying population before the mass extinction of the giant reptiles, said researchers from the <a href="http://www.ed.ac.uk/">University of Edinburgh</a>, <a href="http://en.cags.ac.cn/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Chinese Academy of Geological Sciences</a> and Dongyang Museum, who conducted the study. The mud dragon is one of six new oviraptor species found in the Ganzhou area in recent years.

The findings are giving scientists some insight into how oviraptors and other dinosaurs lived ahead of the extinction event: the reptiles appear to have been flourishing in the region, the researchers said. The discovery of new oviraptor species in Asia and North America also add to scientists’ understanding of the family of dinosaurs that show some similarities to modern birds.

The researchers estimate that the mud dragon lived between 66 and 72 million years ago. The fossil is remarkably well preserved; the oviraptor was preserved lying on its stomach, wings and neck stretched out and head raised. Scientists believe this may have been the position the dinosaur died in.

By comparing the skull of T. limosus to other oviraptors that once lived in the area, scientists believe the evolution of so many different oviraptorosaur species may have resulted from environmental changes and varying diets.

—

The study was published in the journal <a href="http://www.nature.com/srep/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Scientific Reports</a>.

Mud dragon: dinosaur fossil offers a glimpse into the reptiles' final days

The dinosaur fossil of a "mud dragon" discovered at a...

The Brazilian free-tailed bat is the fastest flyer of all aviators. 

There is a brand-new world-record holder for fastest speed of horizontal flight in the animal kingdom: the noble title previously had been held by the common swift, which flies up to 100 kilometers per hour. But scientists at the Max Planck Institute for Ornithology in Radolfzell have learned that the Brazilian free-tailed bat can fly up to 160 kilometers per hour, due in large part to an especially aerodynamic body shape and long wings.

Honorable mention goes to peregrine falcon, reaching up to 300 kph while diving. Comparatively, modern aircrafts have to reach 300 kilometers per hour in order to take off.

Bats are typically considered to be slower flyers because of their less efficient wing structure; animals with wider wings generate greater wind resistance than those with long, narrow wings. Against all odds, the Brazilian free-tailed bat still finished first.

Kamran Safi from the Max Planck Institute for Ornithology noted, “Initially, we could hardly believe our data, but they were correct: at times, the female bats, which weigh between 11 and 12 grams, flew at speeds of over 160 kilometres per hour – a new record for horizontal flight.”

The speeds were recorded through a radio transmitter attached to the back of the bat that falls off after two days. Added Dina Dechman of the Planck Institute, "It was not easy for the pilot to follow the fast-flying animals so that we could localize them accurately and measure their flight path continuously.”

---

By <a href="mailto:oliviagharvey24@gmail.com">Olivia Harvey</a>, <a href="http://earth.com">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Brazilian free-tailed bat flies at breakneck speeds

The Brazilian free-tailed bat is the fastest flyer of all...

Female chimpanzees hire babysitters, study finds.

It turns out humans aren’t the only species who use babysitters. Chimpanzees, humankind’s closest living relative, have been seen to hire babysitters to wean their offspring faster, allowing mothers to reproduce again sooner.

A study performed by scientists at the University of Toronto led by Iulia Badescu observed 42 pairs of chimpanzee mothers and infants at Ngogo in the Kibale National Park in Uganda. The purpose was to examine the pattern of “alloparenting,” a.k.a. babysitting, where chimpanzees other than the mother helped with child care. Findings were published in a paper in the journal <a href="http://rsos.royalsocietypublishing.org/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Royal Society Open Science</a>.

"Infants who were held and carried more by babysitters nursed less often and drank less milk," said Badescu. "This means that they were becoming more nutritionally independent compared to infants of the same age who were babysat less or not at all. They were going through the weaning process quicker, and would likely be done weaning at a younger age."

As a result, the mothers were able to continue to reproduce. But not all female chimpanzees seem to believe in babysitters.

According to Badescu, “In other chimpanzee communities, babysitting may be a behaviour that rarely occurs. Our findings emphasize the significance of babysitting as a flexible component of female reproductive strategies in some species.”

Badescu and her team conducted an additional study that found chimpanzee mothers allowed their offspring to nurse for comfort, not just nourishment, even after lactation was over. "The young chimps were already weaned but continued to make contact with their mother's' nipple not for nutrition, but presumably for emotional purposes, when they needed to be comforted," said Badescu. 

This study was published in the American Journal of Physical Anthropology last month.

---

By <a href="mailto:oliviagharvey24@gmail.com">Olivia Harvey</a>, <a href="http://earth.com">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Female chimpanzees hire babysitters so they can have more babies

Female chimpanzees hire babysitters, study finds. It turns out humans...

The 75 million-year-old claw of an extinct dinosaur has a sheath formed of keratin – just like modern birds such as the ostrich.

The finding was reported by a research team from <a href="https://www.ncsu.edu/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">North Carolina State University</a> in the journal <a href="http://rspb.royalsocietypublishing.org/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences</a>.

The claw came from a bird-like dinosaur, Citipati osmolskae, that lived during the Cretaceous Period in what is now the Gobi Desert along the border of China and Mongolia. The dinosaur was killed when a sand dune collapsed, researchers said. 

It was unlucky for the extinct dinosaur, but not for researchers: the rapid burial led to remarkable preservation of the C. osmolskae’s remains.

Though the fossil was uncovered 20 years ago, researchers studying the specimen recently spotted what appeared to be a keratin sheath. Microscopic examination and molecular scans showed that it was indeed a keratin sheath, and that it was structurally similar to the claw sheaths of modern birds.

In modern birds, beta-keratin – a substance found only in reptiles and birds, but similar to the material that forms human finger- and toenails – serves to protect each claw, making them harder and more useful tools in defense and hunting.
<ol>
 	<li> osmolskae was a feathered oviraptor (a type of flesh-eating dinosaur) with a long neck, short tail, and crest on its head totalling about 10 feet in length. The specimen examined by the North Carolina State team was probably guarding its nest when it was killed, the scientists said.</li>
</ol>
In addition to revealing a link between Cretaceous Period dinosaurs and modern birds, the study found that the rapid collapse of the sand dune on the dinosaur led to calcium being incorporated with the fossil remains. The calcium appears to have played a major role in the preservation of the original molecules of the remains, allowing scientists to get a better idea of the oviraptor’s physical structures, scientists said. 

---

By <a href="mailto:oliviagharvey24@gmail.com">Olivia Harvey</a>, <a href="http://earth.com">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Extinct dinosaur rocked keratin in claws eons before modern birds

The 75 million-year-old claw of an extinct dinosaur has a...

Male chimpanzees are better fathers than husbands – they’d rather hang around with their children than their lovers.

“Co-parenting” may be a fashionable term these days to describe friendly exes who raise their kids together as a team, but it turns out humans didn’t invent that move. According to new research, male chimps tend to be very invested in their offspring, despite not cultivating any kind of lasting relationship with the mother.

Until now, chimpanzees were thought to be promiscuous animals who may not even recognize their own kids. But new research shows that male chimpanzees spend time with non-mating female chimpanzees who look after their offspring. The father chimps also spend time grooming and caring for their young.

Lead author of the paper “Chimpanzee Fathers Bias Their Behavior Toward Their Offspring,” Carson Murray collected long-term data from Gombe Stream National Park in Tanzania and examined patterns based on 17 father chimpanzees and 49 mother-infant pairs to determine if the fathers could recognize their offspring. The research showed the males associated with the mothers of their offspring in infancy and interacted with their offspring more than expected.

"As anthropologists, we want to understand what patterns could have existed early in human evolution that help explain how human behavior evolved," said Murray. “This research suggests that males may sometimes prioritize relationships with their offspring rather than with potential mates. For a species without pair-bonds where it was assumed fathers didn't know which infants were their own, this is an important finding."

That male chimpanzees prioritized parenting over mating came as a surprise to many who previously assumed the primates were mostly motivated by sex. Chimpanzees are humankind’s closest living relative, so the research also contributes to the large anthropological question of why human fathers invest so much in their own offspring.

---

By <a href="mailto:oliviagharvey24@gmail.com">Olivia Harvey</a>, <a href="http://earth.com">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Male chimpanzees better fathers than husbands

Male chimpanzees are better fathers than husbands – they’d rather...

Prehistoric Mosasaur fossil was once an enormous menace roaming the warm Antarctic seas 66 million years ago hunting giant prey.

Scientists discovered the four-foot-long skull of a <a href="http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0195667116303123">new mosasaur species</a> on Seymour Island off the coast of Antarctica in 2010. The fossil remains of the prehistoric sea monster indicates it is the largest species of mosasaur to have lived in the Southern Hemisphere.

Mosasaurs were gargantuan sea lizards that hunted the reptilian ancestors of whales and other large sea creatures. Fossil specimens have been found <a href="http://oceansofkansas.com/about-mo.html">throughout the world</a>, from the United States and Canada to Europe, the Middle East, Africa and beyond. Several partial sets of juvenile remains have been discovered off the coast of Antarctica since 1998.

But the mosasaur that once owned the skull discovered in 2010, dubbed Kaikaifilu hervei after Mapuche legends of a sea monster named Kai-Kai Filu that battled a giant land-based reptile, is about twice the size of other fossilized skulls found in the region. K. hervei is believed to have been 33 feet long.

While the leviathan was alive, the Antarctic seas would have been much warmer. It likely hunted marine reptiles similar to modern whales. The whale-like reptiles, known as pleisosaurs, were abundant in the Antarctic waters. 

Like modern whales, mosasaurs like K. hervei appear to have been descendants of land-based creatures that returned to the ocean and evolved to live there.

The mosasaurs disappeared at the end of the Cretaceous Period, around the time of a suspected asteroid impact in Mexico that triggered a mass extinction. 

This prehistoric mosasaur fossil helps paleontologists gain a better understanding of biological diversity in the Southern Hemisphere prior to that extinction event, and how it developed differently from similar creatures in the Northern Hemisphere.

The newly discovered species was described by researchers in the journal <a href="http://www.journals.elsevier.com/cretaceous-research">Cretaceous Research</a>.

---

By <a href="mailto:oliviagharvey24@gmail.com">Olivia Harvey</a>, <a href="http://earth.com">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Prehistoric Mosasaur fossil found, tells story of gigantic sea menace

Prehistoric Mosasaur fossil was once an enormous menace roaming the...

MEOW! Meet an ancient sabertooth cat the size of a polar bear.

Discovery of an ancient skull in northwestern China has offered new information about a prehistoric sabertooth cat that was roughly the size of a polar bear, according to scientists.

Machairodus horribilis lived during the Late Miocene, about 5.3 to 11.6 million years ago, said the researchers from the <a href="http://english.cas.cn/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Chinese Academy of Sciences</a>, who rediscovered the fossil that was originally found in the Longjiagou Basin but left in storage for decades.

The skull is about 15.7 inches long, indicating the ancient sabertooth cat was a little over 10 feet long and weighed about 892 pounds, according to <a href="https://www.researchgate.net/publication/309409331_A_skull_of_Machairodus_horribilis_and_new_evidence_for_gigantism_as_a_mode_of_mosaic_evolution_in_machairodonts_Felidae_Carnivora" target="_blank" rel="noopener">researchers’ findings</a>. 

[caption id="attachment_119344" align="alignleft"]<img class="size-thumbnail wp-image-119344" src="http://www.earth.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/11/cat-150x150.jpg" alt="An ancient sabertooth cat fossil from the Late Miocene was rediscovered in northwestern China that was as big as a polar bear." width="150" height="150" /> An ancient sabertooth cat fossil[/caption]

However, despite its enormous size, M. horribilis most likely hunted smaller prey than later prehistoric sabertooths like Smilodon, a younger Ice Age cousin. Though M. horribilis had long, serrated fangs, it was unable to open its mouth as widely. 
M. horribilis, which lived about 8.3 million years ago, would only have opened its mouth to about a 70 degree angle, similar to modern lions. The skull also showed some cranial characteristics that in some ways are more similar to pantherine species than later sabertooths, researchers said.
Preservation of the skull allowed the scientists to determine where muscles would have attached and reconstruct the large cat’s bite.

Despite its large bite, the scientists believe M. horribilis was still a successful hunter, able to overpower its prey with its enormous size.

The research team asserts that the rediscovery offers scientific support for the theory of mosaic evolution: the idea that some body parts or systems evolve independently of others and at different rates across related species. 

M. horribilis appears to have grown larger in size than other, related machairodont (sabertooth) cats which evolved a wider bite that allowed them to hunt larger prey, according to the study published in the journal <a href="http://english.ivpp.cas.cn/sp/PalAsiatica/vp_intr/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Vertebrata PalAsiatica</a>.

Ancient sabertooth cat found in northwestern China big as a polar bear

MEOW! Meet an ancient sabertooth cat the size of a...

White Sands lizard quickly adapts white skin to avoid extinction.

Lizards in New Mexico’s White Sands National Park have been forced to make a very specific adaptation in order to avoid extinction.

The national park features enormous gypsum dunes for hundreds of miles with bright, white sands. In order to avoid being wiped out by predators, lizards have developed white skin, a stark contrast to their typical browns and greens.

What is especially remarkable is the extremely fast pace with which the adaptation is occurring: the change is so significant that scientists think the lizards may even become a new species.

Dr. Bree Rosenblum and her team from Berkeley University, in conjunction with the National Science Foundation (NSF), are currently studying the rapid adaptation of the lizards in White Sands National Park. According to Rosenblum, understanding this evolution is as important as ever, given how many species are currently facing possible extinction.

The lightening complexion of the lizards is due the Mc1r gene, which reduces the amount of melanin in the lizards’ skin, making it appear whiter.

White Sands lizard quickly adapts white skin to avoid extinction

White Sands lizard quickly adapts white skin to avoid extinction....

Wild animals lead longer lives in zoos! Most animals’ life expectancy is longer when kept in the safety of zoos, according to a new report.

The study, conducted by researchers from the <a href="http://lyon-university.org/" target="_blank">University of Lyon</a> and the <a href="http://www.uzh.ch/en.html" target="_blank">University of Zurich</a> and published in <a href="http://www.nature.com/srep/" target="_blank">Scientific Reports</a>, confirmed what scientists have suspected for some time: most animals survive longer in the safety and relative comfort of a zoo than in the wild.

In the past, data has not been available on the lifespans of animals in the wild, but new studies and monitoring of free animals offered researchers data in the form of a population of wild creatures with known ages. They analyzed the lifespans of wild and zoo-kept animals from more than 50 species of mammals.

The findings? More than 80 percent of mammals survive longer in zoos than in the wild. This was true even of carnivores, according to study co-author Marcus Clauss, professor of nutrition and biology of zoo and wild animals at the University of Zurich. All 15 of the carnivore species they studied had longer lifespans in the zoo.

Small animals lead longer lives in captivity as well, particularly those that are at risk of being hunted by predators.

However, animals that faced fewer threats and lower mortality in the wild had lifespans that were about the same or even sometimes shorter while in captivity. 

The zoo protects the other animals in the study from threats, from predators to starvation, that shorten their lifespans, but with animals that face few threats, there's not as much for the zoo to protect them from, Dr. Clauss said. 

The study was based primarily on historical zoo and wildlife data, according to the researchers, because they studied only cohorts of animals that were already dead. It doesn't take into account current animal care methods used by zoos, or how modern practices may affect animals’ lifespans. 

Researchers also pointed out that longevity alone is not the only ethical consideration to take into account when it comes to keeping animals in captivity.

Wild animals lead longer lives in zoos than in the wild

Wild animals lead longer lives in zoos! Most animals’ life...

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Today’s Video of the Day from the <a href="https://www.esa.int/">European Space Agency</a> features Nushagak Bay, a large estuary in southwest Alaska. Nushagak runs mainly north to south and exits in Bristol Bay, a large body of water in the Bering Sea.



"The bay is primarily fed by the Nushagak River, which begins in the Alaska Range and flows southwest approximately 450 km. The bay is also fed by several additional rivers including the Wood, Igushik, Snake and Weary rivers," says ESA.



"The dark colors of the Nushagak River are most likely due to tannins or lignins (chemical substances found in plants). Tannins and lignins from roots, leaves, seeds, bark and soil can leach into the water and give it a brown or even black colour. The sediments then flow southwards where it is mixed with the bluer waters of the bay."



Video/ Image Credit: ESA



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By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Nushagak Bay in southwest Alaska

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Today's Video of the Day from the <a href="https://www.acs.org/">American Chemical Society</a> (ACS) reveals that proteins on flu viruses are actually flexible, tilting and waving in a “breath-like” motion. According to the experts, these proteins could be used to better defend against the flu.



"The main antigenic targets of influenza virus are two surface glycoproteins, hemagglutinin (HA) and neuraminidase (NA). Whereas the structural and dynamical properties of both glycoproteins have been studied previously, the understanding of their plasticity in the whole-virion context is fragmented," wrote the researchers.



To investigate, the team conducted detailed simulations of the influenza A H1N1 virion, or the swine flu. The experts concluded that the visualizations show many new vulnerable states of flu viruses, which could improve future vaccines and antiviral drugs.



Video/ Image Credit: American Chemical Society&nbsp;



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By <a href="mailto:csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Editor



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Flu viruses are more flexible than expected

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Today’s Video of the Day from the <a href="https://www.esa.int/">European Space Agency</a> features Lake Trasimeno, which is located west of Perugia in central Italy. It is the fourth largest lake in the country. While Trasimeno’s water level varies, it has a maximum depth of approximately six meters.&nbsp;



"In this Copernicus Sentinel-2 image, captured on 6 August 2022, the lake’s emerald green colour is likely due to the presence of phytoplankton. Streaks in the water, particularly visible in the west, indicate the presence of soil and sediments which have been stirred up by winds. Dark colored waters in the southern part of the lake indicate a presence of submerged and floating macrophytes (aquatic plants) as well as algae," says ESA.



"Surrounded by hills on three sides, Trasimeno is subject to heavy storms created by winds, especially from the north and west. There are three islets in the lake: Maggiore, Minore and Polvese (the largest). The lake’s shores are sparsely inhabited with only two popular villages: Castiglione del Lago and Passignano sul Trasimeno."



"Italy is experiencing its worst drought in 70 years which has affected drinking water supplies, hydroelectric power and agricultural production. High temperatures, hot winds and lack of rainfall are the main causes of drought in the Umbrian region which saw Lake Trasimeno’s drop 1.3 m, reaching the limit of the hydrometric zero in July 2022."



Video/Image Credit: ESA&nbsp;



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By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Lake Trasimeno in Central Italy

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Today's Video of the Day from the <a href="https://www.acs.org/">American Chemical Society</a> describes a new self-powered nanosensor that can instantly detect mercury contamination with the tap of a finger.&nbsp;



The oxidized form of mercury can be harmful when it is ingested through contaminated water or food. This makes it necessary for experts to develop sensors that can quickly and accurately detect the presence of mercury.&nbsp;



Zong-Hong Lin and colleagues have now created a triboelectric nanosensor (TENS) that can detect mercury by simply by touching a sample. According to the researchers, their TENS could serve as the basis for similar devices to safely and remotely monitor other pollutants.



Video Credit: American Chemical Society&nbsp;



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By <a href="mailto:csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Editor



Check us out on <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/">EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by Eric Ralls and Earth.com.

Detecting mercury contamination with the tap of a finger

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Today’s Video of the Day from the <a href="https://www.acs.org/">American Chemical Society</a> explores the ability of salt to transform the way that foods and beverages taste. Salt is known to cover up undesirable flavors, such as bitterness in coffee or beer, but how exactly does sodium chloride change the taste of other compounds?



One previous study showed that, not only does salt suppress bitterness, but also enhances sweetness and sourness. Another study revealed that bitterness reduction by salt seems to be happening at the tongue receptor level as well as in the brain.&nbsp;



While it is known that salt taste is mediated by the presence of sodium channels in the form of taste buds, experts believe that there is also an unknown receptor responsible for how we taste salt that has not yet been identified.&nbsp;



Video Credit: ACS Reactions



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By <a href="mailto:csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Editor



Check us out on <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/">EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by Eric Ralls and Earth.com.

How does salt makes things taste better?

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Today’s Video of the Day from the <a href="https://www.esa.int/">European Space Agency</a> features Santiago, the capital city of Chile. The city is located in the center of the Santiago Metropolitan Region, which has a population of about eight million people.&nbsp;



'The weather of Santiago resembles the Mediterranean climate with dry and warm summers with temperatures reaching up to 35°C (from October to March) and cool and humid winters that can drop to 0°C (from April to September)."



"The city lies in the centre of the country’s central valley around 80 km from the Pacific Ocean to the west and borders Argentina to the east. A tiny part of Argentina is visible in the top-right corner of the image where the mountain crest of the Andes Mountains acts as a divider between the two countries," says ESA.



Video/ Image Credit: ESA



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By <a href="mailto:csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Editor



Check us out on <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/">EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by Eric Ralls and Earth.com.

Santiago, Chile in South America

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Spiral,Galaxy,,Illustration,Of,Milky,Way

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Astronomers at <a href="https://www.jhu.edu/">Johns Hopkins University</a> have created an interactive map of the universe, including the actual position and real colors of 200,000 galaxies. The map allows the public to access data that was previously only available to scientists.



The map was developed using data collected by the Sloan Digital Sky Survey. For over two decades, a telescope in New Mexico was aimed at slightly different locations to capture the night sky.&nbsp;



"Growing up I was very inspired by astronomy pictures, stars, nebulae and galaxies, and now it's our time to create a new type of picture to inspire people," said map creator Brice Ménard, a professor at Johns Hopkins. "Astrophysicists around the world have been analyzing this data for years, leading to thousands of scientific papers and discoveries. But nobody took the time to create a map that is beautiful, scientifically accurate, and accessible to people who are not scientists. Our goal here is to show everybody what the universe really looks like."



"In this map, we are just a speck at the very bottom, just one pixel. And when I say we, I mean our galaxy, the Milky Way which has billions of stars and planets. We are used to seeing astronomical pictures showing one galaxy here, one galaxy there or perhaps a group of galaxies. But what this map shows is a very, very different scale."



"From this speck at the bottom, we are able to map out galaxies across the entire universe, and that says something about the power of science."



The <a href="https://mapoftheuniverse.net/">interactive map</a> is available online, where it can be downloaded for free.



Video Credit: Johns Hopkins&nbsp;



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By <a href="mailto:csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Editor



Check us out on <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/">EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by Eric Ralls and Earth.com.

Interactive map of the universe includes 200,000 galaxies

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Lesotho: Africa's "Kingdom in the Sky" Today’s Video of the Day from the <a href="https://www.esa.int/">European Space Agency</a> features northwest Lesotho in South Africa.



According to ESA, Lesotho is the only nation in the world that lies completely above 1,000 m in elevation. The country is famous for its tall mountains and narrow valleys, and is known as Africa's "Kingdom in the Sky."



Out of a population of around two million people, about 80 percent live in rural areas. More than 75 percent of these people are engaged in <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/climate-change-will-have-a-global-impact-on-agriculture/">agriculture</a>, including rainfed cereal production and animal grazing.&nbsp;



ESA reports that the country’s agricultural system faces a growing number of issues, with climate-related vulnerabilities such as drought, floods and extreme temperatures occurring more frequently. 



Diamonds are amongst the minerals found in the mountains. Indeed, Lesotho can truly be called the Kingdom in the Sky. Beautiful, culturally rich, safe, affordable, and easily accessible from Durban and Johannesburg, mountainous Lesotho is a vastly underrated travel destination. the Kingdom of Lesotho (Sotho: 'Muso oa Lesotho) is an enclaved country in southern Africa. It is just over 30,000 km2 (11,583 sq mi) in size and has a population of around 2 million.



Video Credit: ESA&nbsp;&nbsp;



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By <a href="mailto:csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer 



Check us out on <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/">EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by Eric Ralls and Earth.com.

Lesotho: Africa's "Kingdom in the Sky"

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Today's Video of the Day from the <a href="https://www.esa.int/">European Space Agency</a> features Dublin, the capital and largest city of Ireland. Beyond its pub culture, Dublin is known as a modern culinary destination and a UNESCO City of Literature.



"Dublin is located near the midpoint of Ireland’s east coast in the province of Leinster. The city, which covers an area of around 115 square kilometers, is bordered by the Dublin Mountains, a low mountain range to the south, and is surrounded by flat farmland to the north and west," says ESA.



"The city straddles the River Liffey, which rises in the Wicklow Mountains and flows around 80 kilometers eastwards through the city of Dublin, in which it is canalised and bordered with quays. It then empties into Dublin Bay, an arm of the Irish Sea."



Dublin has an abundance of green spaces, including one of the largest enclosed public parks in any European capital city. Phoenix Park, which was originally formed as a royal hunting park in the 1660s, includes 707 hectares of green space.



Video Credit: ESA&nbsp;



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By <a href="mailto:csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Editor



Check us out on <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/">EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by Eric Ralls and Earth.com.

The city of Dublin on Ireland's east coast

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Today's Video of the Day from the <a href="https://www.esa.int/">European Space Agency</a> features the province of Zaragoza in northeast Spain. The image was captured by the Copernicus Sentinel-2 mission.



"Together with the provinces of Huesca and Teruel, Zaragoza formed the old kingdom of Aragon. Its capital, also called Zaragoza (not visible in this image) is home to around half of Aragon’s population," says ESA.



"The Ebro River can be seen winding its way through the province from west to east in this image. Between its source in the Cantabrian Mountains in the northwest and its delta on the Mediterranean coast, the Ebro River is fed by more than 200 tributaries as it flows 910 km across much of northern Spain."



Since rainfall is very scarce in this region, irrigation in the Ebro basin is critically important. In the valleys surrounding the Ebro River, many fields are used for growing crops such as corn, wheat, and barley.



Video/ Image Credit: ESA



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By <a href="mailto:csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Editor



Check us out on <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/">EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by Eric Ralls and Earth.com.

The province of Zaragoza in northeast Spain

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Today’s Video of the Day from <a href="https://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/">NASA Earth Observatory</a> reveals the evolution of the Columbia Glacier in southeastern Alaska. Columbia is among the fastest shrinking glaciers in the world, and the video documents its rapid retreat over the years.&nbsp;



Columbia Glacier is a large, multi-branched calving glacier that flows out of the Chugach Mountains to the Prince William Sound.&nbsp;



According to USGS, Columbia had a long history of stability prior to 1980, with a length 41 miles, and small, short-lived advances or retreats.



In the years since 1980, however, satellite images have captured Columbia’s alarming retreat. By using false-color images, scientists can distinguish between snow and ice, open water, vegetation, and rocky debris on the glacier’s surface.



The series of false-color images featured in today's video were acquired over the span of 35 years. You can see that by 2021, the glacier’s main branch had retreated about 15 miles from its initial position.



The Columbia Glacier has also lost more than 50 percent of its volume, mostly due to calving. <a href="https://www.earth.com/video/nasa-reveals-3d-visual-of-an-atmospheric-river/">NASA</a> reports that while climate change likely started the retreat, mechanical processes kept the disintegration going.



The NASA images are provided by Jesse Allen, Robert Simmon, Joshua Stevens, and Lauren Dauphin using data from Landsat satellites, from the U.S. Geological Survey, and data from MODIS on NASA’s Terra satellite. The structure of Columbia’s moraine played a large role in the stability of the glacier before 1980. 



Like other tidewater glaciers, the Columbia built up a moraine over time, and the mixture of ice and rock functioned like a dam keeping out the sea. It was supported on one end by the shoreline and by the underwater terminal moraine at the other.



Video Credit: NASA Earth Observatory/&nbsp; NASA’s Scientific Visualization Studio



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By <a href="mailto:csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Editor



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The rapid retreat of the Columbia Glacier

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Today’s Video of the Day from the <a href="https://www.esa.int/">European Space Agency</a> features the Pyrenees Mountains, which form a natural boundary between France and Spain in southwest Europe.



The mountain range is 430 kilometers in length. It stretches from the Mediterranean Sea on the east to the Atlantic Ocean on the west.



At an elevation of 3404 meters, Pico de Aneto is the highest mountain peak in the Pyrenees, and the third-highest peak in Spain. Pico de Aneto is located in the Posets-Maladeta Natural Park, which spans more than 82,000 acres.&nbsp;



"Geological studies have revealed that the Pyrenees Mountains have been around for longer than the Alps, with their sediments first deposited in coastal basins during the Paleozoic and Mesozoic eras," reports ESA.



"The entire mountain range formed due to the upwelling of large sedimentary rocks by the collision of the Iberian and the Eurasian plate around 100 to 150 million years ago, followed by intense erosion from ice and water."



The western Pyrenees receive more precipitation due to moisture blowing in from the Atlantic Ocean. The mountain range contains many lakes, several small glaciers, and some of the highest waterfalls in Europe.



Video &amp; Image Credit: ESA



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By <a href="mailto:csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Editor



Check us out on <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/">EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by Eric Ralls and Earth.com.

The Pyrenees Mountains in southwest Europe

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Earth,Like,Exoplanet,3d,Render

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Today's Video of the Day from <a href="https://www.nasa.gov/goddard">NASA Goddard</a> describes two exoplanets that are orbiting a star 218 light-years away. A team of researchers led by the University of Montreal has found evidence that these planets are "water worlds."



The experts used data from NASA’s Hubble and Spitzer Space Telescopes. They discovered that exoplanets Kepler-138 c and Kepler-138 could be composed largely of water.



"We previously thought that planets that were a bit larger than Earth were big balls of metal and rock, like scaled-up versions of Earth, and that's why we called them super-Earths," explained study co-author Björn Benneke.&nbsp;



"However, we have now shown that these two planets, Kepler-138 c and d, are quite different in nature and that a big fraction of their entire volume is likely composed of water. It is the best evidence yet for water worlds, a type of planet that was theorized by astronomers to exist for a long time."



Video Credit: NASA Goddard



Image Credit: NASA, ESA, and Leah Hustak (STScI)



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By <a href="mailto:csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Editor



Check us out on <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/">EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by Eric Ralls and Earth.com.

Two distant planets may be "water worlds"

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Satellites reveal how Earth's systems are interconnected Today’s Video of the Day from <a href="https://www.nasa.gov/goddard">NASA Goddard</a> describes Earth’s interconnected systems, and how this network is affected by rising temperatures.&nbsp;



During 2020, average global temperatures matched the hottest year on record. The hurricane season was also record-breaking, with many of the storms intensifying at extraordinary speeds. Hot water in the ocean is fuel for hurricanes. The satellite data shows that it's all one interconnected system showing how Satellites reveal how Earth's systems are interconnected.



According to NASA, dust swept up from Northern Africa plays a major role in the formation of hurricanes, and is also a key source of fertilization in the Amazon rainforest. As a result of<a href="https://www.earth.com/news/seagrass-wasting-disease-is-fueled-by-climate-change/"> climate</a> change, dust plumes are expected to decline, which will have an effect on vegetation far away.&nbsp;



Images from Earth-observing satellites show how the world’s plant life is affected by natural disasters, fires, and deforestation. Satellites also reveal how widespread changes in vegetation impact waterways,&nbsp; the climate, air quality. Satellites communicate by using radio waves to send signals to the antennas on the Earth. "Earth From Space" is a groundbreaking two-hour special that reveals a spectacular new space-based vision of our planet. 



Video Credit: NASA Goddard&nbsp;



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By <a href="mailto:csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Editor



Check us out on <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/">EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by Eric Ralls and Earth.com.

Satellites reveal how Earth's systems are interconnected

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Today’s Video of the Day from the <a href="https://welcome.miami.edu/">University of Miami</a> Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science explores how changes in water temperatures have affected tiger shark habitats and movements in the North Atlantic Ocean. The study reveals that rising temperatures have caused the sharks to shift toward the poles over the past 40 years.



“Tiger shark annual migrations have expanded poleward, paralleling rising water temperatures,” explained study lead author Neil Hammerschlag. “These results have consequences for tiger shark conservation, since shifts in their movements outside of marine protected areas may leave them more vulnerable to commercial fishing.”



The researchers analyzed nine years of tracking data from satellite-tagged tiger sharks, combined with four decades of conventional tag and recapture data provided by National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Cooperative Shark Tagging Program.



The experts found that during the last decade of record heat, for every one-degree Celsius increase in water temperatures, tiger sharks migrated further poleward by over 400 kilometers. They also migrated two weeks earlier than usual to waters off the northeastern coast of the United States.



“Given their role as apex predators, these changes to tiger shark movements may alter predator-prey interactions, leading to ecological imbalances, and more frequent encounters with humans,” concluded Professor Hammerschlag.



Video Credit: University of Miami Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science



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By <a href="mailto:csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Editor



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Tiger sharks are shifting poleward as temperatures rise

Today’s Video of the Day from the University of Miami...

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Today’s Video of the Day from the <a href="https://www.esa.int/">European Space Agency</a> is focused on the melt ponds that emerge during the spring and summer on the Greenland Ice Sheet, which is the largest ice mass in the northern hemisphere.



"Melt ponds are vast pools of open water that form on both sea ice and ice sheets and are visible as turquoise-blue pools of water in this Copernicus Sentinel-2 image," says ESA.



"When snow and ice melts atop glaciers, water flows in channels and streams and collects in depressions on the surface. These melt ponds can speed up the melting of the surrounding ice since they greatly reduce the ice’s ability to reflect sunlight."



"This can create a positive feedback where an increasing number of melt ponds absorb more heat which causes ice cover to melt even faster."



According to ESA, Greenland has been hit with a late-season heatwave that began in early September. This caused the type of melt event that usually occurs in the middle of summer.



"In a recent paper published in Nature Climate Change, scientists found that major sea-level rise from the melting of the Greenland ice cap is now ‘inevitable’ even if the burning of fossil fuels were to halt overnight," says ESA. "Using satellite observations of Greenland ice loss and ice cap from 2000 to 2019, the team found the losses will lead to a minimum rise of 27 cm regardless of climate change."



Video Credit: ESA&nbsp;



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By <a href="mailto:csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Editor



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Melt ponds on the Greenland Ice Sheet

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Today’s Video of the Day from the <a href="https://www.esa.int/">European Space Agency</a> describes a new map of Mars that is providing insight into the planet’s watery past. The map also reveals where future missions could safely land on Mars.&nbsp;



The map has been created over the last decade using observations of water-rich rocks and mineral deposits. The images were captured by ESA’s Mars Express and NASA’s Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter.



"A big surprise is the prevalence of these minerals, with the map revealing hundreds of thousands of water-affected locations in the oldest parts of the planet," says ESA. "The new data will help answer exciting questions about Mars’ climate history, whether water was globally persistent or confined to short, intense episodes, and whether the conditions were ever suitable for life."



"Specifically, the map shows the locations and abundances of aqueous minerals. These are from rocks that have been chemically altered by the action of water in the past, and have typically been transformed into clays and salts."



According to John Carter of the Institut d’Astrophysique Spatiale (IAS), our collective understanding of Mars has been oversimplified. He explained that planetary scientists have tended to think that only a few types of clay minerals on Mars were created during its wet period, then as the water gradually dried up, salts were produced across the planet.



The new map shows that the composition of Mars is much more complicated than what we thought. For example, while many salts formed after Martian clays, there are some salts that are presumed to be older than some of the clays.&nbsp;



“The evolution from lots of water to no water is not as clear cut as we thought, the water didn’t just stop overnight. We see a huge diversity of geological contexts, so that no one process or simple timeline can explain the evolution of the mineralogy of Mars. That’s the first result of our study. The second is that if you exclude life processes on Earth, Mars exhibits a diversity of mineralogy in geological settings just as Earth does,” said Carter.



Video Credit: ESA



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By <a href="mailto:csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Editor



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The history of Mars is much more complex than we thought

[sendtonews key="qas3EhyI0Y-2220951-12187" type="single"] Today’s Video of the Day from the...

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Today's Video of the Day from the <a href="https://www.stowers.org/">Stowers Institute for Medical Research</a> describes how cavefish adapted to a sedentary lifestyle over tens of thousands of years. 



The experts found that the muscle metabolism of cavefish has been genetically reprogrammed over time. As a result, the animals have experienced major changes in their morphology and behavior. Despite these changes, however, the cavefish remain healthy and fit.



The research may provide new clues about the evolutionary consequences of prolonged physical inactivity in humans.&nbsp;



“It’s no surprise that people are moving less and less as technology has advanced,” said Rohner. “With cavefish, we have a unique system where we can study what might happen if people remained couch potatoes over very, very long periods of time.”



Video Credit: Stowers Institute for Medical Research



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By <a href="mailto:csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Editor



Check us out on <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/">EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by Eric Ralls and Earth.com.

Cavefish are healthy despite their sedentary lifestyle

[sendtonews key="vpljfR2VBX-2560867-12187" type="single"] Today's Video of the Day from the...

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Today’s Video of the Day from <a href="https://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/">NASA Earth Observatory</a> some of the most incredible waves in the world, as seen by Landsat satellites.



"With more than 370,000 miles of coastline on Earth, there are plenty of places where epic waves build up, curl over, and hurtle toward the shore.- much to the thrill of surfers," says NASA. "There are some places where these waves are so magnificent that they can be seen from space."



"With the broad perspective of satellites, we can see how these iconic waves develop into the world’s tallest, longest, fastest, and heaviest."



Video Credit: NASA Earth Observatory&nbsp;



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By <a href="mailto:csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Editor



Check us out on <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/">EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by Eric Ralls and Earth.com.

Satellites capture the world's biggest and fastest waves

[sendtonews key="MHyhtebibJ-2200368-12187" type="single"] Today’s Video of the Day from NASA...

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Today’s Video of the Day from the <a href="https://www.esa.int/">European Space Agency</a> describes why satellite images and measurements of our planet have become "essential to our survival, offering a new outlook of our world."&nbsp;



Rising sea levels pose one of the biggest societal threats associated with climate change. According to ESA, satellite altimeter missions such as Copernicus Sentinel-6 are essential in monitoring global and regional changes in sea level.



"Unbeknown to many, the island of Crete, Greece, plays an important role in the Copernicus satellite altimetry constellation and on an international stage," reports ESA.



"Satellite altimetry data have to be continuously monitored at the ESA’s Permanent Facility for Altimetry Calibration where different techniques have pioneered the use of transponders to provide the best measurements to validate satellite altimeters in space soon after launch."



Dr. Craig Donlon explains that, by understanding planet Earth through satellite measurements, we are able to find evidence of change.&nbsp;



Video Credit: European Space Agency&nbsp;



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By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Satellites have become essential to our survival

[sendtonews key="761m2QQvR1-2035772-12187" type="single"] Today’s Video of the Day from the...