<a href="https://www.earth.com/news/grapevines-could-offer-a-breakthrough-alternative-to-plastic-packaging/">Plastic</a> bags are everywhere, and too many slip into rivers and onto beaches. A new analysis finds that policies that either charge a small fee per bag or prohibit them outright cut the share of bags found during shoreline cleanups by 25 to 47 percent.



The study combed through hundreds of city, county, and state rules passed between 2017 and 2023. It matched those policies to more than 45,000 volunteer cleanups across the United States to see what actually changed on the ground.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-who-ran-the-study">Who ran the study</h2>



The research was coauthored by <a href="https://www.udel.edu/academics/colleges/ceoe/departments/smsp/faculty/kimberly-oremus/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Kimberly L. Oremus</a> of the University of Delaware’s School of Marine Science and Policy (<a href="https://www.udel.edu/academics/colleges/ceoe/departments/smsp/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">UDEL</a>). 



Oremus and her collaborator set out to measure litter, not just shopping behavior, so the results speak to what ends up in nature.



The team relied on citizen science, meaning trained volunteers recorded what they collected during beach, river, and lake cleanups. 



They drew on <a href="https://www.coastalcleanupdata.org/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">TIDES</a>, a public database that stores those counts in one place so researchers can analyze patterns across time and place.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-studying-plastic-bag-policies">Studying plastic bag policies</h2>



To isolate the effect of bag policies, the authors used a Difference-in-Differences (<a href="https://www.publichealth.columbia.edu/research/population-health-methods/difference-difference-estimation" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">DiD</a>) approach that compares places with and without new laws over the same period. 



That design helps rule out unrelated trends that affect everyone, such as national shifts in shopping or packaging.



The headline result is simple. In communities with full bans or fees, the share of <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/drinking-from-plastic-bottles-linked-to-high-blood-pressure-and-heart-problems/">plastic</a> bags in the litter mix fell relative to similar places without policies, and the decline grew in the years after a law took effect.



State level rules tended to be more reliable in the data than city or county policies. Effects looked similar along coasts and rivers, with hints of larger gains along lakes where winds and currents spread litter differently.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-plastic-policy-fees-vs-bans">Plastic policy: Fees vs. bans</h2>



Fees change the default at every checkout and discourage taking a bag when you do not need one, which reduces both thin and thicker bag use.



Other <a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/carrier-bag-charge-summary-of-data-in-england/single-use-plastic-carrier-bags-charge-data-for-england-2024-to-2025" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">evidence</a> points in the same direction outside the United States. England reports an almost 98 percent drop in single use carrier bags at major retailers since its charge began.



Policies that only restrict thin bags often allow thicker <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/agricultural-soil-is-now-the-worlds-biggest-plastic-dumping-ground/">plastic</a> labeled as reusable. 



Those partial bans showed the smallest and least precise effects in the analysis, which is consistent with shoppers substituting one kind of plastic for another.



Some states also pass preemption <a href="https://www.ncsl.org/environment-and-natural-resources/state-plastic-bag-legislation" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">laws</a> that block cities and counties from regulating bags at all. When local governments cannot act, the study’s data suggest statewide policies become especially important.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-wildlife-and-entanglement">Wildlife and entanglement</h2>



The cleanup records include notes on animals found <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/microplastics-found-in-99-percent-sea-turtles-organ-tissue-reproductive-system/">entangled in debris</a>. 



In areas with bag policies, the presence of entangled animals dropped by roughly 30 to 37 percent, although the authors caution that the estimates are imprecise and more data are needed.



That finding aligns with what we know about <a href="https://www.nrdc.org/stories/single-use-plastics-101" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">single-use-plastics</a>. Thin bags linger in water and along shorelines, where they can snag, smother, or be eaten by turtles, birds, and fish.



Many studies track what happens at store checkouts, but fewer track what ends up outdoors. Shoreline cleanups offer a window into that last step in the chain from purchase to pollution.



Across the study period, the share of bags among collected items rose overall, but it rose less where bag laws existed. That pattern is exactly what you want to see if policies are slowing the flow of litter into the environment.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-global-plastic-policy-steps">Global plastic policy steps</h2>



A small, universal fee is a simple tool that nudges behavior without banning choices. Full bans can work too, and the analysis shows both approaches reduce the share of <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/glass-bottles-contain-more-microplastics-than-plastic-containers/">plastic</a> bags found during cleanups.



The mix of policies should match local conditions. In places with more bag litter to begin with, impacts were largest, so targeting high problem areas with fast action can deliver quick gains.



Plastic bag rules are only one part of the picture. Negotiators from 175 countries are working toward a plastics treaty under <a href="https://www.unep.org/inc-plastic-pollution" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">UNEP</a> that could standardize action on a wider set of products and chemicals.



The study notes that bottles, caps, and other items did not decline when bag policies passed. That is a signal that targeted rules for other single use products would be needed to curb overall litter.



Adopt a modest fee or a full ban that applies across retail and restaurant settings, and keep the text simple so it is easy to enforce. Pair the policy with clear signs at checkout and with retailer reporting that tracks compliance.



Measure results in the same way the researchers did. Recruit volunteers, log items in TIDES, and watch how the litter mix changes year over year so the policy can be adjusted as needed.



The study is published in <a href="https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.adp9274" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Science</a>.



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Studies confirm that a small tax definitely helps curb plastic pollution

Plastic bags are everywhere, and too many slip into rivers and onto beaches. A new analysis finds that policies that either charge a small fee per bag or prohibit them outright cut the share of bags found during shoreline cleanups by 25 to 47 percent. The study combed through hundreds of city, county, and state rules passed between 2017 and 2023. It matched those policies to more than 45,000 volunteer cleanups across the United States to see what actually changed on the ground. Who ran the study...

Due to the impacts of climate change, 31 million people living in river deltas have a disproportionately high risk of exposure to <a href="http://www.earth.com/image/historic-rainfall-in-pakistan-has-caused-deadly-flooding/">flooding</a>, according to a new study from <a href="https://www.indiana.edu/">Indiana University</a>. The research reaffirms that some of the most disadvantaged populations are also the most vulnerable to the effects of climate change.

"To date, no one has successfully quantified the global population on river deltas and assessed the cumulative impacts from climate change," said study lead author Douglas Edmonds.

"Since river deltas have long been recognized as hotspots of population growth, and with increasing impacts from climate change, we realized we needed to properly quantify what the cumulative risks are in river deltas."

The researchers found that while river deltas occupy 0.5 percent of Earth’s land surface, they contain 4.5 percent of the global population, or 339 million people. River deltas form at the ocean at or below sea level, which makes them extremely vulnerable to the destructive storm surges that are expected to occur more frequently due to the effects of climate change.

The team used a new global dataset to determine how many people live on river deltas and how many are vulnerable to a 100-year storm surge event. The experts also investigated the ability of river deltas in cities like New Orleans and Bangkok to naturally mitigate impacts of climate change.

“River deltas present special challenges for predicting coastal floods that deserve more attention in discussions about the future impacts of climate change,” said study co-author Professor Eduardo Brondizio, who has been working with rural and urban communities in the Amazon delta for 3 decades. 

“Our estimates are likely a minimum because the storm surge and flooding models do not account for the compound interactions of the climate impacts, deficient infrastructure, and high population density.”

Beyond the threat of flooding, many of the residents in river deltas are living in low-income areas that are already exposed to pollution, poor housing infrastructure, and limited access to public services. 

According to the study, 31 million of the vulnerable residents of river deltas are living in 100-year storm surge floodplains. Furthermore, 92 percent of these at-risk individuals live in developing or underdeveloped economies. 

“These communities are already dealing with health risks, lack of sanitation and services, poverty, and exposure to flooding and other environmental risks," said Professor Brondizio. "Climate change is exacerbating all of these issues and creating more impacts."

The study showed that decades of engineering have expanded the habitable land area of river deltas, but they have also starved the regions of flood-preventing sediment. If the sediment cannot naturally renew itself, the shorelines will continue to recede and the impacts of storm surges will intensify.

“To effectively prepare for more intense future coastal flooding, we need to reframe it as a problem that disproportionately impacts people on river deltas in developing and least-developed economies,” said Edmonds. 

“We need better models for the climate impacts that are capable of stimulating compound flooding in densely populated areas so that exposure and risk can be mapped to more accurately assess risk and vulnerability.”

The study is published in the journal <a href="https://www.nature.com/ncomms">Nature Communications</a>.

---

By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Poor communities on river deltas will be hit hard by coastal flooding

Due to the impacts of climate change, 31 million people...

A new study from the <a href="https://www.floridamuseum.ufl.edu/">Florida Museum of Natural History</a> suggests that light pollution in human-altered landscapes such as <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/farmers-can-help-make-crops-more-resilient/">crop</a> fields serves as a barrier to birds with big eyes. The findings indicate that eye size is an important factor that has been largely overlooked when assessing how vulnerable various  birds species are to changes in their habitat.

The researchers established that bird eye size, habitat, and foraging techniques are strongly connected. Birds with larger eyes were found to stay in the shade of the forest, while birds that were abundant in the canopy and in agricultural settings had smaller eyes. 

"Many bird species literally disappear from highly disturbed, anthropogenic habitats such as agricultural landscapes," said study lead author Ian Ausprey. "That's probably due to many reasons, but this paper suggests light could be part of that."

Ausprey said while some of the findings may seem like "a no-brainer," the study is the first to document the relationships between light, eye size, and how birds navigate their world.

Light is particularly important for birds to detect food. Big eyes, which are commonly found in birds of prey such as owls and raptors, contain more photoreceptors. This allows the birds to identify images at longer distances and in darker settings.

On the other hand, large eyes can be detrimental when exposed to the glare of bright environments. Previous studies have shown that when birds become overwhelmed by too much light, it can alter their feeding behavior and reduce their awareness of threats.

In collaboration with study co-author Felicity Newell of the University of Florida, Ausprey surveyed birds in the forests of northern Peru for four years. Within these forests, gaps in the canopy expose patches of forest to startling brightness. "You can go from being very dark to very bright within inches," said Ausprey.

The researchers explained that a difference of just 1,000 feet in elevation can lead to dramatic changes in which birds are present. The study region in Peru is also home to small farms with livestock pastures and vegetable fields that are interspersed with the forest.

Newel noted that the broad range of ambient light, from the deep, dark forest interior to wide open country, made an ideal model system for measuring birds' use of light.

The team measured eye size relative to body size in 240 species that make up the cloud forest bird community. The analysis revealed that the insect-eating birds with the biggest eyes were far-sighted species, while the eye size in near-sighted species increased the closer to the ground they lived.

The researchers attached tiny light-sensing trackers to 71 birds representing 15 species. The sensors recorded the intensity of light that was encountered by the birds over several days. This experiment provided the experts with a new look at the various light "micro-environments." 

Among the birds tracked, the rusty-tinged antpitta inhabited the darkest environment. This bird, which is exclusive to Peru, spends most of its life walking along the forest floor. Meanwhile, the blue-capped tanager was found to reside in the brightest environments.

With predominantly small-eyed bird species present in agricultural settings, the researchers derived that birds adapted to the dark forest understory would struggle to adjust to the flood of light in a field. These patterns are likely to be found on a global scale, and the trend may also apply to urban areas, which are "basically extreme forms of agricultural landscapes in some ways," said Ausprey.

In fact, the rufous-collared sparrow, Zonotrichia capensis, the bird most commonly found in agricultural fields, is also the most abundant species in Latin American cities, said Newell.

The study is published in the journal <a href="https://esajournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/journal/19399170">Ecology</a>.

---

By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Birds with big eyes avoid bright human-altered landscapes

A new study from the Florida Museum of Natural History...

A study led by the <a href="https://admissions.utexas.edu/">University of Texas at Austin</a> has produced evidence to suggest that manatees were present along the Texas <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/oahu-could-lose-40-percent-of-its-beaches-to-coastal-erosion/">coast</a> during the last ice age. 

The findings raise new questions, such as whether these gentle "sea cows" have been visiting Texas for thousands of years, or if manatees were permanent residents in this region between 11,000 and 240,000 years ago.

Today, manatees can be seen near Texas only occasionally during the summer months before they return to the warmer waters of Florida and Mexico for the winter.

Study lead author Christopher Bell is a professor in the UT Department of Geological Sciences in the Jackson School of Geosciences. 

"This was an unexpected thing for me because I don't think about manatees being on the Texas coast today," said Professor Bell. "But they're here. They're just not well known."

The study was focused on the analysis of eight fossils, including manatee jawbones and rib fragments from the Pleistocene - the geological epoch of the last ice age. 

Most of the bones were recovered by amateur fossil collectors over the last 50 years from McFaddin Beach near Port Arthur and Caplen Beach near Galveston.

Study co-author William Godwin is a curator at the Sam Houston State University (SHSU) Natural History Collections. 

"We have them from one decade to another, so we know it's not from some old manatee that washed up, and we have them from different places," said Godwin. "All these lines of evidence support that manatee bones were coming up in a constant way."

The research was initiated after a lower jawbone fossil was donated to SHSU by amateur bone collector Joe Liggio. "I decided my collection would be better served in a museum," said Liggio. "The manatee jaw was one of many unidentified bones in my collection."

The fossil analysis suggests that, contrary to other assumptions, manatees were in Texas as early as the Pleistocene.

Manatee jawbones have a distinct S-shaped curve that immediately captured Godwin's attention. However, he said that he was met with skepticism when he sought other manatee fossils for comparison. 

Regardless, the bones Godwin examined belonged to the same species of manatee that visits the Texas coast today, Trichechus manatus.

It is widely accepted that the cooler ice age climate would have made Texas waters even less hospitable to manatees than they are today. 

The fact that manatees were in Texas for any amount of time during the last ice age means that either the coastal climate was warmer than what is generally assumed or that manatees were historically more resilient to colder temperatures.

The study is published in the journal <a href="https://palaeo-electronica.org/content/">Palaeontologia Electronica</a>.

---

By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Manatees may have been Texas residents during the last ice age

A study led by the University of Texas at Austin...

Compounding effects of extreme weather strengthen hurricanes. In a new study from <a href="https://www.tamug.edu/">Texas A&amp;M University at Galveston</a>, scientists have determined that extreme weather can intensify hurricanes in the Gulf of Mexico. The researchers found that hurricanes in this region can be considerably strengthened when they are preceded by other events, such as marine <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/severe-marine-heatwaves-are-becoming-much-more-common/">heatwaves</a> and a recent storm. 

"Exposure to extreme events is a major concern in coastal regions where growing human populations and stressed natural ecosystems are at significant risk to such phenomena," wrote the study authors. "However, the complex sequence of processes that transform an event from notable to extreme can be challenging to identify and hence, limit forecast abilities."

The researchers determined that a marine heatwave in the coastal waters of the northern Gulf of Mexico was caused by the compounding effects of a tropical storm followed by an atmospheric heatwave. 

"This newly identified process of generating extreme ocean temperatures occurred prior to the landfall of Hurricane Michael during October of 2018 and, as a critical contributor to storm intensity, likely contributed to the subsequent extreme hurricane," wrote the researchers. "This pattern of compounding processes will also exacerbate other environmental problems in temperature-sensitive ecosystems (e.g., coral bleaching, hypoxia) and is expected to have expanding impacts under global warming predictions."

Hurricane Michael was the first Category 5 hurricane on record to impact the Florida Panhandle. Prior to the hurricane, tropical Storm Gordon had mixed cold bottom water with warm surface water in early September. This lowered the temperatures of surface waters, increasing their capacity to absorb more heat during the subsequent atmospheric heatwave.

After the water column absorbed an unusual amount of heat energy, the resulting marine ultimately strengthened Hurricane Michael to a Category 5 storm, which was much stronger than what was anticipated.

"During summer in the ocean, solar energy increases air temperature and surface water temperature so much that the entire water column - from surface to bottom - cannot absorb heat from the atmosphere," said study co-author Kyeong Park.

"It does appear that a storm or hurricane can get stronger if the marine conditions are right. Hurricanes Sally and Laura in the past few weeks are good examples of stronger hurricanes because of the compound effect we described in our paper." 

"This pattern could also exacerbate other environmental problems in sensitive ecosystems such as bleaching of coral reefs, hypoxia (low oxygen in the water) and other problems that are predicted as global warming continues."

The study is published in the journal <a href="https://www.nature.com/ncomms">Nature Communications</a>.

---

By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Compounding effects of extreme weather strengthen hurricanes

Compounding effects of extreme weather strengthen hurricanes. In a new...

Within the next three decades, alien species will increase by more than 35 percent compared to 2005, according to a new study from <a href="https://www.ucl.ac.uk/">University College London</a>. The international team of researchers reports that potentially invasive plants, arthropods, and <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/birds-emerged-from-covid-19-shutdown-with-better-songs/">birds</a> are being introduced to new environments at the fastest overall rate. 

"Increases are expected to be particularly large for insects and other arthropods, such as arachnids and crustaceans. We predict the number of aliens from these groups to increase in every region of the world by the middle of the century - by almost 120% in the temperate latitudes of Asia," said study co-author Dr. Franz Essl of the University of Vienna. 

Alien species are plants and animals that humans have moved to regions of the world where they do not occur naturally. When non-native species become invasive, they are capable of altering habitats, disrupting the balance and function of ecosystems, and wiping out native species by competing for limited resources.

The experts predict that around 2,500 new alien species will arrive by mid-century in Europe alone. This means that non-native plants and animals will increase by 64 percent across the continent in a 45-year period. The researchers hope it is possible to reduce the number of alien species with stricter biosecurity regulations.

"Our study predicts that alien species will continue to be added to ecosystems at high rates through the next few decades, which is concerning as this could contribute to harmful biodiversity change and extinction," said study co-author Professor Tim Blackburn. "But we are not helpless bystanders: with a concerted global effort to combat this, it should be possible to slow down or reverse this trend."

The most recent global assessment, which was conducted in 2005, documented 35,000 alien species. For the current study, the research team developed a mathematical model to estimate how many more aliens can be expected by 2050 based on the current rate. 

The model revealed that there will be a 36-percent increase in non-native species by 2050 compared to the numbers recorded in 2005. While Europe will see the biggest influx of non-native plants and animals, Australia is expected to see the least.

"These will primarily include rather inconspicuous new arrivals such as insects, molluscs, and crustaceans. In contrast, there will be very few new alien mammal species such as the well-known raccoon," said study lead author Dr. Hanno Seebens of the Senckenberg Biodiversity and Climate Research Centre. 

"We will not be able to entirely prevent the introduction of alien species, as this would mean severe restrictions in international trade. However, stricter regulations and their rigorous enforcement could greatly slow the flow of new species."

"The benefits of such measures have been shown in some parts of the world. Regulations are still comparatively lax in Europe, and so there is great potential here for new measures to curtail the arrival of new aliens."

The study is published in the journal <a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/journal/13652486">Global Change Biology</a>.

---

By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Alien species will increase by the thousands over the next three decades

Within the next three decades, alien species will increase by...

At the current rate of greenhouse gas <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/a-drop-in-chinas-aerosol-emissions-brings-about-a-rise-in-global-warming/">emissions</a>, the amount of ice loss from Greenland this century will be higher than any other century in more than 12,000 years. The study authors used ice sheet modeling to gain a better understanding of the past, present, and future evolution of the Greenland Ice Sheet. 

According to the researchers, the findings place the ice sheet's modern decline in historical context, highlighting just how extreme and unusual projected losses for the 21st century could be.

Study lead author Dr. Jason Briner is a professor of Geology in the <a href="http://www.buffalo.edu/">University at Buffalo</a> College of Arts and Sciences. 

"Basically, we've altered our planet so much that the rates of ice sheet melt this century are on pace to be greater than anything we've seen under natural variability of the ice sheet over the past 12,000 years. We'll blow that out of the water if we don't make severe reductions to greenhouse gas emissions," said Dr. Briner. 

"If the world goes on a massive energy diet, in line with a scenario that the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change calls RCP2.6, our model predicts that the Greenland Ice Sheet's rate of mass loss this century will be only slightly higher than anything experienced in the past 12,000 years."

"But, more worrisome, is that under a high-emissions RCP8.5 scenario - the one the Greenland Ice Sheet is now following - the rate of mass loss could be about four times the highest values experienced under natural climate variability over the past 12,000 years."

The analysis incorporated new, detailed reconstructions of ancient climate into the model, which was compared to real-world measurements of the ice sheet's size for validation.

"We relied on the same ice sheet model to simulate the past, the present and the future," said study co-author Dr. Jessica Badgeley. "Thus, our comparisons of the ice sheet mass change through these time periods are internally consistent, which makes for a robust comparison between past and projected ice sheet changes."

"This study shows that future ice loss is likely to be larger than anything that the ice sheet experienced in the Holocene - unless we follow a low-carbon emission scenario in the future."

The experts emphasize that this research reiterates the need for countries around the world to take urgent action to reduce harmful emissions, slow the decline of ice sheets, and mitigate sea level rise. 

"It is no secret that the Greenland Ice Sheet is in rough shape and is losing ice at an increasing rate," said study co-author Nicolás Young. "But if someone wants to poke holes in this, they could simply ask, 'how do you know this isn't just part of the ice sheet's natural variability?'"

"Well, what our study suggests is that the rate of ice loss for this century will exceed the rate of ice loss for any single century over the last 12,000 years. I think this is the first time that the current health of the Greenland Ice Sheet has been robustly placed into a long-term context."

Despite the bleak findings, one vital takeaway is that it is still possible for people and countries around the world to make an important difference by cutting emissions, said Dr. Briner. Model simulations of lower greenhouse gas emissions produced very different results. 

"Our findings are yet another wake-up call, especially for countries like the U.S.," said Dr. Briner. "Americans use more energy per person than any other nation in the world. Our nation has produced more of the CO2 that resides in the atmosphere today than any other country." 

"Americans need to go on an energy diet. The most affluent Americans, who have the highest energy footprint, can afford to make lifestyle changes, fly less, install solar panels and drive an energy-efficient vehicle."

The research was largely funded by the National Science Foundation.

The study is published in the journal <a href="https://www.nature.com/">Nature</a>.

---

By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Greenland's ice is melting at the fastest pace in 12,000 years

At the current rate of greenhouse gas emissions, the amount...

Global warming is not affecting days and nights in the same way, according to a new study from the <a href="https://www.exeter.ac.uk/">University of Exeter</a>. The researchers found that nights are warming faster than days across much of the <a href="http://www.earth.com/video/potential-planet-found-orbiting-a-dead-star/">planet</a>. 

Looking at the average temperatures from 1983 to 2017, the experts determined that the nights were warming faster at night by more than 0.25°C across over half of the Earth's land surface.

Days warmed more quickly in some locations, but the total area of greater night-time warming was more than twice as large. The experts report that this "warming asymmetry" has been driven primarily by changing levels of cloud cover.

When cloud cover increases, the surface temperatures are cooler during the day and the warmth is retained at night. By contrast, decreasing cloud cover allows more warmth to reach the surface during the day, but the temperature increase is lost overnight. 

Study lead author Dr Daniel Cox is an expert in the Environment and Sustainability Institute on Exeter's Penryn Campus in Cornwall.

"Warming asymmetry has potentially significant implications for the natural world," said Dr. Cox. "We demonstrate that greater night-time warming is associated with the climate becoming wetter, and this has been shown to have important consequences for plant growth and how species, such as insects and mammals, interact."

"Conversely, we also show that greater daytime warming is associated with drier conditions, combined with greater levels of overall warming, which increases species vulnerability to heat stress and dehydration.

According to Dr. Cox, those species that are only active at night or during the day will be particularly affected.

The study was focused on hourly records of temperature, cloud cover, specific humidity and precipitation. The researchers used a computer model to account for many relevant factors, including the different rates of change of daytime maximum and night-time minimum temperatures, the average daytime and night-time cloud cover, and specific levels of humidity and precipitation.

The team analyzed changes in vegetation growth and precipitation over the same period. The study revealed that increased night-time warming led to less vegetation growth where it rained more, which was likely due to greater cloud cover blocking the sun. In areas where there were warmer days and less rainfall, vegetation growth was limited by water availability.

"The impacts of the changing climate on the biological world vary across latitudes, habitats and spatial scales. By contrast, the time of day at which these changes are occurring has received relatively little attention," wrote the researchers.

"As biologically significant organismal activities often occur at particular times of day, any asymmetry in the rate of change between the daytime and night‐time will skew the climatic pressures placed on them, and this could have profound impacts on the natural world."

The study is published in the journal <a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/journal/13652486">Global Change Biology</a>.

---

By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Global warming is affecting nights faster than days

Global warming is not affecting days and nights in the...

A new study from <a href="https://www.rutgers.edu/">Rutgers</a> is the first of its kind to reveal that small water droplets on plants are a nutrient-rich food supply for many <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/honey-bees-reveal-how-heat-stress-affects-fertility-among-insects/">insects</a>. The researchers discovered that plant droplets on the edges of blueberry bush leaves are loaded with nutrients for visitors such as bees, wasps, and flies.

The findings indicate that these droplets are a previously overlooked benefit of plants, with major implications for insects in both agricultural and natural ecosystems.

Study senior author Cesar Rodriguez-Saona is a professor and extension specialist in the Department of Entomology in the School of Environmental and Biological Sciences at Rutgers University-New Brunswick.

"Our study shows for the first time that plant 'guttation' - fluid from sap secreted at the edges and tips of leaves - is a nutrient-rich source of food for insects," said Professor Rodriguez-Saona. 

The droplets, which appear on nights with high levels of moisture in the soil, have been looked at as simply a source of water for insects. However, it turns out that this water contains carbohydrates and proteins that are essential for many insect species.

The research was focused on insects with three different feeding styles - an herbivore, a parasitic wasp, and a predator - across Rutgers blueberry fields. The study showed that when insects fed on nutritious doses of plant water droplets throughout their adult lives, they had a much higher chance of survival and reproductive success. 

Furthermore, the researchers noted that droplets were present in the blueberry fields for the entire season, and their presence doubled the abundance of beneficial insects that protect plants from pests. This means that water droplets help protect crops from invasive pests.

The researchers suggest that the enormous benefits of plant water droplets may be available to numerous crops where they are common, including rice, wheat, barley, rye, oats, sorghum, corn, tobacco, tomatoes, strawberries and cucumbers.

"These findings are important for the conservation of beneficial insects because they can find and feed on droplets when pollen, nectar, hosts or prey are scarce," said Professor Rodriguez-Saona.

The study authors conclude that the nutritional water droplets are highly reliable compared with other plant-derived food sources such as nectar, which enhances the fitness and population sizes of insects.

The study is published in the journal <a href="https://royalsocietypublishing.org/journal/rspb">Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences</a>.

---

By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Water droplets on plant leaves provide nutrition for insects

A new study from Rutgers is the first of its...

Since the 1950s, Acropora corals have shifted from being very abundant to becoming rare in the <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/studying-carbon-cycling-in-one-of-the-driest-places-on-earth/">Caribbean</a> region of the North Atlantic Ocean. In a new study published by <a href="https://plos.org/">PLOS</a>, scientists have discovered a coral reef in Belize where Acropora corals appear to be thriving, despite their widespread destruction in surrounding reefs that have endured the same pressures. 

A team of scientists led by Lisa Greer from Washington and Lee University set out to gain a better understanding of the resilience and lifespan of the remaining Acropora reefs in the western Caribbean, which is critical for protecting them. 

The experts evaluated one of the region's largest surviving populations of Acropora cervicornis to determine whether it was recently established or if it was a long-lived, stable population.

The research was focused on 232 samples of premodern and recently dead A. cervicornis coral skeleton material that the experts collected at three sites across the Coral Gardens Reef in Belize. The team used a new genetic-aging technique to identify key sites where samples could be obtained while minimizing damage to the living coral.

The study revealed that the coral samples dated back to 1910 or 1915, and lived until at least November 2019.

The researchers also determined that Coral Gardens Reef has been home to consistent and sustained living Acropora corals throughout the 1980s and up to at least 2019, but they could not exclude the possibility of short gaps in the presence of A. cervicornis prior to 1980. 

However, the radiometric ages and continuous coral growth patterns found at the sample sites strongly suggest that Acropora corals have been growing and thriving at Coral Gardens for over 100 years.

The experts are not yet sure why this particular site in Belize seems to be a refuge for Acropora corals, considering that it has been subject to the same temperature changes and tropical storm activity as nearby reefs - where coral populations have been devastated. A breakthrough on this topic could be key to future efforts to grow, conserve, and re-establish Caribbean reefs by identifying sites similar to Coral Gardens Reef.

"Now that we have identified an exceptional refuge for Caribbean Staghorn corals, we hope to better determine, in collaboration with reef scientists with many additional interests and expertise, the sources for success at Coral Gardens," wrote the researchers.

The study is published in the journal <a href="https://journals.plos.org/plosone/">PLOS ONE</a>.

---

By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Acropora corals are thriving in Belize yet vanishing from nearby reefs

Since the 1950s, Acropora corals have shifted from being very...

Air quality improvements in China could make it harder to control <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/arctic-fires-are-changing-and-the-climate-impacts-could-be-devastating/">climate</a> change, according to a new study from the <a href="https://carnegiescience.edu/">Carnegie Institution for Science</a>. The scientists report that a decline in aerosol emissions such as sulphur dioxide has an impact on radiative forcing and ultimately promotes global warming. 

"Economic growth and industrialisation in China over the recent decades has been supported by increasing consumption of energy from coal, making China the world's largest emitter of major air pollutants such as sulphur dioxide and black carbon," said study lead author Dr. Yixuan Zheng.

"These pollutants have significant impacts on air quality and public health, so China put stringent measures in place to reduce them. The measures were effective, and aerosol pollution in China was substantially alleviated after 2013, with notable public health benefits."

Sulphate aerosols are the dominant cooling agents in the atmosphere. These and other aerosols scatter and absorb incoming solar radiation and interact with clouds, which affects the climate locally and globally.

Dr Zheng noted that sulphate aerosol was estimated to cool the earth by an average of half a degree centigrade in 2010, which is equivalent to 76 percent of all of the climate cooling produced by anthropogenic aerosols. "Black carbon, on the other hand, absorbs heat in the atmosphere and warms the Earth. So, understanding the effect reduction in these materials could have on warming is essential for future climate mitigation strategies."

To investigate the climate influence of China's clean air strategy, the researchers analyzed the radiative and climate effects of the reductions in aerosol emissions from 2006 to 2017. The team simulated future atmospheric changes using a climate model based on the assumption that these reductions in aerosols continue.

The study revealed that China's air pollution control policies between 2006 and 2017 will result in more than 0.1 °C warming over the northern hemisphere. 

"From 2006 to 2017, China's carbon dioxide emissions grew by around 54 percent, along with around 70 percent reductions in sulphur dioxide emissions, a 30 percent reduction in black carbon emissions, and a 40 percent reduction in organic carbon emissions," said study co-author Professor Steven J. Davis.

"The decoupling of carbon dioxide and aerosol emissions is mainly caused by installing end-of-pipe control devices, which reduce aerosol emissions but not carbon dioxide. Such decoupling exacerbated the global warming effects of China's carbon dioxide emissions."

"Cleaning up aerosol emissions has tremendous health benefits, but unmasks some global warming," said study co-author Professor Ken Caldeira. "While this may seem like a climate setback, we need healthy people to help tackle the climate problem, and if we are to have more resources to allocate to better energy systems, we need to be spending less on the health damage caused by our aerosols. Helping people to become healthier can be a win for the climate system, even if it does directly lead to some warming."

The study is published in the journal <a href="https://iopscience.iop.org/journal/1748-9326">Environmental Research Letters</a>.

---

By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

A drop in China's aerosol emissions brings about a rise in global warming

Air quality improvements in China could make it harder to...

The dynamics of Arctic fires are changing, and there will be consequences for the global <a href="http://www.earth.com/video/the-batagaika-crater-holds-secrets-of-earths-past-climate/">climate</a>, according to a new study. The researchers have identified two new features driving fire activity in the Arctic: "zombie fires" and the burning of fire-resistant vegetation.

The 2020 Arctic wildfire season began two months early, and the fires spread so far north that some even bordered sea ice cover. Study co-author Dr. Merritt Turetsky is a fire and permafrost ecologist at the <a href="https://www.colorado.edu/">University of Colorado Boulder</a>.

"It's not just the amount of burned area that is alarming," said Dr. Turetsky. "There are other trends we noticed in the satellite data that tell us how the Arctic fire regime is changing and what this spells for our climate future."

The scientists identified two new features of Arctic fires, including the prevalence of holdover fires, or zombie fires. In the Arctic, flames from a previous season can smolder in peat underground over the winter, and then re-ignite on the surface as soon as warm weather arrives in the spring.

"We know little about the consequences of holdover fires in the Arctic, except that they represent momentum in the climate system and can mean that severe fires in one year set the stage for more burning the next summer," said Dr. Turetsky.

The researchers also noted that there are fires across tundra that was historically resistant to fire. As tundra in the far north becomes hotter and drier, fires are igniting in unexpected places, such as in grass, moss, and even in surface peats. Even wet landscapes like marshes are becoming more susceptible to burning.

Satellite and remote sensing tools have allowed the UC Boulder team to track Russian Arctic fires in real time. Fire activity stood out as particularly extreme in 2019 and 2020, when flames erupted well above the Arctic Circle - a region that does not usually experience large wildfires.

"Arctic fires are burning earlier and farther north, in landscapes previously thought to be fire resistant," said study lead author Dr. Jessica McCarty.

More than half of the fires detected in Siberia this year were north of the Arctic Circle on permafrost that locks in enormous amounts of carbon from ancient biomass. This could have serious implications for climate change, as current models do not account for the rapid thaw of these environments and the methane and other greenhouse gases that they release.

"Nearly all of this year's fires inside the Arctic Circle have occurred on continuous permafrost, with over half of these burning on ancient carbon-rich peat soils," said study co-author Dr. Thomas Smith. "The record high temperatures and associated fires have the potential to turn this important carbon sink into a carbon source, driving further global heating."

The study is published in the journal <a href="https://www.nature.com/ngeo">Nature Geoscience</a>.

---

By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Arctic fires are changing, and the climate impacts could be devastating

The dynamics of Arctic fires are changing, and there will...

A new study from <a href="https://www.colorado.edu/">UC Boulder</a> has produced the first evidence that coral reefs are highly sensitive to how quickly a target fishing level is reached. The researchers found that when fishing is increased too rapidly, it can cause entire <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/new-corals-found-deep-in-the-great-barrier-reef/">reef</a> ecosystems to collapse. 

Many fisheries set target fishing levels in an effort to maximize harvest while maintaining long-term sustainability. It would seem that target fishing levels should be approached as quickly as possible. 

However, the results of the study suggest that fishing levels should be reached more slowly to protect reef communities. "The ecosystem depends on the pace at which the environment is changing, not just the magnitude," explained study lead author Mike Gil.

In previous studies, Gil determined that fish look to each other to assess the risk of venturing out to eat algae from a patch of reef. With more fish at a location, it appears safer and additional fish are likely to join the feast. 

This type of feedback loop also works in the other direction. If there are not many fish at a location on the reef, other fish are deterred because it does not seem safe. 

"This feedback makes the ecosystem more prone to collapse under fishing pressure but also more prone to recovery as fishing is reduced. Social fish essentially cause the ecosystem to be much more sensitive, overall, and to be hypersensitive to exactly how quickly we remove fish," said Gil.

The researchers used extensive datasets on reef fish behavior as well as artificial intelligence to track exactly what each fish did and saw every second. 

"We've shown that an animal that maybe a lot of folks would assume is kind of dumb is, in fact, embedded in a social network and is highly influenced by its neighbors, just like humans," said Gil.

Even fish of different species were found to pay close attention to each other, looking for clues as to when it was safe to wander out into dangerous parts of the reef. The fish also stay longer and eat more in these exposed areas when there are larger numbers of fish around.

The new details on how fast fish can be sustainably harvested can inform local and regional scale management decisions that deal with fishing quotas.

Beyond the pressures of fishing, reefs also face other human-induced environmental changes such as nutrient pollution and ocean warming, which has severely damaged reefs worldwide.

"Coral reefs are incredibly tough, resilient ecosystems, but they are not so tough in the face of many challenges happening simultaneously," said Gil.

"As ecologists, we're trying to understand why we see what we see when we step into nature. And if we understand how these ecosystems function, we can effectively manage them and keep them around for future generations."

The study is published in the journal <a href="https://www.pnas.org/">Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences</a>.

---

By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Fishing levels can destroy or save coral reef ecosystems

A new study from UC Boulder has produced the first...

<figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper">
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lHHxOej4QfE
</div><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Researchers found a correlation between Alzheimer's disease and traffic pollution.</figcaption></figure>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-invisible-threat-in-urban-air">Invisible threat in urban air</h2>



City dwellers face an unseen danger with every breath. New findings from Emory University researchers suggest that fine particulate matter from <a href="http://earth.com/news/traffic-related-air-pollution-might-increase-alzheimers-risk/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">vehicle emissions may significantly elevate the risk of developing Alzheimer's disease</a>. The study examined brain tissue samples from 224 individuals who had confirmed diagnoses and volunteered their brains for scientific research.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-disturbing-connections-emerge">Disturbing connections emerge</h2>



Scientists analyzed neuritic plaques — protein clusters that characterize Alzheimer's — while mapping each participant's exposure to PM2.5 particles based on residential location and surrounding traffic density. The correlation proved more alarming than anticipated. Individuals experiencing higher pollution exposure showed nearly double the likelihood of elevated plaque accumulation in brain tissue.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-timing-matters">Timing matters</h2>



The research team discovered that pollution exposure during the final year before death demonstrated the strongest association with brain changes. This timeline suggests relatively rapid impacts from environmental toxins on neural health. The connection remained robust even after accounting for various demographic and health factors.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-genetic-vulnerability-patterns">Genetic vulnerability patterns</h2>



Perhaps most concerning, people lacking the APOE gene—which naturally predisposes individuals to Alzheimer's — exhibited more than twice the susceptibility to pollution-related brain damage. Study author Dr. Anke Huels noted this indicates environmental elements like air contamination could trigger the disease in cases where hereditary factors don't explain.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-public-health-implications">Public health implications</h2>



These findings, published in <a href="https://www.neurology.org/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Neurology</a>, underscore the critical importance of air quality regulations in urban planning. The research suggests that implementing stricter emission controls and promoting alternative transportation could serve as powerful tools in Alzheimer's prevention.



As cities worldwide grapple with growing traffic congestion and aging populations, this study highlights an urgent need for comprehensive approaches to environmental health that protect both our lungs and our minds.



—–



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Traffic fumes may trigger Alzheimer's

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lHHxOej4QfE Researchers found a correlation between Alzheimer's disease and traffic...

<figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper">
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2E0mn5mTvhQ
</div><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">'Death Star' moon Mimas conceals a 15-million-year-old ocean that scientists never expected.</figcaption></figure>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-hidden-waters-beneath-ancient-craters">Hidden waters beneath ancient craters</h2>



Scientists have made a startling discovery that challenges everything we thought we knew about <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/saturn-moon-mimas-has-remarkably-young-ocean/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Saturn's moon Mimas</a>. Beneath the heavily cratered surface that earned it the nickname "Death Star" lies a global ocean that formed just 5 to 15 million years ago—a remarkably young age by cosmic standards.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-cassini-data-reveals-orbital-secrets">Cassini data reveals orbital secrets</h2>



The discovery, led by Dr. Valéry Lainey of the <a href="https://observatoiredeparis.psl.eu/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Observatoire de Paris</a>, emerged from careful analysis of <a href="https://www.nasa.gov" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">NASA</a>'s Cassini spacecraft data. By studying subtle irregularities in Mimas's orbit around Saturn, researchers detected the gravitational signature of liquid water hidden 20 to 30 kilometers beneath the moon's icy shell.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-an-unlikely-ocean-world">An unlikely ocean world</h2>



At only 400 kilometers in diameter, Mimas seemed like the least likely candidate to harbor a subsurface ocean. Unlike other ocean moons such as Europa and Enceladus, which show clear surface signs of internal activity, Mimas displays no obvious hints of the liquid water beneath its ancient, crater-scarred exterior.



"Mimas is a small moon, and its heavily cratered surface gave no hint of the hidden ocean beneath," explained Dr. Nick Cooper from <a href="https://www.qmul.ac.uk/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Queen Mary University of London</a>, a study co-author.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-implications-for-astrobiology">Implications for astrobiology</h2>



The ocean's recent formation makes Mimas a prime target for studying how oceans develop and potentially support life. This discovery adds another member to the exclusive club of ocean worlds in our solar system, each offering unique insights into the conditions necessary for habitability.



The research, published in <a href="https://www.nature.com/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Nature</a> journal, demonstrates how advanced orbital analysis can reveal hidden features of celestial bodies, opening new possibilities for understanding ocean formation throughout the cosmos.



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Scientists discover unexpected young ocean on Saturn's cratered moon Mimas

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2E0mn5mTvhQ 'Death Star' moon Mimas conceals a 15-million-year-old ocean that...

<figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper">
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K0DuSr87SHY
</div><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">57 million-year ice age mystery solved by Australian scientists.</figcaption></figure>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-when-earth-became-a-frozen-wasteland">When Earth became a frozen wasteland</h2>



Imagine Earth as a giant snowball, frozen solid from the North Pole to the equator. This wasn't the plot of a science fiction movie – it was our planet's reality 700 million years ago during an extreme ice age that has puzzled scientists for decades.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-the-discovery">The discovery</h2>



Australian researchers from the <a href="https://www.sydney.edu.au/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">University of Sydney</a> have finally cracked one of geology's greatest mysteries: what caused the Sturtian glaciation and why it persisted for an unprecedented 57 million years. This period occurred long before dinosaurs roamed the Earth, when no complex plants or multicellular animals existed.



Dr. Adriana Dutkiewicz, the study's lead author, describes a world completely unlike today's climate. "Imagine the Earth almost completely frozen over," she explained. "The planet was blanketed in ice from poles to equator, and temperatures plunged."



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-the-combination-of-climate-factors">The combination of climate factors</h2>



The research team discovered that this massive freeze resulted from a "double whammy" of geological events. First, plate tectonic activity reduced volcanic carbon dioxide emissions to historically low levels. Volcanic activity typically releases CO2 into the atmosphere, creating a greenhouse effect that keeps Earth warm.



Simultaneously, weathering of volcanic rocks in what is now Canada actively absorbed atmospheric CO2, further reducing greenhouse gas concentrations. When atmospheric carbon dioxide levels dropped below 200 parts per million – less than half of today's levels – glaciation engulfed the entire planet.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-modern-climate-implications">Modern climate implications</h2>



Published in the journal <a href="https://pubs.geoscienceworld.org/geology" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Geology</a>, this research provides crucial insights into Earth's climate system. While geological climate changes occur over millions of years, the study emphasizes that human-induced climate change is happening at a pace ten times faster than previously observed natural changes, highlighting the urgent need to understand our planet's delicate climate balance.



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What caused the planet's longest ice age

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K0DuSr87SHY 57 million-year ice age mystery solved by Australian scientists....

<figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper">
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WXXGGiynIjs
</div><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Greenland is not sinking. In fact, it is the opposite.</figcaption></figure>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-a-contrasting-climate-response">A contrasting climate response</h2>



Most coastal towns are <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/sinking-land-will-intensify-the-effects-of-rising-sea-levels/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">preparing for higher sea levels</a>, but <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/greenland-no-longer-has-to-worry-about-rising-sea-levels/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Greenland presents</a> a different scenario during climate change. The ground there is rising at a remarkable rate. Over the past decade, some areas have lifted about 20 centimeters, which translates to roughly 2 meters per century. This rate significantly exceeds current projections for sea level rise.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-geological-rebound-process-through-climate-change">Geological rebound process through climate change</h2>



The mechanism behind this phenomenon is straightforward. As the ice sheet melts, the immense weight is removed from the bedrock, causing the land to rebound upward. This process resembles the way compressed material springs back when pressure is released.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-scientific-monitoring-networks">Scientific monitoring networks</h2>



Researchers at the <a href="https://www.dtu.dk/english/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Technical University of Denmark</a> are documenting this uplift using the GNET network, consisting of 61 GPS stations positioned around Greenland's coast. These sensors can detect movement with millimeter precision, providing detailed measurements of the ongoing changes.



The data reveal that current uplift rates exceed the gradual rebound occurring since the last ice age ended approximately 12,000 years ago. This acceleration corresponds directly with increased ice sheet melting rates.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-coastal-transformation">Coastal Transformation</h2>



This uplift is actively reshaping Greenland's coastline. New islands and rocky formations, called "skerries," are emerging as previously submerged land surfaces rise above the water level. This represents a notable contrast to global concerns about rising seas.



The study, published in Geophysical Research Letters, demonstrates the varied regional impacts of climate change. While many locations face rising water levels, Greenland's bedrock is literally rising above the surrounding seas.



The full study was recently published in <a href="https://agupubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1029/2023GL104851" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Geophysical Research Letters</a>.



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Greenland's ground rises while coasts worldwide face higher seas

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WXXGGiynIjs Greenland is not sinking. In fact, it is the...

<figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper">
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DSM3EVeGHJU
</div><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Companies like MindStudio help companies train their employees to implement the latest AI Agent building platform.</figcaption></figure>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-ai-agent-training-transforms-the-workplace-fear-factor-into-a-competitive-advantage">AI agent training transforms the workplace 'fear factor' into a competitive advantage</h2>



Organizations that offer comprehensive artificial intelligence training to their workers find remarkable value that extends well beyond basic <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/mind-wandering-might-be-more-productive-than-you-think/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">productivity improvements</a>. Emerging research demonstrates that carefully crafted AI training programs <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/ai-does-not-replace-human-creativity-but-enhances-it/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">enhance</a> corporate performance, lower operational costs, and dramatically improve employee psychological well-being by turning workplace uncertainty into professional empowerment.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-addressing-the-widespread-ai-anxiety-crisis-among-us">Addressing the widespread 'AI anxiety' crisis among us</h2>



A staggering 53% of employees expressed concern that the use of AI tools to automate work tasks could make them appear disposable to their employers, according to <a href="https://www.microsoft.com/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Microsoft</a>'s 2024 workplace survey. Such pervasive worry about being substituted by machines has caused what researchers have termed "AI technostress" – a psychological state that can result in occupational burnout and poorer mental well-being.



Data published in <a href="https://www.nature.com/palcomms/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Humanities and Social Sciences Communications</a> showed that belief in AI learning ability was a moderator in the link between technology adoption and work pressure, and higher confidence significantly lowered negative psychological responses. Workers provided ample training to become competent with AI software have significantly lower stress.



Companies like <a href="https://www.mindstudio.ai/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">MindStudio</a> have platforms for building what are known as "AI Agents". In essence, AI Agents are simply tools that employees can build for themselves or their teams quickly and inexpensively. MindStudio will even train entire companies, from the CEO on down, at no cost. By letting MindStudio empower employees, companies avoid hiring more IT staff, buying more software, and implementing solutions to problems that do not exist.



MindStudio even has partners locally for companies, like <a href="http://www.dominnus.com" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Dominnus</a> with offices in the Carolinas, California, and Denver, to help build AI Agents and support employees as they become resident AI experts for their organization. The training provided by MindStudio is applicable across other AI Agent building platforms as well.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-revolutionary-productivity-through-focused-learning">Revolutionary productivity through focused learning</h2>



Organizations that implement large-scale AI training programs achieve dramatic outcomes. Employees performed tasks significantly better when they utilized AI support compared to when they didn't, according to <a href="https://www.nngroup.com/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Nielsen Norman Group</a> research findings. Their study documented productivity increases of 66% for a variety of professional tasks.



Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis research finds workers record 33% higher productivity in time working with generative AI tools. The benefit is equivalent to 5.4% of work time savings for AI users – around 2.2 hours per week for full-time workers.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-psychological-well-being-benefits-through-ai-competence">Psychological well-being benefits through AI competence</h2>



The emotional transformation when employees are provided with proper technology training is a fundamental transformation from fear to professional confidence. A survey of 600 employees across industries, carried out by ScienceDirect, proved that AI capabilities strengthen work environment commitment and improve job satisfaction.



A <a href="https://www.lut.fi/en" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">LUT University</a> study discovered that AI adoption has no direct effect on workers' well-being but does so indirectly through working conditions like task optimization and safety protocols. Strategically deployed AI that involves correct training can actually increase workplace mental well-being.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-from-replacement-anxiety-to-partnership-confidence">From 'replacement anxiety' to 'partnership confidence'</h2>



Although 35% of those interviewed in recent McKinsey studies were concerned about workforce displacement, firms with large-scale training initiatives witness such fears dissipate quickly. The World Economic Forum found that two out of three respondents believe AI competencies will enhance their career prospects and job marketability.



This shift from fear to trust has measurable implications for job satisfaction. Applied Sciences research indicates AI can create tailored wellness programs based on individual employee requirements.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-financial-benefits-of-increased-retention">Financial benefits of increased retention</h2>



The mental health advantages of AI learning have a direct impact on organizational bottom lines in the form of a positive feedback cycle with high retention of employees. Recent ROI research validates that artificial intelligence learning has a beneficial impact on employee turnover and satisfaction levels.



PriceWaterhouseCoopers' research documents 20% to 30% improvements in productivity, market speed, and revenue in organizations that attempt systematic AI adoption through comprehensive training.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-environmental-advantages-of-ai-enabled-teams">Environmental advantages of AI-enabled teams</h2>



AI training has unforeseen environmental benefits as it makes the work environment more efficient. According to a study in Scientific Reports, the carbon footprint in writing and illustrating work is significantly lower when AI performs it compared to humans. AI software produces 130 to 1,500 times less CO2 equivalent per page of text created than human authors.



In addition, AI-driven remote work functionality significantly reduces environmental impact. Research by Cornell University and Microsoft indicates that remote workers reduce greenhouse gas emissions by up to 54% by not commuting daily to offices. Hybrid workers working remotely two to four days a week can reduce their carbon footprint by 11% to 29%.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-cumulative-organizational-advantages">Cumulative organizational advantages</h2>



The compounding gains of better mental well-being, reduced turnover, increased productivity, and environmental benefits flow to enterprises from the pairing. McKinsey analysis estimates the long-term AI potential at $4.4 trillion in incremental productivity growth opportunity from business use cases.



As of now, 75% of knowledge workers globally utilize generative AI, mirroring widespread adoption patterns. Organizations that provide organized training and assistance see the most favorable results in productivity, worker satisfaction, and ecological sustainability.



The research overwhelmingly indicates that companies that invest in proper AI education, like that offered through <a href="https://www.mindstudio.ai" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">MindStudio</a>, establish win-win scenarios where employees are both more empowered and less stressed, and companies enjoy the gains of increased productivity, reduced turnover, and improved mental health outcomes throughout their workforce.



For more on MindStudio's free AI training for companies, visit the website's of MindStudio and Dominnus from the links below.



The research was published across a variety of peer-reviewed journals, including <a href="https://www.nature.com/palcomms/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Humanities and Social Sciences Communications</a>, <a href="https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/artificial-intelligence" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Frontiers in Artificial Intelligence</a>, and <a href="https://www.mdpi.com/journal/applsci">Applied Sciences</a>.



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MindStudio.AI: <a href="https://www.mindstudio.ai" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">https://www.mindstudio.ai</a>



Dominnus: <a href="https://www.dominnus.com" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">https://www.dominnus.com</a>

AI agent training boosts mental health and profits

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DSM3EVeGHJU Companies like MindStudio help companies train their employees to...

<figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper">
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0HDXqTGEmi4
</div><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Scientists give plants superpowers against bacterial disease</figcaption></figure>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-a-natural-solution-to-disease-through-crop-modification">A natural solution to disease through crop modification.</h2>



The agricultural industry stands at a crossroads between productivity and environmental responsibility, and crop modification often carries a negative connotation. While chemical pesticides have long been the go-to solution for crop protection, their harmful effects on ecosystems and human health have prompted scientists to seek alternatives. The recent breakthrough by <a href="https://www.southampton.ac.uk/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">University of Southampton</a> researchers offers a promising path forward through the precise manipulation of plant-associated microbial communities.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-the-science-behind-microbial-partnerships">The science behind microbial partnerships</h2>



Plants naturally harbor diverse ecosystems of bacteria, fungi, and other microorganisms that function as biological allies. These microscopic partners contribute to disease resistance, nutrient absorption, and stress tolerance. However, until now, scientists lacked the tools to deliberately reshape these communities to enhance crop protection.



The Southampton team's approach centered on <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/engineered-plant-microbiomes-the-future-of-crop-protection/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">modifying lignin biosynthesis genes in rice plants</a>. This strategic intervention altered the plant's metabolic output, creating conditions that favored beneficial bacterial populations while suppressing harmful ones. The result was a living defense system embedded within the plant itself.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-implications-for-global-food-security">Implications for global food security</h2>



The successful demonstration against Xanthomonas oryzae, the pathogen responsible for bacterial blight in rice, represents more than a laboratory achievement. Rice feeds nearly half the world's population, and bacterial blight causes devastating crop losses annually. Traditional control methods rely heavily on pesticides that contaminate soil and water systems.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-looking-beyond-disease-resistance">Looking Beyond Disease Resistance</h2>



While disease protection represents the immediate application, the research framework opens doors to broader agricultural improvements. Future developments could engineer microbiomes to enhance nutrient uptake, reducing dependence on synthetic fertilizers. This dual benefit addresses both crop productivity and environmental sustainability.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-the-path-forward">The path forward</h2>



As this technology advances from laboratory to field applications, it promises to reshape sustainable agriculture. The ability to program plants with their own biological defense systems could herald a new era where crops protect themselves naturally, reducing chemical inputs while maintaining yields necessary for global food security.



The study is published in the journal&nbsp;<a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.1038/s41467-023-44335-3" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Nature Communications</a>.



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Revolutionizing agriculture through microbiome engineering

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0HDXqTGEmi4 Scientists give plants superpowers against bacterial disease A natural...

<figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper">
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=prrq8Ql81zk
</div><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Acid rain and a crisis solved.</figcaption></figure>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-why-don-t-we-ever-hear-about-acid-rain-anymore-the-environmental-crisis-that-was-solved">Why don't we ever hear about "acid rain" anymore? The environmental crisis that was solved</h2>



Remember the 1980s when acid rain dominated headlines? Dire warnings about rain eating buildings, killing fish, and destroying forests filled every news cycle. Then, almost like magic, acid rain vanished from public discourse. What happened? Did we actually solve one of the late 20th century's most pressing environmental challenges?



The answer might surprise you. Unlike many environmental issues that drag on indefinitely, acid rain represents one of modern history's most successful ecological recovery stories. It's a tale of science, politics, and technology working together to tackle what seemed impossible.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">What was acid rain?</h2>



Acid rain isn't regular rain having a bad day – it's precipitation that became significantly more acidic due to air pollution. When power plants, factories, and vehicles burn fossil fuels, they release sulfur dioxide (SO2) and nitrogen oxides (NOx) into the atmosphere.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">The science behind it</h2>



Think of acid rain as nature's chemistry experiment gone wrong. These compounds react with water, oxygen, and other chemicals to form sulfuric and nitric acids. When mixed with water vapor in clouds, they create precipitation with dangerously low pH levels.



While clean rain has a pH of about 5.6, acid rain could drop as low as 4.2 to 4.4 – roughly as acidic as tomato juice or coffee. According to US Geological Survey documentation, Scottish chemist Angus Smith first coined "acid rain" in 1872, but it didn't become a household phrase until the 1960s and 1970s when Swedish scientist Svante Odén documented its devastating effects on Scandinavian lakes and European forests.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">The crisis at its peak</h2>



During the height of public concern, environmental damage was both widespread and visible. This wasn't some abstract future threat – people could see destruction happening in real-time.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Environmental devastation</h2>



The most dramatic impacts were impossible to ignore. Research documented by the Adirondack Lakes Survey Corporation and the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation shows that in the Adirondack Mountains, more than 200 lakes became so acidic they couldn't support fish life. The Adirondack Council reports that 409 lakes once supported brook trout, but many lost their fish populations due to acid rain.



By 1976, when scientists cataloged all acidified lakes in the Adirondack Park, researchers found that half of the lakes over 2,000 feet above sea level had no fish, according to studies published in environmental journals. The acidification process worked like a slow-motion disaster. As acid rain fell into watersheds, it gradually lowered pH levels. Fish couldn't survive in acidic water, and their food sources died off too.



Trees at high elevations showed stress directly linked to acid rain. It weakened them by leaching nutrients and making them susceptible to disease. Historical records show Germany's Black Forest saw nearly half its trees damaged by the mid-1980s.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Economic impact</h2>



Acid rain wasn't just environmental – it was expensive. Acidic precipitation corroded infrastructure, buildings, and monuments. Historic stone structures deteriorated at accelerated rates. Tourism suffered as lakes became fishless and forests declined. EPA economic analyses from the period documented repair costs mounting into billions annually.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">The solution: government action and technology</h2>



Transformation from crisis to success required unprecedented cooperation between governments, industries, and environmental groups.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">The Clean Air Act of 1990</h2>



The turning point came with the Clean Air Act Amendments of 1990, signed by President George H.W. Bush. This represented a fundamentally new approach to environmental regulation, as documented in EPA historical records.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Cap-and-trade success</h2>



Instead of mandating specific technologies, the 1990 amendments introduced something revolutionary: a cap-and-trade system for sulfur dioxide emissions. EPA program documentation shows this market-based approach set overall limits but allowed companies to trade emission allowances.



The genius was harnessing market forces to find cost-effective pollution reduction. Companies reducing emissions cheaply could sell excess allowances to those facing higher costs. Research published in environmental economics journals and EPA progress reports shows this resulted in dramatic SO2 reduction at a fraction of projected costs.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Technology advances</h2>



Policy provided the framework, but technology made reductions possible. Studies in atmospheric science journals document the widespread adoption of flue gas desulfurization systems ("scrubbers") that removed sulfur dioxide before it reached the atmosphere. By the 2000s, new installations could remove over 95% of SO2 emissions, according to EPA technical reports.



The push coincided with cleaner energy development. Natural gas produces fewer sulfur compounds than coal. Wind and solar, emerging in the 1990s, captured growing market share, reducing reliance on high-sulfur coal.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-why-we-don-t-hear-about-it-today">Why we don't hear about it today</h2>



Why did acid rain disappear from headlines? Simple: the problem was largely solved.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Success doesn't make news</h2>



There's an old journalism saying: "If it bleeds, it leads." Environmental success stories don't generate urgency like crisis reporting. Media attention shifted to other challenges: climate change, plastic pollution, and biodiversity loss. There's only so much environmental anxiety the public can absorb, and newer concerns replaced acid rain.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Mission accomplished</h2>



The primary reason is beautifully simple: interventions worked. EPA monitoring data shows sulfur dioxide emissions dropped over 90% since 1990. Academic research published in environmental science journals confirms pH levels in formerly affected areas returned closer to normal. This represents one of history's most dramatic environmental recoveries. Studies by the Adirondack Lakes Survey Corporation show fishless lakes now support healthy populations. Forests recovered, and building damage slowed dramatically.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-is-it-really-gone">Is it really gone?</h2>



The crisis is largely resolved, but monitoring data shows the problem isn't completely eliminated – it's managed to acceptable levels. Some areas still experience occasional events during high pollution periods. International environmental research indicates that rapidly industrializing Asian countries face similar problems to what we experienced decades ago, though they're implementing successful strategies.



EPA research shows nitrogen oxide emissions proved more challenging than sulfur dioxide, coming from vehicles and mobile sources. Climate science studies suggest changing weather patterns add complexity to how acid rain forms and falls.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">What this teaches us</h2>



The acid rain experience proves that seemingly intractable environmental problems can be solved with scientific understanding, political will, and technological innovation. Environmental monitoring data shows recovery speed was remarkable – within a decade, measurable improvements appeared in air quality and ecosystem health.



Success came from bipartisan support across party lines. Policy analysis studies show the market-based approach appealed to those preferring economic incentives while achieving environmental goals. This support created lasting policy surviving political changes.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Conclusion</h2>



Acid rain's disappearance from public consciousness represents environmental science's greatest success stories. Through effective regulation, technological innovation, and international cooperation, we transformed an overwhelming crisis into a manageable challenge.



Today's silence isn't because we forgot – it's because we solved it. The 1990 Clean Air Act, combined with technology and energy market changes, reduced acid rain emissions over 90%, according to comprehensive EPA data analysis.



This success offers hope for current challenges. It proves complex problems can be solved when science, policy, and technology work together. As we face climate change and plastic pollution, acid rain reminds us that dramatic positive change is possible.



Next time someone asks whether environmental regulations work, remember acid rain. It's proof that sometimes, we get it right.



<hr class="wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity"/>



Sources: This article draws from EPA official documentation and progress reports, peer-reviewed research published in environmental and atmospheric science journals, historical data from the Adirondack Lakes Survey Corporation, New York State Department of Environmental Conservation records, US Geological Survey publications, policy analysis studies, and environmental monitoring data collected over three decades.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Frequently Asked Questions</h2>



1. Is acid rain completely gone? No, but EPA monitoring shows it's reduced to manageable levels. US sulfur dioxide emissions dropped over 90% since 1990, making acid rain much less severe than the 1980s crisis.



2. How long did solving take? Environmental monitoring data shows significant improvements began within 5-10 years of 1990s emission controls. Full ecosystem recovery took longer – some areas need 20-30 years for complete recovery.



3. What made the solution successful? Clear scientific understanding, visible damage motivating action, bipartisan support, available technology, and innovative market-based policies like cap-and-trade.



4. Do other countries have acid rain problems? Yes, particularly rapidly industrializing Asian countries. However, international environmental research shows many implement similar successful control strategies.



5. Could acid rain return? Potentially, if regulations weaken or we return to high-sulfur coal without controls, though effects would take years to become severe according to environmental projections.



6. Can you recommend any teaching tools on the subject of "acid rain"? The United States Environmental Protection Agency produced a wonderful teacher's guide for ages 14 and under that you can find on the EPA website here: <a href="https://www.epa.gov/sites/default/files/2017-03/documents/teachersguide.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">https://www.epa.gov/sites/default/files/2017-03/documents/teachersguide.pdf</a>



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The environmental problem we actually solved

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=prrq8Ql81zk Acid rain and a crisis solved. Why don't we...

Green,Ecoduct,Over,An,Empty,Highway,During,Sunset.

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</div></figure>



A new long-term study in Monkton, Vermont, reveals that wildlife tunnels significantly reduce amphibian road mortality during seasonal migrations. 



Frogs and salamanders often cross roads to reach breeding ponds each spring, but many are killed by vehicles. 



Researchers from the <a href="https://www.uvm.edu/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">University of Vermont</a>, in collaboration with local citizens and the Vermont Agency of Natural Resources, installed two underpass tunnels in 2015. 



Over a 12-year monitoring period, they observed an 80.2% reduction in amphibian deaths, and up to 94% for non-climbing species like salamanders. 



The study used a before-after-control-impact design and documented more than 5,200 amphibians, highlighting the tunnels’ effectiveness even in nearby buffer zones.



Funded at $342,397 - far cheaper than wildlife crossings for large mammals - the project showcased the power of community-led conservation.



Local groups initiated the effort after observing mass amphibian deaths. Wildlife cameras later captured over 2,200 amphibians using a tunnel in just one spring, along with other species like raccoons and bobcats, indicating wider ecosystem benefits.



This marks the first peer-reviewed, long-term data set in the northeastern U.S. confirming amphibian-specific underpasses work. 



The study urges transportation departments to incorporate these designs into road planning and highlights how community action, thoughtful infrastructure, and persistence can make a real difference for biodiversity.



The full study was published in the <a href="https://linkinghub.elsevier.com/retrieve/pii/S1617138125000780" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Journal for Nature Conservation</a>.



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Wildlife tunnels save millions of amphibians

https://youtu.be/XYgiPzmNBTU?si=eFYY7gPHU1JznLvU A new long-term study in Monkton, Vermont, reveals that...

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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https://youtu.be/Ug657J67iEo?si=w96YjGMsg939LD_3
</div></figure>



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



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



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



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



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



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



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



Video Credit: Amanda Nguyen/University of Illinois



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



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Designing crops that can beat the heat

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

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Today's Video of the Day from <a href="https://www.nasa.gov/goddard">NASA Goddard</a> describes the first comprehensive estimate of carbon density in the Saharan, Sahel, and Sudanian zones of Africa. In an effort to measure the amount of carbon stored across these drylands, a team of scientists used high-resolution satellite images and artificial intelligence to map nearly 10 billion individual trees. 



"The high spatial resolution (50 cm) combined with AI and field measurements used in this study is key to improving tree inventories in drylands," said Pierre Hiernaux, a French researcher working for NASA. "The ever-increasing availability of very high-resolution satellite imagery will make it possible to assess carbon pools and their dynamics at the individual tree level on a global scale."



"This study is exceptional because it is pioneering a type of approach that will revolutionize the monitoring of trees and forests on a global scale: in the short term, it will be possible to map the world's trees from the centre of the Amazon to our schoolyards," said <a href="https://www.inrae.fr/en">INRAE</a> researcher Jean-Pierre Wigneron.



"Many fields of application will become much more efficient and accurate, such as tracking carbon stocks, biodiversity, monitoring logging and protection against illegal forest degradation, in near real time.”



Video Credit: NASA Goddard&nbsp;



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



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Remote sensing will revolutionize the way we monitor trees

[sendtonews key="EjmSP20gQK-2593093-12187" type="single"] Today's Video of the Day from NASA...

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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"

[sendtonews key="uV9Lh2fQbV-1760058-12187" type="single"] Lesotho: Africa's "Kingdom in the Sky" Today’s...

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



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



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



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



Video Credit: NASA Goddard



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



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Wetlands are a major source of methane emissions

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

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



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



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



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



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



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



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



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



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



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



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

The rapid retreat of the Columbia Glacier

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

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



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



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



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



Video/ Image Credit: NASA Goddard



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



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

2022 illustrated the consequences of a warming climate

[sendtonews key="3UUsNkFOuS-2487333-12187" 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 how Earth is unique in our solar system for its ability to sustain liquid water on its surface. But now, the water cycle is shifting as the climate warms, and scientists must find ways to predict how these changes will affect water availability.



Overall, 96 percent of Earth's water is saltwater, and nearly all of freshwater is found in ice and groundwater. These sources of water are linked as it passes through solid, liquid and gas phases.



In a warmer climate, the water cycle will be transformed. It will be easier for water to evaporate and form clouds, and storms will become more frequent and intense. Some regions will get too much water, while others will be left without enough water. In addition, soil moisture will be lost - which threatens food security.



Scientists are using satellite data from over the last 40 years to track changes that are happening in the water cycle. This will ultimately help us prepare for extreme events and better manage our water resources, according to ESA.



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.

Tracking changes in Earth's water cycle

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Saturn,-,High,Resolution,3d,Images,Presents,Planets,Of,The

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Today's Video of the Day from <a href="https://www.nasa.gov/goddard">NASA Goddard Space Flight Center</a> features images of Saturn from NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope. The photographs capture the start of the mysterious "spoke season" on Saturn - when unexplained features appear on its rings. 



According to NASA, both the cause of the spokes and their seasonal variability have yet to be fully explained by planetary scientists.



"Like Earth, Saturn is tilted on its axis and therefore has four seasons, though because of Saturn's much larger orbit, each season lasts approximately seven Earth years. Equinox occurs when the rings are tilted edge-on to the Sun," explains NASA.



"The spokes disappear when it is near summer or winter solstice on Saturn. (When the Sun appears to reach either its highest or lowest latitude in the northern or southern hemisphere of a planet.) As the autumnal equinox of Saturn's northern hemisphere on May 6, 2025, draws near, the spokes are expected to become increasingly prominent and observable."



Experts believe that the spokes may be a product of the planet's variable magnetic field. When magnetic fields interact with solar wind, an electrically charged environment is created. This phenomenon is visible on Earth as the northern lights.&nbsp;



"Scientists think that the smallest, dust-sized icy ring particles can become charged as well, which temporarily levitates those particles above the rest of the larger icy particles and boulders in the rings," says NASA.



The spokes were first observed in the early 1980s by NASA's Voyager mission. Depending on the angle of the rings, the spokes can appear dark or light.



"Thanks to Hubble's OPAL program, which is building an archive of data on the outer solar system planets, we will have longer dedicated time to study Saturn’s spokes this season than ever before," said NASA senior planetary scientist Amy Simon, head of the Hubble Outer Planet Atmospheres Legacy (OPAL) program.



"Despite years of excellent observations by the Cassini mission, the precise beginning and duration of the spoke season is still unpredictable, rather like predicting the first storm during hurricane season."



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.

Mysterious "spoke season" captured on Saturn

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