The scorching heatwaves we experience, the wildfires that rage across nations, and the invisible carbon dioxide that fills the air are severely impacting our planet.



In 2023, the world saw extreme heatwaves that fueled substantial wildfires and induced severe droughts across the globe. 



What's more, these <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/fast-wildfires-are-gaining-even-more-speed/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">adverse conditions</a> significantly weakened the land's ability to absorb atmospheric carbon. 



The result? A notable surge in atmospheric carbon dioxide levels, growing the scale of concern about accelerating climate change.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-heat-and-atmospheric-carbon">Heat and atmospheric carbon </h2>



Data from Hawaii's <a href="https://gml.noaa.gov/obop/mlo/aboutus/aboutus.html" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Mauna Loa Observatory</a> showed that atmospheric carbon concentrations skyrocketed by an alarming 86% in 2023 compared to 2012. This increase sets a new record high since tracking of these levels began in 1958.



Interestingly, the rise in carbon dioxide levels cannot solely be pointed towards fossil fuel emissions. These, it seems, only rose by roughly 0.6 percent.



So, what's the primary culprit behind the spike in emissions? It's likely due to weakened <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/extreme-fire-risk-has-grown-exponentially-in-a-hotter-climate/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">carbon absorption</a> by natural ecosystems.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-weakened-carbon-sink">Weakened carbon sink </h2>



An international team of scientists backed by the <a href="https://www.esa.int/Applications/Observing_the_Earth/Extreme_heat_weakens_land_s_power_to_absorb_carbon" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">ESA</a> Science for Society Near-Realtime Carbon Extremes project - along with the Climate Change Initiative RECCAP-2 project - set out to investigate the root causes of this event.



The experts used global vegetation models and satellite data to expedite a carbon budget report for 2023.



Land typically absorbs about one-third of human-generated carbon dioxide emissions. However, in 2023, this absorption capacity fell to a mere one-fifth of its usual level, marking the weakest performance by land carbon sink in two decades.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-extreme-heat-and-carbon-storage-capacity">Extreme heat and carbon storage capacity </h2>



“Our research shows that 30% of this decline was driven by the extreme heat of 2023, which fueled massive <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/ultrafine-particles-in-wildfire-smoke-change-weather-patterns/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">wildfires</a> that ravaged vast areas of Canadian forest and triggered severe drought across parts of the Amazon rainforest," said Philippe Ciais, a scientist from France’s Laboratory for Climate and Environmental Sciences.



"These fires and droughts led to substantial vegetation loss, weakening the land ecosystem’s ability to absorb carbon dioxide. This was further compounded by a particularly strong El Niño, which historically reduces the carbon absorption capacity in the Tropics." 



The situation was made worse by a particularly potent El Niño, which historically reduces carbon absorption capacity in the tropics.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-carbon-emitted-from-wildfires">Carbon emitted from wildfires</h2>



Widespread wildfires across Canada and droughts in the Amazon in 2023 released nearly the same amount of carbon to the atmosphere as North America's total fossil fuel emissions. 



This finding highlights the severe impact of climate change on natural ecosystems.



The Amazon rainforest, one of the planet's most essential carbon sinks, is showing signs of long-term distress. Some regions of the Amazon that no longer absorb carbon have shifted into net sources of carbon emissions.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-earth-s-declining-capacity-to-absorb-carbon">Earth's declining capacity to absorb carbon </h2>



The declining capacity of Earth's land ecosystems to absorb carbon dioxide may signify that these natural carbon sinks are nearing their limits. 



They won't be able to continue to provide the mitigation service of absorbing half of human-induced carbon dioxide emissions.



"Consequently, achieving safe global warming limits will require even more ambitious emission reductions than previously anticipated," Ciais adds.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-saving-earth-s-carbon-cycle">Saving Earth's carbon cycle</h2>



The study also highlights that <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/climate-models-underestimate-sea-ice-melt-and-global-warming/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">current climate models</a> might be underestimating the pace and impact of extreme events such as droughts and fires on the degradation of these crucial carbon reservoirs.



"Understanding the knock-on effects of climate change on the carbon cycle is imperative, and the two ESA study projects demonstrate the importance of Earth observation in developing methodologies to provide rapid assessment of these impacts globally," said Stephen Plummer, <a href="https://www.esa.int/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">ESA</a> Earth Observation Applications Scientist.



"These results are particularly alarming, especially considering the difficulty the world is having limiting warming to 1.5°C, as laid out in the Paris Agreement," noted Clement Albergel, ESA’s Acting Head of the Actionable Climate Information Section.



Given these alarming revelations, it's vital that we ask ourselves: how can we contribute to mitigating these effects? Can we consume less, recycle more, and seek out greener alternatives in our daily lives? The need for climate action could not be more urgent.



The study is published in the journal <a href="https://academic.oup.com/nsr/advance-article/doi/10.1093/nsr/nwae367/7831648?login=false" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">National Science Review</a>.



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Extreme heat of 2023  weakened Earth's carbon storage capacity

The scorching heatwaves we experience, the wildfires that rage across nations, and the invisible carbon dioxide that fills the air are severely impacting our planet. In 2023, the world saw extreme heatwaves that fueled substantial wildfires and induced severe droughts across the globe. What's more, these adverse conditions significantly weakened the land's ability to absorb atmospheric carbon. The result? A notable surge in atmospheric carbon dioxide levels, growing the scale of concern about accelerating climate change. Heat and atmospheric carbon Data from Hawaii's Mauna Loa Observatory showed...

A recent investigation has revealed that cyclone-driven floods are destroying some of the world's most fragile and valuable river habitats. If the intensity and frequency of the flooding continues, the landscapes could be permanently changed, potentially leading to a *catastrophic loss of species.”

The study, which was funded by the UK’s <a href="https://nerc.ukri.org/">Natural Environmental Research Council</a>, was focused on South Africa's Kruger National Park (KNP). The rivers in the KNP provide critical ecosystem services, including the habitats found in the varying channel morphologies and in the adjacent forest. 

Using laser survey technology (LiDAR), the research team analyzed the impacts of cyclone-driven floods in 2000 and 2012 on the rivers of the KNP. The high-resolution data was used to develop digital models of the riverbeds, which were compared with pre-flood data to generate maps of erosion and deposition.

Dr. David Milan of the <a href="https://www.hull.ac.uk/Home.aspx">University of Hull</a> is the study's principal investigator.

“We are primarily interested in trying to understand how these large bedrock-influenced river channels respond to large floods,” said Dr. Milan. “From comparing our LiDAR models between 2012 and 2004, we have calculated that the 2012 event alone removed almost 1.25 million tons of sediment from the river bed.” 

“We also found that patches of mature riparian forest that survived larger floods in 2000 were removed by the 2012 floods. There is a suggestion that the frequency of large flood events is increasing due to climate change, and our analysis of river channel morphology for a 50 km length of the Sabie River shows us that these rivers need time spans longer than a decade to recover.”

Some climate models are predicting increased landfall for cyclones over <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/south-africans-super-volcano/">South Africa</a>, which raises further concerns over geomorphological changes in the rivers of the KNP.

“We present a conceptual model showing the likely pathways that the KNP river systems are likely to follow in the future depending upon flood frequency and magnitude, and conclude by suggesting that more frequent floods will continue to strip out sediment and vegetation from the river channel, leaving a more barren environment with less habitat value,” said Dr. Milan.

“Continued progressive loss of habitat diversity will fundamentally, and for all intents and purposes irreversibly, alter our riverine landscapes and this will be accompanied by a catastrophic loss of species unable to adapt to the new environments.” 

“Conservationists need to work alongside geomorphologists to look at ways in which dryland river habitats can be best managed into the future.”

The research is published in the <a href="https://pubs.geoscienceworld.org/gsabulletin">Geological Society of America Bulletin</a>.

--

By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Frequent extreme weather is destroying valuable river ecosystems

A recent investigation has revealed that cyclone-driven floods are destroying...

A new study from researchers at the <a href="https://www.exeter.ac.uk/">University of Exeter</a> has found that many European mammals who are facing habitat degradation as a result of <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/seasonal-allergies-climate-change/">climate change</a> will not be able to relocate. Of the 62 mammal species analyzed in the investigation, 30 species do not have the potential to adapt in a new region of the country.

The species which are at risk include some that are classified as “vulnerable,” such as the wolverine. Other groups identified in the study are not yet classified as threatened, including the Eurasian elk, the Iberian wild goat, and the Pyrenean chamois.

The researchers explained that many species are at a greater risk than their conservation status indicates due to the fact that most current evaluations do not account for a species’ ability to respond to climate change.

“Some species that will need to move long distances due to climate change are simply not going to be able to,” said study senior author Dr. Regan Early. “Unfortunately, many of the species most at risk from climate change are also those that will have the most difficulty in colonizing new areas.”

The experts looked at two particular sets of characteristics to analyze how well each species could relocate to areas where climate conditions will be suitable in the future. 

First, they evaluated whether the animals are “generalists,” which means they can live in a range of habitats and eat a wide variety foods. The researchers also examined the animal’s reproductive strategy, taking into consideration that animals who breed at a younger age have more offspring and a better chance of establishing themselves in a new location.

Unfortunately, even those species that could relocate may struggle because their potential new habitats are too far away. 

For example, the Western Mediterranean mouse found in Portugal and Spain would have a much more suitable habitat in eastern Italy under predicted climate change. According to Dr. Early, however, it is difficult to see how the species could make this move.

“If you look at the challenges of shifting ranges, you find that many species are a lot more threatened by climate change than we previously understood,” said study lead author Lisbeth Morrison. “Even under lower estimates of climate change, we found really serious effects for many species.”

The study is published in the journal <a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/loi/14724642">Diversity and Distributions</a>.

--

By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Species threatened by climate change may not be able to relocate

A new study from researchers at the University of Exeter...

A team of NASA scientists used 14 years of satellite observations along with data on human activities to analyze freshwater changes across the planet. The researchers found that <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/freshwater-ecosystems-filter-pollution/">freshwater</a> supplies have been mostly stable in some regions, while freshwater has fluctuated substantially in other regions.

To identify global water supply trends, the team accessed data from the Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment (GRACE), a spacecraft mission that tracked freshwater in 34 regions around the world from 2002 to 2016. 

“What we are witnessing is major hydrologic change,” said study co-author Jay Famiglietti of NASA's <a href="https://www.jpl.nasa.gov/">Jet Propulsion Laboratory</a>. “We see a distinctive pattern of the wetland areas of the world getting wetter - those are the high latitudes and the tropics - and the dry areas in between getting dryer. Embedded within the dry areas we see multiple hotspots resulting from groundwater depletion.”

By combining GRACE satellite imagery with precipitation data, irrigation maps, and published reports of human activities, the experts were able to investigate the driving forces behind freshwater trends. They found that shifting water supplies are influenced by many factors including climate change, human water management, and natural cycles.

Study lead author Dr. Matthew Rodell is Chief of the <a href="https://science.gsfc.nasa.gov/earth/hydrology/">Hydrological Sciences Laboratory</a> at NASA Goddard Space Flight Center.

“This is the first time that we've used observations from multiple satellites in a thorough assessment of how freshwater availability is changing everywhere on Earth,” said Dr. Rodell. 

“A key goal was to distinguish shifts in terrestrial water storage caused by natural variability - wet periods and dry periods associated with El Niño and La Niña, for example - from trends related to climate change or human impacts, like pumping groundwater out of an aquifer faster than it is replenished.”

Freshwater is found in rivers, lakes, groundwater, soil, snow, and ice. When freshwater is lost from the world's polar ice sheets, this can trigger sea level rise. Famiglietti noted that while water loss in melting ice sheets is clearly driven by climate change, further research is required to determine the factors that are underlying freshwater changes in other regions.

“The pattern of wet-getting-wetter, dry-getting-drier during the rest of the 21st century is predicted by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change models, but we'll need a much longer dataset to be able to definitively say whether climate change is responsible for the emergence of any similar pattern in the GRACE data,” said Famiglietti.

Groundwater is largely affected by agricultural activities, but rainy and dry weather conditions also have a big impact on groundwater levels. Famiglietti said that this combination was likely the cause of major groundwater depletion in California's Central Valley from 2007 to 2015. Southwestern California lost 4 gigatons of freshwater per year during this time frame.

From 2002 to 2016, agricultural pressures in Saudi Arabia led to a loss of 6.1 gigatons of groundwater per year. Satellite images revealed an explosive growth of irrigated farmland in this region beginning in 1987.

In other parts of the world, changes in freshwater storage were not linked to human activities. For example, in Africa's western Zambezi basin and Okavango Delta, water storage increased at an average rate of 29 gigatons per year from 2002 to 2016. Rodell explained that this trend can likely be attributed to natural rainfall variability that occurs over decades in this region of Africa.

The study is published in the journal <a href="https://www.nature.com/">Nature</a>.

--

By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

NASA scientists find major changes in worldwide freshwater supply

A team of NASA scientists used 14 years of satellite...

Experts at the <a href="https://www.wcs.org/">Wildlife Conservation Society</a> (WCS) are reporting that 2.3 million square miles of the world's protected areas are now severely threatened by human activities such as urbanization and road development.

More than 202,000 <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/marine-protected-areas-coral-reefs/">protected areas</a> make up more than 15 percent of the world's terrestrial coverage. According to the study, one third of this land is currently under intense human pressure.

The <a href="https://www.cbd.int/">Convention on Biological Diversity</a> (CBD) is a legally-binding United Nations treaty to halt biodiversity loss through protected area creation. Since CBD was signed in 1992, the global span of protected areas has nearly doubled in size, and nations are still striving toward a goal of at least 17 percent coverage by 2020.

The researchers found that 32.8 percent of protected land is highly degraded, and that 55 percent of protected land areas established before CBD was ratified have experienced increasing pressure from human activities in the years following the treaty.

“A well-run protected area network is essential in saving species,” said lead author Kendall Jones. “If we allow our protected area network to be degraded there is a no doubt biodiversity losses will be exacerbated.”

The study authors found that the space available for conserving nature inside of protected areas has been overestimated by governments. This would explain why global biodiversity is still in decline, while more land is supposedly being protected.

The researchers also found that protected areas with strict biodiversity conservation objectives are much less affected by human activities.

Professor James Watson of the <a href="https://www.uq.edu.au/">University of Queensland</a> is the study's senior author.

“We know protected areas work - when well-funded, well-managed and well placed, they are extremely effective in halting the threats that cause biodiversity loss and ensure species return from the brink of extinction,” said Professor Watson. 

“There are also many protected areas that are still in good condition and protect the last strongholds of endangered species worldwide. The challenge is to improve the management of those protected areas that are most valuable for nature conservation to ensure they safeguard it.”

The study is published in the journal <a href="http://www.sciencemag.org/">Science</a>.

--

By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Image Credit: Rob Wallace/<a href="https://www.wcs.org/">WCS</a>

One third of the world’s protected areas are under human pressure

Experts at the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) are reporting that...

The effects of global warming are projected to influence climate across the entirety of our planet, changing ecosystems and weather patterns along the way. These changes put many plant and animal species in jeopardy, as they need to adapt more quickly to a less hospitable environment. Now, a new study published in <a href="http://www.sciencemag.org/">Science</a> has found that limiting global warming to 1.5°C would save the vast majority of the planet’s animal and plant species from climate change.

While past research has focused on quantifying the benefits of limiting warming to 2°C above pre-industrial times, they have not explored how this affects insects. This new research from the <a href="https://www.uea.ac.uk/">University of East Anglia</a> (UEA) is the first to explore how limiting warming to 1.5°C would benefit species globally.

Researchers from UEA and <a href="https://www.jcu.edu.au/">James Cook University</a> in Australia assessed roughly 115,000 species – including 31,000 insects, 8,000 birds, 1,700 mammals, 1,800 reptiles, 1,000 amphibians, and 71,000 plants. Not surprisingly, this is the largest scale study of its kind. 

The research team was looking at how different projected climate futures affected areas, making them climatically unsuitable for the plants and animals that live there. “We measured the risks to biodiversity by counting the number of species projected to lose more than half their geographic range due to climate change,” explains Rachel Warren, a professor at UEA and lead researcher on the study. “We found that achieving the ultimate goal of the Paris Agreement, to limit warming to 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels, would reap enormous benefits for biodiversity – much more so than limiting warming to 2°C.”

Their results showed that insects were especially sensitive to <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/climate-change-fish-north-fishing-business/">climate change</a>. Of the 31,000 insects studied, 18 percent were projected to lose over half their range at a 2°C increase. But at a 1.5°C increase, the number was reduced to 6 percent. 

“The current global warming trajectory, if countries meet their international pledges to reduce CO2, is around 3°C,” says Warren. “In this case, almost 50 percent of insects would lose half their range. This is really important because insects are vital to ecosystems and for humans. They pollinate crops and flowers, they provide food for higher-level organisms, they break down detritus, they maintain a balance in ecosystems by eating the leaves of plants, and they help recycle nutrients in the soil.”

Even more concerning, the researchers found that the three biggest groups of pollinating insects were the most sensitive to warming. 

In their study, the researchers also assessed the ability of species to relocate to more habitable locations as the climate changes. “If warming is limited to 1.5°C by 2100 then more species can keep up or even gain in range, whereas if warming reached 2°C by 2100 many species cannot keep up and far more species lose large parts of their range,” Warren says.

Although just half-a-degree Celsius may not seem like much, this study shows that there are major consequences that lie between 1.5 and 2°C. If we aren’t able to cut back on the contributing factors to man-made climate change, we might be finding out what those consequences are for ourselves.

--

By <a href="mailto:certz@earth.com">Connor Ertz</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Stopping global warming at 1.5°C can save a vast number of species

The effects of global warming are projected to influence climate...

Average global temperatures are increasing as climate change continues to be a major crisis for our planet. A recent report published in <a href="http://www.sciencemag.org/">Science</a>, from Rachel Warren at the Tyndall Centre for Climate Change Research at the <a href="https://www.uea.ac.uk/">University of East Anglia</a> in the United Kingdom, found that if global temperature increase cannot be limited to 1.5°C, and rises to 2°C, it just about doubles the risks associated with warming for plants, animals, and insects. 

Now, in a reaction to that report, Guy Midgley – a world-leading expert on global change and impact on <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/hydropower-benefits-biodiversity-costs/">biodiversity</a> – has published an insight article in Science detailing the effect this temperature change would have on biodiversity.

“Warming by more than two degrees will take the world into a temperature state that it hasn’t seen for several millions of years,” says Midgley, a professor in the Department of Botany and Zoology at <a href="about:blank">Stellenbosch University</a>, South Africa. 

Based on current pledges by countries for limiting climate change, scientists predict a corresponding warming of roughly 3.2°C. If this were to occur, it’s estimated that the geographic ranges will be lost for 47% of insect species, 26% of vertebrates, and 16% of plant species.

Midgley believes that higher levels of warming may lead to systemic ecological simplification, where many “climate losers” are replaced by far fewer “climate winners.” A simplified ecological landscape could impact ecosystem services such as water quality, soil conservation and flood prevention. If insect populations were to decrease, it would likely mean fewer pollinators – which would be a major loss for plant species and human food production.

“We need to stay as close to 1.5°C as possible. That is really the conclusion from the Warren et al paper,” Midgley says. “So here is the irony. In order to achieve the 1.5°C target, we may well damage many of the habitats that support biodiversity in order to achieve a target that will save biodiversity.” What this means is that, even if governments and industry can limit warming to 1.5°C, recent research shows that large tracts of land would need to be made available for capturing and storing carbon. Expanding land use for carbon storage would likely threaten the habitats that occupy this land.

“There is way too much debate about the issue of climate change and whether or not it is real,” laments Midgley. “What we really need to be doing is debating how we solve this problem…  if we fail to reduce our dependence on fossil fuels, we could literally move the world back 20 to 30 million years in the space of a century.”

--

By <a href="mailto:certz@earth.com">Connor Ertz</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Warming climate threatens vast swathes of biodiversity

Average global temperatures are increasing as climate change continues to...

In 2004, a magnitude 9.0 earthquake in the Indian Ocean triggered a tsunami that became the sixth-deadliest natural disaster in history, claiming the lives of 280,000 people. Seismologists are now reassessing the risk of a major earthquake and tsunami event taking place in the <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/tropical-storm-earl-forms-in-caribbean-sea/">Caribbean Sea</a>. 

Christa von Hillebrandt-Andrade is the manager of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) <a href="https://www.weather.gov/ctwp/">Caribbean Tsunami Warning Program</a>.

“Before 2004, we thought an earthquake of about 8.0 was about right for the largest we might see in the Caribbean, based on the history of earthquakes there and the length and motion of the faults,” said von Hillebrandt-Andrade.

“But now some think that several faults in the region could be capable of producing earthquakes of 8.6, and the catastrophic planning by our emergency management community is considering 8.5 and 9.0 earthquakes.”

Von Hillebrandt-Andrade said that even though it has been a long time since the region has been hit by a large earthquake, nearly 3,500 have lost their lives from tsunamis over the past 500 years in the Caribbean.

“The vulnerability is just huge because so much of our population and infrastructure is located right along the coast.”


Several large subduction zones and faults underlying the Caribbean are challenging to study. One particular area of concern is the subduction zone associated with the Puerto Rico Trench, which is located close to the border of the Caribbean Sea and the Atlantic Ocean. A large earthquake in this region is capable of generating a tsunami that could reach Puerto Rico within 20 minutes.

According to von Hillebrandt-Andrade, tsunamis are also produced by submarine landslides, which can occur after earthquakes that are only moderate in strength. She said that researchers have uncovered traces of very large landslides along the steep parts of the seafloor along the trench.

Von Hillebrandt-Andrade explained that emergency management planners often focus on how a magnitude 9.0 earthquake and tsunami would impact a region rather than trying to predict when the event may happen. Seismologists and researchers are working to understand the recurrence rate and the likelihood of tsunamis, beginning in the American Caribbean.

“It would really be helpful to have more ocean bottom seismology,” said von Hillebrandt-Andrade, “where we can place seismometers on the seafloor close to these faults so that we can appreciate more of their movement, and to extrapolate [motion] from smaller earthquakes.”

Since 2005, 48 countries and territories organized under the UNESCO IOC Intergovernmental Coordination Group for Tsunamis and Other Coastal Hazards for the Caribbean and Adjacent Regions have been developing a tsunami warning system. 


“There is a big challenge in dealing with such an infrequent hazard, which can be forgotten or overlooked because people can be concerned with more immediate-type events like annual hurricane season,” said von Hillebrandt-Andrade. “But tsunamis have the potential of killing so many people if we do not respond appropriately.”

The research is being presented at the 2018 meeting of the <a href="https://www.seismosoc.org/">Seismological Society of America</a> and the Latin American and Caribbean Seismological Commission (LACSC).

--

By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Experts warn that major tsunamis can occur in the Caribbean

In 2004, a magnitude 9.0 earthquake in the Indian Ocean...

New research has revealed that climate change will push commercially important fish north, causing strain on many United States fisheries.

While there have been other similar studies examining the impacts of <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/humans-driving-climate-change/">climate change</a> on species, these were either too big on a global scale or too small on a regional scale to get a better understanding of species migration in North America. 

The recent study was conducted by researchers from <a href="https://www.rutgers.edu/">Rutgers University</a> and published in the journal PLOS ONE. 

The results show how climate change will cause fish, some which are of high economic importance to the U.S., to move north to cooler waters and shift vital fishing grounds in the process. 

For the study, the researchers focused on the North American continental shelves on the Pacific and Atlantic coasts. Different species of fish and marine wildlife were included in the research such as finfish, sharks, rays, crustaceans, and quid. 

Some of the most sensitive species to climate change are Pacific rockfishes, Atlantic cod, and black sea bass. 

The researchers used 16 different climate models to project ocean temperatures and species migration. Each model had a low and high level scenario of greenhouse gas emissions in North America. 

Fish will move away from waters that are too warm and seek out cooler areas. Researchers have already documented this process among some fish and as the impacts of climate continue, more and more species will follow suit. 

“We've already seen that shifts of a couple of hundred miles in a species' range can disrupt fisheries,” said James Morley, the study’s lead author. “This study shows that such dislocations will happen all over the continent and on both coasts throughout the 21st century.”

With the models, the lower level greenhouse emission scenarios coincided with the Paris Accord goals, and the researchers matched the ocean temperature and climate projections with statistical data that shows what temperatures different species preferred. 

The researchers found that species’ migration north was inevitable even with the lowest emissions scenario, but habitat shifts would be two to three times greater with high emission scenarios. 

This northward shift could present some major problems for the fishing operations that depend on fisheries in North America. 

“For commercial fishers, this often means longer trips and higher fuel costs,” said Malin Pinsky, the studies co-author. “Some species along the U.S. and Canadian Pacific coasts will move as much as 900 miles north from their current habitats.”

Pinsky went on to explain that although many fishers are used to traveling long distances, for some regions, the added mileage would put a real strain on the costs and effort associated with fishing. 

--

By<a href="mailto:kayvandette@gmail.com"> Kay Vandette</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Climate change will force fish north and strain fishing business

New research has revealed that climate change will push commercially...

The fluctuating value of <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/environmental-impact-bitcoin/">Bitcoin</a> is not the only reason the digital network has been making headlines recently. As the price of the cryptocurrency escalates, so do the network's power requirements, which are expected to total half a percent of worldwide electric energy consumption by the end of 2018.

While it has been estimated that the system currently consumes as much energy as some medium-sized countries, accurately calculating this number remains a challenge.

Financial economist Alex de Vries has used a new methodology to quantify Bitcoin's total energy requirements. De Vries works at the Experience Center of PwC in the Netherlands and is the founder of Digiconomist, a blog that aims to better inform cryptocurrency users.

"We've seen a lot of back-of-the-envelope calculations, but we need more scientific discussion on where this network is headed,” explains de Vries. “Right now, the information available is pretty poor quality overall, so I'm hoping that people will use this paper as a foundation for more research.”


De Vries has found that the minimum usage of the Bitcoin network is currently at 2.55 gigawatts, which is nearly the amount of electricity used in Ireland. He also determined that a single Bitcoin transaction uses as much electricity as an average household in the Netherlands uses in an entire month. 

De Vries predicts the network could be using as much as 7.7 gigawatts - half of a percent of the world's total consumption - by the end of this year. 

“To me, half a percent is already quite shocking. It's an extreme difference compared to the regular financial system, and this increasing electricity demand is definitely not going to help us reach our climate goals.”

Computers in the Bitcoin network perform continuous calculations in a process known as “mining.”  

“You are generating numbers the whole time and the machines you're using for that use electricity,” explains de Vries. “But if you want to get a bigger slice of the pie, you need to increase your computing power. So there's a big incentive for people to increase how much they're spending on electricity and on machines.”

Despite some uncertainty in the process, De Vries feels that it is important to get the very best estimate of hardware and electricity costs generated by Bitcoin so that the sustainability of cryptocurrencies can be assessed, which will help to inform future policies. Restrictions around Bitcoin mining have already been established in some American states.

“But you need to base your policy on something. And I think that my method is important in that regard, because it's very forward-looking. It's focused not on the now, but on where we're headed. And I think that's something you really need to know if you're going to draft policy about it.”

De Vries says that there is plenty of room for discussion regarding his method. 

“I think everyone agrees on the minimum energy consumption. But the future estimate? That's actually quite debatable. We don't really have a common approach to getting to a future estimate of electricity consumption right now, which is why I am hoping to get this conversation started. I'm doing this research, but a lot of people should be doing it.”

De Vries reports that the network could eventually consume five percent of the world's total electricity if the value of Bitcoin continues to surge.

The study is published by <a href="https://www.cell.com/">Cell Press</a> in the journal <a href="http://www.cell.com/joule/home">Joule</a>. 

--

By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Bitcoin to consume half a percent of the world’s energy this year

The fluctuating value of Bitcoin is not the only reason...

Researchers at the <a href="https://www.washington.edu/">University of Washington</a> (UW) have demonstrated that when forest disappears in one region of the country, the impacts are echoed on the other side of the continent. The experts are describing how the effects of <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/earths-remaining-untouched-forests/">forest</a> loss ricochet across the atmosphere, affecting conditions for plant growth thousands of miles away.

Study first author Abigail Swann is a UW assistant professor of Atmospheric Sciences and Biology.

“These smaller areas of forest can have continental-scale impacts, and we really need to be considering this when we're thinking about ecological changes,” said Professor Swann. She explained that these far-off effects are widely accepted in the atmospheric sciences community, but the concept is just beginning to catch on among ecologists.

The largest impacts observed in the study were from forest die-offs in California, where millions of trees have been lost in what the state's government has referred to as “the worst epidemic of tree mortality in modern history.”

For the investigation, the researchers divided mainland United States into the 18 regions used in the National Ecological Observatory Network. Next, they used a climate model to simulate the removal of existing forest cover from each of the 13 regions with the most trees to examine the resulting conditions across the country.

Although the Pacific Southwest region had the smallest total area of tree cover, removing these trees caused the most large-scale damage, reducing vegetation in the Eastern United States.


Professor Swann explained that further research is needed to identify the precise mechanisms involved, but it seemed that Eastern summers became subsequently warmer and harmed plant growth.

“Forest loss is disrupting or changing the flow patterns in the atmosphere that is leading to a slightly different summertime climate in the eastern part of the country,” said Professor Swann. 

“It's very analogous to El Niño or ‘the blob,’ something that's occurring that causes the atmosphere to move around, which causes these warmer or cooler conditions, or wetter and drier conditions, somewhere else.”

Professor Swann added that the climate changes are smaller over land, but still comparable to the weather shifts of an El Niño cycle.

The study also revealed other Western regions, such as the Northern Rockies and the Great Basin region, where vanishing forests would lead to negative repercussions for plant growth in the eastern half of the country.

The study indicates that current forest loss in Western regions is significant enough to trigger changes in plant growth over large regions of the country, even though these changes may be too small to detect.

“There's some pretty extensive, widespread forest loss going on,” said Professor Swann. “The changes we made in the model are bigger, but they're starting to converge with things that we're actually seeing.”

“These results show that we need to start thinking about how altering vegetation in one place can affect plants elsewhere, especially in the context of climate change.”

The research is published in the journal <a href="http://iopscience.iop.org/erl">Environmental Research Letters</a>.

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By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Image Credit: <a href="https://www.fs.fed.us/">US Forest Service</a>

Forest loss in the western US threatens trees across the country

Researchers at the University of Washington (UW) have demonstrated that...

A new study may have solved one of the biggest mysteries surrounding Stonehenge, arguably one of the world’s most famous prehistoric monuments. 

Stonehenge was built around 5,000 years and the construction process was such an undertaking that the monument was erected in stages spanning centuries. 

Researchers are still not sure what purpose Stonehenge served or why it was built in the first place, which only adds to its enigma. 

One of the biggest mysteries behind Stonehenge is how the massive bluestone rocks, believed to be from a quarry in Wales, were transported 140 miles west to the South of England where Stonehenge was built. 

Brian John, a Welsh scientist, has come up with a new theory suggesting that a glacier moved the stones from Wales 5000,000 years. 

John’s new book, The Stonehenge Bluestones, describes his glacier theory and how the stones were already in the area when the Neolithic Britons first decided to erect the stone circles. 

This theory essentially demystifies Stonehenge, which is something that John says has hindered practical scientific research. 

“Over the past 50 years there has been a drift, in Stonehenge studies, from science toward mythology,” John told the <a href="http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-5728911/The-gigantic-stones-Stonehenge-moved-GLACIERS-new-theory-claims.html">Daily Mail</a>. “This has been driven partly by constant media demands for new and spectacular stories about the monument.” 

Previously, it had been thought that the stones were either carried or dragged from Wales, but researchers have been unable to come up with a logical explanation for how Stone Age people moved the stones this way. 

Instead, John’s theory puts the stones in the area at the time the monument was first built, meaning that there might not have been any special significance attached to the stones, only that they were available to use. 


It’s well known that glaciers can drastically <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/melting-glaciers-ocean-floor/">change the landscape</a>, carving out different formations and picking up rocks and debris, which are then deposited miles away from where they were first snagged up by the glacier. 

--

By <a href="mailto:kayvandette@gmail.com">Kay Vandette</a>,<a href="https://www.earth.com/"> Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

New theory suggests Stonehenge was created by glaciers

A new study may have solved one of the biggest...

Smoke from wildfires can have a major impact on air quality, and <a href="https://www.cdc.gov/disasters/wildfires/smoke.html">exposure</a> to particles and fumes from wildfire smoke can cause <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/wildfire-smoke-dangerous-seniors/">respiratory problems</a>, chest pain, headaches, create symptoms that mimic a sinus infection and trigger asthma attacks. 

During fire seasons, it’s recommended to stay on top of air quality alerts and limit exposure to avoid getting sick. 

For wild animals like orangutans, an already critically endangered species, avoiding wildfire smoke during fire season is nearly impossible, and a new study found that smoke is just as harmful to orangutans as it is to humans. 

The study was conducted by researchers from the Department of Anthropology at <a href="https://newbrunswick.rutgers.edu/">Rutgers University-New Brunswick</a> and the <a href="https://coreborneo.wordpress.com/">Tuanan Orangutan Research Station </a>in Borneo and published in the journal Scientific Reports.

Between 1999 and 2015, almost 100,000 Bornean orangutans were lost from intact forests.  

While habitat loss from logging operations and human activities has played a big role in their demise, the sheer number of orangutans who died indicates that habitat loss alone is not the sole driver of population loss. 

The researchers were studying male orangutans in Indonesian Borneo before and after the 2015 annual fire season.

Wendy Erb, the lead author of the study, noticed a few weeks into the season that the male orangutans’ “long call” vocalization, meant to attract females and warn males, sounded different. 

“I thought they sounded raggedy, a little like humans who smoke a lot,” said Erb.

This led Erb to hypothesize that the wildfire smoke was damaging to the health of the orangutans and the researchers then tested to see how smoke inhalation affected the orangutan's health. 

The researchers observed four “flanged” males with large cheek pads and urine was collected every day. During this time the researchers notices the orangutans traveled less, rested more and ate more calories but the analysis of their urine showed they were burning fat. 

Wildfire smoke was the only explanation for the change in the orangutan's behavior and urine because that was the only new element in the in the great apes’ environment. 

Previous research has emphasized the health risks of smoke exposure to humans, and two 2015 studies found that haze from wildfire smoke was responsible for anywhere between 12,000 and 100,000 premature human deaths. 

This study, however, is one of the few to show the negative health impacts of smoke on wildlife respiratory systems. 

Fires in Indonesia have increased dramatically in recent decades the researchers say that more needs to be done to understand how smoke from Indonesia peatland fires affect the ecosystem. 

The researchers next plan to study female and juvenile orangutans to see if there are similar behavioral and biological changes due to the wildfire smoke. 

--

By <a href="mailto:kayvandette@gmail.com">Kay Vandette</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer 

Image Credit: Beth Barrow

Already endangered orangutans face wildfire smoke health risks

Smoke from wildfires can have a major impact on air...

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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



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.

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 



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

Lesotho: Africa's "Kingdom in the Sky"

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Today's Video of the Day from <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



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

The rapid retreat of the Columbia Glacier

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Today's Video of the Day from <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



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

Satellites reveal how Earth's systems are interconnected

[sendtonews key="JbW4VsY53O-1632195-12187" type="single"] Satellites reveal how Earth's systems are interconnected...

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



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



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



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



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



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



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



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Tiger sharks are shifting poleward as temperatures rise

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

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



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



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



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



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



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



Video Credit: ESA&nbsp;



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



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

Melt ponds on the Greenland Ice Sheet

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Today’s Video of the Day from the <a href="https://www.esa.int/">European Space Agency</a> describes 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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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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