This week, the October sky is treating us to a brilliant display that you won't want to miss -- the Hunter's supermoon, a rare comet, and the Orionids meteor shower. 



Comet C/2023 A3 Tsuchinshan-ATLAS is a rare comet making its journey past Earth, offering a unique opportunity to witness its tail of icy particles glistening against the dark canvas of space.



In addition, this week features the biggest supermoon of the year, Hunter's supermoon, which will illuminate the night with a breathtaking orangish glow.



Since Tuesday, the moon has looked larger than usual, and it’ll keep that appearance through Friday. By Thursday morning, as people head out for their morning commute. Depending on the weather in your area, Thursday night being the best time to see the full Hunter's supermoon..



And let's not forget the dazzling Orionids meteor shower, where you can catch glimpses of shooting stars streaking across the sky, resulting from debris left by Halley's Comet.



There's truly something for everyone in this celestial display. So, grab a warm jacket, perhaps a pair of binoculars for a closer look.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-80-000-year-old-time-traveler">80,000-year-old time traveler</h2>



Meet <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/most-anticipated-comet-of-2024-returns-this-weekend-after-80000-years/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Comet C/2023 A3 Tsuchinshan-ATLAS</a>, a celestial wanderer that's been on an 80,000-year long odyssey. 



From the outermost regions of our solar system, this comet embarks on an interminable journey around the sun. The last time it paid us a visit, our ancestors were just crafting civilizations.



Although its closest Earth pass was on October 12, it remains visible for the remainder of the month. 



So, how do you spot it? An hour into the sunset, turn your sight to where the sun has sunk and voila. The elusive comet, while difficult to sight with the naked eye, could be seen with a pair of binoculars. 



Don't miss this rare chance to witness a phenomenon that won't return for another 80,000 years.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-hunter-s-supermoon">Hunter's Supermoon</h2>



Next up...mark your calendars for October 17, 2024. The night sky is all set to parade the Hunter's Moon, but this year it's not just a full moon -- <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/hunters-supermoon-prepares-to-illuminate-the-october-skies/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">it's a supermoon</a>! 



This phenomenon occurs when the moon is at its closest to Earth during its full phase, making it larger and brighter.



The Hunter’s Moon got its name from the historical practice of hunters utilizing the bright moonlight to track game and gather food in preparation for winter. This full moon rises soon after sunset, extending the period of illumination more than usual.



As it ascends, the Hunter’s Moon appears particularly large and orange, a visual effect produced by its lower position on the horizon and the scattering of light in the atmosphere.



This lunar phase holds cultural significance across various traditions, representing a time for preparation and gathering, underscoring the importance of readiness for the impending colder months.



The Hunter’s Moon is generally in October -- although once every four years it makes an appearance in November.



While contemporary life may not depend on this extra light to hunt or complete outdoor tasks, the Hunter’s Moon remains a fascinating reminder of nature’s rhythms and the cyclical changes of the seasons.



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-what-puts-the-super-in-the-supermoon">What puts the 'super' in the supermoon?</h3>



So, you might ask, "What's so super about the supermoon?" As Anna Gammon-Ross, a seasoned astronomer from the <a href="https://www.rmg.co.uk/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Royal Museums Greenwich</a> explains, a supermoon occurs when a full moon is nearest to Earth in its orbit. 



This cosmic alignment results in a moon that's roughly 14% larger and 30% brighter than usual. On seeing the radiant orb hanging low in the sky, you'd agree that the supermoon does indeed earn its name.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-shooting-stars-orionids-meteor-shower">Shooting stars: Orionids meteor shower</h2>



The Orionids meteor shower is one of the highlights of the October night sky. These meteors are actually tiny bits of dust left behind by <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/orionids-meteor-shower-peaks-this-weekend-heres-what-to-expect/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Halley's Comet</a> as it travels through the solar system. 



When Earth passes through this trail of debris, the particles slam into our atmosphere at incredible speeds -- up to 148,000 miles per hour! As they burn up, they create those bright streaks of light we love to watch.



What's cool about the Orionids is that they're known for their fast and bright meteors, often leaving glowing trails that last for a few seconds. 



The best time to catch them is in the early morning hours before dawn, when the <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/betelgeuse-one-of-our-brightest-stars-will-vanish-from-sight-next-week/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">constellation Orion</a> (which gives the meteor shower its name) is high in the sky. 



Just find a comfy spot away from city lights, let your eyes adjust to the darkness, and enjoy the show -- no special equipment needed.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-skywatching-101">Skywatching 101</h2>



All set to behold these cosmic spectacles? Here are some tips to enhance your experience:



<ul class="wp-block-list">
<li>Search for a location far from city lights to escape light pollution. </li>



<li>Always check the weather. Clear skies are your best pals for skywatching. </li>



<li>Bring your binoculars. For the supermoon, they are optional, but they'll help with the comet and make meteor watching more fun. </li>



<li>Comfort is key. Dress warmly and consider bringing a blanket or a chair. </li>



<li>Patience is a virtue. Allow around 20 minutes for your eyes to adjust to the darkness.</li>
</ul>



These celestial showstoppers make for some spectacular photography opportunities. 



For the supermoon, a camera with manual settings, plus a tripod for steadiness, can help capture stunning shots. 



For the meteors, a wide-angle lens with a long exposure setting can help you nab a shooting star.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-more-wonders-to-watch">More wonders to watch</h2>



October's skywatching doesn't end with the comet, supermoon, and meteor shower. 



Throughout the month, Venus brightly greets morning risers, while Saturn and Jupiter are earlier night visitors. 



Mars is a bit elusive but worth seeking out. Several constellations, such as Cassiopeia and Perseus, also adorn the night sky. 



If you're a novice stargazer, a smartphone app can help you navigate the starry expanse.



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Hunter's supermoon, a comet, and Orionids meteors are sharing the sky tonight

This week, the October sky is treating us to a brilliant display that you won't want to miss -- the Hunter's supermoon, a rare comet, and the Orionids meteor shower. Comet C/2023 A3 Tsuchinshan-ATLAS is a rare comet making its journey past Earth, offering a unique opportunity to witness its tail of icy particles glistening against the dark canvas of space. In addition, this week features the biggest supermoon of the year, Hunter's supermoon, which will illuminate the night with a breathtaking orangish glow. Since Tuesday, the...

If they’re out there, then why haven’t we found them yet? New research led by undergraduate student Peter Ma at the University of Toronto, along with scientific research institutions around the world, has uncovered eight previously unidentified signals of interest.



The study used a dataset that had previously been searched through in 2017 that was labeled as devoid of interesting signals.&nbsp;



“We're scaling this search effort to 1 million stars today with the MeerKAT telescope and beyond. We believe that work like this will help accelerate the rate we’re able to make discoveries in our grand effort to answer the question ‘are we alone in the universe?’” said Ma.



The search for <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/what-will-humans-do-if-we-discover-extraterrestrial-life/">extraterrestrial</a> intelligence (SETI) beyond Earth aims to detect evidence of alien technology by searching for radio signals. Radio can send information over incredible distances at the speed of light (about 20,000 times faster than our best rockets). Many SETI efforts use antennas to eavesdrop on any radio signals aliens might be transmitting.



The experts re-examined data taken as part of a Breakthrough Listen campaign that initially indicated no targets of interest. The team applied new, deep learning techniques to yield faster and more accurate results.&nbsp;



After running the new algorithm and re-examining the data to confirm the results, newly detected signals were found. These included several key characteristics:



<ol><li>The signals had a narrow spectral width of just a few hertz. Signals caused by natural phenomena tend to be broadband.</li><li>The signals had non-zero drift rates, which means the signals had a slope. This could indicate a signal’s origin had some relative acceleration with our receivers, not local to the radio observatory.</li><li>The signals appeared in ON-source observations and not in OFF-source observations. If a signal originates from a specific celestial source, it appears when we point our telescope toward the target and disappears when we look away. Human radio interference usually occurs in ON and OFF observations due to the source being close by.</li></ol>



Cherry Ng, astronomer at both the <a href="https://www.seti.org/">SETI Institute</a> and the French National Center for Scientific Research said,&nbsp;



“These results dramatically illustrate the power of applying modern machine learning and computer vision methods to data challenges in astronomy, resulting in both new detections and higher performance. Application of these techniques at scale will be transformational for radio techno signature science.”



This new approach can help researchers more effectively understand the data they collect and act quickly to re-examine targets. Ma and his advisor Dr. Cherry Ng are looking forward to deploying extensions of this algorithm on the SETI Institute’s COSMIC system.



Since SETI experiments began in 1960, technological advances have enabled researchers to collect more data than ever. This requires new tools to process and analyze that data quickly to identify evidence of extraterrestrial intelligence, breaking new ground in the quest to answer the question: “Are we alone?”



The research is published in the journal <a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.1038/s41550-022-01872-z">Nature Astronomy</a>.



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By <a href="mailto:katherinebucko@gmail.com">Katherine Bucko</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer



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New signals identified in the search for extraterrestrial life

If they’re out there, then why haven’t we found them...

In the animal kingdom, high <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/stress-may-be-linked-to-female-fertility-issues/">fertility</a> and reproductive success usually correspond with a shorter lifespan. Queen ants, on the other hand, are an exception to this rule. In fact, ant queens live 10 to 30 times longer than their genetically identical relatives that do not reproduce. A recent study from the <a href="https://www.ufl.edu/">University of Florida</a> is shedding new light on this phenomenon.



In collaboration with experts at New York University, UF Professor Hua Yan has discovered that ant queens use a dual system to control their insulin. This system allows the queens to enhance both reproduction and lifespan simultaneously.&nbsp;



While the ant queens massively boost their insulin production to promote egg development, their ovaries also produce an insulin blocker that slows down the aging process. “Hopefully this finding allows us to better understand the aging process in many animals,” said Professor Yan, who also studies how ants communicate with pheromones to organize their society.



There are questions that remain about whether humans and other mammals could benefit from partially blocking the insulin pathway. For example, calorie restriction slows down insulin production in humans, yet is detrimental to reproduction.



The study, led by NYU researchers Comzit Opachaloemphan and Francisco Carmona-Aldana, was focused on Harpegnathos saltator ants, also known as Indian jumping ants.



When an Indian jumping ant queen dies, the workers duel to determine which ants will become pseudo-queens and reproduce. The new ant queens acquire longer lifespans, but this can be reversed if they are replaced by a true queen.&nbsp;



The researchers set out to investigate how lifespan extension can be switched on and off, and discovered that pseudo-queens produce much more insulin.



“It’s straightforward, the pseudo-queen is reproductive, so they need insulin. But insulin normally shortens lifespan, yet they have much longer lifespan – why? There must be something in the insulin signaling of the ants that differentially regulates reproduction and longevity," explained Professor Yan.



The research team discovered that an insulin blocker, Imp-L2, is produced by the newly active ovaries of the pseudo-queen. This insulin blocker slows down the part of the insulin pathway that is responsible for accelerated aging, and leaves the reproduction-boosting part of the signaling pathway intact.



The study is published in the journal <a href="https://www.science.org/">Science</a>.



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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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Ant queens have a secret weapon to slow down aging

In the animal kingdom, high fertility and reproductive success usually...

Many bird species migrate large distances across the globe and this movement is integral to their behavior, survival and <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/humpback-whale-reproduction-is-linked-to-krill-abundance/">reproduction</a>. It is important to understand where they go, and when, so that effective conservation actions can be implemented, but it is not possible to track millions of birds as they travel from and to locations all over the world. Migratory birds rely on a predictable series of seasonally and regionally varying resources and are thus susceptible to the global changes in climate and weather patterns that are becoming more common.&nbsp;



Although the movement patterns of individual birds can be deduced from the recapture or recovery of ringed or tagged birds, these techniques are labor intensive and cannot be applied to large numbers of birds. In addition, the weight and shape of tracking devices make them unsuitable for most birds to carry, and they are often too costly to be used on more than a handful of individuals.&nbsp;



However, the world is full of avid birdwatchers who enjoy monitoring and reporting the presence of migratory birds. For example, citizen scientists contribute more than 200&nbsp;million annual bird sightings through eBird, a project managed by the <a href="https://www.birds.cornell.edu/home/">Cornell Lab of Ornithology</a> and international partners.&nbsp;Datasets such as this provide enormous quantities of data on bird presence on a weekly basis, but do not track individuals birds to the end points of their migrations.&nbsp;



In collaboration with computer scientists at the University of Massachusetts Amherst, the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.birds.cornell.edu/home/">Cornell</a> team has now developed a new predictive model using these two different types of data on the movements of migratory birds. In their paper, published in the journal <a href="https://doi.org/10.1111/2041-210X.14052">Methods in Ecology and Evolution</a>,&nbsp;the scientists state that their model, called&nbsp;<a href="https://birdflow-science.github.io/">BirdFlow</a>, is capable of forecasting accurately where a migratory bird will go next, one of the most difficult tasks in biology.&nbsp;



“Humans have been trying to figure out bird migration for a really long time,” said study senior author Professor <a href="https://people.cs.umass.edu/~sheldon/?_gl=1*1j0ouo2*_ga*NjkzNDk1MDI0LjE2NTc3NDI2Mzg.*_ga_21RLS0L7EB*MTY3MzAxOTYwNi4yMzQuMS4xNjczMDIxNTk4LjAuMC4w&amp;_ga=2.230912479.1333256184.1672755734-693495024.1657742638">Dan Sheldon</a>, who is a passionate amateur birder. “But, it’s incredibly difficult to get precise, real-time information on which birds are where, let alone where, exactly, they are going," noted study last author Miguel Fuentes.



There have been many efforts, both previous and ongoing, to tag and track individual birds and, although data from this approach has produced important insights, it cannot give a complete picture that can be used to predict bird movements.&nbsp;



“It’s really hard to understand how an entire species moves across the continent with tracking approaches, because they tell you the routes that some birds caught in specific locations followed, but not how birds in completely different locations might move," said Professor Sheldon.



The new model combines data from tagged and ringed birds with the millions of sightings made by bird enthusiasts around the world through eBird. This is one of the largest biodiversity-related science projects in existence. The database comprises over one billion global bird observations, provided by hundreds of thousands of users. It facilitates state-of-the-art species distribution modeling through the Lab’s&nbsp;<a href="https://nam10.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fscience.ebird.org%2Fen%2Fstatus-and-trends&amp;data=05%7C01%7Cdrmiller%40umass.edu%7C61e2977796c44819ab0e08daf963edf5%7C7bd08b0b33954dc194bbd0b2e56a497f%7C0%7C0%7C638096504997203259%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJWIjoiMC4wLjAwMDAiLCJQIjoiV2luMzIiLCJBTiI6Ik1haWwiLCJXVCI6Mn0%3D%7C2000%7C%7C%7C&amp;sdata=kfJj9kfBa%2FElrpfkC3N3AYBDtLOrS6zB41N6bZIEih8%3D&amp;reserved=0">eBird Status &amp; Trends project</a>.&nbsp;



“eBird data is amazing because it shows where birds of a given species are every week across their entire range, but it doesn’t track individuals, so we need to infer what routes individual birds follow to best explain the species-level patterns," explained Professor Sheldon.



The BirdFlow model draws on eBird’s Status &amp; Trends database and its estimates of relative bird abundance, and then runs that information through a probabilistic machine-learning model. This model is tuned with real-time GPS and satellite tracking data so that it can “learn” to predict where individual birds will move next as they migrate. The model is still being perfected, but should be available to scientists within the year, and will eventually also be accessible to the general public.



The researchers tested BirdFlow on 11 species of North American birds - including the American woodcock, wood thrush and Swainson’s hawk - and found that not only did BirdFlow outperform other models for tracking bird migration, bit it accurately predicted migration flows&nbsp;without&nbsp;the real-time GPS and satellite tracking data, which makes BirdFlow a valuable tool for tracking species that may literally fly under the radar.



The new model allows scientists to monitor bird movements and the ways in which these respond to global changes in climate. In North America alone, an estimated three billion birds have been lost in the last half-century, representing nearly a third of the continent’s avifauna. According to the researchers, the&nbsp;BirdFlow&nbsp;framework has the potential to “boost insights gained from direct tracking studies and serve a number of applied functions in conservation, disease surveillance, aviation and public outreach.”



“Birds today are experiencing rapid environmental change, and many species are declining,” said study co-author&nbsp;<a href="https://bvandoren.com/">Benjamin Van Doren</a>. “Using BirdFlow, we can unite different data sources and paint a more complete picture of bird movements, with exciting applications for guiding conservation action.”



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By <a href="mailto:bosman@truewan.co.za">Alison Bosman</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer



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Machine learning may solve the mystery of bird movements

Many bird species migrate large distances across the globe and...

Since 1970, reports of large carnivore attacks on humans have increased. According to a new study published in <a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.1371/journal.pbio.3001946">PLoS Biology</a>, the frequency and context of these attacks depends on socioeconomic and environmental factors.



Giulia Bombieri of MUSE Science Museum in Italy and Vincenzo Penteriani of the National Museum of Natural Science (CSIC) in Spain collected information on reported attacks by 12 species of carnivores between 1970 and 2019.&nbsp;



Using scientific papers, web pages, and news reports, the experts identified 5,089 reported attacks by large carnivores that resulted in injury, of which 32 percent were fatal. Over the 49 year period, the number of reported attacks increased, particularly in lower-income countries.



"Large carnivores have long fascinated human societies and have profound influences on ecosystems. However, their conservation represents one of the greatest challenges of our time, particularly where attacks on humans occur. Where human recreational and/or livelihood activities overlap with large carnivore ranges, conflicts can become particularly serious," wrote the study authors.&nbsp;



The research showed that a staggering 90 percent of attacks in low-income countries took place while individuals were farming, fishing, or grazing livestock. In high-income countries, attacks were most common during recreational activities, such as hiking, camping, or dog-walking. In high income countries, attacks were also less likely to be fatal.



Wild felids (large cats) and canids (dog-like carnivores) were responsible for more predatory attacks, while bears were more likely to attack when surprised, defending cubs, or in food-related interactions. The most fatal attacks occurred in lower-income countries where tigers and lions are present.&nbsp;



The findings suggest that approaches to reduce large carnivore attacks should be tailored to the socioeconomic context.&nbsp;



“When human recreational and/or livelihood activities overlap with large carnivore ranges, it is crucial to understand how to live with species that can pose threats to humans," said Penteriani.



"Factors triggering large carnivore attacks on humans depend on the combination of local socio-economic and ecological factors, which implies that measures to reduce large carnivore attacks must consider the diverse local ecological and social contexts.”



For example, high-income countries can implement education campaigns about high-risk behaviors and how to avoid dangerous encounters. In lower-income countries, zoning changes should expand protective areas and separate humans and livestock from large carnivore habitats.&nbsp;



However, these preventative measures may be challenging to implement as the global population grows.



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By <a href="mailto:katherinebucko@gmail.com">Katherine Bucko</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer



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Large carnivore attacks are increasing as human impacts expand

Since 1970, reports of large carnivore attacks on humans have...

By using a soil fungus called Aspergillus nidulans, a team of researchers from the <a href="https://ku.edu/">University of Kansas</a> (KU) has recently managed to transform hard to recycle <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/plastic-waste-could-be-used-as-a-valuable-soil-additive/">plastic waste</a> from the Pacific Ocean into key components for designing pharmaceutics.



“What we’ve done in this paper is to first digest polyethylenes using oxygen and some metal catalysts - things that are not particularly harmful or expensive - and this breaks the plastics into diacids,” explained study co-author Berl Oakley, a professor of Molecular Biology at KU.&nbsp;



In a second step, long chains of carbon atoms resulting from the decomposed plastics were fed to genetically modified Aspergillus fungi, which metabolized them into a variety of pharmaceutically active compounds, including asperbenzaldehyde, citreoviridin, and mutilin.



Unlike in previous attempts, the fungi managed to digest the plastic products very quickly. “The thing that’s different about this approach is it’s two things - it’s chemical, and it’s fungal. But it’s also relatively fast. With a lot of these attempts, the fungus can digest the material, but it takes months because the plastics are so hard to break down. But this breaks the plastics down fast. Within a week you can have the final product,” Oakley said.



Although Oakley and his team have worked for years to produce about a hundred of secondary metabolites of fungi for various purposes, advances in genome sequencing have now unlocked new possibilities.&nbsp;



“There was a realization there were lots and lots of clusters of genes that made secondary metabolites that nobody had discovered - and there are millions of species of fungi. A lot of companies have done good work over the years, but it was very much incomplete, because they were just growing things in the incubator and examining them for production of new compounds - but 95 percent of the gene clusters were just silent since they are not ‘turned on’ until needed. They weren’t doing anything. So, there are lots more things to discover,” Oakley explained.



By sequencing the genomes of a variety of fungi, the scientists are now able to recognize the signatures of gene clusters that make chemical compounds, and change the expression of these genes, or even remove them from the genome, in order to increase the productivity of the fungi. After focusing on polyethylenes from the Pacific Ocean in the present study, the researchers aim to develop future procedures to break down all plastics into products that can be used as food for fungi, in order to eliminate the need to sort them during recycling.



“I think everybody knows that plastics are a problem. They’re accumulating in our environment. There’s a big area in the North Pacific where they tend to accumulate. But you also see plastic bags blowing around - they’re in the rivers and stuck in the trees. The squirrels around my house have even learned to line their nest with plastic bags. One thing that’s needed is to somehow get rid of the plastic economically, and if one can make something useful from it at a reasonable price, then that makes it more economically viable,” Oakley concluded.



The study is published in the journal <a href="https://doi.org/10.1002/anie.202214609">Angewandte Chemie</a>.



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By <a href="mailto:andrei.ionescu5891@gmail.com">Andrei Ionescu</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer



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Ocean plastic can be used to make pharmaceuticals

By using a soil fungus called Aspergillus nidulans, a team...

The <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/puzzling-fossil-has-the-body-of-a-bird-skull-of-a-dinosaur/">skull</a> of a fish that lived around 319 million years ago has recently been analyzed with by scientists from the University of Michigan and the <a href="https://www.birmingham.ac.uk/index.aspx">University of Birmingham</a>. The analysis turned up something unexpected. Within the fossilized skull, the researchers found a discrete, 3D object that could only be the fish’s brain.&nbsp;



This is unusual because soft tissues, such as brains, usually decay when an animal dies, and are seldom fossilized. It has allowed the researchers a window into the neural anatomy and early evolution of the ray-finned fishes, a major group that contains about 30,000 different species, roughly half of all known vertebrate species.&nbsp;



The ancient fossil skull was collected from the roof of a coal mine in Lancashire, UK, around 100 years ago and first described in 1925. At the time, it was identified as belonging to a new species, Coccocephalus wildi, and was put away in a draw in the Manchester Museum. No other fossilized body parts were recovered from the layer of soapstone where the skull was found.&nbsp;



The researchers were not looking for a brain when they used CT-scanning to visualize the structure of the skull. But the unexpected object detected within the skull displayed several features found in vertebrate brains: it was bilaterally symmetrical, it contained hollow spaces similar in appearance to ventricles, and it had multiple filaments extending toward openings in the braincase, comparable in appearance to cranial nerves.&nbsp;



The analysis of the findings has been published in the journal Nature, and the researchers say their discovery sheds new light on the preservation of soft parts in fossils of backboned animals. Although most of the animal fossils in museum collections were formed from hard body parts such as bones, teeth and shells, the researchers say their work shows soft parts can become fossilized under certain circumstances and can provide valuable information.&nbsp;



“An important conclusion is that these kinds of soft parts can be preserved, and they may be preserved in fossils that we’ve had for a long time – this is a fossil that’s been known for over 100 years," said study senior author Matt Friedman.



The small skull is the only fossil of the extinct species ever to have been found. For this reason, the researchers had to use non-invasive methods to analyze it. They suggest that&nbsp;C. wildi was an early ray-finned fish, roughly the size of a bream (6–8 inches long), that swam in an estuary and probably preyed on small crustaceans, aquatic insects and cephalopods, a group that today includes squid, octopuses and cuttlefish. Ray-finned fishes have backbones and fins supported by bony rods called rays.&nbsp;



The exceptionally preserved brain had another surprise in store for the researchers. Ray-finned fish show an unusual feature in the early formation of their brains. The embryonic neural tube grows through eversion (folding inwards) of the dorsal walls of the forebrain. This results in a forebrain formed in two solid hemispheres that do not enclose a ventricle (cavity filled with cerebrospinal fluid).&nbsp;



This is different from early brain development in all other vertebrates, for example mammals, birds and reptiles. Their embryonic neural tubes grow by evagination (folding outwards) of the lateral walls of the forebrain, which forms two swellings that each enclose a large ventricle. Thus ray-finned fish show a unique pattern of early brain development. But this is not true for C. wildi.&nbsp;



C. wildi is the only example of a ray-finned fish that does not show the brain development typical of its group. Its brain develops in the same way as in other vertebrate groups, making it different from all living ray-finned fishes. The researchers say that C. wildi thus gives an indication of what the original path of brain development could have been, and that the principle neuroanatomical feature of all modern ray-finned fish (namely an everted forebrain) originated somewhere subsequently along the evolutionary pathway of the group.&nbsp;



“This unexpected find of a three-dimensionally preserved vertebrate brain gives us a startling insight into the neural anatomy of ray-finned fish. It tells us a more complicated pattern of brain evolution than suggested by living species alone, allowing us to better define how and when present day bony fishes evolved," explained study senior author Sam Giles.



“Comparisons to living fishes showed that the brain of Coccocephalus is most similar to the brains of sturgeons and paddlefish, which are often called ‘primitive’ fishes because they diverged from all other living ray-finned fishes more than 300 million years ago.”



Thus, the exceptional small fossil gives a window into brain development at a time before the signature feature of ray-finned fish brains evolved, providing an indication of what the primitive brain anatomy could have been in the very early ray-finned fish. Since an everted forebrain is absent in C. wildi, it indicates that this feature evolved during later evolution of the group.&nbsp;



“Not only does this superficially unimpressive and small fossil show us the oldest example of a fossilized vertebrate brain, but it also shows that much of what we thought about brain evolution from living species alone will need reworking," said study lead author Rodrigo Figueroa.



The authors also highlight the importance of searching for fossilized brains within the skulls of other preserved fish and vertebrates. They state that preservation of brain tissue is likely to be more common than previously thought, and that if researchers assume brains will not have fossilized, they run the risk of overlooking potentially valuable information.&nbsp;



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By <a href="mailto:bosman@truewan.co.za">Alison Bosman</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer



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319-million-year-old fish holds clues about brain evolution

The skull of a fish that lived around 319 million...

A newly discovered comet could be visible to the naked eye as it shoots past the Earth and the Sun for the first time in 50,000 years. The comet is called C/2022 E3 (ZTF) after the Zwicky Transient Facility, which first discovered it passing between Jupiter in March, 2022. 



Today, on February 1, C/2022 E3 will make its closest approach to Earth before possibly leaving our solar system forever. From cities such as Atlanta and New York, the comet will be visible for most of the night because it is circumpolar, which means it is permanently above the horizon.



The comet is made of ice and dust emitting a greenish aura, and has a diameter of nearly a kilometer. According to scientists, provided that the night sky is not too illuminated by city lights or the Moon, it will be easy to spot with a pair of binoculars or even with the naked eye. Although this comet is smaller than others that passed the Earth – such as NEOWISE in March 2020 or Hale-Bopp in 1997 – the fact that it will come closer to our planet will make it more visible.



Its origins are most likely the Oort Cloud, a theorized vast sphere surrounding the Solar System, and the last time it passed the Earth was during the Upper Paleolithic period. Since then, it has spent most of its life “at least 2,500 times more distant than the Earth is to the Sun,” according to Thomas Prince, a professor of Physics at the <a href="https://www.caltech.edu/">California Institute of Technology</a>. 



Although scientists believe that its next visit to our planet’s vicinity may be in yet another 50,000 years, there is also the possibility that it will be permanently ejected from the solar system.



People from the Northern Hemisphere had the best chance to spot this comet in the last week of January, when it passed between the Ursa Minor and Ursa Major constellations. Another opportunity to see it shoot through the sky will come on February 10, when it passes close to Mars.



This “rare visitor” will give “us information about the inhabitants of our solar system well beyond the most distant planets,” Prince concluded.



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By <a href="mailto:andrei.ionescu5891@gmail.com">Andrei Ionescu</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer



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Rare comet will make its closest approach to Earth today

A newly discovered comet could be visible to the naked...

Close-up,On,Fitness,Young,Woman,Drinking,Pumpkin,Smoothie,In,Kitchen

According to the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/databriefs/db313.pdf">Centers for Disease Control and Prevention</a>, nearly half of U.S. adults try to lose weight each year. The majority of these dieters attempt to shift <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/peanuts-lower-blood-pressure-and-promote-weight-loss/">weight</a> by eating more healthily and including more fruits, vegetables and salads in their meal plans. However, new research to be presented at the American Heart Association’s Scientific Sessions 2022, between 5 and 7 November, finds there is a mismatch between the perceived and measured diet quality improvements for the majority of dieters – they think they are eating more healthily than they are.



Guidance about healthy eating from the American Heart Association, issued in 2021, advises adults to eat a variety of fruits and vegetables, opt for whole grains rather than refined grains, choose healthy protein sources, substitute non-fat and low-fat dairy products for full-fat versions, choose lean cuts of meat (for those who eat meat), use liquid plant oils instead of tropical oils and animal fats, choose minimally processed rather than ultra-processed foods, avoid foods and beverages with added sugar, choose foods with little or no added salt, and limit or avoid alcohol.



In the recent study, researchers evaluated the diets of 116 adults aged 35–58 years old in the greater Pittsburgh PA area, who were trying to lose weight. Study participants met one-on-one with a dietitian to discuss their nutrition and then tracked everything they ate and drank every day for one year on the Fitbit app. They also weighed themselves daily and wore a Fitbit device to track their physical activity.&nbsp;



The researchers calculated a Healthy Eating Index (HEI) to assess how closely a person’s diet aligned with the U.S. government’s&nbsp;<a href="https://www.heart.org/en/news/2018/05/01/new-federal-guidelines-may-lift-dietary-cholesterol-limits">Dietary Guidelines for Americans</a>. A score of 0 to 100 was possible when using the HEI, with a higher score indicating a healthier diet. The score was based on the frequency with which people ate various dietary components such as fruits, vegetables, whole and refined grains, meat and seafood, sodium, fats and sugars. A starting score and a finishing score were determined subjectively, by the participants themselves, as well as by the researchers, after the participants completed a 24-hour food recall of everything they had eaten during two days at the beginning and two days at the end of the study, respectively.&nbsp;



The self-assessment of their beginning diet was a “look back,” as they scored both their starting and ending diets at the end of the study. The difference in their starting and ending score was their perceived diet change. A difference of 6 points or less between the researchers’ HEI score and the participant’s perceived score was considered “good agreement.”



At the end of the study, about one in four participants’ scores had good agreement between their perceived diet score and the researcher-assessed score. The remaining three out of four participants’ scores had poor agreement, with most reporting a perceived score that was higher than the HEI score assigned by the researchers. The average perceived score was 67.6, and the average researchers’ HEI score was 56.4.



“We found that while people generally know that fruits and vegetables are healthy, there may be a disconnect between what researchers and health care professionals consider to be a healthy and balanced diet compared to what the public thinks is a healthy and balanced diet,” said study author Jessica Cheng, Ph.D., a postdoctoral research fellow in epidemiology at the Harvard T. H. Chan School of Public Health and in general internal medicine at Massachusetts General Hospital, both in Boston. This research was conducted while Dr. Cheng was a pre-doctoral fellow/Ph.D. candidate in the department of epidemiology at the University of Pittsburgh School of Public Health.



When considering the change in diet score over 12 months, only one in ten participants had good agreement between their self-assessed change, and the change assigned by the researchers. At the end of the study, participants had only improved their diet quality by about one point, based on the researcher-assessed score, while participants estimated that they had made, on average, an 18-point improvement.&nbsp;



“People attempting to lose weight, or health professionals who are helping people with weight loss or nutrition-related goals, should be aware that there is likely more room for improvement in the diet than may be expected,” said Cheng. She suggests providing concrete information on what areas of their diet can be improved and how to go about making healthy, sustainable nutrition changes.



“Future studies should examine the effects of helping people close the gap between their perceptions and objective diet quality measurements,” she said.



“Overestimating the perceived healthiness of food intake could lead to weight gain, frustrations over not meeting personal weight loss goals or lower likelihood of adopting healthier eating habits,” said Deepika Laddu, Ph.D., an assistant professor in the College of Applied Health Sciences at the University of Illinois, Chicago, and chair of the American Heart Association’s Council on Lifestyle Behavioral Change for Improving Health Factors.



“While misperception of diet intake is common among dieters, these findings provide additional support for behavioral counselling interventions that include more frequent contacts with health care professionals, such as dieticians or health coaches, to address the gaps in perception and support long-lasting, realistic healthy eating behaviors,” explained Laddu.



The researchers suggest that future studies should focus on how better education about healthy eating habits can make perceptions about healthy diets more congruent with reality.



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By <a href="mailto:bosman@truewan.co.za">Alison Bosman</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer



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Dieters often think they're eating healthier than they really are

According to the&nbsp;Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, nearly half...

On June 16, 2016, the Washington, Oregon, and northern California coasts were hit by multiple “sneaker waves” that flooded beaches, caused several injuries, and swamped a vehicle. These <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/ocean-warming-waves-powerful/">waves</a> – also known as “wave runup events” – surge much faster on beaches than anticipated, often catching beachgoers unaware, sweeping them off their feet, trapping them against jetties or rocky shorelines, pushing heavy debris into them, and possibly pulling them into the cold waters when the waves rush back. Understanding the causes of these sneaker waves and developing a system for predicting them is thus crucial for public safety.



Now, a team of researchers led by the <a href="https://oregonstate.edu/">Oregon State University</a> (OSU) has found that these events were likely fueled by a specific type of wave condition generated by far-off storms, paired with several conditions closer to shore.&nbsp;



“There are some things that are predictable about sneaker waves – we know they are more likely to occur in winter months, and that they are likely to occur in parts of the world where the continental shelf is narrow, such as the Pacific Northwest,” said study co-author Tuba Özkan-Haller, an oceanographer at OSU. “The more we learn, the closer we get to our ultimate goal, which would be to develop a warning system that is specific, accurate, and localized.”



The scientists examined multiple videos of the events that were posted on YouTube and, by using available scientific data such as wave height readings and wind speeds, they investigated what may have caused the series of sneaker waves in 2016. “The videos showed important general characteristics of the extreme runup events on this day - in particular that they were roughly five minutes from beginning to end. This information helped us identify their signals from tide gauges and also helped narrow down possible causes,” explained study lead author Chuan Li, who conducted this research as a doctoral student at OSU.



The analysis revealed a relationship between two types of waves: surface gravity waves, which arrive in sets and break on the beach, and underlying longer infragravity waves, which are longer waves fed by the energy created by gravity waves. When massive storms occur near Alaska or the South Pacific, they can give rise to conditions in which there is more time between the gravity waves, leading to longer and stronger infragravity waves. “The longer the wave is, the less likely it is to break. Instead, it sloshes up, like the water would if you’re getting into a bathtub,” Özkan-Haller said.



However, not all of these longer waves turn into sneaker waves. Other conditions, such as the weather near the shore, contribute to the emergence of dangerous sneaker waves. According to Özkan-Haller, “if these long waves are forming out in the ocean, but there is also a local storm, the wave field is jumbled, and sneaker waves won’t occur. When the wind is calm, the local weather is mild – a beautiful day on the beach – sneaker waves are more likely.”



Moreover, not all coastlines seem to be vulnerable to sneaker waves. In most cases, the narrow continental shelf and the potential for far offshore winter storms contribute to the occurrence of such waves in the Pacific Northwest. Further research is needed though to clarify why certain locations in these regions are more prone than others to sneaker waves.



The study is published in the journal <a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.5194/nhess-23-107-2023">Natural Hazards and Earth Systems Sciences</a>.



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By <a href="mailto:andrei.ionescu5891@gmail.com">Andrei Ionescu</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.

Distant storms trigger sneaker waves on the Pacific coast

On June 16, 2016, the Washington, Oregon, and northern California...

According to a new study released by University of Hamburg’s Cluster of Excellence “<a href="https://www.uni-hamburg.de/en/forschung/forschungsprofil/exzellenzcluster/cliccs.html">Climate, Climatic Change, and Society</a>” (CLICCS), limiting <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/global-warming-is-the-strongest-in-7000-years/">global warming</a> to 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels is currently not plausible.&nbsp;The experts systematically assessed the social changes that contribute to global warming, while also analyzing physical processes known as “tipping points,” and concluded that, although social change is essential for meeting the temperature goals set by the Paris Agreement, what has been achieved to date is insufficient.



“Actually, when it comes to climate protection, some things have now been set in motion. But if you look at the development of social processes in detail, keeping global warming under 1.5 degrees still isn’t plausible,” said CLICCS Speaker Anita Engels.



The analysis revealed that consumption patterns and corporate responses are slowing urgently needed climate protection measures, while factors such as UN climate policy, legislation, climate protests, and divestment from the use of fossil fuels are supporting global efforts to meet the climate goals. Unfortunately, the experts estimate that this positive dynamic alone is insufficient for remaining within the 1.5 degrees limit. “The deep decarbonization required is simply progressing too slowly,” Engels warned.



The scientists also assessed several physical processes that are referred to as tipping points - such as the loss of Arctic ice, the thawing of the permafrost, the weakening of the Meridional Overturning Circulation (AMOC), and the loss of the Amazon rainforest – and concluded that they will impact only moderately global warming.&nbsp;



“The Fact is: these feared tipping points could drastically change the conditions for life on Earth – but they’re largely irrelevant for reaching the Paris Agreement temperature goals,” reported CLICCS Co-Speaker Prof. Jochem Marotzke, a climate scientist at the <a href="https://mpimet.mpg.de/en/homepage">Max Planck Institute for Meteorology</a>.



Finally, the researchers also addressed the Covid-19 and the Ukraine crises, arguing that economic reconstruction programs have reinforced dependence on fossil fuels. However, whether current efforts to safeguard Europe’s power supply and various countries’ attempts to become independent of Russian gas will accelerate or undermine the phasing out of fossil fuels in the long-term remains an open question.



The best hope for mitigating climate change continues to rely most heavily on human agency, with transnational initiatives urgently needed to protect our planet. “The question of what is not just theoretically possible, but also plausible, that is, can realistically be expected, offers us new points of departure. If we fail to meet the climate goals, adapting to the impacts will become all the more important,” Engels said.



“In order to be equipped for a warmer world, we have to anticipate changes, get the affected parties on board, and take advantage of local knowledge. Instead of just reacting, we need to begin an active transformation here and now,” she concluded.



The Hamburg Climate Futures Outlook 2021 can be found <a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.25592/uhhfdm.11230">here</a>.



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By <a href="mailto:andrei.ionescu5891@gmail.com">Andrei Ionescu</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer



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Limiting global warming to 1.5 degrees is not plausible

According to a new study released by University of Hamburg’s...

When the <a href="https://www.earth.com/video/interactive-map-of-the-universe-includes-200000-galaxies/">universe</a> began about 13 billion years ago, matter was flung outward and gradually formed the stars, planets, and galaxies that we know today. Now, a team of scientists led by the <a href="https://www.uchicago.edu/">University of Chicago</a> has carefully assembled the most comprehensive map to date of how matter spread and is distributed throughout the universe following the Big Bang.&nbsp;



The analysis revealed that matter may not be as “clumpy” as expected from current models of the universe, thus adding to a body of evidence that there may be something missing from our existing standard models.



To construct this map, the researchers combined data from two different telescope surveys:&nbsp;<a href="https://news.uchicago.edu/story/dark-energy-survey-releases-most-precise-look-yet-universes-evolution">The Dark Energy Survey</a>, which examined the sky over a period of six years from a mountaintop in Chile, and the&nbsp;<a href="https://news.uchicago.edu/story/next-gen-camera-south-pole-telescope-takes-data-early-universe">South Pole Telescope</a>, which searches for the faint traces of radiation that are still traveling across the sky from the beginning of the universe.



Combining these two methods reduces the risk that the results are skewed by an error in one of the forms of measurement. “It functions like a cross-check, so it becomes a much more robust measurement than if you just used one or the other,” said UChicago astrophysicist Chihway Chang, one of the lead authors of the studies documenting the findings.



In both cases, the scientists examined a phenomenon called “gravitational lensing,” which refers to the fact that, as light travels across the universe, it can be slightly bent while passing high-gravity objects such as galaxies. This method catches both regular and dark matter (a mysterious form of matter that experts have managed to detect only indirectly, through its effects on regular matter), since both types of matter exert gravity.



By comprehensively analyzing the two data sets, the scientists could infer where all the matter ended up in the universe. While the majority of the results fit perfectly with the currently accepted model of the universe, a surprising new finding that deviates from the model is that the universe appears to be less “clumpy” - or clustering in certain areas rather than evenly spreading out - than the standard model would predict. Further research is needed to clarify this issue and untangle its consequences to our current understanding of the vast world in which we live.



“I think this exercise showed both the challenges and benefits of doing these kinds of analyses. There’s a lot of new things you can do when you combine these different angles of looking at the universe,” Chang concluded.



The three studies documenting these findings are published in the journal <a href="https://prd.aps.org/">Physical Review D</a>.



Image Credit: Photo by Andreas Papadopoulos



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By <a href="mailto:andrei.ionescu5891@gmail.com">Andrei Ionescu</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer



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Scientists map all of the matter in the universe

When the universe began about 13 billion years ago, matter...

In today’s world of carbon emission reductions and clean <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/greener-energy-is-needed-for-the-internet-of-things/">energy</a> production, more and more people are turning to solar cells to generate electricity from the sun’s light. All photovoltaic solar cells rely on semiconductors to turn the energy from light into electricity; light excites electrons in the semiconductor material, which flow into conducting electrodes and produce a current of electricity. However, the large silicon crystals used as semiconductors in conventional solar panels require an expensive, multi-step manufacturing process that requires a lot of energy.



In the search for an alternative semiconductor material, scientists have turned to perovskites that can be used to form semiconductors with similar properties to silicon. Perovskite solar cells can be manufactured using simple techniques, for a fraction of the cost and energy. In 2012, researchers first discovered how to make a stable, thin-film perovskite solar cell with a light photon-to-electron conversion efficiency of over 10 percent. This has evolved since then, and the record for sunlight-to-electrical power conversion efficiency using perovskite now stands at over 25 percent.&nbsp;



Perovskites are layered materials that have well-ordered crystal lattices. They are highly efficient harvesters of light that are being explored for use as photodetectors, photocatalysts, light-emitting diodes, and quantum emitters, apart from their use in solar cells. And yet, the ways in which atoms in the layers of perovskite rearrange themselves to enable the conversion of energy is not fully understood.



“The next frontier in light-to-energy conversion devices is harvesting hot carriers,” said study co-author Aditya Mohite of <a href="https://www.rice.edu/">Rice University</a>. “Studies have shown that hot carriers in perovskite can live up to 10–100 times longer than in classical semiconductors. However, the mechanisms and design principles for the energy transfer and how they interact with the lattice are not understood.”



Hot carriers are short-lived, high-energy charge carriers, either electrons for negative charges or electron “holes” for positive charges, which have gained very high kinetic energy. Being able to harvest their energy would allow light-harvesting devices to “surpass thermodynamic efficiency,” said Mohite, an associate professor of chemical and biomolecular engineering in Rice’s&nbsp;<a href="https://engineering.rice.edu/">George R. Brown School of Engineering</a>.



Mohite and three members of his research group - senior scientist Jean-Christophe Blancon and graduate students Hao Zhang and Wenbin Li - worked with colleagues at the Stanford Linear Accelerator Center’s  National Accelerator Laboratory to see how atoms in a perovskite lattice rearranged themselves when a hot carrier was created in their midst. They visualized lattice reorganization in real time using ultrafast electron diffraction.



“Whenever you expose these soft semiconductors to stimuli like electric fields, interesting things happen,” Mohite said. “When you generate electrons and holes, they tend to couple to the lattice in unusual and really strong ways, which is not the case for classical materials and semiconductors.”



“So there was a fundamental physics question. Can we visualize these interactions? Can we see how the structure is actually responding at very fast timescales as you put light onto this material?”



The answer was yes, but only with a strong input. SLAC’s mega-electron-volt ultrafast electron diffraction (MeV-UED) facility is one of the few places in the world with pulsed lasers capable of creating the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Electron_hole">electron-hole plasma</a> in perovskites that was needed to reveal how the lattice structure changed in less than a billionth of a second in response to the introduction of a hot carrier.



“The way this experiment works is that you shoot a laser through the material and then you send an electron beam that goes past it at a very short time delay,” Mohite explained. “You start to see exactly what you would in a TEM (<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Transmission_electron_microscopy">transmission electron microscope</a>) image. With the high-energy electrons at SLAC, you can see diffraction patterns from thicker samples, and that allows you to monitor what happens to those electrons and holes and how they interact with the lattice.”



The experiments at SLAC produced before-and-after diffraction patterns that Mohite’s team interpreted to show how the lattice changed. They found that after the lattice was excited by light, it relaxed and literally straightened up in as little as one&nbsp;<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Picosecond">picosecond</a>, or one-trillionth of a second. The analysis revealed that the change in structure resulted from a strong interaction between the electron-hole plasma and the perovskite lattice. This triggered the relaxation of the lattice and can be likened to seeing atoms dancing around in response to excitation.&nbsp;



“There’s a subtle tilting of the perovskite octahedral, which triggers this transient lattice reorganization towards a higher symmetric phase," said Zhang.



This breakthrough in visualization supports the researchers’ efforts to squeeze every possible drop of utility out of perovskite-based materials, including solar cells, a long-standing project that only recently yielded an advance to&nbsp;<a href="https://news.rice.edu/news/2022/solvent-study-solves-solar-cell-durability-puzzle">make the devices far more durable</a>.&nbsp;



By demonstrating that a perovskite lattice can suddenly become less distorted in response to light, the research showed it should be possible to tune how perovskite lattices interact with light, and it suggested a way to accomplish the tuning. Li said that this effect is very dependent on the type of structure and type of organic spacer cation.



There are many recipes for making perovskites, but all contain <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ion#Anions_and_cations">organic cations</a>, an ingredient that acts as a spacer between the materials’ semiconducting layers. By substituting or subtly changing organic cations, researchers could tailor lattice rigidity, dialing it up or down to alter how the material responds to light, Li explained. 



Mohite said the experiments also show that tuning a perovskite’s lattice alters its heat-transfer properties. "What is generally expected is that when you excite electrons at a very high energy level, they lose their energy to the lattice,” he said. “Some of that energy is converted to whatever process you want, but a lot of it is lost as heat, which shows in the diffraction pattern as a loss in intensity.”



“The lattice is getting more energy from thermal energy. That’s the classical effect, which is expected, and is well-known as the&nbsp;<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Debye%E2%80%93Waller_factor">Debye-Waller factor</a>. But because we can now know exactly what’s happening in every direction of the crystal lattice, we see the lattice starts to get more crystalline or ordered. And that’s totally counterintuitive.” A better understanding of how excited perovskites handle heat is a bonus of the research, noted Mohite.



“As we make devices smaller and smaller, one of the biggest challenges from a microelectronics perspective is heat management. Understanding this heat generation and how it’s being transported through materials is important," said Mohite.



“When people talk about stacking devices, they need to be able to extract heat very fast. As we move to new technologies that consume less power and generate less heat, these types of measurements will allow us to directly probe how heat is flowing.”



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By <a href="mailto:bosman@truewan.co.za">Alison Bosman</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer



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Perovskite crystals appear to dance when they get excited

In today’s world of carbon emission reductions and clean energy...

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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

[sendtonews key="G9bUoxcjr4-2511624-12187" 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.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



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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



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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



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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 



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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



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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



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The province of Zaragoza in northeast Spain

[sendtonews key="oL4FnPTGCV-2384527-12187" 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> 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



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The Pyrenees Mountains in southwest Europe

[sendtonews key="6HyfrAJTBI-1831843-12187" type="single"] Today’s Video of the Day from the...

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



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Two distant planets may be "water worlds"

[sendtonews key="QIoVYJqRBi-2434608-12187" type="single"] Today's Video of the Day from NASA...

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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



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Satellites reveal how Earth's systems are interconnected

[sendtonews key="JbW4VsY53O-1632195-12187" type="single"] Satellites reveal how Earth's systems are interconnected...

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

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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



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Cavefish are healthy despite their sedentary lifestyle

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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



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Satellites capture the world's biggest and fastest waves

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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

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