This,Man-made,Vehicle,Reached,A,Record,Speed,Of,635,Thousand

NASA’s Parker Solar Probe is set to achieve its most dangerous feat yet tomorrow, December 24, 2024. After a six-year journey of spiraling closer to the star at the heart of our solar system, the spacecraft is expected to come within 3.8 million miles of the Sun’s surface. 



This tiny distance in cosmic terms lets scientists capture a new type of information, revealing secrets about solar winds, extreme heat, and magnetic fields.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-solar-probe-on-the-sun-s-doorstep">Solar probe on the Sun's doorstep</h2>



Engineers have spent years carefully adjusting <a href="https://blogs.nasa.gov/parkersolarprobe/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Parker’s flight path</a> using multiple Venus gravity assists. These flybys reshape the spacecraft’s orbit and tighten its looping path around the Sun. “This is one example of NASA’s bold missions, doing something that no one else has ever done before to answer longstanding questions about our universe,” explained <a href="https://science.nasa.gov/people/dr-arik-posner/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Arik Posner</a>, Parker Solar Probe program scientist at NASA Headquarters, describing this mission’s significance.



Ever since the launch in 2018, Parker’s main goal has been to study the Sun’s outer atmosphere, known as the corona. Tomorrow’s approach, often called <a href="https://cneos.jpl.nasa.gov/glossary/perihelion.html" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">perihelion</a>, marks a new milestone in that quest. The probe moves at speeds around 430,000 miles per hour, faster than any other spacecraft. At such high velocity, it can swing around our star without getting swallowed. Even so, mission managers won’t receive immediate updates once Parker hits its closest point because signals cannot travel through the intense solar environment.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-extreme-heat-and-lasting-protection">Extreme heat and lasting protection</h2>



What sets Parker apart is its resilient heat shield. This 4.5-inch-thick carbon-composite barrier enables the spacecraft’s instruments to continue functioning in an environment where temperatures can reach roughly 2,500 degrees Fahrenheit. Despite the harsh surroundings, the precious science instruments remain near room temperature, thanks to expert engineering by Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory (<a href="https://parkersolarprobe.jhuapl.edu/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">APL</a>).



During every close approach, Parker is pelted by gusts of solar wind and bathed in radiation. Still, it keeps sending back readings about magnetic fields, <a href="https://www.plasmacoalition.org/plasma_writeups/solar_plasmas.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">plasma</a> behavior, and energetic <a href="https://www.swpc.noaa.gov/phenomena/solar-radiation-storm#:~:text=Solar%20radiation%20storms%20occur%20when,of%20the%20speed%20of%20light." target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">particles</a>. The probe’s data illuminates reasons behind the corona’s blazing heat, which can climb into the millions of degrees, significantly hotter than the visible surface of the Sun. Such puzzling behavior has fascinated scientists for decades.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-chasing-the-solar-wind-s-origins">Chasing the solar wind’s origins</h2>



Solar wind, a stream of charged particles flowing away from the Sun at speeds topping one million miles per hour, plays a major role in <a href="https://science.nasa.gov/sun/what-is-the-solar-wind/">space weather</a>. 



By skimming through the corona, Parker records fresh evidence of how these particles speed up and scatter across the solar system. The answers may help experts forecast disturbances that affect satellites and astronaut safety. Surges of these charged particles can disable communication systems or even disrupt power grids on Earth.



For researchers, big questions remain. How does the <a href="https://science.nasa.gov/sun/what-is-the-solar-wind/">solar wind</a> pick up its pace so dramatically? Is there a specific region in the corona that triggers bursts of fast-moving particles? 



Parker’s measurements bring us closer to unraveling these mysteries. Officials at NASA say that by tomorrow’s approach, new layers of data will help them see patterns not possible to detect from a greater distance.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-solar-probe-and-the-sun-s-active-cycle">Solar probe and the Sun's active cycle</h2>



The Sun moves through an 11-year activity cycle. Right now, it is in an active phase, meaning increased sunspots, <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/secondary-peak-extreme-geomagnetic-solar-storm-expected-today/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">solar flares</a>, and <a href="https://www.swpc.noaa.gov/phenomena/coronal-mass-ejections" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">coronal mass ejections</a>. 



Researchers are tracking not only Parker’s journey but also the Sun’s changing patterns. Sometimes these outbursts interact with Earth’s magnetosphere and spark colorful auroras, even in places unused to such displays. And although most solar weather events are harmless for life on Earth, severe storms can interfere with GPS systems or satellites.



This is why Parker’s findings are so relevant. Gaining a better understanding of how energetic solar events begin could lead to timelier warnings, giving operators on Earth a heads-up to power down sensitive instruments or adjust satellite orbits.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-paying-tribute-to-eugene-parker">Paying tribute to Eugene Parker</h2>



In 2017, NASA renamed the probe after <a href="https://news.uchicago.edu/story/eugene-parker-legendary-figure-solar-science-and-namesake-parker-solar-probe-1927-2022">Dr. Eugene N. Parker</a>, the first person to predict the solar wind in the 1950s. He introduced key ideas about how stars interact with their surroundings. The mission’s name honors his influential work. Dr. Parker passed away in 2022, but his legacy continues. 



The data this spacecraft is sending back not only expands knowledge of <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/tracing-solar-wind-directly-to-its-source-for-the-first-time/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">solar physics</a> but also shows how correct Dr. Parker’s early theories were.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-record-setting-solar-probe-flyby">Record-setting Solar Probe flyby</h2>



Mission operations expect Parker to reach perihelion at 6:53 a.m. EST on December 24. 



At that time, the spacecraft will run autonomously, and engineers at APL will wait until December 27 for a beacon tone confirming a safe passage around the Sun. “No human-made object has ever passed this close to a star, so Parker will truly be returning data from uncharted territory. We’re excited to hear back from the spacecraft when it swings back around the Sun,” explained <a href="https://parkersolarprobe.jhuapl.edu/News-Center/Show-Article.php?articleID=205" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Nick Pinkine</a>, Parker Solar Probe mission operations manager. 



When that update arrives, scientists will study Parker’s recent measurements to identify potential clues about solar wind origins and coronal heating. Each orbit is another chance to witness the scorching conditions near our star. At the same time, the probe helps refine predictions about solar eruptions that might drive future storms toward Earth.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-why-does-any-of-this-matter">Why does any of this matter?</h2>



Beyond the scientific breakthroughs, Parker’s success can have practical benefits for technology we rely on every day. Our society depends on GPS signals and stable power systems, and <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/team-creates-video-showing-the-sun-in-gamma-rays-over-a-14-year-period/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">major solar events</a> can disrupt both. By learning how to anticipate strong solar winds or flares, experts might one day keep satellites out of harm’s way or shield power grids from unexpected surges.



Tomorrow’s close approach continues a streak of remarkable achievements for NASA. As Parker zips through the corona, it gathers observations that no other mission could obtain. The craft appears ready for another sizzling pass, thanks to the robust thermal design and careful planning. 



Whether it’s helping forecast solar tempers or refining our knowledge of basic astrophysical processes, Parker remains on track to change the way we see the Sun.



Learn more about <a href="https://science.nasa.gov/mission/parker-solar-probe/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">NASA's Parker Solar Probe here...</a>



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Spacecraft flew through the Sun's atmosphere today for the first time ever

NASA’s Parker Solar Probe is set to achieve its most dangerous feat yet tomorrow, December 24, 2024. After a six-year journey of spiraling closer to the star at the heart of our solar system, the spacecraft is expected to come within 3.8 million miles of the Sun’s surface. This tiny distance in cosmic terms lets scientists capture a new type of information, revealing secrets about solar winds, extreme heat, and magnetic fields. Solar probe on the Sun's doorstep Engineers have spent years carefully adjusting Parker’s flight path...

A new study led by the <a href="https://birdlabaustralia.com/">BirdLab research group</a> at <a href="https://www.flinders.edu.au/">Flinders University</a> discovered evidence of prenatal auditory learning in embryos of five bird species. Using non-invasive techniques, researchers found fluctuations in heartbeat responses to their parents’ calls in the embryos of three vocal learning species (the superb fairy-wren, the red-winged fairy-wren, and Darwin’s small ground finch), as well as two vocal non-learning species (the little penguin and the Japanese quail).



“By studying the capacity for sound learning in embryos, we are paving the way to new inroads into evolutionary and developmental timescales,” said study first author Dr. Diane Colombelli-Négrel. “Long before actual vocalization, we found that these tiny songbirds were also discriminating towards non-specific sounds and capable of ‘non-associative’ (not from parents) sounds, building on the complexity of vocal learning in songbirds.” &nbsp;



According to study co-author Professor Sonia Kleindorfer, vocal production learning is believed to occur in just seven lineages of birds and mammals: songbirds, hummingbirds, parrots, cetaceans, pinnipeds, bats, and, among primates, only humans.&nbsp;



“As a result of the rarity of vocal production learning, animals have been grouped into so-called ‘vocal learners’ (those that learn to imitate a vocalisation from a vocal tutor) and ‘vocal non-learners’ (animals that produce vocalisations without imitating a vocal tutor),” explained Professor Kleindorfer.



Surprisingly though, this new study found that embryos could grow accustomed to another bird’s call in both vocal learning and non-learning species, and may thus point to a phenomenon more widespread than initially thought.



“This research will hopefully inspire more study into the remarkable capacity of animals to learn sound,” said Professor Kleindorfer. “By moving the time window for sound learning to the prenatal stage, this research direction opens pathways to measure neurobiological downstream effects of early auditory experience on behaviour and information processing.”



The research is published in the journal <a href="https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/full/10.1098/rstb.2020.0247?af=R">Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B</a>.



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

Baby birds can learn sounds before birth

A new study led by the BirdLab research group at...

The strength of the connection between the brain and other organs has an influence on a person's body image, according to a new study from <a href="https://aru.ac.uk/">Anglia Ruskin University</a>. The experts determined that weak signals from the heart and gut can adversely affect the way we see ourselves.&nbsp;



The research is the first to identify an association between body image and the brain’s processing of internal signals that occur unconsciously. People with brains that are less efficient at detecting these signals are more likely to experience body shame and weight preoccupation, the researchers found.



"We experience our body both from the inside and out: we can be aware of how our skin and limbs look, but also of how hungry we feel or how strongly our heart is beating during exercise. The brain also continuously processes internal signals that we are not conscious of," explained study senior author Dr. Jane Aspell, an ARU associate professor of Cognitive Neuroscience.



“We found that when the brain is less responsive to these implicit signals from inside the body, individuals are more likely to hold negative views about their external bodily appearance. It may be that when the brain has a weaker connection to the internal body, the brain puts more emphasis on the external body and so appearance becomes much more important for self-evaluation.”



The study was focused on a group of healthy UK adults, who participated in four body image assessments. The experts measured their feelings of body appreciation, body functionality appreciation, body shame, and weight preoccupation.



The team recorded the electrical activity of both the brain and the gut at the same time to estimated the strength of the connection. The researchers also measured brain responses to heartbeats.



The results showed that weaker brain responses to the gut and heart were both associated with greater levels of body shame and weight preoccupation among the participants.



“Our research could have implications for those experiencing negative body image, which can have a serious impact on people’s lives," said study lead author Dr. Jennifer Todd.



“The gut and heart signal measurements used in our study could potentially act as a biomarker to help identify, or even predict, negative body image and associated conditions, such as eating disorders. Additionally, by training people to become more aware of internal sensations, it might be possible to amplify these unconscious signals."&nbsp;



“We need to understand why some brains are better at detecting these internal signals than others. We expect it is partly due to differences in neuro-anatomical connections between the brain and internal organs, and this will be the subject of future research.”



The study is ublished in the journal <a href="https://www.meetcortex.com/">Cortex</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

Weaker gut and heart signals linked to negative body image

The strength of the connection between the brain and other...

A recent study examined the origin of ultra-diffuse dwarf galaxies (UDGs), a rare type of galaxies containing a small number of <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/gaia-mission-has-obtained-new-details-about-two-billion-stars/">stars</a> that are spread out over large regions in space, and have an extremely low surface brightness, making them highly difficult to detect.&nbsp;



Using <a href="https://www.tng-project.org/about/">sophisticated computer simulations</a>, scientists detected a few “quenched” UDGs (ultra-diffuse galaxies that have stopped producing stars) in low-density environments in the universe.&nbsp;



“What we have detected is at odds with theories of galaxy formation since quenched dwarfs are required to be in clusters or group environments in order to get their gas removed and stop forming stars,” said co-author Laura Sales, an associate professor of&nbsp;Physics and Astronomy at the <a href="https://www.ucr.edu/">University of California, Riverside</a>.&nbsp;



“But the quenched UDGs we detected are isolated. We were able to identify a few of these quenched UDGs in the field and trace their evolution backward in time to show they originated in backsplash orbits.”&nbsp;



According to Professor Sales, a backsplash galaxy looks like an isolated galaxy in the present, but in the past was a satellite of a more massive system. “Isolated galaxies and satellite galaxies have different properties because the physics of their evolution is quite different,” she explained. “These backsplash galaxies are intriguing because they share properties with the population of satellites in the system to which they once belonged, but today they are observed to be isolated from the system.”&nbsp;&nbsp;



Scientists believe that in the past, quenched UDGs coalesced within halos of dark matter with unusually high angular momentum. Similar to a cotton candy machine, such an extreme environment might have spun out dwarf galaxies that were unusually stretched out. Although they evolved within galaxy clusters, at a certain moment in the past, interactions within the cluster most probably ejected the UDGs into the void, giving them wide, boomerang-like trajectories (the so-called “backsplash orbits”). During this process, the UDGs gas was stripped away, leaving them unable to produce stars (“quenched”).



“These orbits are almost like those of comets in our solar system,” said Professor Sales. “Some go out and orbit back around, and others may come in once and then never again. For quenched UDGs, because their orbits are so elliptical, they haven’t had time to come back, even over the entire age of the universe. They are still out there in the field.”



The research is published in the journal <a href="https://www.nature.com/natastron/">Nature Astronomy</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

Astronomers explain the origin of isolated ultra-diffuse galaxies

A recent study examined the origin of ultra-diffuse dwarf galaxies...

New research from <a href="https://www.ucr.edu/">University of California, Riverside</a> (UCR) has found that, contrary to what scientists previously thought, hummingbirds have an active sense of smell which helps them make foraging decisions and avoid dangerous <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/insects-from-jamaica-transmit-diseases-to-florida-palm-trees/">insects</a>.



Researchers have long been familiar with vultures’ strong sense of smell caused by their huge olfactory bulbs. However, until recently, no one knew that the tiny hummingbirds had the ability to smell things too.



In a study published in the journal <a href="https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007%2Fs00265-021-03067-4">Behavioral Ecology and Sociobiology</a>, a research team from UCR found that, regardless of the small size of their olfactory bulbs, hummingbirds are in fact highly sensitive to smells, an ability which keeps them safe while searching for food.



“This is pretty exciting, as it is the first clear demonstration of hummingbirds using their sense of smell alone to make foraging decisions and avoid contact with potentially dangerous insects at a flower or feeder,” explained study co-author Erin Wilson Rankin, an associate professor of entomology at UCR. 



In order to prove this, Professor Rankin and her team allowed over 100 hummingbirds to choose between two visually-identical feeders, one containing only sugar water, and the other sugar water plus one of several chemicals signaling the presence of an insects. These chemicals included the scent deposited on flowers by European honeybees, a chemical pheromone secreted by Argentine ants, and formic acid, a dangerous substance produced by some Formica ants that is harmful for both birds and mammals.&nbsp;



The hummingbirds avoided the ant-produced chemicals, particularly the formic acid, which was a very wise decision, according to Professor Rankin. “If a bird has any exposed skin on their legs, formic acid can hurt, and if they get it in their eyes, it isn’t pleasant. It’s also extremely volatile.”



To make sure that the hummingbirds were in fact capable of identifying dangerous chemicals and not just afraid of new smells, the researchers conducted an additional test with ethyl butyrate, an inoffensive food additive. Although its smell is not common in nature, the hummingbirds did not avoid it.&nbsp;



These findings prove the importance that the sense of smell plays in hummingbirds’ foraging decisions and can provide new directions of research in the field of trophic interaction, or as Professor Rankin calls it, the science of “who eats who” in nature.&nbsp;



“Hummingbirds and insects might be competing for floral resources,” said Professor Rankin. “Their foraging decisions help us understand how the ecosystem functions, and any actions that ultimately might be needed for conservation.”&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

Hummingbirds can smell dangerous insects

New research from University of California, Riverside (UCR) has found...

A new report from the <a href="https://www.iucn.org/">International Union for the Conservation of Nature</a> (IUCN) highlights the growing pressures on the world's marine species, noting that 37 percent of sharks and rays are now threatened with extinction. While the primary issue is overfishing, sharks and rays are also vulnerable to habitat loss and climate change.&nbsp;



The Red List of Threatened Species was updated on Saturday at the IUCN World Conservation Congress in Marseille. Of the 138,374 species that are now included on the list, 28 percent are threatened with extinction.



The Komodo dragon has moved from Vulnerable to Endangered on the Red List. The experts found that the future effects of climate change and human activities pose the biggest threats to the species, which is endemic to Indonesia. Rising temperatures and sea levels are expected to reduce the Komodo dragon’s habitat by at least 30 percent in the next 45 years.



“Komodo dragons were first introduced to the British public by Sir David Attenborough just 60 years ago, on BBC’s iconic series Zoo Quest for a Dragon with ZSL," said Dr Andrew Terry, conservation director at the Zoological Society of London.



“The idea that these prehistoric animals have moved one step closer to extinction due in part to climate change is terrifying - and a further clarion call for nature to be placed at the heart of all decision making on the eve of the COP26 in Glasgow.”



The IUCN Red List update reveals some good news as well. Four commercially-fished tuna species, including the Atlantic bluefin tuna, Southern bluefin tuna, albacore and yellowfin tuna, are on the path to recovery. The enforcement of regional fishing quotas over the last decade have boosted some tuna populations.&nbsp;



Despite global improvement at the species level, however, the number of species that are at high risk continues to grow, according to the IUCN. The agency said that many regional tuna stocks remain severely depleted.&nbsp;



“These Red List assessments are proof that sustainable fisheries approaches work, with enormous long-term benefits for livelihoods and biodiversity. We need to continue enforcing sustainable fishing quotas and cracking down on illegal fishing,” said Dr. Bruce B. Collette, Chair of the IUCN SSC Tuna and Billfish Specialist Group. “Tuna species migrate across thousands of kilometers, so coordinating their management globally is also key.”



Dr. Malin Rivers of Botanic Gardens Conservation International heads the <a href="https://globaltreeassessment.org/">Global Tree Assessment</a> to compile extinction risk information on the 58,497 tree species worldwide. He says that thousands of trees species assessments have been added to the IUCN Red List this year, including trees from over 186 countries.&nbsp;



"In addition, more than 1,000 species identified as impacted by logging and wood harvesting, such as Dipterocarps, ebonies, rosewoods and many others, have also been assessed for the first time this year,” said Dr. Rivers.&nbsp;



"With every tree assessment, added to the IUCN Red List, we continue to tell the story for the word’s threatened tree species, and provide the essential information for taking effective conservation action.”



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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

IUCN Red List: 37 percent of sharks are threatened

A new report from the International Union for the Conservation...

In a new study published by <a href="https://www.aaas.org/">AAAS</a>, scientists have identified a link between climate change in the Arctic and extreme winter weather events in the United States. The surprising findings suggest that climate warming is driving severe winter weather in a phenomenon called stratospheric polar vortex (SPV) disruption.



"Anthropogenic global warming is projected to increase some weather extremes - for example, more heat waves and heavy precipitation events - but not severe winter weather such as cold air outbreaks and heavy snowfalls. Yet, contrary to global climate model (GCM) projections, recent weather extremes have included an increase in cold air outbreaks and/or heavy snowfalls across the Northern Hemisphere since 1990 up to the recent past," explained MIT climatologist Judah Cohen and co-authors.



"The most recent example of extreme winter weather was the anomalous cold weather of January and February 2021 in Asia, Europe, and especially the United States (US). The US Southern Plains cold wave of February 2021 may be exceptional in the observational record for the region based on the aggregate severity of the cold intensity, cold duration, and widespread disruptive snowfall."&nbsp;



"The collapse of the Texas energy infrastructure could make it the state’s costliest natural disaster, even more so than previous hurricanes and at least twice as costly as the entire record-breaking North Atlantic 2020 hurricane season. This event has reignited the debate whether climate change contributes to more severe winter weather."



The researchers used observational and modeling data to establish a physical link between anthropogenic climate change and stratospheric polar vortex (SPV) disruption. This atmospheric feature is defined by the strong westerly winds that encircle the Arctic and - under normal conditions - keep its cold air contained.



The study shows that accelerated warming in the Arctic, or Arctic amplification (AA), is driving extreme winter weather by disturbing the Arctic stratospheric polar vortex.&nbsp;



According to the researchers, their results could be used to extend the warning lead time of cold extremes in Asia, Canada, and the United States. They emphasize that the analysis is also informative for policy-makers.&nbsp;



"Preparing for only a decrease in severe winter weather can compound the human and economic cost when severe winter weather does occur, as exemplified during the Texas cold wave of February 2021," wrote the study authors.



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

Arctic warming linked to extreme winter weather in the U.S.

In a new study published by AAAS, scientists have identified...

A new study published in the journal <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41558-021-01127-1">Nature Climate Change</a> modeled the occurrence of extreme sea levels (exceptionally high seas caused by a combination of tides, waves, and storm surges) in the coming decades. The results are bleak: due to rising temperatures caused by global <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/arctic-ecosystems-are-endangered-by-global-warming/">warming</a>, such extreme phenomena may become a hundred times more frequent by the end of the 21st century.



An international team of scientists led by Claudia Tebaldi, a climate scientist at the Department of Energy’s <a href="https://www.pnnl.gov/">Pacific Northwest National Laboratory</a>, statistically analyzed the probability of extreme sea levels for 7,283 locations all over the globe.&nbsp;



The experts estimated that the effects of rising seas will be felt most acutely in the Southern Hemisphere, the Mediterranean Sea, the Arabian Peninsula, the southern part of North America’s Pacific coast, the Caribbean, Hawaii, the Philippines, and Indonesia. Less affected regions will be those found at higher latitudes, such as the Pacific coast of Asia and the northern Pacific coast of North America.



The most worrisome aspect of this research is that even with a global temperature increase of only 1.5 to 2 degrees Celsius (compared to preindustrial temperatures), which scientists currently consider the best-case scenario for the following decades, these extreme phenomena will still occur with greater frequency, as the <a href="https://www.ipcc.ch/srocc/">2019 Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change</a> also reported.



“One of our central questions driving this study was this: How much warming will it take to make what has been known as a 100-year event an annual event? Our answer is, not much more than what has already been documented,” said Tebaldi. “It’s not huge news that sea level rise will be dramatic even at 1.5 degrees and will have substantial effects on extreme sea level frequencies and magnitude.”



More research is needed to clearly understand how these changes will affect local communities. The extreme sea levels will have different impacts at local scales, depending upon how vulnerable to rising waters specific places are, and how prepared are the local communities to cope with these changes.&nbsp;&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

Extreme sea levels will become a hundred times more common

A new study published in the journal Nature Climate Change...

A new report from the <a href="https://www.un.org/en/">UN</a> says that weather disasters are five times more prevalent today than in the 1970’s and cause seven times more damage. A silver lining to this storm cloud is that weather disasters are now less deadly.&nbsp;



In the 70s and 80s, an average of 170 people were killed each day by weather events worldwide. This number dropped to 40 by the 2010’s.&nbsp;



“The number of weather, climate and water extremes are increasing and will become more frequent and severe in many parts of the world as a result of climate change," <a href="https://public.wmo.int/en">WMO</a> Secretary-General Petteri Taalas said in a statement.&nbsp;



"That means more heat waves, drought and forest fires such as those we have observed recently in Europe and North America."&nbsp;



"We have more water vapor in the atmosphere, which is exacerbating extreme rainfall and deadly flooding. The warming of the oceans has affected the frequency and area of existence of the most intense tropical storms,”&nbsp;



The dynamic that is driving the increased financial cost seems to be people moving into areas with a greater risk of extreme weather as the human population grows and the threat of climate change looms. At the same time, better warning technology allows more people to escape with their lives.&nbsp;



Professor Taalas noted that "we are better than ever before at saving lives" with improved multi-hazard early warning systems and disaster management methods. At the same time, however, some of the hardest hit countries are yet to benefit from improved technology.&nbsp;&nbsp;



"The good news is that we have been able to minimize the amount of casualties once we have started having growing amount of disasters - heatwaves, flooding events, drought, and especially intense tropical storms like Ida, which has been hitting recently Louisiana and Mississippi in the United States," said Professor Taalas.



"But the bad news is that the economic losses have been growing very rapidly and this growth is supposed to continue."



The report analyzed 11,000 weather disasters that have occured since the 1970s, looking at the economic cost as well as the death toll. All of the five most expensive weather disasters happened in the United States, with Hurricane Katrina being the most costly. The United States also bears over one-third of all costs associated with weather, climate and water extremes.&nbsp;



Of the deadliest weather disasters, droughts killed the most people (650,000) followed by storms (577,232). In addition, extreme heat killed 55,736 people during the study period. Weather disasters are only set to get worse, but how much money and lives they cost will depend on how prepared we are.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;



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

Weather disasters are getting even worse

A new report from the UN says that weather disasters...

Experts in disaster and emergency response from <a href="https://www.ecu.edu.au/">Edith Cowan University</a> (ECU) report that responders to the 9/11 terrorist attacks of 2001 are still battling significant <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/people-who-value-their-leisure-time-have-better-mental-health/">health</a> issues two decades later.



More than 91,000 people were directly exposed to a variety of hazards during the recovery and clean-up operations following the terrorist attacks. After the event, 80,785 of the responders enrolled in the <a href="https://www.cdc.gov/wtc/">World Trade Center Health Program</a> (WTCHP).



The researchers found that 3,439 of these participants are now dead – a significantly larger number than the 412 who died during the attacks. The main causes of death were aerodigestive illnesses (34 percent), cancer (30 percent) and mental health issues (15 percent).&nbsp;



Since 2016, deaths attributed to these causes as well as to musculoskeletal and traumatic injuries increased six-fold. Leukemia has been one of the main health problems to emerge in the past five years.



“Leukemia has overtaken colon and bladder cancer in the rankings,” said study lead author Erin Smith, an associate professor at ECU’s School of Medical and Health Sciences. “This equates to an increase of 175 per cent in certified leukemia cases within this cohort of responders over a five-year period. &nbsp;



“It’s not surprising: there is a proven link between benzene exposure and acute myeloid leukemia, and benzene is found in jet fuel which was one of the toxic exposures at the WTC site.” &nbsp;



Prostate cancer is also increasingly common among responders, with an increase of 181 percent since 2016. “Inhaling the toxic dust at the WTC site potentially caused a cascading series of cellular events, increasing the number of inflammatory T-cells in some of these 9/11 responders,” explained Professor Smith. &nbsp;“This increased inflammation may eventually lead to prostate cancer.” &nbsp;



However, physical illness is not the only issues that 9/11 responders face. Scientists estimate that 15 to 20 percent of these individuals struggle with post-traumatic stress disorder, which is over four times the rate of this mental illness in the general population. Moreover, the brain scans of many responders have shown evidence of the onset of early-stage dementia.



“Even almost 20 years later, the prevalence of mental health disorders and need for mental health treatment remains elevated among this group of 9/11 responders: almost half of all responders report an ongoing need for mental health care,” Professor Smith said. &nbsp;



The comorbid conditions that many 9/11 responders&nbsp; struggle with makes them particularly vulnerable to other illnesses too - most recently COVID-19.&nbsp;



The research is published in the journal <a href="about:blank">Prehospital and Disaster Medicine</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

9/11 responders are battling long-term health issues

Experts in disaster and emergency response from Edith Cowan University...

A new study has revealed that geckos use their tails to survive a head-first crash landing. The study, a collaboration between experts in Robotics and Biology, also reveals that geckos are talented gliders despite having no major specializations for <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/bee-flight-performance-drops-under-extreme-heat/">flight</a>.



Geckos have remarkable abilities, including sticky feet that allow them to walk up walls and other smooth surfaces. In the new study, experiments with a robot show that the gecko's locomotion abilities are even more impressive than what was previously realized, and that its tail plays an underestimated role.&nbsp;



A team of scientists at the <a href="https://is.mpg.de/">Max Planck Institute for Intelligent Systems</a> started out by observing the gliding skills of geckos, who can evade predators by jumping many meters from one tree trunk to the next. According to the researchers, geckos accelerate so much that everything between the jump and the landing happens in the blink of an eye. Still yet, the geckos can survive a head-first collision into a tree trunk.&nbsp;



To investigate, the experts designed a robotic model of a gecko with a detachable tail. In an experiment, the robot was launched onto a wall with an embedded force-sensitive scale. The robot hit the force plate as abruptly as geckos hit the trunks of trees, tilting back its torso at a right angle to the surface.&nbsp;



The roboticists measured the force to the front and back of the feet upon impact. They discovered that the longer the tail, the lower the force, which made it easier for the geckos to hold on. When the robots had no tail to reduce the force of impact, they lost their grip and fell.



The results confirmed the team's theory that the tail is essential for the gecko to be able to stabilize itself on a vertical surface after colliding with it at high speed.



“This field discovery on the perching behavior of geckos has important implications for our understanding of tails as multi-functional appendages that animals can rely on," said study senior author Ardian Jusufi.



"Ranging from inertial to contact tails, they facilitate the most extreme transitions, such as from gliding flight to collision with a wall."



“One of the most dramatic transitions we can think of in multi-modal locomotion is to alight on a vertical surface from high-speed gliding flight to a standstill."



Until recently tails had not received as much attention as legs or wings, explained Jusufi, "but people are now realizing that we should think of these animals as five-legged, in a way - pentapedal."



Study co-author Professor Robert Full of UC Berkeley noted that as robotic engineers attempt to add more and more functions to robots, they are finding that they can’t introduce a new part for every capability. A tail is one structure that can serve multiple purposes.



"Nature has many unexpected, elegant solutions to engineering problems - and this is wonderfully illustrated by the way geckos can use their tails to turn a head-first collision into a successful perching maneuver," said study co-author Robert Siddall.



"Landing from flight is difficult, and we hope our findings will lead to new techniques for robot mobility - sometimes crashes are helpful."



The study is published in the journal <a href="https://www.nature.com/commsbio/">Communications Biology</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

Geckos rely on their tails to survive a crash landing

A new study has revealed that geckos use their tails...

A fossil from Argentina has unveiled a missing piece in the history of the evolution of lizards and snakes. The new species Taytalura alcoberi may be representative of the earliest common ancestor of lizards and the enigmatic tuatara, according to a study from <a href="https://www.harvard.edu/">Harvard University</a>.&nbsp;



Many colloquially call the Cenozoic, our current geological era, the “Age of Mammals.” And while mammals on land occupy a great many niches that were once occupied by reptiles, they still rank among the most speciose amniote clades.&nbsp;



More than 11,000 reptile species live today, and lepidosaurs make up the majority of those species. Lepidosauria is the technical name for the group of animals comprised of snakes, lizards, and tuataras (deceptively lizard-like creatures found exclusively in New Zealand).&nbsp;



Lepidosaurs diverged from Archosaurs (the other major group of reptiles that includes crocodiles, non-avian dinosaurs, and birds) about 260 million years ago. Gaps in the early fossil record for this group mean that our understanding of their evolution is patchy.&nbsp;



Study lead author Dr. Ricardo N. Martínez of the Universidad Nacional de San Juan discovered the fossil in a locality that had already produced some of the earliest dinosaurs. The three dimensional fossil preserves fine detail.&nbsp;



According to Dr. Martinez, the fossil also highlights the paleontological importance of the paleontological site of Ischigualasto Formation.



The researchers, including Dr. Gabriela Sobral, used computed tomography scans and Bayesian analysis to identify skeletal features and decipher where Taytalura falls on the reptile family tree.&nbsp;



“Taytalura preserves a composition of features that we were not expecting to find in such an early fossil. For instance, it shows some features that we thought were exclusive for the tuatara group. On the other hand, it made us question how truly 'primitive' certain lizard features are, and it will make scientists reconsider several points in the evolution of this group," said Dr. Sobral.



Other primitive lepidosaurs were previously unearthed in Europe. Taytalura’s discovery extends the geographic range of these animals. While larger, more charismatic megafauna often grab headlines, smaller organisms can help illustrate the complexity of ancient ecosystems.&nbsp;



“There was a universe of fauna sneaking among bigger, clawed or hoofy paws," said study co-author Dr. Sebastián Apesteguía. "Taytalura teaches us that we were missing important information by looking not only for bigger animals, but for also thinking that the origin of lizards occurred only in the Northern Hemisphere as evidence seemed to support until now.”&nbsp;



The science of paleontology depends on the collection of new and interesting fossils. With Taytalura, scientists can continue to untangle the winding branches of the bushy, complicated tree of life.&nbsp;



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



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By <a href="mailto:rugerpaleo@gmail.com">Alex Ruger</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Early ancestor of lizards and snakes discovered in Argentina

A fossil from Argentina has unveiled a missing piece in...

A recent study has found evidence of beer <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/light-drinking-lowers-risk-of-fatality-from-heart-disease/">drinking</a> in Southern China 9,000 years ago. These findings are based on the discovery of ancient pots at a burial site in Qiaotou that contained several chemicals that are still used to make beer.



A research team from <a href="https://home.dartmouth.edu/">Dartmouth College</a> and the Zhejiang Provincial Institute of Cultural Relics and Archaeology analyzed various types of pottery found during the excavations at Qiaotou, an ancient burial site from Southern China. Seven of the 20 vessels were long-necked Hu pots, which were known to be used for drinking alcohol in later historical periods.



Scientists analyzed microfossil residues extracted from the interior of the pots, and discovered microbotanical (phytoliths and starch granules) and microbial (yeast and mold) residues, which are characteristic ingredients of beer-like alcoholic beverages.



“Through a residue analysis of pots from Qiaotou, our results revealed that the pottery vessels were used to hold beer, in its most general sense - a fermented beverage made of rice (Oryza&nbsp;sp.), a grain called Job’s tears (Coix lacryma-jobi), and unidentified tubers,” said study co-author Professor Jiajing Wang.&nbsp;



“This ancient beer though would not have been like the IPA that we have today. Instead, it was likely a slightly fermented and sweet beverage, which was probably cloudy in color.”



The researchers also found phytoliths of rice husks present in the residues, which were probably used as fermentation agents. Since 9,000 years ago rice was still in an early stage of domestication in China, and thus rice harvesting and processing was quite a difficult and labor intensive process,&nbsp;



Professor Wang and his colleagues believe that the beer produced and consumed there had of special, ritualistic significance. The fact that the pottery was found near an ancient burial site in a non-residential area seems to confirm such a hypothesis. However, it is not yet clear how this beverage was actually produced.&nbsp;



“We don’t know how people made the mold 9,000 years ago, as fermentation can happen naturally,” said Professor Wang. “If people had some leftover rice and the grains became moldy, they may have noticed that the grains became sweeter and alcoholic with age. While people may not have known the biochemistry associated with grains that became moldy, they probably observed the fermentation process and leveraged it through trial and error.”



This research was published in the journal <a href="https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0255833">PLOS ONE</a>.&nbsp;&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

Evidence of beer drinking in China 9,000 years ago

A recent study has found evidence of beer drinking in...

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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

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



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



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



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



Video/Image Credit: ESA&nbsp;



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

Lake Trasimeno in Central Italy

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



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



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



Video Credit: American Chemical Society&nbsp;



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



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

Detecting mercury contamination with the tap of a finger

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



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



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



Video Credit: ACS Reactions



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



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

How does salt makes things taste better?

[sendtonews key="X0f6OHYoI4-2310561-12187" type="single"] Today’s Video of the Day from the...

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



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



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



Video/ Image Credit: ESA



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



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

Santiago, Chile in South America

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

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



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



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



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



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



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



Video Credit: Johns Hopkins&nbsp;



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



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

Interactive map of the universe includes 200,000 galaxies

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



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



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



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



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



Video Credit: ESA&nbsp;&nbsp;



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



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

Lesotho: Africa's "Kingdom in the Sky"

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



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



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



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



Video Credit: ESA&nbsp;



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



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

The city of Dublin on Ireland's east coast

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



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



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



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



Video/ Image Credit: ESA



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



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

The province of Zaragoza in northeast Spain

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



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



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



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



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



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



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



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



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



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



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

The rapid retreat of the Columbia Glacier

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



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



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



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



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



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



Video &amp; Image Credit: ESA



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



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

The Pyrenees Mountains in southwest Europe

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Earth,Like,Exoplanet,3d,Render

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



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



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



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



Video Credit: NASA Goddard



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



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



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

Two distant planets may be "water worlds"

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

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



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



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



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



Video Credit: NASA Goddard&nbsp;



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



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

Satellites reveal how Earth's systems are interconnected

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



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



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



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



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



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



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



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

Tiger sharks are shifting poleward as temperatures rise

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

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



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



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



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



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



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



Video Credit: ESA&nbsp;



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



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

Melt ponds on the Greenland Ice Sheet

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



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



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



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



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



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



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



Video Credit: ESA



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



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

The history of Mars is much more complex than we thought

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



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



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



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



Video Credit: Stowers Institute for Medical Research



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



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

Cavefish are healthy despite their sedentary lifestyle

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



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



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



Video Credit: NASA Earth Observatory&nbsp;



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



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

Satellites capture the world's biggest and fastest waves

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



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



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



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



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



Video Credit: European Space Agency&nbsp;



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

Satellites have become essential to our survival

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