For decades, scientists have been grappling with what is considered to be the most fundamental question about the cosmos: How fast is our universe expanding? 



The rate of expansion influences everything from how galaxies form to how they might one day drift apart.



Determining the expansion rate of the universe, a number called the "Hubble constant," shapes our entire understanding of the cosmos, its age, and its ultimate fate.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-hubble-tension-expansion-conundrum">"Hubble tension" expansion conundrum</h2>



Unfortunately, though many brilliant minds have dedicated their lives to finding the answer to this riddle, all who have tried thus far have failed, running repeatedly into a brick wall that has come to be known as the "Hubble tension."



Adam Riess, a physicist at <a href="https://www.jhu.edu/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Johns Hopkins University</a> in Baltimore, has been at the forefront of this debate. "With measurement errors negated, what remains is the real and exciting possibility that we have misunderstood the universe," Riess admitted.



Riess, who won a Nobel Prize for discovering that the universe's expansion is accelerating due to dark energy, has been working tirelessly to resolve what's known as the Hubble Tension.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-why-the-hubble-constant-matters">Why the Hubble constant matters</h2>



But before diving deeper, let's consider why the expansion rate -- called the Hubble constant -- is so crucial. 



Named after Edwin Hubble, who first observed that galaxies are moving away from us, this constant helps us map out the history and future of everything we see in the night sky. 



Determining it with precision has been a major goal of astronomers for decades.



<figure class="wp-block-image aligncenter size-full"><a href="https://www.earth.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/hubble-constant_3-steps_illustration_nasa_1m.jpg" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener"><img src="https://www.earth.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/hubble-constant_3-steps_illustration_nasa_1s.webp" alt="This illustration shows the three basic steps astronomers use to calculate how fast the universe expands over time, a value called the Hubble constant. All the steps involve building a strong &quot;cosmic distance ladder,&quot; by starting with measuring accurate distances to nearby galaxies and then moving to galaxies farther and farther away. Credit: NASA" class="wp-image-1951709"/></a><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">This illustration shows the three basic steps astronomers use to calculate how fast the universe expands over time, a value called the Hubble constant. All the steps involve building a strong "cosmic distance ladder," by starting with measuring accurate distances to nearby galaxies and then moving to galaxies farther and farther away. Credit: NASA</figcaption></figure>



When the <a href="https://hubblesite.org/home" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Hubble Space Telescope</a> was launched in 1990, one of its main objectives was to pin down the universe's expansion rate. 



Before Hubble, estimates of the universe's age ranged wildly from 10 to 20 billion years -- a huge uncertainty. 



Thanks to Hubble's observations of <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/expansion-rate-of-the-universe-confirmed-by-jwst/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Cepheid variable stars</a> -- stars that pulsate at regular intervals and serve as cosmic mileposts -- we now have a more precise age of about 13.8 billion years.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-webb-telescope-to-the-rescue">Webb telescope to the rescue?</h2>



Some scientists wondered if the discrepancies in measurements were due to errors in Hubble's data. Maybe, they thought, the way Hubble measured distances had some hidden flaws. 



Then came the James Webb Space Telescope (<a href="https://science.nasa.gov/mission/webb/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Webb</a>), launched to great fanfare as the successor to Hubble. Webb's infrared observations of Cepheids matched Hubble's optical data perfectly. 



"Combining Webb and Hubble gives us the best of both worlds. We find that the Hubble measurements remain reliable as we climb farther along the cosmic distance ladder," Riess explained.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-hubble-vs-webb-vs-expansion">Hubble vs. Webb vs. expansion</h2>



Despite the new data, the tension between measurements remains. The Hubble and Webb telescopes confirm one universe expansion rate, based on observations of the local universe.



Meanwhile, observations from the early universe, like those from the Planck satellite's mapping of the cosmic microwave background radiation, suggest another. 



This leaves cosmologists scratching their heads. Is there something about the <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/universe-expansion-rate-dark-energy-measured-11-billion-years-ago/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">fabric of space</a> we don't yet understand? Does resolving this discrepancy require new physics, or is there another explanation?



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-brenda-frye-tackles-hubble-and-expansion">Brenda Frye tackles Hubble and expansion</h2>



In October 2024, <a href="https://blogs.nasa.gov/webb/2024/10/01/webb-researchers-discover-lensed-supernova-confirm-hubble-tension/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">as reported by NASA</a>, Brenda Frye from the <a href="https://www.arizona.edu/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">University of Arizona</a> and an international team took a different approach. 



They used <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/webb-telescope-finds-a-second-lensed-supernova-in-a-distant-galaxy/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">gravitationally lensed supernovae</a> to measure the Hubble constant -- a method independent of previous techniques. 



<figure class="wp-block-image aligncenter size-full"><a href="https://www.earth.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/hubble-constant_galaxy-cluster-G165_supernova-H0pe_gravitational-lensing_jwst_UArizona_1m.jpg" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener"><img src="https://www.earth.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/hubble-constant_galaxy-cluster-G165_supernova-H0pe_gravitational-lensing_jwst_UArizona_1s.webp" alt="NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope’s NIRCam (Near-Infrared Camera) image of the galaxy cluster PLCK G165.7+67.0, also known as G165, on the left shows the magnifying effect a foreground cluster can have on the distant universe beyond. The foreground cluster is 3.6 billion light-years away from Earth. The zoomed region on the right shows supernova H0pe triply imaged (labeled with white dashed circles) due to gravitational lensing. Credit: NASA, ESA, CSA, STScI, B. Frye (University of Arizona)" class="wp-image-1951711"/></a><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope’s NIRCam (Near-Infrared Camera) image of the galaxy cluster PLCK G165.7+67.0, also known as G165, on the left shows the magnifying effect a foreground cluster can have on the distant universe beyond. The foreground cluster is 3.6 billion light-years away from Earth. The zoomed region on the right shows supernova H0pe triply imaged (labeled with white dashed circles) due to gravitational lensing. Credit: NASA, ESA, CSA, STScI, B. Frye (University of Arizona)</figcaption></figure>



While observing a densely populated cluster of galaxies, they noticed something unusual. "What are those three dots that weren’t there before? Could that be a supernova?" the team wondered. 



It turned out to be a <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/webb-travels-back-in-time-to-better-understand-supernovae-science/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Type Ia supernova</a>, an explosion of a <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/white-dwarf-stars-may-be-billions-of-years-older-than-estimated/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">white dwarf star</a>, magnified and split into multiple images by the gravitational lensing effect of the intervening galaxy cluster.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-what-is-gravitational-lensing">What is gravitational lensing?</h2>



<a href="https://www.earth.com/news/rare-carousel-lens-galaxy-alignment-reveals-dark-matter-secrets/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Gravitational lensing</a> is important to this experiment. The lens, consisting of a cluster of galaxies situated between the supernova and us, bends the supernova's light into multiple images. 



This effect not only magnifies the supernova but also allows scientists to measure the time delays between the images, providing another way to calculate the Hubble constant.



Their analyses confirmed that these dots corresponded to an exploding star with rare qualities. 



The team's work provided a Hubble constant value of 75.4 kilometers per second per megaparsec, plus 8.1 or minus 5.5. For context, one megaparsec is about 3.26 million light-years. 



"Our team’s results are impactful: The Hubble constant value matches other measurements in the local universe, and is somewhat in tension with values obtained when the universe was young," Frye concluded.



Another strikeout... add Brenda Frye to the long list of brilliant minds still probing the universe for an answer to Hubble tension.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-this-is-getting-sad-now-what">This is getting sad, now what?</h2>



So, where does this leave us? 



The Hubble Tension isn't going away. It might be telling us that there's new physics waiting to be discovered. 



Perhaps our understanding of <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/dark-energy-could-explain-the-rapid-expansion-of-the-early-universe/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">dark energy</a>, dark matter, or other fundamental forces needs to be revised. 



"We need to find out if we are missing something on how to connect the beginning of the universe and the present day," Riess pointed out. 



It's possible that new theories or modifications to existing ones could bridge the gap.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-shaking-things-up-with-new-theories">Shaking things up with new theories</h2>



Could the solution lie in something entirely unexpected? Perhaps there's a <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/dark-matter-may-consist-of-particles-that-travel-faster-than-light/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">new particle or force</a> that affects the expansion rate. Or maybe the nature of dark energy changes over time. 



Some theories even propose the existence of extra dimensions or modifications to gravity at large scales. It's also worth considering that the universe might not be uniform in all directions. 



If there are variations in the density of matter and energy across vast distances, this could affect expansion rates in ways we haven't fully accounted for. 



Maybe everyone is completely off base and <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/study-dark-matter-does-not-exist-and-the-universe-is-27-billion-years-old/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">dark matter doesn't even exist</a>? Or maybe we're looking in the wrong place -- what if the answers can be found by looking for <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/scientists-are-now-searching-for-dark-matter-inside-old-earth-rocks-minerals-crystals/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">dark matter in rocks on Earth</a>?



One thing's for sure: the cosmos isn't giving up its secrets easily. But that's part of the thrill of science. Every answer leads to new questions.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-hubble-constant-hubble-tension-mysterious-universe">Hubble constant, Hubble tension, mysterious universe</h2>



In the end, the universe is reminding us that there's still so much we don't know. The quest to figure out how fast our universe is expanding has led to some fascinating discoveries and even more intriguing questions. 



Scientists like Adam Riess and Brenda Frye have used powerful tools like the Hubble and James Webb Space Telescopes to measure the Hubble constant with increasing precision. 



Their efforts confirm that the local universe is expanding at a certain rate, but this doesn't quite line up with measurements from the early universe.



This mismatch, known as the Hubble Tension, suggests there might be something we’re missing in our understanding of the cosmos. Maybe there are new physics to uncover, or perhaps our current models need some tweaking. 



What's clear is that the universe isn't giving up its secrets easily, and that keeps things exciting for astronomers and physicists alike.



As we look ahead, upcoming missions like NASA's <a href="https://roman.gsfc.nasa.gov/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope</a> and ESA's <a href="https://www.esa.int/Science_Exploration/Space_Science/Euclid" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Euclid mission</a> offer hope for new insights. Until then, we can marvel at the fact that we're part of an ever-expanding universe that's still full of surprises.



The full study was published in the <a href="https://iopscience.iop.org/article/10.3847/2041-8213/ad1ddd" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Astrophysical Journal Letters</a>.



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Webb telescope confirms: What we think we know about the universe is very wrong

For decades, scientists have been grappling with what is considered to be the most fundamental question about the cosmos: How fast is our universe expanding? The rate of expansion influences everything from how galaxies form to how they might one day drift apart. Determining the expansion rate of the universe, a number called the "Hubble constant," shapes our entire understanding of the cosmos, its age, and its ultimate fate. "Hubble tension" expansion conundrum Unfortunately, though many brilliant minds have dedicated their lives to finding the answer to...

Migratory birds in North America have been getting smaller with longer wings. After making this discovery, a team of experts at the <a href="https://umich.edu/">University of Michigan</a> set out to investigate whether the physical changes in migratory birds are tied to earlier spring migrations.

The researchers theorized that the pressure to migrate faster and arrive at breeding grounds earlier may have driven the morphological changes.

"We know that bird morphology has a major effect on the efficiency and speed of flight, so we became curious whether the environmental pressure to advance spring migration would lead to natural selection for longer wings," said study lead author Marketa Zimova.

The study revealed that the phenological change to earlier spring migration had occurred parallel to the physical changes in birds, but appeared to be unrelated or "decoupled."

"We found that birds are changing in size and shape independently of changes in their migration timing, which was surprising," said Zimova.

The investigation was based on the analysis of 70,000 bird specimens from 52 species at the Field Museum. The birds were collected after colliding with Chicago buildings during spring and fall migrations between 1978 and 2016.

The experts determined that spring migrants are now arriving nearly five days sooner than they did four decades ago, while the earliest fall migrants are heading south about 10 days earlier.

In addition, the last of the fall migrants are now departing about a week later, which means that the duration of the fall migration season has been stretched considerably.

"It is unusual to have a dataset that can provide insights into multiple aspects of global change - such as phenology and morphology - at the same time," said study senior author Ben Winger.

"I was impressed that the collision data so clearly showed evidence of advancing spring migration. The collision monitors in Chicago have been collecting these data on bird building collisions for 40 years and, meanwhile, the birds have been changing the timing of their migratory patterns in ways that were imperceptible until the dataset as a whole was examined."

Last year, the U-M-led team reported that nearly all of the 52 bird species they examined had experienced declines in body size and increases in wing length over a period of four decades. 

In the current study, the team analyzed whether the changes in body size and wing length were driven by climate-related shifts in migration timing.  They did this by testing for associations between species-specific rates of phenological and morphological change.

The researchers found no evidence that the rates of migratory changes are predictive of rates of concurrent changes in morphological traits.

"Scientifically, this is really the most interesting and novel finding," said study senior author Professor Brian Weeks.

The depth of the Field Museum dataset enabled the U-M-led team to examine multiple responses to climate warming simultaneously and to test for connections between them.

"It is often assumed that morphological changes driven by climate and changes in the timing of migration must interact to either facilitate or constrain adaptive responses to climate change," said Professor Weeks. "But this has never to my knowledge been tested empirically at a significant scale, until now, due to lack of data."

Previous studies suggest that the earlier arrival of migratory birds in Chicago each spring is linked to shorter, less frequent stopovers during the northbound trek may be a factor.

"And there might be other adjustments that allow birds to migrate faster that we haven't thought about--maybe some physiological adaptation that might allow faster flight without causing the birds to overheat and lose too much water," said Zimova.

The study is published in the <a href="https://besjournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/journal/13652656">Journal of Animal Ecology</a>.

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By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Physical changes in birds evolved separately from earlier migrations

Migratory birds in North America have been getting smaller with...

Germany has a range of suitable habitats that make it a hotspot for dragonflies and damselflies. Many of these species are suffering from habitat loss and degradation, but not all of them, according to new research from the <a href="https://www.idiv.de/en/index.html">German Center for Integrative Research</a> (iDIV). 

While a growing collection of studies have found evidence of long-term population declines among dragonflies and damselflies throughout Europe, the new study suggests that some species are thriving in a warmer climate.

In collaboration with experts at FSU and UFZ, the iDIV team conducted a nationwide analysis of the occurrence and distribution of dragonflies and damselflies in Germany between 1980 and 2016. 

The study involved over one million occurrence records for 77 species from different regional databases, most of which were collected by citizen scientists.

The researchers determined that dragonfly and damselfly populations have experienced both losses and gains. The largest number of decreases were observed in cold-adapted species that prefer standing water habitats such as bogs and fens. Many of these species are already threatened with extinction. 

"These species are suffering a lot from habitat loss and degradation. Here, we are still facing serious conservation challenges," said study first author Dr. Diana Bowler.

Overall, the analysis suggests that cold-adapted species in standing water habitats are likely to be most vulnerable to climate change and other environmental changes. 

Overall, the experts found increases in the occurrence of 45 percent of all species in warm-adapted species. 

"Formerly rare species such as Crocothemis erythraea and Erythromma viridulum have become much more common across Germany," said Dr. Bowler. "These species prefer warmer temperatures and so their increase in Germany is most probably an outcome of long-term climate change."

The most population gains were found among running-water species, which represents the conservation success that can be achieved by better environmental management. 

"The increase of these species reflects a recovery from the impacts of past water pollution and the almost complete destruction of natural floodplains," said Klaus-Jürgen Conze. 

In Germany, projects were initiated in the 1990s to improve freshwater quality and river restoration. Furthermore, the EU Water Framework Directive was adopted in 2000.

"Our study highlights the great value of these monitoring efforts for assessing changes in species' occurrences," said study senior author Professor Aletta Bonn. "We found some signs of accelerating declines in the last decade, which highlights the need to support the efforts of these societies in the future."

The study is published in the journal <a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/journal/14724642">Diversity and Distributions</a>.

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By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Some dragonflies are thriving in a warmer climate

Germany has a range of suitable habitats that make it...

Young sharks that develop inside of protective egg cases called mermaids' purses will struggle to survive as <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/ocean-circulation-is-key-to-climate-change-predictions/">ocean</a> waters get warmer, according to a new study from the <a href="https://www.manchester.ac.uk/">University of Manchester</a>. According to study lead author Daniel Ripley, rising ocean temperatures are reducing the freeze response time that embryonic sharks use to keep from being eaten by predators. 

When an embryonic shark senses the electrical field of potential predators, it responds with a freeze response and stops moving to avoid detection. The longer an embryo can freeze, the greater its chances of evading predators.

For the investigation, Ripley compared the freeze response time of small spotted catshark embryos at water temperatures of 15 and 20 degrees Celsius. 

The study revealed that embryos exposed to a five-degree jump in temperature had a freeze response that was seven times shorter. This reduced response could have major consequences for embryonic sharks as temperatures continue to rise. 

The researchers noted that if warming means embryonic sharks will not be able to freeze as long, the number of sharks surviving to adulthood will decrease.

About 45 percent of shark and ray species lay their eggs inside of a mermaids purse, where the infants develop for around a year before they hatch.

“This study has shown that many shark and ray species may reduce in number owing to increased predation as the oceans warm," said Ripley.

“It’s hard to say to say how exactly this will impact on the ocean ecosystem, but it’s fair to assume there will be a knock on effect; it’s a major problem which is likely to get worse."

Ripley explained that many marine animals are cold blooded, which means that rising sea temperatures have important consequences for them.

“It’s widely accepted that the worlds’ oceans are likely to warm in the next 100 years. And according to the US Environmental Protection Agency, sea surface temperatures have been higher over the three previous decades than at any other time since 1880."

“So the impact of rising ocean temperatures could be catastrophic on species of egg-laying sharks and rays, such as the Brown banded bamboo shark or the Thornback ray."

“Shark embryos are already very vulnerable in their mermaids purses and our study suggests that one of their key survival strategies - freezing to hide from predators- may be significantly reduced by ocean warming."

“Some species are already threatened, and others, we simply don’t know enough about their numbers. But ocean warming may further harm their conservation and survival.”

The study is published in the <a href="https://academic.oup.com/conphys">Journal of Conservation Physiology</a>. 

---

By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Embryonic sharks will struggle to survive in a warmer ocean

Young sharks that develop inside of protective egg cases called...

When it comes to environmental threats to human <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/declining-reproductive-success-in-seabirds-is-a-red-flag-for-ocean-health/">health</a>, the impact of marine plastic pollution is a top concern, according to a new study from the <a href="https://www.exeter.ac.uk/">University of Exeter</a>.

The researchers surveyed more than 15,000 people across 14 European countries and Australia as part of the Seas, Oceans and Public Health in Europe (SOPHIE) Project.

The project was designed to investigate public perceptions toward various marine topics. The research comes as plastic pollution is widely recognized as a major cause for international attention. 

The survey revealed that both Europeans and Australians are highly concerned about the consequences of marine plastic pollution for human health. 

Plastic pollution was ranked at the top of 16 marine-related threats in terms of cause for concern, including chemical or oil spills, marine biodiversity loss, and complications of climate change such as sea-level rise.

Microplastics have been found in a wide range of fish that are consumed by humans, and the potential impacts are not yet known. The survey respondents strongly support more research to understand the impact of marine plastic pollution on our health.

"Plastic pollution is one of the fastest-growing environmental challenges on our planet. Yet, while the damage to marine life is well understood, the impact on human health remains unclear," said study lead author Sophie Davison.

"Our study indicates that this is of grave concern to the public, and that there's widespread support for more research in this area."

Study co-author Mathew White said the primary goal of the research is to inform decision-making around policy on plastic pollution and to prioritize funding for studies into the potential impacts on human health.

"Given that marine plastic pollution is a global challenge and all of society contributes to some degree to the plastic consumption cycle, we urgently need to find ways of connecting the high level of concern with ways of curbing the leakage of plastic into the environment," said White.

The study is published in the journal <a href="https://www.journals.elsevier.com/global-environmental-change">Global Environmental Change</a>.

---

By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Health impacts of plastic pollution are a top concern

When it comes to environmental threats to human health, the...

Parrots are known for their remarkable ability to imitate, and they even replicate the signaling calls of other individuals during <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/neotropical-river-otters-have-a-complex-vocal-range/">vocal</a> interactions. 

A team of researchers at the <a href="https://www.ku.dk/english/">University of Copenhagen</a> has determined that this rapid vocal matching has an influence on important social dynamics including flock formation. 

The results of the study suggest that we have been overlooking a key component to understanding the function of vocal imitation in parrots. A single vocal interaction seems to influence whether or not parrots decide to fuse with another flock based on the quality of the individual that produces the vocalization. 

"By using a novel experimental design, we were able to gain valuable insights in the flock decisions of a social parrot, the orange-fronted conure, Eupsittula canicularis," explained study first author Heidi M. Thomsen.

"We conducted a field experiment in which flocks of wild orange-fronted conures were attracted to two loudspeakers simulating two orange-fronted conures engaged in a contact call interaction."

"During the interaction, one simulated individual would act as the leader by calling first, followed by the other individual. We specifically tailored the playback so the contact calls of the follower would imitate those of the leader. The listening wild flocks could now decide to fly after either the leader or the follower to fuse with it."

The study revealed that the parrots chose to follow vocal leaders more often than vocal followers during fusions. 

"Furthermore, flocks responded with higher call rates and matched the stimulus calls closer when subsequently choosing a vocal leader. Interestingly, orange-fronted conures also showed higher contact call rates and closer matches when choosing males over females," wrote the study authors.

"These results suggest that paying attention to conspecific contact call interactions can provide individuals with social information that can be utilized during fission and fusion events, significantly influencing the social dynamics of orange-fronted conures."

Thomsen said that while it is not yet known why leaders are preferred, the findings indicate that orange-fronted conure flocks rely on eavesdropping on vocal interactions to infer the relative quality of unfamiliar individuals.

"While orange-fronted conures frequently engage in contact call imitation during vocal interactions with conspecifics, we here illustrate that vocal imitation also has implications for potential third party listeners."

The study is published in the journal <a href="https://journals.plos.org/plosone/">PLOS One</a>.

---

By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Imitation guides important social decisions among parrots

Parrots are known for their remarkable ability to imitate, and...

Gray sharks go surfing when they need a break When gray reef sharks need a break from <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/swimming-ocean-changes-bacteria-skin/">swimming</a>, they go surfing to preserve energy. An international team of researchers led by <a href="https://www.fiu.edu/">FIU</a> Professor Yannis Papastamatiou has witnessed hundreds of gray sharks floating in the southern channel of Fakarava Atoll in French Polynesia.

“During the day, they’re pretty placid and relaxed, swimming with minimal effort,” said Professor Papastamatiou. “It’s interesting because it’s a pretty strong current.” <a href="https://www.bing.com/search?q=north+america&amp;cvid=13b1d1ef5fa544a5b4a5ebc5ef530df5&amp;aqs=edge.0.69i59j69i57j0l3j69i60l2.698j0j9&amp;FORM=ANAB01&amp;PC=HCTS">North America</a> is a continent entirely within the Northern Hemisphere and almost all within the Western Hemisphere. It can also be described as the northern subcontinent of the Americas. It is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South America and the Caribbean Sea, and to the west and south by the Pacific Ocean. Because it is on the North American Tectonic Plate, Greenland is included as part of North America geographically. North America covers an area of about 24,709,000 square kilometers (9,540,000 square miles), about 16.5% of the Earth's land area and about 4.8% of its total surface

While observing sharks swimming against the current, Professor Papastamatiou noticed that they were barely moving their tails. Furthermore, the sharks were using a system that resembled a conveyer belt. When one shark reached the end of the line, it allowed the current to carry it back to the beginning point. 

Gray sharks go surfing when they need a break The team designed a study which combined acoustic tracking devices, video cameras, and underwater observations to monitor the curious behavior of the whales. 

The researchers found that by hanging out and surfing the slope, the sharks cut their energy usage by at least 15 percent. This provides the<a href="https://www.earth.com/news/killer-whales-have-close-friendships/"> whales</a> with some much-needed rest from constantly swimming. 

Professor Papastamatiou joined experts including marine biologist and underwater photographer Laurent Ballesta to film the French research documentary 700 Sharks in Fakarava, a famous dive site that is home to 500 gray reef sharks.

The focus of the film was on the sharks’ behavior after dark, when the channel becomes a hunting ground. However, Professor Papastamatiou saw that the sharks were hanging around in the channel during the daytime when they were not hunting. 

Ultimately, the study confirmed that the sharks stayed in the channel during the day to find updrafts to surf. In order to save maximum energy, the sharks also changed how deep down they go to surf the slope, according to the researchers. For example, during the turbulence of outgoing tides, the sharks remained near the surface for a smoother ride.

“This study is a nice demonstration of energy seascapes, a spatial representation of how much energy it costs an animal to move through an environment,” said Professor Papastamatiou. 

“Marine environments are a lot more dynamic because of the water currents, which are much less predictable. They can change seasonally, throughout the day and even minute by minute. Ultimately, the energy seascape helps explains why these animals are in this channel hanging out there during the day. Now we have an answer.”

The study is published in the <a href="https://besjournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/journal/13652656">Journal of Animal Ecology</a>.

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By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Gray sharks go surfing when they need a break

Gray sharks go surfing when they need a break When...

In a new study from <a href="https://www.ird.fr/">IRD</a>, researchers have found that coastal overtopping and subsequent <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/coastal-development-is-worsening-nuisance-flooding/">flooding</a> will become much more frequent in the coming decades. 

Hurricane Katrina served as a vivid example of coastal overtopping, where waves breach a natural or human-made barrier, usually resulting in massive damage. 

More recently, Typhoon Haiyan in Asia was the largest typhoon ever recorded and a reminder that the threat from overtopping - and from storms in general - is likely to increase, especially in the tropics. 

Global warming is set to make these events more frequent and stronger over time. Flooding is likely to increase as well. Almost a full 10 percent of the world’s human population lives in low lying coastal regions, which are the highest risk areas for overtopping. 

Human development on the coastline not only causes further damage to natural environments that are already threatened, but also raises risks to people and infrastructure.

The IRD team investigated the impact of wave overtopping on future flooding. The experts combined a digital Earth model with estimates of sea level rises. 

The researchers looked at the recent extreme weather events as well as long term patterns of wind driven waves and other phenomena to look at potential problems in the future and identify high risk areas. 

Some of the places most at risk of coastal overtopping are the Gulf of Mexico, the southern Meditteranean, west Africa, Madagascar and the Baltic. 

The scientists concluded that overtopping may also increase faster than the predicted rise in sea levels and that this risk is set to accelerate rather than increase at a steady rate. 

“The frequency of overtopping is accelerating exponentially and will be clearly perceptible as early as 2050, regardless of the climate scenario," said study co-author Rafaël Almar.

"By the end of the century, the intensity of the acceleration will depend on the future trajectories of greenhouse gas emissions and therefore the rise in sea-level. In the case of a high emissions scenario, the number of overtopping hours globally could increase fifty-fold compared with current levels.”

This is bad news, especially for the poorer regions directly threatened, such as Madagascar, where neither people nor government are prepared for the dangers ahead.

The study is published in the journal <a href="https://www.nature.com/ncomms/">Nature Communications</a>.

---

By <a href="http://zachfitzner@yahoo.com">Zach Fitzner</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

“Overtopping” threatens the future of coastal habitats

In a new study from IRD, researchers have found that...

Usually, when a plant cell is pierced, it pops like a <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/deforestation-has-darkened-coastal-waters-off-belize/">water</a> balloon. This is why researchers were baffled about the long strands of flavonoid "wool" coming from inside the cells of an alpine cushion plant with pretty yellow flowers known as Dionysia tapetodes. 

"The leaves are covered in tiny hairs called trichomes. Each trichome has a spherical shaped glandular cell at the end - like a stalk with a single round cell at the tip - and we could see the threads emerging straight out of the glandular cell," said study co-author Dr. Raymond Wightman. "But we know that plant cells are surrounded by a cell wall that protects and retains pressure within the cell. Poking holes through the cell membrane and cell wall would cause the cell to burst - like puncturing a water balloon."

According to study co-author Paul Aston of the <a href="https://www.cam.ac.uk/">University of Cambridge</a>, many alpine plants have interesting adaptations.

"The woolly farina threads seem to cover the entire leaf surface with long threads even connecting leaf-to-leaf," said Aston. "Nobody knew what this wool was or how it was made and so we thought that this would be an interesting specimen to study."

"There are many things that plants make that we do not yet know about - this is especially true for alpine plants where we see many unusual adaptations to the harsh high altitude environments they live in."

Part of the Primula family, the plant is native to the rugged mountains of Turkmenistan, part of Iran and the border between Afghanistan and Pakistan. Other members of its family have leaves covered in a powder of flavonoid "dust" thought to perhaps be related to the hair-like strands of wool found on Dionysia tapetodes. 

The flavonoids are important for plant metabolism but D. tapetodes lacks flavonoid powder, instead being covered with very fine strands a fraction the thickness of human hair. 

Using advanced electron microscopy techniques, the Cambridge team looked closely at the hairs emerging from the cells and discovered a tiny gap in cell walls allowing the hairs to breach the walls. 

"The plant manufactures the fiber inside the cell and then threads it through the gaps that are just wide enough for it," said study co-author Dr. Matthieu Bourdon.

The chemistry at play is fairly demanding as well, one scientist compared the ability to build flavones into a continuous strand to squeezing a continuous strand of toothpaste from a tube. 

It is not yet known what purpose this ‘wool’ serves but scientists suspect it to be an adaptation to the harsh alpine environment that the plant is found in, whether for cold or to block UV radiation. There is still much not known about this plant and its novel adaptations. 

The study is published in the journal <a href="https://bmcplantbiol.biomedcentral.com/">BMC Plant Biology</a>.

---

By <a href="http://zachfitzner@yahoo.com">Zach Fitzner</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Alpine plant makes its own wooly cover

Usually, when a plant cell is pierced, it pops like...

Climate change is beyond the realm of theoretical predictions. It’s happening now. Any plans we undertake are unlikely to stop, much less reverse the damage. This means it is necessary to look at how we can mitigate the impacts of climate change, including human relocation.

Climate change has the potential to displace up to a billion people over the next several decades. With this stark reality clearly in mind, a team of experts led by <a href="https://www.princeton.edu/">Princeton</a>'s Richard Moss has published a policy perspective paper in the journal Science. 

"Relocation involves moving people away from risk and into totally new settings," explained the researchers. They noted that current approaches for planning the relocation of millions of people affected are "woefully inadequate" and risk worsening societal inequities.

Brad Wible, the senior commentary editor of Science, pointed out that "we must consider not only what science can do, but how science is done, and by whom." He hinted that science has not always been a champion of social justice. 

Other researchers charted a plan for a climate change "retreat" that attempts to stabilize vital social institutions while upholding fairness and limiting losses. The authors point out that historically, such planning has been low on priority lists and fraught with political tension. If instead this type of planning was made priority number one, the process could go much smoother. 

The experts noted that in addition to diversifying knowledge, government agencies and decision makers need to collaborate with scientists to execute strategies under uncertainty. 

Furthermore, the team said it's important for the research community to not only identify good practices in engineering, financial risk, and other technical analyses, but also to support social transformation and capacity building that enables relocating communities to get back on their feet.

It’s unclear whether policy makers will hear these calls and act on them.

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By <a href="http://zachfitzner@yahoo.com">Zach Fitzner</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

&nbsp;

Millions of people could be displaced by climate change

Climate change is beyond the realm of theoretical predictions. It’s...

It was once thought the coelacanth - a strange lobe finned <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/young-clownfish-are-struggling-to-survive-under-artificial-lights/">fish</a> related to lungfish - was extinct. For a long time, science only knew this strange order of fishes from the fossil record. Then, as fate would have it, a fisherman accidentally caught one of these rare fish alive. 

Coelacanths are enormous in size, but also live deep in the ocean. The inaccessibility of their habitat combined with their scarcity means that coelacanths are rarely seen or studied. A new study published by <a href="https://www.cell.com/">Cell Press</a> contradicts some of what we thought we knew about these mysterious fish.  

Early research tried to calculate coelacanth age by counting the rings in their scales. This research estimated that the fish only lived for roughly 20 years, which would make them one of the fastest growing of all fishes. This seemed unusual for a fish with a slow metabolism and low reproduction rate, traits usually associated with slower growing fishes.

Using advanced microscopy techniques, researcher Kélig Mahé and colleagues from IFREMER Channel and North Sea Fisheries Research Unit in Boulogne-sur-mer, France examined 27 coelacanth specimens housed in the world’s largest collection of the fish at the French National Museum of Natural History. 

The researchers found that their oldest specimen was 84 years old, and that coelacanths do not reach maturity around the age of 55.

"Our most important finding is that the coelacanth's age was underestimated by a factor of five," said Mahé. "Our new age estimation allowed us to re-appraise the coelacanth's body growth, which happens to be one of the slowest among marine fish of similar size, as well as other life-history traits, showing that the coelacanth's life history is actually one of the slowest of all fish."

Older studies looked at obviously visible circuli - calcified scale structures - to calculate the age of coelacanths. This new study looks more closely to examine microscopic circuli that are easily overlooked. 

The technique is similar to counting rings on a tree or rings in the otoliths of other fishes but complicated by the necessary imagery technology. 

"We demonstrated that these circuli were actually annual growth marks, whereas the previously observed macro-circuli were not," said Mahé. "It meant that the maximum longevity of coelacanth was five times longer than previously thought, hence around a century."

"Coelacanth appears to have one of, if not the slowest life histories among marine fish, and close to those of deep-sea sharks and roughies."

A new study is already being planned to examine the chemistry of coelacanth scales and determine if the growth rate is related to temperature. It seems this Lazarus fish still has some surprises ahead for us.  

The study is published in the journal <a href="https://www.cell.com/current-biology/home">Current Biology</a>.

---

By <a href="http://zachfitzner@yahoo.com">Zach Fitzner </a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Coelacanths live about five times longer than expected

It was once thought the coelacanth - a strange lobe...

Just so there’s no mistake, Tyrannosaurus rex was not a medium-sized predator. A new study shows that <a href="https://www.earth.com/video/how-tyrannosaurs-grew-into-fierce-predators/">Tyrannosaurs</a> were so big, in fact, that the juveniles displaced medium-sized predators. 

A sharp decline in predators is usually related to a corresponding drop in prey species. This is true of living animals such as the snowshoe hare and the Canadian lynx, as well as predators and prey in the fossil record. 

A new study from the <a href="https://www.umd.edu/">University of Maryland</a> has found a different relationship, not between predator and prey but between tyrannosaurs and other predators.

The research, conducted by Thomas Holts, suggests that everywhere tyrannosaurs became dominant, the juveniles took over the ecological role of medium-sized predators.

“Earlier in the history of dinosaurs, in most communities you'd have a bunch of different types of carnivores of various size ranges from small fox-sized all the way up to the occasional giants," said Holts. 

"Then something happens between 95 and 80 million years ago, where we see a shift. The really big carnivores, larger than an elephant, like tyrannosaurs and their kin, become the apex predators, and the middle-sized predators, say leopard to buffalo-sized carnivores, are either missing or very rare.”

Previous research shows that younger tyrannosaurs acted and ate like mid-sized predators, moving with agility and speed that older members of their kind couldn’t match. In Asia and western North America, this means that the role of medium-sized predator fell almost solely to tyrannosaurs. 

It’s hard to say yet whether or not T. rex and their kin actually pushed out the other predators. It could be that something else entirely happened to medium-sized predators and tyrannosaurs just filled a vacant niche. 

To learn the truth, Holtz said the solution is more “boots on the ground," more good old fashioned field work. 

Further research is needed to investigate any changes in prey size during the shift to tyrannosaur domination. In addition, Holtz plans to survey the size distribution of carnivores during the Triassic period. 

"These interactions are important for understanding what life was like during the time of the dinosaurs," said Holtz. "But in the broader sense, having more understanding of changing ecosystems, and in this case, looking at the predator and prey components of an ecosystem, gives us a better and more diverse view of how the interactions of life work in the world, even today."

The study is published in the <a href="https://cdnsciencepub.com/journal/cjes">Canadian Journal of Earth Sciences</a>,

---

By <a href="http://zachfitzner@yahoo.com">Zach Fitzner </a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Young Tyrannosaurs displaced medium-sized predators

Just so there’s no mistake, Tyrannosaurus rex was not a...

Air pollution associated with burning fossil fuels was responsible for over one million premature deaths in 2017 alone, according to an international team of researchers led by <a href="https://wustl.edu/">Washington University</a>. The experts found that more than half of those deaths were attributable to coal.

Fine particle pollution (PM2.5) has become a global health crisis. The researchers note that PM2.5 has not only climbed to dangerous levels in the atmosphere, but can also be a hazard indoors from simply cooking on a stove.

"PM2.5 is the world's leading environmental risk factor for mortality. Our key objective is to understand its sources," said Professor Randall Martin.

Working in Professor Martin's lab, research associate Erin McDuffie used various computational tools to analyze a wealth of relevant data. The study has produced the most comprehensive dataset of air pollution emissions of its kind. 

The team was able to distinguish between various sources of air pollution, ranging from dust storms to energy production.

Overall, more than 20 distinct pollution sources were linked to human health issues based on the analysis of exposure to PM2.5 levels and health outcomes from the Global Burden of Disease.

The study shows that severe pollution is tied to different sources depending on the region of the world. McDuffie explained that while cookstoves and home-heating are still responsible for the release of particulate matter in many regions throughout Asia, energy generation remains a large polluter on the global scale.

"Previous studies end up having to use different emissions data sets or models all together," said McDuffie. "We can more directly compare results between countries." 

"We can even look at pollution sources in places that have implemented some mitigation measures, versus others that haven't to get a more complete picture of what may or may not be working."

In West sub-Saharan Africa, windblown dust accounted for nearly three quarters of the particulate matter in the atmosphere in 2017 compared to a global rate of just 16 percent. 

"Ultimately, it will be important to consider sources at the subnational scale when developing mitigation strategies for reducing air pollution," said McDuffie.

Even though the study confirms that air pollution is killing people prematurely worldwide, Professor Martin and McDuffie said their findings also have positive results for pollution monitoring.

"The good news is that we may be providing some of the first information that these places have about their major sources of pollution," said McDuffie. 

The study is published in the journal <a href="https://www.nature.com/ncomms/">Nature Communications</a>.

---

By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

One million premature deaths linked to air pollution in 2017

Air pollution associated with burning fossil fuels was responsible for...

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



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



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



Video/ Image Credit: ESA



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

Nushagak Bay in southwest Alaska

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



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



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



Video/ Image Credit: American Chemical Society&nbsp;



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



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

Flu viruses are more flexible than expected

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

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



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



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



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



Video/Image Credit: ESA&nbsp;



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

Lake Trasimeno in Central Italy

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



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



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



Video Credit: American Chemical Society&nbsp;



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



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

Detecting mercury contamination with the tap of a finger

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

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



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



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



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



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



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



Video/ Image Credit: European Space Agency&nbsp;



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



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

Kainji Lake in north central Nigeria

[sendtonews key="iuA5mpp3jv-1641775-12187" type="single"] Today’s Video of the Day from the...

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



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



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



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



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



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



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



Video Credit: Amanda Nguyen/University of Illinois



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



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

Designing crops that can beat the heat

[sendtonews key="QGPzYnXEtN-1712599-12187" type="single"] Today’s Video of the Day from Carl...

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



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



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



Video Credit: ACS Reactions



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



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

How does salt makes things taste better?

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



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



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



Video/ Image Credit: ESA



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



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

Santiago, Chile in South America

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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



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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

[sendtonews key="qjvhBOBnY8-2426650-12187" 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 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

[sendtonews key="oL4FnPTGCV-2384527-12187" 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.nasa.gov/goddard">NASA Goddard</a> features a visual dataset of.methane emissions from wetlands across the globe. Atmospheric methane levels have reached record highs in recent years, and wetlands are a major source of these emissions.&nbsp;



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



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



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



Video Credit: NASA Goddard



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



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

Wetlands are a major source of methane emissions

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

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Today’s Video of the Day from <a href="https://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/">NASA Earth Observatory</a> reveals the evolution of the Columbia Glacier in southeastern Alaska. Columbia is among the fastest shrinking glaciers in the world, and the video documents its rapid retreat over the years.&nbsp;



Columbia Glacier is a large, multi-branched calving glacier that flows out of the Chugach Mountains to the Prince William Sound.&nbsp;



According to USGS, Columbia had a long history of stability prior to 1980, with a length 41 miles, and small, short-lived advances or retreats.



In the years since 1980, however, satellite images have captured Columbia’s alarming retreat. By using false-color images, scientists can distinguish between snow and ice, open water, vegetation, and rocky debris on the glacier’s surface.



The series of false-color images featured in today's video were acquired over the span of 35 years. You can see that by 2021, the glacier’s main branch had retreated about 15 miles from its initial position.



The Columbia Glacier has also lost more than 50 percent of its volume, mostly due to calving. <a href="https://www.earth.com/video/nasa-reveals-3d-visual-of-an-atmospheric-river/">NASA</a> reports that while climate change likely started the retreat, mechanical processes kept the disintegration going.



The NASA images are provided by Jesse Allen, Robert Simmon, Joshua Stevens, and Lauren Dauphin using data from Landsat satellites, from the U.S. Geological Survey, and data from MODIS on NASA’s Terra satellite. The structure of Columbia’s moraine played a large role in the stability of the glacier before 1980. 



Like other tidewater glaciers, the Columbia built up a moraine over time, and the mixture of ice and rock functioned like a dam keeping out the sea. It was supported on one end by the shoreline and by the underwater terminal moraine at the other.



Video Credit: NASA Earth Observatory/&nbsp; NASA’s Scientific Visualization Studio



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



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

The rapid retreat of the Columbia Glacier

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

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



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



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



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



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



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



Video &amp; Image Credit: ESA



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



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

The Pyrenees Mountains in southwest Europe

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

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



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



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



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



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



Video Credit: Stowers Institute for Medical Research&nbsp;



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



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

How the immune system responds to injury

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

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Today's Video of the Day from <a href="https://www.nasa.gov/goddard">NASA Goddard</a> describes how record-breaking heat expressed itself around the world in 2022.



Scientists have determined that 2022 was the 5th warmest year since 1880. Furthermore, the last nine consecutive years have been the warmest on record.



From devastating floods and wildfires to natural disasters like Hurricane Ian, 2022 showed us yet again how a warming climate affects people across the globe.&nbsp;



"As we look back at 20:22 and years past, we see that each year we better understand the challenges we face and how important it is to meet them," says NASA.



Video/ Image Credit: NASA Goddard



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



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2022 illustrated the consequences of a warming climate

[sendtonews key="3UUsNkFOuS-2487333-12187" type="single"] Today's Video of the Day from NASA...

Earth,Like,Exoplanet,3d,Render

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



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



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



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



Video Credit: NASA Goddard



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



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



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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...