The universe is full of mysteries, many of which remain unseen until technology advances enough to reveal them. Scientists have long sought deeper insights into dark matter, dark energy, and the fundamental forces shaping the cosmos. 



The European Space Agency’s Euclid telescope was designed to explore these mysteries, offering a new perspective on the structure of the universe, including rare phenomena like the Einstein ring.



Euclid launched on July 1, 2023, beginning a six-year mission to map billions of <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/galaxies-are-much-bigger-than-we-originally-believed-gas-clouds/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">galaxies</a> and reveal the invisible forces shaping their movements. Before the spacecraft could start its full survey, scientists needed to test its instruments and verify that everything functioned correctly.



During this testing phase in September 2023, Euclid sent back a series of preliminary images. These images were meant to confirm the telescope’s alignment and functionality.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-a-surprise-in-blurry-images">A surprise in blurry images</h2>



Bruno Altieri, a <a href="https://www.esa.int/Science_Exploration/Space_Science/Euclid/(archive)/0" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Euclid</a> Archive Scientist, was among those analyzing the incoming data. Even in the out-of-focus images, he noticed something unusual. A subtle but striking pattern caught his attention, prompting him to investigate further.



“I look at the data from Euclid as it comes in,” noted Altieri. “Even from that first observation, I could see it, but after Euclid made more observations of the area, we could see a perfect Einstein ring. For me, with a lifelong interest in gravitational lensing, that was amazing.”



This unexpected discovery was hiding in a familiar galaxy, NGC 6505, located about 590 million light-years from Earth. In cosmic terms, this is remarkably close. 



Despite its proximity and the fact that astronomers have studied this galaxy for over a century, the phenomenon within it had remained unnoticed.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-science-behind-the-einstein-ring">Science behind the Einstein ring</h2>



At the heart of this discovery is the phenomenon of gravitational lensing. 



Albert Einstein’s general theory of relativity predicts that massive objects bend light as it travels through space. This effect, known as gravitational lensing, allows galaxies and <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/bullseye-galaxy-reveals-stunning-rings-after-galactic-impact/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">clusters of galaxies</a> to act as giant cosmic magnifiers.



The Einstein ring around NGC 6505 is created by light from a much more distant galaxy located 4.42 billion light-years away. As the light from this background galaxy passes near NGC 6505, the gravity of the foreground galaxy bends and distorts it. 



When the alignment is perfect, the light forms a striking circle around the foreground object, creating what astronomers call an Einstein ring.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-a-rare-and-valuable-discovery">A rare and valuable discovery</h2>



Strong gravitational lenses like this are rare. They provide crucial opportunities for astronomers to study the properties of dark matter and measure the expansion of the universe.



“An Einstein ring is an example of strong gravitational lensing,” explained Conor O’Riordan from the <a href="https://www.mpa-garching.mpg.de" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Max Planck Institute for Astrophysics</a>.



“All strong lenses are special, because they're so rare, and they're incredibly useful scientifically. This one is particularly special, because it’s so close to Earth and the alignment makes it very beautiful.”



This Einstein ring is unique not only because of its proximity but also because of its perfect shape. The alignment between the foreground and background <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/two-enormous-fermi-bubbles-discovered-towering-above-and-below-our-milky-way-galaxy/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">galaxies</a> is nearly exact, making the ring exceptionally clear.



Such clarity allows scientists to study the properties of both galaxies in greater detail than ever before.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-einstein-ring-features-revealed-by-euclid">Einstein ring features revealed by Euclid</h2>



One of the most astonishing aspects of this discovery is that it was made within a well-known galaxy. NGC 6505 was first documented in 1884, yet this remarkable feature within it had remained unnoticed until Euclid’s high-resolution instruments captured it.



“I find it very intriguing that this ring was observed within a well-known <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/spiral-galaxy-with-quasar-jet-surprises-astronomers/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">galaxy</a>, which was first discovered in 1884,” said Valeria Pettorino, ESA Euclid Project Scientist.



“The galaxy has been known to astronomers for a very long time. And yet this ring was never observed before. This demonstrates how powerful Euclid is, finding new things even in places we thought we knew well." 



"This discovery is very encouraging for the future of the Euclid mission and demonstrates its fantastic capabilities.”



If such a spectacular structure was waiting to be found in a well-documented galaxy, scientists wonder what other surprises Euclid might uncover as it explores deeper into the universe.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-mapping-the-universe-in-3d">Mapping the universe in 3D</h2>



The Euclid telescope is designed to go far beyond individual discoveries like this Einstein ring. 



Its primary mission is to create the most extensive 3D map of the universe ever constructed. Over the next six years, Euclid will survey more than a third of the sky, analyzing billions of galaxies and tracing their distribution across cosmic time.



One of the most exciting aspects of Euclid’s mission is its ability to find strong gravitational lenses. Scientists estimate that the telescope will discover around 100,000 of these lenses, providing an enormous dataset for studying dark matter and dark energy. 



Until now, fewer than 1,000 strong lenses had been identified, and even fewer had been imaged with high resolution. The discovery of this Einstein ring so early in the mission signals that Euclid is on track to surpass all expectations.



“Euclid is going to revolutionize the field, with all this data we've never had before,” said O’Riordan.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-analyzing-billions-of-galaxies">Analyzing billions of galaxies</h2>



While the Einstein ring around NGC 6505 is an exciting find, Euclid’s primary goal is even more ambitious. The telescope is designed to study weak gravitational lensing, a subtle effect that slightly stretches and shifts the shapes of background galaxies. 



Unlike strong lensing, which creates dramatic rings, weak lensing is far more difficult to detect. To measure this effect, scientists will analyze the shapes of billions of galaxies and use this data to map the distribution of dark matter <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/evidence-of-massive-early-universe-black-hole-stuns-astronomers/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">across the cosmos</a>.



Euclid began its full survey on February 14, 2024, and is steadily building a comprehensive view of the Universe’s structure. With each new observation, it has the potential to reveal hidden patterns and unlock secrets that have remained concealed for billions of years.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-a-mission-filled-with-possibilities">A mission filled with possibilities</h2>



The discovery of this Einstein ring is just the beginning. Euclid’s ability to capture such fine details in a nearby galaxy hints at the extraordinary discoveries that await in the coming years. 



Scientists anticipate that as more data arrives, Euclid will provide unprecedented insights into the nature of dark matter, dark energy, and the forces that shape the universe.



By pushing the boundaries of what we can observe, Euclid is not only deepening our understanding of the cosmos but also proving that even in well-explored regions, there is always something new waiting to be discovered.



Image Credit: European Space Agency



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Ghost in the galaxy: Stunning Einstein ring spotted by Euclid

The universe is full of mysteries, many of which remain unseen until technology advances enough to reveal them. Scientists have long sought deeper insights into dark matter, dark energy, and the fundamental forces shaping the cosmos. The European Space Agency’s Euclid telescope was designed to explore these mysteries, offering a new perspective on the structure of the universe, including rare phenomena like the Einstein ring. Euclid launched on July 1, 2023, beginning a six-year mission to map billions of galaxies and reveal the invisible forces shaping their...

The vaquita porpoise is one of only seven different porpoise species in the entire world – and its population is critically <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/endangered-insects-are-easy-to-purchase-illegally-online/">endangered</a>. The species is endemic to the northern end of the Gulf of California in Baja California, Mexico, and is unusual in that it is the smallest of all cetacean species and the only member of the porpoise family to live in warm waters. Tragically, there are only 10 vaquita porpoises left.



This small marine mammal, which only reaches four to five feet in length, has been the unfortunate bycatch of poachers hunting the totoaba (Totoaba macdonaldi), an endangered fish species that is highly prized in some countries for its perceived medicinal properties.  Vaquitas are roughly the same size as the large totoaba that are illegally targeted using gillnets, and the porpoises easily become entangled in the nets and then drown. 



Fishing for totoaba has been outlawed in Mexico since 1975 but the ban has not been adequately enforced. The swim bladder of a totoaba is perceived in China as having medicinal and nutritional properties and is in such demand that the prices have become sky high. In fact, dried maw (swim bladder) from totoaba often fetches higher prices per kilogram than cocaine or gold. Despite the fact that the trade in totoaba is banned by CITES, the value of the maws makes them sought-after by poachers and so the illegal fishing and trade continues. Vaquitas are simply collateral damage in this situation.



A recent genetic analysis of vaquitas by a team of <a href="https://www.ucla.edu/">UCLA</a> biologists and colleagues has, however, given a ray of hope for this critically endangered species. The experts analyzed the genomes from tissue of 20 vaquitas that lived between 1985 and 2017 and assessed the range of genetic variation present in the genomes. Using this information, they conducted computational simulations to predict the species’ risk of extinction over the next 50 years.&nbsp;



The results, published today in the journal <a href="https://www.science.org/">Science</a>, indicate that the species still has a relatively high genetic diversity and a low incidence of harmful mutations, despite the effects of inbreeding. The researchers say that this gives the living population a good chance of recovery, as long as gillnet fishing ends immediately.  If the threat of gillnets continues, however, the prospects of population recovery are very dim indeed. 



“Interestingly, we found the vaquita is not doomed by genetic factors, like harmful mutations, that tend to affect many other species whose gene pool has diminished to a similar point,” said study co-lead author Christopher Kyriazis. “Outlawed fishing remains their biggest threat.”



Genetic diversity is a measure of the differences in genes that exist between individuals in a population. The accepted understanding is that the greater the genetic diversity present in a population, the healthier that population is. Large populations tend to have many differences, while naturally smaller or reduced ones have fewer, resulting in individuals that are more genetically similar. Breeding between genetically similar individuals (known as inbreeding) increases the chances of offspring with harmful genetic mutations, as mutated genes can be passed on by both parents.&nbsp;



“A prevailing view in conservation biology and population genetics is that small populations can accumulate deleterious mutations,” said senior author Professor Kirk Lohmueller. “However, our finding that the vaquita likely has fewer strongly deleterious mutations hiding in the population means that they are better poised to survive future inbreeding, which bodes well for their overall recovery.”



“Relative to other species, the vaquita has a higher chance of rebounding from an extreme population crash without suffering severe genetic consequences from inbreeding,” said co-lead author&nbsp;Jacqueline Robinson. “Genetic diversity in vaquitas is not so low that it constitutes a threat to their health and persistence. It simply reflects their natural rarity.”



The fact that vaquitas have always been rare is what seems to protect them from the harmful effects of inbreeding. Although their historic numbers are not known, a comprehensive survey in 1997 counted 570 porpoises in their only known habitat, the Gulf of California. This means that some extent of inbreeding has probably been taking place for a long time and the harmful mutations have gradually been selected out of the population.&nbsp;



“They’re essentially the marine equivalent of an island species,” said Robinson, who noted that the species has survived for tens of thousands of years with low genetic diversity due to the small size of their population. “The vaquitas’ naturally low abundance has allowed them to gradually purge highly deleterious recessive gene variants that might negatively affect their health under inbreeding.”



In fact, Robinson said, of the 12 marine mammal species that the researchers analyzed genetically, vaquitas had the lowest number of potentially harmful mutations. This situation gives hope that the population of these porpoises may be able to rebound from the precipice of extinction, given the chance.



Encouragingly, the surviving vaquitas in the northern Gulf of California are actively reproducing and appear healthy. But poachers’ gillnets continue to pose an existential threat to them, and unless further measures are taken to protect the porpoises, there is a distinct possibility they may go extinct. The loss would be a great tragedy, said study senior author Professor Robert Wayne.



“The vaquita is symbolic of the unique diversity found in the Gulf of California, which was described by John Steinbeck in his wonderful 1951 book ‘The Log from the Sea of Cortez,’” said Wayne. “It represents a unique evolutionary lineage – there is no similar species anywhere in the world – and its loss would rob the ecosystem of an important predator adapted to this unique ecosystem.”



Image Credit: NOAA Fisheries&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

Vaquita porpoises may have a good chance at recovery

The vaquita porpoise is one of only seven different porpoise...

Despite notable successes in reducing poverty worldwide over the past two decades, almost one billion people still live without access to affordable and reliable <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/electricity-may-be-the-cheapest-energy-source-by-2050/">electricity</a>, which negatively impacts their health and welfare, and impedes sustainable development. Knowing the precise location of these people is crucial in order to provide them the assistance and infrastructure they need. A recent study led the <a href="http://iiasa.ac.at/">International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis</a> (IIASA) has proposed a new method to estimate global economic well-being by using nighttime satellite imagery.&nbsp;



For almost three decades, scientists have used such images – known as “nighttime radiance” or “nighttime lights” – to study human activity and map issues related to economic growth, poverty, or inequality, particularly in places where such data was lacking. While brightly lit areas indicate more developed regions such as capital cities, areas that are unlit at night usually indicate limited development. By contrast to previous studies that assessed data gathered from lit areas, this new study has specifically focused on unlit areas in order to estimate global economic well-being.



“Whereas previous work has focused more on the relationship between lit areas and economic development, we found that it actually also works the other way around and that unlit areas are a good indicator of poverty. By identifying those unlit areas, we can target interventions for poverty alleviation and places to focus on to improve energy access,” explained study senior author Steffen Fritz, the IISSA Strategic Initiatives Program Director.



By combining a harmonized geo-spatial wealth index for households in Africa, Asia, and the Americas (calculated by the <a href="https://dhsprogram.com/">Demographic and Health Surveys Program</a>) with satellite images of nighttime lights in these countries, the scientists found that 19 percent of the Earth’s total settlement footprint had no detectable artificial radiance. The majority of unlit settlements were in Africa (39 percent) and Asia (23 percent). Moreover, if only rural areas were considered, these percentages rose to 65 percent for Africa and 40 percent for Asia. These results indicate a strong association between increasing percentages of unlit communities and decreasing economic well-being.



While government agencies usually prioritize the expansion of electricity access for urban rather than rural areas, the researchers stress that rural electrification is crucial for increasing economic wellbeing, health, and education. Since the <a href="https://sdgs.un.org/goals">United Nations Sustainable Development Goals</a> (SDGs) specifically include “access to affordable, reliable, sustainable, and modern energy for all,” identifying all the areas where such access is lacking is crucial.



“If applied over time, the method we used in our study could provide opportunities to track well-being and progress toward the SDGs. In terms of policy, it can help better inform energy policy around the globe and can also be helpful in shaping aid policy by ensuring that we are reaching those remote rural areas that are likely energy poor. In addition, it could be useful to detect signs of sustainable and environmental management of lighting in the developed world,” concluded study co-author Shonali Pachauri, a researcher at IIASA.



The study is published in the journal <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-022-30099-9">Nature Communications</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

Satellite imagery used to map global poverty

Despite notable successes in reducing poverty worldwide over the past...

Scientists from various Chinese universities have recently had the opportunity to analyze soil samples brought back from the <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/shark-attacks-linked-to-phases-of-the-moon/">moon</a> by the Chinese space mission know as Chang’E-5. They find that the lunar soil, or components extracted from it, have the potential to be used as photocatalysts for splitting water molecules and using the products - along with carbon dioxide from the breath of visiting astronauts - to form oxygen and various fuels. This, they say, could form the basis of an independent life-support system on the moon.



The exploration of deep space by manned spacecraft is receiving a lot of attention as the next great frontier of space exploration. However, a suitable first step would be to develop the technology to allow extraterrestrial survival using in situ resources. Nanjing University material scientists Yingfang Yao and Zhigang Zou hope to design just such a system that takes advantage of lunar soil and solar radiation, the two most abundant resources on the moon.



After analyzing the soil brought back by China’s Chang’E-5 lunar lander, the research team proposed that water found in the soil and rocks, along with iron-rich and titanium-rich substances that could work as catalysts, could be used to make essential products to support life on the moon.&nbsp;



In their research paper, published today in the journal <a href="https://www.cell.com/joule/home">Joule</a>, the team of scientists propose an “extraterrestrial photosynthesis” pathway that uses in situ resources on the moon to produce oxygen and fuel for use in a “zero-energy consumption” extraterrestrial life-support system.&nbsp;



The system uses lunar soil and solar energy to electrolyze water extracted locally on the moon, and from the exhaled breath of astronauts, to form oxygen and hydrogen. In addition, carbon dioxide exhaled by moon inhabitants could also be collected and reacted with the hydrogen from water electrolysis, during a hydrogenation process catalyzed by substances present in the lunar soil.



This process would yield hydrocarbons such as methane and methanol, which could be used as fuel. The strategy uses no energy other than that derived from sunlight to produce a variety of desirable products such as water, oxygen, and fuel that could support life on a moonbase, the researchers say. The team is now looking for an opportunity to test the system in space, likely with China’s future crewed lunar missions.



“We use in situ environmental resources to minimize rocket payload, and our strategy provides a scenario for a sustainable and affordable extraterrestrial living environment,” said Yao.



While lunar soil is less efficient at catalyzing chemical reactions than the catalysts available on Earth, Yao says the team is testing different methods to improve the design, such as melting the lunar soil into a nanostructured high-entropy material, which is a better catalyst.



The team’s proposed system of extraterrestrial survival is unusual in that it requires no energy input from Earth. For example, NASA’s Perseverance Mars rover brought an instrument that can use carbon dioxide in the planet’s atmosphere to make oxygen, but it’s powered by a nuclear battery onboard. The scientists say that achieving the objective of independence from Earth’s resources could dramatically improve the feasibility and durability of human extraterrestrial survival and would increase the economic feasibility of future space journeys.



“In the near future, we will see the crewed spaceflight industry developing rapidly,” said Yao. “Just like the ‘Age of Sail’ in the 1600s when hundreds of ships head to the sea, we will enter an ‘Age of Space.’ But if we want to carry out large-scale exploration of the extraterrestrial world, we will need to think of ways to reduce payload, meaning relying on as little supplies from Earth as possible and using extraterrestrial resources instead.”



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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

Lunar soil could be the basis of moon life-support system

Scientists from various Chinese universities have recently had the opportunity...

A study from the <a href="https://www.cam.ac.uk/">University of Cambridge</a> reveals that fire activity in protected areas increased dramatically during COVID lockdowns. The research is focused on the island of Madagascar, one of the world's most renowned <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/climate-change-impacts-biodiversity-in-protected-areas-worldwide/">biodiversity</a> hotspots, where the experts believe that a huge spike in fires during 2020 may be attributed to a lack of on-site management over five months of lockdowns.



The findings highlight the need for governments to keep staff on duty in protected areas at all times as an “essential service," even during periods of health crisis and travel restriction, said the study authors. They referred to the long-delayed convention to set international biodiversity goals later this year, noting that more attention must be paid to the management of protected areas - not just expanding their coverage.



The study is the first to examine the effects of the pandemic on protected areas. In collaboration with experts at the University of Helsinki, the researchers used historical and contemporary data to analyze rates of burning in Madagascar’s protected areas for every month during 2012 to 2020. The team compared the data to fires captured in satellite images to look at previous patterns of burning.&nbsp;



The study revealed that during the first lockdowns of 2020, fire activity increased by 209 percent in March, 223 percent in April, 78 percent in May, 248 percent in June and 76 percent in July.&nbsp;



The researchers describe this scale of burning inside Madagascar’s protected areas as “unprecedented” in recent history. Once management operations resumed, fire activity quickly returned to normal levels.



“The disruption caused by COVID-19 clearly demonstrates the dramatic impact that interruptions to the management of protected areas can have on habitats,” said study senior author Professor Andrew Balmford. “Over the last twenty years, excess fires in Malagasy protected areas have been limited to occasional blocks of one or two months."



“When all staff were pulled out of protected areas in March 2020 the fires spiked dramatically and continued at a ferocious level for an unprecedented five months, falling away exactly as staff started to return."



Study lead author Dr. Johanna Eklund said that while they cannot know for sure what caused all the fires during the early months of COVID-19, local communities already struggling economically would have come under further pressure from lockdowns.



“Madagascar has very high rates of poverty, and has a history of conflict between the livelihoods of vulnerable people and saving unique biodiversity,” said Dr. Eklund. “The pandemic increased economic insecurity for many, so it would not be surprising if this led some to encroach on protected lands while on-site management activities were on hold.”



“Importantly, the study did not measure fires outside conservation sites, so we cannot measure how much protected areas actually mitigated burning compared to areas without protection."



Study co-author Domoina Rakotobe is the former coordinator for the Malagasy organisation Forum Lafa, the network of terrestrial protected area managers.



“The high levels of burning during the lockdowns clearly shows the value of on-the-ground management, with protected area teams working with communities to support local livelihoods and safeguard natural resources," said Rakotobe.



The study is published in the journal <a href="https://www.nature.com/natsustain/">Nature Sustainability</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

Fire activity spiked in protected areas during COVID lockdowns

A study from the University of Cambridge reveals that fire...

A new experimental study led by the <a href="https://quadram.ac.uk/">Quadram Institute</a> and the <a href="https://www.uea.ac.uk/">University of East Anglia</a> (UEA) has found that transplanting fecal microbiota from young into old mice can reverse hallmarks of aging in the gut, brain, and eyes. In a reverse experiment, microbes transplanted from older mice caused inflammation in the brain of younger recipients and depleted a key protein that is required for normal vision. These findings suggest that the <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/food-cravings-linked-to-microbial-activity-in-the-gut/">gut microbiota</a> plays a crucial role in regulating the process of aging, and open the possibility of gut microbe-based therapies to combat decline in old age.



“This ground-breaking study provides tantalizing evidence for the direct involvement of gut microbes in aging and the functional decline of brain function and vision and offers a potential solution in the form of gut microbe replacement therapy,” said study senior author Simon Carding, the head of the <a href="https://quadram.ac.uk/research_areas/gut-microbes-health/">Gut Microbes and Health Research Program</a> at the Quadram Institute, and a professor of Biology at UEA. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;



Scientists have long known that the population of microbes that we carry in our gut is strongly linked to health. Many diseases are associated with changes in the types and behaviors of gut microbes. Some of these changes in the composition of gut microbiota happen as we age, negatively impacting our metabolism and immune systems, and leading to age-related diseases, such as inflammatory bowel syndrome, or cardiovascular, autoimmune, metabolic, and neurodegenerative disorders.



To better understand these changes, Professor Carding and his team transferred gut microbes from aged mice into young ones, and vice-versa. They found that the microbes from old donors led to loss of integrity of the lining of the gut in young recipients, allowing bacterial products to cross into circulation - a phenomenon that triggers immune responses and inflammatory reactions in the brain and eyes. Moreover, brain cells that are known to be associated with age-related chronic inflammation were also over-activated in young mice that received aged microbiome transplants, while proteins linked to retinal degeneration were elevated.



However, in old mice receiving transplants from young, healthy ones, the age-related detrimental changes in the gut, brain, and eyes were reversed. In future studies, the researchers aim to clarify how long these positive effects last, and to identify the beneficial components of the young donor microbiota and the ways in which they can affect organs distant from the gut.



“We were excited to find that by changing the gut microbiota of elderly individuals, we could rescue indicators of age-associated decline commonly seen in degenerative conditions of the eye and brain,” said study lead author Dr. Aimee Parker, a researcher at the Quadram Institute.



“Our results provide more evidence of the important links between microbes in the gut and healthy aging of tissues and organs around the body. We hope that our findings will contribute ultimately to understanding how we can manipulate our diet and our gut bacteria to maximize good health in later life,” she concluded.



The study is published in the journal <a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.1186/s40168-022-01243-w">Microbiome</a>.&nbsp;



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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

Can fecal transplants reverse signs of aging?

A new experimental study led by the Quadram Institute and...

Over a third of adults in the United States and United Kingdom don’t get enough <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/getting-more-sleep-can-boost-weight-loss/">sleep</a> on a regular basis, due to reasons related to modern life such as stress, the blurring of work-life boundaries, or the excessive use of electronic devices. Previous studies have shown that sleep disorders can cause a variety of health problems, including cardiovascular disease, diabetes, high cholesterol, atherosclerosis, or obesity. Now, a research team led by the <a href="https://www.ku.dk/english/">University of Copenhagen</a> has also found that lack of good quality sleep undermines people’s attempts to keep weight off after dieting, and that approximately two hours of vigorous exercise per week could help maintain better sleep.



“It was surprising to see how losing weight in adults with obesity improved sleep duration and quality in such a short time, and how exercising while attempting to keep the weight off preserved improvements in sleep quality,” said study lead author Adrian Bogh, a Master student in Biomedical Sciences at the University of Copenhagen. “Also, it was intriguing that adults who aren’t sleeping enough or getting poor quality sleep after weight loss appear less successful at maintaining weight loss than those with sufficient sleep.”



In order to investigate the relation between sleep patterns and weight, the scientists enrolled 195 adults 18 to 65 years old with obesity who followed a low-calorie diet for two months, and lost an average of 12 percent of their body weight. Afterwards, the patients were followed for one year to assess how various factors – including a weight-loss drug, a placebo, and four sessions of exercise per week - influenced weight loss maintenance. Sleep duration was measured using data from accelerometers worn by the participants, while sleep quality was assessed through a qualitative self-rated questionnaire.



The scientists found that, after the two months low-calorie diet, both sleep duration and quality improved in all participants. However, after one year, participants in the exercise group managed to maintain the sleep improvements achieved from a low-calorie diet, while non-exercise groups relapsed. Moreover, individuals who slept less than six hours per night or had lower quality sleep at the start of the study gained more weight during the follow-up year than those who slept longer or better.



“The fact that sleep health was so strongly related to weight loss maintenance is important since many of us don’t get the recommended amount of sleep needed for optimal health and functioning,” said study co-author Signe Torekov, an expert in obesity and weight loss maintenance at the University of Copenhagen.&nbsp;



“Future research examining possible ways of improving sleep in adults with obesity will be an important next step to limit weight regain. Weight loss maintained with exercise seems promising in improving sleep,” she concluded.



The study will be presented at this year’s <a href="https://zoomforward22.org/">European Congress on Obesity</a> (ECO) in Maastricht, Netherlands (4-7 May, 2022).&nbsp;



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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

Poor sleep may hamper the ability to keep weight off

Over a third of adults in the United States and...

Freezing temperatures are highly challenging for life, which is water-based. Animals have three main strategies to survive extremely low winter temperatures: migrating, remaining where they are and resisting the cold, or reducing their body temperatures and metabolic rates in a state called torpor (which includes both dormancy and full-blown hibernation). The main role of these cold-survival strategies is dealing with energy deficits imposed by reduced solar energy and food availability in the <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/swallows-are-no-longer-migrating-south-as-winters-become-milder/">winter</a>.



Biologists have usually studied these cold-survival strategies in isolation, treating them as mutually exclusive alternatives. However, according to a new study conducted by Giorgia Auteri, a biologist at the <a href="https://umich.edu/">University of Michigan</a>, many animals combine multiple strategies to beat the cold.&nbsp;



For instance, a large number of high-latitude bats and birds such as swallows, warblers, or hummingbirds use both <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/assisted-migrations-could-help-species-survive-climate-change/">migration</a> and torpor. In some cases, strategies are split among members of the same species: some blue jays migrate south during winter, while others stay put, and individual eastern chipmunks often shift from torpor to cold resistance when food is abundant.&nbsp;



“Each cold-survival strategy exists not as a binary but on a spectrum,” explained Dr. Auteri. “Separate treatment of these strategies misses opportunities to identify broader patterns and mechanisms and eliminates the possibility of discoveries that require comparisons across strategies.”



The integrated conceptual framework for mapping cold-survival strategies that Dr. Auteri has developed could help resolve discrepancies in Bergmann’s rule, which argues that the trend of larger animal body size at higher latitudes facilitates cold resistance due to the lower surface area-to-volume ratio that is a trademark of large animals. However, many migratory birds and small mammals deviate from this rule.&nbsp;



“This proposed framework, which considers cold-survival strategies collectively, resolves the mystery of why some taxa ‘break’ the rule,” said Dr. Auteri. “Small mammals do not follow the rule well because they often use torpor instead of resistance. Migratory birds conform less strongly because, like small mammals, they use an alternative - migration.”



In order to conceptualize and quantify cold-survival strategies, Dr. Auteri proposes a framework with four main components. She argues 1) that seasonal migration, torpor, and cold-resistance should be considered collectively; 2) that species often use multiple strategies; 3) that each of these strategies exists on a spectrum which permits partial use; and 4) that species can exhibit proportional use, where the employment of one strategy leads to a significant decrease in the use of others.



According to Dr. Auteri, this new integrated conceptual framework could shed more light on phenomena such as animal responses to climate change, capacities of colonizing high latitudes, disease dynamics, niche partitioning, adaptive tradeoffs, or how changes in seasonal regimes impact ecological networks.



The study is published in the journal <a href="https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/10.1098/rsbl.2022.0050">Biology Letters</a>.&nbsp;



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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

Animals combine different strategies to survive the cold

Freezing temperatures are highly challenging for life, which is water-based....

Some groups of marine <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/how-iridescent-colors-protect-animals-from-predators/">animals</a> have achieved enormous body sizes in the past and, although most of them are now extinct, scientists still puzzle over how their extreme body shapes and sizes allowed them to move efficiently in their aquatic environment. Among the largest, only cetaceans (whales) have survived into the modern era, while the ancient reptiles known as ichthyosaurs and plesiosaurs have become extinct.



Dr. Susana Gutarra Díaz from the <a href="https://www.bristol.ac.uk/">University of Bristol</a> and her colleagues have conducted a recent study examining the body shapes of these large marine animals using models and computational fluid dynamics. Some of the animals show more streamlined body shapes, such as modern whales and the dolphin-like&nbsp;<a href="https://www.newscientist.com/article/2302957-prehistoric-ichthyosaurs-evolved-rapidly-to-be-as-big-as-whales/">ichthyosaurs,</a>&nbsp;while the plesiosaurs had massive paired flippers.and necks that could measure as much as half the total body length.&nbsp;



“Until now, it was not very clear how this great diversity of shapes and sizes affected the energy demands of swimming in these marine animals,” said Dr. Gutarra Díaz. “To test our hypotheses, we created various 3D models and performed computer flow simulations of plesiosaurs, ichthyosaurs and cetaceans. These experiments are performed on the computer, but they are like water tank experiments.”



Tetrapods, or&nbsp;"four-limbed&nbsp;vertebrates," have repeatedly returned to the oceans over the last 250 million years, and their bodies have become adapted to the marine environment in different ways. For example, dolphins and ichthyosaurs have similar body shapes, adapted for reducing resistance or drag as they swim rapidly through the water. By contrast, plesiosaurs that lived side-by-side with the ichthyosaurs in the Mesozoic Era, propelled themselves underwater using giant flippers, and some had extremely long necks that hardly look helpful for swimming at all. These necks likely helped them to snap up quick-moving fish, but were also believed to make them slower.



The results of the analysis, published in the journal <a href="https://www.nature.com/commsbio/">Communications Biology</a>, showed that body size had a major influence on possible shapes for marine reptiles.&nbsp;In fact, body size was more important than body shape in determining the energy economy of swimming for aquatic animals.&nbsp;



While the large limbs and long necks of many plesiosaurs created a significant amount of drag, bigger bodies and larger torsos lowered the energetic cost of moving through water. This is because drag is created by the friction between water and an animal’s skin, and as bodies get larger, the ratio of surface area to mass is actually reduced.



“Large animals have a greater drag in absolute terms,” said Dr. Gutarra Díaz. “But the power they need to invest to move a unit of body mass is smaller.”



“We showed that although plesiosaurs did experience more drag than ichthyosaurs or whales of equal mass because of their unique body shape, these differences were relatively minor," explained Dr Colin Palmer, an engineer involved in the project. "We found that, when size is taken into account, the differences between groups became much less than the shape differences. We also show that the ratio of body length to diameter, which is widely used to classify these aquatic animals as more or less efficient, is not a good indicator of low drag.”



In this study, the researchers were particularly interested in one family of plesiosaurs known as the elasmosaurs. These were plesiosaurs with the longest necks of all, measuring up to 20 feet (6 metres) in some species, and having over 70 cervical (neck) vertebrae. In these species, the neck was almost half of the total body length and would have been too long and too heavy to hold above the surface of the water.&nbsp;



“We were also particularly interested in the necks of elasmosaurs and so we created hypothetical 3D models of plesiosaurs with various lengths of necks," said Dr. Gutarra Díaz. "Simulations of these models reveal that, past a certain point, the neck adds extra drag, which potentially would make swimming costly. This ‘optimal’ neck limit lies around twice the length of the trunk of the animal.”



“When we examined a large sample of plesiosaurs modelled on really well-preserved fossils at their real sizes, it turns out that most plesiosaurs had necks below this high-drag threshold, within which the neck can get longer or shorter without increasing drag," said Dr. Benjamin Moon. "But more interestingly, we showed that plesiosaurs with extremely long necks also had evolved very large torsos, and this compensated for the extra drag!”



According to <a href="about:blank">Dr. Tom Stubbs</a>, the study shows that in contrast with prevailing popular knowledge, very long-necked plesiosaurs were not necessarily slower swimmers than ichthyosaurs and whales, and this is in part thanks to their large bodies. "We found that in elasmosaurs, neck proportions changed really fast. This confirms that long necks were advantageous for elasmosaurs in hunting, but they could not exploit this adaptation until they became large enough to offset the cost of high drag on their bodies.”



“Our research suggests that large aquatic animals can afford to have crazy shapes, as in the elasmosaurs," said Professor Mike Benton. "But there are limits: body sizes cannot get indefinitely large, as there are some constraints to very large sizes as well. The maximum neck lengths we observe, seem to balance benefits in hunting versus the costs of growing and maintaining such a long neck. In other words, the necks of these extraordinary creatures evolved in balance with the overall body size to keep friction to a minimum.”



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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

Plesiosaurs with long necks needed large bodies to minimize friction

Some groups of marine animals have achieved enormous body sizes...

Cognitive impairment as a result of severe <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/plant-based-diets-reduce-the-risk-of-severe-covid-19/">COVID-19</a> is similar to 20 years of aging and is the equivalent to losing ten IQ points, says new research from the <a href="https://www.cam.ac.uk/">University of Cambridge</a> and Imperial College London.



The results suggest that cognitive impairment is still detectable more than six months after the acute illness and recovery is gradual at best.



There is growing evidence that COVID-19 can cause lasting cognitive and mental health problems. Recovered patients have reported fatigue, "brain fog," problems recalling words, sleep disturbances, anxiety and even post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) months after infection. In the UK, a study found that one in seven individuals reported cognitive difficulties 12 weeks after COVID-19.



To understand this link, the data of 46 individuals who received hospital or intensive care (mechanical ventilation) for COVID-19 from March to July 2020 was analyzed. These patients were at Addenbrooke’s Hospital, part of Cambridge University Hospital's NHS Foundation.



Cognitive tests were used six months after the patient's illness using the Cognitron platform, which measures mental faculties such as memory, attention and reasoning. Scales measuring anxiety, depression and post-traumatic stress disorder were also assessed.&nbsp;



COVID-19 survivors were less accurate and had a slower response time than the control population. These symptoms were still detectable six months later. The effects were strongest for those who required ventilation.&nbsp;



By comparing the patients to 66,008 members of the general public, the researchers estimate that the magnitude of cognitive loss is similar on average to that sustained with 20 years aging, between 50 and 70 years of age, and that this is equivalent to losing ten IQ points.



Survivors scored poorly on tasks such as verbal reasoning, supporting the commonly-reported problem of difficulty finding words. They also showed slower processing speeds, which aligns with post COVID-19 decreased brain glucose consumption within the frontoparietal network of the brain, responsible for attention, complex problem-solving and working memory.



“Cognitive impairment is common to a wide range of neurological disorders, including dementia, and even routine aging, but the patterns we saw – the cognitive 'fingerprint' of COVID-19 – was distinct from all of these," explained study senior author Professor David Menon.



It has been well documented that people who have recovered from severe COVID-19 can have symptoms of poor mental health – depression, anxiety, post-traumatic stress, low motivation, fatigue, low mood, and disturbed sleep. However, the research team found that acute illness severity was better at predicting these cognitive deficits.



Over time, the patients’ scores and reaction times began to improve, however, recovery in cognitive faculties was at best gradual and likely to be influenced by a number of factors including illness severity and its neurological or psychological impacts. It is also considered likely that some individuals will never fully recover.



There are several factors that could cause the cognitive deficits, including inadequate oxygen or blood supply to the brain, blockage of large or small blood vessels due to clotting, and microscopic bleeds. Emerging evidence suggests that damage may be caused by the body’s own inflammatory response and immune system.



While this study looked at hospitalized cases, the team say that even those patients not sick enough to be admitted may also have tell-tale signs of mild impairment. This emphasizes the importance of exploring methods that could help patients recover.&nbsp;



This is the first time that such rigorous assessment and comparison has been carried out in relation to the after effects of severe COVID-19.



“Around 40,000 people have been through intensive care with COVID-19 in England alone and many more will have been very sick, but not admitted to hospital. This means there is a large number of people out there still experiencing problems with cognition many months later. We urgently need to look at what can be done to help these people," said study first author Professor Adam Hampshire.



The research was funded by the NIHR BioResource, NIHR Cambridge Biomedical Research Centre and the Addenbrooke’s Charitable Trust.



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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

Cognitive loss from severe Covid equates to 20 years of aging

Cognitive impairment as a result of severe COVID-19 is similar...

In a surprising new study led by <a href="https://www.georgetown.edu/">Georgetown University</a>, scientists have contradicted the theory that city rats and other urban animals host a greater number of communicable <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/avocados-substantially-reduce-the-risk-of-heart-disease/">diseases</a>. The research suggests that urban wildlife has less potential to spark the next pandemic than expected.&nbsp;



More than two years after the COVID-19 pandemic first emerged, scientists are urgently investigating the risks of future pandemics. It has long been assumed that city rats and urban animals are likely to harbor more infectious diseases.



The researchers set out to analyze the pathogens hosted by nearly 3,000 mammal species. They found that urban animals could host roughly ten times as many types of diseases. On the other hand, the experts noted that urban species had been the focus of about 100 more scientific studies.



“There are plenty of reasons to expect urban animals to host more diseases, ranging from their food to their immune systems to their close proximity to humans,” said study lead author Dr. Greg Albery. “We found that urban species do indeed host more diseases than non-urban species, but the reasons for this appear to be largely associated with the way we study the ecology of disease. We’ve looked more at animals in our cities, so we’ve found more of their parasites - and we’ve started to hit diminishing returns.”



Once the sampling bias was accounted for, the researchers were surprised to find that urban animals do not host more viruses than animals in rural areas.



“Stunningly, although urban-adapted species have 10 times as many parasites, more than 100 times as many studies have been published on them," said Dr. Albery. "When you correct for this bias, they don’t have more human pathogens than expected – meaning that our perception of their novel disease risk has been overinflated by our sampling process."



The results suggest that city rats and other urban animals are not the disease reservoirs that they were expected to be. However, that doesn’t mean cities are disease-free, said Dr. Albery.



“This probably means that urban animals aren’t hiding as many important novel pathogens as we might think – those pathogens that might cause the next ‘Disease X.' But they are still incredibly important carriers of many pathogens that we do know about. Rats, raccoons, and rabbits are still good at coexisting alongside us, and they still spread a lot of diseases to humans living in urban areas.”



Study co-author Dr. Colin Carlson said that the study highlights the value of scientific data. “If we take the time to build better datasets, and look more closely at the patterns in them, we might keep overturning long-standing assumptions about who’s at risk from emerging diseases and why."



According to v the researchers, further research is needed to explore how many pathogens any given animal has, as well as how city living may influence the transmission of those diseases.&nbsp;



“What this really accentuates is that we need to design more evenly distributed, more equitable sampling regimes if we want to find novel pathogens of humans; sampling needs to be more focussed in wild areas of the world, but also in urban areas in less well-studied places,” said Dr. Albery. “Not only will this help us to find the new ones, but will improve surveillance of the old ones, and will ultimately help to address ages-old geographic biases in ecology.”



The study is published in the journal <a href="https://www.nature.com/natecolevol/">Nature Ecology &amp; Evolution</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

City rats do not harbor more diseases than their country cousins

In a surprising new study led by Georgetown University, scientists...

Some animals, such as rosemary <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/spiny-genitalia-of-seed-beetles-linked-to-reproductive-success/">beetles</a> and starlings, possess brilliant iridescent colors that constantly change in the light. In a new study from the <a href="https://www.bristol.ac.uk/">University of Bristol</a>, researchers have found that this iridescence serves as a form of deceptive warning coloration. The experts report that it is the key feature of iridescence -&nbsp; changing colors - that supports its ability to protect animals even after they have been detected by predators.&nbsp;



The hue and intensity of metallic iridescent colors vary depending on the angle of the view and the direction of the light. Researchers in Bristol University’s CamoLab set out to investigate why iridescence has evolved so many times in the animal kingdom.&nbsp;



The research team had previously demonstrated that iridescence is a highly effective type of camouflage. Now, the experts wanted to know whether iridescent colors may help provide any protection from predators post-detection.



“One of the challenges when studying the functions of such highly reflective structural coloration has been to separate the effects of the changeability of colors, the hallmark of iridescence, from the effects of simply having multiple colors at the same time, and also to separate the effects of gloss from the effects of iridescence," explained study lead author Dr. Karin Kjernsmo.



To investigate, the researchers presented wing cases of real and artificial jewel beetles to birds that had no previous experience with this particular prey. The wing cases used for the experiment were iridescent, non-iridescent, glossy and matte. The experts then observed the birds’ willingness to attack the prey.



"Here, we tested the effects of both iridescence and surface gloss (i.e. specular reflection) on the attack behavior of prey-naïve avian predators. Using real and artificial jewel beetle, Sternocera aequisignata, wing cases, we found that iridescence provides initial protection against avian predation by significantly reducing the willingness to attack," explained the researchers.



"Importantly, we found that the main factor explaining this aversion is iridescence, not multiple colors per se, with surface gloss also having an independent effect. Our results are important because they demonstrate that even when prey are presented up close and against a mismatching background, iridescence may confer a survival benefit by inducing hesitation or even, as sometimes observed, an aversion response in attacking birds."



The study is published in the journal <a href="https://www.journals.elsevier.com/animal-behaviour">Animal Behaviour</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

How iridescent colors protect animals from predators

Some animals, such as rosemary beetles and starlings, possess brilliant...

In a study led by <a href="https://www.gwu.edu/">George Washington University</a>, experts have discovered a new species of salamander from the Gulf Coastal Plain of southeastern Mississippi and southwestern Alabama. According to the researchers, the region has been studied intensively for hundreds of years, but nonetheless still contains abundant undescribed <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/environmental-dna-reveals-the-diversity-of-coral-reef-fish/">diversity</a>.



“This discovery shows us how much more there is to learn even in our own backyards,” said Professor R. Alexander Pyron. “The famed naturalist E.O. Wilson called this region ‘America’s Amazon,’ where ivory-billed woodpeckers and red wolves once lived. We are losing biodiversity at a dramatic rate, while still discovering how much was originally there. Salamanders are among the most imperiled animals globally, and we’ve yet to understand their true biodiversity.”



The experts report that the new species of salamander, Desmognathus pascagoula, is similar to another species that was recently discovered, Desmognathus valentinei. The team identified morphological, genetic and geographic aspects of D. pascagoula that differ from D. valentinei.



When the researchers sequenced the genomes of the two species, they pinpointed 881 genetic variations. They also found subtle differences in the body structure of D. pascagoula and D. valentinei. For example, D. pascagoula has a longer body that is more slender and a narrower head and nostrils.



“Many of these dusky salamanders are cryptic, meaning they can’t easily be told apart with the naked eye, which is one reason they went undiscovered for so long,” said Professor Pyron. “Only with genome sequencing can we see how different they really are. Then, precise measurements of preserved specimens reveal tiny differences in things like the width of the head, which are otherwise imperceptible.”



According to the researchers, further research is needed to provide insight both into the biology of D. pascagoula, as well as its former and current geographical extent.&nbsp;



"This discovery increases knowledge of the biodiversity in the southeastern United States Coastal Plain, a candidate region meeting the global criteria for a 'biodiversity hotspot,' and underscores the amount of cryptic diversity likely remaining to be discovered and described in Nearctic salamanders," wrote the study authors.&nbsp;



The research is published in the journal <a href="https://www.mapress.com/zootaxa/">Zootaxa</a>.



Image Credit: Dave Beamer



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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

New salamander sheds light on a biodiversity hotspot

In a study led by George Washington University, experts have...

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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

[sendtonews key="JRaP49ISmm-2357509-12187" type="single"] Today’s Video of the Day from the...

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



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Interactive map of the universe includes 200,000 galaxies

[sendtonews key="e4ZG0Jawp3-2374785-12187" type="single"] Astronomers at Johns Hopkins University have created...

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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

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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

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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



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



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Cavefish are healthy despite their sedentary lifestyle

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

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



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



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



Video Credit: NASA Earth Observatory&nbsp;



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



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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

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