The development of a big brain in humans and its connection to social bonding has been a hot topic of debate, and secrets found in fossil teeth may hold the answers.



Researchers have been studying the fossilized teeth of an early Homo from Georgia, dating back approximately 1.77 million years. The research was made possible by the European Synchrotron in Grenoble, France.



The findings suggest that despite having a small brain and reaching adulthood at a similar pace to great apes, these early humans had a prolonged childhood. 



This could mean that the large brain of modern humans resulted from an extended childhood along with cultural transmission across generations instead of vice versa.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-long-childhood-big-brains">Long childhood, big brains</h2>



A team of researchers - including specialists from Switzerland's <a href="https://www.uzh.ch/en.html" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">University of Zurich</a>, the European Synchrotron Radiation Facility and Georgia's National Museum - have challenged the theory that modern humans' extended childhood is directly linked to their large brains.



The team analyzed dental development in an early Homo that was almost an adult. The results suggest that though these early humans reached adulthood at a similar age as <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/buronius-manfredschmidi-tiny-great-ape-species-lived-11-million-years-ago/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">great apes</a>, their tooth development followed a longer timeline similar to modern humans.



This proposes the distinct possibility of a longer dependency on adults and an elongated childhood for these early humans.



Remarkably, the brain size of these early Homo specimens was only marginally larger than that of a chimpanzee. This made the researchers question the link between the prolonged development and cultural transmission across generations.



An extended childhood within a three-generation context might have allowed the immature members of the group to effectively assimilate growing amounts of knowledge. 



Eventually, this led to the development of larger brains and longer life spans, traits characteristic of modern humans.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-dental-development-in-early-homo">Dental development in early Homo</h2>



An enduring assumption has been that humans' extended growth period is a consequence of <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/our-brain-sizes-are-growing-possibly-lowering-dementia-risk/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">increased brain volume</a> since a larger organ requires more energy resources to grow. But analysis of the fossil's dental growth has caused researchers to question this hypothesis.



The research team used synchrotron imaging to study the dental development of a near-adult fossil of early Homo from the Dmanisi site in Georgia, dated to around 1.77 million years ago. 



<div class="wp-block-sendtonews-playerselector">[sendtonews key="CWxiqQg039-4024544-12187" type="single"]</div>



“Childhood and cognition do not fossilize, so we have to rely on indirect information. Teeth are ideal because they fossilize well and produce daily rings, in the same way that trees produce annual rings, which record their development,” noted study first author Christoph Zollikofer from the University of Zurich.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-unexpected-findings-and-a-new-perspective">Unexpected findings and a new perspective</h2>



“Dental development is strongly correlated with the development of the rest of the body, including brain development," explained study co-author Paul Tafforeau, scientist at the ESRF.



"Access to the details of a <a href="https://www.earth.com/search-results/?search=fossil%20hominid&amp;start=0" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">fossil</a> hominid's dental growth therefore provides a great deal of information about its general growth."



After almost two decades of research beginning in 2005, the initial results startled researchers. 



“We expected to find either dental development typical of early hominids, close to that of the great apes, or dental development close to that of <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/neanderthal-genes-still-influence-modern-humans/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">modern humans</a>," said Tafforeau.



"When we obtained the first results, we couldn’t believe what we saw, because it was something different that implied faster molar crown growth than in any other fossil hominin or living great ape."



In the following years, the team conducted five series of experiments and completed four full analyses, employing various methods as dental synchrotron imaging technology advanced.



As the consistent results suggested significant implications for the "big brain - long childhood" hypothesis, the scientists needed to think creatively to interpret this fossil's findings.



“It's been a slow maturation, both technically and intellectually, to finally arrive at the hypothesis we are publishing today,” said Tafforeau.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-longer-childhood-evolution-s-early-experiment">Longer childhood: Evolution's early experiment?</h2>



The dental development of the studied fossil suggested that milk teeth were used longer than in great apes, implying that early Homo children were dependent on adult care for a longer duration.



This could be the first experiment evolution took towards a prolonged childhood. Despite having brains only slightly larger than australopithecines or great apes, early Homo are believed to have lived longer.



The survival of a very old individual with no teeth for several years indicates that the group sufficiently cared for him. This alludes to a three-generation structure, a key aspect of <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/humans-started-cumulative-culture-around-600000-years-ago/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">cultural transmission in humans</a>.



The new hypothesis begins with children's growth slowing down as cultural transmission increased. 



The accumulation of information from older to younger individuals had an advantageous effect on resource utilization and the development of complex behaviors, thus favoring a longer childhood. 



Once this mechanism was established, natural selection acted on cultural transmission, not just biological traits. 



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-big-brains-and-delayed-adulthood">Big brains and delayed adulthood</h2>



As the volume of transferrable information grew, evolution supported a larger brain and delayed adulthood, enabling a longer learning period in childhood and time to grow a bigger brain despite limited food resources.



The large brain of modern humans could be attributed to an extended childhood and a three-generation structure encouraging bio-cultural evolution. These mechanisms may have led to increased brain size, delayed adulthood, and longer lifespan. 



The study of this exceptional fossil could motivate researchers to rethink the evolutionary mechanisms that led to Homo sapiens.



The study is published in the journal <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-024-08205-2" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Nature</a>.



Image &amp; Video Credit: ESRF/Paul Tafforeau, Vincent Beyrand



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How did humans get big brains? Fossil teeth reveal new clues

The development of a big brain in humans and its connection to social bonding has been a hot topic of debate, and secrets found in fossil teeth may hold the answers. Researchers have been studying the fossilized teeth of an early Homo from Georgia, dating back approximately 1.77 million years. The research was made possible by the European Synchrotron in Grenoble, France. The findings suggest that despite having a small brain and reaching adulthood at a similar pace to great apes, these early humans had a prolonged...

African Elephant poaching costs the continent greatly, according to a new study.

Poachers kill between 20,000 and 30,000 elephants in Africa every year. But their gain – payment for illegally collected ivory from crime syndicates seeking to meet Asian demand – is Africa’s national loss, a new study shows.

It’s a big loss, too: experts say the continent is losing around $25 million (USD) per year in lost tourism revenues. The study, published in the journal Nature Communications, found that the financial cost of cracking down on poaching  in several African regions is lower than the loss of visitors and their money.

The study’s lead author, Dr. Robin Naidoo of the World Wildlife Fund (WWF), pointed out there are moral reasons to protest the poaching of elephants. However, not everyone feels they have an ethical responsibility toward Africa’s elephants, he said. This study shows it’s not just a moral concern for the African countries where elephants live, but also a financial one.

Though the researchers were aware parks tend to report lower tourism when poaching is a problem, this is the first attempt to calculate just how much of a negative impact on tourism poaching has, the researchers said.

Dr. Brendan Fisher, economist at the University of Vermont, summed it up in simple numbers: for every dollar spent to prevent poaching, parks in East Africa could expect to get about $1.78 back. The western and southern parts of the continent could also see their investment in elephant protection pay off, Fisher said.

However, similar returns were not seen in central Africa, the researchers said.

African elephant poaching has been a major problem since the late 1970s, and the animals have been classified as “threatened” by the Endangered Species Act since 1978. It’s estimated that over the past 10 years, African elephant populations have declined by over 20 percent.

The study was conducted by scientists from the University of Vermont, the University of Cambridge and the WWF.

African elephant poaching costs the continent greatly

African Elephant poaching costs the continent greatly, according to a...

Carbon dioxide emission maps, released today by NASA, shows just how much damage we are responsible for.

This week, NASA released the first maps ever of human-made carbon dioxide emissions from satellite data. Data was collected from NASA’s Orbiting Carbon Observatory-2 (OCO-2) satellite, which provided information on carbon dioxide released from fossil fuels and other human activity.

[caption id="attachment_119170" align="alignleft" width="150"]<img class="size-thumbnail wp-image-119170" src="http://www.earth.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/11/human-co2-150x150.jpg" alt="Carbon dioxide emission maps collected from NASA’s Orbiting Carbon Observatory-2 satellite show just how much damage for which we are responsible." width="150" height="150" /> Carbon dioxide emission maps[/caption]

No prior satellite was capable of measuring carbon dioxide with enough clarity to create maps of human emissions. As a result, earlier maps had to include estimates based on data from other sources. 

Three carbon dioxide emission maps were created by a team of scientists from the Finnish Meteorological Institute in Helsinki, led by Dr. Janne Hakkarainen. The maps focused on the highest carbon dioxide emitting areas: East Asia, Central Europe, and the eastern United States. 

Hakkarainen noted, “OCO-2 can even detect smaller, isolated emitting areas like individual cities. It’s a power tool that gives new insight.”

Because greenhouse gases stay in the atmosphere for at least 100 years, the trick was to separate the recent emissions from the total emissions. To test their data, the team compared their findings with measurements of nitrogen dioxide from the Ozone Monitoring Instrument on NASA’s Aura satellite. The two satellites are in the same satellite constellation and their measurements are therefore correlated. 

Dr. Johanna Tamminen, head of the Atmospheric Remote Sensing Group at the Finnish Meteorological Institute, added, “The research demonstrates the possibility of analyzing joint satellite observations of carbon dioxide and other gases related to combustion processes to draw out information about the emissions sources.”

—

Source: <a href="http://nasa.gov" target="_blank" rel="noopener">NASA</a>.

Carbon dioxide emission maps released by NASA today

Carbon dioxide emission maps, released today by NASA, shows just...

Social networking helps scientists: researchers turn to Instagram and Flickr to boost their landscape data banks.

When you go hiking in the mountains, travel overseas, or visit a pristine beach, your photos may be more than just a memory of a great time. According to one expert, they're becoming valuable research data.

Researchers are turning to Instagram, Flickr, and other social media sites to identify which destinations tourists feel are most important, according to Dr. Jordan Smith, director of the Institute of Outdoor Recreation and Tourism at Utah State University. Smith is also an assistant professor the university's Department of Environment and Society.

Dr. Smith – along with Boris van Zanten, Koen Tieskens and Peter Verburg of Vrije Universiteit in Amsterdam, as well as Derek van Berkel and Ross Meentenmeyer of North Carolina State University – took to the social media websites to identify and map the locations shown in the photos that were being shared.

This helped them find what they have dubbed "hot spots" – outdoor spaces that tourists most want to visit. That data can be used to help prioritize landscape management and determine funding, Smith stated.

The team's findings were published in the early edition of Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences online on Oct. 31, 2016.

Social networking helps scientists boost landscape data

Social networking helps scientists: researchers turn to Instagram and Flickr...

Pygmy moth species detailed in new report.

Today a team of scientists published three interlinked scientific articles together with two online databases, providing a catalogue with the names of all the species of pygmy moth.

Today there are more than 1050 known species of pygmy moths. The leaf-mining pygmy moth and the white eyecap moth are known for the patterns their caterpillars leave behind, known as leaf mines. Following DNA analysis on the evolutionary relationships of more than 1000 pygmy moth species, a new classification has been created.

A team of scientists led by Dr. Erik J. van Nieukerken and Dr. Camiel Doorenweerd of the Naturalis Biodiversity Center in The Netherlands published three reports in the journal Systematic Entomology that includes a catalogue of all pygmy moth species.

Their study found the presence of leaf mines in fossil leaves, indicating that pygmy moths started to diversify over 100 million years ago. Three new genera were discovered in South and Central America.

In order to change a classification, many species names must also be modified. As such, the team published a full catalogue of all the species names along with the various synonymic names that have been used in the past 150 years.

Pygmy moth species detailed in new report

Pygmy moth species detailed in new report. Today a team...

Discovery of fossils provides clues on how Earth recovered from an extinction event.

252 million years ago, Planet Earth had a very bad day. The most disastrous mass extinction in the history of the planet occurred, wiping out most living things. 

Recently a team of palaeontologists discovered fossils in Greenland that shed light on how recovery began at the two poles immediately following the catastrophic event, when even life far away from the equator was completely destroyed.

<img class="alignleft size-thumbnail wp-image-118203" src="http://www.earth.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/11/extinct-150x150.jpg" alt="Discovery of fossils provides clues on how Earth recovered from an extinction event. 252 million years ago the most disastrous mass extinction on the planet occurred." />“Life on the seafloor had totally collapsed, with up to 90% of all species becoming extinct,” said Dr. Michael Zaton from the <a href="http://english.us.edu.pl/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">University of Silesia</a> in Poland.

The ocean floor became very acidic and lacked oxygen, making it completely unlivable for most organisms. But newly discovered fossils have shown that bivalves and colonies of filter-feeding microconchid tube worms began to develop along the ocean floor. These are the first ancient microconchid fossils that have been discovered so far from the equator. 

“Our discovery is significant because it shows for the first time that sea floor life at higher latitudes suffered the same global extinction process,” says researcher Benjamin Kear. Kear and his team are part of a larger project intending to add to knowledge about the beginnings of aquatic animals. 

There is still much mystery surrounding why vertebrate animals left the sea for land 360 million years ago, and then returned to the sea 108 million years later – sudden mass environmental changes like an extinction event can trigger a dramatic shift in the trajectory of a species.

&nbsp;

How Earth bounced back from disastrous mass extinction event

Discovery of fossils provides clues on how Earth recovered from...

Arctic climate change improves agricultural outlook as rising temperatures make land more suitable for commerce.

As we reported earlier today, climate change is causing extreme reactions in the Arctic, where temperatures are rising twice as fast as in the rest of the world. Ice caps are melting and sea levels are rising, but there is at least one silver lining: the Arctic climate change opens up potential for commerce in the area, specifically agriculture. 

In October, experts at a conference in Iceland discussed the potential for a growing Arctic agricultural economy. Over the next few decades, climate conditions are predicted to evolve so much that the land may be able to sustain vegetable and grain crops, as well as raising livestock. As Torfi Johannesson, president of the Circumpolar Agricultural Association, put it: “Agriculture will be possible in many places where it is not now.”

Warmer temperatures have ushered in a longer growing season that will only continue to extend. Milan Sipka, director of the Agricultural and Forestry Experiment Station at the University of Alaska Fairbanks, added, “The ability to work the ground occurred at least two weeks earlier [in the season] than what anyone would have expected.”

Today, Alaska is home to 750 farms covering 830,000 acres of farmland that added $48 million to the economy in 2014. As the ground becomes more fertile and plant-friendly, it will not only allow for crop growth, but also increased grassy space to provide nourishment for animals. “There is all kinds of evidence that climate change is presenting positive impacts on agriculture in south Greenland, in terms of yield and variety,” said Joan Nymand Larsen, research director at the Stefansson Arctic Institute in Iceland.

But the effects are not all positive. The region will also fall foul to pests and diseases that didn’t previously exist there. Rainfall will also vary – some potential farming areas may experience drought, while others flood.

The growing agricultural industry in Greenland could also run into conflict with the mining industry. Mining plays a huge part in Greenland’s economy, but radioactive dust from mining could contaminate nearby farming soil.

Only time will tell how the growth of Arctic agriculture will play out. For now, the possibility of such an industry brings a small bit of good news to an otherwise distressing climate trend.

Arctic climate change improves agricultural outlook

Arctic climate change improves agricultural outlook as rising temperatures make...

Mexican avocado deforestation: world authorities voice concerns as forests are lost to make way for orchards. 

In Mexico, deforestation rates are much higher than anyone previously thought. Michoacan, the world's largest producer of avocados, obliterates a shocking 20,000 hectares of forest each year for agriculture, nearly 40% of which consists of avocado orchards. Not only are they destroying forest habitats, the thirsty avocado plants require twice as much water as the decimated vegetation. Species like the famous monarch butterfly are in danger if deforestation increases at this rate.

Due to the thirsty fruit, less water is going to the Michoacan's crystalline mountain streams, which means the animal and plant populations of the forest are going without.

As avocados rise in popularity so do the demands on production. Growers have been encouraged to expand orchards and increase their revenues, increasing the toll taken on the ecosystem. Warnings are coming today before irreparable damage is caused to the area.

All in all, Michoacan already hosts around 150,000 hectares of orchards and has granted no new deforestation permits in the past few years. This impoverished state relies on revenue and jobs created from avocado production – the authorities are keen to encourage people to work within this legal field rather than in the growing synthetic drug production industry.

Talia Coria, an official in the attorney general's office for environmental protection, commented, "That is why we are sitting down now with all the parties involved to find a way to continue this industry of avocado growing, which provides a lot of jobs and income for the state, in harmony with the conservation of our natural resources. We are going to search for a way . . . to ensure that all avocados exported are legal, and that the environment has not been affected by their production. The avocado growers appear to be convinced that we have to find options for conserving the environment."

However, this district has no definite plan to develop any official sustainable avocado schemes to reduce Mexican avocado deforestation, despite Ms. Coria admitting it is difficult to differentiate the legal avocados from avocados grown on illegal sites, adding that other agricultural activities have also contributed to the deforestation.

Mexican avocado deforestation: orchards to blame

Mexican avocado deforestation: world authorities voice concerns as forests are...

Arctic Ocean naval operations may change as ice melts. Commerce, tourism and exploration could pose a new security threat.

In the Arctic Ocean our accessible waters are expanding as sea ice diminishes. Due to the changing environment, scientists have been studying the region to understand these changes and support the U.S. Navy’s actions in a region which was once unreachable. The Office of Naval Research (ONR) commissioned research on this topic, which was published today.

"This changing environment is opening the Arctic for expanded maritime and naval activity. Developing a deeper understanding and knowledge of this environment is essential for reliable weather and ice predictions to ensure the safety of future scientific and operational activities in the region," said Rear Admiral Mat Winter, chief of naval research.

The National Snow and Ice Data Center recently revealed that 2016's sea ice minimum tied with 2007 for the second-lowest ice minimum since the 1970s. The lowest minimum ever was recorded in 2012.

In order to understand the region, scientists measured the strength and intensity of waves and swells moving through the sea ice. This growing database will help develop models and prediction forecasts for ice, ocean and weather conditions.

The research team uses sophisticated equipment to gauge temperature, salinity, ice and ambient noise conditions under the ice surface.

"Abundant sea ice reduces waves and swells and keeps the Arctic Ocean very quiet," said Dr. Robert Headrick, an ONR program officer overseeing the research. "With increased sea ice melt, however, come more waves and wind, which create more noise and make it harder to track undersea vessels. The goal of [this research] is to gain a better and more comprehensive understanding of these changing oceanographic conditions."

Arctic Ocean naval operations have been reduced to submarine operations based on the thick coverage of sea ice, but as this ice melts, opportunities are opened up for commerce, tourism and exploration, in turn raising new security concerns. This process could create new navel requirements in the area.

"Having accurate forecasting models will help the Navy determine what types of surface vessels it will need to build in the near future and 30 years from now, to withstand the climate conditions," said Dr. Scott Harper, another ONR program officer. "That way, the Navy can operate as safely and effectively in the Arctic as it does throughout the rest of the world."

Arctic Ocean naval operations may change as ice melts

Arctic Ocean naval operations may change as ice melts. Commerce,...

A new microsatellite resource helps in keeping plant research costs down.

Too often, scientific breakthroughs are held back due to lack of funding. Genetic research, in particular, can quickly become costly when dealing with specific genome analysis. 

A team of scientists from the University of Florida led by Richard Hodel set out to make genetic research easier and more affordable. Through two pieces published in Applications in Plant Sciences, they have laid out guidelines for using microsatellites for research projects on a wide variety of plant species. In addition, they offer a resource of over five million microsatellites.

Microsatellites are genetic markers that are unique in their ability to be used for many different kinds of genetic research. They can be tested for the presence of a particular gene, used to discover the relationship between individual cases versus the full population, as well as to track and create genome maps.

Hodel remarks, “Often, an initial barrier to starting a project is securing funding to develop genetic markers, if none are available for the study system of interest. Our microsatellite resource will allow researchers to search for loci that are available for a wide range of species, for free.”

Microsatellites were originally identified from sequence data found in the online database of the One Thousand Plant Transcriptomes Project (1KP). Genetic data from the 1KP database can be utilized for marker development and is what allowed the team to compile the 5 million new microsatellite resource for further research.

The resource is essentially a gift to the genetic research community and opens the door for lower-budget research projects to thrive. Hodel adds, “The goal was to give people practical guidance and to enable them to consider all of their options.”

Microsatellite can help reduce plant research costs

A new microsatellite resource helps in keeping plant research costs...

Golfers beware – a new golf course fungal disease is attacking southern U.S. courses.

Drought conditions, uninvited wildlife, and fungal growth are all common problems for golf courses from time to time. Recently, however, a strange new phenomenon has been popping up on golf courses in the southeastern United States, where patches of turf turned black and resembled a large ink spill. Not only has the golf course fungal disease ruined the famously pristine aesthetic of these courses, but it has also made some golfers fearful of playing.

Scientists from Mississippi State University have finally identified the culprit. Curvularia malina is a new fungus species previously unknown to experts. The name “malina” stems from the Sanskrit word meaning “dirty or stained,” due to its dark, blotchy appearance. The finding was published by Dr. Young-Ki Jo and his partner Dr. Maria Tomaso-Peterson in the Mycologia journal.

Because the pathogen is newly discovered, golf course managers have been sweating over how to address the issue. “If we don’t know the biology of a fungus, there is no management protocol,” said Dr. Jo. Fungicides can be incredibly expensive, costing over $5,000 per treatment, and may not even be effective against the new strain. 

Nevertheless, Jo and team were able to come up with a fungicide that could work preventatively against Curvularia malina at the times of year when it’s most likely to occur. Not surprisingly, it is during the more humid months when the fungus flourishes. Luckily, it doesn’t actually kill grass, and the condition often clears up once drier conditions return. 

Curvularia malina will still leave a blemish on the grass even after it clears up. As a result, southern golf courses will need to keep on top of preventative preparation in order to stay one step ahead of the new fungal threat.

Golfers beware – new golf course fungal disease

Golfers beware – a new golf course fungal disease is...

Southern Spain climate change fears are at the forefront in a new report suggesting the Mediterranean could turn to dust as soon as the year 2100.

Using historical data and computer models, experts predict a dramatic change for Southern Spain in the face of global warming.

The researchers say any warming above 2°C will cause these drastic results. Even more dramatically, they did not factor in any additional impact caused by human activity.

Scientists warn that Southern Spain climate will cause deserts to form, and forests will vanish by 2100 unless urgent changes are made. Such drastic climate changes have not been seen in the past 10,000 years.

Co-leader of the study Dr. Joel Guiot, researcher at the National Centre of Scientific Research in France, said: “The Paris Agreement says it's necessary to limit global warming to 2°C (3.6 degrees Fahrenheit), if possible 1.5°. That doesn't seem much to people, but we wanted to see what the difference would be on a sensitive region like the Mediterranean.”

The researchers used pollen records to gauge the effect temperatures had on plants, creating four scenarios based on various concentrations of greenhouse gases entering the atmosphere. 

The richly biodiverse region has been long cultivated by humans. “Climate has always been important there,” said Mr. Guiot. The ancient Egyptians to the Greeks and the Romans all emerged from the Mediterranean. He noted that their demise would have been influenced by socio-political factors but climate may have played a large role.

Dr. Guiot warned that climate change could spark mass migrations of people.

The Mediterranean basin is already experiencing severe water shortages, exacerbated by intensive agriculture and tree clearing.

“If anything, human action will exacerbate what the study projects, and it could turn out to be too optimistic,” Dr. Guiot said.

The Paris Climate Agreement comes into effect this week.

—

Read the full story over at <a href="http://science.sciencemag.org/content/354/6311/465people%20due%20to%20climate%20change" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Science Journal</a>.

Southern Spain climate change will turn country into a giant desert

Southern Spain climate change fears are at the forefront in...

Scientists baffled by big cat brain research – as usual cats do exactly the opposite of what you expect.

Cats, the elusive, ornery species as famous for their grace as their characteristic nonconformity, are baffling researchers once again.

It has been reported in a study today that the brains of wild cats evolve in very different ways to fellow mammals.

Dr. Sharleen Sakai, neuroscientist at Michigan State University, led the study which suggests many factors influencing carnivores’ brain anatomy, beyond socialization. She commented, “Studying feline brain evolution has been a bit like herding cats – our findings suggest the factors that drive brain evolution in wild cats are likely to differ from selection pressures identified in primate brain evolution.”

Scientists believe that mammals who possess large frontal lobes are social creatures, which include humans and monkeys. However, in direct contradiction to this theory, cheetahs are also highly socialized, but their frontal lobes are relatively small, while leopards are solitary hunters and yet their frontal lobes are enlarged.

Dr. Sakai and her team obtained 75 wild feline skulls representing 13 species from museum collections. The researchers used CT scans and sophisticated software to digitally "fill in" the areas where the brains would have been present. By doing this, they could determine brain volume.

Dr. Sakai's big cat brain research is attempting to understand factors which influence carnivore brain evolution. It is a common belief that making and retaining relationships is more demanding than solitary living and hence requires a larger brain.

"We wanted to know if this idea, called the 'social brain' hypothesis, applied to other social mammals, especially carnivores and, in particular, wild cats," Dr. Sakai explained.

Her team's big cat brain research included 13 wild feline species, 11 of which were solitary and two social. They made some surprising discoveries from this data:
<ul>
 	<li style="font-weight: 400;">Overall brain size did not differ between the social and solitary species of wild cats – but the part of the brain that includes the frontal cortex did differ between them.</li>
 	<li style="font-weight: 400;">The female lion had the largest frontal cortex; female lions are highly social, working together to protect and feed their young, hunt large prey, and defend their territory. In contrast, males may live alone and may be dominant in a pride for only a few years. The larger frontal cortex in females compared to male lions and the other wild cats may reflect lionesses' demands for processing the social information necessary for life in the pride.</li>
 	<li style="font-weight: 400;">The social cheetahs, in contrast, had the smallest overall brains and the smallest frontal cortex of the wild cats. Small brains weigh less and require less energy, factors that might contribute to the cheetah's remarkable running speeds. "Cheetah brain anatomy is distinctive and differs from other wild cats," Dr. Sakai described. "The size and shape of its brain may be a consequence of its unusual skull shape, an adaptation for high-speed pursuits."</li>
 	<li style="font-weight: 400;">Leopards' frontal lobes were relatively large. Although the leopard is solitary, it is noted for its flexibility and adaptability – behaviors associated with enhanced brain processing and larger brain size in other species.</li>
</ul>
—

The full study can be read over at <a href="http://journal.frontiersin.org/article/10.3389/fnana.2016.00099/full" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Frontiers in Neuroanatomy</a>.

Big cat brain research baffles scientists

Scientists baffled by big cat brain research – as usual...

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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



---



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

[sendtonews key="0ynNMYkMKa-2340414-12187" 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.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



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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



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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



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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



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Interactive map of the universe includes 200,000 galaxies

[sendtonews key="e4ZG0Jawp3-2374785-12187" type="single"] Astronomers at Johns Hopkins University have created...

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



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



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



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



Video Credit: NASA Goddard&nbsp;



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



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Remote sensing will revolutionize the way we monitor trees

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

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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



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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

[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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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



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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



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How the immune system responds to injury

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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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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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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...