The Arctic, known for its icy landscapes and frozen permafrost, is rapidly transforming due to the intensifying effects of climate change. As temperatures rise, a silent but potent threat emerges: methane emissions. Unlike carbon dioxide, methane is not as widely discussed, yet its impact on global warming is profound. 



A new study published in the journal Nature highlights the growing concern over methane emissions in the <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/arctic-climate-will-permanently-change-by-2050-scientists-warn/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Arctic</a> and their role in creating a feedback loop that could accelerate climate change.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-why-methane-traps-more-heat">Why methane traps more heat </h2>



Methane isn’t as abundant as carbon dioxide, but it’s far more potent. Over a century, it traps 30 times more heat. 



Xin (Lindsay) Lan, a climate scientist at <a href="https://www.colorado.edu" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CU Boulder</a>’s Cooperative Institute for Research in Environmental Sciences (CIRES), sees the urgency.



“Methane is a very potent greenhouse gas that we need to address urgently,” Lan said. “Our study suggests that a significant portion of the recent rise in atmospheric methane originates from natural <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/arctic-warming-may-fuel-the-spread-of-diseases-by-unleashing-frozen-viruses/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">sources</a> driven by climate change. Our emission reduction efforts need to be more aggressive.”



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-arctic-methane-levels-climb-steadily">Arctic methane levels climb steadily</h2>



For years, Lan has tracked methane levels at NOAA’s <a href="https://gml.noaa.gov" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Global Monitoring Laboratory</a> in Boulder. Methane emissions have steadily climbed since 2007. 



Scientists had pointed fingers at fossil fuels, responsible for 30% of emissions. Yet, Lan’s research points elsewhere - to tiny, ancient microbes thriving in new, warmer habitats.



Archaea - microbes that have lived for millennia in wetlands, landfills, and the guts of livestock - produce methane. They may be small, but they’re mighty emitters. Microbial emissions now make up nearly half of all global methane output. Yet, pinpointing specific sources remains tricky.



Lan isn’t just watching long-term trends. Seasonal fluctuations in methane also reveal what’s <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/arctic-meltdown-is-accelerating-global-warming-already-changing-earth-in-unimaginable-ways/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">changing</a> underground.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-permafrost-fuels-methane-emissions">Permafrost fuels methane emissions</h2>



Lan’s team dove into decades of data. Methane’s seasonal amplitude - the swing from highest to lowest levels in a year - is shrinking in northern latitudes. 



Why? Wetlands in the Arctic are expanding. Thawing permafrost is unlocking ancient carbon stores, creating perfect conditions for archaea.



Computer models show the Arctic’s wetlands have grown by 25% in the warmer months, feeding the microbes with more decomposing organic matter. The result: more methane.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-the-feedback-loop-accelerates">The feedback loop accelerates</h2>



When permafrost melts, more carbon enters the <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/drastic-warming-will-transform-the-arctic-beyond-recognition/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">atmosphere</a>. As temperatures rise, more permafrost melts. A cycle begins. Lan’s research shows that since 2007, this loop has intensified. What was once a trickle of methane is becoming a flood.



“This study, along with a few previous studies, has provided indirect evidence on potential climate feedback on methane emissions, which would be beyond our ability to control directly,” Lan said.



In previous work, Lan's team analyzed connections between today’s methane surge and dramatic warming events that ended past ice ages.



As Arctic ice sheets melted, vast stores of methane escaped, causing rapid temperature increases. That was thousands of years ago. Now, it’s happening again - but faster.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-underestimated-methane-removal">Underestimated methane removal</h2>



Methane doesn’t linger forever. Hydroxyl (OH) radicals act like atmospheric scrubbers, breaking down methane. Lan’s team discovered that since 1984, these radicals have increased by 10%.



Unfortunately, OH levels are hard to measure - they disappear within seconds - scientists had assumed they remained constant. But Lan’s study suggests that the atmosphere has been removing more methane than previously thought.



“Our result showed that we’ve been underestimating how much methane the atmosphere has been removing, which means that there’s actually more methane being emitted than we previously estimated,” Lan said.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-arctic-methane-feedback-loop">Arctic methane feedback loop</h2>



If the atmosphere is cleaning itself more efficiently, then methane emissions are higher than we realized. 



That’s a big problem. Emission reduction plans rely on accurate data. If those numbers are off, efforts to control methane may miss the mark.



Lan stresses that understanding methane’s sources is critical. Microbial emissions are surging, but fossil fuels still account for a major chunk of global output. 



And the Arctic’s permafrost holds double the carbon currently in the atmosphere. If warming continues, thawing permafrost could unleash catastrophic carbon releases.



“We need to aggressively cut all greenhouse gas emissions from the sources we can control,” Lan said. “We need to address the feedback loop before reaching that tipping point.”



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-urgency-amid-uncertainty">Urgency amid uncertainty</h2>



Time is not on our side. Methane’s rise mirrors past warming events, but this time, human activities amplify the effect. 



Lan’s work highlights a critical truth: the Arctic is changing faster than expected, and methane is slipping through the cracks.



Now, the question is - how much longer before the feedback loop spirals beyond control?



The study is published in the journal <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-025-08900-8" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Nature</a>.



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Arctic warming fuels dangerous methane feedback loop

The Arctic, known for its icy landscapes and frozen permafrost, is rapidly transforming due to the intensifying effects of climate change. As temperatures rise, a silent but potent threat emerges: methane emissions. Unlike carbon dioxide, methane is not as widely discussed, yet its impact on global warming is profound. A new study published in the journal Nature highlights the growing concern over methane emissions in the Arctic and their role in creating a feedback loop that could accelerate climate change. Why methane traps more heat Methane isn’t...

A study led by the <a href="https://www.noc.ac.uk/">UK National Oceanographic Centre</a> (NOC) has found that flooding events could lead to dire economic consequences if global warming is not limited to two degrees Celsius. The researchers have estimated that flooding due to rising sea levels would cost the global economy up to $14 trillion every year.

The experts also established that upper-middle income countries such as China would experience the largest increase in flood-related costs, while the highest income countries would experience the least costs. This discrepancy is due to variations in protective infrastructure.

“More than 600 million people live in low-elevation coastal areas, less than 10 meters above sea level,” said study lead author Dr. Svetlana Jevrejeva. “In a warming climate, global sea level will rise due to melting of land-based glaciers and ice sheets, and from the thermal expansion of ocean waters. So, sea level rise is one of the most damaging aspects of our warming climate.”

The research team analyzed the rate and consequences of global and regional sea level rise with restricted warming of 1.5  and 2 degrees Celsius. They compared these findings to sea level projections that would result from warming beyond two degrees Celsius.


Using the Dynamic Interactive Vulnerability Assessment modeling framework, the experts also assessed the impact of <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/sea-level-rise-impact-homes/">sea level rise</a> in coastal areas on each of the various income groups and on some individual countries.

“We found that with a temperature rise trajectory of 1.5°C, by 2100 the median sea level will have risen by 0.52m (1.7ft). But, if the 2°C target is missed, we will see a median sea level rise of 0.86m (2.8ft), and a worst-case rise of 1.8m (5.9ft),” said Dr. Jevrejeva.

“If warming is not mitigated and follows the RCP8.5 sea level rise projections, the global annual flood costs without adaptation will increase to $14 trillion per year for a median sea level rise of 0.86m, and up to $27 trillion per year for 1.8m. This would account for 2.8 per cent of global GDP in 2100.”


The data suggests that tropical areas will experience extreme sea levels more often than other regions.

“These extreme sea levels will have a negative effect on the economies of developing coastal nations, and the habitability of low-lying coastlines,” said Dr. Jevrejeva. “Small, low-lying island nations such as the Maldives will be very easily affected, and the pressures on their natural resources and environmental will become even greater.”

“These results place further emphasis on putting even greater efforts into mitigating rising global temperatures.”

The study is published in the journal <a href="http://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

Sea level rise may cost the global economy $14 trillion per year

A study led by the UK National Oceanographic Centre (NOC)...

Seattle has become the first major city in the United States to ban <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/ocean-plastic-waste-asia-africa/">plastic</a> straws and utensils. As of Sunday, July 1, the city is now officially strawless and all food service providers including restaurants, food trucks, delis, and grocery stores are no longer allowed to distribute plasticware.

Mami Hara is the general manager of Seattle Public Utilities. She told <a href="http://komonews.com/">KOMO News</a>: “Plastic pollution is surpassing crisis levels in the world’s oceans, and I’m proud Seattle is leading the way and setting an example for the nation by enacting a plastic straw ban.”

According to the the <a href="https://www.nps.gov/index.htm">National Park Service</a>, around 500 million straws are used by Americans every single day.

Seattle has been banning single-use plastic products since 2008, adding new items to the list every year. The city stated in a notice that there are now “multiple manufacturers of approved compostable utensils and straws,” which means there is no reason to continue using the plastic version of these products.

The new ordinance includes a $250 fine for any food service provider who is found distributing plasticware, but Seattle Public Utilities spokeswoman Ellen Pepin-Cato told <a href="https://www.seattletimes.com/">The Seattle Times</a> that the focus will be more on educating businesses and helping them make the transition rather than enforcing fines.

In the first campaign of its kind, the ocean advocacy group <a href="https://www.lonelywhale.org/">Lonely Whale</a> removed 2.3 million plastic straws at 150 businesses across the city of Seattle last September and replaced them with compostable alternatives. At the project’s launch, the city announced its plans to ban plastic straws in July of 2018.

Last year, The Seattle Times reported on the city's “crazy restaurant boom,” with restaurants opening at an unprecedented rate. In 2016 alone, Seattle racked up 2.9 billion dollars in food service sales. The news agency also reported that restaurant sales have exploded by 45 percent over the last decade.

--

By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Seattle makes history by banning plastic straws and utensils

Seattle has become the first major city in the United...

Air conditioning; one of the most important inventions to help humankind beat out those hot summer months. Whether you’re living close to the equator, or trying to relive some of those crisp fall months in the northeastern United States, almost anyone who has ever experienced it can appreciate the wonder of A/C. But does this luxurious way of life come with a cost? 

A new publication in the <a href="http://journals.plos.org/plosmedicine/">journal Public Library of Science (PLOS) Medicine</a> predicts that as many as 1,000 additional deaths annually in the eastern United States alone are due to elevated levels of air pollution caused by the increased use of fossil fuels to cool buildings. 

Researchers from the <a href="https://www.wisc.edu/">University of Wisconsin, Madison</a>, combined projections from five different models to forecast increased summer energy use in a warmer world, and determine how it would impact power consumption from fossil fuels, as well as air quality and human health over the next few decades.

 “What we found is that air pollution will get worse,” says David Abel, the study’s lead author and a UW-Madison graduate student. “There are consequences for adapting to future climate change.”

While air <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/summer-air-conditioning-pollution/">conditioning</a> does save lives during intense hot weather and heat waves, the increased use of air conditioning as a result climate change is dependent on power acquired by fossil fuels. “"We’re trading problems,” says Jonathan Patz, senior author of the study and a UW-Madison professor of environmental studies and population health sciences. “Heat waves are increasing and increasing in intensity. We will have more cooling demand requiring more electricity. But if our nation continues to rely on coal-fired power plants for some of our electricity, each time we turn on the air conditioning we'll be fouling the air, causing more sickness and even deaths.”

Buildings are the biggest energy sinks in the U.S., as they are responsible for over 60 percent of power demand in the Eastern United States – which is where the study was focused. Air conditioning is a major part of that electrical demand. 

The authors predict an additional 13,000 human deaths each year as a result of high summer levels of fine particulate matter, along with 3,000 deaths caused by ozone in the Eastern U.S. by 2050. They forecast that most of the deaths will be attributed to natural processes like atmospheric chemistry and natural emissions, which are affected by rising temperatures. However, roughly 1,000 of these deaths would be a result of increased air conditioning powered by fossil fuels. “Climate change is here and we’re going to need to adapt,” says Abel. “But air conditioning and the way we use energy is going to provide a feedback that will exacerbate air pollution as temperatures continue to get warmer.”

These findings are more evidence in support of the need to move to sustainable energy sources such as solar and wind. It also calls upon the need for more energy-efficient air conditioning equipment – which could help save you money on your electric bill, if the deaths due to fossil fuels aren’t enough to motivate you. “The answer is clean energy,” says Abel. “That is something we can control that will help both climate change and future air pollution. If we change nothing, both are going to get worse.”

--

By <a href="mailto:certz@earth.com">Connor Ertz</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Air conditioning emissions may be causing 1,000 deaths annually

Air conditioning; one of the most important inventions to help...

Natural disasters are set to become even more inevitable as the effects of <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/global-risk-natural-disasters-doubled/">climate change</a> become more severe. While we prepare our homes, families, businesses and even pets for natural disasters, zoo animals should also be a priority when planning for the worst.

Zoo animals are particularly vulnerable to natural disasters. They are, after all, left in enclosures that are designed to prevent them from escaping. If these animals do escape out of their enclosures, they pose a public health risk as zoo animals are wild and often powerful creatures.

In June of this year, a bear escaped its enclosure after a German zoo experienced a flood. The high waters put pressure on the bear’s enclosure, breaking it. The bear was shot dead.

Thankfully, only the bear died as a result of the flooding, but there were originally fears that multiple big cats had escaped and citizens were told to stay indoors to avoid the animals. The big cats were later found in their enclosures.

Natural disasters can also pose an indirect threat to zoo animals. For example, some animals rely on fresh shipments of food everyday to survive. Others need electricity and running water. After Hurricane Katrina, most of the fish in the New Orleans Aquarium died because the facility lost power and the staff members evacuated the area.

Incidents such as these are why the<a href="https://www.aza.org/"> Association of Zoos and Aquariums</a> requires all of the animal care facilities they represent to practice an annual disaster preparedness drill annually in order to stay accredited.

The AZA even recently created the<a href="https://www.aza.org/zahp"> Zoo and Aquarium All Hazards Preparedness Response, and Recover Fusion Center</a> which connects the emergency management and wildlife sector. The center is funded by the United States Department of Agriculture and advances its five mission areas: prevention, protection, mitigation, response and recovery.

While the center works to create trainings and resources for zoos to handle natural disasters, zoos sometimes have to make judgment calls based on the weather conditions right ahead of an event.

It may seem cruel to leave the animals at the zoos during a natural disaster instead of relocating them, but zoos have argued that leaving the animals in place can be less traumatic. When Hurricane Irma struck Florida last year, Zoo Miami decided to keep their animals at the zoo.

“We don't evacuate our animals since hurricanes can change direction at the last minute and you run the risk of evacuating to a more dangerous location. Furthermore, the stress of moving the animals can be more dangerous than riding out the storm,” Zoo Miami said on <a href="https://www.facebook.com/zoomiami/posts/1510738168948481">social media</a>. 

The zoo moved 3,000 animals to secure bunkers before the storm. In the end, multiple fish, a flamingo and a few other birds died from the storm.

It is hard to say whether less animals would have died if they were evacuated from the zoo completely. There is likely not always a safe place to secure over 3,000 wild and exotic animals right ahead of a severe storm. Additionally, many of the animals, such as the elephants who live at Zoo Miami, are very difficult to load and transfer.

Disaster preparedness plans can be made more difficult for zoos who house threatened and endangered species. While the zoo should protect all animals, these at-risk species should take priority.

The German zoo which had experienced a recent flood originally could not find their two tigers and authorities were on the search for these animals. Tigers are endangered and their populations are rapidly decreasing in the wild. It would be a huge tragedy for a healthy animal to die in captivity simply because proper planning was not put in place.

AZA-accredited zoos and the emergency management sector are taking positive steps forward to plan for disasters before they strike. Unfortunately, there are many backyard zoos in the United States who are not accredited and may not have any plans in place to prepare for the worst. The fate of the animals living in these zoos is unknown.

--

By <a href="mailto:brianna.grant134@gmail.com">Brianna Lynne,</a> <a href="http://earth.com">Earth.com</a> Contributing Writer

What happens to zoo animals during a natural disaster?

Natural disasters are set to become even more inevitable as...

Most people who watch cycling on television do so for the love of the sport. The scenic views of nature as the competitors climb up hills and speed through valleys is just one of the perks of watching a race. But researchers from <a href="https://www.ugent.be/en">Ghent University</a> took much more interest to those natural views than most cycling fans, as they used almost four decades of archive footage from the Tour of Flanders in Belgium to determine the impact of <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/climate-change-hinder-agriculture/">climate change</a> on trees.

Their findings are published in the journal <a href="https://besjournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/journal/2041210X">Methods of Ecology and Evolution</a>, where they detail the process of dissecting footage from this annual cycling race in Belgium. The research team assessed video footage from 1981 to 2016, focusing on trees and shrubs growing around recognizable landmarks of the race’s route. They used the footage to visually estimate how many leaves and flowers were present on the day of the course – which is usually in early April – and compared their findings to known climate data.

The results showed that these trees along the race route had advanced the timing of leafing and flowering in response to recent temperature changes. Prior to 1990, very few leaves could be seen on trees during this spring race. But after that year, the researchers found that increasingly more trees were visible in the television while clearly in full leaf – particularly magnolia, hawthorn, hornbeam, and birch trees. These changes can be linked to the warmer average temperatures in the area, which are known to have increased by 1.5°C since 1980.

“Early-leafing trees can be good news for some species as they grow faster and produce more wood,” says Pieter De Frenne, a professor at Ghent University and lead author of the study. “However, their leaves also cast shadows. When trees flush earlier in the year, they shadow for a longer period of time, affecting other animals and plants, and even whole ecosystems.”

For their study, the researchers used previously unexploited records of twelve tree species in the Flanders region to build long-term datasets of phenological responses. Phenology is the study of natural phenomena that recur periodically – like the flowering and leafing of trees. 

“Our method could also be used to collect data on other aspects important for ecological or evolutionary research, such as tree health, water levels in rivers and lakes, and the spread of invasive species,” says De Frenne. “Only by compiling data from the past will we be able to predict the future effects of climate change on species and ecosystems.”

--

By <a href="mailto:certz@earth.com">Connor Ertz</a>, <a href="http://earth.com">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer
Image Credit: Flanders Classics

TV footage of cycling races reveal effects of climate change

Most people who watch cycling on television do so for...

“We need the tonic of wildness...At the same time that we are earnest to explore and learn all things, we require that all things be mysterious and unexplorable, that land and sea be indefinitely wild, unsurveyed and unfathomed by us because unfathomable. We can never have enough of nature.”
-Walden, Henry David Thoreau
Often misquoted, Thoreau said, “In Wildness is the preservation of the world”.  Take note, wildness not wilderness.  What are both wildness and wilderness though?  I think it’s easier to conceptualize wilderness.  Wilderness is to most a place where humans play little to no role in the environment.  A desolate place of wild animals, that’s wilderness for most. According to Fredrick Nash, in his classic book, Wilderness and the American Mind, the view of wilderness as a desolate place first entered into American thought through the Bible.  

Through this Biblical usage the concept of a treeless wasteland became so closely associated with wilderness that Samuel Johnson defined it in 1755 in his Dictionary of the English Language as, “a desert; a tract of solitude and savageness.”

Today dictionaries define wilderness as uncultivated and otherwise undeveloped land.  The absence of men and the presence of wild animals is assumed. Any place in which a person feels stripped of guidance, lost and perplexed may be called a wilderness.

The whole idea of wilderness in this sense seems to emphasize separation between humans and wilderness and indeed wildness.  Others have put forward a much more flattering view of wilderness. Edward Abbey often refers to wild places as an Eden, using the biblical metaphor to its fullest extent.  In this treatment, wilderness becomes a place that humans in their ‘fallen’ state no longer deserve. Wilderness is a place we can only pollute or defile.

These views of wilderness are of a place humans have no part in, at best we can be visitors passing lightly over a wild place, not tarrying long.  This view is at odds with Thoreau. In my opinion, these views are also at odds with the nature of wilderness. 

In his book, The Abstract Wild, Jack Turner defines wilderness as a self-willed land.  Going further, Turner says that wilderness is about a relationship with the land, a relationship humans can be a part of.  The key in Jack Turner’s view seems to be to relinquish control, even submitting and becoming a part of a greater autonomy.  In The Abstract Wild he writes,  

“The important point is that whatever kind of autonomy is in question – human freedom, self-willed land, self-ordering systems, self-organizing, autopoiesis- all are incompatible with external control.  To take wildness seriously is to take the issue of control seriously…” 

In his novel, Ishmael, Daniel Quinn echoes the same idea, using gods instead of natural forces, cycles or orders, the concept is exactly the same.  Quinn highlights the illusory quality of our control and the dangerous hubris of it, looking broader than what we call wilderness to view the whole of our civilizations.  This passage is a good representation of his view, 

“…When will you finally be safe?”  “When we’ve taken the whole world out of the hands of the gods.”…All the power will be in our hands and we’ll be free at last.”   

This view makes sense if one is to take a cursory look at the places we call wild.  The <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/mining-deforestation-amazon-rainforest/">Amazon Rainforest</a>, The Kalahari Desert, and the Tibetan Plateau all have long histories of human habitation.  North America was full of different indigenous groups of people with unique cultures and civilizations when Europeans arrive.  If we persist on viewing wilderness as a place without humans or human influence, we are left only with remote islands and perhaps (before research stations were built) Antarctica.  

If on the other hand, we can accept the view of wilderness as a place of self-willed land and that humans may be included in that land, as a part but not an external control, wilderness is a different place.  We are left with the view that perhaps a ruin like Mesa Verde was more of a wilderness when it was a small thriving village than now as it is managed by the <a href="https://www.nps.gov/">National Park Service</a>.  It is the exertion of control in the form of wildlife management, carefully constructed trails and fences that is slowly choking the wild out of our ‘wilderness’.

The Wilderness Act of 1964 is ambitious, and in an excerpt cited by the US Forest Service’s website it states the purpose of the act as: 

“In order to assure that an increasing population, accompanied by expanding settlement and growing mechanization, does not occupy and modify all areas within the United States and its possessions, leaving no lands designated for preservation and protection in their natural condition, it is hereby declared to be the policy of the Congress to secure for the American people of present and future generations the benefits of an enduring resource of wilderness.”  

The last bit calling wilderness a resource is telling.  A resource is not something you can be a participant in, it’s inert, dead, a utility, something to be used.  According to <a href="https://www.wilderness.net/">Wilderness.net</a>, about 5% of the total US is protected as wilderness under the Wilderness Act, which amounts to 109,982,783 acres.  Alaska contains a little more than half of this ‘wilderness’ and the contiguous US contains only 2.7%, an area Wilderness.net reminds us is about the size of Minnesota.  

The problem isn’t whether we’re trying to protect wilderness.  The problem is that for it to truly be wild and that be of ‘value’ to us, we must strive for our own wildness.  How wild is a Bison reintroduced from a breeding program in the Bronx to an extremely large, fenced in ‘wild’ area in South Dakota and fed supplemental hay?  How wild is a hiker in the Bitter Roots with a smart phone connected to a satellite to post pictures on Facebook immediately? How wild is a wilderness area with fire, recreation, wildlife, trails and fences all carefully managed?  

I love wilderness areas.  I’ve been to many of different types from caves to prairie to mountains and deserts.  It’s impossible to manage wild into a place though. It’s easy to pass laws, it’s harder sometimes to pull your hands away and let the control fall to the hands of the gods.  Wildlife and conservation biology are all about control and in this way we fight fire with fire. We try to control our world by building cities and luxury and then try to maintain pockets of wilderness by exerting more control.  What does it benefit in the end if we create enormous museum like amusement parks and lose ourselves to our own illusion? Governments and nonprofits can’t save the smallest wildness in you or wilderness in the world. That task falls to you.                  

--

By <a href="mailto:zachfitzner@yahoo.com">Zach Fitzner</a>, <a href="http://earth.com">Earth.com</a> Contributing Writer

Government and the difference between wildness and wilderness

“We need the tonic of wildness...At the same time that...

A new study led by the <a href="https://www.uea.ac.uk/">University of East Anglia</a> (UEA) has found that China's carbon emissions may continue to decline if efforts to modify the country’s industrial structure and energy system persist.

“Both emissions and their underlying drivers will need to be carefully monitored, but the fact that China's emissions have decreased for several years - and more importantly the reasons why - give hope for further decreases going forward,” said study co-lead author Dr. Jing Meng.

China pledged to peak its <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/uk-cut-carbon-emissions/">CO2 emissions</a> by 2030 as part of the Paris Agreement. This commitment may already be fulfilled, as China’s CO2 emissions peaked in 2013 at a level of 9.5 Gigatons and declined for the next three consecutive years.


The researchers determined that a decline in economic growth has made it easier for China to reduce emissions in recent years, after almost two decades of a steady and rapid rise in emissions.


According to the study, the decline of 4.2 percent in the years since 2016 can be primarily attributed to changes in industrial structure and a decline in the share of coal used for energy. Decreasing energy and emissions intensity also contributed to the decline.

The study authors said that the emissions peak raises some important questions about what is driving the current decrease and whether or not the decline can be sustained or even accelerated. If China's falling emissions are primarily the result of a slowing economy, an economic boost could reverse the decrease.

The team set out to investigate by evaluating the major drivers of China's CO2 emissions from 2007 to 2016. The researchers used the latest available energy, economic, and industry data.

The analysis revealed that China's emissions may fluctuate in the coming years and 2013 may not be the last official peak. In fact, preliminary figures for 2017 have shown an increase in emissions. 

On the other hand, the changes in industrial activities, coal use, and efficiency responsible for the decline are tied to changes in the structure of China's economy and long-term government policies.


Co-lead author Dabo Guan is a professor of Climate Change Economics in the UEA's School of International Development and Environmental Sciences.

“As the world's top emitting and manufacturing nation, this reversal is cause for cautious optimism among those seeking to stabilize the Earth's climate,” said Professor Guan. “Now, the important question is whether the decline in Chinese emissions will persist.”

"We conclude that the decline of Chinese emissions is structural and is likely to be sustained if the growing industrial and energy system transitions continue. Government policies are also a sign that the decline in China's emissions will carry on.”

“In response to the US withdrawal from the Paris Agreement, China has increasingly assumed a leadership role in climate change mitigation, and its five-year progress reports under the agreement will be heavily scrutinized by the rest of the world.”

The research 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

China’s carbon emissions peaked 5 years ago, continue to decline

A new study led by the University of East Anglia...

Scientists may have finally unraveled the mystery of how conditions on our <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/yosemite-discovery-earths-formation/">planet</a> have remained stable enough for life to persist over billions of years, despite catastrophic threats such as volcanoes and meteor strikes. 

The “Gaia” hypothesis suggests that the interaction between living things and inorganic processes has somehow managed to strike the right balance. Exactly how this may work, however, has been the subject of debate for many years. A research team led by the <a href="http://www.exeter.ac.uk/">University of Exeter</a> recently proposed a likely solution. 

“We can now explain how the Earth has accumulated stabilizing mechanisms over the past 3.5 billion years of life on the planet,” said study co-author Professor Tim Lenton.

“The central problem with the original Gaia hypothesis was that evolution via natural selection cannot explain how the whole planet came to have stabilizing properties over geologic timescales.”

“Instead, we show that at least two simpler mechanisms work together to give our planet with life self-stabilising properties. Our findings can help explain how we came to be here to wonder about this question in the first place.”

The experts determined that the planet’s stability most likely comes from “sequential selection.” In this process, the environment is only destabilized by life for a short time and subsequent changes continue until stable conditions emerge. 

As the steady conditions persist, the system has more time to acquire traits that help to maintain its stability, which is a process known as “selection by survival alone.”

Study co-author Dr. James Dyke is an associate professor of Sustainability Science Within Geography and Environment at the <a href="https://www.southampton.ac.uk/">University of Southampton</a>.

“As well as being important for helping to estimate the probability of complex life elsewhere in the universe, the mechanisms we identify may prove crucial in understanding how our home planet may respond to drivers such as human-produced climate change and extinction events,” said Dr. Dyke.

Professor Dave Wilkinson of the <a href="http://www.lincoln.ac.uk/">University of Lincoln</a> is also a co-author of the study.

“I have been involved in trying to figure out how Gaia might work for over 20 years - finally it looks like a series of promising ideas are all coming together to provide the understanding I have been searching for,” said Professor Wilkinson.

The Gaia hypothesis was first proposed by James Lovelock in the 1970s and is named after the god who personified the Earth in Greek mythology.


The study is published in the journal <a href="https://www.cell.com/trends/ecology-evolution/home">Trends in Ecology and Evolution</a>.

--

By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

After decades of debate, the Gaia puzzle may have been solved

Scientists may have finally unraveled the mystery of how conditions...

It may be difficult to wrap your head around the fact that the same manufacturer of <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Agent_Orange">Agent Orange</a> – a highly toxic herbicide used during the Vietnam era to clear forest and starve opponent soldiers – is also a huge controller of our cotton, corn and soy crops, and seems to be taking over the world. 

Founded by a pharmaceutical company agent John F. Queeny, <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monsanto">Monsanto</a> has not only created one of the most used herbicides in the world Roundup, but it also formed a manmade seed that learned to survive against its toxic counterpart and overtake the farming industry as we know it. So, one begs the question:  How does a sugar-replacement company turned chemical company become world’s most antipathic corporation?

Monsanto’s parasitic infestation has been something of a slow burn since it’s 1901 <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saccharin">saccharin</a> introduction, an artificial sweetener that was quickly met with resistance from the <a href="https://www.usda.gov/topics/food-and-nutrition">USDA</a>. In 1907, they found that replacing sugar with saccharin violates the Pure Food and Drug Act, a consumer protection law. <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/national-parks-trump-ghost-teddy-roosevelt/">Theodore Roosevelt</a> (who enjoyed saccharin) fought against this investigation, which, in turn, set the wheels in motion for Monsanto’s origins. 

However, in 1911, the USDA determined that saccharin violated it’s pure food protection; once again, it worked to ban the alternative sweetener. When World War I began in 1914, it brought sugar shortages; so, saccharin was reintroduced to the market. With the expansion of their line to include caffeine and vanillin, Monsanto rose to be a million dollar company and garnered Coca-Cola as their top customer.

In time, the company became the nation’s top producer of aspirin, and the torch was passed to John F.’s son, Edgar M. Queeny, who took over and decided to enlarge the company mission. They renamed their brand:  Monsanto Chemical Company in 1933 and again proved to be a huge resource during wartime, now in World War II, for their production of <a href="https://toxtown.nlm.nih.gov/text_version/chemicals.php?id=87">styrene</a>. During this period, Japan had taken over most rubber plantations in Asia and used this to their advantage by restricting exports to the United States. Monsanto Chemical Company created styrene, which would soon aid in the country’s own synthetic rubber production. Of course, keeping to their theme, styrene has been observed to cause major health risks – but was ignored due to a high market demand.

Once more, the business rebranded to Monsanto Company in an attempt to showcase their variety of offerings and announce one of the most since-publicized herbicides, Agent Orange, for yet another war, this time in Vietnam. 20 years later, war veterans aggregated to settle a lawsuit with Monsanto for the horrible effects of Agent Orange exposure, costing the company a cool $180 million. Regardless of the payout – and a record of 4.8 million people exposed to the herbicide, which caused 400,000 deaths and disfigurements, and birth defects in 500,000 babies – Monsanto refused to accept responsibility. This marked a significant theme in Monsanto’s subversive character.

They say that “All roads lead to Rome,” and this was certainly the case with Monsanto’s corporate infrastructure. In 2003, their subsidiary company <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Solutia">Solutia</a>’s corporate plant, located in Anniston, AL., was found by a jury to have polluted the land and water of the southern community with <a href="https://www.epa.gov/pcbs/learn-about-polychlorinated-biphenyls-pcbs">Polychlorinated biphenyls</a> (PCBs). The state found PCBs to be linked to cancer, immune system problems and other severe health issues. Monsanto and Solutia agreed to pay $700 million to settle claims for the 20,000 Anniston residents of PCB contamination; Solutia personally filed for bankruptcy thereafter. Unfortunately, the damage didn’t stop in Anniston, as PCB pollution was subsequently found in San Diego and San Jose, CA., Westport, MA., and Spokane, WA. In the Spokane River, in particular, there are still <a href="https://www.doh.wa.gov/CommunityandEnvironment/Food/Fish/Advisories">13 active fish consumption advisories</a> related to PCBs, and more than 600 suspected or confirmed contamination sites across the state of Washington from Seattle’s Puget Sound to the Wenatchee River.

Monsanto Company then began to shift gears and started focusing on agricultural endeavors. After undergoing years of regulatory review, they commenced commercial production on a hormone known as <a href="https://www.fda.gov/animalveterinary/safetyhealth/productsafetyinformation/ucm055435.htm">BST</a>, which was to be injected into dairy cows to boost milk production. This was also around the time that <a href="https://monsanto.com/products/seeds/">Roundup Ready Seeds</a> came into play, genetically engineered to survive against the company’s best-selling Roundup herbicide. To save face, the corporation provided a new image, citing that they were helping people “lead longer, healthier lives, at costs that they and their nations can afford and without continued environmental degradation.” Irrespective of their marketing ploys, scientists later discovered that they were doing the exact opposite with their genetically modified maize and herbicide – both found to be have caused tumors and organ damage.

As a rule, there’s a huge power struggle between Monsanto and small farmers whose crops have been overtaken by the company’s seeds through cross-pollination. No matter how much the farmers fight against this contamination, the genetically modified seeds are stronger than any heirloom seeds on the market. To make matters worse, Monsanto has taken advantage of this by embarking on a nationwide scurge on these mom and pop farmers, who are unintentionally growing their GMO seeds, suing them for infringement on their patent. Sadly, such small agriculturists don’t have the wherewithal to defend themselves and ultimately lose to this relentless corporate machine.

On the upside, there have been many isolated uprisings in more recent years. In 2014, the <a href="https://act.nrdc.org/donate/af-public-lands-180302/?source=MRSENRDC0018_AdWords&amp;utm_source=AdWords&amp;utm_medium=Search&amp;utm_campaign=Fundraising">Natural Resources Defense Council</a> (NRDC) began a petition for the <a href="https://www.epa.gov/">EPA</a> to review its rules for glyphosate use, the active herbicide in Roundup, and the connection it has with plummeting numbers of monarch butterflies and honeybees, which have now both become endangered species. Yet, like a wolf in sheep’s clothing, Monsanto continues to dive deeper into its “environmental sustainability” façade – claiming that they are restoring the monarch’s habitats.

Fast forward to this year, implementation for <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/wonk/wp/2018/05/04/mandatory-gmo-labels-are-coming-for-your-food/?noredirect=on&amp;utm_term=.909e214748f2">GMO Labeling</a> is set to start in July, companies like <a href="https://www.nongmoproject.org/">Non-GMO project </a>have grown exponentially to give clairvoyance within food production, and hundreds of lawsuits have been sought against Monsanto for the cancer-causing effects of Roundup. Likewise, many documentaries have come to light, giving us a clearer picture of the proverbial beast on our back named Monsanto. Collectively, all of these are steps in the right direction of making smarter food choices and supporting local, organic farmers instead of mass marketed corporate byproducts.

Lo and behold, Monsanto was recently acquired by <a href="https://www.scientificamerican.com/section/reuters/bayer-to-buy-monsanto-creating-a-massive-seeds-and-pesticides-company/">Bayer</a>, another behemoth corporation whose products have been in question for years on end. And, though it probably goes without saying here, two wrongs definitely don’t make a right. It’s paramount to not be fooled by Monsanto’s pretty propaganda and false messages of sustainability – this is a company that will be remembered throughout history for taking a part in destroying our environment, creating major health dilemmas and having keen knack for pulling the wool over our eyes about it. To quote the great author and activist Michael Pollan, “If it came from a plant, eat it. If was made in a plant, don’t.”

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By <a href="mailto:drkcopy@gmail.com">Derek Kaplan</a>, <a href="http://earth.com">Earth.com</a> Contributing Writer

GMOs and biochemical warfare: Monsanto’s reign of illness

It may be difficult to wrap your head around the...

A new study led by the <a href="http://www.exeter.ac.uk/">University of Exeter</a> has found that the first animals on Earth caused a global warming event by making small changes to the seafloor.

Animal life evolved in the ocean around 520 million years ago. At this time, the animals began breaking down organic material on the ocean floor, releasing <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/carbon-dioxide-record-broken/">carbon dioxide</a> and diminishing levels of oxygen.


The conditions on the planet became much harsher over the next hundred million years as ocean oxygen levels continued to drop and carbon dioxide triggered global warming.

“Like worms in a garden, tiny creatures on the seabed disturb, mix and recycle dead organic material - a process known as bioturbation,” said study co-author Professor Tim Lenton.

“Because the effect of animals burrowing is so big, you would expect to see big changes in the environment when the whole ocean floor changes from an undisturbed state to a bioturbated state.”

Professor Filip Meysman from the <a href="https://www.uantwerpen.be/en/">University of Antwerp</a> said: “We did indeed see a decrease in oxygen levels in the ocean around 520 million years ago. But evidence from the rock record showed sediment was only a little disturbed.”


According to Professor Simon Poulton, this meant that the animals living in the seafloor at that time were not very active, and did not move very deep into the seabed.

“At first sight, these two observations did not seem to add up,” he said.

Study lead author Dr. Sebastiaan van de Velde explained, “The critical factor was to realize that the biggest changes happen at the lowest levels of animal activity. This meant that the first bioturbators had a massive impact.”

The researchers said that this realization was the “missing piece of the puzzle” which enabled them to construct a mathematical model of Earth at the time of the earliest life forms and examine the changes that they made to the planet.

“When we ran our model, we were surprised by what we saw,” said Dr. Benjamin Mills. “The evolution of these small animals did indeed decrease the oxygen in the ocean and atmosphere, but also increased atmospheric carbon dioxide levels to such an extent that it caused a global warming event.”

"We knew that warming occurred at this point in Earth history, but did not realize it could be driven by animals."

Global warming made conditions far worse for the animals, and possibly contributed to several mass extinction events that occurred during the first 100 million years of animal evolution.

“There is an interesting parallel between the earliest animals changing their world in a way that was bad for them, and what we human animals are doing to the planet now,” said Professor Lenton.

“We are creating a hotter world with expanding ocean anoxia which is bad for us and a lot of other creatures we share the planet with.”

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

Earth’s earliest animals triggered a global warming event

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

Residents of Nevada are facing a major public health crisis when it comes to air pollution, as a new report found that in 2016, 450,000 people in Reno breathed in 103 days of degraded air quality. 

Exposure to <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/air-pollution-diabetes/">air pollution</a> increases the risk of cardiovascular disease, premature death, and asthma attack, and millions of people live with air quality that is lower than what is deemed safe. 

This recent report on Nevada was conducted by the <a href="https://environmentnevadacenter.org/">Environment Nevada Research and Policy Center</a> and comes at a time when potential policy changes in the United States could increase greenhouse emissions and pollution levels. 

The report was titled “Trouble in the Air: Millions of Americans Breathe Polluted Air.” 

“All Nevada residents should be able to breathe clean air. Even one day with polluted air is too many,” said Elizabeth Leape, Campaign Coordinator with Environment Nevada Research &amp; Policy Center. “To make dirty air days a thing of the past, we need to strengthen existing air quality protections and reduce future air pollution threats from global warming.”

Researchers reviewed data from <a href="https://www.epa.gov/">Environmental Protection Agency</a> (EPA) records of air pollution levels in the United States, focusing on smog and particulate pollution from coal, diesel, gasoline and natural gas. 

“There's no safe level of exposure to smog and particulate pollution,” said Elizabeth Ridlington, Policy Analyst with Frontier Group, a co-author of the report. “Even low levels of smog and particulate pollution are bad for health and can increase deaths.”

Even though the health risks associated with high levels of pollution are well documented, major regulations to reduce pollution have yet to be implemented on a large scale and some policy leaders and governments are seemingly doing as much as they can to increase pollution and speed up climate change. 

Meanwhile, President Trump is looking to weaken federal clean car standards program which would increase emissions and reduce fuel efficiency, and EPA head Scott Pruitt plans to review the federal ozone standard. 

The report urges that Trump’s administration should do just the opposite and instead strengthen the federal clean car standards program. 

Stronger vehicle emissions standards would go a long way in reducing pollution and fighting climate change in the United States. 

“To protect our health, we must keep cutting smog, particulate pollution, and global warming emissions,” said Leape. “We must accelerate our progress, not hit the brakes on effective programs like the federal clean car standards.”

--

By <a href="mailto:kayvandette@gmail.com">Kay Vandette</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/">Earth.com </a>Staff Writer

Harmful levels of air pollution felt in Reno almost half the year

Residents of Nevada are facing a major public health crisis...

The retirement of Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy has sent shock waves throughout the political world, and environmental groups are no exception. 

“The court must protect health care for millions, secure clean air and clean water for all, ensure action to tackle the climate crisis, take steps to guarantee the right to vote, and safeguard the very strength of our democracy,” Sierra Club Director Michael Brune said in a statement on Wednesday.

Kennedy has acted as a vital swing vote on a number of important environmental decisions in recent years, including 2007’s <a href="https://www.law.cornell.edu/supct/html/05-1120.ZO.html">Massachusetts v. EPA</a>. The court ordered the EPA to determine whether carbon and greenhouse gas emissions could endanger public health or the environment through warming. The agency’s subsequent finding in 2009 that a threat did indeed exist laid the groundwork for President Barack Obama’s Clean Power Plan.

The case also set two precedents: the first, that individual states can sue the federal government over pollution, and the second, that greenhouse gas emissions qualify as pollutants under the Clean Air Act.

Kennedy has also weighed in on areas such as the Clean Water Act, helping to clarify which waters do or do not fall under the EPA’s jurisdiction – and providing a basis for another controversial Obama regulation, the Waters of the United States rule.

The fear that many environmental advocates are now voicing is that a more conservative Supreme Court Justice – as all of the 25 names on President Donald Trump’s short list are – would roll back some of those decisions.

“He’s been on the court just over 30 years, and he’s been in the majority in every single environmental case but one. You don’t win without Kennedy,” Harvard law professor Richard Lazarus told <a href="https://www.theatlantic.com/science/archive/2018/06/kennedys-departure-could-reshape-the-environment/563930/">The Atlantic</a>. 

That could be damaging to the Earth’s climate, some environmentalists are claiming.

“If Trump succeeds in veering the Court in an even more extremist direction, it could open the door to runaway climate change,” Marcie Keever, legal director at <a href="https://foe.org/">Friends of the Earth</a>, told the <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/powerpost/paloma/the-energy-202/2018/06/28/the-energy-202-kennedy-s-retirement-could-bring-a-seismic-shift-to-environmental-law/5b33e27930fb046c468e6f60/?utm_term=.4f296acf236e">Washington Post</a>.

Most don’t think that the Supreme Court is likely to overturn previous decisions, but a new justice could change how they rule on future cases.

“I am not sure whether they’d overturn. But I think at a minimum we can expect the Court without Justice Kennedy to look even more skeptically at EPA regulatory efforts,” Harvard law professor Jody Freeman told the Post.

—

By Kyla Cathey, <a href="http://www.earth.com">Earth.com</a> staff writer

Image credit: White House Photographic Office

Environmental groups brace for new Supreme Court Justice

The retirement of Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy has sent...

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



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

Designing crops that can beat the heat

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

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Today's Video of the Day from <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



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.

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 



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.

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



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

Wetlands are a major source of methane emissions

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



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



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



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



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



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



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



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



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



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



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The rapid retreat of the Columbia Glacier

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Today's Video of the Day from <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



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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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