Color,Laser,Beams,Fantail,In,A,Haze

Can light itself, perhaps from a laser, cast a shadow? It might seem like a trick, but under certain conditions, the answer to this paradoxical question is "yes." 



Researchers have discovered that a laser beam can act like an opaque object, blocking another beam of light and creating a visible shadow. 



This finding challenges our traditional understanding of how light behaves.



"Laser light casting a shadow was previously thought impossible since light usually passes through other light without interacting," said Raphael A. Abrahao, the research team leader from <a href="https://www.bnl.gov/world/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Brookhaven National Laboratory</a> and the <a href="https://www.uottawa.ca/en" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">University of Ottawa</a>.



His team has opened the door to new ways of thinking about light and its interactions, pushing the boundaries of optics and could lead to innovative technologies that harness light in unexpected ways.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-lasers-lights-and-lunch">Lasers, lights, and lunch</h2>



The idea started over a lunch conversation. 



Some scientists noticed that experimental schematics made with 3D visualization software depicted the shadow of a <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/earth-received-laser-communication-from-10-million-miles-away/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">laser beam</a>, treating it as a solid cylinder rather than accounting for the physics of light. 



This sparked a lively discussion. 



"What started as a funny discussion over lunch led to a conversation on the physics of lasers and the nonlinear optical response of materials," remembered Abrahao. 



"From there, we decided to conduct an experiment to demonstrate the shadow of a <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/impossible-quantum-effects-observed-atoms-positioned-closely-together/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">laser beam</a>."



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-making-laser-light-cast-a-shadow">Making laser light cast a shadow</h2>



To explore this curious idea, the team set up an experiment using a high-power green laser directed through a cube made of standard ruby crystal. 



At the same time, they illuminated the cube with a blue laser from the side. When the green laser entered the ruby, it changed the material's response to the <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/long-term-effects-of-artificial-blue-light-remain-unknown/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">blue wavelength</a>. 



The interaction between the two light sources created a shadow on a screen -- a dark area where the green laser blocked the blue light.



<figure class="wp-block-image aligncenter size-full"><a href="https://www.earth.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/laser-beam-light_casing-shadow_credit-Optica_1m.jpg" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener"><img src="https://www.earth.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/laser-beam-light_casing-shadow_credit-Optica_1s.webp" alt="Researchers showed that a laser beam can sometimes act like a solid object and cast a shadow that is visible to the naked eye. In the picture, the shadow appears as the horizontal line traversing the blue background. Credit: R. A. Abrahao, H. P. N. Morin, J. T. R. Pagé, A. Safari, R. W. Boyd, J. S. Lundeen" class="wp-image-1950880"/></a><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Researchers showed that a laser beam can sometimes act like a solid object and cast a shadow that is visible to the naked eye. In the picture, the shadow appears as the horizontal line traversing the blue background. Credit: R. A. Abrahao, H. P. N. Morin, J. T. R. Pagé, A. Safari, R. W. Boyd, J. S. Lundeen</figcaption></figure>



The effect occurs due to a nonlinear optical process. Nonlinear optics involves light interacting with a material in an intensity-dependent way, allowing one light beam to influence another. 



"Our demonstration of a very counter-intuitive optical effect invites us to reconsider our notion of shadow," Abrahao explained. 



In this case, the green laser increased the optical absorption of the blue laser in the ruby crystal, creating a region where less blue light passed through -- essentially, a shadow.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-very-cool-but-why-does-it-matter">Very cool, but why does it matter?</h2>



Nonlinear optics is a field that studies how light behaves in materials under high-intensity conditions. 



When light is intense enough, it can change the properties of the material it passes through, affecting how other light waves move through that material. 



This is different from linear optics, where light beams pass through each other without interaction.



"Our understanding of shadows has developed hand-in-hand with our understanding of light and optics," Abrahao noted. 



This new finding could prove useful in various applications such as <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/bose-einstein-condensate-bec-rare-form-quantum-matter-created-with-molecules/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">optical switching</a> -- devices in which light controls the presence of another light -- or technologies that require precise control of light transmission, like high-power lasers. 



It could also impact the development of optical computing, where light is used instead of electricity to process information.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-measuring-laser-light-s-shadow">Measuring laser light's shadow</h2>



The researchers measured the shadow's contrast based on the laser beam's power, finding a maximum contrast of approximately 22%. 



That's similar to the contrast of a tree's shadow on a sunny day. They also developed a theoretical model that accurately predicted the shadow contrast. 



This alignment between experiment and theory strengthens the validity of their findings.



The ability to control one light beam with another could lead to advances in <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/new-data-transmission-speed-record-set-by-scientists-using-optical-cables/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">optical communication</a> and signal processing. 



For instance, optical switches that use light instead of electronic signals could operate at much higher speeds and with less energy loss. 



This discovery might also contribute to the development of new types of lasers with adjustable properties for use in medicine, manufacturing, or scientific research.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-what-happens-next">What happens next?</h2>



"This discovery expands our understanding of light-matter interactions and opens up new possibilities for utilizing light in ways we hadn’t considered before," Abrahao concluded. 



The team plans to investigate other materials and laser wavelengths that can produce similar effects. They are curious to see how different combinations might enhance or alter the shadow effect.



The notion that light can cast a shadow on light challenges fundamental ideas in physics. It invites scientists and engineers to rethink how we can manipulate light for advanced technologies. 



This discovery is a reminder that even well-established concepts can be revisited and that curiosity can lead to surprising insights.



From a casual conversation to a laboratory breakthrough, the journey of this discovery highlights the importance of questioning assumptions. The shadow of a laser beam is just one example of how much more there is to learn.



The full study was published in the journal <a href="https://opg.optica.org/optica/fulltext.cfm?uri=optica-11-11-1549&amp;id=563468" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Optica</a>.



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If shadows are created by light, how can light cast a shadow?

Can light itself, perhaps from a laser, cast a shadow? It might seem like a trick, but under certain conditions, the answer to this paradoxical question is "yes." Researchers have discovered that a laser beam can act like an opaque object, blocking another beam of light and creating a visible shadow. This finding challenges our traditional understanding of how light behaves. "Laser light casting a shadow was previously thought impossible since light usually passes through other light without interacting," said Raphael A. Abrahao, the research team leader...

Forensic genealogy is bringing new life to a hobby that’s been around for more than a century. Crime technicians in California and an innovative company in Virginia have cracked one cold case after another since the technique was first used to track a suspect in the 40-year-old East Area Rapist serial murders in April of this year.

But the new technique is raising some ethical questions about the use of commercial DNA tests. Those questions are about to be amplified as computer scientists work to make searching public DNA-sharing databases easier for law enforcement officials.

“We think when we upload DNA that it's our information, but it's not. It's the information of everyone who is biologically related to us,” Toronto-based family history research Julia Creet told <a href="http://dailymail.com/">DailyMail.com</a>.

In April, investigators arrested Joseph DeAngelo on suspicion of committing more than 50 rapes and at least 13 murders across California in the 1970s and 1980s. They announced that they’d used an open source DNA site called <a href="https://www.gedmatch.com/">GEDMatch</a> and forensic genealogy to home in on a suspect.

Police had been tracking the East Area Rapist – also known as the Original Night Stalker, Visalia Ransacker and Golden State Killer, among other nicknames – since the early ‘70s, when a series of burglaries were attributed to the suspect. 

They connected the crime sprees in the early 2000s using DNA, but made little headway until they used DNA evidence from one of the crime scenes to create a genetic profile similar to the ones produced by personal DNA tests like <a href="https://www.23andme.com/">23andMe</a>, <a href="https://www.myheritage.com/">MyHeritage</a> and <a href="https://www.ancestry.com/dna/">AncestryDNA</a>. They uploaded the results to GEDMatch, then used the potential relatives the site turned up to build a family tree leading back to their suspect.

Since then, investigators have also named a suspect in the NorCal Rapist series. Across the country in Reston, Virginia, Parabon NanoLabs has used forensic genealogy to crack another dozen or so cold cases.

The technique used by genealogists to hunt criminals has been used by adoptees seeking their birth parents for years. But as law enforcement officers arrest suspects and identify John and Jane Does, some are questioning the ethics involved in personal DNA testing.

While AncestryDNA and 23andMe require a subpoena before they will share data with law enforcement, the companies allow users to download their raw data. That information can be voluntarily uploaded to sites like GEDMatch, a public site that anyone can access. Because the two companies don’t share their databases, users looking for additional family members often upload their raw data to other sites.

Those ethical questions are only becoming more urgent as researchers develop a new algorithm that can make finding criminals with forensic genealogy easier.

“There's a legacy problem in that so many DNA profiles have been collected with this older genetic marker system that's been used by law enforcement since the 1990s,” senior author Noah Rosenberg of <a href="https://www.stanford.edu/">Stanford University</a> told the Daily Mail. “The system is not designed for the more challenging queries that are currently of interest, such as identifying people represented in a DNA mixture or identifying relatives of the contributor of a DNA sample.”

So far, in order to use GEDMatch and other public DNA sharing sites, technicians have had to retest DNA using the same methods as commercial companies. New computer technology is being tested, however, that would convert the data stored in systems like <a href="https://www.fbi.gov/services/laboratory/biometric-analysis/codis">CODIS</a> to a file usable for forensic genealogy.

A team of researchers from <a href="https://www.stanford.edu/">Stanford University</a>, the <a href="https://www.ucdavis.edu/">University of California, Davis</a> and the <a href="https://umich.edu/">University of Michigan</a> found that they could develop an algorithm that would correctly find DNA relatives for suspects in criminal cases. The algorithm works even though crime labs test far fewer points on the genome than commercial companies do – and even when there is no overlap between the two – the researchers reported in the journal <a href="https://www.cell.com/cell/fulltext/S0092-8674(18)31180-2#%20">Cell</a>.

“We wanted to examine to what extent these different types of databases can communicate with each other,” Rosenberg said. “It's important for the public to be aware that information between these two types of genetic data can be connected, often in unexpected ways.”

Another recent study, published in the journal <a href="http://science.sciencemag.org/content/early/2018/10/10/science.aau4832">Science</a>, has found that the forensic genealogy technique used to track down DeAngelo and other suspects can be used to identify most white Americans (the most common customers among personal DNA testing companies).

That’s why researchers like Creet are now reminding DNA testers that they’re not just sharing their own unique genetic code. They’re also giving companies and potentially law enforcement access to the DNA they got from their parents, grandparents and more distant ancestors – DNA that could be shared by living people they’ve never even met.

“Your results aren't just about you, they're about everyone you're related to, which is how the police can use your results to track down a criminal who is distantly related to you,” she told the Mail. “We're not just talking about personal privacy; we're talking about relational privacy.”

And right now, because the use of forensic genealogy for law enforcement is so new, there are also questions about when and how police should use it.

“Do you want to say that law enforcement should only use these kinds of data to find people who you suspect are perpetrators of very heinous violent crimes: rape, murder, etc.?” Dr. Ellen Clayton of <a href="https://www.vanderbilt.edu/">Vanderbilt University</a> said.

Few would argue against using DNA to find violent serial murderers or the families of unidentified murder victims. But what about suspects in non-violent or petty crimes? DNA technology has already improved to the point where “touch DNA” can be used to create a suspect’s profile.

“The use of DNA databases to identify family members who are not themselves in the database raises serious and troubling questions about genetic privacy,” Natalie Ram, a law professor at the <a href="http://www.ubalt.edu/">University of Baltimore</a>, told <a href="https://www.pbs.org/newshour/science/dna-ancestry-searches-can-now-identify-most-white-americans-heres-why-thats-legally-questionable">PBS</a>. “Individuals who are not directly a part of a database are findable as a byproduct of biology, and not through any voluntary conduct of their own.”

Forensic genealogy can crack cold cases, but where to draw the line?

Forensic genealogy is bringing new life to a hobby that’s...

An experiment on mice in China has one fertility expert looking toward a future of pregnancy without men.

Dr. David Molloy, a <a href="http://www.gynaecologymolloy.com/">fertility expert from Australia</a>, believes that women will be able to reproduce without male input within the next few decades. 

“It would mean that heterosexual couples where the man has low-quality sperm, and women couples, can have their own genetic child,” Molloy told the <a href="https://www.couriermail.com.au/">Courier-Mail</a>. “I think it will be possible to fertilise an egg with a set of half chromosomes and targeted gene editing.”

The <a href="https://www.dailymail.co.uk/">Daily Mail</a> reported Molloy’s comments just a few weeks after researchers at the <a href="http://english.cas.cn/">Chinese Academy of Sciences</a> reported that they’d used gene editing to create 29 healthy baby mice using stem cells from female mice alone.

The baby mice grew up into healthy adults and had their own healthy offspring.

The experiment raises hopes for pregnancy without men, giving hope that two women could have their own biological children someday. The team of researchers used haploid stem cells, which contain half the number of chromosomes that other cells do. The team used <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/prenatal-gene-editing-fatal-disease/">CRISPR–Cas9 gene editing</a> to merge two haploid stem cells, mimicking the way reproductive cells merge to create a fetus.

However, the experiment was less hopeful for men. The scientists were able to use the sperm from two male mice to create living offspring, but the infant mice survived no more than 48 hours. Several had “gruesome” mutations, the Mail reported.

That’s one of several reasons some scientists not involved with the experiment are cautioning people to wait. As fascinating as the prospect of pregnancy without men may seem, more testing and rigorous studies are needed to ensure that the method is safe.

“The amount of work that is necessary to convince us that doing this in humans will do no harm is enormous, and is very much ahead of us,” Fyodor Urnov, deputy director of Altius Institute for Biomedical Sciences in Seattle, told <a href="https://www.scientificamerican.com/">Scientific American</a>. Urnov was not involved in the research. 

While the experiment gives hope to same-sex couples who want to someday have their own biological children, there is more work ahead before it is a viable possibility, researchers said.

“The concept is intriguing for human reproduction, particularly for same-sex couples, but there are far too many uncertainties at present to attempt such an approach for many years to come,” Robert Norman, a reproductive expert at the <a href="https://www.adelaide.edu.au/">University of Adelaide</a>, told the Mail.

Some scientists see pregnancy without men in future

An experiment on mice in China has one fertility expert...

<a href="https://www.earth.com/news/carbon-capture-profitable-business/">Carbon capture</a> is becoming an incredibly important component to consider when developing methods to reduce emissions and mitigate climate change. Catalyst in converting coal to fuel could help with carbon capture

Even with a shift towards renewable and sustainable energy, coal has remained a dominant energy source. Experts predict that coal will continue to serve as one of the world’s main energy sources over the next few decades and with that, carbon emissions will continue to accumulate in the atmosphere. 

Finding a way to capture carbon in the early stages of fuel conversion could help keep emissions in check. 

Researchers from the <a href="http://www.nicenergy.com/en/">National Institute of Clean-and-Low-Carbon Energy</a> in Beijing and <a href="https://www.tue.nl/en/">Eindhoven University of Technology</a> have developed a new kind of catalyst for coal to fuel conversion that has a great deal of promise in reducing fuel costs and power plant emissions. 

A study detailing the catalyst and the researchers’ methods was published in the journal Science Advances. 

A large majority of coal is used in CTL, the process that converts coal to liquid fuel. CTL starts changing coal to syngas, a mixture of carbon monoxide and hydrogen. A process called the Fisher-Tropsch process converts the syngas to a liquid fuel.Catalyst in converting coal to fuel could help with carbon capture 

Converting coal to liquid fuels with this process creates a great deal of unwanted CO2 as a byproduct. As much as 30 percent of carbon monoxide is converted into CO2 in CTL. 

For this study, the researchers worked on finding a better process for CTL that produces less CO2 and makes carbon capture easier. 

CO2 release in CTL is caused by impure iron-based catalysts according to the researchers. Catalysts are crucial to jumpstarting chemical reactions, like converting coal to fuel, and so the researchers created a pure catalyst using epsilon iron carbide.

Epsilon iron carbide generates almost no CO2 during the Fischer-Tropsch process and the researchers say this could reduce operating costs for CTL plants by 2.5 million euros per year. 


Previously released CO2 is also easier to remove using the new catalyst. 

The study offers a cleaner solution to coal CTL for countries that prioritize fossil fuels and paves the way for new advances in energy conversion in the future. 

“We are aware that our new technology facilitates the use of coal-derived fossil fuels,” said  Emiel Hensen, a lead researcher for the study. “However, it is very likely that coal-rich countries will keep on exploiting their coal reserves in the decades ahead. We want to help them do this in the most sustainable way.” 

--

By <a href="mailto:kayvandette@gmail.com">Kay Vandette</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Catalyst in converting coal to fuel could help with carbon capture

Carbon capture is becoming an incredibly important component to consider...

The enormous stone heads on <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/society-easter-island-sophisticated/">Easter Island</a> have puzzled scientists – and the general public – for years. Many conspiracy theories have been postulated for what purpose these heads may have served. Now, a new study may have just found the answer.

A team of archaeologists from <a href="https://www.binghamton.edu/">Binghamton University</a> and <a href="https://www.suny.edu/">State University at New York</a> believe that the ancient inhabitants of Rapa Nui (aka Easter Island) may have used the stone heads to mark sources of fresh water.  The researchers measured the salinity of coastal water around the island, and found areas close to heads’ locations near the coast that had a salt concentration low enough for humans to drink.

Coastal groundwater discharge makes it possible for humans to drink fresh water where it comes out near the coast of the island – although it may first appear to be too close to shore to be drinkable.

“'Now that we know more about the location of freshwater, however, the location of these monuments and other features makes tremendous sense: they are positioned where freshwater is immediately available,” says Carl Lipo, a Binghamton University professor of anthropology.

There are accounts of Europeans first encounters with the island natives in the 18th century in which they are described to have drank seawater with no ill effects. But because the human body is unable to process seawater, the research team believes these accounts support their groundwater discharge theory.

“This information ultimately sheds light on the conditions that drove and enabled these communities to work together to achieve their feats of engineering,” says Lipo. “By gaining knowledge about community scale behavior, we can gain insights into the general conditions necessary for group-level cooperation – whether in the past or in contemporary society.”

Finding freshwater was extremely important to the lost civilization of Rapa Nui, as their society contained thousands of people, and the island quickly soaked up any rainfall. “The porous volcanic soils quickly absorb rain, resulting in a lack of streams and rivers,” explains Lipo. “Fortunately, water beneath the ground flows downhill and ultimately exits the ground directly at the point at which the porous subterranean rock meets the ocean. When tides are low, this results in the flow of freshwater directly into the sea. Humans can thus take advantage of these sources of freshwater by capturing the water at these points.”

According to the researchers, these points were important enough for the natives to build massive stone statues that indicated their location. And although that may seem like a whole lot of extra effort to us now, they couldn’t exactly turn on a faucet to get the water they needed. 

--

By <a href="mailto:certz@earth.com">Connor Ertz</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Scientists discover what the Easter Island stone heads may have meant

The enormous stone heads on Easter Island have puzzled scientists...

The retina is the light-sensitive area at the back of our eye. It contains photosensitive cells called rods and cones that translate an image into electrical neural impulses through the optic nerve to our <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/switch-turns-brain-off-sleep/">brain</a>, creating the image you’re seeing now.

Now normally, retinas develop and grow within the confines of our eyeballs – which shouldn’t come as a surprise. But biologists at <a href="https://www.jhu.edu/">Johns Hopkins University</a> have recently grown human retinas from scratch in petri dishes, helping them determine how the cells that allow us to see in color are made.

The study, published in the journal <a href="https://www.sciencemag.org/">Science</a>, focuses on the cells that allow people to see blue, red, and green – the three cone photoreceptors in the human eye. Most vision research is done with mice or fish, but neither of these species have dynamic daytime and color vision like us humans. And since they obviously couldn’t use human models, the research team created the human eyes they needed using stem cells.

“Everything we examine looks like a normal developing eye, just growing in a dish,” said Robert Johnston, a developmental biologist at Johns Hopkins. “You have a model system that you can manipulate without studying humans directly.”

It took months for the cells to grow and become complete retinas. During this time, the researchers observed that blue-detecting cells materialized first, followed by the red- and green-detecting cells. They also determined that the key to the molecular switch was the ebb and flow of thyroid hormone. But the level of this hormone was not controlled by the thyroid gland – as it obviously wasn’t in the dish with the retina – rather, the retina controlled its own levels of thyroid hormone.

Johnston’s team was then able to manipulate whether the cells became blue, or red and green by adjusting the amounts of thyroid hormone. Through this, they could make retinas that – were they a part of a complete human eye – would only see blue or only see green and red.

This finding regarding thyroid hormone makes sense, as pre-term babies who have lowered thyroid hormone levels also have a higher incidence of vision disorders. 

“If we can answer what leads a cell to its terminal fate, we are closer to being able to restore color vision for people who have damaged photoreceptors,” says Kiara Eldred, a graduate student at Johns Hopkins. “This is a really beautiful question, both visually and intellectually – what is it that allows us to see color?”

Their work could be the foundation for developing new therapies for eye diseases such as color blindness and macular degeneration. Furthermore, the research team has established lab-generated “organoids” as a model that can be used to study human development on a cellular level. 

Johnston goes even further when he says, “What’s really pushing the limit here is that these organoids take nine months to develop just like a human baby. So what we’re really studying is fetal development.”

--

By <a href="mailto:certz@earth.com">Connor Ertz</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Scientists reveal the hormone that allows us to see in color

The retina is the light-sensitive area at the back of...

A new report from Johannes Kohl, a postdoctoral fellow at <a href="https://www.harvard.edu/">Harvard University</a>, has won the grand prize in the annual international competition for The Eppendorf &amp; Science Prize for Neurobiology. His research depicts how a cluster of neurons controls parenting behavior in mice. 

Kohl assessed neurons located in the medial preoptic area (MPOA) of the hypothalamus. These neurons contain a molecule called Galanin, which has been shown to be crucial in <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/workplace-incivility-harsher-parenting/">parenting</a> behavior for both male and female mice. Through the use of mouse models and imaging techniques that recorded the activity of specific neurons in rodents, Kohl investigated the underlying processes responsible for the MPOA neurons’ ability to control complex behavior.

“I started my project by tracing the connections that MPOA neurons expressing galanin (or MPOAGal) form with the rest of the brain,” explains Kohl. 

He determined that MPOAGal neurons are organized into distinct subpopulations – or pools – each of which projects into a different area of the brain. Each pool had access to incoming information from about 10 brain areas.

Kohl then wanted to see the effect neuronal pools have on parenting behavior, which he did by identifying the pools that were most highly activated when mice interacted with their pups. He found that, while the entire MPOAGal population became active during all actions of parenting, some individual pools were activated during discrete parenting events, which suggests that they control specific parts of mice parenting.

Through further assessment, Kohl found that activating certain neuronal pools would increase parental actions such as grooming of their pups and checking on the pups – or even suppressing interactions with other adult mice, quelling non-parental social behaviors. 

“This research is significant because it sheds light on the brain circuits that shape such important traits like parenting behavior,” says senior <a href="https://www.sciencemag.org/">Science</a> editor Dr. Peter Stern.

And although Kohl states that "it is too early to know whether these findings are directly applicable to humans – where behavior is considerably more complex and subject to many additional social or cultural influences, for example," his findings indicate major progress in determining how a social behavior is wired into the brain.

Human parental care can be affected by stress and mental illnesses like postpartum depression and anxiety. Better understanding how physiological states and environmental factors influence these circuits could lead to improved treatments. 

--

By <a href="mailto:certz@earth.com">Connor Ertz</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Award-winning research reveals brain activity that shapes parenting

A new report from Johannes Kohl, a postdoctoral fellow at...

Accurately predicting the extent of <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/sea-level-rise-tsunami-flooding/">sea level rise</a> is a difficult task, as researchers are continually faced with new challenges, variables, and inconsistencies when working to model a warming world. 

There are so many different factors that influence water levels, but climate models must find better ways to accurately estimate sea level rise for the at-risk coastal communities. 

Researchers from <a href="https://www.rutgers.edu/">Rutgers University</a>, <a href="http://www.ntu.edu.sg/">Nanyang Technological University,</a> and <a href="https://www.bc.edu/">Boston College</a> teamed up to conduct a thorough review of methods, data, and tools used to currently calculate sea level rise driven by greenhouse gas emissions.

The review, published in the Annual Review of Environment and Resources, provides an expansive look at the many different underlying mechanisms that drive sea level rise and provides a more accurate assessment of the future of oceans. 

“There's much that's known about past and future sea-level change, and much that is uncertain. But uncertainty isn't a reason to ignore the challenge,” said Robert E. Kopp, a co-author of the study. “Carefully characterizing what's known and what's uncertain is crucial to managing the risks sea-level rise poses to coasts around the world.”

Since the beginning of the century, average sea-level has risen by about 0.2 feet. Factoring in a moderate emissions scenario, the review shows that different analyses estimate a sea level rise of 1.4 to 2.8 feet by the year 2100, 2.8 to 5.4 more feet by 2150, and 6 to 14 feet by 2300. 

It’s possible that sea level could eventually rise by 50 feet by 2300 if emissions go unchecked, however it is unlikely that sea level rise between 2000 and 2050 will increase beyond 18 inches. 

Eleven percent of the world’s population live in areas at or below 33 feet above sea level, and so rising sea levels could be devastating for certain coastal communities. 

The researchers reviewed different methods for projecting future sea level rise and reconstructing past changes in sea level which can better inform future climate models. 

The major takeaway from the review is that a majority of sea-level rise since 1975 has been due to human activities, and taking a closer look at rising water levels and climate models could provide more accurate estimates and lead to new insights. 

--

By <a href="mailto:kayvandette@gmail.com">Kay Vandette</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer 

Paid for by <a href="http://earth.com">Earth.com</a>

Sea level rise inevitable, but just how high will it get?

Accurately predicting the extent of sea level rise is a...

Fertilizer runoff from farms can leach into local watersheds, contaminate ecosystems and is a major contributor to the <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2018/mar/22/dead-zone-gulf-of-mexico-decades-recover-study">Gulf of Mexico’s dead zone,</a> an oxygen-deprived area larger than the state of New Jersey. 

Even though farmers are aware of the environmental impacts of <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/waste-polluting-drinking-water/">fertilizer</a>, particularly nitrogen, their crops and livelihoods depend on it. 

For corn farmers, a nitrogen-rich fertilizer is sprayed on newly planted seeds and as the corn is growing. Without this process, their harvests and health of their crop would suffer. 

But fertilizer is expensive, and finding a better alternative would not only benefit the agriculture industry but it would also help reduce nitrogen pollution.

<a href="https://www.pivotbio.com/">Pivot Bio</a>, a biotech company in Berkeley, California, may have found a solution to the fertilizer pollution problem by creating a microbial treatment that effectively allows the plant to self-fertilize. 

According to a report from <a href="https://www.wired.com/story/farmers-can-now-buy-designer-microbes-to-replace-fertilizer/?mbid=email_onsiteshare">Wired</a>, the company recently announced its commercial launch of a biological nitrogen fixation which will be available for farmers in 2019. Pivot says the product adheres to a plant’s roots and feeds the crop the essential nutrients it needs. 

The environmental implications of a self-fertilizing crop are significant, and Pivot says that if all the corn farmers in the United States took advantage of the treatment, it would equate to removing the emissions of one million cars. 

To create a self-fertilizing corn plant, Pivot Bio researchers looked to bacteria that were already present on corn roots that had the ability to create nitrogen for the plants encoded in their genes. 

However, the bacteria’s nitrogen genes became dormant over time because of farmers using fertilizer in their fields. 

 “What we’re trying to do is actually reawaken this function that the microbe has had all along,” says Temme.

The Pivot researchers collected soil samples from different agricultural operations along the Midwest where corn is a major crop and planted corn into the soil samples. 

After the corn plants had a chance to take advantage of any beneficial microbes in the soil, the researchers ground up the roots of the plant and created a microbial treatment that creates its own nitrogen using gene editing technology to rewrite gene expression of the bacteria. 

Pivot is in the process of testing the liquid probiotic on several farms across the United States, and while the corn treated with the bacteria has yet to be harvested, the researchers are already seeing promise with the treatment. 

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By <a href="mailto:kayvandette@gmail.com">Kay Vandette</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Self-fertilizing crops are better for farmers and environment

Fertilizer runoff from farms can leach into local watersheds, contaminate...

For climate change deniers, it seems like all the facts and studies in the world aren’t enough to change their mind. Scientific consensus has been on the side of human-influenced global warming for decades, and still many pundits and members of the public remain staunch in their refusal to accept the facts. Could there be a better way to convince these deniers of the real threats of <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/humans-driving-climate-change/">climate change</a>?

A collection titled “Confronting Climate Change in the Age of Denial” was recently published in the journal <a href="https://journals.plos.org/plosbiology/">PLOS Biology</a>, and explores the idea of using stories to communicate scientific evidence regarding climate change. The authors offer both caveats and possible solutions for telling evidence-based climate change stories that may be able to change some minds.

This publication features two articles by social scientists, offering different perspectives on enlisting narratives to convey climate change science. An additional article is by marine mammal experts who depict the looming impacts of climate change on wildlife in the Arctic. 

“Marine mammals are ecosystem sentinels, capable of reflecting ocean variability through changes in their ecology and body condition,” says Sue Moore, a biological oceanographer, and Randall Reeves, a marine mammal biologist, in “Tracking Arctic Marine Mammal Resilience in an Era of Rapid Ecosystem Alteration.”

The scientists present a framework that combines ecological and physiological indicators to traditional demographics in an effort to propose a more comprehensive view of population health of certain species. Their hope is that, through this framework, they can create “a path toward sustainability through improved prediction, more precaution, and wiser policy in this era of global environmental change.”

The first article by social scientists, “Climate Communication for Biologists: When a Picture Can Tell a Thousand Words,” was written by psychologists Stephan Lewandowsky and Lorraine Whitmarsh. The authors assess strategies for the implementation of anecdotes and images to create a narrative that captures the public’s attention without losing any scientific accuracy.

A second article titled "(Escaping) the Paradox of Scientific Storytelling,” by science communication experts Michael Dahlstrom and Dietram Scheufele, examines the peril and promise of using stories to communicate science. The authors argue that using stories to try to convey knowledge may ultimately be unsuccessful, as they state that increased scientific literacy does not lead to a greater acceptance of science. They believe that it may make more sense to tell stories about how scientific knowledge is produced instead.

“In the end, using storytelling to primarily build scientific support through knowledge, attitude, or behavior goals without also engaging scientific reasoning might not help science in the long run,” the authors say. 

This collection is an effort to expand our strategies for conveying the effects of climate change to an unforgiving audience. In the end, it may take more than numbers and facts.

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By <a href="mailto:certz@earth.com">Connor Ertz</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Image Credit: Mike Lewelling, National Park Service

Paid for by Earth.com

Breaking down the science helps chip away at climate change denial

For climate change deniers, it seems like all the facts...

Around 20 years ago, researchers led by Dr. Clifford B. Saper of the <a href="https://www.bidmc.org/">Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center </a>(BIDMC) identified a set of nerve cells that they believed to be responsible for switching the brain off and allowing it to sleep. Through a study on mice, the research team has now confirmed that that these cells are essential to normal <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/sleeping-better-decisions/">sleep</a>.

The investigation was focused on a small cluster of neurons situated in the anterior hypothalamus called the ventrolateral preoptic nucleus (VLPO).

“Our paper is the first test of what happens when you activate the VLPO neurons,” said Dr. Saper. “The findings support our original observation that the VLPO cells are essential to normal sleep.”

Dr. Saper's team artificially activated the VLPO neurons in genetically engineered mice using several different tools. For example, in a process called optogenetics, the scientists activated the neuron cells using a laser light beam to make them fire. 

The team also used a chemical to selectively activate the VLPO neurons. In both experiments, activating these cells caused sleep among the animals, confirming the earlier findings by the experts. The researchers found that these neurons are active during sleep and that damage to them causes insomnia.

“We found that when the VLPO cells are stimulated one to four times per second, they fire each time they are stimulated, resulting in sleep,” said Dr. Saper. “But if you stimulate them faster than that, they begin to fail to fire and eventually stop firing altogether. We learned our colleagues in the other lab were stimulating the cells 10 times per second, which was actually shutting them off.”


In addition, the researchers established that activating the VLPO cells caused a drop in body temperature. Scientists already knew that warm temperatures activate VLPO cells, and that body temperatures fall slightly during sleep - when the VLPO neurons are firing.

“We thought that this is why people need to curl up under a warm blanket to get to sleep,” said Dr. Saper.

The experts ultimately found, however, that body temperature in the mice fell by as much as five or six degrees Celsius upon continued activation of the cells. Dr. Saper's team believes that prolonged firing of these same neurons may be responsible for the excessive sleep and drop in body temperature which occur in animals that hibernate. 

The study is published in the journal <a href="https://www.nature.com/ncomms/">Nature Communications</a>.

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By <a href="http://csextpn@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Scientists identify the switch that turns the brain off for sleep

Around 20 years ago, researchers led by Dr. Clifford B....

NASA's Voyager 2 probe is currently moving toward interstellar space at around 11 billion miles, or 17.7 billion kilometers, from Earth. This is more than 118 times the distance from our planet to the Sun.

Voyager 2 has been traveling through the outermost layer of the heliosphere - a vast bubble around the Sun and the planets dominated by solar material and <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/magnetic-field-shields-solar-wind/">magnetic fields</a> - since 2007.

Voyager Project Scientist Ed Stone is based at <a href="http://www.caltech.edu/">California Institute of Technology</a> (Caltech).

“None of us knew, when we launched 40 years ago, that anything would still be working, and continuing on this pioneering journey,” said Stone. “The most exciting thing they find in the next five years is likely to be something that we didn't know was out there to be discovered.”

When the spacecraft reaches the outer boundary of the heliosphere, known as the heliopause, it will be the second man-made object to enter interstellar space, following Voyager 1.

Between early and late August, the Cosmic Ray Subsystem instrument on Voyager 2 has measured about a five percent increase in the rate of cosmic rays hitting the spacecraft. In addition, the Low-Energy Charged Particle instrument has detected a similar increase in higher-energy cosmic rays.

Scientists expect that Voyager 2 will experience an increase in the rate of cosmic rays as it approaches and crosses the boundary of the heliosphere. Voyager 1 recorded similar activity in May of 2012, which turned out to be just about three months before the spacecraft crossed the heliopause.

“We're seeing a change in the environment around Voyager 2, there's no doubt about that,” said Stone. “We're going to learn a lot in the coming months, but we still don't know when we'll reach the heliopause. We're not there yet - that's one thing I can say with confidence.”
--
By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Image Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech

After 40 years of travel, Voyager 2 approaches interstellar space

NASA's Voyager 2 probe is currently moving toward interstellar space...

It’s no surprise that a diet high in fat can cause a number of health issues, both short- and long-term. For years, scientists have stressed the importance of supplementing your diet with plenty of fruits and vegetables. Now, a new study has found that a hormone in plants may reverse the brain damage caused by a high-fat diet.

Researchers from <a href="https://www.uji.es/">Jaume I University</a> in Castelló de la Plana, Spain, fed mice a fatty diet, causing them to develop inflammation of the nervous system – similar to what happens in Alzheimer’s patients. However, after the mice had their diets supplemented with abscisic acid – a plant hormone – the damage was reversed. It is believed that abscisic acid reduces inflammation in the region of the <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/brain-scans-skill-level/">brain</a> that is responsible for storing memories.

The study – published in the journal <a href="https://link.springer.com/journal/12035">Molecular Neurobiology</a> – assessed how insulin levels and expression of genes associated with inflammation in the nervous system were affected in mice. They found that the rodents who consumed a fatty diet had reduced expression of an insulin receptor in the hippocampus. The hippocampus is a region of the brain associated with emotions and memory – in particular, long-term memories.

“We have been able to prove that the expression of proteins required for the proper functioning of insulin decreases in neuro-inflammatory situations induced by a high-fat diet,” says study author Alberto Ribes Navarro. But when the researchers supplemented the rodents’ diets with abscisic acid, the inflammation was reversed. “With the addition of abscisic acid to the high-fat diet it is possible to recover the expression of these genes, even reaching normal levels,” adds Ribes Navarro.

In plants, abscisic acid plays a role in seed development, flower growth, and improving plant tolerance to harsh conditions – such as drought and cold. 

Moving forward, the researchers plan to investigate the common causes of diseases like dementia and insulin resistance (type 2 diabetes), as inflammation of the nervous system is linked to both insulin resistance and dementia. 

--

By <a href="mailto:certz@earth.com">Connor Ertz</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Brain damage from a fatty diet reversed using hormone from plants

It’s no surprise that a diet high in fat can...

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Today’s Video of the Day from the <a href="https://www.esa.int/">European Space Agency</a> features Nushagak Bay, a large estuary in southwest Alaska. Nushagak runs mainly north to south and exits in Bristol Bay, a large body of water in the Bering Sea.



"The bay is primarily fed by the Nushagak River, which begins in the Alaska Range and flows southwest approximately 450 km. The bay is also fed by several additional rivers including the Wood, Igushik, Snake and Weary rivers," says ESA.



"The dark colors of the Nushagak River are most likely due to tannins or lignins (chemical substances found in plants). Tannins and lignins from roots, leaves, seeds, bark and soil can leach into the water and give it a brown or even black colour. The sediments then flow southwards where it is mixed with the bluer waters of the bay."



Video/ Image Credit: ESA



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

Nushagak Bay in southwest Alaska

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Today's Video of the Day from the <a href="https://www.acs.org/">American Chemical Society</a> (ACS) reveals that proteins on flu viruses are actually flexible, tilting and waving in a “breath-like” motion. According to the experts, these proteins could be used to better defend against the flu.



"The main antigenic targets of influenza virus are two surface glycoproteins, hemagglutinin (HA) and neuraminidase (NA). Whereas the structural and dynamical properties of both glycoproteins have been studied previously, the understanding of their plasticity in the whole-virion context is fragmented," wrote the researchers.



To investigate, the team conducted detailed simulations of the influenza A H1N1 virion, or the swine flu. The experts concluded that the visualizations show many new vulnerable states of flu viruses, which could improve future vaccines and antiviral drugs.



Video/ Image Credit: American Chemical Society&nbsp;



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



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Flu viruses are more flexible than expected

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



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



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



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



Video/Image Credit: ESA&nbsp;



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

Lake Trasimeno in Central Italy

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



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



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



Video Credit: American Chemical Society&nbsp;



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



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Detecting mercury contamination with the tap of a finger

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Today’s Video of the Day from the <a href="https://www.esa.int/">European Space Agency</a> features Kainji Lake, a reservoir on the Niger River.



In 1968, Kainji Lake was created by the construction of the Kainji Dam. The Niger River, the third longest in Africa, enters the lake in the north.&nbsp;



According to <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/rivers-in-the-american-west-are-a-lifesaving-resource-for-birds/">ESA</a>, the creation of the lake submerged Foge Island and the town of Bussa and permanently flooded other riverine settlements, leaving around 50,000 people displaced.&nbsp;



Large parts of Foge Island are temporarily exposed during low water tides, and the land is often used by migrating fishermen. Kainji Dam is a dam across the Niger River in Niger State of Central Nigeria. 



Wild mammals occur at relatively low densities due to illegal hunting. Lake Kainji has suffered a dramatic decline as a fishery due to the high numbers of artisanal and subsistence fisherfolk using the lake. It has been suggested that a period of closure, together with controlled fishing rights may help improve fish stocks.



Kainji Lake National Park is the oldest of its kind in Nigeria. The park contains three distinct areas: a part of the Kainji Lake, the Borgu Game Reserve to the west of the lake, and the Zugurma Game Reserve to the southeast. The park is home to around 65 mammal species, 350 bird species, and 30 species of reptiles and amphibians. 



Video/ Image Credit: European Space Agency&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.

Kainji Lake in north central Nigeria

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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



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.

Designing crops that can beat the heat

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



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



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



Video Credit: ACS Reactions



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



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

How does salt makes things taste better?

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



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



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



Video/ Image Credit: ESA



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



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

Santiago, Chile in South America

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

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



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



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



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



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



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



Video Credit: Johns Hopkins&nbsp;



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



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

Interactive map of the universe includes 200,000 galaxies

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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

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



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



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



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



Video Credit: ESA&nbsp;



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



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The city of Dublin on Ireland's east coast

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



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



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



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



Video/ Image Credit: ESA



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



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

The province of Zaragoza in northeast Spain

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Today's Video of the Day from <a href="https://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



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.

Wetlands are a major source of methane emissions

[sendtonews key="f8fukm28Vz-2491833-12187" type="single"] Today's Video of the Day from NASA...

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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

[sendtonews key="0879czfG3k-1785905-12187" type="single"] Today’s Video of the Day from NASA...

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



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



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



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



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



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



Video &amp; Image Credit: ESA



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



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

The Pyrenees Mountains in southwest Europe

[sendtonews key="6HyfrAJTBI-1831843-12187" type="single"] Today’s Video of the Day from the...

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Today’s Video of the Day from <a href="https://www.stowers.org/">Stowers Institute for Medical Research</a> describes why experts are studying zebrafish to gain a better understanding of how the immune system responds to injury. Zebrafish have the ability to repair and regenerate organs.



“Organ regeneration offers an exciting opportunity for studying the immune system and to inquire why some species can regenerate organs like the heart or missing limbs while others like humans cannot,” explained Dr. Tatjana Piotrowski.



Zebrafish sensory organ hair cells are an ideal system to investigate the pathways and cell types involved in regeneration since they are easily destroyed with antibiotics and begin regenerating within five hours. This enabled the researchers to identify the exact timing and genetic programs for each anti-inflammatory macrophage activation state.&nbsp;



“Our hypothesis is that human macrophages do not receive the proper chemical activation 'cocktail' to instruct pro-regenerative processes,” said Dr. Nicolas Denans. “Identifying the molecular recipe of macrophage activation in zebrafish may one day enable us to design regenerative immunotherapies in humans.”&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;



“The new evidence is a valuable resource for comparative studies on the genetic programs involved in macrophage-mediated repair and regeneration. In other words, different types of injuries may induce different kinds of inflammatory responses. We want to decipher whether this 'language' is universal or if there are a variety of dialects."



Video Credit: Stowers Institute for Medical Research&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.

How the immune system responds to injury

[sendtonews key="0dEcERCq61-2283382-12187" type="single"] Today’s Video of the Day from Stowers...

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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



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.

2022 illustrated the consequences of a warming climate

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Earth,Like,Exoplanet,3d,Render

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



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



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



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



Video Credit: NASA Goddard



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



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



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

Two distant planets may be "water worlds"

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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



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

Tiger sharks are shifting poleward as temperatures rise

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