A new phenomenon dubbed "ice piracy" is unfolding in the frigid wilderness of West Antarctica, where one glacier appears to be stealing ice from its neighbor. 



This unusual behavior - once believed to take hundreds or even thousands of years - has now been recorded happening in under two decades.



Scientists from the University of Leeds, working with international collaborators, have used high-resolution satellite data to reveal that a fast-moving glacier is redirecting ice flow away from its slower neighbor.



This surprising event is changing how scientists understand the dynamics of glaciers - and how such shifts may contribute to future sea-level rise. Their findings, now published in The Cryosphere, provide rare insight into these rapid changes.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-fast-paced-shift-in-the-ice">Fast-paced shift in the ice</h2>



Between 2005 and 2022, researchers observed that seven <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/ice-streams-move-unpredictably-due-to-hidden-quakes/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">ice streams</a> in the Pope, Smith, and Kohler (PSK) region of West Antarctica sped up significantly. 



One glacier nearly doubled its speed - an 87% increase - at the point where it meets the ocean. 



Three other glaciers accelerated by 60% to 84%. By 2022, six of these streams were moving at more than 700 meters (0.4 miles) per year. That’s the equivalent of covering just over seven football fields in just one year.



This kind of acceleration, especially so close to the grounding line - the point where a glacier starts to float - is a warning sign. 



Grounding lines help track the stability of ice sheets. Changes in their position or speed suggest the system is out of balance and can influence how ice flows inland.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-slowing-glaciers-leads-to-ice-piracy">Slowing glaciers leads to ice piracy</h2>



But not every glacier followed the same pattern. The Kohler West glacier actually slowed down by 10% during the same time period. 



<figure class="wp-block-image aligncenter size-full"><a href="https://www.earth.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/Antarctica_ice-piracy_Glacier-velocity-change_2005-2022_ESA_1m.jpg" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener"><img src="https://www.earth.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/Antarctica_ice-piracy_Glacier-velocity-change_2005-2022_ESA_1s.webp" alt="The image depicts the average change in velocity of multiple glaciers flowing into the Crosson and Dotson Ice Shelves in West Antarctica from 2005 to 2022. Credit: ESA" class="wp-image-1969732"/></a><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">The image depicts the average change in velocity of multiple glaciers flowing into the Crosson and Dotson Ice Shelves in West Antarctica from 2005 to 2022. Click image to enlarge. Credit: ESA</figcaption></figure>



This stood in stark contrast to nearby glaciers like Kohler East and Smith West, which sped up dramatically - by about 560 meters per year.



The slowdown puzzled scientists, until they looked at the ice flow patterns.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-kohler-west-and-kohler-east">Kohler West and Kohler East</h2>



“We think that the observed slowdown on Kohler West Glacier is due to the redirection of ice flow towards its neighbor - Kohler East," explained lead author Dr. Heather L. Selley from the <a href="https://www.leeds.ac.uk/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">University of Leeds</a>.



"This is due to the large change in Kohler West’s surface slope, likely caused by the vastly different thinning rates on its neighboring <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/antarctic-glaciers-flow-faster-during-the-summer-time/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">glaciers</a>.” 



She added that because Kohler East’s ice stream is flowing and thinning faster as it travels, it absorbs, or ‘steals’ ice from Kohler West. 



"This is effectively an act of ‘ice piracy’, where ice flow is redirected from one glacier to another, and the accelerating glacier is essentially ‘thieving’ ice from its slowing neighbor,” explained Selley.



“We didn’t know ice streams could ‘steal’ ice from each over such a short period, so this is a fascinating discovery. It’s unprecedented as we're seeing this from satellite data and it’s happening at a rate of under 18 years, whereas we’ve always thought it was this extremely long, slow process,” she added.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-watching-ice-piracy-from-space">Watching ice piracy from space</h2>



To track this shift, the research team used satellite images and a technique that follows the movement of surface features like crevasses and rifts. 



They also incorporated data on ice thinning from the European Space Agency’s <a href="https://www.esa.int/Applications/Observing_the_Earth/FutureEO/CryoSat" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CryoSat mission</a>.



<figure class="wp-block-image aligncenter size-full"><a href="https://www.earth.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/Antarctica_ice-piracy_speed-direction_Crosson-Dotson-Ice-Shelves_2015-2022_ESA_1m.jpg" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener"><img src="https://www.earth.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/Antarctica_ice-piracy_speed-direction_Crosson-Dotson-Ice-Shelves_2015-2022_ESA_1s.webp" alt="The image depicts the average speed and direction of multiple glaciers flowing into the Crosson and Dotson Ice Shelves in West Antarctica from 2015 to 2022. The arrows show change in direction of flow. Credit: ESA" class="wp-image-1969725"/></a><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">The image depicts the average speed and direction of multiple glaciers flowing into the Crosson and Dotson Ice Shelves in West Antarctica from 2015 to 2022. The arrows show change in direction of flow. Click image to enlarge. Credit: ESA</figcaption></figure>



Data was sourced from satellites operated by ESA, NASA, the Canadian Space Agency, and the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency.



“This study provides an interesting demonstration of ice piracy, where flow into one glacier gradually switches to flow into another glacier, as the ocean melts the grounding zone and re-configures ice flow,” said Pierre Dutrieux, climate researcher at the <a href="https://www.bas.ac.uk/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">British Antarctic Survey</a>.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-why-does-any-of-this-matter">Why does any of this matter?</h2>



The research team looked into several factors that influence ice flow, including <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/ocean-temperatures-are-rising-faster-than-expected-and-likely-to-accelerate/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">ocean temperatures</a>, circulation changes, air temperature, and snowfall. 



They discovered that ice redirection is affecting the amount of ice reaching the floating ice shelves fed by these glaciers.



Two major ice shelves - the Crosson and <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/antarctica-ice-shapes-never-seen-by-humans-dotson-ice-shelf-ran-submersible/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Dotson</a> - are already among the fastest-changing outlets in West Antarctica. 



Crosson spans roughly 40 miles (60 kilometers), and Dotson stretches about 30 miles (48 kilometers). Both are thinning and retreating at their grounding lines.



<figure class="wp-block-image aligncenter size-full"><a href="https://www.earth.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/Antarctica_ice-piracy_Crosson-Dotson-Ice-Shelves_map_ESA_1m.jpg" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener"><img src="https://www.earth.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/Antarctica_ice-piracy_Crosson-Dotson-Ice-Shelves_map_ESA_1s.webp" alt="The Crosson and Dotson Ice Shelves are situated in West Antarctica. These huge ice shelves are fed by numerous glaciers flowing towards the Amundsen Sea. Credit: ESA" class="wp-image-1969723"/></a><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">The Crosson and Dotson Ice Shelves are situated in West Antarctica. These huge ice shelves are fed by numerous glaciers flowing towards the Amundsen Sea. Click image to enlarge. Credit: ESA</figcaption></figure>



“The changes in flow direction have substantially altered the ice mass flux into Dotson and Crosson Ice Shelves, likely playing an important role in maintaining Dotson and accelerating the deterioration of Crosson," explained Professor Anna Hogg, co-author and Professor of Earth Observation at the University of Leeds.



“This suggests that ice flow redirection is an important new process in contemporary <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/ice-sheet-fracture-sets-a-speed-record-in-antarctica/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">ice sheet dynamics</a>, which is required to understand present-day structural change in glaciers and the future evolution of these systems.”



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-ice-piracy-rising-seas-global-impacts">Ice piracy, rising seas, global impacts</h2>



The stakes are high. Sea levels are already rising due to climate change, and over 410 million people could be affected by coastal flooding by the year 2100. <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/global-sea-levels-spiked-dramatically-in-2023/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Global sea levels</a> have increased by more than 10 centimeters over the past decade.



“This new study highlights the unique ability of satellites to provide both the temporal and spatial coverage required to assess change in the polar regions,” remarked Dr. Martin Wearing, ESA Digital Twin Earth Scientist and Polar Science Cluster Coordinator.



Using data from Copernicus Sentinel-1 and ESA's Earth Explorer CryoSat, the team has revealed the complex evolution of ice flow in part of West Antarctica over the past few decades. 



Understanding these changing dynamics and what drives them is crucial for improved projections of future ice-sheet change and contributions to sea-level rise.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-what-does-it-all-mean">What does it all mean?</h2>



To sum it all up, the <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/antarctic-ice-sheet-past-present-and-future/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Antarctic ice sheet</a> - once thought to be sluggish and stable over millennia - is changing much faster than we realized, and in unexpected ways. 



This discovery of "ice piracy" shows that glaciers can dynamically interact, competing for ice and rerouting flow like rivers shifting course, which completely reshapes how we model future sea-level rise.



If one glacier can weaken another by stealing its ice, entire ice systems may destabilize quicker than predicted, feeding more ice into the ocean and raising sea levels. 



In plain terms: Antarctica isn’t just melting - it’s reorganizing itself in ways that could have big consequences for coastal cities around the world.



-----



The study brought together experts from the University of Leeds, the <a href="https://www.bas.ac.uk/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">British Antarctic Survey</a>, and the UK Centre for Polar Observation and Modelling (<a href="https://cpom.org.uk/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CPOM</a>), which is led from <a href="https://www.northumbria.ac.uk/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Northumbria University</a>. 



The full study was published in the journal <a href="https://tc.copernicus.org/articles/19/1725/2025/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">The Cryosphere</a>.



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Ice piracy: Antarctic glacier discovered 'stealing' ice from its neighbor, and that's not a good thing

A new phenomenon dubbed "ice piracy" is unfolding in the frigid wilderness of West Antarctica, where one glacier appears to be stealing ice from its neighbor. This unusual behavior - once believed to take hundreds or even thousands of years - has now been recorded happening in under two decades. Scientists from the University of Leeds, working with international collaborators, have used high-resolution satellite data to reveal that a fast-moving glacier is redirecting ice flow away from its slower neighbor. This surprising event is changing how scientists...

The remains of six humans recovered from a cave in France are providing new clues into the lives of <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/neanderthals-upright-posture-modern-humans/">Neanderthals</a> who lived in the region 120,000 years ago. Human teeth marks found on the bones indicate that climate change forced the Neanderthals to resort to cannibalism. 

According to researchers at the <a href="https://www.cnrs.fr/en/aboutcnrs/overview.htm">French National Centre for Scientific Research</a> (CNRS), global warming would have made the large animals hunted by Neanderthals scarce. The planet was in the midst of a major transition from an ice age to a much warmer climate.

The remains, which were initially found 20 years ago in the Moula-Guercy cave in France, showed signs that instruments were used to break open the bones to expose marrow. The skulls had also been smashed open, most likely for access to the brains. 

The analysis of the teeth collected for the study revealed that the hominids were suffering from prolonged periods of malnutrition. The study authors said their findings provide the “best evidence” of cannibalism at this time.

[caption id="attachment_1870728" align="aligncenter" width="631"]<a href="https://www.earth.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/bones-reveal-signs-of-cannibalism.jpg"><img class="wp-image-1870728 size-full" src="https://www.earth.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/bones-reveal-signs-of-cannibalism.jpg" alt="" width="631" height="697" /></a> Recovered bones reveal signs of cannibalism, Image Credit: Royal Belgian Institute of Natural Sciences[/caption]

“The work at the Moula-Guercy cave allows us for the first time to demonstrate the existence of the practice of cannibalism by European Neanderthals,” said Dr. Alban Defleur.

The researchers believe that the six humans, including two adults, two teenagers, and two children, were killed out of necessity to feed the starving population.

“Cut marks are spread over 50 percent of the human remains and distributed over the entire skeleton from the cranium, jaws, and bones in the hand,” wrote the researchers. “Percussion marks are visible on all the skulls, all the long bones and other bones of adults and children.”

The experts theorize that the bodies were first dismembered and then stripped of their meat. There is also evidence on four of the bones that they had been used by the Neanderthals as tools.

The study is published in the <a href="https://www.journals.elsevier.com/journal-of-archaeological-science">Journal of Archaeological Science</a>.

--

By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Paid for by <a href="http://earth.com">Earth.com</a>

Climate change may have forced Neanderthals to resort to cannibalism

The remains of six humans recovered from a cave in...

According to a new study released by the <a href="https://www.aaas.org/">American Association for the Advancement of Science</a>, children who live close to protected areas designated by the <a href="https://www.iucn.org/ru">International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN)</a> often live in healthier and wealthier households. 

The study, completed by Robin Naidoo, from the <a href="https://www.worldwildlife.org/pages/robin-naidoo-ph-d">World Wildlife Fund’s Conservation Science Program</a>, and colleagues, suggests that <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/national-parks-endangered-species/">conservation zones</a> could not only help wildlife but also global poverty and poor health.

Naidoo and his colleagues analyzed the environmental and socioeconomic conditions of over 87,000 children in 34 developing countries. 

They found that children who live within 10 kilometers of a protected zone with connected tourism attractions had 17% higher wealth levels and a 16% lower likelihood of poverty compared to children living in similar households but farther away from protected areas.

Furthermore, children aged 5 and under who lived near multiple-use protected areas — areas in which natural resources can be sustainably harvested — with associated tourism were often 10% taller than children living farther away from conservation zones, and were also 13% less likely to experience stunted growth.

The study could not find any negative aspects of children living near protected zones. Therefore, protecting more wildlife areas could benefit both humans, flora, and fauna.

--

By <a href="mailto:oliviagharvey24@gmail.com">Olivia Harvey</a>, <a href="http://earth.com">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Children who live near protected areas live in healthier homes

According to a new study released by the American Association...

Previous <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/green-spaces-lower-mental-illness/">research has shown</a> how spending more time out in nature helps boost mental health and wellbeing. But now, a new study has found that areas with more trees and greenspace spend less money Medicare costs.

While the research does not prove a direct cause and effect between lower healthcare spending and greenspace, but the findings further emphasize the positive impact of living in areas with ample access to nature. 

The study was conducted by researchers from the <a href="https://illinois.edu/">University of Illinois</a> and published in the journal Urban Forestry and Urban Greening. 

“Previous studies have looked at any health outcomes people think might be linked to nature: depression, cardiovascular disease, physical activity levels, even recovery from surgery,” said Douglas Becker, University of Illinois graduate student and leader of the research. “But there is also a lot of work – including experimental work, which we consider to be the strongest – showing a link between exposure to green space and beneficial health effects.” 

For the study, Becker and colleagues reviewed and analyzed environmental and health data from 3,806 counties in the continental U.S. 

To assess the volume and type of greenspace present in each county, data was collected from the <a href="https://www.mrlc.gov/">National Land Cover Database</a> which shows how much forest, open space, grassland, and urban developed space cover a 30-meter square plot in a county. 

The researchers then took these plots and matched them to Medicare spending data for that county. 

“We took the average of different types of land cover and the per capita Medicare spending in a county and compared these two while controlling for several socioeconomic and demographic factors like age, sex, race, median household income, health care access, and health behaviors,” said Becker. 

For each county, one percent of forest land cover was linked to $4.32 in Medicare savings per person, per year, and this held true even when accounting for different factors the researchers found. 

“If you multiply that by the number of Medicare fee-for-service users in a county and by the average forest cover and by the number of counties in the U.S., it amounts to about $6 billion in reduced Medicare spending every year nationally,” said Becker. 

Forest and shrub cover had the most positive impact, and the researchers did not identify any links between lower Medicare costs and other types of agricultural or open space land cover. 

Becker will continue to research this relationship and next plans to focus and individual and health and environmental data. 

--

By<a href="mailto:kayvandette@gmail.com"> Kay Vandette</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer 

Paid for by <a href="http://earth.com">Earth.com</a>

Areas with more trees and greenspace spend less money on Medicare costs

Previous research has shown how spending more time out in...

Plastic straw bans have been popping up in cities and restaurants throughout the United States. These bans seek to address the plastic pollution crisis currently plaguing our oceans but the bans have been subject to considerable criticism.

Big companies such as Starbucks have announced plans to <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/starbucks-plastic-straws/#.XKDtpOtKjOQ">phase out plastic straws</a> and California recently banned restaurants from automatically giving out plastic straws.

Critics of bans such as these often cite concerns that banning plastic straws will do little to address plastic pollution as a whole. While plastic straws are ubiquitous in our everyday life, they are not the most common pollutant of our oceans.

During an international coastal cleanup event, plastic straws were the<a href="https://oceanconservancy.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/FINAL-2018-ICC-REPORT.pdf"> seventh most common item</a> collected. In the United States, plastic straws make up<a href="https://static1.squarespace.com/static/5522e85be4b0b65a7c78ac96/t/5aa0618a8165f553aa68b8b8/1520631281665/5+Gyres+BAN+List2.pdf"> 7.5%</a> of plastic litter. It seems reasonable then to wonder if we should be addressing more prevalent pollutants.

But this criticism fails to consider that plastic straw bans are a jumping off point to begin changing consumers’ behaviors more widely. Plastic straws are an easy item to ban because plastic straws are non-essential and there are currently alternatives people can use.

"We look at straws as one of the gateway issues to help people start thinking about the global plastic pollution problem," Plastic Pollution Coalition CEO Dianna Cohen explained to<a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/plastic-straw-ban-why-are-there-so-many-2018-7"> Business Insider</a>.

If people find it is easy to use non-plastic alternatives to straws, the reasoning goes, they may reevaluate their use of other plastic products.

Plastic straws are also targeted because many plastic straws never make it through the recycling process despite being a recyclable product.

“Most plastic straws are too lightweight to make it through the mechanical recycling sorter. They drop through sorting screens and mix with other materials and are too small to separate, contaminating recycling loads or getting disposed as garbage,” For a Strawless Ocean says on their<a href="https://www.strawlessocean.org/faq"> website</a>.

Critics also argue that plastic straw bans take away consumer choice. Disability rights advocates have spoken out against plastic straw bans by pointing out that plastic straws are an important drinking tool for people with disabilities. The plastic straw bans in Seattle and California do allow consumers to use plastic straws upon request.

Conservatives have also cited plastic straw bans as an example of government overreach encroaching on consumer choice. Conservatives even made a<a href="https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2018/aug/03/plastic-straws-became-the-latest-victim-in-the-us-culture-wars"> social media trend</a> out of posting photos of themselves drinking out of plastic straws and a Florida Republican state representative<a href="https://www.nbcmiami.com/news/local/Florida-State-Rep-Introduces-Bill-to-Stop-Cities-From-Banning-Plastic-Straws-505297951.html"> introduced a bill</a> to prohibit cities from banning plastic straws.

Despite the criticism over plastic straw bans, the initiatives are proving to be successful. A<a href="https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Travis_Wagner/publication/329119275_ASSESSING_THE_USE_OF_DEFAULT_CHOICE_MODIFICATION_TO_REDUCE_CONSUMPTION_OF_PLASTIC_STRAWS/links/5c115874a6fdcc494ff01853/ASSESSING-THE-USE-OF-DEFAULT-CHOICE-MODIFICATION-TO-RE"> study</a> examining the impact of a plastic straw ordinance found that the use of plastic straws decreased up to 40 percent at local businesses. Additionally, an<a href="https://www.ipsos.com/en-us/news-polls/Attitudes-Toward-Plastic-Straws"> Ipsos poll</a> shows that over 40 percent of people have used fewer straws as a result of the recent attention on plastic straw pollution.

Plastic straw bans serve a greater purpose than simply tackling a small source of a big problem. These bans pave the way for greater change in the fight against the plastic pollution crisis.

--

By <a href="mailto:brianna.grant134@gmail.com">Brianna Lynne</a>, <a href="http://earth.com">Earth.com</a> Contributing Writer

Why are plastic straws banned when they’re only a small part of plastic use?

Plastic straw bans have been popping up in cities and...

You may not be able to teach an old dog new tricks, but it turns out you can train a cow to use a litter box. 

Henk Hanskamp, a Dutch inventor and businessman, has developed a “cow toilet” that collects cow urine, and it’s an innovative device that could help limit the amount of ammonia that enters the environment from farms. 

A single cow toilet collects around 26 to 35 pints of cow pee from a single cow every day, and according to Hanscamp, his inventions could cut the amount of ammonia emissions produced by cows by half. 

Since cow ammonia emissions account for around 49 percent of all <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/farms-have-become-a-major-source-of-air-pollution/">ammonia emissions from agriculture</a>, finding ways to tackle ammonia and other cattle-specific emissions is crucial to agriculture sustainability and mitigating atmospheric greenhouse gases. 

Cows and other livestock are not the only sources of ammonia emissions, but high concentrations of ammonia are dangerous to human health and wellbeing. 

Ammonia has been linked to haze and eutrophication which is when water is enriched with nutrients from agricultural and waste runoff and causes dangerous algae blooms. When algae blooms occur, it limits the amount of oxygen for other aquatic species. 

Hanskamp hopes to have the cow toilet market ready by 2020, but as of now, the device is being tested in farms in the Netherlands. 

“We are tackling the problem at the source,” Hanskamp told the <a href="https://www.afp.com/en">Agence France-Presse</a>. “A cow is never going to be completely clean, but you can teach them to go to the toilet.”

The device is a box that is placed behind the cow during feeding. After the cow is done eating, the device stimulates a nerve that causes the cow to urinate. However, some of the cows have become so well trained and used to the litter box that they urinate without having their nerve stimulated.

Besides limiting emissions, Hamskamp also says that the device helps keep cowpens clean and dry. 

In the US last year, the <a href="https://www.fda.gov/">Food and Drug Administration </a>(FDA) approved a drug called <a href="https://www.fda.gov/NewsEvents/Newsroom/FDAInBrief/ucm625209.htm">Experior </a>which, when fed to beef cattle, reduces the number of ammonia emissions from the animal’s waste. 

The drug has been deemed safe by the FDA, but if Hanskamp’s litter box method proves successful and becomes available to international markets, it might be an easier and less invasive way to get the same desirable results without drug intervention. 

--

By <a href="mailto:kayvandette@gmail.com">Kay Vandette</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/">Earth.com </a>Staff Writer

New ‘cow toilets’ could help reduce emissions from livestock

You may not be able to teach an old dog...

According to new research from Antoni Lewkowicz, a professor in the Department of Geography, Environment and Geomatics at the <a href="https://www.uottawa.ca/en">University of Ottawa</a>, Arctic permafrost is not as immune to rising atmospheric temperatures as previously thought. These findings are published in<a href="https://www.nature.com/ncomms/"> Nature Communications</a>.

Lewkowicz and colleague Robert Way used satellite images from the Google Earth Engine Timelapse dataset to analyze and record a massive increase in the number of retrogressive thaw slumps — those being landslides caused by the melting of the ice in the <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/melting-permafrost-releases-co2/">permafrost</a> — on the Arctic’s Banks Island over the last thirty years.

The researchers found that there were about 60 active thaw slumps on the island in 1984. But in 2013, more than 4,000 thaw slumps occurred. Lewkowicz and Way estimate that the area affected by active thaw slumping is equal to the size of Manhattan.

85% of the landslides on Banks Island occurred after four specific hot summers in 1998, 2010, 2011, and 2012. The topmost layer of the permafrost thawed during these four years, and Lewkowicz predicts that it’s likely to again as global warming continues to progress. In fact, Lewkowicz estimates that 10,000 new slumps could occur on Banks Island alone per decade and continue to grow.

The effects of these slumps are detrimental to surrounding water systems. Sediment runoff from the landslides has clogged river valleys and piled up in over 250 lakes on the island. Frozen material then thaws and breaks down in these ecosystems, releasing methane and carbon dioxide, therefore increasing greenhouse gas emissions. Because there is no baseline data for these water systems and ecosystems, the impact of slumps on island aquatic life is unknown. 

Furthermore, the Inuvialuit community on the island has noticed how the slumps have affected their mobility and access to areas, which has therefore impacted their hunting and fishing.

"We cannot stop thousands of thaw slumps once they start,” Lewkowicz said. “We can only make changes in our own lives to reduce our carbon footprint and we can encourage our politicians to take the necessary measures to help reduce our greenhouse gas emissions, so that future warming is as limited as possible."

--

By <a href="mailto:oliviagharvey24@gmail.com">Olivia Harvey</a>, <a href="http://earth.com">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Paid for by <a href="http://earth.com">Earth.com</a>

Image Credit: Antoni G. Lewkowicz

Even areas of cold permafrost are threatened by warming temperatures

According to new research from Antoni Lewkowicz, a professor in...

Researchers from the <a href="https://www.ucl.ac.uk/">University College London</a> and the <a href="https://www.ed.ac.uk/">University of Edinburgh</a> have found that international plans to restore forests to combat climate change have flaws and will not make the 1.5 C climate targets if not altered.

The main problem researchers describe in their study, published April 2nd in <a href="https://www.nature.com/">Nature</a>, is that 45% of the land countries have pledged to the restorative effort will be turned into commercial tree plantations. Developing plantations will reduce expected carbon uptake as well as prevent agreements to curb <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/climate-change-allergy-season-longer/">climate change</a> from being met.

"There is a scandal here,” said lead author Simon Lewis, Professor of Global Change Science in the <a href="https://www.geog.ucl.ac.uk/">Geography department at UCL</a>. “To most people forest restoration means bringing back natural forests, but policy makers are calling vast monocultures 'forest restoration'. And worse, the advertised climate benefits are absent."

Lewis said that plantations do not store carbon as efficiently as natural forests, and therefore, natural forest restoration is the most effective approach to combating climate change."Well-managed forests can also help to alleviate poverty in low-income regions, as well as conserve biodiversity and support the UN's Sustainable Development Goals,” he said.

The current international plan, which includes 43 countries, is to restore 350 million hectares of forest — equal to about the size of India — by 2030. Calculations prove that if all the countries involved replant native trees, enough carbon would be captured to meet the global climate target. In fact, researchers found that the land committed to natural forests holds 40 times more carbon than plantation lands, and 6 times more than land that mixes trees and crops.

Natural forest restoration in 350 million hectares of land will remove an estimated 42 billion tons of carbon by 2100. However, the current plan in place — a plan that divides land between plantations (45%), natural forests (34%) and agroforestry (21%) — will only remove about 16 billion tons of carbon by 2100, and that’s assuming that the natural forests will be protected.

[caption id="attachment_1870643" align="aligncenter" width="650"]<a href="https://www.earth.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/resoration-map.png"><img class="wp-image-1870643" src="https://www.earth.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/resoration-map.png" alt="" width="650" height="271" /></a> Restoration opportunity map across 43 countries, Image Credit: Minnemeyer, S., et al. Bonn Challenge: A World of Opportunity (World Resource Institute, 2011)[/caption]

"The reason plantations are so poor at storing carbon is that they are harvested every decade or so, meaning all the carbon stored in the trees goes back into the atmosphere, as the plantation waste and the wood products — mostly paper and chipboards — decompose,” said co-author Dr. Charlotte Wheeler of the University of Edinburgh. “Instead, restoring all 350 million hectares back to natural forests can meet the role forests need to play under Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change emissions pathways that keep global warming to 1.5 C.”

Natural forest restoration is not enough to curb climate change, Dr. Wheeler adds. “Emissions from fossil fuels and deforestation must also stop,” she said. “But, no scenario has been produced that keeps climate change below dangerous levels without the large-scale restoration of natural forests."

The team suggests that monoculture plantations should be removed from the definition of “forest restoration.” They also proposed a four-step plan to help make the plan in place more effective. First, increase the amount of land dedicated to natural forest restoration. Second, make restoration in Amazonia, Borneo and the Congo Basin priority. Third, target degraded forests with existing carbon stocks first during the natural regeneration process. And fourth, protect established and restored natural forests. 

--

By <a href="mailto:oliviagharvey24@gmail.com">Olivia Harvey</a>, <a href="http://earth.com">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Paid for by <a href="http://earth.com">Earth.com</a>

Main Image Credit: S. Lewis

Plans to restore forests must be altered to be effective

Researchers from the University College London and the University of...

Only 20 percent of the sea ice that forms in the Russian marginal seas of the Arctic Ocean actually reaches the Central Arctic to join the Transpolar Drift, according to a new study from the <a href="https://www.awi.de/en.html">Alfred Wegener Institute</a>. The experts determined that 80 percent of the young ice melts before it has a chance to leave its “nursery.” 

The researchers said that this discovery not only takes us one step closer to an ice-free summer in the <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/arctic-sea-ice-extent-seventh-lowest/">Arctic</a>, but also suggests that the Arctic Ocean will lose an important means of transporting nutrients, algae, and sediments as the sea ice is diminished.

New sea ice is constantly being produced in the Russian marginal seas of the Arctic Ocean, which include the Barents Sea, Kara Sea, Laptev Sea, and the East Siberian Sea. A strong offshore wind drives the young ice into the open sea where it is eventually caught up in the Transpolar Drift, one of the two main currents in the Arctic Ocean. 

Over the next two to three years, the ice is transported from the Siberian part of the Arctic Ocean across the Central Arctic to the Fram Strait, where it finally melts. Up until the year 2000, this entire journey was made by roughly half the ice from Russia's shelf seas. Today, 80 percent of the new sea ice melts before it can become a year old and reach the Central Arctic. 

“Our study shows extreme changes in the Arctic: the melting of sea ice in the Kara Sea, Laptev Sea and East Siberian Sea is now so rapid and widespread that we're seeing a lasting reduction in the amount of new ice for the Transpolar Drift. Now, most of the ice that still reaches the Fram Strait isn't formed in the marginal seas, but comes from the Central Arctic,” said study first author Dr. Thomas Krumpen. 

“What we're witnessing is a major transport current faltering, which is bringing the world one major step closer to a sea-ice-free summer in the Arctic.” Sea-ice thickness measurements taken in the Fram Strait have confirmed this new trend.

“The ice now leaving the Arctic through the Fram Strait is, on average, 30 percent thinner than it was 15 years ago. The reasons: on the one hand, rising winter temperatures in the Arctic and a melting season that now begins much earlier; on the other, this ice is no longer formed in the shelf seas, but much farther north. As a result, it has far less time to drift through the Arctic and grow into thicker pack ice,” explained Dr. Krumpen.

The ice that is still carried by the Transpolar Drift to the Fram Strait contains significantly fewer particles like algae, sediments, and nutrients upon arrival. The ice that reaches the Fram Strait is made up of less material and has a different composition. “Instead of Siberian minerals, we're now finding more remains of dead algae and microorganisms in our sediment traps,” said study co-author Eva-Maria Nöthig. 

Ultimately, changes in the particles transported by sea ice could permanently alter the biogeochemical cycles and ecological processes of the central Arctic Ocean.

The study is published in the journal <a href="http://www.nature.com/scientificreports">Scientific Reports</a>.
--

By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Paid for by <a href="http://earth.com">Earth.com</a>

Young sea ice is melting before it can make its transarctic journey

Only 20 percent of the sea ice that forms in...

Climate change is making <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/seasonal-allergies-climate-change/#.XJ5cR5hKhPY">allergy season more miserable</a>, according to new research focused on how climate change impacts human health and wellbeing.

The weather extremes prompted by a changing climate coupled with overall rising temperatures are affecting the seasons. 

Researchers from the <a href="http://sph.umd.edu/department/miaeh">Maryland Institute for Applied Environmental Health</a> reviewed survey data from over 300,000 people between 2002 and 2013.

Next, the researchers combined the allergy data with satellite data from the <a href="https://www.nasa.gov/">National Aeronautics and Space Administration’s</a> Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) to identify how allergy burden was influenced by when spring started across the US.

The results, published in the journal PLOS ONE, show that in the US, allergies increase when the season changes earlier or later than normal.

“We found that areas where the onset of spring was earlier than normal had 14% higher prevalence of hay fever,” said Amir Sapkota, a member of the research team. “Surprisingly, we also found similar risk in areas where the onset of spring was much later than what is typical for that geographic location.

The study is the first of its kind to provide national-level quantitative data proving that climate change impacts the allergic disease burden.

Hay fever affects 25 million adults in the US every year, and so understanding how climate change impacts seasonal allergies is important to help lessen the disease burden and lower related medical costs.

When spring comes early, it increases the length of pollen season, and when spring comes late, a sudden burst in flowering and budding increases the amount of pollen allergy sufferers are suddenly exposed to.

“We show that such climate change-driven ecological changes are directly linked to allergic disease burden in the United States,” said Dr. Chengsheng Jiang, a co-author of the paper. “Even a relatively small change in the timing of tree flowering can have a significant economic impact given that 25 million American adults already suffer from hay fever each year.” 

--

By <a href="mailto:kayvandette@gmail.com">Kay Vandette</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer 

Paid for by <a href="http://earth.com">Earth.com</a>

Climate change is making allergy season longer and more severe

Climate change is making allergy season more miserable, according to...

A marine heat wave in Western Australia that had lasting impacts on <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/algae-neurodegenerative-disease-dolphins/">dolphin populations</a> may be a disturbing sign of things to come, according to a new study from the <a href="https://www.uzh.ch/en.html">University of Zurich</a> (UZH). The researchers have determined that climate change will have more devastating consequences for marine mammals than what was previously realized.

In early 2011, a heat wave caused the water temperatures to rise to more than four degrees above the annual average in Shark Bay, Australia. The persistent heat caused a substantial loss of seagrass, which drives the Shark Bay ecosystem.

To investigate how this environmental damage affected the survival and reproduction of dolphins, the researchers used long-term data on hundreds of animals collected from 2007 to 2017. The study revealed that the survival rate of dolphins had dropped by 12 percent following the 2011 heat wave. The experts also noted that female dolphins were giving birth to fewer calves, even six years later. 

“The extent of the negative influence of the heat wave surprised us,” said study first author Sonja Wild. “It is particularly unusual that the reproductive success of females appears to have not returned to normal levels, even after six years.”

The heat wave did not have the same impact on all dolphins. For example, dolphins that use sponges as foraging tools were not as badly affected as those that do not use this technique.

[caption id="attachment_1870535" align="aligncenter" width="650"]<a href="https://www.earth.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/dolphin-calf.jpg"><img class="wp-image-1870535" src="https://www.earth.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/dolphin-calf.jpg" alt="" width="650" height="407"></a> Dolphin mother and calf, Image Credit: Sonja Wild[/caption]

“Nevertheless, our work raises concerns that such sudden events might have quite negative long-term effects even in groups of marine mammals that are known to adapt usually well to novel environmental conditions,” said Wild.

The study demonstrates that marine heat waves affect animals at the top of the marine food chain, and not just the organisms at the bottom. 

“Marine heat waves are likely to occur more frequently in the future due to climate change,” said study lead author Professor Michael Krützen. “This is worrying not only for the long-term prospects of marine mammal populations, but also for the entire oceanic ecosystems.”

The study is published in the journal <a href="https://www.cell.com/current-biology/home">Current Biology</a>.

--

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

Main Image Credit: Sonja Wild

Marine heat waves threaten the survival of dolphins and other mammals

A marine heat wave in Western Australia that had lasting...

Plastic crystals could be the answer to keeping homes and food cool while cutting down greenhouse gas emissions that contribute to climate change.

Modern fridges contain a refrigerant, a material that can be compressed into a liquid, then evaporate back into a gas. The liquid refrigerant absorbs heat, cooling the fridge. As it absorbs the heat, it then turns back into a gas, starting the process all over again. Air conditioners work in a similar way.

In the past, refrigerants were mainly <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/ozone-layer-full-recovery-2060/">chlorofluorocarbons and hydrochlorofluorocarbons</a>, which contributed to ozone depletion. They’ve been replaced by hydrofluorocarbons, which don’t affect the ozone layer but do <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/hydrofluorocarbons-greenhouse-gases-powerful-carbon-dioxide/">produce greenhouse gases</a>.

Scientists have been looking for alternatives, and Dr. Bing Li and of the <a href="http://english.imr.cas.cn/">Chinese Academy of Sciences’ Institute of Metal Research</a> has struck upon a unique one: plastic crystals.

“We identified plastic crystals as promising materials for solid-state refrigeration,” Li told the <a href="https://www.newscientist.com/">New Scientist</a>. 

Li and his colleagues, including researchers from the <a href="https://www.jaea.go.jp/english/">Japan Atomic Energy Agency</a> and <a href="http://www.jasri.jp/">Japan Synchrotron Radiation Research Institute</a>, found that the plastic crystals – created decades ago and used in cosmetics, plastics, paint and other materials – work very well as a refrigerant. 

The key lies in the normally disordered structure of the plastic crystals.

“A tiny pressure can switch the materials between the disordered state and the ordered state,” Li said. 

That flip between states produces a massive energy change, giving the material heat absorbing abilities like current refrigerants. The difference is that many of the plastic crystals actually have a capacity to absorb the same amount of heat as modern refrigerants with much less pressure.

One type of crystal, neopentylglycol, can absorb exponentially more heat than current materials with the same amount of pressure.

That means that the new material could not only lower the amount of pollution coming directly from fridges, air conditioners, and other machines that rely on refrigerants – it could also drastically cut the amount of electricity required to run them.

Li and his team plan to continue testing the plastic crystals to reduce heat loss and maximize energy efficiency. 

Their work has been published in the journal <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-019-1042-5">Nature</a>.

—

By <a href="mailto:kyla.cathey@gmail.com">Kyla Cathey</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/">Earth.com</a> staff writer

Plastic crystals could drastically cut fridge, AC pollution

Plastic crystals could be the answer to keeping homes and...

Discussion surrounding the impacts of climate change typically include all the usual suspects such as sea level rise linked to sea ice melt, or increases in global temperatures linked to increases in atmospheric greenhouse gas emissions. What might not immediately come to mind is how <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/high-co2-levels-stratus-clouds/#.XJvDxihKhPY">cloud cover impacts temperatures</a>.

This is because the feedback loop between cloud cover and temperature, although a crucial player in climate change, is little understood among researchers and a major uncertainty in climate modeling.

Researchers from Sweden, Finland, and Norway led by <a href="https://www.swansea.ac.uk/">Swansea University</a>’s Tree Ring Research Group conducted a study analyzing tree ring data to understand how cloud cover impacts temperature over both the long and short term.

The study was published in the journal <a href="https://agupubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1029/2018GL081046">Geophysical Research Letters.</a>

Northern Fennoscandia, which encompasses parts of Finland, Norway, and Sweden along with the Scandinavian Peninsula, has not experienced the same rates of summer warming as other parts of the world due to climate change.

The region should be strongly affected by climate change, but temperature trends tell a different story, and the researchers theorize that increases in cloud cover over northern Scandinavia are keeping the region relatively cool.

“The surface warming caused by rising greenhouse gases is modified by many complicated feedbacks - one thing changing in response to another - meaning that there are large geographical variations in the temperature of a particular place at a particular time, as the global average temperature rises. One of the most important, and most poorly understood, climate feedbacks is the relationship between temperature and clouds,” said Mary Gagen, an author of the study. “We might think that, simply, when it is cool it is cloudy, and when it is warm it is sunny, but that is not always the case.”

For the study, the researchers analyzed tree ring records, using both tree ring width and carbon measurements to help reconstruct summer cloud cover over the years for northern Scandinavia.

Tree rings can tell researchers much more than just the age of the tree including how cloudy it was when each ring was formed.

“We found that over short timescales, increased cloud cover lead to cooler temperatures and vice versa in the past,” said Danny McCarroll, a co-author of the study.”

However, McCarrol also explained that over longer periods of time, from decades to centuries, cloud cover correlated with warmer cycles and reduced local temperatures.

“One of the main sources of uncertainty about future climate change is the way that clouds are going to respond to warming, cloud cover has a really big influence on temperature at the surface of the Earth,” said Gagen. “What is really worrying is that climate models have shown that, if greenhouse gas emissions are allowed to continue...then some of the most important clouds for cooling our planet, the big banks of oceanic clouds that reflect a lot of sunlight back to space, could stop forming altogether and this would really accelerate warming.”

--

By <a href="mailto:kayvandette@gmail.com">Kay Vandette</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Paid for by <a href="http://earth.com">Earth.com</a>

Image Credit: Professor Mary Gagen, Swansea University

Increased cloud cover buffers against warming temperatures

Discussion surrounding the impacts of climate change typically include all...

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



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



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



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



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



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



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



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



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



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

Is chocolate the next nutritional powerhouse?

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

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Today’s Video of the Day from <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"

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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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Wetlands are a major source of methane emissions

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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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The rapid retreat of the Columbia Glacier

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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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2022 illustrated the consequences of a warming climate

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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



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Satellites reveal how Earth's systems are interconnected

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



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



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



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



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



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



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



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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



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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



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Tracking changes in Earth's water cycle

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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



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Mysterious "spoke season" captured on Saturn

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Today’s Video of the Day from <a href="http://www.ntu.edu.sg/">NTU Singapore</a> reveals that some plants can remove toxic heavy metals from soil.&nbsp;



The researchers analyzed samples of various tropical plant species to test for levels of heavy metals and metalloids. The study showed that there are existing plants with high levels of these contaminants, which means that these species are great candidates for drawing pollutants out of the soil.&nbsp;



Among the plants examined in the study, 12 species had accumulated several types of heavy metals and metalloids. These plants are widely available, including species that are native to Singapore.



“In a small nation like Singapore, land may be repurposed to support new development plans, so it is important that we have a green and sustainable way to remediate land that is contaminated," said Professor Lam Yeng Ming.



"We set out to uncover how to better make use of tropical plants to do phytoremediation and through advanced characterization techniques, we showed how some of these tropical plant species can be an environmentally friendly and literally a 'green' way to remove contaminants in soil."&nbsp;



"Phytoremediation also has benefits of cost effectiveness, simplicity of management, aesthetic advantages, and long-term applicability and sustainability. The strategy prevents erosion and metal leaching by stabilizing or accumulating heavy metals, so that helps reduce the risk of contaminant spread.”



Video Credit: NTU Singapore



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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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Plants help remove heavy metals from contaminated soil

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Today’s Video of the Day from the <a href="https://www.acs.org/">American Chemical Society</a> describes why herbicides are not as effective in killing weeds anymore. In the 20th century, chemical companies developed thousands of herbicides. The most commonly used herbicide was glyphosate, which was introduced in 1974.



Over the past few decades, dozens of species of weeds have evolved resistance to glyphosate. Depending on the site of action, the part of the plant that an herbicide interacts with, weeds may even be resistant to herbicides that have not been developed yet.&nbsp;



With increasing resistance to glyphosate and other herbicides, weeds are - once again - becoming a major concern for farmers.&nbsp;



Video Credit: American Chemical Society&nbsp;



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



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Weeds are becoming increasingly resistant to herbicides

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Today’s Video of the Day from the <a href="https://www.jpl.nasa.gov/">NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory</a> (JPL) describes a dust storm on Mars that was nearly twice the size of the United States. As the storm covered the southern hemisphere of the planet, some of NASA’s explorers had to delay their normal activities.



NASA’s Insight lander put itself in a "safe mode" for 11 days to conserve battery power because solar power was disrupted by the dust. The Ingenuity Mars Helicopter postponed flights until conditions improved.



"A fleet of NASA orbiters monitor Martian dust storms like this one and serve as lifelines to Earth by relaying data from the rovers and lander on the ground back to the team. This includes the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter, MAVEN, and Odyssey," reports JPL.



"Dust storms like this recent one start close to the ground and are spread by wind as they rise – warming the cold Martian atmosphere."



The images in the video were captured by NASA’s Curiosity as the dust rolled in. A fleet of orbiters monitored the dust storm from above, relaying data from Mars’ explorers back to scientists on Earth.



Video &amp; Image Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/ASU/MSSS



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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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NASA monitors giant dust storms on Mars

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Today's Video of the Day from the <a href="http://www.esa.int/">European Space Agency</a> features Qeshm Island in the Strait of Hormuz. This strait provides the only sea passage from the Persian Gulf to the open ocean.



Qeshm is separated from the Iranian coast by the Clarence Strait, also known as Khuran.&nbsp;The Hara Forest Protected Area is a network of shallow waterways and forest located between the island and the mainland. This protected region is home to sea turtles, snakes, and more than 150 species of migrating birds.



Qeshm is famous for its wide range of&nbsp;ecotourist&nbsp;attractions, such as the&nbsp;Hara marine forests. According to environmentalists, about 1.5 percent of the world birds and 25 percent of Iran's native <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/female-hummingbirds-avoid-sexual-harassment-by-looking-like-males/">birds</a> annually migrate to the forests, which are the first national geo park in Iran.



Tourists are also drawn to the island to see an age-old Portuguese&nbsp;fort, historic mosques, the&nbsp;Seyyed Mozaffar&nbsp;and&nbsp;Bibi Maryam&nbsp;shrines, and the "Valley of Stars."



The average temperature on the island is 81 degress and the region is often hot and humid. From June to August, the island is described as being oppressively hot. The ideal time to visit is during the winter season. 



Video Credit: ESA&nbsp;



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



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Qeshm Island in the Strait of Hormuz

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Today’s Video of the Day from the <a href="https://www.esa.int/">European Space Agency</a> features Inhambane Bay in southeast Mozambique.&nbsp;



"Inhambane Bay is a deep inlet into which the small Mutamba River flows," says ESA. "On one side of the bay lies the historical city of Inhambane, capital of the Inhambane Province, while the sister city of Maxixe, the economic capital of Inhambane, sits across from it. The province is the second largest grower of cashews, after Nampula, and it also produces coconut and citrus fruits."



The beaches of Barra and Tofo are popular with tourists. There are also coral reefs along the long coastline of Inhambane, making it an ideal destination for scuba diving and snorkeling.



"Mozambique’s extensive coastline heightens the country’s vulnerability to tropical cyclones that develop in the Indian Ocean as well as storm surge flooding," says ESA.



"More than half of the population lives in low lying coastal areas, putting communities at risk. Inhambane Bay was dangerously close to where Cyclone Idai made landfall in 2019 causing widespread destruction to the country."



Video/ Image Credit: ESA



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



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Inhambane Bay in southeast Mozambique

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Today’s Video of the Day from the <a href="https://www.esa.int/">European Space Agency </a>&nbsp;features the Kangerlussuaq Glacier, one of the largest tidewater outlet glaciers in Greenland. The glacier is located on the east coast of the Greenland ice sheet.



As human-induced climate change continues to drive up temperatures, global ice loss is accelerating at an alarming rate. ESA reports that, over the past decade alone, 3.5 trillion tons of ice have melted from the Greenland ice sheet. This is enough to cover the UK with meltwater 15 meters deep.



Based on satellite imagery, researchers determined that Kangerlussuaq entered a new phase of rapid retreat and acceleration in 2017. In their study, published in <a href="https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/feart.2019.00123/full">Frontiers in Earth Science</a>,&nbsp; the experts report that the glacier's ice front is now at its most retreated position since the early 20th century.



"Given Kangerlussuaq’s previous impacts on both the magnitude and pattern of ice sheet wide mass loss, we predict that its new phase of retreat, acceleration and thinning will markedly enhance the south-east region’s contribution to increasing discharge from the ice sheet," wrote the study authors.&nbsp;&nbsp;



"More broadly, accurate forecasting of the ice sheet’s contribution to sea level rise will require a deeper understanding of, and responses to, these non-linear ice dynamic processes."



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



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Kangerlussuaq Glacier 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 the complex relationship between ocean and climate. ESA's Climate Change Initiative will help us understand how oceans influence the climate and how climate change is impacting the oceans.&nbsp;



"Earth’s oceans are huge heat stores, soaking up 93% of the excess heat from human activity over the past 70 years. Ocean currents redistribute heat around the planet, from the Equator to the poles. Where this ocean heat goes influences weather patterns and regional climate," explains ESA.



"As well as absorbing heat, oceans are a natural carbon sink, absorbing a quarter of carbon dioxide emissions from human activity. This has led to the acidification of ocean water, threating marine life."



The amount of heat and carbon dioxide soaked up by the ocean depends on specific variables, including phytoplankton, temperatures, waves, salinity, and ice cover. Satellites can be used to measure these variables from space.



"From their unique vantage point, satellites provide key information for understanding the complexities of our planet and monitoring environmental issues," says 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



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Ocean heat influences regional climate

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Today’s Video of the Day from the <a href="https://www.esa.int/">European Space Agency</a> describes the importance of monitoring the shape of the sea surface, which is constantly changing. These observations have many applications, such as ship routing, <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/the-modem-ocean-is-a-tough-place-for-whales-to-survive/">ocean</a> current forecasting, and debris tracking.



"A project supported by the Discovery element of ESA’s Basic Activities recently investigated a new technique to measure sea surface topography very precisely," reports ESA.



"The technique involves looking at satellite navigation (GNSS) signals that have been reflected off of the sea surface at very low angles. At these so-called grazing angles, waves and surface roughness have very little impact on the reflection process; the sea surface acts as a very smooth mirror."



Estel Cardellach is the principal investigator at the Institute for Space Studies of Catalonia, who first submitted the idea for the project.



“In a mirror-like reflection the phase of the signal can be tracked – it is continuous," said Cardellach. "Different surface heights result in different phase measurements. It gives a very precise measurement of the surface altitude at a few centimetres’ precision.”



The researchers developed a GNSS receiver and set up an experiment in the Balaeric Islands to collect signals from the receiver that were reflected off the sea surface. Ultimately, these signals will provide improved measurements of the shape of the sea surface.



Image/ Video Credit: ESA



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

Monitoring the dynamic shape of the sea surface

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