A new executive order aimed at deregulating the U.S. seafood industry is raising red flags among scientists and policy experts. While the order claims to boost competitiveness and cut red tape, critics warn it could do more harm than good - weakening the very systems that protect seafood sustainability.



Scientists from <a href="https://www.ucsb.edu/">UC Santa Barbara</a> and the University of Washington outlined their concerns in a recent paper. They argue that the executive order misses the mark, prioritizing short-term gains over long-term stability.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-inside-the-seafood-deregulation-order">Inside the seafood deregulation order</h2>



Signed in April 2025, the order - titled “Restoring American Seafood Competitiveness” - claims that U.S. <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/the-seafood-industry-has-been-hit-hard-by-the-covid-19-pandemic/">seafood markets</a> are held back by overregulation and unfair trade practices. It calls for reducing regulatory burdens, eliminating unsafe imports, and strengthening the <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/seafood-spoilage-hidden-dangers-in-the-cold-chain/">seafood supply chain</a>.



However, the researchers say the plan is moving too fast and with too little support. They describe it as a policy that risks unraveling decades of scientific progress.



“(It’s) a significant escalation in undoing federal regulatory frameworks, weakening scientific authority and deemphasizing aquaculture development,” said Halley Froehlich of UC Santa Barbara and Jessica Gephart of the University of Washington.



“Instead of reform, it’s dismantling regulations in a very short amount of time,” added Froehlich, the paper’s lead author.&nbsp;&nbsp;



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-noaa-s-role-under-threat">NOAA’s role under threat</h2>



The scientists point to cuts to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) as a major concern. NOAA oversees roughly 500 commercial fishery stocks in the U.S. It plays a key role in managing, monitoring, and protecting marine resources.



Under the new directive, NOAA faces budget cuts, staff reductions, and tighter controls on communication. That’s a serious blow to its ability to coordinate sustainable fishing, especially across regions where fish migrate between countries.



“It’s quite problematic because NOAA is so central to how we manage our <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/bleaching-effect-coral-loss-threatens-fisheries-and-livelihoods/">fisheries</a>,” Froehlich said. “Data collection, monitoring, oversight, you name it, NOAA is part of that, and a really important part.”



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-the-plan-ignores-the-ocean-s-limits">The plan ignores the ocean’s limits</h2>



The executive order is supposed to help boost domestic seafood production. But the researchers argue that the ocean has limits - and we’re already close to reaching them.



“We are not going to get more out of the ocean,” Froehlich said. “We’re already near ‘peak fish,’ meaning maintenance and recovery of our stocks.”



Wild fisheries - both in the U.S. and globally - are already producing at or near their maximum sustainable levels. That leaves <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/aquaculture-now-produces-more-food-than-wild-fishing/">aquaculture</a> as the only real path for growth. 



However, the new order gives little attention to farmed seafood and offers even less support to the agencies that regulate it. The scientists call it a mismatch between promises and practical outcomes.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-cutting-data-cutting-capacity">Cutting data, cutting capacity</h2>



One of the most troubling issues is the potential loss of data. The researchers warn that NOAA’s online databases, climate research, and monitoring tools may be defunded or decommissioned.



Without this data, managing fisheries becomes guesswork. It also makes it harder to prepare for climate-driven shifts in marine ecosystems.



“Without the data, expertise and capacity to study and understand these systems we run the risk of fishery collapses becoming more common and long-lasting,” the authors wrote.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-trade-conflicts-and-mismatched-markets">Trade conflicts and mismatched markets</h2>



The executive order also makes assumptions about seafood markets that don’t align with reality. 



Much of the seafood farmed in the U.S. isn’t what consumers demand most. And a large portion of seafood caught in U.S. waters is processed overseas before being sold back into the domestic market.



If tariffs are imposed on imported or foreign-processed seafood, prices for high-demand products like <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/shrimp-crisis-alarming-virus-threatens-global-seafood-supplies/">shrimp</a> could rise sharply. Right now, only about 10% of shrimp eaten in the U.S. comes from domestic sources.



“In disrupting the market dynamics we do have, especially with trade wars with our trading partners, it’s likely that we’re going to have the opposite effect of creating opportunity long-term,” Froehlich said.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-an-alternative-to-seafood-deregulation">An alternative to seafood deregulation </h2>



The paper was submitted as evidence in a recent hearing by the House Natural Resources Committee’s Water, Wildlife and Fisheries Subcommittee. The scientists hope their findings will influence how Congress approaches <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/seafood-will-help-feed-earths-future-population-of-10-billion/">seafood policy</a> moving forward.



“When it comes to any shifts in production, these high levels of uncertainty are not a beneficial thing to happen for the sector,” Froehlich said.



While deregulation may sound appealing to some, the authors argue that a stable, well-regulated system - backed by science and data - is what actually keeps seafood both sustainable and competitive. In their view, cutting corners now could cost the industry far more in the future.



The full study was published in the journal <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0308597X25002106">Marine Policy</a>.



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Why seafood deregulation may hurt more than help

A new executive order aimed at deregulating the U.S. seafood industry is raising red flags among scientists and policy experts. While the order claims to boost competitiveness and cut red tape, critics warn it could do more harm than good - weakening the very systems that protect seafood sustainability. Scientists from UC Santa Barbara and the University of Washington outlined their concerns in a recent paper. They argue that the executive order misses the mark, prioritizing short-term gains over long-term stability. Inside the seafood deregulation order Signed...

A research team led by the <a href="https://www.bigelow.org/">Bigelow Laboratory for Ocean Sciences</a> has just received a $10 million grant from the <a href="https://www.usda.gov/">U.S. Department of Agriculture</a> to continue their study of how methane emissions by cattle could be reduced. During the course of the investigations, which was initiated in 2019, the scientists found that replacing cattle’s usual grain <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/secrets-of-the-mysterious-jellyfish-diet-revealed/">diet</a> with seaweed could decrease by 20 percent the amount of methane released in the atmosphere.



Methane is one of the most potent greenhouse gases, trapping 30 times more heat than carbon dioxide and thus contributing significantly to global warming. Cows are notorious for releasing large amounts of methane into the atmosphere (approximately 25 percent of the total methane emissions) by passing gas or burping.&nbsp;



“Despite the best efforts to try to find ways to reduce that carbon ‘hoofprint,’ there’s lots more that can be improved in terms of changing cow’s diets. We think that seaweed can be part of that solution,” said project lead Nichole Price, a senior research scientist and director of the <a href="https://www.bigelow.org/services/seafood-solutions/">Center for Seafood Solutions</a> at Bigelow Laboratory.



The Bigelow Laboratory has spent the last two years developing tools to evaluate how changing the cattle’s diet to seaweed could potentially help reducing methane emissions. The scientists tested how a variety of nutrient-rich Maine seaweeds could help not only reduce cows’ methane emissions, but also improve their health and even the quality of the soil where they pasture.



“This is some of the most exciting research I’ve been a part of," Price said. "It has the potential to curb global methane emissions, and our approach can also directly support the region’s dairy and seaweed farmers."



According to Price, creating new seaweed products could bolster Maine’s seaweed aquaculture industry, help recycling crucial nutrients, remediate a variety of ocean conditions, and empower the dairy industry to improve the health of cattle and of the planet in general.



The scientists screened several types of seaweeds for important compounds that could make them good candidates for a feed additive.



"Different types of seaweeds have different impacts on the complex microbial environment inside a cow’s rumen," explained Sabrina Greenwood, an associate professor of Animal Nutrition at the <a href="https://www.uvm.edu/">University of Vermont</a>.&nbsp;



"The approach taken by this project provides an incredible opportunity to really push ahead with identification and refinement of natural nutritional supplements that could be great for both the cow and the environment."



---



By <a href="mailto:andrei.ionescu5891@gmail.com">Andrei Ionescu</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Feeding cattle seaweed could reduce methane emissions

A research team led by the Bigelow Laboratory for Ocean...

According to a new study led by the <a href="https://www.uvic.ca/">University of Victoria</a>, the physical disturbances caused by sea otter populations while they forage the seafloor for food has a significant role in increasing the genetic diversity of the surrounding eelgrass.&nbsp;



While it is well-known that predators have important effects on a variety of ecosystems, previous research has largely focused on observed changes in community structures driven by trophic interactions between the predators and the organisms that they feed upon. The non-trophic consequences of predation, such as the ways in which indirect disturbances caused by predators can affect the evolution and genetic diversity of plant communities have not yet been comprehensively studied.



According to a research team led by Erin Foster, a doctoral student in Conservation Science at the University of Victoria, foraging sea otters are routinely digging for small crabs and clams in eelgrass meadows, a behavior through which they are indirectly promoting conditions which facilitate the reproduction of these plants, increasing thus the eelgrass community’s genetic diversity.



By comparing genetic analyses from meadows where sea otters had been absent for more than a century to meadows in which the otters have been reintroduced within the past ten years and meadows where they have been present for decades, the researchers discovered that eelgrass genetic diversity was 30 percent higher in places where otters have been present for two or three decades. According to Foster and her colleagues, the longer the sea otters were present in a region, the more genetically diverse that area’s eelgrass communities were.



“The findings of Foster&nbsp;et al.&nbsp;come at a prescient time,” said Joe Roman, a conservation biologist from the <a href="https://www.uvm.edu/">University of Vermont</a>. “The need to protect and monitor genetic diversity has often been overlooked in global communities such as the Convention on Biological Diversity. Research on the effects of disturbance and species interactions on genetic diversity could help inform the restoration efforts of trophic rewilding.”



By revealing less understood evolutionary processes through which predators promote genetic diversity and ecological resilience, this study sheds more light on the complex and diverse relationships established between highly different members of specific ecosystems.&nbsp;



This study is published in the journal <a href="http://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.abf2343">Science</a>.



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By <a href="mailto:andrei.ionescu5891@gmail.com">Andrei Ionescu</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Digging sea otters promote eelgrass genetic diversity

According to a new study led by the University of...

Islands have long been seen as hotspots of evolution where newly arriving species adapt and <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/coral-reef-biodiversity-expected-to-shuffle-but-not-decline/">diversify</a>, isolated from mainland competitors. Initially, rates of evolution on islands are high, while organisms radiate to fill the available niches. This pattern has been seen on countless islands around the world.



However, while island fauna is often unique and highly specialized due to its adaptation to specific conditions prevalent on islands, it is viewed as somewhat disadvantaged when attempting to recolonize mainland habitats.



“The traditional thinking is that plant and animal groups that evolve on islands can’t invade the mainland because the mainland has more species, and thus a more competitive biotic milieu due to higher rates of competition, predation, parasitism, etc.,” said Professor <a href="https://biology.wustl.edu/people/jonathan-losos">Jonathan B. Losos</a>, director of the Living Earth Collaborative at <a href="https://wustl.edu/">Washington University in St. Louis</a>. “So, the idea is that species on islands aren’t ‘tough’ enough to cut it on the mainland.”



Professor Losos and colleagues used a time-calibrated phylogeny and measurements of relevant ecological and morphological diversity in neotropical Anolis lizards (anoles) to test this theory. Anoles originated in South America, but then colonized several different Caribbean islands, where they underwent adaptive radiation. Thereafter, some species returned from these islands to the Central American mainland, where they continued to diversify.



Some 2.8 million years ago the Isthmus of Panama formed, thereby reconnecting the two mainland groups of anoles, those that had secondarily recolonized Central America, and those descended from the ancestral South American species. The authors used their data to find out&nbsp;what happened when mainland and island evolutionary radiations collided.



The island&nbsp;Anolis&nbsp;species and, to a lesser extent, the ancestral South American anoles, underwent more rapid rates of initial evolution, as empty ecological niches were filled. In contrast, the&nbsp;Anolis&nbsp;species that recolonized the Central American mainland from the islands diversified ecologically without developing significant morphological differences between species.



The findings demonstrate that contrary to popular belief, the recolonizing Central American&nbsp;Anolis&nbsp;species outcompeted the ancestral South American&nbsp;Anolis&nbsp;species. When the species from the mainland radiation (Central America) that came originally from island ancestors, met with the incumbent mainland radiation from South America, the ensuing interactions favored the island-derived species.



According to Professor Losos, the findings show that islands are hotspots of evolution, even for mainland recolonization, rather than being evolutionary dead ends.&nbsp;



“In recent years, many studies have documented contradictory examples of island species successfully invading the mainland,” said Professor Losos. “Our study goes further by showing that island species not only can invade, but diversify greatly.”



The study is published this week in the journal <a href="https://www.pnas.org/">Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences</a>.



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By <a href="mailto:bosman@truewan.co.za">Alison Bosman</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Islands are not evolutionary dead ends for animals

Islands have long been seen as hotspots of evolution where...

Professor Tom Braden’s neuroscience lab at the University of Sussex recently examined how <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/zebrafish-spinal-cord-injuries/">zebrafish</a> detect different colors. The results suggest that fish have better color perception than humans.&nbsp;



“Zebrafish, unlike humans, have four types of cone-photoreceptors, specialised neurons in the retina which respond to light," said Professor Braden. "These four types are often called red, green, blue and UV. The assumption is that each should do what it says on the tin - red should respond to red light, green to green light, and so on. However, we found that this isn’t the case.”



Using new in-vivo color detection methods, the researchers found that "red" cones also respond to brightness, while "green" cones respond to color information.&nbsp;



“In humans, some of these are distributed all over the eyes and brain in ways that are still far from understood. In contrast, zebrafish solve this basic problem themselves at the earliest possible site, in the synapse of the photoreceptors themselves," explained Professor Braden.



Zebrafish probably have a more evolutionarily conserved or “primitive” method of detecting colors, more similar to their ancestors than our own. Mammals hiding during the Mesozoic -age of the dinosaurs- were thought to be mainly nocturnal. During this nocturnal period, mammals largely lost their color vision.&nbsp;



Today, most mammals can see two colors but are red-green color blind. The primate group, which includes humans, evolved three color vision - possibly to identify ripe fruit in a forest environment. Regaining our color vision was more complicated than the original method though. This process was carried out in the brain as much as the eye.



“Our study essentially shows that vertebrates like zebrafish, and presumably most non mammalian vertebrates like other fish, birds, reptiles and amphibians, can actually solve this fundamental ‘colour puzzle’ right at the first synapse of vision," explained Professor Baden. "In comparison, humans are stuck with this overly complicated ‘knock-off’ strategy because of early mammalian ancestry!”



Interestingly, the research shows that insects have a color vision almost exactly the same as fish that evolved independently.&nbsp;



The study is published in the journal <a href="https://www.science.org/journal/sciadv">Science Advances</a>.



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By <a href="mailto:zachfitzner@yahoo.com">Zach Fitzner</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Fish have better color perception than humans

Professor Tom Braden’s neuroscience lab at the University of Sussex...

A new study published in the journal <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0006320721003931?via%3Dihub">Biological Conservation</a> has found that illegal and unsustainable wildlife trade threatens numerous <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/scientists-discovered-three-new-species-of-freshwater-goby-fish/">species</a>. It can significantly affect humans too, both through the potential of pathogen spillovers that can lead to pandemics and the social and economic impact that the implication of dangerous criminal networks in wildlife trade engenders.&nbsp;



Wildlife trade is on the rise in many areas of the world. An increasingly large number of wild animals are used for various purposes, including the provision of food, medicine, fashion, ornaments, or furniture. They play different social or economic roles for local communities and are either consumed locally or passed along complex multinational trade chains.&nbsp;



“When people think about wildlife trade, they may think about ivory smuggling or the commerce in wild pets. But wildlife trade is more present in our daily lives than people imagine. For example, the timber that was used to make the table where your family has dinner may be a product of the wildlife trade,” said&nbsp;study lead author Caroline Fukushima, a researcher at the <a href="https://www.luomus.fi/en">Finnish Museum of Natural History</a>.



Illegal and unsustainable wildlife trade significantly affects the ecosystem services on which many species, including humans, depend. It can be a major driver of extinction for a variety of animal species, it can facilitate outbreaks of zoonotic diseases, it can fuel corruption and the emergence and proliferation of criminal networks, and it could even affect climate regulation, pollination of crops, and other ecosystem services.



“Invasive alien species, zoonotic diseases, connection with corruption and crime networks, negative repercussions on the local and global economy, and promotion of social, economic, and environmental injustice, are some of the many negative consequences of wildlife trade that is not well managed and regulated,” explained study co-author Pedro Cardoso, another researcher at the Finnish Museum of Natural History.



Recently, an international group of conservation biologists, activists, and policy enforcers, have built on the manifesto "World Scientists’ Warning to Humanity," issued by the <a href="https://scientistswarning.forestry.oregonstate.edu/">Alliance of World Scientists</a>, in order to review the dangers of illegal and unsustainable wildlife trade and offer directions for mitigating its negative consequences.



Strategies to curb illegal and unsustainable wildlife trade should take into account the cultural roots and drivers of wildlife consumption, and provide accurate measurements of the scope, scale, and impact of wildlife trade on biodiversity. Most importantly, more cooperation between different individuals, organizations, and disciplines is urgently needed.



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By <a href="mailto:andrei.ionescu5891@gmail.com">Andrei Ionescu</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Wildlife trade poses many dangers to humans and animals

A new study published in the journal Biological Conservation has...

A new study reveals that snakes experienced a magnificent burst of evolution from unassuming insectivorous ancestors to diverse genealogies after the demise of <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/two-new-predatory-dinosaurs-found-on-the-isle-of-wight/">dinosaurs</a>. The new families of reptiles that evolved incorporated newly available birds, fish, and small mammals in their diets.&nbsp;



Snake diversification was similar to the extraordinary diversification of mammals and birds that occurred after the extinction of dinosaurs 66 million years ago, according to research by Michael Grundler of UCLA and Daniel Rabosky of the University of Michigan.



The experts report that the extinction of non-avian dinosaurs combined with the long-term physiographic changes created new habitats that provided an ecological opportunity for various species to evolve and diversify.



The K-Pg mass extinction event occurred 66 million years ago and resulted in the extinction of 75 percent of all species, including all non-avian dinosaurs. The event heralded the start of the Cenozoic period and created a plethora of unfilled niches for the remaining species to exploit. Snakes, like mammals and birds, diversified fast during the Cenozoic era, ultimately yielding around 4,000 species that live today.



The study authors combined primary natural history observations with stochastic model-based comparative methods to explain the evolution of complex ecological phenotypes. The researchers compiled published data on the diets of 882 surviving snake species and employed advanced mathematical models to reconstruct how their ancestors' diets altered and diversified since the K-Pg boundary. The models helped the researchers in understanding the pace and sequence of this phenomenon.&nbsp;



The experts discovered that the most recent common ancestor of surviving snakes was an insectivore. However, following the K-Pg boundary, the snakes modified their diets rapidly to include birds, fish, and small mammals – vertebrate taxa that were also prospering in the aftermath of dinosaur extinction.



The research investigated the explosive adaptive radiation that resulted in creating the snake diversity we witness today. After the first radiation,&nbsp; diet diversification in snakes decreased, but some lineages underwent additional bursts of adaptive evolution. For example, Colubroid snakes diversified when Old World ancestors colonized North and South America.



According to the scientists, the findings from the study suggest that major extinctions and new biogeographic opportunities can stimulate evolutionary change.&nbsp;



“Much of the stunning ecological diversity in snakes seems to result from evolutionary explosions triggered by ecological opportunity,” said Grundler. “We find a major burst of snake diet diversification after the dinosaur extinction, and we also find that, when snakes arrive in new places, they often undergo similar bursts of dietary diversification,” he added.



The study is published in the journal <a href="https://journals.plos.org/plosbiology/">PLOS Biology</a>.&nbsp;



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By <a href="http://mailto:ashikha92@gmail.com">Ashikha Raoof</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Snakes had an evolutionary explosion after dinosaur extinction

A new study reveals that snakes experienced a magnificent burst...

Jellyfish have big appetites, and they mainly float around and eat whatever comes their way. Instead of actively seeking out <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/dancing-bees-reveal-that-urban-gardens-are-a-good-source-of-food/">food</a>, jellyfish basically eat almost anything that is small enough for them to consume.



For this reason, it has been unclear which foods help jellyfish survive or exactly where they fall in the marine food web. But now, a new study from the <a href="https://oceans.ubc.ca/">Institute for the Oceans and Fisheries</a> (IOF) has begun to unravel this mystery.&nbsp;



The researchers analyzed unique isotope and fatty acid signatures, also known as “biomarkers,” that get passed from prey to predator. These markers can be used to trace connections in the food web and to identify the various elements of an animal's diet.



“Until now, jellyfish ecologists were using a generalized calibration value for these biomarkers because they didn’t have jellyfish-specific ones,” said study lead author Jessica Schaub. “This study tested how much the concentrations of isotopes and fatty acids changed, and how quickly they were absorbed when jellyfish digested their prey and incorporated prey signatures into their bodies.”



“The numbers we found were different enough that it’s worth going back to previous jellyfish studies that applied the general values - they will likely get different results if they applied our values."



In collaboration with staff members at the Vancouver Aquarium, the scientists fed jellyfish two unique crustacean prey diets. The larger Japanese sea nettle was also fed the smaller moon jellyfish.&nbsp;



The researchers measured how long it took for the jellyfish to incorporate the stable isotopes and fatty acids, and then calculated how much the two biomarkers changed.



“It seems straightforward, but it’s never that easy - you get the data and you’re like, ‘what’s happening here?' We were surprised about the moon jellyfish. We fed them two crustaceans, krill and artemia, but they didn’t really incorporate the krill," explained Schaub.



"We think of jellyfish as not being picky eaters, but in this case, it seemed that they didn’t like feeding on a single diet. Either it didn’t meet their nutritional needs, or they preferred the live artemia over the dead, frozen krill. The aquarium has been feeding them these krill for a long time, so it’s good to be able to tell the aquarium that it’s maybe not worth investing in the krill any longer.”



The investigation revealed that the jellyfish appeared to “elongate” fatty acids, indicating that jellyfish may be able to create their own essential omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids for healthy body function. This finding came as a surprise to the experts, considering that most animals - with the exception of a rare few - have to obtain omega fatty acids from their diets.&nbsp;



The study authors hope that their findings will be a step towards better understanding the role that jellyfish play in marine ecosystems.



“Jellyfish have long been ignored in research, often considered more of a nuisance than an organism of interest”, said study co-author Dr. Brian Hunt. “However, there is a growing awareness that they can play a key role as both predators and prey.”



The study is published in the <a href="https://www.journals.elsevier.com/journal-of-experimental-marine-biology-and-ecology">Journal of Experimental Marine Biology and 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

Secrets of the mysterious jellyfish diet revealed

Jellyfish have big appetites, and they mainly float around and...

In 1978, archaeologists found bone remains from the Late Pleistocene in the city of Nacaome in Costa Rica. During the 1990s, excavations revealed the remains of a giant <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/seahorses-may-be-slow-but-they-are-fierce-ambush-predators/">horse</a>, a glyptodon (a large armadillo), a mastodon (an ancestor of the elephants), and a jawbone of what was initially thought to be a coyote skull. However, a team of Latin American scientists recently re-analyzed the jawbone and argued that the fossilized teeth appear to be more similar to a dog’s rather than a coyote’s.&nbsp;



"We thought it was very strange to have a coyote in the Pleistocene, that is to say 12,000 years ago. When we started looking at the bone fragments, we started to see characteristics that could have been from a dog,” explained Costa Rican researcher Guillermo Vargas. "So we kept looking, we scanned it... and it showed that it was a dog living with humans 12,000 years ago in Costa Rica."



According to previous research, dogs have been domesticated around 20,000 to 40,000 years ago in Eurasia. The domestication probably happened passively and gradually, with a population of wolves living around hunter-gatherer settlements and feeding off leftovers created by humans. Over the course of a few generations, these wolves managed to create closer relationships to humans, becoming more similar to today’s dogs.



Previously, the oldest attested dog remains on the American continent were found in Alaska and are 10,150 years of age. The jawbone discovered in Costa Rica could point to an even earlier presence of dogs on this continent. Moreover, while the presence of humans during the Pleistocene has already been attested in Mexico, Chile, and Patagonia, there was no evidence that they had also reached Central America during that period.



"This dog discovery would be the first evidence of humans in Costa Rica during a period much earlier than currently thought,” explained Vargas. "It would show us that there were societies that could keep dogs, that had food surpluses, that had dogs out of desire and that these weren't war&nbsp;dogs&nbsp;that could cause damage."



Currently, scientists from the <a href="https://www.ox.ac.uk/">University of Oxford</a> are conducting further investigations, including DNA and carbon dating tests, in order to discover more genetic information about the animal and its age.



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By <a href="mailto:andrei.ionescu5891@gmail.com">Andrei Ionescu</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Dogs lived with humans in Central America 12,000 years ago

In 1978, archaeologists found bone remains from the Late Pleistocene...

Animals are dependent on a source of environmental oxygen to produce energy in their cells. They make use of lungs, gills and skin in order to absorb the required oxygen into their blood streams. From there, it gets carried in blood vessels around their bodies and supplied to the <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/some-insects-have-more-than-200000-brain-cells/">cells</a> and organs that need it.



Not so with plants. Plants also need oxygen to produce energy in their cells, but they make their own. The process of photosynthesis, which involves making food from water, carbon dioxide and the sun’s energy, produces oxygen as a by-product. If animals could photosynthesize, they would not be dependent on oxygen supplies from the environment but could simply harness the energy produced as a result of the photosynthetic process.



In fact, there are several examples of animals that do host living colonies of photosynthetic cells within their bodies. In nature, photosynthetic cells in the form of unicellular algae live harmoniously in sponges, corals, and anemones, providing them with oxygen and sometimes nutrients.&nbsp;



Professor Hans Straka, a neurobiologist at the Ludwig-Maximilians-University Munich, was investigating oxygen consumption in the brains of tadpoles when a chance lunchtime conversation with a botanist led him to wondering whether he could harness the power of photosynthesis to supply oxygen to the brains of tadpoles. In principle, he could not see why such a symbiotic relationship should not work, given that tadpoles are largely translucent and light would be able to shine into them and provide energy for photosynthesis.



To test this, he and a team of researchers from LMU in Germany, injected green, single-celled algae (Chlamydomonas renhardtii) or cyanobacteria (Synechocystis) into the hearts of Xenopus laevis tadpoles. The heartbeat then pumped the algae through the tadpole’s blood vessels until the algal cells reached the brain. When light was shone on the tadpole, not only did the animal turn bright green, but the algal species began to produce oxygen in significant quantities.&nbsp;&nbsp;



Straka and the team wished to determine whether the quantity of oxygen produced this way was enough to revive oxygen-deprived nerve cells in the tadpole’s brain. They placed the tadpole in a water bath that contained essential nutrients to keep the cells functioning, but they gradually removed the oxygen from the water until the brain cells ceased to send nerve impulses.&nbsp;



When they illuminated the tadpole’s head, thereby initiating photosynthetic activity in the algal cells introduced into its brain, the nerves became active again within 15 to 20 minutes. The revived nerves also performed as well or even better than before oxygen depletion.



“The algae actually produced so much oxygen that they could bring the nerve cells back to life, if you will,” said Straka, senior author of the research paper published today in the journal <a href="https://www.cell.com/iscience/home">iScience</a>. “For many people, it sounds like science fiction, but after all, it’s just the right combination of biological schemes and biological principles.”



“We succeeded in showing the proof of principle experiment with this method. It was amazingly reliable and robust, and in my eyes, a beautiful approach,” said Straka. “Working in principle doesn’t really mean that you could apply it at the end, but it’s the first step in order to initiate other studies.”



The researchers recognize that there would be many practical problems in introducing algal cells into the blood vessels of most organisms. Not the least of these would be the immune reaction that would occur in response, and the fact that small blood vessels would become blocked by the algal cells. However, they feel that their findings might someday be useful to treat symptoms of oxygen deprivation, for example in stroke victims or in underwater or high-altitude environments.&nbsp;



“You have to have new ideas and new concepts to explore; this is one of the ways science is driven,” said Straka. “If you are open-minded and think it through, all of a sudden, you can see all the possibilities from one idea.”



---



By <a href="mailto:bosman@truewan.co.za">Alison Bosman</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Photosynthesis can supply oxygen to tadpole brains

Animals are dependent on a source of environmental oxygen to...

A new study led by the <a href="https://www.exeter.ac.uk/">University of Exeter</a> and the Robert Koch Institute reveals that leprosy has been found in wild <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/roads-have-far-reaching-impacts-on-chimpanzees/">chimpanzees</a> for the first time. The origins of the infections discovered in Guinea-Bisau and Tai National Park are unclear, but scientists believe that it is probably circulating in more wild animals than previously suspected, either as a result of exposure to infected humans or other unknown environmental sources.



Humans are the main hosts of Mycobacterium leprae, the bacterium causing leprosy. However, spillovers to other mammals such as red squirrels, armadillos, or even captive primates have been known to occur occasionally. This study is the first to document the presence of leprosy in two distinct populations of wild chimpanzees.



"This is the first confirmation of leprosy in nonhuman animals in Africa," said study lead author&nbsp;Dr Kimberley Hockings, a senior lecturer in Conservation Science at University of Exeter’s&nbsp;<a href="http://biosciences.exeter.ac.uk/cec/aboutus/">Centre for Ecology and Conservation</a>. "It’s amazing that it also happens to be in our closest living relative, the chimpanzee, especially considering how well studied chimpanzees are in the wild.”



The scientists first noticed possible symptoms of leprosy, such as lesions and “claw” hands, in a population of wild chimpanzees in Guinea-Bissau. Since then, further cases have been identified in Tai National Park in western Ivory Coast.



"The strains identified in each chimpanzee population are different, and both are rare in humans and other animal reservoirs worldwide," reported Dr. Charlotte Avanzi, a postdoctoral fellow at <a href="https://www.colostate.edu/">Colorado State University</a>.



"This study unlocks a new step toward the understanding of the disease transmission in endemic countries and more investigations will eventually shed light on the dynamic of transmission between human, animal, and environmental sources."



According to the scientists, it is possible that in Guinea-Bissau chimpanzees acquired leprosy from humans. However, in Ivory Coast, chimpanzees are more distant from human settlements, so they might have acquired the infection from another animal species, or from environmental sources such as water bacteria or ticks.



Since western chimpanzees are already critically endangered, even the loss of a few individuals could be significant. Further research and long-term health monitoring are needed in order to establish the scale and effects of leprosy among wild chimpanzees.



The study is published in the journal <a href="https://dx.doi.org/10.1038/s41586-021-03968-4%C3%B9">Nature</a>.&nbsp;



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<h2 id="h-more-about-leprosy">More about leprosy</h2>



Leprosy, also known as Hansen's disease, is an infectious disease caused by two types of bacteria: Mycobacterium leprae and Mycobacterium lepromatosis. Named after the scientist Gerhard Armauer Hansen who discovered it, the bacteria was the first disease-causing bacterium identified in humans. This slow-growing, chronic bacterial infection primarily affects the skin and nerves, but can also impact the eyes, the inside of the nose, and peripheral nerves in the limbs.



Here's a summary of what we know about leprosy:



<h3>Transmission:</h3>



Leprosy is not highly contagious, but it can be passed from person to person. It is believed to be transmitted via droplets from the nose and mouth during close and frequent contact with untreated cases. It is also worth mentioning that a significant portion of people are naturally immune to leprosy.



<h3>Symptoms:</h3>



The disease causes skin lesions that are lighter than the normal skin color and may become numb due to nerve damage. Other symptoms might include weakness and poor eyesight. Because the bacteria reproduce very slowly, the disease has a long incubation period, often taking 5 to 20 years for symptoms to appear after infection.



<h3>Types of Leprosy:</h3>



Leprosy can manifest in different forms, depending on the individual's immune response:



<ol>
<li>Tuberculoid: A mild, less severe form of leprosy. People with this type have only one or a few patches of flat, pale-colored skin (often with decreased sensation). The nerves may be enlarged and inflamed. Tuberculoid leprosy is less contagious than other forms.</li>



<li>Lepromatous: A more severe form of the disease. It causes widespread skin bumps and rashes, numbness, muscle weakness, and other complications. Lepromatous leprosy is more contagious.</li>



<li>Borderline: People with this type of leprosy have symptoms of both tuberculoid and lepromatous leprosy. The disease may get better or worse, or may switch between types.</li>
</ol>



<h3>Diagnosis:</h3>



Doctors often diagnose leprosy through a clinical examination of the characteristic skin lesions and testing sensation in the skin. Additionally, they may take a skin biopsy or a nasal swab for laboratory examination.



<h3>Treatment:</h3>



Leprosy is curable with a treatment known as multidrug therapy (MDT), as recommended by the World Health Organization (WHO). The treatment uses a combination of antibiotics, usually dapsone, rifampicin, and clofazimine, to kill the bacteria. The duration of treatment can range from 6 months to 2 years or more, depending on the severity of the disease.



<h3>Effects:</h3>



Although treatment can cure the disease and prevent it from getting worse, it doesn't reverse nerve damage or physical disfigurement that occurred before treatment. Therefore, early diagnosis and treatment are key to preventing disability due to leprosy.



<h3>Epidemiology:</h3>



The disease occurs worldwide, but it is most common in warm, wet areas in the tropics and subtropics. WHO is striving to eliminate the disease, and over the past decades, there has been significant progress towards this goal, with a major decrease in the number of cases.



However, leprosy remains a significant health problem in some areas, including parts of India, Brazil, and Indonesia.



In the animal kingdom, armadillos are the only known non-human carriers of leprosy. The bacterium causing leprosy has been found in wild armadillos in the southern United States, and there have been reported cases of transmission to humans.



It's important to note that information about leprosy continues to evolve, and research is 



ongoing to further understand the transmission, symptoms, treatment, and prevention of leprosy.



<h3>Vaccination and Immunity:</h3>



The BCG (Bacillus Calmette–Guérin) vaccine, initially developed for tuberculosis, offers some protection against leprosy and is often given in countries where leprosy is more common. However, the immunity it offers varies and is not fully protective.



In addition, it seems that a significant number of people are naturally immune to leprosy, likely due to genetic factors. It's worth mentioning that the majority of people who are exposed to the bacteria that cause leprosy never develop the disease.



<h3>Leprosy and Stigma:</h3>



Historically, leprosy has been a highly stigmatized disease due to its potential to cause physical disfigurement and disability. In some cultures, people with leprosy have been ostracized or segregated from the rest of society.



While effective treatments now exist, this stigma can still persist, contributing to delays in seeking treatment and psychological distress for those affected. Efforts are being made worldwide to combat this stigma and to ensure that people with leprosy can lead normal lives and are not discriminated against.



---



By <a href="mailto:andrei.ionescu5891@gmail.com">Andrei Ionescu</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer



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Leprosy has been found in wild chimpanzees

A new study led by the University of Exeter and...

The effects that climate change will have on extreme <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/migration-of-the-north-atlantic-jet-stream-will-cause-extreme-weather/">weather</a> across the planet is well documented, but not many people are aware of the effects it will have on the life cycles of marine animals. A key example of a creature that will be affected is the Dungeness crab, a marine animal that relies heavily on consistent seasonality timings.



A new research study is investigating the implications that climate change will have on the population of these crabs to inform new strategies for conservation and to keep fishery management sustainable.



The researchers investigated a Dungeness crab fishery in the Pacific Northwest ranging between Alaska and Southern California, attempting to determine which life stages are most vulnerable and to which stressors.



“Tribal communities in the Pacific Northwest identify Dungeness as both culturally and economically important species for their way of life," said <a href="https://uconn.edu/">UConn</a> Professor Samantha Siedlecki. "Species are moving but of course tribal communities don’t have the option of moving their land in response. The tribal communities are very interested and motivated to think about ways they can sustain the fishery.”



Ocean acidification, hypoxia and warming temperatures were the three key stressors that were assessed, all resulting from increased carbon emissions. Information regarding each stressor was used to create a model, pinpointing different vulnerable life stages between birth and maturity.



In order to model for future levels of carbon emissions, the researchers used emission scenarios named RCPs (representative carbon pathways) provided by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC).



“We used RCP 8.5, considered the ‘worst case scenario’ if there is no climate change mitigation at all,” explained PhD student Halle Berger. “Then we overlaid the ocean conditions and habitat maps for each life stage. We also added something new to the framework, where we layered in a larval transport model to simulate the movement of larvae in the water column to get a more realistic picture of the conditions they would experience.”



Previous data collected on Dungeness crabs were then reviewed in order to assign vulnerability scores for each live stage.



“It turned out that the adult life stage is the most critical in driving the overall population vulnerability,” said Berger. “We found that for all three stressors there will be increased population level vulnerability in the future, and the most severe is to hypoxia. Low oxygen events are confined to the upwelling season, in spring and summer which impacts the adults, whereas ocean acidification manifests more year-round in the future, impacting all life stages.”



This data is anticipated to be useful to make decisions regarding protection processes for vital life stages around stressful conditions. “An example would be monitoring low oxygen events in the summer, and maybe pulling the crab traps earlier,” said Berger. “This would help mitigate from the crabs dying in the trap.”



The research findings have been published in <a href="https://agupubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/journal/2576604x">AGU Advances</a>.



---



By <a href="mailto:calumvaughan05@gmail.com">Calum Vaughan</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

How climate change will affect the Dungeness crab

The effects that climate change will have on extreme weather...

Populations of resident killer whales inhabit the Salish Sea off the southwestern coast of Canada. There is a northern population of about 300 individuals that feeds during summer in the Johnstone Straight, and a southern population, numbering just 73 individuals, that forages in the Juan de Fuca Strait. Both straits are important foraging grounds because this is where the killer whales catch migrating Chinook <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/washington-voters-want-dam-removal-to-save-salmon/">salmon</a>, their preferred prey.



Recently, scientists have become concerned that whales from the southern population are thinner than their northern counterparts and speculated that there may be less fish available to the killer whales in the southern population. In response, scientists from the <a href="https://www.ubc.ca/">University of British Columbia</a> conducted an assessment of the availability of prey for killer whales in both the northern and southern areas of the Salish Sea.



“People have been talking about a prey shortage as if it’s a fact, but this is the first study to quantify and compare the amount of their preferred prey, Chinook salmon, available to southern and northern resident killer whales,” said lead author Dr. Mei Sato, a research associate at the Institute for the Oceans and Fisheries at UBC at the time of the study, and now an assistant scientist at Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution.



“Measurements from drone footage have shown the southern resident killer whales are thinner on average than the northern residents – which supports the common belief that the southern residents are experiencing a food shortage,” said co-author Dr. Andrew Trites, professor and director of the Marine Mammal Research Unit (MMRU) at the Institute for the Oceans and Fisheries at UBC. “Our findings suggest that this food shortage is probably not occurring during the summertime when they have traditionally fed in the Salish Sea.”



The researchers surveyed the two areas – the Johnstone Strait in the north and the Juan de Fuca Strait in the south – during the summers of 2018 and 2019. They used state-of-the-art fish finders to locate and count Chinook salmon in the two straits, and were also able to estimate the sizes of the fish using this technology. In addition, the team also captured sample fish to validate the acoustic signals from their fish finders and distinguish between different fish species, as killer whales prefer larger, older Chinook salmon.



They collaborated with sport and commercial fisherman, the Sport Fishing Institute of British Columbia, and whale watching companies to design the survey and conduct fish sampling. In this way they identified the best time to carry out the field work, based on peak salmon availability and killer whale foraging behavior.



“We got help from sport and commercial fisherman, chartered fishing vessels and used echosounders to detect the number and size of fishes in the water,” said Dr. Sato. “Killer whales use a similar technique to locate the fish – only it’s much better than the electronic one we use because they can distinguish between different fish species in the water.”



The results showed that, although the distribution and sizes of fish were similar in both straits, prey abundance was four to six times greater in each patch sampled in the Juan de Fuca Strait. This clearly debunks the myth that killer whales experience a food shortage in their southern feeding grounds during summer. However, the authors emphasize that their study did not look at other factors that may prevent the southern killer whales from eating the available fish – factors such shipping activity and noise.



“We don’t really know about prey availability outside of the Salish Sea and outside the summer season. To answer the question of whether there’s an overall prey shortage, we still need to figure out what’s happening during winter and spring, whether there are significant fluctuations year-to-year and in the different locations these whales travel to, like California,” said Dr. Sato.



The study is published in the journal <a href="https://cdnsciencepub.com/journal/cjfas">Canadian Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences</a>.



---



By <a href="mailto:bosman@truewan.co.za">Alison Bosman</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Killer whales are not short of prey in southwestern Canada

Populations of resident killer whales inhabit the Salish Sea off...

Scientists are transforming chocolate into a functional food by infusing it with probiotics and prebiotics, aiming to create a treat that satisfies cravings while supporting gut health. 



The challenge lies in maintaining chocolate's beloved texture and flavor while adding health benefits.



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Probiotics - beneficial microbes that balance gut bacteria and aid digestion - are typically fragile and can be destroyed by stomach acid or processing. 



Prebiotics act as food for these microbes, helping them thrive. Together, they form "synbiotics," a powerful health combination.



Researchers Smriti Gaur and Shubhi Singh from India's Jaypee Institute of Information Technology took an innovative approach, using natural prebiotics like corn and honey instead of complex processing methods. 



They created five chocolate varieties: a control and four synbiotic versions containing different combinations of prebiotics, probiotics (Lactobacillus strains), and flavor enhancers (cinnamon or orange).



Laboratory simulations of human digestion showed the probiotics remained viable for over five hours, suggesting they could survive long enough to benefit gut health.



Taste tests were positive, with researchers particularly enjoying the orange-flavored variety, describing it as having "vibrant citrus notes" complementing the "rich cocoa" with a "luxurious" texture.



This research represents just the beginning. With further refinement of strains, textures, and flavors, chocolate could evolve beyond mere indulgence to become a functional food that nourishes while it delights.



The study is published in the journal <a href="https://pubs.acs.org/doi/10.1021/acsfoodscitech.4c00741" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">ACS Food Science &amp; Technology</a>.

Is chocolate the next nutritional powerhouse?

Scientists are transforming chocolate into a functional food by infusing...

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



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



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



Video/ Image Credit: ESA



---



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

Nushagak Bay in southwest Alaska

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



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



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



Video/ Image Credit: American Chemical Society&nbsp;



---



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



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

Flu viruses are more flexible than expected

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

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



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



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



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



Video/Image Credit: ESA&nbsp;



---



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

Lake Trasimeno in Central Italy

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



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



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



Video Credit: American Chemical Society&nbsp;



---



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



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

Detecting mercury contamination with the tap of a finger

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

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Today’s Video of the Day from the <a href="https://www.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?

[sendtonews key="X0f6OHYoI4-2310561-12187" 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 Santiago, the capital city of Chile. The city is located in the center of the Santiago Metropolitan Region, which has a population of about eight million people.&nbsp;



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



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



Video/ Image Credit: ESA



---



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



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

Santiago, Chile in South America

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

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

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



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



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



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



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



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



Video Credit: Johns Hopkins&nbsp;



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



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

Interactive map of the universe includes 200,000 galaxies

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Lesotho: Africa's "Kingdom in the Sky" Today’s Video of the Day from the <a href="https://www.esa.int/">European Space Agency</a> features northwest Lesotho in South Africa.



According to ESA, Lesotho is the only nation in the world that lies completely above 1,000 m in elevation. The country is famous for its tall mountains and narrow valleys, and is known as Africa's "Kingdom in the Sky."



Out of a population of around two million people, about 80 percent live in rural areas. More than 75 percent of these people are engaged in <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/climate-change-will-have-a-global-impact-on-agriculture/">agriculture</a>, including rainfed cereal production and animal grazing.&nbsp;



ESA reports that the country’s agricultural system faces a growing number of issues, with climate-related vulnerabilities such as drought, floods and extreme temperatures occurring more frequently. 



Diamonds are amongst the minerals found in the mountains. Indeed, Lesotho can truly be called the Kingdom in the Sky. Beautiful, culturally rich, safe, affordable, and easily accessible from Durban and Johannesburg, mountainous Lesotho is a vastly underrated travel destination. the Kingdom of Lesotho (Sotho: 'Muso oa Lesotho) is an enclaved country in southern Africa. It is just over 30,000 km2 (11,583 sq mi) in size and has a population of around 2 million.



Video Credit: ESA&nbsp;&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> Staff Writer 



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Lesotho: Africa's "Kingdom in the Sky"

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



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



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



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



Video Credit: ESA&nbsp;



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



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The city of Dublin on Ireland's east coast

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



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



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



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



Video/ Image Credit: ESA



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



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The province of Zaragoza in northeast Spain

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Today’s Video of the Day from <a href="https://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



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The rapid retreat of the Columbia Glacier

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



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



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



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



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



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



Video &amp; Image Credit: ESA



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



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.nasa.gov/goddard">NASA Goddard</a> describes two exoplanets that are orbiting a star 218 light-years away. A team of researchers led by the University of Montreal has found evidence that these planets are "water worlds."



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



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



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



Video Credit: NASA Goddard



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



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



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

Two distant planets may be "water worlds"

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



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



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



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



Video Credit: NASA Goddard&nbsp;



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



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

Satellites reveal how Earth's systems are interconnected

[sendtonews key="JbW4VsY53O-1632195-12187" type="single"] Satellites reveal how Earth's systems are interconnected...

Today’s Video of the Day from the <a href="https://welcome.miami.edu/">University of Miami</a> Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science explores how changes in water temperatures have affected tiger shark habitats and movements in the North Atlantic Ocean. The study reveals that rising temperatures have caused the sharks to shift toward the poles over the past 40 years.



“Tiger shark annual migrations have expanded poleward, paralleling rising water temperatures,” explained study lead author Neil Hammerschlag. “These results have consequences for tiger shark conservation, since shifts in their movements outside of marine protected areas may leave them more vulnerable to commercial fishing.”



The researchers analyzed nine years of tracking data from satellite-tagged tiger sharks, combined with four decades of conventional tag and recapture data provided by National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Cooperative Shark Tagging Program.



The experts found that during the last decade of record heat, for every one-degree Celsius increase in water temperatures, tiger sharks migrated further poleward by over 400 kilometers. They also migrated two weeks earlier than usual to waters off the northeastern coast of the United States.



“Given their role as apex predators, these changes to tiger shark movements may alter predator-prey interactions, leading to ecological imbalances, and more frequent encounters with humans,” concluded Professor Hammerschlag.



Video Credit: University of Miami Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science



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



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

Tiger sharks are shifting poleward as temperatures rise

Today’s Video of the Day from the University of Miami...

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Today’s Video of the Day from the <a href="https://www.esa.int/">European Space Agency</a> is focused on the melt ponds that emerge during the spring and summer on the Greenland Ice Sheet, which is the largest ice mass in the northern hemisphere.



"Melt ponds are vast pools of open water that form on both sea ice and ice sheets and are visible as turquoise-blue pools of water in this Copernicus Sentinel-2 image," says ESA.



"When snow and ice melts atop glaciers, water flows in channels and streams and collects in depressions on the surface. These melt ponds can speed up the melting of the surrounding ice since they greatly reduce the ice’s ability to reflect sunlight."



"This can create a positive feedback where an increasing number of melt ponds absorb more heat which causes ice cover to melt even faster."



According to ESA, Greenland has been hit with a late-season heatwave that began in early September. This caused the type of melt event that usually occurs in the middle of summer.



"In a recent paper published in Nature Climate Change, scientists found that major sea-level rise from the melting of the Greenland ice cap is now ‘inevitable’ even if the burning of fossil fuels were to halt overnight," says ESA. "Using satellite observations of Greenland ice loss and ice cap from 2000 to 2019, the team found the losses will lead to a minimum rise of 27 cm regardless of climate change."



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.

Melt ponds on the Greenland Ice Sheet

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Today’s Video of the Day from the <a href="https://www.esa.int/">European Space Agency</a> describes a new map of Mars that is providing insight into the planet’s watery past. The map also reveals where future missions could safely land on Mars.&nbsp;



The map has been created over the last decade using observations of water-rich rocks and mineral deposits. The images were captured by ESA’s Mars Express and NASA’s Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter.



"A big surprise is the prevalence of these minerals, with the map revealing hundreds of thousands of water-affected locations in the oldest parts of the planet," says ESA. "The new data will help answer exciting questions about Mars’ climate history, whether water was globally persistent or confined to short, intense episodes, and whether the conditions were ever suitable for life."



"Specifically, the map shows the locations and abundances of aqueous minerals. These are from rocks that have been chemically altered by the action of water in the past, and have typically been transformed into clays and salts."



According to John Carter of the Institut d’Astrophysique Spatiale (IAS), our collective understanding of Mars has been oversimplified. He explained that planetary scientists have tended to think that only a few types of clay minerals on Mars were created during its wet period, then as the water gradually dried up, salts were produced across the planet.



The new map shows that the composition of Mars is much more complicated than what we thought. For example, while many salts formed after Martian clays, there are some salts that are presumed to be older than some of the clays.&nbsp;



“The evolution from lots of water to no water is not as clear cut as we thought, the water didn’t just stop overnight. We see a huge diversity of geological contexts, so that no one process or simple timeline can explain the evolution of the mineralogy of Mars. That’s the first result of our study. The second is that if you exclude life processes on Earth, Mars exhibits a diversity of mineralogy in geological settings just as Earth does,” said Carter.



Video 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 history of Mars is much more complex than we thought

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Today's Video of the Day from the <a href="https://www.stowers.org/">Stowers Institute for Medical Research</a> describes how cavefish adapted to a sedentary lifestyle over tens of thousands of years. 



The experts found that the muscle metabolism of cavefish has been genetically reprogrammed over time. As a result, the animals have experienced major changes in their morphology and behavior. Despite these changes, however, the cavefish remain healthy and fit.



The research may provide new clues about the evolutionary consequences of prolonged physical inactivity in humans.&nbsp;



“It’s no surprise that people are moving less and less as technology has advanced,” said Rohner. “With cavefish, we have a unique system where we can study what might happen if people remained couch potatoes over very, very long periods of time.”



Video Credit: Stowers Institute for Medical Research



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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.

Cavefish are healthy despite their sedentary lifestyle

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Today’s Video of the Day from <a href="https://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/">NASA Earth Observatory</a> some of the most incredible waves in the world, as seen by Landsat satellites.



"With more than 370,000 miles of coastline on Earth, there are plenty of places where epic waves build up, curl over, and hurtle toward the shore.- much to the thrill of surfers," says NASA. "There are some places where these waves are so magnificent that they can be seen from space."



"With the broad perspective of satellites, we can see how these iconic waves develop into the world’s tallest, longest, fastest, and heaviest."



Video Credit: NASA Earth Observatory&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 capture the world's biggest and fastest waves

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