A recent study presents a new curve of global mean surface temperature, revealing that Earth's temperature has varied more than previously thought over much of the Phanerozoic Eon -- a period marked by the diversification of life, colonization of land, and multiple mass extinctions. 



The curve also confirms that Earth's temperature is strongly correlated with the amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-studying-the-temperature-of-earth-s-past">Studying the temperature of Earth's past</h2>



The Phanerozoic Eon began approximately 540 million years ago with the Cambrian Explosion, a time when complex, hard-shelled organisms first appeared in the fossil record.&nbsp;



Although researchers can create simulations dating back to this era, the temperature curve in the study focuses on the last 485 million years due to limited geological temperature data from earlier periods.



“It's hard to find rocks that are that old and have temperature indicators preserved in them - even at 485 million years ago we don't have that many. We were limited with how far back we could go,” said study co-author Jessica Tierney, a paleoclimatologist at the <a href="https://www.arizona.edu/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">University of Arizona</a>.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-developing-the-temperature-curve">Developing the temperature curve</h2>



The researchers developed the temperature curve using an approach called data assimilation. This method allowed them to combine data from the geologic record and climate models to create a more cohesive understanding of <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/ancient-climate-change-species/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">ancient climates</a>.



“This method was originally developed for weather forecasting,” said Emily Judd, lead author of the paper and a former postdoctoral researcher at the <a href="https://naturalhistory.si.edu/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History</a> and the University of Arizona. 



“Instead of using it to forecast future weather, here we're using it to hindcast ancient climates.”



Refining scientists' understanding of how Earth's temperature has fluctuated over time provides crucial context for understanding modern climate change.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-looking-way-back-to-predict-the-future">Looking way back to predict the future</h2>



Study co-author Scott Wing is a co-author on the paper and a curator of paleobotany at the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History.&nbsp;



“If you're studying the last couple of million years, you won't find anything that looks like what we expect in 2100 or 2500,” said Wing.



“You need to go back even further to periods when the Earth was really warm, because that's the only way we're going to get a better understanding of how the climate might change in the future.”



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-co2-is-the-biggest-driver-of-temperature-nbsp">CO2 is the biggest driver of temperature&nbsp;</h2>



The new curve reveals that <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/earths-global-temperature-exceeded-2c-for-the-first-time/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">temperatures</a> varied more significantly during the past 485 million years than previously thought.&nbsp;



Over this period, global temperatures ranged from 52 to 97 degrees Fahrenheit. Periods of extreme heat were most often linked to elevated levels of the greenhouse gas carbon dioxide in the atmosphere.



“This research illustrates clearly that carbon dioxide is the dominant control on global temperatures across geological time,” Tierney said. “When CO₂ is low, the temperature is cold; when CO₂ is high, the temperature is warm.”



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-rapidly-warming-temperatures-on-earth">Rapidly warming temperatures on Earth</h2>



The findings also show that Earth's current global temperature of 59 degrees Fahrenheit is cooler than it has been over much of the Phanerozoic.&nbsp;



However, greenhouse gas emissions from human-caused climate change are currently warming the planet at a much faster rate than even the fastest warming events of that eon, the researchers say.&nbsp;



This rapid warming poses risks to species and ecosystems worldwide and is causing a swift rise in sea levels. Some other episodes of rapid climate change during the Phanerozoic have sparked mass <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/greater-temperature-changes-linked-to-worse-extinction-events/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">extinctions</a>.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-humans-evolved-in-a-colder-climate">Humans evolved in a colder climate</h2>



Rapidly moving toward a warmer climate could spell danger for humans, who have mostly lived within a 10-degree Fahrenheit range for global temperatures, compared to the 45-degree span over the last 485 million years.



“Our entire species evolved to an 'ice house' climate, which doesn't reflect most of geological history,” noted Tierney. 



“We are changing the climate into a place that is really out of context for humans. The planet has been and can be warmer - but humans and animals can't adapt that fast.”



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-earth-s-global-temperature-across-the-phanerozoic-nbsp">Earth's global temperature across the Phanerozoic&nbsp;</h2>



The collaboration between Tierney and researchers at the Smithsonian began in 2018. 



The team aimed to provide museum visitors with a curve that charted Earth's global temperature across the Phanerozoic, which began around 540 million years ago and continues into the present day.



The researchers collected more than 150,000 estimates of ancient temperatures calculated from five different chemical indicators preserved in fossilized shells and other types of ancient organic matter.&nbsp;



Their colleagues at the <a href="https://www.bristol.ac.uk/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">University of Bristol</a> created over 850 model simulations of what Earth's climate could have looked like at different periods in the distant past, based on continental positions and atmospheric composition.&nbsp;



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-accurate-curve-of-earth-s-temperature-variation">Accurate curve of Earth's temperature variation</h2>



By combining these two lines of evidence, the team created the most accurate curve of how Earth's temperature has varied over the past 485 million years.



Another significant finding from the study pertains to climate sensitivity, a metric of how much the climate warms with the doubling of <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/good-news-plants-are-absorbing-more-human-produced-co2-than-expected/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">carbon dioxide</a>.



“We found that carbon dioxide and temperature are not only really closely related, but related in the same way across 485 million years. We don't see that the climate is more sensitive when it's hot or cold,” Tierney concluded.



The study is published in the journal <a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.1126/science.adk3705" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Science</a>.



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How Earth’s temperature has changed over the past 500 million years

A recent study presents a new curve of global mean surface temperature, revealing that Earth's temperature has varied more than previously thought over much of the Phanerozoic Eon -- a period marked by the diversification of life, colonization of land, and multiple mass extinctions.  The curve also confirms that Earth's temperature is strongly correlated with the amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. Studying the temperature of Earth's past The Phanerozoic Eon began approximately 540 million years ago with the Cambrian Explosion, a time when complex, hard-shelled...

In Washington State, bald eagles and dairy farmers exist in a mutually beneficial relationship. This win-win connection is driven by the impact of climate change on eagles' traditional winter diet of salmon carcasses, and the increase in eagle abundance following decades of conservation efforts.



Typically, the narrative around birds and farmers is combative due to livestock predation. However, many farmers have grown to appreciate the services that eagles provide, which includes carcass removal and pest control.



Researchers at the <a href="https://www.washington.edu/">University of Washington</a> and Trinity Western University in Canada conducted interviews with farmers on dairy operations to better understand this unique relationship. The study was motivated by lead author Ethan Duvall’s research showing that eagles have been redistributing from rivers to farmland over the past 50 years.



"Climate change has altered the chum salmon spawning schedule, causing them to run earlier in the winter," said Duvall. "Now the salmon are spawning when annual Nooksack River flooding is at its peak. The fish who spawn and die are swept away by the high water instead of being deposited on shore where the eagles can easily access them."



Many rivers in the Pacific Northwest have experienced dramatic salmon population declines, eliminating winter resources for eagles. To adapt, eagles have turned to dairy farm by-products resulting from the births and deaths of cows and prey on waterfowl populations in agricultural areas.



"We know this positive interaction between farmers and bald eagles is not the norm in many other agricultural areas, especially near free-range poultry farms where the eagles snatch chickens," said Duvall.



"But this study gives me hope that, moving forward, farmers, wildlife managers, and conservationists can come together to think critically about how to maximize benefits for people and wildlife in the spaces they share."



The research is published in the journal <a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/ecs2.4456">Ecosphere</a>.



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



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Farmers and bald eagles can coexist peacefully

In Washington State, bald eagles and dairy farmers exist in...

In a study led by the <a href="https://www.uq.edu.au/">University of Queensland</a>, scientists have investigated the genome of the Australian black swan to examine its susceptibility to infectious <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/why-rodent-borne-diseases-spill-over-into-humans/">diseases</a>. The researchers found that black swans lack some of the immune-related genes that are needed to fight off bird flu and other viral illnesses.&nbsp;



"The Australian black swan (Cygnus atratus) is an iconic species with contrasting plumage to that of the closely related northern hemisphere white swans," wrote the study authors.



"The relative geographic isolation of the black swan may have resulted in a limited immune repertoire and increased susceptibility to infectious diseases, notably infectious diseases from which Australia has been largely shielded."



"Unlike mallard ducks and the mute swan (Cygnus olor), the black swan is extremely sensitive to highly pathogenic avian influenza."



Study co-author Dr. Kirsty Short noted that black swans can die from the avian flu HPAI within three days.



“Our data suggests that the immune system of the black swan is such that, should any avian viral infection become established in its native habitat, their survival would be in peril," explained Dr. Short.



“We currently don’t have HPAI in Australia, but it has spread from Asia to North America, Europe, North Africa and South America."



When the bird flu was introduced to new locations, such as Chile and Peru, it killed thousands of wild seabirds, noted Dr. Short. “The risk to one of Australia’s most unique and beautiful birds is very real, and we need to be prepared if we hope to protect it.”



The researchers hope their findings will be able to better protect not only the black swan, but also other susceptible species across the globe.



“We want to increase awareness about how vulnerable Australia’s bird species are to avian influenza and the highly precarious situation they are in,” said Dr.&nbsp; Short.



The research was funded by the Australian Department of Agriculture and Water Resources and an Australian Research Council Discovery Early Career Researcher Award.



The study is published in the journal <a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.1186/s13059-022-02838-0">Genome Biology</a>.



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



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Black swans do not have the genes to survive bird flu

In a study led by the University of Queensland, scientists...

South Col - a windswept, snow-free rocky dip located five miles above sea level in the Himalayan Mountains between Mount Everest and its sister peak Lhotse – is the place where hundreds of adventurers camp each year before attempting to climb the world’s largest peak from the southeastern side.&nbsp;



According to a team of scientists led by the <a href="https://www.colorado.edu/">University of Colorado Boulder</a>, they are also leaving behind a frozen legacy of highly resistant <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/how-can-deep-ocean-microbes-survive-without-sunlight/">microbes</a> that can survive harsh conditions at high elevations and lie dormant in the soil for decades or even centuries. While highlighting the invisible impact of tourism on the world’s highest mountains, these findings also provide a better understanding of the environmental limits to life on our planet, as well as in other places in the universe where life may exist.&nbsp;



The scientists collected soil samples from South Col and analyzed them in several labs at CU Boulder by using both traditional culturing techniques and next-generation gene sequencing methods, in order to determine the diversity of microorganisms found in the samples.&nbsp;



The analyses revealed that most of the microbial DNA sequences were similar to hardy, or “extremophilic” organisms previously detected in other high-elevation sites in the Antarctica or the Andes, with the most abundant organism being a fungus in the genus Naganishia, which is known to be able to withstand extremely high levels of cold and ultraviolet radiation.&nbsp;



Surprisingly though, the experts also found microbial DNA of some organisms heavily associated with humans such as Staphylococcus, one of the most widespread skin and nose bacteria, and&nbsp;Streptococcus, a type of microbe usually infecting the human mouth. While the researchers were not surprised that humans left behind microorganisms – since microbes are nearly everywhere and can easily move around through the air at significant distances from camps or trails – they were nevertheless impressed by the fact that certain microbes which have evolved to thrive in warm and wet environments such as our noses and mouths are resilient enough to survive in a dormant state in the extremely harsh conditions from South Col.&nbsp;



Although the impact of these microbes on the Himalayan environment is expected to be minimal, their presence there raises alarm for humans’ possible impact on extraterrestrial worlds that we may one day be able to travel to. “We might find life on other planets and cold moons. We’ll have to be careful to make sure we’re not contaminating them with our own,” concluded senior author Steven Schmid, a professor of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology at CU Boulder.



The study is published in the journal <a href="https://doi.org/10.1080/15230430.2023.2164999">Arctic, Antarctic, and Alpine Research</a>.



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



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Humans are leaving behind microbes on Mount Everest

South Col - a windswept, snow-free rocky dip located five...

Each year, millions of tourists travel to Tokyo and other cities in Japan to experience the country’s world-famous <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/cherry-blossom-emblems-could-unite-people-to-save-forests/">cherry blossom</a> season (known as the “sakura season”). The cherry trees usually start to blossom at the end of March or the beginning of April, but in recent years this event is starting earlier due to unusually warm weather fueled by climate change.&nbsp;



This year, by beginning 10 days early, cherry blossom season matched a record seen only twice before - in 2020 and 2021 - since data first began being collected in 1953.



Since late 2019, Japan’s borders were closed and large gatherings were mostly forbidden due to the Covid-19 pandemic. For these reasons, the highly anticipated viewing parties of this spectacular event (known as “hanami”), usually bringing together huge crowds of people in Japan’s public parks, did not take place. However, as the borders reopened in last October and Covid-19 restrictions have gradually been lifted, both locals and visitors have eagerly expected this year’s season.



According to the <a href="https://www.jma.go.jp/jma/indexe.html">Japan Meteorological Agency</a>, over five blossoms of the famous Somei-Yoshino cherry trees – a strain which accounts for over 90 percent of the cherry trees planted in Japan - were recently seen at the Yasukuni Shrine in Tokyo, after temperatures have been gradually rising since the beginning of March. The blossoms all over the city are expected to be in full-bloom within the next week.



“Today, on March 14, we hereby declare the sakura blossoming in Tokyo,” said an official from the agency in an announcement that came six days earlier than last year. “We’ve seen many warm days in March. Climate change may also have played a part.”



If global temperatures continue to rise, extremely early cherry blossom flowering dates could occur more regularly, according to a study published in 2022 in the journal <a href="https://iopscience.iop.org/article/10.1088/1748-9326/ac6bb4">Environmental Research Letters</a>. “By the end of the century and under medium emissions, the early shift is estimated to further increase by almost a week. Extremely early flowering dates, as in 2021, would be rare without human influence, but are now estimated to be 15 times more likely, and are expected to occur at least once a century. Such events are projected to occur every few years by 2100 when they would no longer be considered extreme,” the authors concluded.



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



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Cherry blossom season has arrived 10 days early in Japan

Each year, millions of tourists travel to Tokyo and other...

Two types of <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/climate-impact-labeling-has-a-strong-influence-on-food-selection/">climate</a> events are steadily reshaping Earth's climate and ecosystems. "Pulses" are short-term climate events such as shifting ocean currents, while "presses" are prolonged events like heat waves.&nbsp;



In a recent study from the <a href="https://www.washington.edu/">University of Washington</a>, researchers set out to investigate how different presses and pulses have impacted Magellanic penguins. The experts studied the effects of climate events on these migratory marine predators at a large breeding site in Punta Tombo, Argentina. 



The study showed that pulses and presses are affecting Magellanic penguins in different ways, yet are equally important for the survival of the species. The researchers also determined that the combination of these two types of climate events has taken a major toll on the size of the penguin population at Punta Tombo.



“We found that penguin survival doesn’t rest solely - or even largely - on one or a few climate effects,” explained study lead author T.J. Clark-Wolf. “Instead, many different presses and pulses impact penguin reproduction and survival over time.”



The research was focused on data collected at Punta Tombo from 1982 to 2019 by study co-author Dee Boersma. The information included details on reproductive success for nearly 54,000 penguins at the site, climate conditions during each breeding season, and ocean conditions off the coast of Punta Tombo.



The experts integrated the data into a population model that provided details of the effects of separate climate events. The model showed that each type of climate event had distinct effects on the penguin population at Punta Tombo.



Heat waves have been perhaps the most detrimental of the various climate presses and pulses, killing both adults and chicks. In 2019, for example, a single-day heat wave killed more than 350 penguins at the site.



According to the experts, the number of breeding pairs at Punta Tombo dropped from about 400,000 in the 1980s to about 150,000 in 2019.



“This colony will be 100 years old in 2024, but we finished another on-the-ground survey in late October at Punta Tombo and its numbers continue to decline,” said Boersma. “The penguins are instead moving north to be closer to their food.”



The researchers noted that understanding how these presses and pulses shape this population is crucial for informing conservation efforts.



“For conservation to be most effective, we need to know where, when and how to apply our limited resources,” said senior author Briana Abrahms. “Information generated by this study tells us which climate effects we need to worry about and which ones we don’t - and therefore can help us focus on measures that we know will have a positive impact.”



The study is published in the journal <a href="https://www.pnas.org/">Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences</a>.&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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Climate events have taken a toll on Magellanic penguins

Two types of climate events are steadily reshaping Earth's climate...

Despite increased efforts to curb human activities that harm the world’s oceans – such as overfishing, marine litter, pollution, microplastics, ocean acidity, and climate change – there is still an urgent need to fundamentally change the human-ocean relationship for both ecological and human benefits.&nbsp;



Marine citizenship is a term currently used by scientists to refer to people actively involved in <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/high-seas-treaty-will-help-protect-the-worlds-oceans/">ocean protective measures</a>. However, until recently, research has mainly focused on individuals changing their personal behaviors as an expression of responsibility towards the world’s oceans, including awareness raising, environmental attitudes research, or environmental education.



Now, a team of researchers led by the <a href="https://www.exeter.ac.uk/">University of Exeter</a> and the <a href="https://www.bristol.ac.uk/">University of Bristol</a> has argued that the government and political institutions should do more to make citizens feel empowered and participate in marine environmental decision-making processes as a critical part of marine citizenship. Such an approach would take into consideration the societal and political dimensions of the human-ocean relationship, rather than focus solely on individual behavioral change.



“Our research shows that marine citizenship is much more than individual pro-environmental behaviors, and government and political institutions have a responsibility to engage individuals and their views when it comes to marine environmental decisions,” said study lead author Pamela Buchan, a postdoctoral fellow in Marine Biology and Marine Social Science Research at Exeter.



“Access for citizens to participate in environmental decisions is commonly via charities and conservation groups, however, this is criticized because individuals are unable to give a direct contribution. Our research shows that citizens feel that individuals have the least influence over discussions about the future of our oceans.”



According to Buchan and her colleagues, marine citizenship should be redefined in a way that recognizes rights as well as responsibilities. At the same time, governments and political institutions should challenge the public and scientific community to further examine the potential of marine citizenship to create transformative change.&nbsp;



The study is published in the journal <a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0280518">PLoS ONE</a>.



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



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Citizens should help determine the future of our oceans

Despite increased efforts to curb human activities that harm the...

While it is well known that <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/covid-19-patients-experience-changes-in-heart-tissue/">Covid-19</a> can cause a wide range of neurological problems, such as the loss of taste and smell, as well as impairments in memory, attention, speech, and language – commonly referred to as “brain fog” – a new study led by <a href="https://home.dartmouth.edu/">Dartmouth College</a> has recently found that it could also cause prosopagnosia, or “face blindness,” a condition characterized by difficulty in recognizing familiar faces and navigational problems.&nbsp;



The experts worked with Annie, a 28-year-old woman who was diagnosed with Covid-19 in March 2020 and experienced a symptom relapse two months later. Shortly after, she started having difficulties with recognizing the faces of her family members, as well as spatial navigation issues, including problems remembering where particular sections in her grocery store were located or where she parked her car.



“The combination of prosopagnosia and navigational deficits that Annie had is something that caught our attention because the two deficits often go hand in hand after somebody either has had brain damage or developmental deficits,” explained study senior author&nbsp;Brad Duchaine, a professor of Psychological and Brain Sciences at Dartmouth. “That co-occurrence is probably due to the two abilities depending on neighboring brain regions in the temporal lobe.”



The scientists conducted a series of tests with Annie to assess her deficits. In one of them, after being presented with 60 images of celebrity faces, she managed to correctly identify 29 percent of those she was familiar with, compared to people in a control group who managed to identify 84 percent of the familiar celebrities. In another, she was shown a celebrity’s name and was asked to identify that celebrity’s face from an image of the celebrity and one of someone similar, and succeeded in 69 percent of the cases, compared to the 87 percent success rate in the control group. Finally, after she was asked to learn six men’s faces and then distinguish between them and other faces – in a so-called <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2005.07.001">Cambridge Face Memory Test</a> – she managed to do this in only 56 percent of the cases, compared to the 80 percent success rate of people without prosopagnosia.&nbsp;



“Our results from the test with unfamiliar faces show that it wasn’t just that Annie couldn’t recall the name or biographical information of a famous person that she was familiar with, but she really has trouble learning new identities,”&nbsp;said lead author Marie-Loise Kieseler, a graduate student in Psychology and Brain Sciences at Dartmouth.



To assess whether other people who had Covid-19 experienced similar problems, the researchers obtained data from nearly 100 individuals with long Covid. “Most respondents with long Covid reported that their cognitive and perceptual abilities had decreased since they had Covid, which was not surprising, but what was really fascinating was how many respondents reported deficits,” Kieseler said. “It was not just a small concentration of really impaired cases but a broad majority of people in the long Covid group reported noticeable difficulties doing things that they were able to do before contracting Covid-19 without any problems.”



Although none of these respondents seemed to have the severity of Annie’s symptoms, the scientists are sure that similar cases must exist, and urge individuals experiencing perceptual or vision problems possibly caused by Covid to contact them.



The study is published in the journal <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cortex.2023.01.012">Cortex</a>.



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



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Covid-19 can impair face recognition capacities

While it is well known that Covid-19 can cause a...

Whooper swans (Cygnus cygnus) spend their summers in subarctic Europe and Siberia, where they breed each year. But at the start of winter, they migrate many thousands of kilometers south to where the conditions will be less harsh. The estimated 16,000 whooper swans that overwinter in the United Kingdom come all the way from Iceland each year. Since their wetland habitats are threatened more and more, they rely heavily on protected areas for overwintering in the UK.



A new research study has investigated just how important these protected areas are for the survival of the Icelandic whooper swans. The team analyzed 30 years of data on swans from 22 UK sites, three of which are nature reserves managed by the <a href="https://www.wwt.org.uk/">Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust</a> (WWT). In total, the study used observations of 10,000 whooper swans over the 30 years.&nbsp;



The results, published in the <a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.1073/pnas.2212035120">Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences</a>, show that swan survival rates are 30 times higher in the nature reserves than they are in unprotected areas. Swans in the nature reserves had a lower annual probability of breeding, but the researchers stress that these birds have more lifetime opportunities to breed and will produce more offspring on average. Based on these findings, the research team project that nature reserves could help double the number of whooper swans wintering in the UK by 2030.



Not only were survival rates significantly higher at nature reserves, but population growth was so strong that many swans moved into non-protected sites as the density in the protected areas increased.These encouraging findings highlight the importance of nature reserves in terms of conservation, even when the areas protected are relatively small and are only used during short periods of a species’ life cycle.&nbsp;



“Protected areas are the main tool being used to stem declines in biodiversity, and there is a growing consensus that 30 percent of the planet’s surface should be protected by 2030,” said Dr. Andrea Soriano-Redondo from the <a href="https://www.exeter.ac.uk/undergraduate/">University of Exeter</a>.



“However, the effectiveness of protected areas is not always clear - especially when species move between protected and non-protected areas throughout their lives. Our findings provide strong evidence that nature reserves are hugely beneficial for whooper swans, and could dramatically increase their numbers in the UK."



Swans make use of the protected areas for many different reasons, and the WWT nature reserves in the study have implemented a range of measures to help wintering swans, including fox fences, supplementary food, managed roosting sites and hunting bans. These interventions have had a large impact on population growth that is crucial for this species that is listed as a species of conservation concern in the UK.



“The annual population growth rate inside nature reserves was 6 percent, compared to 0.2 percent outside reserves,” said Dr. Richard Inger from the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.exeter.ac.uk/cornwall/research/facilitiesandcentres/cec/">Centre for Ecology and Conservation</a>&nbsp;on Exeter’s Penryn Campus in Cornwall. “This population boost is not restricted to the nature reserves – it created a higher population density, which led some swans to move to non-protected areas. Young swans were most likely to do this, meaning the benefits of nature reserves spill over to other areas too.”



“Overall, our study demonstrates the huge benefits of localized protection for highly mobile animal species,” said&nbsp;<a href="https://biosciences.exeter.ac.uk/staff/profile/index.php?web_id=stuart_bearhop">Professor Stuart Bearhop</a>. “It also shows that targeted measures during key periods of the life cycle can have disproportionate effects on conservation.”



“This research shows how safe havens for wetland wildlife, like those at WWT Caerlaverock, Welney and Martin Mere, can help a species survive and succeed when their traditional homes are under threat," said David Pickett, Centre &amp; Reserve Manager at WWT Caerlaverock Wetland Centre. “Many wild birds rely on our sites for food and shelter and we are committed to creating and restoring more of these healthy wetland habitats, which the U.K. has lost so many of in our recent history."



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



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Nature reserves are crucial for whooper swans 

Whooper swans (Cygnus cygnus) spend their summers in subarctic Europe...

Orcas populations were decimated in the early 20th century due to their capture for display in aquariums and theme parks. Thankfully, that practice ended in the 1970s, and many populations have been slowly recovering.&nbsp;



However, the southern resident orca population in the Pacific Northwest and British Columbia has dwindled back down to their mid-1970s levels, with only 73 orcas left. Much of this is attributed to numerous pregnancies ending in miscarriage or newborn death.



The situation is perplexing because while the southern population is declining, the northern population is increasing, with 300 current individuals. In a new paper published in the journal <a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.1093/beheco/arad002">Behavioral Ecology</a>, researchers from the University of Washington and NOAA Fisheries have proposed that this contrast could be due to differences in hunting behavior.



“For northern resident orcas, females were hunting and capturing more prey than males. For southern resident orcas, we found the opposite: The males were doing more hunting and capturing than females,” explained study lead author Jennifer Tennessen.



Dams affecting the salmon population and other human disturbances could be the cause of these shifts, especially with young mothers.



“In both populations, a mother with a young calf foraged less than other females, possibly due to the risk of leaving the calf temporarily with ‘a babysitter’ - another adult - while she hunts, or because of the time demands of nursing a calf,” said Tennessen. “But for southern resident females, which are more prone to disturbance and stress from vessel traffic, there was an outsized effect: Our study found no instance of a southern resident female with a young calf who successfully carried out a hunt.”



The experts also uncovered differences in female orca behavior towards their sons. In the northern population, adult males living with their mothers hunted less than those without mothers. However, researchers confirmed the opposite in the southern population - adult males with mothers hunted more.



“These unexpected differences left us scratching our heads. It is possible that southern resident adult males could be sharing with other members of their group, including their mothers, to help out, especially since an adult male’s survival is strongly linked to his mother’s survival,” said Tennessen.



“Understanding how healthy populations behave can provide direction and goals for management of unhealthy populations. Future comparisons to healthy fish-eating orca populations could help us understand whether the divergent behavior we’re seeing in the southern residents is indicative of a population trying to survive.”



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By <a href="mailto:nire518@gmail.com">Erin Moody</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer



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Southern orca decline may be tied to hunting behaviors

Orcas populations were decimated in the early 20th century due...

Usually, the arrival of the new year is a perfect time for Antarctic <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/seabirds-have-different-strategies-to-survive-storms/">seabirds</a> - such as the south polar skua, the Antarctic petrel, or the snow petrel - to build their nests and lay their eggs. However, from December 2021 to January 2022, scientists found nearly no nests in regions such as Svarthamaren or Jutulsessen, which were previously home to two of the world’s largest Antarctic petrel colonies and essential nesting grounds for south polar skua and snow petrels. 



According to the experts, this worrisome phenomenon was likely caused by unusually strong snowstorms – triggered by climate change - that interfered with the birds’ ability to breed.



“We know that in a seabird colony, when there’s a storm, you will lose some chicks and eggs, and breeding success will be lower,” said study lead author Sebastien Descamps, a marine scientist at the <a href="https://www.npolar.no/en/">Norwegian Polar Institute</a>. “But here we’re talking about tens if not hundreds of thousands of birds, and none of them reproduced throughout these storms. Having zero breeding success is really unexpected.”&nbsp;



While from 1985 to 2020, Svarthamaren was home to between 20,000 and 200,000 Antarctic petrel nests, around 2,000 snow petrel nests, and more than 100 skua nests annually, in 2021-2022 there were only three breeding Antarctic petrel, a few snow petrels, and no skua nests – a situation resembling that in Jutulsessen, where no Antarctic petrel nests were found in that period despite having shown tens of thousands of active nests in the previous years.



“It wasn’t only a single isolated colony that was impacted by this extreme weather. We’re talking about colonies spread over hundreds of kilometers. So these stormy conditions impacted a really large part of land, meaning that the breeding success of a large part of the Antarctic petrel population was impacted,” Descamps explained.



Since these birds lay their eggs on bare ground, massive snowfall makes egg-laying and chick-raising impossible. Moreover, such storms also have a thermoregulatory cost, forcing birds to spend all their available strength keeping warm, sheltering, and conserving energy.



Although there were no obvious signs of climate change in Antarctica until recently, over the past few years an increasing number of extreme weather events have shown that the southmost regions of our planet are not spared from the devastating effects of global warming either.&nbsp;



“I think our study shows in a very strong way that these extreme events do have a very strong impact on seabird populations, and climate models predict that the severity of these extreme events will increase,” Descampes concluded.



The study is published in the journal <a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.cub.2022.12.055">Current Biology</a>.



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



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Extreme snowstorms impact breeding success of petrels

Usually, the arrival of the new year is a perfect...

On Monday, March 13, 2023, President Joe Biden is expected to announce sweeping protections for over 16 million acres of federal lands and waters in Alaska that would put the entire U.S. Arctic Ocean off limits to future <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/drilling-oil-fracking-problems/">oil and gas drilling</a>. However, this announcement comes at the same time that the administration is preparing to approve one of the largest oil developments ever on federal land – ConocoPhillips multibillion-dollar drilling project “Willow.”&nbsp;



The Arctic protections are set to extend to the Teshekpuk Lake, Utukok Uplands, Colville River, Kasegaluk Lagoon, and Peard Bay - which are important habitats for a wide variety of wildlife, including grizzly and polar bears, caribou, and migratory birds – as well as over three million acres in the Arctic Ocean.



“It’s a place that is critically important for the wildlife,” said White House climate adviser John D. Podesta. “From the president’s perspective, conserving the natural resources, particularly in the special areas for the National Petroleum Reserve-Alaska, are top-of-mind issues.”&nbsp;



However, according to many environmental organizations, the move to protect these areas is insufficient to offset the damage the Willow project will likely cause by allowing the construction of hundreds of miles of roads and pipelines, multiple airstrips, as well as a gravel mine and a processing facility. This massive industrial venture is estimated to produce between 576 and 614 million barrels of oil over the next three decades, releasing 9.2 million metric tons of CO2 per year (the equivalent to adding two million gas-powered cars to the roads).&nbsp;



Moreover, the region around Nuiqsut, where the project will begin, is already one of the fastest-warming places on Earth and is located in the vicinity of Teshekpuk Lake, which is home to thousands of migrating caribou, 600,000 shorebirds, 78,000 molting geese, and various other species. Due to its setting, the Willow project will most likely have a market negative impact on this species, while contributing to further warming.



“These conservation decisions by the Biden administration are positive steps, but not nearly sufficient to blunt the impact of any version of the Willow oil and gas project,” said Karlin Itchoak, the Alaska senior regional director for the <a href="https://www.wilderness.org/">Wilderness Society</a>.



“It’s lipstick on a pig,” added Jamal Raad, the co-founder and senior adviser of the climate group <a href="https://www.evergreenaction.com/">Evergreen Action</a>. “This does not negate or discount the climate impacts of the Willow project in any way, shape or form.”



While the approval of the Willow project is seen as an important victory for Alaska’s bipartisan congressional delegation, as well as for a coalition of Alaska native tribes and groups who consider the drilling venture as an important new source of revenue and jobs for this region, whether its economic and social benefits can offset the damage to the environment that it will most likely cause remains a matter of heated debate.



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



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Alaska oil project may offset new Arctic protections

On Monday, March 13, 2023, President Joe Biden is expected...

Debashis Chanda, a researcher with the University of Central Florida’s <a href="https://www.nanoscience.ucf.edu/">NanoScience Technology Center</a>, recently created an environmentally friendly way to produce paints that could aid in the fight against <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/climate-change-is-transforming-arctic-rivers-in-unexpected-ways/">climate change</a>. He used nature as an inspiration.&nbsp;



“The range of colors and hues in the natural world are astonishing - from colorful flowers, birds and butterflies to underwater creatures like fish and cephalopods,” said Chanda.&nbsp;



The research team created a plasmonic paint using two non-pigmented materials: aluminum and aluminum oxide. Instead of relying on light absorption, Chanda’s paint relies on the structural arrangements of these materials to create color.&nbsp;&nbsp;



“Structural color serves as the primary color-generating mechanism in several extremely vivid species where geometrical arrangement of typically two colorless materials produces all colors. On the other hand, with manmade pigment, new molecules are needed for every color present,” explained Chanda.



The paint is considered more environmentally friendly because, unlike pigment-based paint, it does not require artificially synthesized molecules.



Moreover, plasmonic paint is lighter and longer lasting, which could lead to less consumer consumption. For example, just three pounds of paint could cover an entire Boeing 747.



“Normal color fades because pigment loses its ability to absorb photons," said Chanda. "Here, we’re not limited by that phenomenon. Once we paint something with structural color, it should stay for centuries.”



Also, plasmonic paint creates more insulation than pigmented paints by reflecting heat. The research team determined that their paint can keep a structure 25 to 30 degrees cooler than pigmented paints.



“Over 10% of total electricity in the U.S. goes toward air conditioner usage. The temperature difference plasmonic paint promises would lead to significant energy savings. Using less electricity for cooling would also cut down carbon dioxide emissions, lessening global warming.”



Future research will focus on making the paint more accessible in the hopes that more people will embrace this eco-friendly alternative.



“The conventional pigment paint is made in big facilities where they can make hundreds of gallons of paint,” said Chanda. “At this moment, unless we go through the scale-up process, it is still expensive to produce at an academic lab.”



“We need to bring something different like, non-toxicity, cooling effect, ultralight weight, to the table that other conventional paints can’t."



The research is published in the journal <a href="https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/sciadv.adf7207?adobe_mc=MCMID%3D81323850695560564783101049967960360104%7CMCORGID%3D242B6472541199F70A4C98A6%2540AdobeOrg%7CTS%3D1678379454">Science Advances</a>.



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By <a href="mailto:nire518@gmail.com">Erin Moody</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer



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Nature inspires the world’s first energy-saving paint

Debashis Chanda, a researcher with the University of Central Florida’s...

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Today’s Video of the Day from <a href="https://www.igb.illinois.edu/">Carl R. Woese Institute for Genomic Biology</a> reveals how scientists can modify common crops like soybean, rice, and wheat to protect them from heat stress.



“We need to double crop production by 2050 to feed a growing global population, and not only are we not on track to do that, but climate change is further complicating things,” said Amanda Cavanagh, a lecturer at the University of Essex. 



The study is part of Realizing Increased Photosynthetic Efficiency (RIPE), an international research project that aims to develop food crops that turn the sun’s energy into food more efficiently.



“Using an engineering approach we designed multiple alternative metabolic pathways to photorespiration. Testing them in the field showed increases in productivity which led Amanda to significantly move the project forward by showing our engineered plants can withstand pretty extreme temperature stress,” said study co-author and RIPE researcher Paul South.&nbsp;



“As the climate changes and temperature stresses increase the pressure on our global food supply, farmers will need every tool available including engineering approaches like the synthetic biology used here to maintain safe and productive harvests.”



The experts tested plants modified to have more efficient photorespiration to see if they were better adapted to warmer temperatures.&nbsp;



The team found that the engineered plants produced 26 percent more biomass than the wild-type plants exposed to the same temperatures, and had 15 percent less yield loss under the higher temperatures.



Video Credit: Amanda Nguyen/University of Illinois



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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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Designing crops that can beat the heat

[sendtonews key="QGPzYnXEtN-1712599-12187" type="single"] Today’s Video of the Day from Carl...

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Today's Video of the Day from <a href="https://www.nasa.gov/goddard">NASA Goddard</a> describes the first comprehensive estimate of carbon density in the Saharan, Sahel, and Sudanian zones of Africa. In an effort to measure the amount of carbon stored across these drylands, a team of scientists used high-resolution satellite images and artificial intelligence to map nearly 10 billion individual trees. 



"The high spatial resolution (50 cm) combined with AI and field measurements used in this study is key to improving tree inventories in drylands," said Pierre Hiernaux, a French researcher working for NASA. "The ever-increasing availability of very high-resolution satellite imagery will make it possible to assess carbon pools and their dynamics at the individual tree level on a global scale."



"This study is exceptional because it is pioneering a type of approach that will revolutionize the monitoring of trees and forests on a global scale: in the short term, it will be possible to map the world's trees from the centre of the Amazon to our schoolyards," said <a href="https://www.inrae.fr/en">INRAE</a> researcher Jean-Pierre Wigneron.



"Many fields of application will become much more efficient and accurate, such as tracking carbon stocks, biodiversity, monitoring logging and protection against illegal forest degradation, in near real time.”



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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Remote sensing will revolutionize the way we monitor trees

[sendtonews key="EjmSP20gQK-2593093-12187" type="single"] Today's Video of the Day from NASA...

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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 <a href="https://www.nasa.gov/goddard">NASA Goddard</a> features a visual dataset of.methane emissions from wetlands across the globe. Atmospheric methane levels have reached record highs in recent years, and wetlands are a major source of these emissions.&nbsp;



"Methane is an important greenhouse gas that contributes substantially to global warming. On a molecule by molecule basis, methane is much more efficient at trapping heat than carbon dioxide, the main driver of warming," says NASA.



"Though human activities, including agriculture, oil and natural gas production and use, and waste disposal, collectively contribute the majority of methane to the atmosphere, about a third of total methane emissions comes from wetlands."&nbsp;



According to NASA, understanding methane emissions from wetlands and other natural sources is critically important for scientists and policymakers who are working to combat climate change by reducing emissions from human activities.



Video Credit: NASA Goddard



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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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Wetlands are a major source of methane emissions

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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 <a href="https://www.nasa.gov/goddard">NASA Goddard</a> describes how record-breaking heat expressed itself around the world in 2022.



Scientists have determined that 2022 was the 5th warmest year since 1880. Furthermore, the last nine consecutive years have been the warmest on record.



From devastating floods and wildfires to natural disasters like Hurricane Ian, 2022 showed us yet again how a warming climate affects people across the globe.&nbsp;



"As we look back at 20:22 and years past, we see that each year we better understand the challenges we face and how important it is to meet them," says NASA.



Video/ Image Credit: NASA Goddard



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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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2022 illustrated the consequences of a warming climate

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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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Tiger sharks are shifting poleward as temperatures rise

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

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



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



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



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



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



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



Video Credit: ESA&nbsp;



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



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Melt ponds on the Greenland Ice Sheet

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Today’s Video of the Day from the <a href="https://www.esa.int/">European Space Agency</a> describes how Earth is unique in our solar system for its ability to sustain liquid water on its surface. But now, the water cycle is shifting as the climate warms, and scientists must find ways to predict how these changes will affect water availability.



Overall, 96 percent of Earth's water is saltwater, and nearly all of freshwater is found in ice and groundwater. These sources of water are linked as it passes through solid, liquid and gas phases.



In a warmer climate, the water cycle will be transformed. It will be easier for water to evaporate and form clouds, and storms will become more frequent and intense. Some regions will get too much water, while others will be left without enough water. In addition, soil moisture will be lost - which threatens food security.



Scientists are using satellite data from over the last 40 years to track changes that are happening in the water cycle. This will ultimately help us prepare for extreme events and better manage our water resources, according to ESA.



Video Credit: ESA



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



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Tracking changes in Earth's water cycle

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Saturn,-,High,Resolution,3d,Images,Presents,Planets,Of,The

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Today's Video of the Day from <a href="https://www.nasa.gov/goddard">NASA Goddard Space Flight Center</a> features images of Saturn from NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope. The photographs capture the start of the mysterious "spoke season" on Saturn - when unexplained features appear on its rings. 



According to NASA, both the cause of the spokes and their seasonal variability have yet to be fully explained by planetary scientists.



"Like Earth, Saturn is tilted on its axis and therefore has four seasons, though because of Saturn's much larger orbit, each season lasts approximately seven Earth years. Equinox occurs when the rings are tilted edge-on to the Sun," explains NASA.



"The spokes disappear when it is near summer or winter solstice on Saturn. (When the Sun appears to reach either its highest or lowest latitude in the northern or southern hemisphere of a planet.) As the autumnal equinox of Saturn's northern hemisphere on May 6, 2025, draws near, the spokes are expected to become increasingly prominent and observable."



Experts believe that the spokes may be a product of the planet's variable magnetic field. When magnetic fields interact with solar wind, an electrically charged environment is created. This phenomenon is visible on Earth as the northern lights.&nbsp;



"Scientists think that the smallest, dust-sized icy ring particles can become charged as well, which temporarily levitates those particles above the rest of the larger icy particles and boulders in the rings," says NASA.



The spokes were first observed in the early 1980s by NASA's Voyager mission. Depending on the angle of the rings, the spokes can appear dark or light.



"Thanks to Hubble's OPAL program, which is building an archive of data on the outer solar system planets, we will have longer dedicated time to study Saturn’s spokes this season than ever before," said NASA senior planetary scientist Amy Simon, head of the Hubble Outer Planet Atmospheres Legacy (OPAL) program.



"Despite years of excellent observations by the Cassini mission, the precise beginning and duration of the spoke season is still unpredictable, rather like predicting the first storm during hurricane season."



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.

Mysterious "spoke season" captured on Saturn

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Closeup,Of,Fresh,Green,The,Napier,Bush,Grass,As,Animal

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Today’s Video of the Day from <a href="http://www.ntu.edu.sg/">NTU Singapore</a> reveals that some plants can remove toxic heavy metals from soil.&nbsp;



The researchers analyzed samples of various tropical plant species to test for levels of heavy metals and metalloids. The study showed that there are existing plants with high levels of these contaminants, which means that these species are great candidates for drawing pollutants out of the soil.&nbsp;



Among the plants examined in the study, 12 species had accumulated several types of heavy metals and metalloids. These plants are widely available, including species that are native to Singapore.



“In a small nation like Singapore, land may be repurposed to support new development plans, so it is important that we have a green and sustainable way to remediate land that is contaminated," said Professor Lam Yeng Ming.



"We set out to uncover how to better make use of tropical plants to do phytoremediation and through advanced characterization techniques, we showed how some of these tropical plant species can be an environmentally friendly and literally a 'green' way to remove contaminants in soil."&nbsp;



"Phytoremediation also has benefits of cost effectiveness, simplicity of management, aesthetic advantages, and long-term applicability and sustainability. The strategy prevents erosion and metal leaching by stabilizing or accumulating heavy metals, so that helps reduce the risk of contaminant spread.”



Video Credit: NTU Singapore



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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.

Plants help remove heavy metals from contaminated soil

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Today’s Video of the Day from the <a href="https://www.acs.org/">American Chemical Society</a> describes why herbicides are not as effective in killing weeds anymore. In the 20th century, chemical companies developed thousands of herbicides. The most commonly used herbicide was glyphosate, which was introduced in 1974.



Over the past few decades, dozens of species of weeds have evolved resistance to glyphosate. Depending on the site of action, the part of the plant that an herbicide interacts with, weeds may even be resistant to herbicides that have not been developed yet.&nbsp;



With increasing resistance to glyphosate and other herbicides, weeds are - once again - becoming a major concern for farmers.&nbsp;



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.

Weeds are becoming increasingly resistant to herbicides

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Today’s Video of the Day from the <a href="https://www.jpl.nasa.gov/">NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory</a> (JPL) describes a dust storm on Mars that was nearly twice the size of the United States. As the storm covered the southern hemisphere of the planet, some of NASA’s explorers had to delay their normal activities.



NASA’s Insight lander put itself in a "safe mode" for 11 days to conserve battery power because solar power was disrupted by the dust. The Ingenuity Mars Helicopter postponed flights until conditions improved.



"A fleet of NASA orbiters monitor Martian dust storms like this one and serve as lifelines to Earth by relaying data from the rovers and lander on the ground back to the team. This includes the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter, MAVEN, and Odyssey," reports JPL.



"Dust storms like this recent one start close to the ground and are spread by wind as they rise – warming the cold Martian atmosphere."



The images in the video were captured by NASA’s Curiosity as the dust rolled in. A fleet of orbiters monitored the dust storm from above, relaying data from Mars’ explorers back to scientists on Earth.



Video &amp; Image Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/ASU/MSSS



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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.

NASA monitors giant dust storms on Mars

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Today's Video of the Day from the <a href="http://www.esa.int/">European Space Agency</a> features Qeshm Island in the Strait of Hormuz. This strait provides the only sea passage from the Persian Gulf to the open ocean.



Qeshm is separated from the Iranian coast by the Clarence Strait, also known as Khuran.&nbsp;The Hara Forest Protected Area is a network of shallow waterways and forest located between the island and the mainland. This protected region is home to sea turtles, snakes, and more than 150 species of migrating birds.



Qeshm is famous for its wide range of&nbsp;ecotourist&nbsp;attractions, such as the&nbsp;Hara marine forests. According to environmentalists, about 1.5 percent of the world birds and 25 percent of Iran's native <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/female-hummingbirds-avoid-sexual-harassment-by-looking-like-males/">birds</a> annually migrate to the forests, which are the first national geo park in Iran.



Tourists are also drawn to the island to see an age-old Portuguese&nbsp;fort, historic mosques, the&nbsp;Seyyed Mozaffar&nbsp;and&nbsp;Bibi Maryam&nbsp;shrines, and the "Valley of Stars."



The average temperature on the island is 81 degress and the region is often hot and humid. From June to August, the island is described as being oppressively hot. The ideal time to visit is during the winter season. 



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.

Qeshm Island in the Strait of Hormuz

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Today’s Video of the Day from the <a href="https://www.esa.int/">European Space Agency</a> features Inhambane Bay in southeast Mozambique.&nbsp;



"Inhambane Bay is a deep inlet into which the small Mutamba River flows," says ESA. "On one side of the bay lies the historical city of Inhambane, capital of the Inhambane Province, while the sister city of Maxixe, the economic capital of Inhambane, sits across from it. The province is the second largest grower of cashews, after Nampula, and it also produces coconut and citrus fruits."



The beaches of Barra and Tofo are popular with tourists. There are also coral reefs along the long coastline of Inhambane, making it an ideal destination for scuba diving and snorkeling.



"Mozambique’s extensive coastline heightens the country’s vulnerability to tropical cyclones that develop in the Indian Ocean as well as storm surge flooding," says ESA.



"More than half of the population lives in low lying coastal areas, putting communities at risk. Inhambane Bay was dangerously close to where Cyclone Idai made landfall in 2019 causing widespread destruction to the country."



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.

Inhambane Bay in southeast Mozambique

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Today’s Video of the Day from the <a href="https://www.esa.int/">European Space Agency </a>&nbsp;features the Kangerlussuaq Glacier, one of the largest tidewater outlet glaciers in Greenland. The glacier is located on the east coast of the Greenland ice sheet.



As human-induced climate change continues to drive up temperatures, global ice loss is accelerating at an alarming rate. ESA reports that, over the past decade alone, 3.5 trillion tons of ice have melted from the Greenland ice sheet. This is enough to cover the UK with meltwater 15 meters deep.



Based on satellite imagery, researchers determined that Kangerlussuaq entered a new phase of rapid retreat and acceleration in 2017. In their study, published in <a href="https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/feart.2019.00123/full">Frontiers in Earth Science</a>,&nbsp; the experts report that the glacier's ice front is now at its most retreated position since the early 20th century.



"Given Kangerlussuaq’s previous impacts on both the magnitude and pattern of ice sheet wide mass loss, we predict that its new phase of retreat, acceleration and thinning will markedly enhance the south-east region’s contribution to increasing discharge from the ice sheet," wrote the study authors.&nbsp;&nbsp;



"More broadly, accurate forecasting of the ice sheet’s contribution to sea level rise will require a deeper understanding of, and responses to, these non-linear ice dynamic processes."



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.

Kangerlussuaq Glacier 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 the complex relationship between ocean and climate. ESA's Climate Change Initiative will help us understand how oceans influence the climate and how climate change is impacting the oceans.&nbsp;



"Earth’s oceans are huge heat stores, soaking up 93% of the excess heat from human activity over the past 70 years. Ocean currents redistribute heat around the planet, from the Equator to the poles. Where this ocean heat goes influences weather patterns and regional climate," explains ESA.



"As well as absorbing heat, oceans are a natural carbon sink, absorbing a quarter of carbon dioxide emissions from human activity. This has led to the acidification of ocean water, threating marine life."



The amount of heat and carbon dioxide soaked up by the ocean depends on specific variables, including phytoplankton, temperatures, waves, salinity, and ice cover. Satellites can be used to measure these variables from space.



"From their unique vantage point, satellites provide key information for understanding the complexities of our planet and monitoring environmental issues," says ESA.



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.

Ocean heat influences regional climate

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Today’s Video of the Day from the <a href="https://www.esa.int/">European Space Agency</a> describes the importance of monitoring the shape of the sea surface, which is constantly changing. These observations have many applications, such as ship routing, <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/the-modem-ocean-is-a-tough-place-for-whales-to-survive/">ocean</a> current forecasting, and debris tracking.



"A project supported by the Discovery element of ESA’s Basic Activities recently investigated a new technique to measure sea surface topography very precisely," reports ESA.



"The technique involves looking at satellite navigation (GNSS) signals that have been reflected off of the sea surface at very low angles. At these so-called grazing angles, waves and surface roughness have very little impact on the reflection process; the sea surface acts as a very smooth mirror."



Estel Cardellach is the principal investigator at the Institute for Space Studies of Catalonia, who first submitted the idea for the project.



“In a mirror-like reflection the phase of the signal can be tracked – it is continuous," said Cardellach. "Different surface heights result in different phase measurements. It gives a very precise measurement of the surface altitude at a few centimetres’ precision.”



The researchers developed a GNSS receiver and set up an experiment in the Balaeric Islands to collect signals from the receiver that were reflected off the sea surface. Ultimately, these signals will provide improved measurements of the shape of the sea surface.



Image/ Video 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

Monitoring the dynamic shape of the sea surface

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Aerial,Photo,Of,River,In,Amazon,Rainforest,Jungle,In,Peru

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Today’s Video of the Day from <a href="https://www.nasa.gov/goddard">NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center</a> describes how scientists are using autonomous sound sensors to monitor deforestation in the Amazon. By recording soundscapes, the experts can determine which animals are present through their distinct sounds.&nbsp;



Using this method, sounds can be used as scientific measurements to analyze the effects of deforestation. The researchers will gain a better understanding of how the acoustics of a forest can be used to measure its health.&nbsp;



"From space, parts of the Amazon rainforest that have previously been logged or burned may look lush and green, like a place buzzing with activity and full of sounds. But inside the rainforest, the animal life may tell a different story, of a harsh environment and a quieter soundscape," says NASA.



Video Credit: NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center&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

Monitoring deforestation in the Amazon through sounds

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