Every living organism relies on a genetic blueprint encoded in its DNA, yet the amount of DNA - or genome size - varies dramatically across the tree of life.&nbsp;



In animals alone, genome sizes range from the minuscule genome of Intoshia variabili, a marine parasite - which is about 200 times smaller than the human genome - to the massive genome of the marbled lungfish (Protopterus aethiopicus) - which is over 40 times larger than ours.&nbsp;



Plants exhibit a similar range, with the fork fern (Tmesipteris oblanceolata) setting the record with a genome size over 50 times larger than that of humans.



This diversity in <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/genome-mapping-completed-for-dozens-of-common-animals/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">genome</a> size reveals the vast variety of life forms on Earth, but it also raises a fascinating question: If smaller genomes lead to faster, more efficient growth, why do some species have larger genomes?



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-advantages-of-smaller-genome-sizes">Advantages of smaller genome sizes</h2>



The replication of DNA is essential for cell production and growth, making smaller genomes more efficient as they require fewer resources and time to replicate.&nbsp;



Smaller genomes demand fewer <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/excess-nutrients-are-creating-ocean-dead-zones/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">nutrients</a>, especially the DNA-building elements nitrogen and phosphorus, making them ideal for rapid growth and reproduction.



Because of these advantages, it’s not surprising that most species have evolved with relatively small genomes.&nbsp;



However, large genomes persist in some organisms, suggesting that these genomes may confer certain benefits in specific environments, where the costs of carrying extra DNA are outweighed by unique growth advantages.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-exploring-large-genome-benefits-in-grasses">Exploring large genome benefits in grasses</h2>



A research team led by the <a href="https://www.sheffield.ac.uk/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">University of Sheffield</a> has recently studied the potential benefits of large genomes in grass species. 



<a href="https://www.earth.com/news/fairy-circles-kill-all-newly-planted-grasses-deepening-their-mystery/">Grasses</a>, a vast plant family found worldwide from arctic tundras to tropical savannas, vary in genome size, making them an ideal group to examine how genome size affects growth in different conditions.



The study, published in the journal <a href="https://doi.org/10.1111/nph.20150" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">New Phytologist</a>, examined the growth of various grass species under conditions mimicking their natural environments - high temperatures, low nutrients, and drought. 



The scientists compared growth rates to each species’ genome size and observed that while grasses with smaller genomes generally grew better across most conditions, larger genomes provided advantages in two specific scenarios.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-large-genomes-thrive-in-nutrient-rich-environments">Large genomes thrive in nutrient-rich environments</h2>



The first scenario where larger genomes proved beneficial was in nutrient-rich soils. While low nutrient levels slowed down large-genome grasses, those with large genomes thrived in high-nutrient environments.&nbsp;



Here, the extra DNA content meant larger cells that produced more biomass, such as leaves, which allowed these plants to outgrow and overshadow neighbors with smaller genomes.&nbsp;



In nutrient-poor areas, however, the demands of replicating additional DNA outweighed these benefits, making smaller genomes more favorable.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-growing-seasons-and-genome-sizes">Growing seasons and genome sizes</h2>



The second advantage for large-genome grasses occurred in cooler environments, such as temperate regions with lower growing season temperatures.&nbsp;



<a href="https://www.earth.com/news/how-do-plants-grow-more-branches-and-become-bushy/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Plant growth</a> typically has two stages: cell division, where new cells are generated, and cell expansion, where cells swell with water to help the plant grow taller or spread. 



Cool temperatures significantly slow down cell division, but they have less impact on cell expansion.&nbsp;



Consequently, grasses with larger cells, which accompany large genomes, can expand more rapidly by cell enlargement even in cooler weather, outpacing smaller-genome plants that rely on faster cell division in warmer temperatures.



This cell expansion process explains the early spring growth of plants like daffodils and bluebells, which also have large genomes.&nbsp;



These plants perform much of their cell division in warmer months, allowing them to use cell expansion to grow quickly in early spring, well before smaller-genome plants begin to compete for light and nutrients.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-genome-size-diversity">Genome size diversity</h2>



The diversity in genome sizes among grasses may be one reason for their global success, as it allows them to adapt to a wide range of environmental conditions.&nbsp;



While smaller genomes typically support efficient growth, larger genomes offer unique advantages in specific environments, enabling certain species to thrive where others cannot.&nbsp;



This genetic diversity in grasses underscores the importance of variation in supporting species’ survival and adaptability across ecosystems.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-genome-size-and-evolutionary-success">Genome size and evolutionary success</h2>



The relationship between genome size and survival is not limited to plants. Our own medium-sized genome has supported humanity’s adaptability, though we don’t face the same nutrient limitations as stationary plants.&nbsp;



Unlike grasses, humans can move to seek out food and resources, which may allow us to bear the metabolic costs associated with our DNA without significant limitation.&nbsp;



This mobility highlights how different species leverage their genetic make-up in conjunction with unique behaviors and environmental interactions to thrive across diverse habitats.



In summary, the role of genome size in evolutionary success is nuanced and complex.&nbsp;



From the efficient replication of small genomes to the adaptability enabled by larger ones, genome size continues to shape the ecological <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/asian-forests-proving-resilient-both-climate-change-human-actions/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">resilience</a> and global distribution of life on Earth.



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How does genome size impact evolutionary success?

Every living organism relies on a genetic blueprint encoded in its DNA, yet the amount of DNA - or genome size - varies dramatically across the tree of life.&nbsp; In animals alone, genome sizes range from the minuscule genome of Intoshia variabili, a marine parasite - which is about 200 times smaller than the human genome - to the massive genome of the marbled lungfish (Protopterus aethiopicus) - which is over 40 times larger than ours.&nbsp; Plants exhibit a similar range, with the fork fern (Tmesipteris oblanceolata)...

A new study from the <a href="https://www.ubc.ca/">University of British Columbia</a> has revealed that 45 percent of the fish that cross through two or more exclusive economic zones (EEZs) will shift their movement patterns by 2100. This is expected to possibly bring international conflict.&nbsp;



By 2030, 23 percent of these fish are predicted to change their historic ranges. By 2100, this increases to 45 percent of the transnational fish, along with 81 percent of EEZs seeing at least one species shift. The culprit for these changes is, of course, human-caused climate change.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;



“This is not only an issue of stocks leaving or arriving to new EEZs, but of stocks that are shared between countries, completely changing their dynamics,” said study lead author Dr. Juliano Palacios-Abrantes, who conducted the study while at UBC’s Institute for the Oceans and Fisheries (IOF).&nbsp;



“We will see even more dramatic changes by 2030 and onwards, given current emissions rates. Many of the fisheries management agreements made to regulate shared stocks were established in past decades, with rules that apply to a world situation that is not the same as today.”



The researchers tracked the changing ranges of 9,132 transnational fish populations, which account for 80 percent of the catch from the world's exclusive economic zones. The research started in 2006 and continued forward with projections predicted up to 2100.&nbsp;&nbsp;



“By providing estimates of the size and timing of projected shifts, our study offers tangible reference points around which to consider climate change impacts and negotiate fair policies for sustainable management” said study co-author Dr. Colette Wabnitz, lead scientist at Stanford’s Center for Ocean Solutions.



“We must accept that climate change is happening, and then move fast enough to adapt fisheries management regulations to account for it,” said co-author Dr. Gabriel Reygondeau, a research associate at IOF.



The scientists hope their study can create a framework for international negotiations and planning to create a well designed fisheries management plan for the future. Without this, conflict, even violent conflict could arise over dwindling fish populations supporting a hungry human populace.&nbsp;



The study is published in the journal <a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/journal/13652486">Global Change Biology</a>.&nbsp;



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By <a href="mailto:zachfitzner@yahoo.com">Zach Fitzner</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Nearly half of the world’s shared fish are on the move

A new study from the University of British Columbia has...

A new study from the <a href="https://www.ubc.ca/">University of British Columbia</a> has taken a closer look at the ultraviolet "bullseye" patterns found on sunflowers. The ultraviolet (UV) <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/dragonfly-wing-colors-driven-by-climate-and-sexual-selection/">colors</a> are invisible to humans, yet clearly visible to many insects.&nbsp;



The bullseye patterns were already known to make the flowers more attractive to bees, but scientists have now discovered that they do much more. The researchers found that chemicals in the UV markers also help the plants respond to stress from drought and extreme temperatures.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;



“Unexpectedly, we noticed that sunflowers growing in drier climates had flowers with larger UV bullseyes, and found that those flowers are able to retain water more efficiently. This suggests that these larger UV bullseyes help plants adapt to these drier environments,” said study lead author Dr. Marco Todesco, a research associate in the UBC Department of Botany.



Dr. Todesco and colleagues grew nearly 2,000 individual sunflowers of two different species in a lab in 2016 and 2019. Measuring the UV patterns and examining the genome of the plants, the researchers found that sunflowers growing in different regions of North America had differently sized bullseye patterns. Bees were better able to see the larger bullseyes.&nbsp;



The experts also found that the same gene that controlled the bullseye pattern was used in the production of UV-absorbant flavonoids, which help the plants survive stresses from things like drought and high temperatures.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;



“Floral UV patterns appear therefore to play at least a dual role in adaptation; besides their well-known effect on enhancing pollination, they also regulate water loss from flowers,” said study senior author Dr. Loren Rieseberg. “That’s not something you would necessarily expect a flower color to do, and it exemplifies the complexity and efficiency of adaptation - solving two problems with a single trait.”



The scientists feel more research into this adaptation could help improve the resilience of sunflower crops in the future.&nbsp;



The research is published in the journal <a href="https://elifesciences.org/">eLife</a>.



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By <a href="mailto:zachfitzner@yahoo.com">Zach Fitzner</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

"Invisible" colors in sunflowers do more than just attract bees

Obesity is a complex disease with contributing factors that are genetic and environmental. It is known that the gene melanocortin-4 receptor (MC4R) is a critical regulator of appetite and energy expenditure in rodents and humans, and that mutations in this gene can lead to overeating, reduced energy expenditure and obesity. But a new study has now identified the role of a second gene in mediating the effects of MC4R.



Scientists from <a href="https://www.omu.ac.jp/en/">Osaka Metropolitan University</a> in Osaka, Japan, have conducted research showing that the transcription cofactor gene called CREB-Regulated Transcription Coactivator 1 (CRTC1) modifies the obesity-suppressing effects of MC4R. Previous research had shown that when CRTC1 is deleted in mice, they become obese, indicating that functioning CRTC1 suppresses obesity. However, since CRTC1 is expressed in all neurons in the brain, the specific neurons responsible for suppressing obesity, and the mechanism by which the suppression works, remained unknown.



Despite the fact that both MC4R and CRTC1 are known to be involved in the development of obesity, there have been no previous studies linking these two genes. The new study, published in <a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.1096/fj.202200617R">The FASEB Journal</a>, involved a research group led by Associate Professor Shigenobu Matsumura from the Graduate School of Human Life and Ecology at Osaka Metropolitan University. The researchers decided to focus their investigations on brain neurons that express the melanocortin-4 receptor (MC4R).&nbsp;



The experts bred a strain of mice that expresses the gene CRTC1 normally, except in the brain neurons that express MC4R, where the CRTC1 gene is blocked. In this way, they hoped to examine the effect that losing functional CRTC1 in those cells has on the development of obesity and diabetes. They hypothesized that, because mutations in the MC4R gene are known to cause obesity, CRTC1 expression in these MC4R-expressing neurons would suppressed obesity.&nbsp;



They found that, mice lacking CRTC1 specifically in MC4R cells, were sensitive to the type of diet they were fed. If they ate a standard diet, the mice without CRTC1 in MC4R-expressing neurons showed no changes in food intake, body weight, or glucose metabolism. However, if the modified mice were fed a high-fat diet, they ate more, gained weight and became obese. They also developed diabetes.&nbsp;



The researchers concluded that CRTC1 expression in MC4R cells is required for metabolic adaptation to high-fat diets, particularly with respect to appetite regulation. This gene has an important role in MC4R cells and protects against dietary adaptation.



“This study has revealed the role that the CRTC1 gene plays in the brain, and part of the mechanism that stops us from overeating high-calorie, fatty, and sugary foods,” said Professor Matsumura. “We hope this will lead to a better understanding of what causes people to overeat.”



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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



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.

Study reveals what triggers our brains to overeat

Obesity is a complex disease with contributing factors that are...

A new longitudinal study published in the <a href="https://dx.doi.org/10.1136/%20bjophthalmol-2021-319807">British Journal of Ophtalmology</a> has found that the difference between the biological age of the retina (the sensory membrane at the back of the eyeball responsible for vision) and a person’s chronological age is linked to their risk of <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/wildfires-in-the-west-linked-to-smoke-related-deaths-in-the-east/">death</a>. This “retinal age gap” could thus be used as a screening tool for early diagnosis and treatment of various life-threatening diseases.



Damage to the blood vessels in the retina can be early signs of several health problems, such as high blood pressure, coronary artery disease, nerve damage caused by diabetes, glaucoma or age-related macular degeneration, and even some types of cancer. Moreover, the state of the retina can indicate a person’s “biological age,” which is a measurement of age based on various biomarkers and is influenced by lifestyle and other health factors.



By analyzing the relationship between mortality and “retinal age gap” (the difference between the chronological and the biological age) in a cohort of 35,917 participants during a monitoring period of 11 years, the scientists found an unmistakable correlation between larger retinal age gaps and increased risk of death.&nbsp;



&nbsp;“The retina offers a unique, accessible ‘window’ to evaluate underlying pathological processes of systemic vascular and neurological diseases that are associated with increased risks of mortality,” wrote the study authors.



“This hypothesis is supported by previous studies, which have suggested that retinal imaging contains information about cardiovascular risk factors, chronic kidney diseases, and systemic biomarkers.”



According to the researchers, every one-year increase in the retinal age gap was associated with a two percent increase in the risk of death from any cause, and a three percent increase in the risk of death from a specific cause other than cardiovascular disease or cancer. Moreover, very large retinal age gaps were linked to 49 to 67 percent higher risks of death.



“Our novel findings have determined that the retinal age gap is an independent predictor of increased mortality risk, especially of non-cardiovascular disease/non-cancer mortality. These findings suggest that retinal age may be a clinically significant biomarker of ageing,” explained the study authors.



In conclusion, these findings add weight to “the hypothesis that the retina plays an important role in the ageing process and is sensitive to the cumulative damages of ageing which increase the mortality risk.”



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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

Retinal health is a good predictor of mortality

A new longitudinal study published in the British Journal of...

According to a new scientific review supported by <a href="https://www.coffeeandhealth.org/">the Institute for Scientific Information on Coffee (ISIC)</a>, drinking <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/drinking-coffee-protects-against-alzheimers-disease/">coffee</a> has many health benefits. Coffee consumption not only stimulates digestion and helps colon motility, but can also change the gut microbiota, increasing the number of “good bacteria” from our stomach. Moreover, it can protect against liver disease and reduce the risk of gallstones.



By reviewing 194 research articles, a team of scientists led by the <a href="https://www.inserm.fr/en/home/">French National Institute of Health and Medical Research</a> (INSERM) has found that drinking moderate amounts (three to five cups per day) of coffee can be highly beneficial for our health.&nbsp;



Most of the studies shown that coffee is associated with gastric, biliary, and pancreatic secretions, which are all crucial for the digestion of food. By stimulating the production of gastrin, hydrochloric acid, and cholecystokinin, coffee helps our organism properly digest a large variety of foods. Furthermore, coffee stimulates colon motility - the process through which food travels through our digestive tracts - and can thus reduce the risk of chronic constipation.



Drinking coffee regularly can also change the composition of gut microbiota, increasing the numbers of Bifidobacteria, inhabitants of our gastrointestinal tract that help break down food, absorb nutrients, and fight off pathogenic micro-organisms. Finally, although the evidence is still scarce, coffee may also help protect against more serious diseases, such as hepatocellular carcinoma.&nbsp;



&nbsp;“Contrary to some assumptions, coffee consumption is not overall linked to bowel or digestive problems. In some instances, coffee has a protective effect against common digestive complaints such as constipation,” explained study lead author Astrid Nehlig, the Emeritus Research Director of INSERM.



“Emerging data also indicate there may be an association with improved levels of gut bacterial groups such as Bifidobacteria which have recognized beneficial effects.&nbsp;Although additional data will be needed to understand coffee’s effects throughout the digestive tract, this is an extremely encouraging place to begin.”



The study is published in the journal <a href="https://www.mdpi.com/2072-6643/14/2/399">Nutrients</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&nbsp;&nbsp;

Coffee stimulates digestion and protects against disease

According to a new scientific review supported by the Institute...

A new study published in the journal <a href="https://www.pnas.org/content/119/2/e2023340118">Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences</a> has found that the mechanisms behind the sense of <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/how-can-a-smell-transport-us-to-another-place/">smell</a> may be far simpler than previously thought. By studying the olfactory sense of locusts, a research team led by the <a href="https://wustl.edu/">Washington University in St. Louis</a> mapped the neuronal underpinnings behind invariant odor recognition.



“The smell of coffee is the same whether it is smelled in a coffee shop or grocery shop (different backgrounds), on a hot day or a cold day (different ambient conditions), after lunch or dinner (different temporal contexts), or using a deep inhalation or normal inhalation (different stimulus dynamics),” explained the study authors.



“This feat of pattern recognition that is still difficult to achieve in artificial chemical sensing systems is performed by most sensory systems for their survival. How is this capability achieved?”



In order to answer this question, the scientists first trained locusts to associate a specific odor with some of their favorite foods, such as blades of grass. After staying without food for a day, the locusts were exposed to a puff of odor (hexanol or isoamyl acetate), then given a blade of grass. After only six such presentations, the locusts learned to open their palps (the sensory appendages close to its mouth) in expectation of food immediately after smelling the “training odorant.”



The researchers then mapped which neurons were activated when the locusts were exposed to the odorant under different environmental conditions, such as in conjunction to other smells, in humid or dry conditions, or when the locusts were fully fed or starving. Even though the locusts opened their palps every time, different patterns of neurons were activated, depending upon each specific context.



"The neural responses were highly variable," said study senior author Baranidharan Raman, a professor of Biomedical Engineering at Washington University. "That seemed to be at odds with what the locusts were doing, behaviorally."



To understand how variable neural responses produced stable behavior, Professor Raman and his colleagues used a machine-learning algorithm that exploited two functional types of neurons: “ON neurons,” which were activated when an odorant was present, and “OFF neurons,” which fired only after the odor presentation had ended.&nbsp;



"You can think of the ON neurons as conveying 'evidence for' an odor being present, and OFF neurons as 'evidence against' that odor being present," explained Professor Raman.&nbsp;



To recognize the presence of an odorant, the scientists simply needed to add evidence for the odorant being present (add the spikes across all ON neurons), and subtract evidence against the odorant being present (add the spikes across all OFF neurons). If the result was above a certain threshold, the machine learning algorithm would reliably predict that the locust smelled the odor and opened its palps.



“We were surprised to find that this simple approach is all that was needed to robustly recognize an odorant,” Professor Raman 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&nbsp;&nbsp;

Locusts have a surprisingly simple way of sensing smells

A new study published in the journal Proceedings of the...

Observing animal <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/ocean-acidification-disrupts-the-behavior-of-fish-shoals/">behavior</a> and ecology in the wild is the basis of conservation planning. However, the cost, time commitment, and danger involved in basic observational work can make it extremely challenging.&nbsp;



Scientists often substitute observations with data collected through biologging devices. These high-tech devices can monitor heart rate, breathing, animal movement, and more. To accurately interpret data from logging devices, statistical analysis is needed. Like other scientific technologies, statistical tools are always evolving. A new study from the <a href="https://www.ubc.ca/">University of British Columbia</a> improves on statistical tools used for interpreting data from biologgers.&nbsp;&nbsp;



“The thing we really tackled with this paper was trying to get at some of those fine-scale behaviors that aren’t that easy to model,” said study lead author Evan Sidrow, a doctoral student in the UBC Department of Statistics.&nbsp;



“It’s a matter of finding behaviors on the order of seconds - maybe 10 to 15 seconds. Usually, it’s a matter of a whale looking around, and then actively swimming for a second to get over to a new location. We are trying to observe fleeting behaviors, like a whale catching a fish.”



The researchers improved a statistical tool based on a hidden Markov model, which is used to interpret animal movement datasets.



“Traditional hidden Markov models break down at very fine scales,” said Sidrow. “That’s because there’s structure in the data you can’t capture using the basic type of hidden Markov model. We’re trying to capture it with this model - we’re trying to account for this ‘wigglyness' that a traditional hidden Markov model wouldn’t be able to account for.”



Because modern data logging devices collect data almost continuously, an enormous amount of data points are collected in a relatively short period of time. The Markov model has a hard time interpreting such a large amount of data. The new statistical modeling method allows a finer scale look into the data, which produces greater information for conservation planning by decision makers, including those working on orca conservation.&nbsp;&nbsp;



"As a case study, we use this framework to model the fine-scale kinematic movements of a northern resident killer whale ( Orcinus orca) off the western coast of Canada," wrote the study authors.&nbsp; "Through simulations, we show that our model produces more interpretable state estimation and more accurate parameter estimates compared to existing methods."



According to study senior author Dr. Marie Auger-Méthé, the study is one of the first steps on the road to fully understanding why southern resident killer whales are not faring as well as their northern counterparts.



“Using our methods to detect when the animals are catching prey and to model their energy expenditure will be key to understanding the differences between these neighbouring whale populations,” said Dr. Auger-Méthé.



She explained that the next goal is to understand when the whales are capturing prey and applying the models to both northern and southern resident killer whale populations to see how they are behaving differently.



“The paper offers many ‘building block’ solutions that can be used together or independently,” said Dr. Auger-Méthé. “In essence, we are providing a toolbox to researchers using high-frequency movement data, and other similar high-frequency time series.”



The study is published in <a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/journal/1708945x">The Canadian Journal of Statistics</a>.



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By <a href="mailto:zachfitzner@yahoo.com">Zach Fitzner</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

New statistical tool could improve killer whale conservation

Observing animal behavior and ecology in the wild is the...

Mammals in general are not able to digest cellulose, the carbohydrate that is found in the cell walls of plant cells. Even <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/large-herbivores-must-be-restored-to-balance-ecosystems/">herbivores</a>, such as cows, horses and elephants do not produce the enzyme that breaks down cellulose. Instead, mammals (including humans) need gut microbes to carry out this function and enable them to access the nutrients found inside plant cells.&nbsp;



Giant pandas (Ailuropoda melanoleuca) are unusual because they are bears, in the order Carnivora, but their diet consists entirely of bamboo leaves and shoots. Carnivores have short gastrointestinal tracts, geared for digesting animal flesh, and this makes the herbivorous diet of giant pandas even harder to process efficiently. Pandas are thus heavily dependent on the microbes in their guts for breaking down cells in leaves and shoots to make the contents available.



In the wild, pandas feed on fibrous old bamboo leaves for eight months of the year. This diet is poor in nutrients and contains almost no fat. However, during late spring and early summer the bears feed on new shoots that have a higher nutritional value that enables them to gain weight.&nbsp;



Previous research has shown that the gut microbiome of giant pandas changes between the leaf-eating season and the shoot-eating season. However, there has been no research on the effects of these seasonal changes on the body characteristics or physiology of the pandas.&nbsp;



A study published today in the journal&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cell.com/cell-reports/home">Cell Reports</a> addresses this gap in current understanding and finds that shifts in the gut microbes enable pandas to gain weight and store fat when bamboo shoots are available to eat.&nbsp;



“This is the first time we established a causal relationship between a panda’s gut microbiota and its phenotype,” said study first author Guangping Huang from the <a href="https://english.cas.cn/">Chinese Academy of Sciences</a>. “We’ve known these pandas have a different set of gut microbiota during the shoot-eating season for a long time, and it’s very obvious that they are chubbier during this time of the year.”



The team of scientists, led by Fuwen Wei at the CAS Institute of Zoology, has been studying wild giant pandas living in the Qinling Mountains in central China for decades. The team collected fecal samples from eight adult pandas during the leaf-eating season (14 samples) and the shoot-eating season (15 samples). These were assessed for the presence and numbers of different types of gut microbes.&nbsp;



Wei says that these wild pandas have distinctly different populations of gut bacteria in the two seasons. In particular, a significantly higher abundance of a bacterium called&nbsp;Clostridium butyricum&nbsp;is present in the gut during the shoot-eating season compared with during the leaf-eating season. Gas chromatography-mass spectrometry of the short-chain fatty acids in the feces also revealed that the fatty acids butyrate and acetate were present in greater amounts during shoot-eating season.



Although bamboo leaves and shoots contain almost no fat, pandas were able to gain weight and store fat when they preferentially ate shoots. The bacterium C. butyricum produces the fatty acid butyrate as a product of its metabolism in the gut of the pandas, and the scientists were interested in the effects of this fatty acid on panda metabolism.



To investigate whether the change in gut microbiota could affect a panda’s metabolism, the researchers performed a fecal transplant of panda feces, collected in the wild, to the intestinal tracts of germ-free mice. They introduced fecal matter from panda donors during the leaf-eating season into some mice, while other mice received feces collected from pandas during the shoot-eating season. A third group of mice – the control group – received no panda fecal matter.&nbsp; Then they fed the mice for 3 weeks with a bamboo-based diet that simulated what pandas eat. &nbsp;



The experts found that mice transplanted with panda feces collected during shoot-eating season gained significantly more weight and had more fat after 21 days than mice transplanted with feces from leaf-eating season, despite consuming the same amount of food. Further analysis revealed that the fatty acid butyrate, a metabolic product of&nbsp;C. butyricum, could upregulate (enhance) the expression of a gene called&nbsp;Per2, which increases lipid synthesis and storage. Thus, the mice showed the same patterns of seasonal weight gain as the pandas do, indicating the critical role of the gut microbiome in panda metabolism.



Fat storage is important in many animals that eat a nutrient-poor diet. The bamboo eaten by pandas in the wild is deficient in fat but the shoots, eaten in late spring and early summer, contain higher levels of protein and carbohydrate. The gut bacteria in these mammals enables them to use the protein and additional carbohydrates in the shoots, to synthesize lipids that are then available for storage.&nbsp;



Many animals experience a seasonal shift in gut bacteria as a result of changes in food availability. For example, certain species of monkeys have different gut microbiota in summer, when they eat fresh leaves and fruits, compared with that in winter, when they feed on leaves and tree bark. A similar shift has also been observed in the digestive systems of Hadza people, modern hunter-gatherers living in Tanzania, as the type of available food changes through the year.



The researchers plan to investigate and map out more microorganisms in the panda’s gut in future, and to find out how they affect the animals’ health. “Causal research of host phenotype and gut microbiota in wild animals is just beginning. Identifying what bacteria are beneficial for animals is very important, because one day we may be able to treat some diseases with probiotics,” said Huang.



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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

Giant pandas’ gut bacteria turn nutrient-poor food into fat

Mammals in general are not able to digest cellulose, the...

Many birds learn their songs in the same way that humans learn a language or dialect –from their parents and neighbors, through mimicry. According to most biologists, this is an uncertain and error-prone method, often resulting in slow but unmistakable changes in the nature of <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/humpback-whale-songs-are-used-to-locate-not-attract-other-whales/">songs</a> over the years.



However, new research led by the <a href="https://www.berkeley.edu/">University of California, Berkeley</a> has found that some isolated populations of double-collared East African sunbirds have been singing the same songs - passed down to each new generation - for up to a million years.&nbsp;



The amazingly static nature of their songs may be due to the birds’ unchanging environment. The birds have inhabited so-called sky islands on East African mountaintops since ancient times.



"If you isolate humans, their dialects quite often change; you can tell after a while where somebody comes from. And song has been interpreted in that same way," said study senior author Rauri Bowie, a professor of Integrative Biology at UC Berkeley. "What our paper shows is that it's not necessarily the case for birds. Even in traits that should be very labile, such as song or plumage, you can have long periods of stasis."



According to Professor Bowie and his colleagues, the idea that birdsong changes very often likely arose from studies of Northern Hemisphere birds, which have repeatedly encountered environmental changes, such as glaciers coming and going over the last thousands of years. These changing environmental conditions can cause significant modifications in plumage, song, and mating strategies.



However, since mountaintop environments in the tropics, particularly in East Africa (such as Mount Kenya or Kilimanjaro) have witnessed very little geological change over the millennia, the birds living there faced no evolutionary pressure to change their plumage or songs.



"We are showing, using a really nice setup where we could look at song evolution using naturally isolated populations, that [in East African sunbirds] you don't see this gradual change through cultural or genetic drift at all," Bowie said. "You see these sharp bursts of change in a trait such a birdsong and lots and lots of evidence for stasis, even when that trait should be very plastic. To me, that was a really fascinating result."



The study is published in the journal <a href="https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/10.1098/rspb.2021.2062">Proceedings of the Royal Society B</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

The song of the East African sunbird may be a million years old

Many birds learn their songs in the same way that...

A new study published in the journal <a href="https://pubs.acs.org/doi/10.1021/acs.est.1c04158">Environmental Science &amp; Technology</a> has recently assessed the stability of the Earth system based on the impact of the cocktail of synthetic chemicals and other “novel entities” flooding the environment. The experts warn that humanity has exceeded a <a href="https://www.stockholmresilience.org/research/planetary-boundaries/the-nine-planetary-boundaries.html">planetary boundary</a> related to environmental pollutants, placing the Earth and all of its species at risk.



There are over 350,000 different types of human-made chemicals on the global market, including <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/seabirds-are-damaging-their-health-by-eating-plastic/">plastics</a>, industrial chemicals, pesticides, and pharmaceuticals. The total mass of plastics on the planet is now more than twice the mass of all living mammals, and over 80 percent of all plastics ever produced are still present in the environment.&nbsp;



Since plastics contain roughly 10,000 different chemicals, their environmental degradation creates new and dangerous combinations of materials and, thus, unprecedented environmental hazards. Additionally, significant amounts of other novel entities continuously enter the environment, endangering our planet and its various ecosystems.&nbsp;



“There has been a 50-fold increase in the production of chemicals since 1950. This is projected to triple again by 2050,” said study co-author Patricia Villarubia-Gómez, a doctoral candidate in Sustainability Science at the <a href="https://www.stockholmresilience.org/">Stockholm Resilience Center</a>. “The pace that societies are producing and releasing new chemicals and other novel entities into the environment is not consistent with staying within a safe operating space for humanity.”



“Some of these pollutants can be found globally, from the Arctic to Antarctica, and can be extremely persistent.&nbsp;We have overwhelming evidence of negative impacts on Earth systems, including biodiversity and biogeochemical cycles,” added study co-author Bethanie Carney Almroth, an associate professor of Ecotoxicology at the <a href="https://www.gu.se/en">University of Gothenburg</a>.&nbsp;



“The rate at which these pollutants are appearing in the environment far exceeds the capacity of governments to assess global and regional risks, let alone control any potential problems.”



According to the scientists, these environmental pollutants negatively impact our planet in multiple ways, deteriorating the climate and fresh water sources, helping the spread of invasive species, and increasing the <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/antibiotic-resistance-could-reach-catastrophic-levels/">antibiotic resistance</a> of various microbes.&nbsp;



“We need to be working towards implementing a fixed cap on chemical production and release,” advised Professor Carney Almroth.&nbsp;“And shifting to a circular economy is really important,” added Villarubia Gómez. “That means changing materials and products so they can be reused not wasted, designing chemicals and products for recycling, and much better screening of chemicals for their safety and sustainability along their whole impact pathway in the Earth system.”



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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

Safe planetary boundary for pollutants has been exceeded

A new study published in the journal Environmental Science &amp;...

In collaboration with citizen scientists, an astronomer at <a href="https://www.ucr.edu/">UC Riverside</a> has identified a giant gas planet that was basically hidden in plain sight. The research, which was presented at the American Astronomical Society virtual press event, describes the discovery of TOI-2180 b, a Jupiter-sized planet located about 379 light-years away from Earth.



"TOI-2180 b is such an exciting planet to have found," said study lead author and UCR planetary astronomer Paul Dalba. "It hits the trifecta of 1) having a several-hundred-day orbit, 2) being relatively close to Earth (379 lightyears is considered close for an exoplanet), and 3) us being able to see it transit in front of its star. It is very rare for astronomers to discover a planet that checks all three of these boxes."



According to Dalba, the new planet is special because it takes 261 days to complete a journey around its star, a relatively long time compared to many known gas giants outside our solar system. The planet should be easy for experts to study in further detail due to its relative proximity to Earth and the brightness of the star it orbits.



NASA's TESS satellite is designed to observe one particular section of the sky for a month, before moving on. The goal is to identify <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/astronomers-discover-366-new-exoplanets/">exoplanets</a>, which orbit stars other than the Sun.&nbsp;



"The rule of thumb is that we need to see three 'dips' or transits before we believe we've found a planet," said Dalba. He explained that a single transit event could be caused by a telescope with a jitter, or a star masquerading as a planet.&nbsp;



Former U.S. naval officer Tom Jacobs is a participant in Planet Hunters, a NASA-funded citizen science project run through the online platform Zooniverse.



While examining data collected by TESS, Jacobs and his teammates saw light from the TOI-2180 star dim, just once, and then alerted Dalba.



Using the Automated Planet Finder Telescope at the <a href="https://www.lickobservatory.org/">Lick Observatory</a>, Dalba managed to observe the planet's gravitational tug on the star. This allows him and his colleagues to calculate the mass of TOI-2180 b.



Based on a campaign conducted in August 2021 (which involved about 20,000 images), the researchers estimate that TESS will see TOI-2180 b transit its star again in February, when they are planning a follow up study.&nbsp;



In a press release from NASA, Dalba said that discovering TOI-2180 b was "a great group effort demonstrating that professional astronomers and seasoned citizen scientists can successfully work together."



The study is published in <a href="https://iopscience.iop.org/journal/1538-3881">The Astronomical Journal</a>.



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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

Citizen scientists have discovered a giant gas planet

In collaboration with citizen scientists, an astronomer at UC Riverside...

Accidentally trapping marine animals such as sharks, seabirds, turtles, or sea mammals in fishing gear is one of the biggest barriers for making fisheries more sustainable. While <a href="https://marineprotectedareas.noaa.gov/">marine protected areas</a> are aiming to minimize accidental catch, they often prove to be quite inefficient in protecting marine biodiversity, particularly in the case of marine species that are very mobile and constantly travel between these static areas.&nbsp;



According to new research from the <a href="http://www.washington.edu/">University of Washington</a> (UW), “dynamic ocean management,” or the shifting of ocean closures, can be much more effective against accidental catch.



“We hope this study will add to the growing movement away from permanently closed areas to encourage more dynamic ocean management,” said study senior author&nbsp;Ray Hilborn, a professor at the UW <a href="https://fish.uw.edu/">School of Aquatic and Fishery Sciences</a>. “Also, by showing the relative ineffectiveness of static areas, we hope it will make conservation advocates aware that permanent closed areas are much less effective in reducing accidental catch than changes in fishing methods.”



Professor Hilborn and his colleagues investigated 15 fisheries around the world, and modelled what would happen both to targeted fish and accidental catches (or “bycatch”) if 30 percent of the fishing grounds were permanently closed, compared with dynamic management. They found that restricting fishing by 30 percent would only diminish bycatch by 16 percent, in contrast to using dynamic closures, which could reduce accidental catch by a staggering 57 percent.



“We found we can significantly reduce bycatch without decreasing the catch of target species by closing small fishing areas that can move year to year,” said study lead author&nbsp;Maite Pons, who completed this article as a UW postdoctoral fellow. “This dynamic approach is increasingly valuable as climate change drives species and fisheries into new habitats, altering these interactions.”



However, the authors acknowledge that, in some cases, static protected areas may remain the best choice. If the main purpose is to protect a critical habitat, a biodiversity hotspot, or a critical feature, static closures might remain most effective and easier to implement. Thus, all conservation goals should be broadly considered before determining which types of ocean protections are best in a specific situation.



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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

Dynamic ocean closures offer protection from accidental catch

Accidentally trapping marine animals such as sharks, seabirds, turtles, or...

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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



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.

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



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

Detecting mercury contamination with the tap of a finger

[sendtonews key="LvS8v8bp9z-2564889-12187" 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.acs.org/">American Chemical Society</a> explores the ability of salt to transform the way that foods and beverages taste. Salt is known to cover up undesirable flavors, such as bitterness in coffee or beer, but how exactly does sodium chloride change the taste of other compounds?



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



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



Video Credit: ACS Reactions



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



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

How does salt makes things taste better?

[sendtonews key="X0f6OHYoI4-2310561-12187" 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 Santiago, the capital city of Chile. The city is located in the center of the Santiago Metropolitan Region, which has a population of about eight million people.&nbsp;



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



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



Video/ Image Credit: ESA



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



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

Santiago, Chile in South America

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

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



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



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



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



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



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



Video Credit: Johns Hopkins&nbsp;



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



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

Interactive map of the universe includes 200,000 galaxies

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



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



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



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



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



Video Credit: ESA&nbsp;&nbsp;



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



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

Lesotho: Africa's "Kingdom in the Sky"

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



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



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



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



Video Credit: ESA&nbsp;



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



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

The city of Dublin on Ireland's east coast

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



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



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



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



Video/ Image Credit: ESA



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



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

The province of Zaragoza in northeast Spain

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



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



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



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



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



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



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



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



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



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



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

The 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

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Earth,Like,Exoplanet,3d,Render

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



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



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



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



Video Credit: NASA Goddard



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



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



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

Two distant planets may be "water worlds"

[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



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

Satellites reveal how Earth's systems are interconnected

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



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



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



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



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



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



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



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.

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



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.

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



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

The 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



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

Cavefish are healthy despite their sedentary lifestyle

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



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



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



Video Credit: NASA Earth Observatory&nbsp;



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



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

Satellites capture the world's biggest and fastest waves

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



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



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



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



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



Video Credit: European Space Agency&nbsp;



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

Satellites have become essential to our survival

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