Researchers at the <a href="https://illinois.edu/">University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign</a> have recently reported that both public parks and private backyards play a vital role in supporting bird diversity in urban environments. 



"Greenspaces are increasingly valued for supporting biodiversity in urbanized landscapes. Previous research efforts have emphasized the importance of public land such as parks and nature preserves for biodiversity, yet private yards in residential neighborhoods also have great potential for species conservation," wrote the researchers. 



By studying two closely situated cities in Illinois with contrasting development histories and green space management, the experts discovered that these spaces are crucial for different bird species during varying seasons.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-urban-bird-populations">Urban bird populations</h2>



The researchers monitored <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/bird-populations-are-declining-worldwide/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">bird populations</a> across 39 public parks and 41 private yards in Urbana and Champaign - cities with distinct urban characteristics and historical development. 



Urbana, with a history dating back to 1822, boasts extensive green spaces nurtured within an ancient hardwood forest. By contrast, Champaign was developed in the mid-1800s along a railway - with a focus on human recreation in its smaller parks.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-seasonal-variations-in-urban-bird-diversity">Seasonal variations in urban bird diversity </h2>



The analysis revealed significant seasonal shifts in bird <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/u-s-bird-diversity-puzzling-geographical-differences-identified/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">diversity</a> between the two cities. During summer, Urbana's richer vegetation and cooler green spaces attracted a broader variety of birds, including species like the belted kingfisher and scarlet tanager. 



Conversely, in winter, Urbana's parks and yards continued to support diverse communities, including the winter wren and yellow-bellied sapsucker.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-impact-of-urban-management-on-bird-diversity">Impact of urban management on bird diversity</h2>



Pollock pointed out the significant effects of active management in urban green spaces. "In places where there’s been active management to try to increase plant diversity and get some native plant cover back, it has had a big impact on the <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/as-urban-heat-continues-to-rise-birds-are-moving-away/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">bird</a> communities," he explained. 



Urbana's parks, with their focus on conservation and habitat restoration, were especially beneficial for rare and specialist bird species.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-practical-actions-for-residents">Practical actions for residents</h2>



The study also suggests practical ways for residents to enhance bird diversity in their own backyards. Carena Van Riper, a collaborator on the project, encouraged simple yet effective actions. 



"Perhaps this will allow people to see that there are small but important behaviors that will influence birds and increase bird diversity," noted Van Riper. 



Among the recommendations were installing bird feeders (especially during winter), planting native vegetation, and setting up bird baths.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-urban-greenery-a-blueprint-for-biodiversity">Urban greenery: A blueprint for biodiversity </h2>



This comprehensive study underscores the interconnectedness of urban management and biodiversity. It offers a fresh perspective on how both public and private green spaces play integral roles in supporting urban wildlife. 



As cities continue to grow, understanding and implementing strategies that facilitate coexistence with nature becomes even more crucial. 



The insights from Urbana and Champaign can serve as a guide for other <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/green-spaces-shape-bird-characteristics-in-urban-areas/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">urban areas</a> aiming to enhance biodiversity and sustainability within their confines.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">What influences urban bird diversity?</h2>



Urban bird diversity is influenced by a variety of factors, each playing a role in how well birds can adapt and thrive in city environments. Key factors include:



<h3 class="wp-block-heading">Green spaces</h3>



The presence and quality of green spaces such as parks, gardens, and green roofs are crucial. These areas provide essential resources like food, nesting sites, and safe havens from urban threats.



<h3 class="wp-block-heading">Water bodies</h3>



Rivers, lakes, and ponds in urban settings attract waterfowl and other species that rely on aquatic habitats for feeding and breeding.



<h3 class="wp-block-heading">Food availability</h3>



The accessibility of natural food sources, supplemented by bird feeders, significantly impacts which species are able to sustain populations in urban areas.



<h3 class="wp-block-heading">Building designs</h3>



The architecture of a city influences bird diversity. Features like reflective glass can cause bird collisions, whereas features like ledges and nooks might offer nesting spots.



<h3 class="wp-block-heading">Pollution</h3>



Air and noise pollution can deter birds from settling in urban areas. Pollution can also affect the health of the habitats birds rely on.



<h3 class="wp-block-heading">Human interaction</h3>



The level and nature of human activity and disturbance - ranging from benign presence to active conservation efforts - play a big role. Quieter, less disturbed areas tend to support more diverse bird populations.



<h3 class="wp-block-heading">Climate</h3>



Urban microclimates, influenced by the heat island effect where cities are warmer than surrounding areas, can affect which species are likely to thrive or decline in urban settings.



The study is published in the journal <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0169204624000598?via%3Dihub" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Landscape and Urban Planning</a>.



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How urban spaces support bird diversity

Researchers at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign have recently reported that both public parks and private backyards play a vital role in supporting bird diversity in urban environments. "Greenspaces are increasingly valued for supporting biodiversity in urbanized landscapes. Previous research efforts have emphasized the importance of public land such as parks and nature preserves for biodiversity, yet private yards in residential neighborhoods also have great potential for species conservation," wrote the researchers. By studying two closely situated cities in Illinois with contrasting development histories and green space...

Although the seafloor is considered the final sink for <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/study-confirms-microplastics-have-entered-our-food-chain/">microplastics</a> floating on the sea surface, the historical evolution of this major source of pollution in the sediment compartment – and especially the sequestration and burial rate of smaller microplastics on the ocean floor – has been unknown until recently. Now, a new study published in the journal <a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.1021/acs.est.2c04264">Environmental Science &amp; Technology</a> has found that the total amount of microplastics deposited on the seafloor has tripled over the past two decades, mimicking the progression of the global plastic production from 1965 to 2016.



“Specifically, the results show that, since 2000, the amount of plastic particles deposited on the seafloor has tripled and that, far from decreasing, the accumulation has not stopped growing mimicking the production and global use of these materials,” said study lead author Laura Simon-Sánchez, a researcher at the <a href="https://portalrecerca.uab.cat/en/organisations/institute-of-environmental-science-and-technology-icta-uab">Institute of Environmental Science and Technology of the Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona</a> (ICTA-UAB).



The analysis of sediments obtained in the northwestern Mediterranean Sea has revealed that the microplastics that reached the seafloor have remained unaltered since they were deposited decades ago, most likely due to lack of erosion, oxygen, and light. “The process of fragmentation takes place mostly in the beach sediments, on the sea surface or in the water column. Once deposited, degradation is minimal, so plastics from the 1960s remain on the seabed, leaving the signature of human pollution there,” explained study senior author Patrizia Ziveri, a marine biologist at ICTA-UAB.



“Since the 1980s, but especially in the past two decades, the accumulation of polyethylene and polypropylene particles from packaging, bottles, and food films has increased, as well as polyester from synthetic fibers in clothing fabrics,” added study co-author Michael Grelaud, an oceanographer at the same institute.



According to the scientists, the amount of these three types of particles reached a critical level of 1.5mg per kilogram of sediment collected, with polypropylene being the most abundant, followed by polyethylene and polyester.&nbsp;



Regardless of the increasing number of awareness campaigns on the necessity of reducing single-use plastic, data from annual marine sediment analyses show that we are very far from achieving this goal. To solve this major problem, policies at the global level addressing this issue are urgently needed in order to protect the health and functioning of a vast number of currently endangered ecosystems.



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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



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Microplastics have tripled on the seafloor in the past 20 years

Although the seafloor is considered the final sink for microplastics...

A new study led by the <a href="https://www.upenn.edu/">University of Pennsylvania</a> has found that certain species of gut-dwelling <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/human-gut-bacteria-feed-on-complex-plant-sugars/">bacteria</a> activate nerves in the gut that promote the desire for mice to engage in physical activity. Through a series of controlled experiments, the experts identified the gut-to-brain pathway which explains why some bacteria boost exercise performance.



By recording the genome sequences, gut bacterial species, bloodstream metabolites, and other data for a large number of genetically diverse lab mice, the scientists found that differences in running performances were largely caused by the presence of certain gut bacterial species – particularly Eubacterium rectale&nbsp;and&nbsp;Coprococcus eutactus - in the higher-performing animals. These effects appeared to be triggered by small molecules called metabolites that the bacteria produce, which stimulate sensory nerves in the gut to increase activity in a motivation-controlling brain region during exercise.



The researchers analyzed the collected data using machine learning algorithms to identify attributes of the mice which could best explain the animals’ significant inter-individual differences in running performance. The investigation revealed that genetics accounted for only a surprisingly small portion of these performance differences, whereas differences in gut bacterial populations seemed to play a much larger role. In fact, they noticed that giving mice broad-spectrum antibiotics to annihilate their gut bacteria reduced their running performance by half.



Among the vast population of gut bacteria, two species - Eubacterium rectale&nbsp;and&nbsp;Coprococcus eutactus - stood out, which both produce metabolites known as fatty acid amines (FAAs) that stimulate the CB1 endocannabinoid receptors on gut-embedded sensory nerves connecting the brain via the spine. The stimulation of these receptors causes an increase in dopamine levels during exercise, in a brain area called the ventral striatum – a critical node in the brain’s reward and motivation network.



“This gut-to-brain motivation pathway might have evolved to connect nutrient availability and the state of the gut bacterial population to the readiness to engage in prolonged physical activity,” explained study co-author&nbsp;J. Nicholas Betley, an associate professor of Biology at the University of Pennsylvania. “This line of research could develop into a whole new branch of exercise physiology.”&nbsp;



“If we can confirm the presence of a similar pathway in humans, it could offer an effective way to boost people’s levels of exercise to improve public health generally,” added study senior author&nbsp;Christoph Thaiss, an assistant professor of Microbiology at the same university.



Besides offering cheap, safe, diet-based methods of getting people to exercise and optimizing elite athletes’ performance, further explorations of this pathway may help boost motivation and mood in psychological disturbances such as addiction or depression.



The study is published in the journal <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-022-05525-z">Nature</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



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Gut bacteria may boost your motivation to exercise

A new study led by the University of Pennsylvania has...

Many studies have shown the various health benefits of time-restricted eating, including increase in lifespan, making practices such as <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/intermittent-fasting-improves-health/">intermittent fasting</a> a major topic in the welfare industry. Yet, exactly how time-restricted eating is affecting the body on a molecular level, and how such changes interact across multiple organ systems, have not been clearly understood.



Now, a team of researchers led by the <a href="https://www.salk.edu/">Salk Institute for Biological Research</a> has found that, in mice, time-restricted eating influences gene expression – the process through which genes are activated and respond to their environment by creating proteins – across more than 22 regions of the body and brain. These findings could have significant implications for a wide range of health issues where time-restricted eating has shown potential benefits, including heart disease, hypertension, diabetes, or cancer.



“We found that there is a system-wide, molecular impact of time-restricted eating in mice,” said study senior author&nbsp;Satchidananda Panda, an expert in Regulatory Biology at Salk. “Our results open the door for looking more closely at how this nutritional intervention activates genes involved in specific diseases, such as cancer.”



In their experiments, the scientists fed two groups of mice the same high-calorie diet. However, while one group was given free access to the food, the other was restricted to eating within a window of nine hours per day. After seven weeks, the experts collected tissue samples from 22 organ groups and the brain – including the heart, the liver, the lungs, the adrenal gland, the hypothalamus, and various parts of the intestines - at different times during the day and night, and analyzed them to detect possible genetic changes.



The analysis revealed that 70 percent of mouse genes responded to time-restricted eating, and that almost 40 percent of genes in the adrenal gland, hypothalamus, and pancreas – which are important for hormonal regulation, safeguarding the organism from diseases such as diabetes, cancers, or stress disorders – were affected by restricting the time when the animals were allowed to eat. "By changing the timing of food, we were able to change the gene expression not just in the gut or in the liver, but also in thousands of genes in the brain,” Panda reported.



Moreover, time-restricted eating appeared to have a major role in aligning the circadian rhythms of multiple organs. “Circadian rhythms are everywhere in every cell. We found that time-restricted eating synchronized the circadian rhythms to have two major waves: one during fasting, and another just after eating. We suspect this allows the body to coordinate different processes,” Panda added.



In future research, the scientists will explore the effects of time-restricted eating on specific conditions or systems, including atherosclerosis – a hardening of the arteries which is often a precursor to heart disease and stroke – and chronic kidney disease.



The study is published in the journal <a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.cmet.2022.12.006">Cell Metabolism</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



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Time-restricted eating affects gene expression

Many studies have shown the various health benefits of time-restricted...

In the animal kingdom, tails come in many shapes, sizes, and strengths. For instance, the long, thick tail of a kangaroo acts as a third leg, while the rabbit’s fluffy tail is used to communicate with conspecifics. In the case of carnivores, tails often help them be more agile while hunting. Scientists have long debated whether <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/epigenetic-variation-predicts-behavior-in-dogs/">dogs</a>’ tails could play a similar function.



Now, by combining experimental data, mathematical modeling, and computer simulations, an international team of researchers led by the <a href="https://is.mpg.de/">Max Planck Institute for Intelligent Systems</a> has found that the canines’ tails play very little role in stabilization and more likely act as a communication device.



While in many mammalian carnivores, tails are very useful for balancing, counterbalancing, and sometimes gripping during climbing activities, they can play a significant role on the ground too. For instance, cheetahs use their tails for jumping stabilization and turning. But is this the case for dogs too?



“It is unknown if larger carnivorans, such as canids, can still use their tails to this effect or whether other appendages, such as head movement, must be used,” the study authors wrote. “Canidae have been shown to exhibit various tail elevations and depressions in different movement paces with many dogs walking with an upright tail whereas galloping with a tail aligned with the spinal column. However, these movements are highly complex and require long periods of dedicated practice to be able to perform them, making it an unlikely strategy for other animals. This study sought to design a complex biomechanics model to test the inertial capabilities of canidae tails.”



To clarify the role dogs’ tails play in stabilization, the scientists used data from detailed motion tracking studies of the ways dog move and jump. Then, they performed computer simulated leaps, altering the position of the tails to see whether positioning had a significant effect on the jump. The analysis shown that dogs were able to jump adroitly regardless of what their tails were doing.



“The utilizing of the tail during jumping mechanisms achieves very low amounts of center of mass movement across all species with the largest being under a single degree. We believe that this implies that dogs utilize their tails for other means, such as communication and pest control, but not for agility in maneuvers,” the scientists explained.



“Given the incredibly low angular movement the tail is imposing on the center of mass in a range of canid species, we believe at this point that the dog tail is primarily adapted for communication,” they concluded.



The study is published on the preprint server <a href="https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2022.12.30.522334v1.full">bioRxiv</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



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Dogs use their tails more for communication than movement

In the animal kingdom, tails come in many shapes, sizes,...

The first <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/geminid-shower-set-to-shoot-150-meteors-per-hour-at-its-peak/">meteor</a> shower of the year will light up the skies tonight, producing more than 100 shooting stars per hour. The Quadrantids are most active during their peak which will last for just a few hours leading up until dawn. By comparison, most meteor showers have a peak that lasts about two days.



"The reason the peak is so short is due to the shower's thin stream of particles and the fact that the Earth crosses the stream at a perpendicular angle," explained <a href="https://www.nasa.gov/">NASA</a>.



The Quadrantid shower is known for its "fireballs," which appear as brilliant explosions that leave behind long-lasting trails. According to astronomers, this is among the strongest and most consistent of all meteor showers.



While most shooting star events occur as Earth moves through debris left behind by a comet, the Quadrantids come from asteroid 2003 EH1. This near-Earth asteroid was first observed by Chinese astronomers more than 500 years ago



Because the moon is approaching a full phase, it may be difficult to see all of the shooting stars in tonight's sky. The moonlight will potentially outshine all but the brightest meteors.



The best way to locate the Quadrantids is to look north for the Big Dipper and follow the handle across the sky to the red giant star Arcturus. This star forms the bottom of the constellation Bootes - the region of the sky where the Quadrantids will appear.&nbsp;



"For the best conditions, you want to find a safe location away from street lights and other sources of light pollution," said the <a href="https://ras.ac.uk/">Royal Astronomical Society</a>. "The meteors can be seen in all parts of the sky, so it's good to be in a wide open space where you can scan the night sky with your eyes."



"In 2023, the maximum of the shower occurs just before the Full Moon, so moonlight will cause some interference."



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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 Quadrantid meteor shower peaks tonight

The first meteor shower of the year will light up...

In a new study led by the <a href="https://www.pitt.edu/">University of Pittsburgh</a>, experts have discovered that <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/study-reveals-what-triggers-our-brains-to-overeat/">brains</a> rely on sight to identify a familiar voice. While listening to the voices of U.S. presidents, study participants used the same brain region to recognize both voices and faces.&nbsp;



The results suggest that voice and face recognition are more closely linked than what was previously understood.&nbsp;



“From behavioral research, we know that people can identify a familiar voice faster and more accurately when they can associate it with the speaker’s face, but we never had a good explanation of why that happens,” said study senior author Dr. Taylor Abel of the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine.&nbsp;



“In the visual cortex, specifically in the part that typically processes faces, we also see electrical activity in response to famous people’s voices, highlighting how deeply the two systems are interlinked.”&nbsp;



Neuroscientists have widely acknowledged a connection between auditory and the visual brain processing, but those systems were expected to have distinct and separate structures.&nbsp;



The study was focused on epilepsy surgery patients, who had been were temporarily implanted with electrodes that measure brain activity. The participants were presented with photographs and voice recordings of three U.S. presidents - Bill Clinton, George W. Bush, and Barack Obama.&nbsp;



For the investigation, electrical activity was recorded in the brain region that processes visual cues, the fusiform gyri (FG). The experts found that the same brain region became active when participants heard familiar voices, even though this response was slightly delayed.&nbsp;&nbsp;



“This is important because it shows that auditory and visual areas interact very early when we identify people, and that they don’t work in isolation,” said Dr. Abel. “In addition to enriching our understanding of the basic functioning of the brain, our study explains the mechanisms behind disorders where voice or face recognition is compromised, such as in some dementias or related disorders.”&nbsp;



The study is published in the <a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.1152/jn.00459.2022">Journal of Neurophysiology</a>



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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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Brains rely on sight to identify voices

In a new study led by the University of Pittsburgh,...

According to a recent study published in the journal <a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.cub.2022.11.064">Current Biology</a>, the ascendancy of <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/dinosaurs-were-going-strong-when-the-deadly-asteroid-struck/">dinosaurs</a> through the Late Triassic and Early Jurassic periods was primarily driven by climate change, rather than inter-species competition.



The experts argue that changes in global climate linked to the Triassic-Jurassic mass extinction - which wiped out many large terrestrial vertebrates such as the armadillo-like aetosaurs – in fact benefited the earliest dinosaurs.



For instance, sauropod-like dinosaurs, which later on evolved into the giant herbivore species of the late Jurassic (such as Diplodocus or Brachiosaurus) were able to thrive and expand their territories as the Earth warmed substantially after the mass extinction event, about 210 million years ago.



By comparing computer models of prehistoric global climate conditions like temperature and rainfall with data on the different locations of dinosaurs, the scientists showed how the sauropods and related creatures ended up being the success story of a turbulent period of evolution.



“What we see in the data suggests that instead of dinosaurs being outcompeted by other large vertebrates, it was variations in climate conditions that were restricting their diversity. But once these conditions changed across the Triassic-Jurassic boundary, they were able to flourish,” said study lead author Emma Dunne, a lecturer in Paleontology at <a href="https://www.fau.eu/">Friedrich-Alexander University Erlangen-Nürnberg</a> (FAU).



“The results were somewhat surprising, because it turns out that sauropods were really fussy from the get-go: later in their evolution they continue to stay in warmer areas and avoid polar regions.”



“Climate change appears to have been really important in driving the evolution of early dinosaurs. What we want to do next is use the same techniques to understand the role of climate in the next 120 million years of the dinosaur story,” concluded study co-author Richard Butler, a professor of Vertebrate Paleontology at the <a href="https://www.birmingham.ac.uk/index.aspx">University of Birmingham</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



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Early dinosaurs benefited from changes in global climate

According to a recent study published in the journal Current...

As cells perform their daily functions, they turn on various genes and cellular pathways. A research team led by the <a href="https://www.mit.edu/">Massachusetts Institute of Technology</a> (MIT) has now managed to coax cells to inscribe the history of these events in a long <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/proteins-identified-that-allowed-vertebrates-to-evolve/">protein</a> chain which can be then studied using a light microscope. 



According to the experts, cells programmed to produce these chains incessantly add building blocks encoding particular cellular events. Later, these ordered protein chains can be labeled with fluorescent molecules which the scientists can use to reconstruct the timing of the events. This method could help clarify the steps that underlie processes such as memory formation, responses to drug treatments, or gene expression.



“There are a lot of changes that happen at organ or body scale, over hours to weeks, which cannot be tracked over time,” explained study senior author Edward Boyden, a professor of Neurotechnology at MIT. However, if the newly developed technique could be extended to function over longer time periods, it could be also used to study temporal phenomena such as disease progression or aging.



To study the functions of biological cells, scientists usually image proteins, RNA, or other molecules from inside the cells. Unfortunately, most current methods for doing this offer only a glimpse of a single moment in time, or don’t function properly with large populations of cells.



“Biological systems are often composed of a large number of different types of cells. For example, the human brain has 86 billion cells,” said study lead author Changyang Linghu, an assistant professor of Cell and Developmental Biology at the <a href="https://umich.edu/">University of Michigan</a>. “To understand those kinds of biological systems, we need to observe physiological events over time in these large cell populations.”



To achieve this, the scientists recorded cellular events as a series of protein subunits continuously added to a chain, by using engineered protein subunits that can assemble into long filaments. Then they designed a genetically encoded system in which one of these subunits is continuously produced inside cells, while another is generated only when specific events occur. Each subunit contains an “epitope tag” - a short peptide that can bind to a different fluorescent antibody that can help scientist later on visualize the tags.



“We’re hoping to use this kind of protein self-assembly to record activity in every single cell,” Linghu said. “It’s not only a snapshot in time, but also records past history, just like how tree rings can permanently store information over time as the wood grows.”



This approach could detect and record a variety of temporally extended cellular events, including the progression of a disease or a drug treatment, as well as processes related to growth or aging. In future research, the scientists aim to extend the recording period so that longer temporal events can be recorded and analyzed.



“The total amount of information it could store is fixed, but we could in principle slow down or increase the speed of the growth of the chain. If we want to record for a longer time, we could slow down the synthesis so that it will reach the size of the cell within, let’s say two weeks. In that way we could record longer, but with less time resolution,” he concluded.



The study is published in the journal <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41587-022-01586-7">Nature Biotechnology</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



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Engineered proteins can record cellular "memories"

As cells perform their daily functions, they turn on various...

Clinical,Trial,For,New,Modern,Covid,Vaccine,During,Global,Pandemic.

Multisystem inflammatory syndrome (MIS-C) is a poorly understood health condition affecting about one in 3,000 to 4,000 children and adolescents who were previously infected with SARS-CoV-2. It usually occurs about a week or two after a <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/worlds-largest-covid-wave-currently-unfolding-across-china/">Covid</a> infection and is characterized by symptoms ranging from stomach pain, fever, and rashes to myocarditis (inflammation of the heart muscle) and even organ failure. To date, over 9,000 patients have been diagnosed with MIS-C in the Unites States, and 74 have died.



A lingering question troubling scientists has been whether a Covid vaccine may increase the risk of health problems in young people who have had MIS-C. Fortunately, according to a new study funded by the <a href="https://www.nih.gov/">National Institutes of Health</a> (NIH) and involving 22 medical centers and 385 racially diverse patients aged five or older with prior MIS-C, vaccination does not seem to lead to serious complications such as myocarditis or MIS-C reoccurrence. Instead, only mild adverse reactions – such as arm soreness and fatigue – occurred in 49 percent of the participants.



“We are very reassured by the results and this safety data should be comforting to families and healthcare professionals when considering and recommending vaccination,” said study co-leader Matthew D. Elias, M.D., a pediatric cardiologist at <a href="https://www.chop.edu/">Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia</a> and clinical assistant professor of Pediatrics at the <a href="https://www.upenn.edu/">University of Pennsylvania</a>.



These findings provide support for the <a href="https://www.cdc.gov/">Centers of Disease Control and Prevention</a>’s recommendation that patients with a history of MIS-C receive a Covid vaccine at least 90 days after their initial diagnosis. “In light of the acute and long-term consequences of COVID-19 it is vital to continue the development, testing, and deployment of preventive as well as therapeutic agents in at-risk groups as well as the general population,” concluded Gary H. Gibbons, M.D., the director of the <a href="https://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/">National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute</a> (NHLBI).&nbsp;



The study is published in the journal <a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2022.48987">JAMA Network Open</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



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.

Covid vaccines appear safe for children after MIS-C

Multisystem inflammatory syndrome (MIS-C) is a poorly understood health condition...

According to a new global quantitative study based on data collected from research articles and databases, most reservoirs of rodent-borne diseases tend to live exclusively or occasionally in or near human dwellings, show large fluctuations in their population numbers, and are often hunted by humans for their fur or meat, thus increasing the risk of new <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthpedia-articles/the-terrifying-biology-of-zoonotic-diseases/">zoonotic diseases</a> to emerge.



“Most rodents that spread zoonotic pathogens, meaning pathogens spreading between animals and humans, show large population fluctuations, move at least occasionally indoors, or are hunted for meat or fur. Our results were consistent among pathogen types, i.e., virus, bacteria, fungi, and parasites. And with transmission modes, i.e., intermediate, involvement of vectors or non-close and close contact, with close contact including inhalation of contaminated aerosols,” said study lead author Frauke Ecke, a professor of Organismal and Evolutionary Biology at the <a href="https://www.helsinki.fi/en">University of Helsinki</a> in Finland.



In order to clarify the interplay between natural and human-driven factors in the risk of pathogen transmission from animals to humans, the scientists focused on&nbsp;436 rodent species (of which 282 are well-known reservoirs of zoonotic pathogens), and investigated the linkage among the rodents’ choice of habitat, population fluctuations, humans’ hunting activities, and the status of rodents as potential reservoirs.



The analysis revealed that certain regions in the world – including large parts of Europe (especially central and northern Europe), a wide stretch of land extending from eastern Europe to eastern Asia, eastern China, parts of South America, southeast Australia, and eastern parts of North America – are at high risk of pathogen spillovers from rodents to humans. “If people encounter a rodent in these regions, there is a high risk that this rodent carries zoonotic pathogens,” Ecke warned.



Some examples of such pathogen-carrying rodents include the bank vole in Europe, the North American deer mouse, and the South American Azara’s grass mouse. These species exhibit large population fluctuations and can often live inside human dwellings.



“It is especially the large population fluctuations together with the disturbance of the rodents’ natural habitat that can explain why rodents move nearby and into human dwellings. This movement behavior is typical for so-called generalists, which are species that can cope with many different environments. These generalists are the most important reservoirs of pathogens,” Ecke concluded.



The study is published in the journal <a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.1038/s41467-022-35273-7">Nature Communications</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



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Why rodent-borne diseases spill over into humans?

According to a new global quantitative study based on data...

Icy mountains, with their snow, <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/melting-glaciers-could-unleash-dangerous-viruses/">glaciers</a> and permafrost, are important sources of water for downstream communities in many parts of the world. Some scientists refer to these frozen bodies as the ‘water towers of the world,’ since they store water during the cold winter months and release it slowly as meltwater during spring and summer, meeting the needs of people and ecosystems in lower lying areas.&nbsp;



However, as global warming takes effect, glacial ice and permafrost are receding or disappearing from these mountain regions, necessitating new water management strategies to ensure the continued stable supply of fresh water. Essentially, as ice melts in mountainous regions throughout the world, the glaciers, snow and permafrost no longer act as storage reservoirs, meaning that water supply in these regions will be provided solely by precipitation. Previous research has suggested that, by 2100 up to half of the world’s population could be living with water scarcity.&nbsp;



A recent study led by researchers from the <a href="https://www.birmingham.ac.uk/index.aspx">University of Birmingham</a> suggests that there is a lack of integrated water security knowledge for communities that depend on water supply from snow and ice. This is due to the fact that, in these regions, there is often limited understanding of what happens ‘beyond the cryosphere’ – that is the contribution from water sources other than frozen water, such as hillslopes, wetlands, and groundwater. Communities have just always depended on melting ice as a reliable supply of water.



Emerging research is showing that the effects of global warming and climate change are enhanced in mountainous areas, where glacier-related disasters such as ice avalanches and glacial lake outburst floods are becoming more commonplace. This highlights the fact that there are likely to be serious and life-threatening implications for the millions of people who depend on mountain water supply in these regions.&nbsp;



The study, published in the journal <a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.1038/s41893-022-00996-4">Nature Sustainability</a>, finds that there are huge gaps in available data on how communities use water from glaciers and mountain snow in combination with other water sources. This information will be crucial in formulating management plans for sustainable water use in future, as meltwater becomes less available. The picture is especially difficult to construct, say the researchers, because of complex mountain landscapes, differences in localized weather systems and a low density of data station records.



“In mountains, there are complex interconnections between the cryosphere [snow and ice] and other water sources, as well as with humans," said Professor David Hannah. "We need to identify the gaps in our understanding and rethink strategies for water security in the context of climate change adaptation and shifting human needs.”



The lack of data is exacerbated by low uptake of new monitoring technologies and approaches, particularly in lower income countries with limited institutional capacities. This further hampers the understanding of water use in high-altitude, data sparse regions in many parts of the world, and makes it very difficult to create models for future water management that can be scaled up accurately across watersheds.



Furthermore, the picture is complicated by uncertainties about future water needs. Information on population growth and likely adaptation to water security threats is limited, as are data on the future expansion of irrigated agriculture and hydropower, all of which will have substantial impacts on water access and allocation. In the light of these concerning gaps in understanding and knowledge, the research team have called for a fundamental rethink of the methods and technologies used to assess current water availability and to model future scenarios.



Study lead author Dr. Fabian Drenkhan conducted the research while at Imperial and now works at the Pontifical Catholic University of Peru. “The future is likely to lead to a more variable water supply and growing water demand, which is a real threat to water security in many mountain regions. Our current incomplete picture is hampering the design and implementation of effective climate change adaptation," said Dr. Drenkhan.



"A holistic perspective based on improved data and process understanding is urgently needed to guide robust, locally tailored adaptation approaches in view of increasingly adverse impacts from climate change and other human interferences.”



What is clear is that climate change will impact the availability of fresh water over the coming decades, centuries and even millennia, making serious impacts inevitable for current communities and for generations to come. Adaptation to these changes will require comprehensive data sets and an understanding of how global warming may affect the cryosphere in order to develop management strategies that enhance water security in future.&nbsp;



“Our study highlights the need for scientists to work on the ground with stakeholders. A thorough understanding of the local water security context is essential to co-produce integrated local and scientific knowledge that can support local water management decisions and adaptation strategies," concluded study senior author Professor Wouter Buytaert.



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.



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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

Water supply from icy mountains will become less reliable

Icy mountains, with their snow, glaciers and permafrost, are important...

During the first year of the Coronavirus <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/monkeypox-is-spreading-but-unlikely-to-cause-a-pandemic/">pandemic</a>, a relatively slow but constant rate of viral mutations occurred. However, since the end of 2020, several variants characterized by a large number of mutations have emerged, exceeding by far the mutation rates observed in the first stage of the pandemic.&nbsp;



A new study led by <a href="https://english.tau.ac.il/">Tel Aviv University</a> has found that immunocompromised patients tend to develop chronic Coronavirus infections, allowing the virus to accumulate a variety of mutations, which can make it become more transmissible and able to evade prior natural or vaccine-induced immunity, as was the case of the Omicron variant.



The scientists argue that weakened antibody responses – particularly in the lower airways of chronic patients – may prevent their full recovery and drive the Coronavirus to mutate several times during lengthy infections, potentially leading to the emergence of new variants.&nbsp;



“The Coronavirus is characterized by the fact that in every population, there are people who become chronically infected. In the case of these patients, the virus remains in their body for a lengthy period of time, and they are at high risk for recurrent infection,” explained study senior author Adi Stern, an expert in viral evolution at the Tel Aviv University.&nbsp;



“In all of the cases observed so far, these were immunocompromised patients – part of their immune system is damaged and unable to function. In biological evolutionary terms, these patients constitute an ‘incubator’ for viruses and mutations – the virus persists in their body for a long time and succeeds in adapting to the immune system, by accumulating various mutations.”



By examining 27 chronic Covid-19 patients at the <a href="https://www.tasmc.org.il/sites/en/Pages/default.aspx">Tel Aviv Sourasky Medical Center</a>, Professor Stern and his colleagues found that their weakened immune systems have often created pressure for the virus to mutate. Most of these patients showed a pattern&nbsp;of apparent recovery, followed by recurring viral infection.&nbsp;



The analysis revealed that, when such a pattern of apparent recovery was observed – based on negative nasopharyngeal swabs – the virus continued to thrive in the patients’ lungs, where it accumulated several mutations before travelling back to the upper respiratory tract.



“The complexity of Coronavirus evolution is still being revealed, and this poses many challenges to the scientific community. I believe that our research has succeeded in peeling back a missing layer of the big picture, and has opened the door for further research efforts to discover the origins of the various variants. This study highlights the importance of protecting immunocompromised individuals, who are at high risk for the virus, yet may also be an incubator for the formation of the next variant, posing a risk to all of us,” Professor Stern concluded.



The study is published in the journal <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41591-022-01882-4">Nature Medicine</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  



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Covid variants emerge from chronic patients

During the first year of the Coronavirus pandemic, a relatively...

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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

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

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



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



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



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



Video/Image Credit: ESA&nbsp;



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

Lake Trasimeno in Central Italy

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



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



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



Video Credit: American Chemical Society&nbsp;



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



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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



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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



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



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Santiago, Chile in South America

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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



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Interactive map of the universe includes 200,000 galaxies

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

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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



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://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

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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"

[sendtonews key="QIoVYJqRBi-2434608-12187" type="single"] Today's Video of the Day from NASA...

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



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



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



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



Video Credit: NASA Goddard&nbsp;



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



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

Satellites reveal how Earth's systems are interconnected

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

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



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



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



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



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



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



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



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

Tiger sharks are shifting poleward as temperatures rise

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

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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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Today’s Video of the Day from the <a href="https://www.esa.int/">European Space Agency</a> describes why satellite images and measurements of our planet have become "essential to our survival, offering a new outlook of our world."&nbsp;



Rising sea levels pose one of the biggest societal threats associated with climate change. According to ESA, satellite altimeter missions such as Copernicus Sentinel-6 are essential in monitoring global and regional changes in sea level.



"Unbeknown to many, the island of Crete, Greece, plays an important role in the Copernicus satellite altimetry constellation and on an international stage," reports ESA.



"Satellite altimetry data have to be continuously monitored at the ESA’s Permanent Facility for Altimetry Calibration where different techniques have pioneered the use of transponders to provide the best measurements to validate satellite altimeters in space soon after launch."



Dr. Craig Donlon explains that, by understanding planet Earth through satellite measurements, we are able to find evidence of change.&nbsp;



Video Credit: European Space Agency&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

Satellites have become essential to our survival

[sendtonews key="761m2QQvR1-2035772-12187" type="single"] Today’s Video of the Day from the...