Scientists have uncovered an intriguing tale of galactic growth, featuring mysterious “red monsters” that are revealing new secrets of the young universe.



An international team of experts led by the University of Geneva (UNIGE) has discovered three ultra-massive galaxies - each almost as substantial as the Milky Way - that emerged within the first billion years following the Big Bang.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-theory-of-galaxy-formation">Theory of galaxy formation</h2>



This discovery surprised scientists because it challenges the popular theory of galaxy formation. According to current models, galaxies grow slowly within large halos of dark matter. 



These halos, which are invisible structures, pull in gas that eventually forms stars. Traditionally, scientists believed only about 20% of this gas would turn into stars in these galaxies.



However, the findings from the UNIGE team show that these early massive galaxies were exceptionally efficient at creating stars. They produced stars much faster and in larger numbers than expected, growing at an extraordinary rate compared to galaxies that formed later. 



This unexpected efficiency suggests that early galaxies grew in ways scientists hadn’t previously considered, prompting a rethink of <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/ancient-galaxies-formed-from-the-earliest-elements-in-the-universe/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">galaxy formation theories</a>.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-the-three-red-monsters">The three "red monsters"</h2>



The James Webb Space Telescope's FRESCO program made this remarkable discovery possible.



The beauty of the FRESCO program lies in its cutting-edge tool, the NIRCam/grism spectrograph, which enables accurate measurement of the distance and stellar masses of <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/early-galaxy-formation-occurred-much-faster-than-we-thought/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">galaxies</a>.



Thanks to the superior capabilities of <a href="https://science.nasa.gov/mission/webb/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">JWST</a>, astronomers have been able to study galaxies in the distant and early universe systematically - including massive and dust-obscured galaxies.



Upon examining the galaxies in the FRESCO survey, most galaxies conformed to existing models. Yet, the team found three galaxies that were surprisingly massive.



Due to their high dust content, which gives them a unique red appearance in JWST images, the giant galaxies are now known as the "red monsters."



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-unveiling-the-hidden-red-monsters">Unveiling the hidden red monsters</h2>



Dr. Mengyuan Xiao, the lead author of the study, is a postdoctoral researcher in the Department of Astronomy at <a href="https://www.unige.ch/en/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">UNIGE</a> Faculty of Science.



Dr. Xiao joined forces with Dr. David Elbaz, director of research at CEA Paris-Saclay, to investigate the red monsters.



“Our findings are reshaping our understanding of galaxy formation in the early universe,” noted Dr. Xiao.



“The massive properties of these red monsters were hardly determined before JWST, as they are optically invisible due to dust attenuation,” said Dr. Elbaz.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-studying-the-growth-of-galaxies-over-time">Studying the growth of galaxies over time</h2>



Using the James Webb telescope, the researchers developed an innovative program which enables the systematic analysis of a complete sample of emission-line galaxies within the first billion years of <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/milky-way-like-galaxies-were-present-in-the-early-universe/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">cosmic history</a>.



This program allowed the team to achieve precise distance estimates and reliable stellar mass measurements for the full galaxy sample.



Pascal Oesch is an associate professor in the Department of Astronomy at the UNIGE and principal investigator of the observation program.



“Our findings highlight the remarkable power of NIRCam/grism spectroscopy," noted Oesch. "The instrument on board the space telescope allows us to identify and study the growth of galaxies over time, and to obtain a clearer picture of how stellar mass accumulates over the course of cosmic history.”



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-too-many-too-massive-galaxies">"Too many, too massive" galaxies</h2>



The discovery of these massive galaxies challenges existing ideas about how galaxies form.



The findings highlight the presence of an unexpectedly high number of large galaxies - "too many, too massive" galaxies - very early in the universe’s history.



This suggests that existing models may be missing certain processes or factors that allowed some galaxies to grow rapidly right after the Big Bang.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-future-research-directions">Future research directions</h2>



To understand these giant galaxies better, scientists will continue observing them with powerful instruments like JWST and ALMA.



These tools can offer more detailed views and help find more of these ultra-massive galaxies, deepening our understanding of galaxy formation in the early universe and potentially revising the models of cosmic evolution.



Future endeavors hold the promise of addressing lingering questions about the universe’s dark matter content, stellar formation processes, and the dynamic behavior of galaxies over cosmic time scales.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-significance-of-the-red-monsters">Significance of the red monsters</h2>



The discoveries with JWST have significantly contributed to our understanding of cosmic origins, particularly by offering new perspectives on the <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/galaxies-like-our-own-milky-way-are-not-unique/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">early universe</a>.



These revelations challenge the existing paradigms of universe evolution, suggesting that even in the nascent stages following the Big Bang, there existed environments ripe for the rapid growth and formation of the red monsters.



“These results indicate that galaxies in the early universe could form stars with unexpected efficiency," said Dr. Xiao.



"As we study these galaxies in more depth, they will offer new insights into the conditions that shaped the universe’s earliest epochs. The red monsters are just the beginning of a new era in our exploration of the early universe."



The study is published in the journal <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-024-08094-5" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Nature</a>.



Image Credit: NASA / CSA / ESA / M. Xiao &amp; P. A. Oesch / G. Brammer / Dawn JWST Archive



-----



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'Red monsters' challenge what we know about the early universe

Scientists have uncovered an intriguing tale of galactic growth, featuring mysterious “red monsters” that are revealing new secrets of the young universe. An international team of experts led by the University of Geneva (UNIGE) has discovered three ultra-massive galaxies - each almost as substantial as the Milky Way - that emerged within the first billion years following the Big Bang. Theory of galaxy formation This discovery surprised scientists because it challenges the popular theory of galaxy formation. According to current models, galaxies grow slowly within large halos...

New Ocean Heat Map Reveals Migratory Patterns Of Fish. Study uses hurricane forecasting tool to show fishes affinity for ocean fronts and eddies

Researchers at the University of Miami (UM) Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science developed a new method to estimate fish movements using ocean heat content images, a dataset commonly used in hurricane intensity forecasting. With <a href="https://www.bing.com/search?q=atlantic&amp;cvid=8c8ba2ec74e44c0dac1efe15b63b2520&amp;FORM=ANAB01&amp;PC=HCTS">Atlantic</a> tarpon as the messenger, this is the first study to quantitatively show that large migratory fishes, such as yellowfin and bluefin tunas, blue and white marlin, and sailfish have affinities for ocean fronts and eddies.New Ocean Heat Map Reveals Migratory Patterns Of Fish

"Ocean heat content data revealed detailed movements of fishes that were not readily apparent using surface temperature data," said Jerald S. Ault, UM Rosenstiel School professor of marine biology and ecology. "This offers a powerful new approach to study how fish interact with dynamic water features relatively common in the ocean."

Ocean heat content (OHC) relative to the 26°C isotherm, a measure of heat stored in the upper surface layers of the ocean, has been used for more than four decades by scientists to help predict hurricane intensity. Over the past two decades, <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/biodiversity-loss-human-rights-issue/">OHC</a> has been monitored daily using satellite fields and in-situ data that provide basin-scale variability for both weather and climate studies. In addition to providing the OHC for forecasting, these previous studies showed OHC images reveal dynamic ocean features, such as fronts and eddies, in the ocean better than just using standard techniques (e.g., sea surface temperature), especially during the summer months.

The researchers compared data on fish movements obtained from pop-up satellite tags affixed to the highly migratory fish alongside maps of the heat stored in the upper ocean. "Using an advanced optimization algorithm and OHC maps, we developed a method to greatly improve geolocation accuracy and refine fish movement tracks derived from satellite tags," said Jiangang Luo, lead author and UM scientist at the Tarpon and Bonefish Research Center. The analysis revealed that fish commonly swim along the boundaries of water features in the ocean, such as fronts, like the Florida and Loop Current and their complex eddy fields.

"Using the OHC approach in a new way offers an unprecedented view of how these animals move with currents and eddies in the ocean," said Nick Shay, UM Rosenstiel School professor of ocean sciences. "Our study provides a more detailed picture of the ocean ecosystem as an entity."

In one 109-day analysis, the researchers documented a yellowfin tuna move along a weak front off the Mississippi River before reaching an eddy centered in the Gulf of Mexico. In separate analysis, a yellowfin tuna swam around the periphery of the same eddy many times over a 20-day period, rarely passing over it.

Eddies are swirling masses of water that have been shed from strong ocean current fronts, and pump nutrient-rich water to the surface. Fronts are a type of current created at a boundary between two distinct water masses with differing physical properties, such as different temperatures, salinities. In the Gulf of Mexico, warm eddies are often shed from the Loop Current in the summer months causing a rapid intensification of hurricanes (e.g., Katrina) as they pass over it.

"Our new method shows that hurricanes and highly migratory fish share at least one common oceanographic interest - warm swirling ocean eddies," said Ault.

---

<a href="http://www.rsmas.miami.edu/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">University of Miami RSMAS</a>

New Ocean Heat Map Reveals Migratory Patterns Of Fish

New Ocean Heat Map Reveals Migratory Patterns Of Fish. Study...

Several States Suing Feds Over Clean Power Plan. States and industry groups dependent on fossil fuels began filing court challenges Friday to President Barack Obama's Clean Power Plan, which aims to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

Opponents of the plan were expected to file a flurry of lawsuits at the U.S. Court of Appeals as the Environmental Protection Agency published its final version of the new regulations. All but two of the 24 states filing challenges are led by Republicans. They deride the plan as an "unlawful power grab by Washington bureaucrats" that will kill coal mining jobs and drive up electricity costs.

"The Clean Power Plan is one of the most far-reaching energy regulations in this nation's history," said West Virginia Attorney General Patrick Morrisey, among those leading the challenges. "I have a responsibility to protect the lives of millions of working families, the elderly and the poor, from such illegal and unconscionable federal government actions."

The Obama administration and environmental groups counter that the rules are needed to cut carbon emissions while curbing the worst impacts of climate change and sea-level rise. They also say the plan will spur new clean-energy jobs.

The new rules would require states to cut carbon emissions by 30 percent by 2030. Each state has a customized target and is responsible for drawing up an effective plan to meet its goal.

"We expect polluters and their allies to throw everything they've got at the Clean Power Plan, and we expect them to fail," said Sierra Club Executive Director Michael Brune, among those defending the law. "The Clean Power Plan is based on a law passed by Congress, upheld by the Supreme Court, and demanded by the American people."

The EPA says it has authority to enact the plan under the Clean Air Act. At issue are dueling provisions added to the law by the House and Senate in 1990. The EPA's interpretation relies on the Senate language, but opponents argue that the House version should win out.

"We are confident we will again prevail against these challenges and will be able to work with states to successfully implement these first-ever national standards to limit carbon pollution, the largest source of carbon emissions in the United States," said EPA Administrator Gina McCarthy.

EPA already regulates other power-plant pollutants under a different section of the Clean Air Act, and the opponents claim the law prohibits "double regulation."

Morrisey said he will seek a stay barring the plan from taking effect while the court challenges proceed, a question that will likely be up to the Supreme Court.Several States Suing Feds Over Clean Power Plan

The states challenging the plan in court are Alabama, Arkansas, Arizona, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Michigan, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, New Jersey, North Carolina, Ohio, South Carolina, South Dakota, Texas, Utah, West Virginia, Wyoming and Wisconsin.

There is some political variation within the list. Governors in Colorado, Michigan and New Mexico will comply with the new EPA rules even as attorneys general from their states joined the lawsuit. In North Carolina, the state environmental agency controlled by the Republican governor joined the opposition after the Democratic attorney general declined.

Members of Congress from coal-mining states also said Friday they will introduce new legislation aimed at blocking the EPA from enforcing the plan.

On the other side, 15 states and the District of Columbia say they are backing the Obama administration and will begin working to comply with the new rules.

Under the Clean Air Act, certain challenges to agency rules skip the federal district court and go directly to the appeals court in Washington, D.C.

---

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Several States Suing Feds Over Clean Power Plan

Several States Suing Feds Over Clean Power Plan. States and...

Feds: EPA Caused Colorado Gold Mine Spill. Feds: EPA Caused Colorado Gold Mine Spill. Government investigators squarely blamed the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Thursday for a 3 million gallon wastewater spill from a Colorado gold mine, saying an EPA cleanup crew rushed its work and failed to consider the complex engineering involved, triggering the very blowout it hoped to avoid.
The spill that fouled rivers in three states would have been avoided had the <a href="http://www.earth.com/video/gentoo-penguins-are-not-one-species-but-four/">EPA</a> team checked on water levels inside the Gold King Mine before digging into a collapsed and leaking mine entrance, Interior Department investigators concluded.
The technical report on the causes of the Aug. 5 spill has implications across the United States, where similar disasters could lurk among the hundreds of thousands of abandoned mines that have yet to be cleaned up. Some estimates put the total cost of containing this mining industry mess at more than $50 billion. Feds: EPA Caused Colorado Gold Mine Spill
The report says the root causes of the Colorado accident began decades earlier, when mining companies altered the flow of water through a series of interconnected tunnels in the extensively mined Upper <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/animus-river-in-colorado-reopens-as-toxic-spill-moves-to-lake-powell-3/">Animas River</a> watershed.
EPA documents show its officials knew of the potential for a major blowout from the Gold King Mine near Silverton as early as June 2014. After the spill, EPA officials described the blowout as "likely inevitable" because millions of gallons of pressurized water had been bottling up inside the mine.
The Interior report directly refutes that assertion. It says the cleanup team could have used a drill rig to bore into the shaft from above, safely gauging the danger of a blowout and planning the excavation accordingly. Instead, the EPA crew, with the agreement of Colorado mining officials, assumed the shaft was only partially inundated.
"This error resulted in development of a plan to open the mine in a manner that appeared to guard against blowout, but instead led directly to the failure," according to engineers from Interior's Bureau of Reclamation, who spent two months evaluating the technical circumstances.
The blowout fouled rivers in Colorado, Utah and <a href="https://www.bing.com/search?q=New+Mexico&amp;cvid=549c6db7d0594007a0a6e9322bd79d5a&amp;FORM=ANAB01&amp;PC=HCTS">New Mexico</a>, temporarily shutting down drinking water supplies and cropland irrigation.
The report stops short of assigning fault to any individuals, despite prior claims from EPA Administrator Gina McCarthy that it would determine fault and any negligence.
A U.S. Army Corps of Engineers official whose review of the conclusions was included in the report expressed "serious reservations" over the EPA's failure to explain exactly how its communications broke down and why its officials were so insistent on starting work without more information about the complexities involved.
Richard Olsen, a senior geotechnical engineer with the Corps, also questioned why a change in the EPA field coordinator for Gold King led to an "urgency to start digging" even though another EPA official had expressed some uncertainty about the potential risks.
That second EPA official in July asked for an outside review of the agency's plans by one of the Bureau of Reclamation engineers involved in Thursday's report. A meeting between the EPA and the engineer had been scheduled for Aug. 14 - nine days after the blowout.
EPA officials pointed out that the mine plug already was leaking and could have eventually blown out anyway, and the Interior report acknowledged that this was possible.
EPA spokeswoman Nancy Grantham said the report "will help inform EPA's ongoing efforts to work safely and effectively at mine sites as we carry out our mission to protect human health and the environment."
A separate investigation into the spill is pending from the EPA Inspector General's Office.
Guidelines for cleaning up abandoned focus on details such as water sampling and treatment. Yet they have "little appreciation for the engineering complexity," and require but don't receive significant expertise, the Interior Department's 132-page report concluded.
Plugging abandoned or inactive mines has been common industry practice for more than a century. The report lists 31 mines across the U.S. where so-called bulkheads were installed since the 1950s to stem the flow of water into or out of a mine.
With coal mines, monitoring and cleanups are funded in part by a fee companies pay, and costs are passed on to utility customers. No such arrangements exist for inoperative hard-rock mines, and that's a national problem, the report noted.
Given industry opposition to efforts to hold mine owners accountable, the cleanup has been left to a scattering of federal and state agencies, without common standards or even lists of the most problematic mines. The EPA has been left to prioritize cleanups with insufficient information and funding, the report said.
In the wake of the Gold King spill, EPA temporarily halted some work at 10 polluted mining complexes in Montana, California, Colorado and Missouri because of similar conditions.
Abandoned hard-rock underground mines are not subject to the same federal and state safety requirements other mining operations must follow, and "experience indicates that they should be," the report concluded.
"A collapsed flooded mine is in effect a dam, and failure must be prevented by routine monitoring, maintenance, and in some cases remediation. However, there appears to be a general absence of knowledge of the risks associated with these facilities. A comprehensive identification of sites, evaluation of the potential to fail, and estimation of the likely downstream consequences should failure occur, are good first steps in such an endeavor."
© 2015 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. Learn more about our Privacy Policy and Terms of Use.

Feds: EPA Caused Colorado Gold Mine Spill

Feds: EPA Caused Colorado Gold Mine Spill. Feds: EPA Caused...

Feds: EPA Caused Colorado Gold Mine Spill. Government investigators squarely blamed the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Thursday for a 3 million gallon wastewater spill from a Colorado gold mine, saying an EPA cleanup crew rushed its work and failed to consider the complex engineering involved, triggering the very blowout it hoped to avoid.
The spill that fouled rivers in three states would have been avoided had the EPA team checked on water levels inside the Gold King Mine before digging into a collapsed and leaking mine entrance, Interior Department investigators concluded. Feds: EPA Caused <a href="https://www.bing.com/search?q=colorado&amp;cvid=cd3aea73d6534c48a86fadb3f320e862&amp;FORM=ANAB01&amp;PC=HCTS">Colorado</a> Gold Mine Spill
The technical report on the causes of the Aug. 5 spill has implications across the<a href="https://www.earth.com/image/severe-fire-threat-continues-in-the-western-united-states/"> United States</a>, where similar disasters could lurk among the hundreds of thousands of abandoned mines that have yet to be cleaned up. Some estimates put the total cost of containing this mining industry mess at more than $50 billion.
The report says the root causes of the Colorado accident began decades earlier, when mining companies altered the flow of water through a series of interconnected tunnels in the extensively mined Upper Animas River watershed.
EPA documents show its officials knew of the potential for a major blowout from the Gold King Mine near Silverton as early as June 2014. After the spill, EPA officials described the blowout as "likely inevitable" because millions of gallons of pressurized water had been bottling up inside the mine.
The Interior report directly refutes that assertion. It says the cleanup team could have used a drill rig to bore into the shaft from above, safely gauging the danger of a blowout and planning the excavation accordingly. Instead, the EPA crew, with the agreement of Colorado mining officials, assumed the shaft was only partially inundated.
"This error resulted in development of a plan to open the mine in a manner that appeared to guard against blowout, but instead led directly to the failure," according to engineers from Interior's Bureau of Reclamation, who spent two months evaluating the technical circumstances.
The blowout fouled rivers in Colorado, Utah and New Mexico, temporarily shutting down drinking water supplies and cropland irrigation.
The report stops short of assigning fault to any individuals, despite prior claims from EPA Administrator Gina McCarthy that it would determine fault and any negligence.
A U.S. Army Corps of Engineers official whose review of the conclusions was included in the report expressed "serious reservations" over the EPA's failure to explain exactly how its communications broke down and why its officials were so insistent on starting work without more information about the complexities involved.
Richard Olsen, a senior geotechnical engineer with the Corps, also questioned why a change in the EPA field coordinator for Gold King led to an "urgency to start digging" even though another EPA official had expressed some uncertainty about the potential risks.
That second EPA official in July asked for an outside review of the agency's plans by one of the Bureau of Reclamation engineers involved in Thursday's report. A meeting between the EPA and the engineer had been scheduled for Aug. 14 - nine days after the blowout.
EPA officials pointed out that the mine plug already was leaking and could have eventually blown out anyway, and the Interior report acknowledged that this was possible.
EPA spokeswoman Nancy Grantham said the report "will help inform EPA's ongoing efforts to work safely and effectively at mine sites as we carry out our mission to protect human health and the environment."
A separate investigation into the spill is pending from the EPA Inspector General's Office.
Guidelines for cleaning up abandoned focus on details such as water sampling and treatment. Yet they have "little appreciation for the engineering complexity," and require but don't receive significant expertise, the Interior Department's 132-page report concluded.
Plugging abandoned or inactive mines has been common industry practice for more than a century. The report lists 31 mines across the U.S. where so-called bulkheads were installed since the 1950s to stem the flow of water into or out of a mine.
With coal mines, monitoring and cleanups are funded in part by a fee companies pay, and costs are passed on to utility customers. No such arrangements exist for inoperative hard-rock mines, and that's a national problem, the report noted.
Given industry opposition to efforts to hold mine owners accountable, the cleanup has been left to a scattering of federal and state agencies, without common standards or even lists of the most problematic mines. The EPA has been left to prioritize cleanups with insufficient information and funding, the report said.
In the wake of the Gold King spill, EPA temporarily halted some work at 10 polluted mining complexes in Montana, California, Colorado and Missouri because of similar conditions.
Abandoned hard-rock underground mines are not subject to the same federal and state safety requirements other mining operations must follow, and "experience indicates that they should be," the report concluded.
"A collapsed flooded mine is in effect a dam, and failure must be prevented by routine monitoring, maintenance, and in some cases remediation. However, there appears to be a general absence of knowledge of the risks associated with these facilities. A comprehensive identification of sites, evaluation of the potential to fail, and estimation of the likely downstream consequences should failure occur, are good first steps in such an endeavor."
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Feds: EPA Caused Colorado Gold Mine

Feds: EPA Caused Colorado Gold Mine Spill. Government investigators squarely...

Feds: Buy Flood Insurance If You Live In California With a strong El Nino in place, the
FEMA deputy associate administrator Roy WrighFederal Emergency Management Agency is urging Californians in flood prone places to buy flood insurance before it's too late.t said Friday buying flood insurance is the most powerful action residents can take with the <a href="https://www.bing.com/search?q=el+nino&amp;cvid=d4152f4f0abf45219d35b4a21f9408f8&amp;FORM=ANAB01&amp;PC=HCTS">El Nino</a>, which brings heavy winter rains to California.
Between 50 to 70 percent of Californians who live in high risk flood areas don't have federal flood insurance. People can check at <a href="http://www.floodsmart.gov/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">www.floodsmart.gov</a> . Wright said flood insurance has to be purchased 30 days before a flood hits.
Wright said if you buy flood insurance for just one year this is the year because more than one-third of <a href="https://www.earth.com/image/tule-fog-across-californias-central-valley/">California</a> flood insurance claims in the past 27 years came in just four El Nino years. Feds: Buy Flood Insurance If You Live In California. California is a state in the Pacific Region of the United States. With over 39.3 million residents across a total area of approximately 163,696 square miles, it is the most populous U.S. state and the third-largest by area
© 2015 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. Learn more about our Privacy Policy and Terms of Use.

Feds: Buy Flood Insurance If You Live In California

Feds: Buy Flood Insurance If You Live In California With...

Several States Suing Feds Over Clean Power Plan. States and industry groups dependent on fossil fuels began filing court challenges Friday to President Barack Obama's Clean Power Plan, which aims to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

Opponents of the plan were expected to file a flurry of lawsuits at the U.S. Court of Appeals as the Environmental Protection Agency published its final version of the new regulations. All but two of the 24 states filing challenges are led by <a href="https://www.bing.com/search?q=republicans&amp;cvid=bc8c5d0c94dd4277aa6f9248b09e423a&amp;FORM=ANAB01&amp;PC=HCTS">Republicans</a>. They deride the plan as an "unlawful power grab by Washington bureaucrats" that will kill coal mining jobs and drive up electricity costs.

"The Clean Power Plan is one of the most far-reaching energy regulations in this nation's history," said West Virginia Attorney General Patrick Morrisey, among those leading the challenges. "I have a responsibility to protect the lives of millions of working families, the elderly and the poor, from such illegal and unconscionable <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/alaska-federal-public-lands-trump/">federal</a> government actions." Several States Suing Feds Over Clean Power Plan

The Obama administration and environmental groups counter that the rules are needed to cut carbon emissions while curbing the worst impacts of climate change and sea-level rise. They also say the plan will spur new clean-energy jobs.

The new rules would require states to cut carbon emissions by 30 percent by 2030. Each state has a customized target and is responsible for drawing up an effective plan to meet its goal.

"We expect polluters and their allies to throw everything they've got at the Clean Power Plan, and we expect them to fail," said Sierra Club Executive Director Michael Brune, among those defending the law. "The Clean Power Plan is based on a law passed by Congress, upheld by the Supreme Court, and demanded by the American people."

The EPA says it has authority to enact the plan under the Clean Air Act. At issue are dueling provisions added to the law by the House and Senate in 1990. The EPA's interpretation relies on the Senate language, but opponents argue that the House version should win out.

"We are confident we will again prevail against these challenges and will be able to work with states to successfully implement these first-ever national standards to limit carbon pollution, the largest source of carbon emissions in the United States," said EPA Administrator Gina McCarthy.

EPA already regulates other power-plant pollutants under a different section of the Clean Air Act, and the opponents claim the law prohibits "double regulation."

Morrisey said he will seek a stay barring the plan from taking effect while the court challenges proceed, a question that will likely be up to the Supreme Court.

The states challenging the plan in court are Alabama, Arkansas, Arizona, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Michigan, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, New Jersey, North Carolina, Ohio, South Carolina, South Dakota, Texas, Utah, West Virginia, Wyoming and Wisconsin.

There is some political variation within the list. Governors in Colorado, Michigan and New Mexico will comply with the new EPA rules even as attorneys general from their states joined the lawsuit. In North Carolina, the state environmental agency controlled by the Republican governor joined the opposition after the Democratic attorney general declined.

Members of Congress from coal-mining states also said Friday they will introduce new legislation aimed at blocking the EPA from enforcing the plan.

On the other side, 15 states and the District of Columbia say they are backing the Obama administration and will begin working to comply with the new rules.

Under the Clean Air Act, certain challenges to agency rules skip the federal district court and go directly to the appeals court in Washington, D.C.

---

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New York City Waters Transform Into Serene Wetlands. Amid the crammed concrete and steel of <a href="https://www.bing.com/search?q=brooklyn&amp;cvid=3a81a82b4db642e8882d00abcdac37d7&amp;FORM=ANAB01&amp;PC=HCTS">Brooklyn</a>, a ribbon of clear water stretches out into a vast bay. Tall grass rustles along the undulating shoreline, where bursts of golden flowers, pines and cacti flourish in the soft sand.
"This is what would have been here pre-us. Pre-European development," said John McLaughlin, director of the office of ecological services at New York City's department of <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/environmental-era-of-pandemics/">environmental</a> protection.
Just a few years ago, the new york city waters, known as Paerdegat Basin, was a fetid mess. The water was murky green, teeming with 1.8 billion gallons of sewage and rainwater that streamed in during storms. The working-class neighborhoods along the waterway stank like an outhouse during hot weather and low tide. The shoreline was strewn with rusted out cars, garbage and broken bottles.
"It was a junkyard. It was a chop shop," McLaughlin said. "It was a weed-strewn mess, full of invasive plant life. And boy, did it smell."
The Paerdegat tributary feeds directly into Jamaica Bay, a body of water and marsh sandwiched between Brooklyn and Queens, and on the shores of which sits Kennedy International Airport. Part of the area is run by the city; the other is Gateway National Recreational Area, which contains a wildlife refuge with one of the most important bird sanctuaries in the Northeast.
And now a decade-long $455 million investment by the city to clean up Paerdegat Basin is nearly complete, including a new sewage overflow retention facility at the head of the 1.3-mile-long channel and 52 restored acres of native grasslands and wetlands.
In older cities like New York, sewer systems are built on one pipe that handles both rainwater and sewage. With considerable concrete and not enough exposed earth to absorb rainwater, the combined runoff often overflows and backs into city waterways.
The new retention facility is capable of preventing 50 million gallons of wastewater per storm that would previously have streamed into the water and out to the bay. It was completed first and has been operational since 2011. Automated, state-of-the-art machinery clicks on when water levels rise too high. Giant rakes segregate large sticks, bottles and other refuse from the pooling wastewater, which is then collected and stored in giant underground tanks. After the storm subsides, the water is pumped out to a treatment facility and cleaned, and sent out the waterways.
The facility is spotless. Even the air is filtered, so there's no smell.
"That's the best compliment you can give us," said Chris Laudando, the chief of collections facilities for southern Brooklyn.
It has reduced the amount of wastewater spilling into the channel from 1.8 billion gallons annually to about 650 million, said Vincent Sapienza, deputy commissioner of the Department of Environmental Protection. That means better water quality in the basin and out to the bay and a better habitat for birds and fish that live there.
The idea for the project was first discussed in the mid-1990s, but took until 2005 to get off the ground. Conservationists have praised the project as forward-thinking and inclusive. Dan Mundy of the Jamaica Bay Ecowatchers, a watchdog group for Jamaica Bay and its tributaries, said he has noticed a visible change in the bay.
"We're very excited," he said. "I think it's a big deal, the work that went into the project is paying off and now it's an area really to be enjoyed."
The construction on the channel began after the retention facility. Crews dredged the filthy sediment and cleared the shoreline of refuse, then used sand excavated for the retention facility to form the hills. The department of environmental protection planted more than 100,000 plugs of grassland and wildflowers, more than 5,300 shrubs and nearly 1,100 trees.
Then, they waited for the fragile seedlings to grow. The result is a mass of soft golds and greens that reflect off the water. Goldenrod and smooth cord grass are now about waist-high. Atlantic white cedars grow among little blue stem, American holly and the eastern prickly pear- the only cactus native to the Northeast. McLaughlin said he used historical biology records to decide what to plant.
"It's very satisfying to see a project you've been talking about since the '90s come into being," he said.
The department of environmental protection will turn the acreage over to the city parks department in the upcoming months, and it will remain closed to give plants enough time to take proper root. Five acres will eventually be open for educational tours as an ecology park, and the rest will stay natural to encourage wildlife growth, though no opening date has been set.
© 2015 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. Learn more about our Privacy Policy and Terms of Use.

New York City Waters Transform Into Serene Wetlands

New York City Waters Transform Into Serene Wetlands. Amid the...

Feds: Buy Flood Insurance If You Live In California. With a strong El Nino in place, the
FEMA deputy associate administrator Roy WrighFederal Emergency Management Agency is urging Californians in flood prone places to buy flood insurance before it's too late.t said Friday buying flood insurance is the most powerful action residents can take with the <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/el-nino-deadly-viruses/">El Nino,</a> which brings heavy winter rains to California.
Between 50 to 70 percent of Californians who live in high risk flood areas don't have federal flood insurance. People can check at <a href="http://www.floodsmart.gov/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">www.floodsmart.gov</a> . Wright said flood insurance has to be purchased 30 days before a flood hits.
Wright said if you buy flood insurance for just one year this is the year because more than one-third of California flood insurance claims in the past 27 years came in just four El Nino years. Feds: Buy Flood Insurance If You Live In California. California is a <a title="U.S. state" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/U.S._state">state</a> in the <a title="Pacific states" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pacific_states">Pacific Region</a> of the <a class="mw-redirect" title="United States of America" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_of_America">United States of America</a>. With 39.5 million residents across a total area of about 163,696 square miles (423,970 km2), California is the <a title="List of states and territories of the United States by population" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_states_and_territories_of_the_United_States_by_population">most populous U.S. state</a> and the <a title="List of U.S. states and territories by area" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_U.S._states_and_territories_by_area">third-largest</a> by area, and is also the <a title="List of country subdivisions by population" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_country_subdivisions_by_population">world's thirty-fourth most populous</a> subnational entity
© 2015 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. Learn more about our Privacy Policy and Terms of Use.

Feds: Buy Flood Insurance If You Live In California. With...

New York City Waters Transform Into Serene Wetlands. Amid the crammed concrete and steel of Brooklyn, a ribbon of clear water stretches out into a vast bay. Tall grass rustles along the undulating shoreline, where bursts of golden flowers, pines and cacti flourish in the soft sand.
"This is what would have been here pre-us. Pre-European development," said John McLaughlin, director of the office of ecological services at New York City's department of environmental protection.
Just a few years ago, the new york city waters, known as Paerdegat Basin, was a fetid mess. The water was murky green, teeming with 1.8 billion gallons of sewage and rainwater that streamed in during storms. The working-class neighborhoods along the waterway stank like an outhouse during hot weather and low tide. The shoreline was strewn with rusted out cars, garbage and broken bottles.
"It was a junkyard. It was a chop shop," McLaughlin said. "It was a weed-strewn mess, full of invasive plant life. And boy, did it smell."
The Paerdegat tributary feeds directly into Jamaica Bay, a body of water and marsh sandwiched between Brooklyn and Queens, and on the shores of which sits Kennedy International Airport. Part of the area is run by the city; the other is Gateway National Recreational Area, which contains a wildlife refuge with one of the most important bird sanctuaries in the Northeast.
And now a decade-long $455 million investment by the city to clean up Paerdegat Basin is nearly complete, including a new sewage overflow retention facility at the head of the 1.3-mile-long channel and 52 restored acres of native grasslands and wetlands.
In older cities like New York, sewer systems are built on one pipe that handles both rainwater and sewage. With considerable concrete and not enough exposed earth to absorb rainwater, the combined runoff often overflows and backs into city waterways.
The new retention facility is capable of preventing 50 million gallons of wastewater per storm that would previously have streamed into the water and out to the bay. It was completed first and has been operational since 2011. Automated, state-of-the-art machinery clicks on when water levels rise too high. Giant rakes segregate large sticks, bottles and other refuse from the pooling wastewater, which is then collected and stored in giant underground tanks. After the storm subsides, the water is pumped out to a treatment facility and cleaned, and sent out the waterways.
The facility is spotless. Even the air is filtered, so there's no smell.
"That's the best compliment you can give us," said Chris Laudando, the chief of collections facilities for southern Brooklyn.
It has reduced the amount of wastewater spilling into the channel from 1.8 billion gallons annually to about 650 million, said Vincent Sapienza, deputy commissioner of the Department of Environmental Protection. That means better water quality in the basin and out to the bay and a better <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/top-predators-face-the-most-imminent-threat-from-habitat-loss/">habitat</a> for birds and fish that live there.
The idea for the project was first discussed in the mid-1990s, but took until 2005 to get off the ground. Conservationists have praised the project as forward-thinking and inclusive. Dan Mundy of the Jamaica Bay Ecowatchers, a watchdog group for Jamaica Bay and its tributaries, said he has noticed a visible change in the bay.
"We're very excited," he said. "I think it's a big deal, the work that went into the project is paying off and now it's an area really to be enjoyed."
The construction on the channel began after the retention facility. Crews dredged the filthy sediment and cleared the shoreline of refuse, then used sand excavated for the retention facility to form the hills. The department of environmental protection planted more than 100,000 plugs of grassland and wildflowers, more than 5,300 shrubs and nearly 1,100 trees.
Then, they waited for the fragile seedlings to grow. The result is a mass of soft golds and greens that reflect off the water. Goldenrod and smooth cord grass are now about waist-high. Atlantic white cedars grow among little blue stem, American holly and the eastern prickly pear- the only cactus native to the Northeast. McLaughlin said he used historical biology records to decide what to plant. New York City Waters Transform Into Serene Wetlands
"It's very satisfying to see a project you've been talking about since the '90s come into being," he said.
The department of environmental protection will turn the acreage over to the city parks department in the upcoming months, and it will remain closed to give plants enough time to take proper root. Five acres will eventually be open for educational tours as an ecology park, and the rest will stay natural to encourage wildlife growth, though no opening date has been set.
© 2015 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. Learn more about our Privacy Policy and Terms of Use.

Study: Only 4 Percent Of The Ocean Is Protected. Despite global efforts to increase the area of the ocean that is protected, only four percent of it lies within marine protected areas (MPAs), according to a University of British Columbia study.

UBC Institute for Ocean and Fisheries researchers found that major swaths of the ocean must still be protected to reach even the most basic global targets.

In 2010, representatives from nearly 200 countries met in Nagoya, Japan, and adopted the United Nations' Aichi Targets, in a bid to stem the rapid loss of biodiversity. The countries committed to protecting at least 10 per cent of the ocean by 2020.Study: Only 4 Percent Of The Ocean Is Protected

"The targets call for much more than just 10 per cent protection," said lead author Lisa Boonzaier. "They require that protected areas be effectively and equitably managed, ecologically representative and well-connected, all of which will help to ensure that MPAs contribute to more than percentage targets and meet the goal of conserving biodiversity."

Boonzaier believes that not only do countries need to create more MPAs, they need to improve the protection they afford biodiversity by making a greater percentage of them no-take and enforcing them as such.

"No-take" marine protected areas are zones where it is prohibited to extract any resources, including living resources, such as fish, crustaceans, and seaweed, and non-living resources, such as oil and gas. Only 16 per cent of the area that is protected or 0.5 per cent of the global ocean--is designated as "no take."

However, the past decade has seen improvement. In 2006, only an estimated 0.65 per cent of the ocean was protected.

"Given the creation of very large marine protected areas in recent years, notably though the Global Ocean Legacy Project of the Pew Charitable Trusts, there is a chance that the Aichi Targets can be reached, which would be a major achievement," said co-author Daniel Pauly, a professor at the Institute for Ocean and Fisheries.

---

<a href="http://www.ubc.ca/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">University of British Columbia</a>

Study: Only 4 Percent Of The Ocean Is Protected

Study: Only 4 Percent Of The Ocean Is Protected. Despite...

Despite global efforts to increase the area of the ocean that is protected, only four percent of it lies within marine protected areas (MPAs), according to a University of British Columbia study.

UBC Institute for Ocean and Fisheries researchers found that major swaths of the ocean must still be protected to reach even the most basic global targets.

In 2010, representatives from nearly 200 countries met in Nagoya, Japan, and adopted the United Nations' Aichi Targets, in a bid to stem the rapid loss of biodiversity. The countries committed to protecting at least 10 per cent of the ocean by 2020.

"The targets call for much more than just 10 per cent protection," said lead author Lisa Boonzaier. "They require that protected areas be effectively and equitably managed, ecologically representative and well-connected, all of which will help to ensure that MPAs contribute to more than percentage targets and meet the goal of conserving biodiversity."

Boonzaier believes that not only do countries need to create more MPAs, they need to improve the protection they afford biodiversity by making a greater percentage of them no-take and enforcing them as such.

"No-take" marine protected areas are zones where it is prohibited to extract any resources, including living resources, such as fish, crustaceans, and seaweed, and non-living resources, such as oil and gas. Only 16 per cent of the area that is protected or 0.5 per cent of the global ocean--is designated as "no take."

However, the past decade has seen improvement. In 2006, only an estimated 0.65 per cent of the ocean was protected.

"Given the creation of very large marine protected areas in recent years, notably though the Global Ocean Legacy Project of the Pew Charitable Trusts, there is a chance that the Aichi Targets can be reached, which would be a major achievement," said co-author Daniel Pauly, a professor at the Institute for Ocean and Fisheries.

---

<a href="http://www.ubc.ca/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">University of British Columbia</a>

Despite global efforts to increase the area of the ocean...

Climate Change Will Bring More Harmful Algal Blooms. Marine scientists attending an international workshop warned that the future may bring more harmful algal blooms (HABs) that threaten wildlife and the economy, and called for changes in research priorities to better forecast these long-term trends.

The findings of the international workshop on HABs and climate Change were published Friday in the journal Harmful Algae. The workshop was organized under the auspices of the North <a href="https://www.earth.com/image/noumea-in-the-south-pacific-archipelago-of-new-caledonia/">Pacific</a> Marine Science Organization (PICES) and the Global Ecology and Oceanography of Harmful Algal Blooms (GEOHAB) and endorsed by the International Council for the Exploration of the Sea (ICES). The central findings were that while there are reasons to expect HABs to increase with climate change, poor scientific understanding seriously limits forecasts, and current research strategies will not likely improve this capacity. Climate Change Will Bring More Harmful Algal Blooms

Empirical observations suggest cause for grave concern. Northward expansion of phytoplankton species, wider seasonal windows for HAB development, and an increasing prevalence of HABs worldwide all indicate a future with greater problems.

The impacts of algal blooms are extensive. Although phytoplankton blooms normally fuel productive ecosystems, some blooms create very low oxygen concentrations in bottom waters, killing or driving out marine fish or benthic organisms. Others produce potent neurotoxins that threaten ecosystems and human health.

Evidence suggests that these destructive blooms, called red tides in the past but more properly "harmful" algal blooms, are increasing in frequency and severity, possibly from human causes. "There is growing concern among scientists that climate change may exacerbate this trend," said Prof. Mark Wells, University of Maine and organizer of the workshop. "We are frustrated by the inadequate national research focus to determine the likelihood of these worst-case scenarios."

The combined effects of increasing temperature and atmospheric CO2 are affecting ocean surface temperatures, nutrients, light, and ocean water acidity, all of which affect marine ecosystems. These factors influence not just the intensity of algal blooms but also their composition. The question is whether climate change will enable harmful species to outcompete other phytoplankton. "It is critically important that we learn as much as possible, as precisely as possible, to fill the critical gap in knowledge between the current and the future phytoplankton community structure," says Professor Charles Trick, Western University, Canada.

The challenge is that the mechanisms driving the development of most HABs are only partially understood. "We need to build on and link our patchwork knowledge of HABs to the forecast patterns of climate change if we are to better prepare society for future HAB scenarios," said Wells.

The intense toxic phytoplankton blooms off the west coast of North America this summer appear to be associated with unusual warming-related conditions. "Does this large scale harmful algal bloom provide a window into the future?" said Dr. Vera Trainer of NOAA Fisheries' Northwest Fisheries Science Center. "While it still is unclear, there is reason for substantial concern."

The workshop participants developed several urgent recommendations on research priorities. These include re-orientating research to study how harmful species interact in planktonic communities, focus more intensive study on key organisms, emphasize developing ecological and forecast models, and strengthen linkages among global, national and regional observation programs.

"Past research has brought great understanding of individual HAB organisms; future work must concentrate on how these harmful species fit into their ecosystems. It is the most significant coastal challenge facing society today," said Trick.

Although workshop participants were optimistic, they urged fundamental shifts in HAB research so that science can better inform public debate over climate change effects on the oceans, rather than just seeking to explain destructive patterns after they develop.

---

<a href="http://www.noaa.gov" target="_blank" rel="noopener">NOAA</a>

Climate Change Will Bring More Harmful Algal Blooms

Climate Change Will Bring More Harmful Algal Blooms. Marine scientists...

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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

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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;



---



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;



---



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;



---



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;



---



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



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

Kainji Lake in north central Nigeria

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Today’s Video of the Day from <a href="https://www.igb.illinois.edu/">Carl R. Woese Institute for Genomic Biology</a> reveals how scientists can modify common crops like soybean, rice, and wheat to protect them from heat stress.



“We need to double crop production by 2050 to feed a growing global population, and not only are we not on track to do that, but climate change is further complicating things,” said Amanda Cavanagh, a lecturer at the University of Essex. 



The study is part of Realizing Increased Photosynthetic Efficiency (RIPE), an international research project that aims to develop food crops that turn the sun’s energy into food more efficiently.



“Using an engineering approach we designed multiple alternative metabolic pathways to photorespiration. Testing them in the field showed increases in productivity which led Amanda to significantly move the project forward by showing our engineered plants can withstand pretty extreme temperature stress,” said study co-author and RIPE researcher Paul South.&nbsp;



“As the climate changes and temperature stresses increase the pressure on our global food supply, farmers will need every tool available including engineering approaches like the synthetic biology used here to maintain safe and productive harvests.”



The experts tested plants modified to have more efficient photorespiration to see if they were better adapted to warmer temperatures.&nbsp;



The team found that the engineered plants produced 26 percent more biomass than the wild-type plants exposed to the same temperatures, and had 15 percent less yield loss under the higher temperatures.



Video Credit: Amanda Nguyen/University of Illinois



---



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



---



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



---



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



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

Santiago, Chile in South America

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

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



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



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



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



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



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



Video Credit: Johns Hopkins&nbsp;



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



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

Interactive map of the universe includes 200,000 galaxies

[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



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



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The city of Dublin on Ireland's east coast

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



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



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



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



Video/ Image Credit: ESA



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



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

The province of Zaragoza in northeast Spain

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Today's Video of the Day from <a href="https://www.nasa.gov/goddard">NASA Goddard</a> features a visual dataset of.methane emissions from wetlands across the globe. Atmospheric methane levels have reached record highs in recent years, and wetlands are a major source of these emissions.&nbsp;



"Methane is an important greenhouse gas that contributes substantially to global warming. On a molecule by molecule basis, methane is much more efficient at trapping heat than carbon dioxide, the main driver of warming," says NASA.



"Though human activities, including agriculture, oil and natural gas production and use, and waste disposal, collectively contribute the majority of methane to the atmosphere, about a third of total methane emissions comes from wetlands."&nbsp;



According to NASA, understanding methane emissions from wetlands and other natural sources is critically important for scientists and policymakers who are working to combat climate change by reducing emissions from human activities.



Video Credit: NASA Goddard



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



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

Wetlands are a major source of methane emissions

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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

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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



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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"

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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...