An asteroid impact on Mars 11 million years ago sent fragments of the red planet hurtling through space. One of these pieces eventually crashed into Earth, making its way to Purdue University and becoming known as the Lafayette Meteorite.&nbsp;



This rare find has been instrumental in unlocking secrets of <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/manganese-discovery-ancient-mars-earth-like-water-lake-habitable/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Mars</a>’ watery past, with new research recently published in the journal <a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.7185/geochemlet.2443" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Geochemical Perspective Letters</a> that provides insight into the timing and nature of Mars’ ancient water activity.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-tracing-mars-watery-past">Tracing Mars’ watery past</h2>



Scientists have long known that the Lafayette Meteorite interacted with liquid water on Mars, but the exact timing of this event was uncertain.&nbsp;



Dr. Marissa Tremblay, an assistant professor at Purdue University’s <a href="https://www.eaps.purdue.edu/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Department of Earth, Atmospheric, and Planetary Sciences</a> (EAPS), led an international research team to determine the age of the water-altered minerals in the meteorite, pinpointing it to 742 million years ago.



“Dating these minerals can therefore tell us when there was liquid water at or near the surface of Mars in the planet's geologic past,” Tremblay explained.&nbsp;



The findings suggest that while liquid water wasn’t abundant on the surface at this time, it likely came from melting subsurface ice, or permafrost, caused by intermittent volcanic activity - a phenomenon still observed on Mars today.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-preserving-a-moment-in-mars-geological-timeline">Preserving a moment in Mars’ geological timeline</h2>



The study not only identified when water interacted with the meteorite but also established that the dating was unaffected by events after the meteorite left Mars.&nbsp;



“The age could have been affected by the impact that ejected the Lafayette Meteorite from Mars, the heating it experienced during the 11 million years it was floating in space, or the heating when it fell to Earth,” Tremblay said.&nbsp;



However, the team confirmed that none of these factors altered the age, validating the timeline of <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/mars-lost-most-of-its-water-but-where-did-it-go/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">water</a> interaction.



Study co-author and Purdue EAPS researcher Ryan Ickert applied heavy isotope analysis to further verify that previous data on the meteorite’s water-rock interaction had likely been skewed by other geological processes.&nbsp;&nbsp;



“This meteorite uniquely has evidence that it has reacted with water. The exact date of this was controversial, and our publication dates when water was present,” said Ickert.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-mysterious-journey-of-the-meteorite">Mysterious journey of the meteorite </h2>



The Lafayette Meteorite’s journey to Purdue is something of a mystery. It was found in a university drawer in 1931, though how it got there remains unknown.&nbsp;



In previous research, Tremblay and her team used crop disease markers from organic contaminants found on the meteorite to narrow down when it might have fallen to Earth.



Once the meteorite was ejected from Mars, it endured constant cosmic ray bombardment in space, which produced certain isotopes, offering clues to its time of impact on Earth.&nbsp;



“Many meteoroids are produced by impacts on Mars and other planetary bodies, but only a handful will eventually fall to Earth,” Tremblay said.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-planetary-time-capsules">Planetary time capsules</h2>



Meteorites like Lafayette serve as planetary time capsules, offering invaluable data on the geological and environmental history of their <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/most-meteorites-can-be-traced-to-three-asteroid-families/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">home worlds</a>. With their dense structure, metallic content, and magnetic properties, meteorites are often distinguishable from Earth rocks.&nbsp;



“We can identify meteorites by studying what minerals are present in them, their mineral relationships, and by checking for a fusion crust formed during entry into Earth’s atmosphere,” Tremblay explained.&nbsp;



By analyzing these traits and their chemical signatures, scientists can often determine a meteorite’s planetary origin.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-complex-history-of-meteorites">Complex history of meteorites</h2>



This research marks a significant milestone for the team, which included scientists from institutions across the globe, such as the Scottish Universities Environmental Research Center (SUERC), the University of St. Andrews, the University of Glasgow, the University of Bristol, and London’s <a href="https://www.nhm.ac.uk/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Natural History Museum</a>.&nbsp;



“Before moving to Purdue, Ryan and I were both based at SUERC, where the argon-argon isotopic analyses of the alteration minerals in Lafayette took place,” Tremblay said.&nbsp;



Their partners at SUERC and the Natural History Museum have long contributed to studying Lafayette’s complex history.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-dating-minerals-in-meteorites">Dating minerals in meteorites</h2>



Dating the water-altered minerals in Lafayette, and others in its class of Martian meteorites called nakhlites, has been a central focus in planetary science, as they uniquely capture moments when liquid water was present on Mars.&nbsp;



Due to complex alterations over time, previous attempts to date these minerals were plagued with uncertainties.&nbsp;



However, the team has now developed a robust dating method that could be applied to other meteorites, enhancing our understanding of when water might have been present on Mars and other planetary bodies.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-the-future-of-planetary-science">The future of planetary science</h2>



Thanks to the Stahura Undergraduate Meteorite Fund, Tremblay and Ickert’s research on the Lafayette Meteorite will continue, with the involvement of undergraduate students in Purdue EAPS.&nbsp;



This opportunity allows students to engage in real-world planetary science, helping to reveal the intricate histories of meteoritic samples.



Tremblay and her team’s work on the Lafayette Meteorite highlights its scientific significance, revealing a complex history that ties it to Mars’ geological past.&nbsp;



Their findings not only deepen our understanding of Mars but also set a precedent for future studies that might unveil even more about the red planet’s climate history, water activity, and potential for supporting <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/some-mars-rocks-contain-signs-of-life-scientists-call-to-bring-them-back-to-earth/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">life</a>.



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Meteorite that struck Mars reveals when the planet had liquid water

An asteroid impact on Mars 11 million years ago sent fragments of the red planet hurtling through space. One of these pieces eventually crashed into Earth, making its way to Purdue University and becoming known as the Lafayette Meteorite.&nbsp; This rare find has been instrumental in unlocking secrets of Mars’ watery past, with new research recently published in the journal Geochemical Perspective Letters that provides insight into the timing and nature of Mars’ ancient water activity. Tracing Mars’ watery past Scientists have long known that the Lafayette...

When your <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/study-miniature-brains-cure/">brain</a> processes information it could just be creating a hallucination, a new study says.

In order make more accurate predictions, brains modify their internal models of the world or force our bodies to move, so that the external environment comes in line with predictions, according to  the study by professors at <a href="http://www.uni-mainz.de/eng/">Johannes Gutenberg University</a> in Germany.

One of the keys to so-called “predictive processing” is that it sets out to challenge our intuitive feeling that our brains passively receive information (via our senses) and create perceptions of what is actually out there – the so-called bottom up approach.

Predictive processing argues that perception, action and cognition are the outcome of computations in the brain involving both bottom-up and top-down processing – in which prior knowledge about the world and our own cognitive and emotional state influence perception, <a href="https://www.newscientist.com/article/2129208-addicted-to-love-craving-comes-in-two-forms-and-both-can-hurt/">New Scientist</a> reports.

“The takeaway here is this wild thought: we are always hallucinating,” the publication said.

The idea of top-down processing is not new, but “dominant theories of perception have for a long time marginalized” its role, the study said.

The novel contribution of predictive processing, according to the new study, is that it emphasizes the importance of top-down processing and prior knowledge as a feature of perception, one which is present all the time – not only when sensory input is noisy or ambiguous, New Scientists said.

“If you do get through enough of the papers to understand the computational principles behind predictive processing then, you get closer to understanding why “it is only a small step towards describing processing in the brain as a controlled online hallucination’”, the story said.

--

By: <a href="mailto:dbeasley@earth.com">David Beasley </a><a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Source: <a href="https://www.newscientist.com/article/2129208-addicted-to-love-craving-comes-in-two-forms-and-both-can-hurt/">New Scientist</a>

This is how your brain creates illusions

When your brain processes information it could just be creating...

What could a sea level rise of 10 or 12 feet look like? Well, it doesn’t look good.

The <a href="http://www.noaa.gov/">National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration</a> is preparing for just such a scenario, and it has the documentation to prove it. Now, the website <a href="http://www.climatecentral.org/">Climate Central</a> has turned that data into maps and photos that show just how devastating the rising seas could be.

In January, NOAA released its “Global and Regional Sea Level Rise Scenarios for the United States,” and things look bleak.

In the worst case scenario based on decades of sea level data, San Francisco, New York and the Florida Keys could be battling regular extreme flooding events by 2100 – a little over 80 years from now. 

“The impacts of this rise would be devastating. For instance, these levels would mostly or completely inundate Kitty Hawk and Cape Canaveral; MIT and the U.S. Naval Academy; JFK and SFO [airports]; and the Jefferson Memorial and Mar-a-Lago. More than 99 percent of today’s population in 252 coastal towns and cities would have their homes submerged,” said Climate Central, an independent organization of climate scientists and science journalists.

The NOAA report predicts an average sea level rise of 10 to 12 feet along the coastal U.S. by 2100. Coastal regions higher above the current sea level and with a steeper rise away from the sea will be less affected than low-lying areas. 

Using NOAA's report, Climate Central has created a series of stunning and devastating maps of just what that might look like.

“These findings all reflect local sea level projections through 2100. However, under the extreme scenario, the sea would not stop rising that year. Rather, it would continue to add more than 1.5 feet per decade, and exceed 30 feet by 2200 for all coastal states except Alaska, where some locations might see 5 to 10 feet less,” the site states.

The doom-and-gloom look at the possible results of extreme flooding includes a few bright spots. There is still work that can be done to prevent some of the worst scenarios from coming to pass, even if current climate trends continue.

For example, the Florida Keys could build a seawall based on historic data that could provide some protection from storm surges for decades, the NOAA document noted. Cutting global carbon emissions could drastically slow the sea level rise, Climate Central said. 

“The extreme scenario is considered unlikely, but it is plausible. NOAA’s report and Antarctic research suggest that deep and rapid cuts to heat-trapping pollution would greatly reduce its chances,” Climate Central said.

<a href="http://www.climatecentral.org/news/extreme-sea-level-rise-stakes-for-america-21387">Click here to view Climate Central’s maps</a> and lists of potentially affected cities.

—

By <a href="mailto:kcathey@earth.com">Kyla Cathey</a>, <a href="http://earth.com/staff">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Scientific group releases maps of potential sea level rise

What could a sea level rise of 10 or 12...

The U.S. <a href="https://www.epa.gov/">Environmental Protection Agency</a> has updated its website to reflect its “Back-to-Basics” agenda under new director Scott Pruitt – in the process removing several sections on the website that made climate science data available to the public.

Among the pages removed were datasheets on greenhouse gas emissions, detailed information about the Clean Power Plan, and data on how environmental issues affected different demographic groups, according to archived images of the old site posted by several news organizations Saturday.

On Saturday evening, a web search for “Clean Power Plan” still provided a link to the now-missing section of the EPA website, but clicking it redirected to a different page about energy independence, Earth.com discovered.

A search for the EPA’s climate science data, previously collected on a climate change mini-site, led to a placeholder page reading, “Thank you for your interest in this topic. We are currently updating our website to reflect EPA's priorities under the leadership of President [Donald] Trump and Administrator Pruitt.” 

A link to a snapshot of the old site was provided. The agency has told multiple news organizations that it will archive the old site.

“As EPA renews its commitment to human health and clean air, land, and water, our website needs to reflect the views of the leadership of the agency,” J.P. Freire, EPA associate administrator for public affairs, said in a <a href="https://www.epa.gov/newsreleases/epa-kicks-website-updates">statement posted to the website</a>. “We want to eliminate confusion by removing outdated language first and making room to discuss how we’re protecting the environment and human health by partnering with states and working within the law.”

Scientists and environmental advocates in the U.S. have expressed concern about the views of both the president and Pruitt in the past.

While Pruitt has made statements that acknowledge the rise of average global surface temperatures in recent decades, he has questioned whether human activity has an impact on that trend. 

In an interview with <a href="http://www.cnbc.com/2017/03/09/epa-chief-scott-pruitt.html">CNBC on March 9</a>, he said, “I think that measuring with precision human activity on the climate is something very challenging to do and there's tremendous disagreement about the degree of impact, so no, I would not agree that it's a primary contributor to the global warming that we see.”

The president, meanwhile, has expressed skepticism that climate change is occurring at all.

However, climate science data has shown evidence of a decades-long warming trend, and a strong consensus of climate scientists believe that the trend is affected by human activity and will continue. While there are detractors, science historian Dr. Naomi Oreskes <a href="https://books.google.com/books?id=PXJIqCkb7YIC">points out</a>, the majority work in fields unrelated or only loosely related to climate science.

—

By <a href="mailto:kcathey@earth.com">Kyla Cathey</a>, <a href="http://earth.com/staff">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

EPA removes climate science data from public website

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has updated its website to...

Time travel is mathematically possible, according to a math and physics professor at the <a href="http://ok.ubc.ca/">University of British Columbia Okanagan</a>.

"People think of time travel as something as fiction," said the professor, Ben Tippett whose field of expertise is Einstein's theory of general relativity. "And we tend to think it's not possible because we don't actually do it. But, mathematically, it is possible."

The division of space into three dimensions, with time in a separate dimension by itself, is incorrect, according to Tippett. The four dimensions should be imagined simultaneously, where different directions are connected, as a space-time continuum. Using Einstein's theory, Tippett says that the curvature of space-time accounts for the curved orbits of the planets. 

"The time direction of the space-time surface also shows curvature. There is evidence showing the closer to a black hole we get, time moves slower," said Tippett. "My model of a time machine uses the curved space-time -- to bend time into a circle for the passengers, not in a straight line. That circle takes us back in time."

While it is possible to describe this type of time travel using a mathematical equation, Tippett doubts anyone will ever build a machine to make it work.

"HG Wells popularized the term 'time machine' and he left people with the thought that an explorer would need a 'machine or special box' to actually accomplish time travel," Tippett said, "While is it mathematically feasible, it is not yet possible to build a space-time machine because we need materials--which we call exotic matter--to bend space-time in these impossible ways, but they have yet to be discovered."

Tippett created a mathematical model of a Traversable Acausal Retrograde Domain in Space-time (TARDIS) which he describes it as a bubble of space-time geometry which carries its contents backward and forwards through <a href="https://www.earth.com/image/norways-famous-fjords/">space</a> and time as it tours a large circular path. The bubble moves through space-time at speeds greater than the speed of light at times, allowing it to move backward in time. 

Tippett's research was recently published in the IOPscience <a href="http://iopscience.iop.org/journal/0264-9381">Journal Classical and Quantum Gravity</a>.

--

By: <a href="mailto:dbeasley@earth.com">David Beasley </a><a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Source:  <a href="http://ok.ubc.ca/">University of British Columbia Okanagan</a>

Time travel is actually possible, says a new study

Time travel is mathematically possible, according to a math and...

Transylvania is a region of central Romania that is known for its gothic charm and rugged beauty. Transylvania is also home to the most-explored ice cave in the world, known as Scarisoara. Radiocarbon dating suggests this cave glacier is around 10,500 years old, making it the oldest cave glacier in the world. A team of scientists examined ice obtained from the Scarisoara Cave and discovered it provided details of weather conditions over the past 10,000 years.

Researchers from the <a href="http://www.iser.ro/en/">Emil Racovita Institute of Speleology</a> in Cluj-Napoca gathered samples from the Scarisoara ice cave. Scientist Bogdan Onac of <a href="http://www.usf.edu/">University of Southern Florida</a>'s School of Geosciences collaborated with scientists from all over the world including representatives of the <a href="https://www.qub.ac.uk/">University of Belfast</a>, <a href="http://www.uni-bremen.de/en.html">University of Bremen</a> and <a href="http://www.su.se/english/">Stockholm University</a>. The team analyzed the ancient ice samples in an effort to reconstruct the weather patterns of the Holocene period, which began around 12,000 years ago and continues today.

Over time, snow and rain had frozen in the underground deposits of the Scarisoara Cave. The cave had collected precipitation from the Atlantic Ocean and the <a href="https://www.earth.com/image/storm-90m-mediterranean-sea/">Mediterranean Sea</a>, making this an ideal location to track the behavior of storms that moved across Central and Eastern Europe. The frozen layers of ice contained chemical evidence of shifts in the weather over the last 10,000 years. The significance of the study, published this week in Scientific Reports, is that up to this point scientists have mainly relied on summer conditions to chart the changes of Earth’s climate.

Candace Major is a program director in the National Science Foundation’s Directorate for Geosciences. Major said, "Most of the paleoclimate records from this region are plant-based, and track only the warm part of the year -- the growing season.That misses half the story. The spectacular ice cave at Scarisoara fills a crucial piece of the puzzle of past climate change in recording what happens during winter."

The researchers charted the winter conditions in Central and Eastern Europe, which are becoming wetter and warmer over time. Temperatures had reached a maximum during the mid-Holocene, when scientists note there was a major shift in the atmospheric dynamics. At this time, winter storms changed paths and produced wetter and colder conditions in northwestern Europe and brought milder winter conditions to southeastern Europe. These warmer winters led to a rapid growth of population. 

"Our data allows us to reconstruct the interplay between Atlantic and Mediterranean sources of moisture," Onac said. "We can also draw conclusions about past atmospheric circulation patterns, with implications for future climate changes. Our research offers a long-term context to better understand these changes."

[caption id="attachment_342366" align="aligncenter" width="300"]<a href="https://www.earth.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/04/139240_web.jpg"><img class="size-medium wp-image-342366" src="https://www.earth.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/04/139240_web-300x189.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="189" /></a> Image Credit: C. Ciubotarescu[/caption]

--

By <a href="mailto:csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Source: <a href="http://www.usf.edu/">University of South Florida</a>

Ice cave provides 10,000 years of insight into climate change

Transylvania is a region of central Romania that is known...

Love can be very similar to addiction, complete with craving, withdrawal and relapse, according to a new study. 

“I think it is when you realize you do not want to be in love yet cannot avoid it, and it causes bad things, like abuse, that we cross the line into something addiction-like,” <a href="https://www.fhi.ox.ac.uk/team/anders-sandberg/">Anders Sandberg</a>, at the <a href="http://www.neuroethics.ox.ac.uk/">Oxford University Center for Neuroethics</a>, told the publication <a href="https://www.newscientist.com/article/2129208-addicted-to-love-craving-comes-in-two-forms-and-both-can-hurt/">New Scientist</a>.

Researchers at the center found evidence that there are in fact two different types of love addiction, after reviewing 64 studies of love and addiction published between 1956 and 2016.

 People who feel desperately alone when not in a relationship, and try to replace an ex-partner immediately, could have what the research team has called a “narrow” form of love addiction.

This could  involve impaired control and social impairment triggered by abnormal processes in the <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/study-miniature-brains-cure/">brain</a> that boost reward signals.

“Drugs of addiction flood the brain with dopamine, causing an unusually strong reward signal, which drives a person to use the drug again even when this involves some setback to other interests in their lives,” said Brian  Earp, also at Oxford University Center for Neuroethics.

In the review of the studies, researchers found that some experiences of love similarly produce an unusually strong reward signal, which drives a person to pursue that experience again,.

The team also found evidence of a second, “broad” type of love addiction, which has stronger – yet still controllable – cravings. There is a rush of euphoria after each encounter and desperation, grief and depression when relationships met an abrupt end.  

The researchers found evidence that people with both types of love addiction can be suffer harm in their lives. In some cases, being addicted to love seems to have contributed to people staying in abusive relationships, or following a cult leader.

--

By: <a href="mailto:dbeasley@earth.com">David Beasley </a><a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Source: <a href="https://www.newscientist.com/article/2129208-addicted-to-love-craving-comes-in-two-forms-and-both-can-hurt/">New Scientist</a>

Love can actually be a harmful addiction, study finds

Love can be very similar to addiction, complete with craving,...

The equivalent of over 10 billion dollars is lost every year in the wine industry due to weather disasters. From frost to floods to earthquakes, no wine-producing area in the world is immune to the impact of extreme weather events. A study led by Dr. James Daniell of <a href="https://www.kit.edu/english/">Karlsruhe Institute of Technology</a> measured which wine regions are the most vulnerable to various natural disasters. The data was used to create the first-ever global risk index for <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/wine-engages-brain/">wine</a> regions.  

Dr. Daniel collaborated with experts from Europe and Australia, including seismologists and meteorologists. The study examined 7500 regions in 131 countries. The goal of the project was to establish which wine regions are affected by various weather events and to what extent. The researchers also set out to analyze the role of climate change in the wine industry. 

The wine-producing areas of Mendoza and San Juan in Argentina proved to be at the highest risk of damage from natural disasters. Wine regions in Georgia, Moldova, Slovenia, Ecuador, and Japan also topped the list. The study established weather events such as heat, drought, floods, frost, hail, fires, and earthquakes are all serious risks to the wine industry. Wine regions are threatened with loss of production, loss of profits, and damaged assets.

The research found that hail and frost have caused the most damage to European wine companies over the past five years, particularly in the French region of Burgundy and in Italy’s Piedmont region. Hail damage in these areas resulted in major losses, with some vineyards losing as much as 90 percent of the value of the crops. Hailstorms also left behind irreparable damage to some of the vines. Dr. Daniell explained that hail nets can be used to help protect the vines.

Earthquakes are also a serious threat to the wine-producing areas, as they can wipe out everything a wine region needs to function. An earthquake in Chile in 2010 hit the wine industry hard when huge stainless steel tanks crashed to the ground. More than 125 million liters of wine were lost. 

"Earthquake-resistant design could have saved many millions of liters," said Dr. Daniell.

The researchers determined the wine industry will be affected both positively and negatively by climate change. Many wine regions will flourish as they modify their harvests to take advantage of changes in weather patterns. The researchers predict areas of America, Canada, and northern China will improve wine profits with new strains of grapes and optimized production techniques.

 "Through detailed natural hazard analysis, research can help winemakers and governments alike to prepare adequately for the natural hazards that they face and to reduce losses," explained Dr. Daniell.

 The global risk index for wine regions that was created from this study was revealed at the 2017 Annual Conference of the European Geosciences Union (EGU) in Vienna. The EGU presented Dr. Daniell with the "Early Career Scientist Award in Natural Hazards for 2017." The results of the study can be viewed on the <a href=" http://www.winerisk.com">"WineRisk" website</a>, which also offers solutions for wine regions.

--

By <a href="mailto:csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Source: <a href="https://www.kit.edu/english/">Karlsruhe Institute of Technology</a>

&nbsp;

Natural disasters cost the wine industry billions every year

The equivalent of over 10 billion dollars is lost every...

Over 2.5 billion years ago, Earth was mostly covered with oceans and there was very little oxygen in the atmosphere. The ocean water was less acidic and high in iron during this time period, known as the Archean Era. Archean oceans became home to the earliest living organisms on the planet. Scientists have had a very limited area in which to view these early life forms, but a new discovery may expand this field of research in a major way. 

Scientists from the <a href="https://uwaterloo.ca/">University of Waterloo</a> conducted a study to find bodies of water comparable to those of Archean times. With only four known lakes that are structurally similar to the ancient oceans, insight into microbial life has been restricted. Researchers, however, have made a breakthrough that qualifies potentially millions of Canada’s Boreal Shield lakes as locations for studying microbial communities.

Jackson Tsuji is a doctoral student in the Department of Biology in the Faculty of Science and a co-author of the study."With so many lakes to study, this discovery changes how we approach this field of research. It's exciting that these lakes, which are basically in our backyard, hold information that could have implications for global climate, past and present, and water management," said Tsuji.

The research team collaborated with microbiologists, geochemists, and freshwater specialists in the study. They compared the water chemistry of two Boreal Shield lakes to the four existing Archean-ocean analogue lakes using microbial community profiles. With specialized isotopic tools, researchers found the lakes of the Boreal Shield contain similar biological processes to the four existing analogue lakes.

“We used to think finding a suitable Archean ocean analogue meant that you had to find a lake that didn't mix. For example, current analogues are hundreds of meters deep and completely stratified," said Josh Neufeld, a professor in the Department of Biology. "An important discovery here was how robust this oxygen-free community is, despite the mixing."

Not only were the two Boreal Lakes found to be low in sulphur and high in iron, but they also developed oxygen-free layers in the summer.  During this season, the lakes can be used as laboratories to gain insights into ancient oceans. Research can extend beyond information about early life forms to learn more about greenhouse gas emissions and harmful algae growth as well.  

--

By <a href="mailto:csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Source: <a href="https://uwaterloo.ca/">University of Waterloo</a>

Major breakthrough in the understanding of Earth’s early life forms

Over 2.5 billion years ago, Earth was mostly covered with...

Biologists have used stem cells from patients with a devastating disorder called Timothy syndrome, to grow miniature brains in a lab dish, according to a new study reported in the journal <a href="http://www.nature.com/nature">Nature</a> on Wednesday.

Scientists hope the findings will help prevent or cure the rare disorder that can lead to severe epilepsy and autism.

The so-called “mini-brains” called organoids will mimic severe psychiatric and neurological diseases such as schizophrenia, autism, and Alzheimer’s much better than mouse brains to reveal what goes wrong and offering a testing ground for experimental treatments, researchers hope.

A second study, also published in Nature Wednesday, described growing hundreds of cerebral organoids from the stem cells of healthy people for up to nine months and longer in special bioreactors. The miniature brains developed dozens of kinds of brain cells pulsing with the same kind of electrical activity that enables human brains.

“This shows that the approach has much greater potential than we ever imagined,” said Juergen Knoblich, of the<a href="http://www.imba.oeaw.ac.at/"> Institute of Molecular Biotechnology</a> in Austria, who was not involved in the study. “They’ve shown that if you keep [the mini-brain] growing for a long enough time, it will generate the whole repertoire of cells we see in the human brain.”

The new discoveries “give us unprecedented ways of looking at a human brain and its development,” said biologist Timothy O’Brien, of the<a href="https://twin-cities.umn.edu/"> University of Minnesota</a>, who has also produced brain organoids from stem cells and was not involved in the new work. A key advance in both studies, he said, was “uncovering more layers of complexity, showing that these things really do look like human brains.”

In the Timothy syndrome study, scientists at <a href="http://med.stanford.edu/">Stanford University School of Medicine</a> began with human cells called fibroblasts, donated by three patients.,They  returned the cells to an embryo-like stem cell state. By adding the proper nutrients, the researchers could not only spur these stem cells to grow into brain cells — done for more than a decade — but to form little balls called cortical spheroids.

The spheroids, “help us see how brain development goes awry in patients with the different mutations linked to Timothy syndrome.,” said one of the Stanford researchers, Dr. Sergiu Pasca.

--

By: <a href="mailto:dbeasley@earth.com">David Beasley </a><a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Source: <a href="http://www.nature.com/nature">Nature</a>

Study: miniature brains may help cure disease

Biologists have used stem cells from patients with a devastating...

A Swedish startup is hoping to use its new language-analysis software to unlock the secrets of how dolphins communicate, <a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2017-04-26/swedish-startup-uses-ai-to-figure-out-what-dolphins-talk-about">Bloomberg News </a>reported.

Using technology from artificial intelligence language-analysis company <a href="https://www.gavagai.se/">Gavagai AB</a>, researchers from Sweden’s <a href="https://www.kth.se/en">KTH Royal Institute of Technology</a> will begin compiling a dolphin-language dictionary. The software will monitor captive bottlenose dolphins at a wildlife park about 90 miles south of Stockholm, the company said in an emailed statement Wednesday.

“We hope to be able to understand dolphins with the help of artificial intelligence technology," said Jussi Karlgren, an adjunct professor of language technology at KTH and co-founder of Gavagai. “We know that dolphins have a complex communication system, but we don’t know what they are talking about yet.”

The dolphin project -- a planned four-year effort -- came about because Gavagai’s software has proven capable in real-life, natural-language processing, CEO Lars Hamberg told Bloomberg.

Although there is no immediate business purpose, the research on dolphins will help the company sharpen its tool for other tasks, he said.

New recording methods and larger resources for computation, make Hamberg confident Gavagai will unlock the dolphin dictionary and ultimately communicate with the animals, he said.

The U.S. Navy has used marine mammals such as dolphins and sea lions for decades to carry out a range of tasks, from locating underwater mines to harbor defense, the story said. 

Gavagai has spent about $10 million over the past few years developing its language artificial intelligence machine, Hamberg said. The company’s customers include <a href="http://www.wpp.com/">WPP Group Plc</a>’s market research company <a href="http://us.kantar.com/">Kantar</a>, SAS Institute Inc. and <a href="http://ir.nielsen.com/">Nielsen Holdings, Plc</a>.

--

By: <a href="mailto:dbeasley@earth.com">David Beasley </a><a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Source: <a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2017-04-26/swedish-startup-uses-ai-to-figure-out-what-dolphins-talk-about">Bloomberg News</a>

This new technology could allows us to communicate with dolphins

A Swedish startup is hoping to use its new language-analysis...

A popular <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/dinosaur-proteins-key-insights/">dinosaur</a> skeleton that has been headless for nearly a century has been reconnected to its skull.

Researchers located a the Corythosaurus skull at the <a href="https://www.ualberta.ca/">University of Alberta</a>. It had been collected in 1920 by George Sternberg, the university said.

"In the early days of dinosaur hunting and exploration, explorers only took impressive and exciting specimens for their collections, such as skulls, tail spines and claws," explained graduate student Katherine Bramble, adding the practice was commonly referred to as head hunting. "Now, it's common for paleontologists to come across specimens in the field without their skulls."

The headless skeleton has been a tourist attraction in <a href="https://www.albertaparks.ca/dinosaur.aspx">Dinosaur Provincial Park</a> since the 1990s. Researchers found newspaper clippings  from the 1920s at the park and wondered whether the head at the University of Alberta could be a match to the headless skeleton. 

"Using anatomical measurements of the skull and the skeleton, we conducted a statistical analysis," Bramble explained. "Based on these results, we believed there was potential that the skull and this specimen belonged together."

This discovery is part of a growing field of study in paleontology, Bramble added.

"Researchers are now trying to develop new ways of determining whether or not disparate parts of skeletons come from the same animal," she said.. "For this paper, we used anatomical measurements, but there are many other ways of matching, such as conducting a chemical analysis of the rock in which the specimens are found."

As scientists develop new methods for matching specimens, Bramble hopes more dinosaurs skeletons will be reunited as well.

--

By: <a href="mailto:dbeasley@earth.com">David Beasley</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Source: <a href="https://www.ualberta.ca/">University of Alberta</a>

Image Credit: Katherine Bramble

Dinosaur skeleton finally gets its skull back

A popular dinosaur skeleton that has been headless for nearly...

It turns out humans may have been in America much earlier than scientists previously believed, perhaps even 100,000 years longer, according to a new study.

In, 1992, researchers uncovered an ancient human campsite near San Diego during a freeway expansion project, according to the published in the journal <a href="http://www.nature.com/nature">Nature</a>.

Humans, perhaps Neanderthals had left behind stone tools and hammered <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/meteor-decline-clovis-people/">mastodon</a> bones, the study said. That is not unusual since scientists knew humans hunted mastodons in the Americas but the common scientific belief was that this occurred about 15,000 years ago.

Extensive testing of mastodon bones uncovered in San Diego, however, showed they were 130,000 years old.

That means the San Diego location is the oldest well-documented archeological site in North America and, “as such, substantially revises the timing of arrival of Homo into the Americas,” according to the study

The much earlier date could mean that the humans were not Homo sapiens but possibly Neanderthals, a little-known group called Denisovans, or another human forerunner named Homo erectus.

They could have arrived in America by land or sea or come from Asia via the Beringea land bridge that used to connect Siberia to Alaska.

"The very honest answer is, we don't know," said Steven Holen, lead author of the paper and director of the nonprofit <a href="http://www.capr.tdcart.com/">Center for American Paleolithic Research</a> in Hot Springs, South Dakota. No remains of any individuals were found at the San Diego site.

The mastodon's bones and teeth were evidently placed on two stones used as anvils and smashed with three stone hammers, to reach bone marrow and create raw material for tools, according to the study.

"People were breaking up the limb bones of a mastodon, removing some of the big, thick pieces," Holen said at a press conference. "They were extracting marrow for food. And they were using old technology. We have evidence of people in Africa 1.5 million years ago breaking up elephant limb bones with this same [stone] technology.”

--

By: <a href="mailto:dbeasley@earth.com">David Beasley </a><a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Source: <a href="http://www.nature.com/nature">Nature</a>

Image Credit: Tom Deméré, San Diego Natural History Museum

Study: Humans were in America far earlier than previously thought

It turns out humans may have been in America much...

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



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



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



Video/ Image Credit: ESA



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

Nushagak Bay in southwest Alaska

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



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



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



Video/ Image Credit: American Chemical Society&nbsp;



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



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

Flu viruses are more flexible than expected

[sendtonews key="G9bUoxcjr4-2511624-12187" type="single"] Today's Video of the Day from the...

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



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



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



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



Video/Image Credit: ESA&nbsp;



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

Lake Trasimeno in Central Italy

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



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



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



Video Credit: American Chemical Society&nbsp;



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



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

Detecting mercury contamination with the tap of a finger

[sendtonews key="LvS8v8bp9z-2564889-12187" type="single"] Today's Video of the Day from the...

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

[sendtonews key="iuA5mpp3jv-1641775-12187" 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.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

[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 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

[sendtonews key="JRaP49ISmm-2357509-12187" type="single"] Today’s Video of the Day from the...

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



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



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



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



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



Video Credit: ESA&nbsp;



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



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

The city of Dublin on Ireland's east coast

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



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



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



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



Video/ Image Credit: ESA



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



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

The province of Zaragoza in northeast Spain

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



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



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



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



Video Credit: NASA Goddard



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



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



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

Two distant planets may be "water worlds"

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

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



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



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



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



Video Credit: NASA Goddard&nbsp;



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



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

Satellites reveal how Earth's systems are interconnected

[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...