California has become a vivid example of a global phenomenon known as “hydroclimate whiplash,” which involves sudden and dramatic swings between extreme wet and dry conditions.&nbsp;



These abrupt shifts are increasingly destabilizing ecosystems and communities, as shown in a new study published in <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s43017-024-00624-z" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Nature Reviews Earth and Environment</a>.&nbsp;



The research highlights how climate change is intensifying these weather patterns and their associated risks, from destructive wildfires to devastating <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/flood-fatalities-experts-reveal-the-hidden-health-impacts/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">floods</a>.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-a-state-in-constant-flux">A state in constant flux</h2>



The winters of 2022-23 and 2023-24 brought California unprecedented precipitation, fueled by dozens of atmospheric rivers.&nbsp;



Mountain towns were buried under snow, valleys were inundated with rain and snowmelt, and landslides occurred across the state.&nbsp;



However, these deluges were followed by record summer heat and a drought-ridden start to the 2025 rainy season. The resulting dry vegetation has provided ample fuel for a series of wildfires.



“This whiplash sequence in California has increased fire risk twofold,” explained lead author Daniel Swain, a climate scientist at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) and UC Agriculture and Natural Resources.&nbsp;



“First, by greatly increasing the growth of flammable grass and brush in the months leading up to fire season, and then by drying it out to exceptionally high levels with the extreme dryness and warmth that followed.”



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-global-trends-in-climate-whiplash">Global trends in climate whiplash</h2>



California's situation mirrors a global trend. The study found that hydroclimate whiplash has increased worldwide by 31% to 66% since the mid-20th century - outpacing predictions made by climate models.&nbsp;



The trend is accelerating due to human-driven <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/climate-change-earth-energy-imbalance-temperature-rise/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">climate change</a>, with projections suggesting that whiplash events could more than double if global temperatures rise by three degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels.



A key driver of this intensification is the “expanding atmospheric sponge,” a phenomenon in which a warmer atmosphere absorbs and releases more water.&nbsp;



For every degree Celsius of warming, the atmosphere’s capacity to hold moisture increases by 7%, compounding the severity of both <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/climate-change-is-now-the-driving-force-behind-droughts/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">droughts</a> and floods.



“The problem is that the sponge grows exponentially, like compound interest in a bank,” Swain said. “The rate of expansion increases with each fraction of a degree of warming.”



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-beyond-rainfall-the-role-of-evaporation">Beyond rainfall: The role of evaporation</h2>



While many studies focus solely on precipitation patterns, this research emphasizes the role of increasing “evaporative demand.”&nbsp;



A warming atmosphere pulls more moisture from plants and soil, exacerbating drought conditions even when rainfall does not decrease.



“The expanding atmospheric sponge effect may offer a unifying explanation for some of the most visible, visceral impacts of climate change,” Swain noted.&nbsp;



This includes the rapid transitions between floods and droughts, landslides triggered by oversaturated soil, and cycles of vegetation growth and fire.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-challenges-for-water-management">Challenges for water management</h2>



The intensifying hydroclimate whiplash poses significant challenges for water resource management.&nbsp;



California’s traditional strategies, such as diverting flood waters to the ocean, need to be balanced with measures to retain water for prolonged dry spells. Swain emphasized the importance of a “co-management” approach that considers drought and flood risks together.



John Abatzoglou, a UC Merced climate scientist and co-author of the study, highlighted the strain on California’s infrastructure:&nbsp;



“Hydroclimate in California is reliably unreliable. Swings like we saw a couple years ago, going from one of the driest three-year periods in a century to the once-in-a-lifetime spring 2023 snowpack, both tested our water-infrastructure systems and furthered conversations about flood water management to ensure future water security in an increasingly variable hydroclimate.”



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-global-phenomenon-of-climate-whiplash-nbsp">Global phenomenon of climate whiplash&nbsp;</h2>



While California offers a stark example, hydroclimate whiplash is a global issue. 



Regions such as northern Africa, South Asia, and the tropical Pacific are projected to experience the most dramatic increases, but almost every region will face growing risks.



“Increasing hydroclimate whiplash may turn out to be one of the more universal global changes on a warming Earth,” Swain said.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-southern-california-fire-season-s-extended-grip">Southern California: Fire season’s extended grip</h2>



Southern California’s <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/experts-have-identified-the-key-driver-of-severe-wildfires-in-canada/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">wildfire</a> risks have been amplified by the lack of rain and the dry vegetation left behind by previous wet seasons.&nbsp;



While seasonal winds, such as the Santa Anas, play a role in spreading fires, Swain noted that “climate change is increasing the overlap between extremely dry vegetation conditions later in the season and the occurrence of these wind events.”&nbsp;



“This, ultimately, is the key climate change connection to Southern California wildfires.”



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-slowing-the-intensification-of-climate-whiplash">Slowing the intensification of climate whiplash</h2>



The study highlights the urgent need to reduce global warming to slow the intensification of hydroclimate whiplash.&nbsp;



“The less warming there is, the less of an increase in hydroclimate whiplash we’re going to see,” Swain said.&nbsp; However, with the planet on track for two to three degrees Celsius of warming this century, substantial increases in variability are likely.



Adapting to these changes will require rethinking water management, infrastructure, and conservation strategies. By addressing both ends of the water spectrum - flood and drought - policymakers and communities can better prepare for the challenges of a warming world.



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"Hydroclimate whiplash" is wreaking havoc across the U.S.

California has become a vivid example of a global phenomenon known as “hydroclimate whiplash,” which involves sudden and dramatic swings between extreme wet and dry conditions.&nbsp; These abrupt shifts are increasingly destabilizing ecosystems and communities, as shown in a new study published in Nature Reviews Earth and Environment.&nbsp; The research highlights how climate change is intensifying these weather patterns and their associated risks, from destructive wildfires to devastating floods. A state in constant flux The winters of 2022-23 and 2023-24 brought California unprecedented precipitation, fueled by dozens...

The Salton Sea – well-known as California’s most polluted <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/global-warming-will-have-major-consequences-for-lakes-worldwide/">lake</a> – has lost a third of its water over the past 25 years. As it dries up, the concentration of salt and chemicals in the remaining water has increased dramatically, leading to mass die-offs of fish and birds, including some already threatened species. Moreover, the dry lakebed, coated in the salty and toxic water, becomes dust causing respiratory issues to residents living in the lake’s vicinity.&nbsp;



According to a team of researchers led by the <a href="https://www.ucr.edu/">University of California, Riverside</a> (UCR), the main reason for this massive shrinking has been a steady decline in the Colorado River flow. “It is an environmental catastrophe,” said study lead author Juan S. Acero Triana, a hydrologist at UCR.



Over the years, scientists have proposed a variety of hypotheses about why the lake’s water levels are declining. While some blame global warming for drying up Salton Sea, others suspect that agriculture could be to blame, since, as irrigation systems get more efficient and crops are modified to use less water, the quantity of water reaching the lake has declined. However, this new study argues that these are not the main causes of the decline.



“There is less water coming from the Colorado River into the Sea, and that is driving the problem,” explained study co-author Hoori Ajami, another UCR hydrologist. By using a hydrologic model which accounted for all processes in the surrounding areas that impact the lake’s water balance - such as climate, land slope, soil types, or plant growth – the scientists were able to simulate long-term water balance dynamics and identify reduced Colorado River flows as the main cause of the Salton Sea shrinking.



“It’s not entirely clear, however, whether the decline in Colorado River water is more due to global warming drying out the river, or reductions in allocation levels to California, or both,” Acero Triana said. Nonetheless, these findings should send a clear message to water management agencies and lawmakers: the Salton Sea watershed should be considered part of the Colorado River basin.



“Usually, the Sea is considered an independent system, and a watershed-centric approach considering surface and groundwater resources is needed to find a solution. As the environmental risks of a shrinking Sea mount, all parties must work together to mitigate the danger,” Ajami concluded.



The study is published in the journal <a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.1029/2022WR032281">Water Resources Research</a>.&nbsp;



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

Why is the Salton Sea turning into toxic dust?

The Salton Sea – well-known as California’s most polluted lake...

Squirrel,Monkey,,Saimiri,Oerstedii,,Sitting,On,The,Tree,Trunk,With

A large-scale international study of 47 species of <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/female-monkeys-with-strong-friendships-survive-longer/">monkeys</a> and lemurs has found that climate change and deforestation are currently driving these tree-dwelling primates to the ground, where they are at higher risk due to lack of proper food and shelter, and increased negative interactions with humans and other animals.



The scientists – 118 researchers from 124 institutions – examined over 150,000 hours of observational data on 32 monkey species and 15 lemur species at 68 sites in the Americas and Madagascar. “This study began with a discussion among colleagues about how we’d noticed certain populations of arboreal primates spending more time on the ground, yet at sites with relatively less disturbance, members of the same species may never descend to the ground,” explained study lead author Timothy Eppley, a postdoctoral fellow at the <a href="https://sandiegozoowildlifealliance.org/">San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance</a>.



According to Dr. Eppley and his colleagues, primates that consume less fruit and live in larger social groups were more likely to change their habitat, moving closer to the ground. Moreover, those living in hotter environments with less canopy cover were also more prone to adapt to such changes by shifting towards more extensive ground use.&nbsp;



However, while primates consuming a more generalized diet and living in larger groups may efficiently adapt to a terrestrial lifestyle, other species could face significant problems. “It’s possible that spending more time on the ground may cushion some primates from the effects of forest degradation and climate change; however, for the less-adaptable species,&nbsp;fast and effective conservation strategies will be necessary to ensure their survival,” Dr. Eppley warned.



The study also revealed that primate populations closer to human establishments and infrastructures were less likely to descend to the ground. “This finding may suggest that human presence, which is often a threat to primates, may interfere with the natural adaptability of the species to global change,” said study co-senior author Luca Santini, an expert in Ecology and Conservation at the <a href="https://www.uniroma1.it/it/">Sapienza University of Rome</a>.



While the transition from an arboreal to a terrestrial lifestyle has occurred previously in primate evolution, today’s rapid climatic and environmental changes are a serious threat.&nbsp;



“Though similar ecological conditions and species traits may have influenced previous evolutionary shifts of arboreal primates, including hominins, to ground living, it is clear that the current pace of deforestation and climate change puts most primate species in peril,” concluded the other senior author, Giuseppe Donati, a primatologist and biological anthropologist at <a href="https://www.brookes.ac.uk/">Oxford Brookes University</a>.



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

Climate change is driving tree-dwelling primates to the ground

A large-scale international study of 47 species of monkeys and...

A new study has investigated the relative effects of genetics, <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/diet-is-the-most-powerful-weapon-against-aging/">aging</a>, and the environment on how 20,000 human genes are expressed. The researchers, led by the <a href="https://www.berkeley.edu/">University of California, Berkeley</a>, found that aging and the environment are far more important than genetic variation in affecting the expression profiles of many of our genes as we get older, leading to diseases such as diabetes or cancer.



“How do your genetics — what you got from your sperm donor and your egg donor and your evolutionary history — influence who you are, your phenotype, such as your height, your weight, whether or not you have heart disease?”&nbsp;asked study senior author Peter Sudmant, an assistant professor of Integral Biology at UC Berkeley.



&nbsp;“There’s been a huge amount of work done in human genetics to understand how genes are turned on and off by human genetic variation. Our project came about by asking, ‘How is that influenced by an individual’s age?’ And the first result we found was that your genetics actually matter less the older you get.”



Thus, while our individual genetic makeup can help predict gene expression when we are younger, it is less useful in predicting which genes are ramped up or down as we age. “Almost all human common diseases are diseases of aging: Alzheimer’s, cancers, heart disease, diabetes. All of these diseases increase their prevalence with age,” Professor Sudmant explained. “Massive amounts of public resources have gone into identifying genetic variants that predispose you to these diseases. What our study is showing is that, well, actually, as you get older, genes kind of matter less for your gene expression. And so, perhaps, we need to be mindful of that when we’re trying to identify the causes of these diseases of aging.”



These findings are in line with <a href="http://www.programmed-aging.org/theories/medawar_hypothesis.html">Medawar’s hypothesis</a>, which argues that genes that are activated when we are young are more constrained by evolution since they are critical to making sure we will survive long enough to reproduce, while genes that are expressed after we reach reproductive age are under less evolutionary pressure.



“We’re all aging in different ways. While young individuals are closer together in terms of gene expression patterns, older individuals are further apart. It’s like a drift through time as gene expression patterns become more and more erratic,” Professor Sudmant concluded.



The study is published in the journal <a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.1038/s41467-022-33509-0">Nature Communications</a>.



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

Age plays a bigger role than genetics in disease susceptibility

A new study has investigated the relative effects of genetics,...

Although we cannot see them without the aid of a microscope, bacteria are all around us, occurring at high densities in diverse habitats. Many bacterial species produce substances that kill other microbes as a way of gaining an ecological advantage in environments that support an array of competing bacterial and fungal species. These substances, once identified, often form the basis of our own antibiotic and antifungal medications that help to fight <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/animals-with-infections-are-less-able-to-adapt-and-survive/">infections</a> in our bodies and in our crop plants and livestock. In fact, most therapeutic antibiotics used today have been derived from soil bacteria belonging to the phylum Actinobacteria.



Unfortunately, our increasing dependence on antibiotics has resulted in widespread resistance to these medications which, according to the World Health Organization, represents one of the biggest threats to global health, food security, and development today. This has lead researchers to seek alternative new compounds with antifungal and antibiotic properties wherever possible.&nbsp;



In a new discovery, published in <a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.1128/mbio.02472-22">mBio</a>, the peer-reviewed, open access scientific journal published by the American Society for Microbiology, a multinational team of researchers from Europe report on one such compound that may have the potential to protect agricultural crops against fungal infections. The new antifungal antibiotic has been named solanimycin, and was initially isolated from a pathogenic bacterium that infects potatoes.&nbsp;



Solanimycin acts against a wide range of fungi known to infect and devastate agricultural crops, according to the researchers. In lab studies, the compound also acted against&nbsp;Candida albicans, a fungus that occurs naturally in the human body but that can also cause dangerous infections. The results suggest that solanimycin, and related compounds, could be useful in both agricultural and clinical settings.



The new discovery suggests that, instead of focusing on antibiotics produced by bacteria isolated from soil microbes, researchers seeking new compounds with antibiotic properties would do well to look more closely at plant-based microorganisms as potential sources. This is especially relevant as crops develop resistance to existing treatments, says microbiologist Rita Monson, Ph.D., from the University of Cambridge. She co-led the study with molecular microbiologist Miguel Matilla, Ph.D., at the Spanish Research Council’s Estación Experimental del Zaidín, in Granada.



“We have to look more expansively across much more of the microbial populations available to us,” Monson said.



The pathogenic potato bacterium&nbsp;Dickeya solani, which produces solanimycin, is not new to researchers. It was first identified more than 15 years ago in the lab of molecular microbiologist George Salmond, Ph.D., at the University of Cambridge. At that time, it was found to produce an antibiotic called oocydin A, which was highly effective against multiple fungal pathogens in plants. In the current study, Matilla, Monson, Salmond and colleagues followed a hunch that D. solani may be capable of producing other compounds with antifungal properties.&nbsp;



After genomic analysis of the bacterial DNA, they proceeded to silence those genes responsible for the production of oocydin A. Interestingly, they found that the bacterium continued to show antifungal activity under these conditions. That observation led to the identification of solanimycin and the identification of the gene clusters responsible for the proteins that make the compound.



The researchers found that the bacterium uses the compound sparingly, producing it in response to cell density. An acidic pH environment – as is present in a potato – also activates the solanimycin gene cluster. Monson said it almost looks like a clever protective mechanism.



“It’s an antifungal that we believe that will work by killing fungal competitors, and the bacteria benefit so much from this,” said Monson. “But you don’t turn it on unless you’re in a potato.”



Monson said the researchers have begun collaborating with chemists to learn more about the molecular structure of solanimycin and understand how it works. Then, she and Matilla said, they hope to see continued testing of the compound in plant and animal models.



“Our future steps are focused on trying to use this antibiotic antifungal for plant protection,” Matilla said. The research team see the discovery as an encouraging sign that plant pathogens – like&nbsp;D. solani – could be coaxed to make compounds that may be used against diseases in plants and people.



“We have to be open to the exploration of everything that’s out there to find new antibiotics,” Matilla said.



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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

Antibiotic produced by potato pathogen offers new hope

Although we cannot see them without the aid of a...

Currently, fewer than 300 <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/judge-us-failed-protect-red-wolves/">red wolves</a> survive in the world today, mostly in captivity. While these animals once roamed the southern and eastern United States from Texas to New England, by the early 1900s, they had been virtually wiped out by hunters and farmers who considered them as threats. Today, the red wolf is a federally protected endangered species.&nbsp;



Now, <a href="https://www.brookgreen.org/">Brookgreen Gardens</a> – a nature preserve in South Carolina established in 1931 – is expecting to receive three red wolves from a zoo in Ohio as part of an effort to revive this critically endangered species in South Carolina and other states. The plan is to breed these wolves in captivity for displays at zoos or even release in eastern North Carolina and, possibly, in the low country of South Carolina.



“These animals are disappearing and if we don’t do something to help them, you’re going to just be looking at pictures or cadavers in a museum,” said Andrea DeMuth, an animals curator at Brookgreen Gardens. “You’re not going to be looking at the real thing.”



The initial three wolves going to Brookgreen will be young males, to be followed by two breeding pairs of wolves. “We started very similar,” said Eric Albers, the curator of animal operations at the <a href="https://www.akronzoo.org/">Akron Zoo</a> in Ohio, from which the wolves will be brought to South Carolina. “We had a pair of (females) to let us get used to working with red wolves and handling them before we got a breeding pair. With a new facility, it makes a lot of sense.’’



Since today only 21 red wolves are living in the wild at the Alligator River (down from 120 in 2012), increased efforts are needed to restore this population. Another possible place for releasing some of the captive wolves include the 259,000-acre Francis Marion National Forest in South Carolina. However, many fear that releasing these animals into the wild is problematic, since they tend to breed with coyotes.



“We’re going to make our coyotes about 25 pounds larger, your turkey population is going to get decimated, your white-tailed deer population is going to get decimated,” said David Strickland, a Lowcountry hunter interested in tracking the red wolf situation. “Your bobcats are going to lose all of their prey species. They are going to become a targeted species.’’



Other scientists and conservationists, such as Ron Sutherland, the chief scientist at the <a href="https://wildlandsnetwork.org/">Wildlands Network</a> conservation organization, consider such recovery plans necessary. “The recovery plan calls for a total of three (separate) populations, so that could certainly bring South Carolina back into play. Francis Marion-Cape Romain still seems like a pretty good spot to me to think about red wolf recovery,” he 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

Rare wolves headed to South Carolina from Ohio

Currently, fewer than 300 red wolves survive in the world...

Livestock production contributes an estimated 14.5 percent of greenhouse gas emissions, exacerbating global warming and leading to degraded ecosystems, as well as loss of biodiversity and water resources. According to a variety of recent studies, adopting a mainly <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthpedia-articles/is-a-plant-based-diet-healthy/">plant-based diet</a> could be an important step towards solving these problems.



Now, a research team led by the <a href="https://www.bristol.ac.uk/">University of Bristol</a> has investigated what strategies are most effective in promoting such diets. Their analysis revealed that one way of promoting sustainable diets is to label food products with information about sustainability (eco-labeling), such as providing details of water and land usage and greenhouse emissions by using a traffic light system. Another effective strategy was found to be social nudging, which involved telling consumers that a particular product is the most popular choice.



The scientists enrolled a cohort of UK adults in order to form three groups. In each group the participants were shown a menu containing three different meal options – a beef burrito, a chicken burrito, and a vegetarian burrito – and asked to choose one option that they might like to eat in the future. 



The first group were shown the burrito options accompanied by an eco-label showing the sustainability level of each meal in a traffic light system (beef burrito – red, or unsustainable, chicken burrito – amber, or neither sustainable nor unsustainable, and vegetarian burrito – green, or sustainable). Group two were shown the vegetarian burrito accompanied by a popularity label consisting of a gold star next to the works “Most Popular,” and group three (the control group) were shown neither the eco-label nor the social nudge.



The researchers discovered that both the eco-label and the social nudge were highly effective at influencing the choice of the most sustainable option, with the eco-label being the most effective between the two in promoting sustainable choices. Moreover, participants with a higher motivation to act sustainably were more likely to choose the vegetarian burrito.



These findings suggest that future policy should include eco-labeling and/or social nudges to reduce meat consumption and mitigate global warming. “Consumer choices could further benefit from more information about their meal, via a mandatory eco-label, being presented on packaging. A regulated traffic light eco-label, similar to standardized nutritional information on food packaging, would facilitate more sustainable choices and decrease customer confusion,” the authors concluded.



The study is published in the journal <a href="https://doi.org/10.1017/bpp.2022.27">Behavioral Public Policy</a>.&nbsp;



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

Eco-labeling promotes sustainable food choices

Livestock production contributes an estimated 14.5 percent of greenhouse gas...

View,From,Above,Of,Dense,Pine,Forest,With,Canopies,Of

Attempting to decipher all the factors that influence the behavior of complex ecological communities can be a very difficult task. However, a team of researchers led by the <a href="https://www.mit.edu/">Massachusetts Institute of Technology</a> (MIT) has discovered that the behavior of these ecosystems can be predicted based on solely two pieces of information – the number of <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/non-native-species-can-have-unexpected-benefits/">species</a> in the community and how strongly they interact with one another.



The dynamics of natural ecosystems are notoriously difficult to study. Scientists can make observations about how species interact with one another, but they generally cannot perform controlled experiments in the wild. This led the MIT researchers to use microbes such as bacteria and yeast to analyze interspecies interactions in a controlled way, hoping to learn more about how natural ecosystems behave.



By creating communities ranging from two to 48 species of bacteria, controlling the number of species by forming different synthetic communities with different sets of species, and strengthening the interactions between the species by increasing the amount of food available, the scientists were able to define three phases of ecological communities and calculate the necessary conditions for them to move from one state to another.&nbsp;



Initially, each ecological community existed in a phase called “stable full existence,” with all species coexisting without interfering with one another. However, as either the number of the species or interactions among them increased, the communities entered a new phase called “stable partial coexistence” in which populations remain stable, but some of the species become extinct. Finally, as the number of species or strength of interactions further increased, the communities entered a third phase, featuring more dramatic fluctuations in population. In this stage, ecosystems became unstable, and populations persistently fluctuated over time.



“While we cannot access all biological mechanisms and parameters in a complex ecosystem,&nbsp;we demonstrate that&nbsp;its diversity and dynamics may be emergent phenomena that can be predicted from just a few aggregate properties of the ecological community: species pool size and&nbsp;statistics of interspecies interactions,” said study lead author Jiliang Hu, an engineer at MIT.



These findings could help ecologists make predictions about what might be happening in complex ecosystems such as forests, even with little information available, since all they need to know is the number of species and their degree of interaction.



“We can make predictions or statements about what the community is going to do, even in the absence of detailed knowledge of what’s going on. We don’t even know which species are helping or hurting which other species. These predictions are based purely on the statistical distribution of the interactions within this complex community,” concluded senior author Jeff Gore, an MIT physicist.



The study is published in the journal <a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.1126/science.abm7841">Science</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

Ecosystem stability can be predicted by species interactions

Attempting to decipher all the factors that influence the behavior...

Herd,Of,Nelore,Cattle,Grazing,In,A,Pasture

Due to climate change, agricultural producers all over the world must adapt to new, often more extreme, weather patterns. While much previous research has focused on mitigation strategies for crop production, a recent study led by the <a href="https://illinois.edu/">University of Illinois</a> (U of I) has now investigated the unique challenges <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/feed-livestock-reduce-land-use/">livestock</a> producers in Brazil face, and the way they respond to climate change.



Since the dry season in Brazil is increasing up to 0.6 days per year, cattle face increased stress, and ranchers are more likely to sell them earlier. “Through talking with cattle ranchers, I kept hearing about ways they had to change their production to cope with the dry season. They are used to a dry season every year, but they noticed it was getting worse,” said study author Marin Skidmore, an assistant professor of Agricultural and Consumer Economics at U of I.



“Every year the animals gain weight in the rainy season, they lose weight in the dry season, and then they gain weight again [a phenomenon referred to as “the accordion effect”]. This takes a toll, of course, but they had been able to make do with the dry season as it was. As it got worse, the weight loss got worse, and they were seeing animal losses and profit losses.”



By conducting interviews with Brazilian ranchers and gathering data from a large database of cattle movements in Brazil, Skidmore found evidence of increased animal sales in preparation for extremely dry seasons. “A rancher who would keep their animals in their own pasture through a normal dry season will instead will be more likely to sell them if they expect that the dry season will be severe,” she&nbsp;explained.



Ranchers often make decisions about the upcoming dry season by observing rainfall patterns. While during the rainy season it rains every day, later on rain becomes intermittent, and ranchers will observe how sporadic the rain gets and how early this happens. In anticipation of the dry season, they have several options.



“They can sell the animals for slaughter, and then it is no one's responsibility to feed anymore. But potentially you have an animal that isn’t at a weight for slaughter yet,” Skidmore said. “Then you can sell the animal to a confinement operation, where they are feeding an animal on grain. This decouples the food source from the current weather; it can be grain that was grown in the region in the previous season, or grain that’s being transported from another region.”



Since pasture-based production is generally susceptible to drought and current production technologies are not equipped to deal with heat stress, investing in better management practices to improve pastures and deal with heat is essential.



“A lot of the climate change literature looks at crop producers. But the difference is that animals have lives, and this opens up a whole other set of adaptive strategies to livestock producers. Ranchers are making use of that, and it can really affect the structure of the supply chain,” she concluded.



The study is published in the <a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/ajae.12333">American Journal of Agricultural Economics</a>.&nbsp;



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

How do cattle ranchers in Brazil cope with climate change?

Due to climate change, agricultural producers all over the world...

Farmer,Man,Spraying,Fumigating,Pesti,,Pest,Control.,Weed,Insecticide,Fumigation.

Per-and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) are a class of over 12,000 chemical substances generally used to manufacture thousands of water-, stain- and heat-resistant products. These substances – known as “<a href="https://www.earth.com/news/forever-chemicals-are-raining-down-all-over-the-world/">forever chemicals</a>” - do not naturally break down and accumulate in both humans and the environment. A wide variety of recent scientific studies links them to major health problems such as cancer, birth defects, liver and kidney disease, autoimmune disorders, high cholesterol, and low immunity.



Now, a research team led by the <a href="https://www.ttu.edu/">Texas Tech University</a> has checked ten insecticides which are mostly used on cotton, but can also be used on food and other crops, and discovered that seven of them contained PFAS, and six what the scientists labelled as “screamingly high” levels of PFOS (Perfluorooctanesulfonic acids), one of the most dangerous PFAS compounds. According to the study authors, the <a href="https://www.epa.gov/">Environmental Protection Agency</a> (EPA) has known about these findings for over 18 months, but has not yet investigated the products or took any action against the manufacturers.



“We know PFOS is a carcinogen, we know it’s a deadly chemical and there’s no safe level in drinking water,” said Kyla Bennett, a former EPA official and science policy director at the non-profit organization <a href="https://peer.org/">Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility</a> (PEER). “Our soil and water are now contaminated.”



While the EPA has not set limits for PFAS in pesticides, in June 2022 they lowered their advisory health limit in drinking water to 0.02 parts per trillion (ppt), a level so low as to suggest that no amount of exposure to these compounds is safe. The Texas Tech researchers found much higher levels of these toxic chemicals in most of the pesticides they analyzed, with a particular insecticide sporting a level as high as 19m ppt.



It is unclear what purpose PFAS in insecticides may serve, but the scientists believe that they could be used as a dispersing agent, helping the pesticide spread evenly. The presence of PFOS could be the result of either chemical companies illegally adding the compound or PFAS added to the fertilizers breaking down into PFOS.&nbsp;



According to Bennett, there is little consumers can do to immediately protect themselves, besides eating organic foods. Unfortunately, many people do not have access to or can afford such healthier products. This leaves it up to the EPA to take faster and more decisive action to eliminate PFAS from pesticides.



“We have to get the EPA to stop allowing PFAS in pesticides. We’ve got a toxic chemical in them that doesn’t need to be there, and pesticides are bad enough on their own without adding another carcinogen,” Bennett concluded.



The study is published in the <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.hazl.2022.100067">Journal of Hazardous Materials Letters</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

Toxic “forever chemicals” present in most pesticides

Per-and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) are a class of over 12,000...

Each year, mule <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/tick-carrying-deer-are-living-in-the-suburbs/">deer</a> migrate in the American West to follow the green-up of plants as they sprout at various elevations – a phenomenon biologists call “surfing the green wave.” The deer rely on this surfing behavior to find the freshest and most nutritious plants that help them recover from winter and put on fat in preparation for the next lean season. However, according to a new study led by the <a href="http://www.uwyo.edu/">University of Wyoming</a> (UW) in collaboration with the <a href="https://www.usgs.gov/">U.S. Geological Survey</a> (USGS), when energy development disrupts their migration corridors, deer often lose their ability of foraging with the wave of the most nutritious springtime plants.



“Mule deer are known for how precisely they match their movements with spring green-up, so this result was particularly striking,” said study lead author Ellen Aikens, a UW PhD graduate, currently working at the USGS South Dakota Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit. “The gas wells caused them to let the best food of the year slip away from them.”



The researchers followed a herd of migratory deer that winters in sagebrush basins and summers in the Sierra Madre Mountains for 14 years. During this period, dozens of new wells were drilled for coalbed methane extraction in the middle of a deer corridor. The analysis revealed that, as development intensity increased over time, the deer began to “hold up” when reaching natural gas wells, pausing their spring migration, and letting the wave of green vegetation pass them by, thus becoming decoupled from their best food resources at a critical time of the year. The development of these wells resulted in a 38.65 reduction in green-wave surfing.



These findings can help wildlife managers understand how intact corridors must be in order to retain their ecological functionality, and devise strategies for sustaining mule deer migrations. “The impact is quite clear, but also points to conservation solutions that will allow us to retain viable migrations for generations to come,” explained study co-author Matt Kauffman, a researcher at the USGS Wyoming Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit at UW. “Once migrations have been mapped, development can be planned in a way that minimizes the disruptions to migrating herds, whether in Wyoming, the American West, or wherever landscapes are rapidly changing.”



“This new research provides the most convincing case, so far, that efforts to minimize development within migration corridors will benefit their long-term persistence amid changing landscapes,”&nbsp;he concluded.



The study is published in the journal <a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.1038/s41559-022-01887-9">Nature</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

Energy development disrupts mule deer migration

Each year, mule deer migrate in the American West to...

According to a new <a href="https://repository.library.noaa.gov/view/noaa/46437">assessment</a> by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/gray-whales-are-dying-in-alarming-numbers/">gray whales</a> which migrate along the West Coast of North America continued to decline over the past two years, the population being now down 38 percent from its peak in 2015 and 2016. Moreover, as an accompanying <a href="https://repository.library.noaa.gov/view/noaa/46436">report</a> explained, the whales also produced the fewest calves this year since counts began in 1994.



Although this decline from a peak of about 27,000 whales in 2016 to 16,650 this year resembles past fluctuations in the eastern North Pacific population, it warrants continued monitoring. “Given the continuing decline in numbers since 2016, we need to be closely monitoring the population to help understand what may be driving the trend,” said David Weller, the senior author of the reports and director of the <a href="https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/about/marine-mammal-and-turtle-division-southwest-fisheries-science-center">Marine Mammal and Turtle Division</a> at NOAA. “We have observed the population changing over time, and we want to stay on top of that.”



A significant increase in gray whale strandings led NOAA Fisheries to declare an “Unusual Mortality Event” (UME) in 2019, prompting an investigation into the possible causes of this population decline. According to the scientists, some of the contributors include changes in the Arctic seafloor and the amphipods and other invertebrate species that gray whales feed upon in the summer, predation by killer whales, or accidents involving ships. Since the number of strandings spiked in 2019 and subsequently fell, most of the gray whale population decline probably occurred in the years before the UME was declared.



“There is no one thing that we can point to that explains all of the strandings,” said Deborah Fauquier, a Veterinary Medical Officer at NOAA Fisheries’ <a href="https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/national/marine-life-distress/marine-mammal-health-and-stranding-response-program">Marine Mammal Health and Stranding Response Program</a>, who coordinates the UME investigation. “There appears to be multiple factors that we are still working to understand.”&nbsp;



Since many gray whales migrate between their feeding grounds in the Arctic during summer and lagoons in Baja Mexico in the winter where they nourish their newborn calves – a 10,000 miles-long roundtrip – they most likely encounter many stressors along the way, a factor which led to population declines in previous decades too. These stressors affecting whale survival also had a major impact of their reproductive capacities, leading to lower calf production.



Fortunately, after most of the previous declines, the number of gray whales increased again.&nbsp;“The population has rebounded multiple times from low counts in the past,” said Tomoharu Eguchi, the lead author of the reports and an expert in Cetacean Health at NOAA. “We are cautiously optimistic that the same will happen this time. Continued monitoring will determine whether and when they rebound.”&nbsp;



&nbsp;“What we hope to see in the next few years is that the abundance stabilizes and then starts to show signs of increase. We will be watching closely,” concluded co-author Aimee Lang, a research scientist at NOAA.



Image Credit: NOAA Fisheries



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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

Gray whale populations continue to decline

According to a new assessment by the National Oceanic and...

Marine heatwaves helped invasive algae wipe out a native underwater <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/kelp-forests-are-losing-their-capacity-to-trap-carbon/">kelp</a> forest in Mexico, with potentially dramatic effects for the entire ecosystem, according to a new study published by <a href="https://www.degruyter.com/?lang=en">De Gruyter</a>.



The waters of the Todos Santos Islands in Mexico are usually dominated by the giant kelp species Macrocystis pyrifera. However, an unusually long period of heat known as the "warm blob" - which affected the Pacific coast of North America from 2013 to 2016 - shifted the location and population of several marine species.



“Those of us who have dived there before noticed the dramatic community change,” said study co-author Dr. Luis Malpica-Cruz.



Between 2018 and 2019, the researchers assessed the density of the invasive species at a rocky reef to see how the community had changed. The results showed that native kelp suffered greatly. M. pyrifera went from an average of 0.7 individuals per square meter in 2018 to zero in 2019.&nbsp;



The study also revealed a threefold increase of the invasive macroalgae species Sargassum horneri and kelp species Undaria pinnatifida. The research team was shocked at their discovery.&nbsp;



"We looked at other local sites that witnessed M. pyrifera loss and saw other native species had taken its place. But the Todos Santos site had a completely different kelp ecosystem.” said Malpica-Cruz.



It is suspected that the "warm blob" marine heatwave held back the native species and allowed invasive species to thrive. This ecosystem alteration could be a sign of wider changes. The dramatic loss of M. pyrifera is likely to affect other algae, invertebrates and fish further up the food chain.&nbsp;



The kelp may have regained territory in other locations, but this was not the case in the Todos Santos Islands, where invasive species took over. Given the short period of this shift, within only one year, it is doubtful that the native species will return.&nbsp;



“There is hope that not all M. pyrifera kelp forest will be lost. However in those forests that do change it is uncertain how the community will ultimately be impacted," said Malpica-Cruz.



The experts plan to continue studying the invasive species to help design strategies to manage invasive kelp during future marine heatwaves.



The research is published in the journal <a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.1515/bot-2022-0037">Botanica Marina</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

"Warm blob" helped invasive algae wipe out kelp forest

Marine heatwaves helped invasive algae wipe out a native underwater...

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



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Tiger sharks are shifting poleward as temperatures rise

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

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



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



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



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



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



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



Video Credit: ESA&nbsp;



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



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Melt ponds on the Greenland Ice Sheet

[sendtonews key="qARzJPSabQ-2270617-12187" 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> 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



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.

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

[sendtonews key="gRpsplpwpe-2251464-12187" 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.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

[sendtonews key="sFFhiK9OOn-1720418-12187" 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 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

[sendtonews key="yPSXGZek1I-2312529-12187" 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>&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

[sendtonews key="u0TYxxqfF7-2186404-12187" type="single"] Today’s Video of the Day from NASA’s...