You probably know at least a little bit about ocean circulation around the world, also known as currents. In fact, you may have felt smaller currents yourself on a day at the beach.



But have you heard bout the "great global ocean conveyor belt," which is a vast network of currents that constantly moves water around the entire planet?



This massive system helps distribute heat around the world, influencing everything from temperatures to rainfall. Unfortunately, it's slowing down and on the verge of total collapse.



Scientists have been studying this phenomenon, and according to recent research published in <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41561-024-01568-1" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Nature Geoscience</a>, it's a bigger deal than we thought. 



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-ocean-circulation-and-the-amoc">Ocean circulation and the AMOC?</h2>



The Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation, or AMOC, is like a massive ocean conveyor belt that moves warm and cold water around the <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/why-the-atlantic-ocean-may-ultimately-vanish/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Atlantic Ocean</a>. 



It starts in the Gulf of Mexico, where warm, salty water flows northward along the eastern coast of the United States and across the Atlantic towards Europe. 



As this warm water reaches the North Atlantic, it cools down, becomes denser, and sinks deep into the ocean. 



This sinking process pulls more warm water north to replace it, creating a continuous loop that helps <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/collapse-of-major-ocean-system-would-cause-weather-chaos/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">regulate the climate</a> by distributing heat across the planet. 



Thanks to the AMOC, regions like Western Europe enjoy milder winters than they would otherwise.



Humans rely on the AMOC in several important ways. By regulating global temperatures, it helps maintain stable weather patterns, which are crucial for agriculture, ecosystems, and our daily lives. 



Researchers point out that the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation (AMOC) is now weaker than at any other time in the past 1,000 years.



The research team from several leading universities explains that global warming is behind this slowdown. 



Their new modeling suggests that meltwater from the <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/greenlands-melting-icebergs-may-not-be-threat-to-ocean-currents-amoc/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Greenland ice sheet</a> and Canadian glaciers could be the missing piece of the puzzle.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-why-should-we-care-about-this">Why should we care about this?</h2>



"Our results show the Atlantic overturning circulation is likely to become a third weaker than it was 70 years ago at 2°C of global warming," says the research team. 



"This would bring big changes to the <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/the-arctic-is-melting-fast-but-a-slowing-ocean-current-could-help/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">climate and ecosystems</a>, including faster warming in the southern hemisphere, harsher winters in Europe, and weakening of the northern hemisphere's tropical monsoons."



Think about that for a second. A weaker ocean current could mean colder winters in Europe and shifts in rainfall patterns that affect millions of people. It's not just about the ocean; <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/disastrous-climate-changes-of-the-last-ice-age-could-happen-again/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">it's about our daily lives</a>.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-meltwater-and-ocean-circulation">Meltwater and ocean circulation</h2>



The Earth has already warmed 1.5ºC since the industrial revolution. And get this: the Arctic has been heating up nearly four times faster than the rest of the planet. 



All that heat is melting Arctic sea ice, glaciers, and the Greenland ice sheet.



"Since 2002, Greenland lost 5,900 billion tons (gigatons) of ice," notes the research team. "To put that into perspective, imagine if the entire state of Texas was covered in ice 26 feet thick."



All this fresh meltwater flowing into the subarctic ocean is lighter than salty seawater, so it doesn't sink as much. 



That messes with the southward flow of deep, cold waters from the Atlantic and <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/climate-change-will-impact-the-gulf-stream-more-than-we-thought/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">weakens the Gulf Stream</a> -- the same current that gives Britain its mild winters.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-ripple-effects-around-the-globe">Ripple effects around the globe</h2>



So, what's the big deal with the Gulf Stream slowing down? Well, for starters, Europe could face harsher winters. 



<a href="https://www.earth.com/news/climate-paradox-ocean-current-collapse-could-plunge-europe-into-cold/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Places like Britain</a> might start feeling more like their chilly counterparts at the same latitude, such as parts of Canada.



<figure class="wp-block-image aligncenter size-full is-resized"><a href="https://www.earth.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Atlantic-Meridional-Overturning-Circulation_AMOC_collapsing_Nature-Geoscience_1m.jpg" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener"><img src="https://www.earth.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Atlantic-Meridional-Overturning-Circulation_AMOC_collapsing_Nature-Geoscience_1s.webp" alt="The addition of meltwater in the North Atlantic leads to localised cooling in the subpolar North Atlantic and warming in the South Atlantic. Credit: Nature Geoscience (2024)." class="wp-image-1951410" style="width:300px;height:auto"/></a><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">The addition of meltwater in the North Atlantic leads to localised cooling in the subpolar North Atlantic and warming in the South Atlantic. Credit: Nature Geoscience (2024).</figcaption></figure>



"Our new research shows meltwater from the Greenland ice sheet and Arctic glaciers in Canada is the missing piece in the climate puzzle," the researchers explain. 



When they included this meltwater in their simulations, the slowing of the oceanic circulation made sense.



The study confirms that the Atlantic overturning circulation has been slowing down since the mid-20th century. It also gives us a sneak peek into <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/atlantic-and-arctic-mixing-is-crucial-for-earths-climate-stability/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">what's coming next</a>.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-northern-and-southern-oceans-connected">Northern and Southern oceans connected</h2>



"Our new research also shows the North and South Atlantic oceans are more connected than previously thought," the team states. 



Changes in one part of the ocean can quickly affect distant regions. When the oceanic circulation is strong, it transfers a lot of heat to the <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/antarctic-warming-triggers-rising-north-atlantic-sea-levels/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">North Atlantic</a>. 



But when it weakens, the surface of the ocean south of Greenland doesn't warm up as much, leading to what's called a "warming hole." Meanwhile, the South Atlantic ends up storing more heat and salt.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-time-is-not-on-our-side">Time is not on our side</h2>



"Our simulations show changes in the far North Atlantic are felt in the South Atlantic Ocean in less than two decades," the researchers reveal. This means the effects of the slowdown are spreading faster than we thought.



Climate projections have suggested the Atlantic overturning circulation will weaken by about 30% by 2060. But hold on -- that's without considering all that extra meltwater.



"The Greenland ice sheet will continue melting over the coming century, possibly raising global sea level by about 4 inches," the study notes. 



"If this additional meltwater is included in climate projections, the overturning circulation will weaken faster. It could be 30% weaker by 2040. That's 20 years earlier than initially projected."



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-what-can-we-do">What can we do?</h2>



Such a rapid decrease in the overturning circulation will shake things up. 



Europe might see colder winters, the northern tropics could get drier, and places like the southern United States might experience warmer, wetter summers.



"Our climate has changed dramatically over the past 20 years," the researchers warn. "More rapid melting of the ice sheets will accelerate further disruption of the climate system."



So, what does this all mean for us? It means we have even less time to get our act together. Reducing emissions isn't just a good idea -- it's crucial.



Our planet's systems are interconnected in ways we're only beginning to understand. If we want to keep things from getting worse, we need to act now. Every little bit counts, and the clock is ticking.



The full study was published in the journal <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41561-024-01568-1" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Nature Geoscience</a>.



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Collapse of Earth's main ocean water circulation system is already happening

You probably know at least a little bit about ocean circulation around the world, also known as currents. In fact, you may have felt smaller currents yourself on a day at the beach. But have you heard bout the "great global ocean conveyor belt," which is a vast network of currents that constantly moves water around the entire planet? This massive system helps distribute heat around the world, influencing everything from temperatures to rainfall. Unfortunately, it's slowing down and on the verge of total collapse. Scientists have...

In the process of rehabbing an injury or attempting to improve athletic performance, biofeedback could be an important tool for individuals during their workouts – especially if a trainer or therapist is not available. 

By placing sensors on a person’s body, real-time measurements can be provided that help them track their performance.

A new study published in <a href="https://journals.plos.org/plosone/">PLOS ONE</a> has found that a real-time, music-based feedback system helped recreational <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/focusing-weight-lifting-performance/">weightlifters</a> improve their deadlift technique. 

Researchers from <a href="https://www.ugent.be/en">Ghent University</a> in Belgium designed this system equipped with 22 body sensors to lower sound quality of the weightlifter’s music if they were using bad lifting technique. Improving their deadlifting technique would immediately restore the music quality.

For this study, 31 recreational weightlifters were divided into two groups. One group received feedback directly from instructors, while the other group performed deadlifts while receiving the music-based feedback. To simplify the process, only two deadlift technique parameters were analyzed for feedback.

[caption id="attachment_1877110" align="aligncenter" width="650"]<a href="https://www.earth.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/08/deadlift.jpg"><img class="wp-image-1877110" src="https://www.earth.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/08/deadlift.jpg" alt="" width="650" height="228" /></a> Image Credit: Lorenzoni et al., 2019[/caption]

The results showed that both feedback types led to improved deadlift technique, each having similar levels of improvement. Participants also reported similar levels of clarity and enjoyment for both. It’s possible that this type of feedback system could be a beneficial tool for athletes rehabbing from injury or trying to get more out of their workouts. 

Future research may delve into the long-term effectiveness of this new system, and the researchers are looking to improve its portability while also adding additional parameters for weight training techniques.

--

By <a href="mailto:certz@earth.com">Connor Ertz</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Main Image Credit: Shutterstock/Maridav

Musical feedback can improve deadlift technique

In the process of rehabbing an injury or attempting to...

New study completely changes what we know about early human evolution. Researchers have been studying a remarkably complete 3.8-million-year-old cranium belonging to a hominin species known as Australopithecus anamensis. The cranium, which was discovered in Ethiopia in 2016, represents a time interval around 4 million years ago when Australopithecus anamensis gave rise to the next early human ancestor, Australopithecus afarensis. 

In the years following the discovery, the paleoanthropologists have conducted extensive analyses on the cranium, which is referred to as "MRD."

"Features of the upper jaw and canine tooth were fundamental in determining that MRD was attributable to A. anamensis," said Dr. Stephanie Melillo of the <a href="https://www.eva.mpg.de/">Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology</a>. "It is good to finally be able to put a face to the name."

Combined with other fossils from the region, MRD reveals that A. anamensis and A. afarensis co-existed for approximately 100,000 years, which completely contradicts the idea of a linear transition between the two <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/early-humans-immunodeficiency-viruses/">human ancestors</a>. 

"This is a game changer in our understanding of human evolution during the Pliocene," said Dr. Yohannes Haile-Selassie.

"We used to think that A. anamensis gradually turned into A. afarensis over time," added Dr. Melillo. "We still think that these two species had an ancestor-descendent relationship, but this new discovery suggests that the two species were actually living together in the Afar for quite some time. It changes our understanding of the evolutionary process and brings up new questions - were these animals competing for food or space?"

MRD was uncovered in the sandy deposits of a delta where a river once entered a lake. Fossil plants and pollen grains preserved in the lake and delta sediments indicate that the watershed of the lake was mostly dry but also had forested areas nearby.

"MRD lived near a large lake in a region that was dry. We're eager to conduct more work in these deposits to understand the environment of the MRD specimen, the relationship to climate change and how it affected human evolution, if at all," said study co-author Naomi Levin of the University of Michigan.

Australopithecus anamensis is the oldest known member of the genus Australopithecus. The cranium's nearly-complete state allowed the researchers to view facial features that have never been seen before in the species. New study completely changes what we know about early human evolution

"MRD has a mix of primitive and derived facial and cranial features that I didn't expect to see on a single individual," said Dr. Haile-Selassie. 

Some of the characteristics resembled later species, but others resembled even older and more primitive human ancestor groups such as Ardipithecus and Sahelanthropus. 

"Until now, we had a big gap between the earliest-known human ancestors, which are about 6 million years old, and species like 'Lucy', which are two to three million years old. One of the most exciting aspects of this discovery is how it bridges the morphological space between these two groups," explained Dr. Melillo.

The study is published in the journal <a href="http://nature.com">Nature</a>.

--

By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Image © Yohannes Haile-Selassie, Cleveland Museum of Natural History

New study completely changes what we know about early human evolution

New study completely changes what we know about early human...

While some people may brag about only needing a few hours of <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/alcohol-nicotine-sleep-quality/">sleep</a> to be functional every day, it’s actually quite rare for a human to function normally with 6 hours or less of sleep. 

Not much is known about the role the genes that regulate sleep play outside of our circadian rhythms, but by studying a family with several members who require less sleep than average, researchers have identified a new gene that could have a major impact on how much sleep someone needs.

“It’s remarkable that we know so little about sleep, given that the average person spends a third of their lives doing it,” says senior author Louis Ptáček, a neurologist at the <a href="https://www.ucsf.edu/">University of California, San Francisco</a> (UCSF). “This research is an exciting new frontier that allows us to dissect the complexity of circuits in the brain and the different types of neurons that contribute to sleep and wakefulness.”

The gene that was identified is ADRB1, which the researchers discovered using genetic linkage studies and whole-exome sequencing to expose a new and very rare variant. “We found that this gene codes for ß1-adrenergic receptor, and that the mutant version of the protein is much less stable, altering the receptor's function,” explains UCSF geneticist and senior author Ying-Hui Fu. “This suggested it was likely to have functional consequences in the brain.”

To further study the gene, the researchers performed experiments on mice that carried a mutated version of this gene. Their findings, published in the journal <a href="https://www.cell.com/neuron/home">Neuron</a>, show that these mice slept an average of 55 minutes less than normal mice. Humans with this gene sleep 2 hours less on average. Additional research showed that the gene is expressed at high levels in a part of the brain stem involved in subconscious activities such as respiration and eye movement as well as sleep, known as the dorsal pons.

“Another way we confirmed the role of the protein was using optogenetics,” explains Fu. “When we used light to activate the ADRB1 neurons, the mice immediately woke up from sleep.”

For future research, the investigators want to study the function of the ADRB1 protein in other areas of the brain. “Sleep is complicated," says Ptáček. “We don’t think there’s one gene or one region of the brain that’s telling our bodies to sleep or wake. This is only one of many parts.”

--

By <a href="mailto:certz@earth.com">Connor Ertz</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Image Credit: Shutterstock/Sergey Nivens

Newly identified gene may allow people to require less sleep

While some people may brag about only needing a few...

<a href="https://www.earth.com/news/flying-reptiles-late-jurassic/">Fossilized poop</a> discovered in Argentina contains the oldest parasite DNA ever recorded. 

Researchers from the <a href="https://www.conicet.gov.ar/?lan=en">National Council of Scientific and Technical Research</a> were examining a coprolite (fossilized feces) excavated from the Catamarca Province. 

DNA analysis revealed not only that the poop belonged to an ancient Puma but also that the animal had been infected with roundworms. 

Toxascaris leonina roundworm eggs were found in the poop which dates back between 16,570 and 17,000 years ago, making it the oldest example of parasitic DNA discovered so far. 

At the end of the last Ice Age, Catamarca Province was likely wetter than today and inhabited by a range of megafauna and herbivorous animals.  

Luckily the coprolite was well preserved that the parasite DNA could be adequately studied. 

“While we have found evidence of parasites in coprolites before, those remains were much more recent, dating back only a few thousand years,” said Dr. Romina Petrigh, a leader of the study. “The latest find shows that these roundworms were infecting the fauna of South America before the arrival of the first humans in the area around 11,000 years ago.” 

The researchers used special decontaminated mixtures to analyze the feces, and several experiments were needed to confirm the DNA sequences identified, according to Petrigh. 

Not only is the roundworm DNA the oldest ever recorded, but the discovery calls into question when and how Toxascaris leonina first spread among animals.  

“The common interpretation is that the presence of T. leonina in American wild carnivores today is a consequence of their contact with domestic dogs or cats, but that should no longer be assumed as the only possible explanation,” said Petrigh. 

The findings were published in the journal <a href="https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/parasitology/article/ancient-parasitic-dna-reveals-toxascaris-leonina-presence-in-final-pleistocene-of-south-america/9E406417164E40114F819AA78D60C667">Parasitology</a>.

--

By <a href="mailto:kayvandette@gmail.com">Kay Vandette</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer 

Main Image Credit: Shutterstock/Agami Photo Agency

Fossilized poop contains oldest parasite DNA ever discovered

Fossilized poop discovered in Argentina contains the oldest parasite DNA...

Small albino lizards have successfully become the first reptiles that were gene-edited with CRISPR-Cas9 technology. 

In the past, CRISPR technology has been used with <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/hiv-dna-eliminate-animals/">mice</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/gene-editing-tool-color-plants/">plants</a> and earlier this year, researchers from the <a href="https://www.uga.edu/">University of Georgia</a> found a way to work with CRISPR and <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/first-gene-edited-lizards/">edit the genes of reptiles.</a> 

Now, that same research team has published their findings in the journal <a href="https://www.cell.com/cell-reports/fulltext/S2211-1247(19)31005-8?_returnURL=https%3A%2F%2Flinkinghub.elsevier.com%2Fretrieve%2Fpii%2FS2211124719310058%3Fshowall%3Dtrue">Cell Reports</a>, and the study shows how gene-edited reptiles pass modified traits, in this case albinism, onto their offspring. 

The researchers found a workaround to gene-edit reptile embryos by injecting CRISPR-Cas9 edits into the unfertilized eggs of anole lizards. 

“For quite some time we’ve been wrestling with how to modify reptile genomes and manipulate genes in reptiles, but we’ve been stuck in the mode of how gene editing is being done in the major model systems,” said Doug Menke, the corresponding author of the study. “We wanted to explore anole lizards to study the evolution of gene regulation, since they’ve experienced a series of speciation events on Caribbean islands, much like Darwin’s finches of the Galapagos.”

[caption id="attachment_1877074" align="aligncenter" width="650"]<a href="https://www.earth.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/08/albino-lizard.jpg"><img class="wp-image-1877074" src="https://www.earth.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/08/albino-lizard.jpg" alt="" width="650" height="870" /></a> Albino lizard hatchling, Image Credit: Doug Menke[/caption]

The researchers had to wait three months for the lizard offspring to hatch to see if their gene-editing attempts were successful and around six to nine percent of the lizards produced gene-edited offspring. 

“Relative to the very established model systems that can have efficiencies up to 80% or higher, 6% seems low, but no one has been able to do these sorts of manipulations in any reptile before,” said Menke. “There’s not a large community of developmental geneticists that are studying reptiles, so we’re hoping to tap into exciting functional biology that has been unexplored.”

The researchers specifically wanted to create ablino offspring because albinism isn’t lethal to animals, but for humans, abilinsism is linked to vision problems and having a better model to study this link could help future research into pigemental loss. 

The researchers have also provided a new framework for using CRISPR outside of popular animal models. 

“We never know where the next major insights are going to come from, and if we can’t even study how genes work in a huge group of animals, then there’s no way to know if we’ve explored everything there is to explore in the realm of gene function in animals,” said Menke. “Each species undoubtedly has things to tell us, if we take the time to develop the methods to perform gene editing.”

--

By <a href="mailto:kayvandette@gmail.com">Kay Vandette</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Say hello to the world’s first gene-edited reptiles

Small albino lizards have successfully become the first reptiles that...

In a new study published by the <a href="https://www.aip.org/">American Institute of Physics</a>, an advanced method of nanoparticle screening has revealed that some chemicals in personal care products are not as harmful as previously thought. 

The researchers demonstrated that a chemical found in most <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/sunscreens-release-metals-ocean/">sunscreens</a> called titanium dioxide is not only non-toxic, but actually protects skin cells from ultraviolet damage.

Nanoparticles are so small that they have different physical, chemical, mechanical, and optical properties compared to the same material on a larger scale. Therefore, a material that is toxic in a bigger form is not necessarily harmful in its miniscule form, and vice versa. 

According to study co-author Craig Priest, a nanomaterial contained in a personal care product may remain on the body for many hours while being exposed to air, moisture, light, and heat along with sweat, oils, and wax from the skin. The influence of these factors can either diminish or increase toxicity.

"Nanoparticles are found in many products and vary greatly. The exact size, shape, material and surface properties determine whether a particle is safe or harmful, but the vast number of property combinations means that screening is extremely difficult," explained Priest.

The researchers decided to focus their investigation on UV radiation for its simplicity and also for its potential to be  included in a multiparameter study of the reaction of nanoparticles to external stressors, such as sunlight.

Microfluidics is a science that involves the precise control and manipulation of fluids that are geometrically constrained to a small scale. While previous nanotoxicity screening methods were tedious and time-consuming, microfluidic devices are less expensive and make studies easier to reproduce.

The research expands on previous work which tested microfluidic screening processes for chemicals, such as potassium cyanide, cycloheximide, and chemotherapy drugs. A major advantage of using microfluidic devices is their ability to perform multiple tests using small sample volumes in a compact microchip format.

"Our results will help speed the development of microfluidic screening chips and, in time, may form the basis of standardized screening of new nanoparticles before they enter products or the environment," said Priest.

The study is published in the journal <a href="https://aip.scitation.org/journal/bmf">Biomicrofluidics</a>.

--

By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Image Credit: Shutterstock/verona studio

Questionable chemical in sunscreens found to be non-toxic, study shows

In a new study published by the American Institute of...

Standing nearly 400 feet tall and looming over the Castle Valley in Utah, Castleton Tower is a popular destination for rock climbers. It’s one of the largest freestanding rock towers, and the formation is constantly gently swaying, vibrating at a low frequency.

In a new study, researchers from the <a href="https://www.utah.edu/">University of Utah</a> measured Castleton Tower’s vibrations to understand how rock formations vibrate, their resonance, and how human-made sounds impact these vibrations. 

“We often view such grand and prominent landforms as permanent features of our landscape, when in reality, they are continuously moving and evolving,” said Riley Finnegan, a co-author of the study. 

Energy is continuously moving through the Earth, and even a small gust of wind can <a href="https://www.earth.com/video/rock-arches-can-be-monitored-by-their-vibrations/">impact rock formations and cause vibrations</a>. 

The researchers measured rock formations with seismometers that record movement in three dimensions. 3-D imagery is also used to measure the dimensions and structure to help provide insights into the vibrations. 

Data from the seismometers can sometimes be sped up into an audible audio file. 

Studying Castleton Rock was a challenge because skilled climbers were needed to place a seismometer at the top of the tower and bring it back down. Luckily, the researchers were able to enlist the help of two professional climbers in March 2018. 

The two climbers carried a seismometer to the top and waited for three hours while the equipment recorded seismic data before returning.

Once they had the equipment back, the researchers were able to analyze the data and found that that Castleton tower resonates at frequencies of .8 and 1.0 hertz. One hertz is equal to one cycle per second, which means that the tower sways back and forth once per second in a constant movement. 

“The distant sources that excite the unique resonance of Castleton Tower are always active and transferring energy into the rock mass,” said Paul Geimer, a member of the research team. 

The researchers still have much to learn about the rock formation and its vibrations. The team will continue to collect measurements, examine the structural integrity, and see how energy from far away sources like an earthquake or the rumbling traffic of a freeway impacts rock formation vibrations. 

“As with the desert landscape in which it resides, Castleton Tower is dynamic and energetic, subtly responding to changes in the surrounding environment,” said Geimer. 

The researchers published the findings in the Bulletin of the Seismological Society of America.

--

By<a href="mailto:kayvandette@gmail.com"> Kay Vandette</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer 

Image Credit: Shutterstock/EastVillage Images

Famous Utah rock formation vibrates at the same rate as a heartbeat

Standing nearly 400 feet tall and looming over the Castle...

Researchers at the <a href="https://www.umassmed.edu/">University of Massachusetts Medical School</a> have used nanoparticles to give mice the ability to see near-infrared light. The experts are now working to modify these nanoparticles to potentially give humans built-in <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/frogs-toads-see-color/">night vision</a>.

"When we look at the universe, we see only visible light," said Dr. Gang Han, who is the principal investigator of the project. "But if we had near-infrared vision, we could see the universe in a whole new way. We might be able to do infrared astronomy with the naked eye, or have night vision without bulky equipment."

Humans and other mammals can detect light between the wavelengths of 400 and 700 nanometers (nm), but near-infrared (NIR) light has longer wavelengths between 750 nm to 1.4 micrometers. 

Dr. Han and his team theorized that mice could be given NIR vision by injecting a special type of nanomaterial called upconversion nanoparticles (UCNPs) into their eyes. UCNPs contain the rare-earth elements erbium and ytterbium, which can convert low-energy photons from NIR light into higher-energy green light that is detectable to the mammalian eye.

In a study published earlier this year, the researchers demonstrated that their theory was correct. Experiments showed that UCNPs allowed the mice to see and mentally process NIR light for at least ten weeks without any known side effects. However, Dr. Han said that the safety of these nanomaterials must be improved before being tested in humans. 

"The UCNPs in our published paper are inorganic, and there are some drawbacks there," said Dr. Han. "The biocompatibility is not completely clear, and we need to improve the brightness of the nanoparticles for human use." 

The team is currently experimenting with UCNPs made up of two organic dyes instead of rare-earth elements. "We've shown that we can make organic UCNPs with much improved brightness compared with the inorganic ones," said Dr. Han. 

One of the next steps for the project could be applying this technology to dogs. "If we had a super dog that could see NIR light, we could project a pattern onto a lawbreaker's body from a distance, and the dog could catch them without disturbing other people."

The research will be presented by Dr. Han at the <a href="https://www.acs.org/">American Chemical Society</a> Fall 2019 National Meeting.

--

By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Image Credit: Gang Han

Scientists are a step closer to giving humans built-in night vision

Researchers at the University of Massachusetts Medical School have used...

Skin creams usually contain a few standard ingredients, but manufacturers know little about how these substances interact to influence the product's performance. A team of researchers has investigated the structure of a skin cream on a molecular scale, and they were surprised by what they found.

"The long-term stability and clinical properties of a cream are determined by its fundamental structure," said Delaram Ahmadi, a graduate student at <a href="https://www.kcl.ac.uk/">King's College London</a> who conducted the research. "If we can understand the chemical microstructure of the cream and relate that to the structure of the skin, then perhaps we can better repair the compromised skin barrier."

"We wanted to improve the science around cream formulation so that companies could more rationally formulate them to get exactly what they want," added Dr. David Barlow. "The most significant thing we found is that the textbook picture of the structure of a cream is very naïve."

Dr. Barlow explained that formulators have mostly inferred the structure of these emulsions based on indirect measurements. For their investigation, however, the researchers took a direct approach by analyzing creams using X-ray and neutron scattering techniques to determine how the ingredients were distributed. 

The team expected for a cream to be composed of stacks of lamellae, or membranes, that are made up of surfactants and co-surfactants. These substances reduce the surface tension of the liquid they are dissolved in.

The researchers started with an aqueous cream formulation from the British Pharmacopoeia that contains a sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS) surfactant and two co-surfactants. The X-rays revealed that the co-surfactants were present in the lamellar layers as predicted, but the surfactant was surprisingly absent.  

"The surfactant peak profile suggested that the molecule formed micelles in the cream," explained Ahmadi. In addition, the preservative was not found in the aqueous layer, where scientists have always thought it would be. Instead, the preservative was found in the lamellae. 

Preservatives have an antimicrobial effect, which gives them a longer shelf life. Formulators assumed that the preservative had to be dissolved in the water layer in order to be an effective <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/antimicrobial-bacteria-spread-urban-wildlife/">antimicrobial</a>. Therefore, according to Ahmadi, the new finding indicates that creams are self-preserving.

"I don't think anybody else has considered that there would be these micelles in the system at all," said Dr. Barlow. "This is new, and we need to think about where they are in the structure and what they are doing."

The research will be presented at the <a href="https://www.acs.org/">American Chemical Society</a> Fall 2019 National Meeting

--

By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Image Credit: Shutterstock/Maryna Pleshkun

Scientists find that skin creams have a surprising molecular structure

Skin creams usually contain a few standard ingredients, but manufacturers...

New understanding of water molecules may help to control ice formation. In an attempt to better understand the differences in <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/ice-sheets-global-carbon-cycle/">ice</a> formation on various surfaces, researchers have discovered that the arrangement of surface atoms on water molecules are the key. This revelation may ultimately improve weather forecasts and help to develop ways to prevent ice from forming on power lines, windshields, and other places it is not wanted.

"We discovered that if we look at the liquid water structure where it contacts the surface, we can start to understand and predict whether a given surface will promote or inhibit ice formation," said Dr. Sapna Sarupria, who is the project's principal investigator at <a href="http://www.clemson.edu/">Clemson University</a>. 

"We're working with collaborators to use this information to better understand the role of ice in weather and to design surfaces that are good or bad for ice formation. Wouldn't it be great to have a windshield that doesn't let ice stick to it in the winter?"

Liquid water undergoes several phase transitions: to solid water, from ice back to a liquid, or to a water vapor. In clouds, these transitions can form raindrops and snow. 

"When you want to predict the weather, you need to know how these phase transitions happen, and that's essentially an open question," said Dr. Sarupria. 

When particles such as mineral dust are present in the atmosphere, the abundance and type of the particles determine the kind of precipitation that will occur. "We're trying to understand how different dust particle surfaces affect the transition of water from the liquid to the solid phase in clouds."

The hydrogen ions in water are attracted to some surfaces more than others, and that affects how water molecules arrange themselves on a surface. The researchers discovered that this arrangement, with respect to surface atoms on dust particles and in relation to other water molecules, is the most important factor in ice formation.

[caption id="attachment_1877037" align="aligncenter" width="650"]<a href="https://www.earth.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/08/ice.png"><img class="wp-image-1877037" src="https://www.earth.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/08/ice.png" alt="" width="650" height="582" /></a> Surface atoms on a dust particle (red, white, pink and yellow) impose an arrangement on water molecules (blue) that can promote or inhibit ice formation. Image Credit: Sapna Sarupria and Ryan DeFever[/caption]

The team is now collaborating with experimentalists who study atmospheric phenomena to help explain the results. "If we can model these phenomena, we may be able to better understand the role of ice in weather."

Dr. Sarupria is also applying the new understanding of water structure to design surfaces that can promote or inhibit ice formation. For example, packaging used for frozen food storage or solutions used for cold-storage preservation of organs could be modified to form ice at temperatures closer to 32 F, the freezing point of water, rather than at lower temperatures. 

"In other cases, such as windshields and power lines, you may not want ice to form," said Dr. Sarupria. "So we're trying to figure out how to make coatings or surfaces that won't let ice form, or if it forms, that won't let it stick."

The research will be presented at the <a href="https://www.acs.org/">American Chemical Society</a> Fall 2019 National Meeting.

--

By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Main Image Credit: Shutterstock/ArtBitz

New understanding of water molecules may help to control ice formation

New understanding of water molecules may help to control ice...

Clothing lined with graphene, an ultra-thin nanomaterial comprised of carbon atoms arranged in a lattice configuration, could help prevent mosquito bites. 

Graphene is lightweight, flexible, stronger than steel, and can be used in a single layer or stacked together. There are a wide variety of potential uses for the material including in batteries, solar cells, and even DNA sequencing. 

Researchers from <a href="https://www.brown.edu/">Brown University</a> have now discovered a new use for graphene as a mosquito deterrent. 

The team discovered that graphene layers are impenetrable for mosquitoes in search of a blood meal, and the material blocks the chemical signals a <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/mosquitoes-sense-smell-disease/">mosquito uses to find a host</a>. 

Clothing lined with layers of graphene could keep people safe from disease-carrying mosquitoes. 

The researchers detailed their findings in a new study published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

“Mosquitoes are important vectors for disease all over the world, and there’s a lot of interest in non-chemical mosquito bite protection,” said Robert Hurt, a senior author of the study. “We had been working on fabrics that incorporate graphene as a barrier against toxic chemicals, and we started thinking about what else the approach might be good for. We thought maybe graphene could provide mosquito bite protection as well.”

For the study, participants were asked to put their arm in an enclosure filled with lab-bred, disease-free mosquitoes. 

Some of the participants either had a patch of cheesecloth or a graphene oxide lined cheesecloth patch on their skin. The other participants just exposed bare skin to the mosquitoes. 

Only a small patch of skin was exposed, and the researchers recorded how many participants were bitten. 

Graphene repelled mosquitoes, and participants that had the graphene oxide patch didn’t get bit once. Mosquitoes also responded differently when presented with graphene. 

“With the graphene, the mosquitoes weren’t even landing on the skin patch -- they just didn’t seem to care,” said Cintia Castilho, the lead author of the study. “We had assumed that graphene would be a physical barrier to biting, through puncture resistance, but when we saw these experiments, we started to think that it was also a chemical barrier that prevents mosquitoes from sensing that someone is there.” 

The researchers confirmed that graphene acts as a chemical barrier, and some forms of graphene oxide can only effectively prevent mosquitoes from puncturing the material when dry. 

Reduced oxygen content (called rGO) graphene oxide works wet or dry but lacks the breathability of graphene oxide. 

“GO is breathable, meaning you can sweat through it, while rGO isn’t,” said Hurt said. “So our preferred embodiment of this technology would be to find a way to stabilize GO mechanically, so that is remains strong when wet. This next step would give us the full benefits of breathability and bite protection.”

--

By <a href="mailto:kayvandette@gmail.com">Kay Vandette</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Image Credit: Hurt Lab / Brown University

Clothing lined with graphene could help deter mosquitoes

Clothing lined with graphene, an ultra-thin nanomaterial comprised of carbon...

Every two years, Mars and Earth end up on opposite sides of the Sun in their orbital trajectories. 

With the Sun blocking the Earth from the Red Planet, which is called the Mars solar conjunction, the <a href="https://www.nasa.gov/">National Aeronautics and Space Administration</a> (NASA) must proceed with caution when it comes to the commands and data sent back and forth between Earth and Mars spacecraft. 

During the Mars solar conjunction, gas emitted from the Sun can disrupt radio signals, and while data sent from Mars to Earth can be resent and repaired, corrupted signals and commands sent to Mars could result in disastrous consequences. 

To avoid problems, NASA has issued a “command moratorium” which will be in effect from August 28th through September 7th, according to <a href="https://www.jpl.nasa.gov/news/news.php?feature=7485">NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL). </a> 

“It’s that time again,” said Roy Gladden, manager of the Mars Relay Network at NASA’s JPL. “Our engineers have been preparing our spacecraft for conjunction for months. They’ll still be collecting science data at Mars, and some will attempt to send that data home. But we won’t be commanding the spacecraft out of concern that they could act on a corrupted command.”

During the command moratorium, the Curiosity rover will cease driving, and the InSight lander will keep it’s robotic arm still. Both the lander and rover will continue to collect data and relay that information to the Odyssey, MAVEN, and Mars Reconnaissance orbiters. 

NASA engineers have written up simple to-do lists for Mars spacecraft during the moratorium, but only limited data will be radioed back to Earth during this time.  

Once the conjunction is over, and Earth-Mars communications are back online, data will be relayed back to Earth, and researchers will carefully analyze the information to ensure there are no gaps or corrupted data.

--

By <a href="mailto:kayvandette@gmail.com">Kay Vandette</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer 

Image Credit: Shutterstock

Why solar conjunction disrupts Mars-Earth communications

Every two years, Mars and Earth end up on opposite...

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



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



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



Video/ Image Credit: ESA



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

Nushagak Bay in southwest Alaska

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



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



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



Video/ Image Credit: American Chemical Society&nbsp;



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



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Flu viruses are more flexible than expected

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



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



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



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



Video/Image Credit: ESA&nbsp;



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

Lake Trasimeno in Central Italy

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



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



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



Video Credit: American Chemical Society&nbsp;



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



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

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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



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

The city of Dublin on Ireland's east coast

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



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



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



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



Video/ Image Credit: ESA



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



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

The province of Zaragoza in northeast Spain

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



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



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



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



Video Credit: NASA Goddard



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



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

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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



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

2022 illustrated the consequences of a warming climate

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Earth,Like,Exoplanet,3d,Render

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



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



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



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



Video Credit: NASA Goddard



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



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



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

Two distant planets may be "water worlds"

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



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



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



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



Video Credit: NASA Goddard&nbsp;



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



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

Satellites reveal how Earth's systems are interconnected

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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...