A walk in the forest often brings peace, calm, and a deep sense of renewal. From ancient times to modern therapy practices, forests have stood as symbols of balance and healing. But not all forests heal equally. 



As cities grow and public health concerns rise, scientists are uncovering how the design and structure of forests matter. The health benefits we get from <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/cities-in-the-global-south-have-far-less-green-space/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">green spaces</a>, especially forests, depend not just on their presence, but on what they are made of.



A new study from the University of Surrey and the <a href="https://www.ugent.be/en" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">University of Ghent</a> sheds light on this. Working with partners across Europe, the research team explored how specific features of forests influence human health. 



The findings mark a major step in understanding the complex links between ecological structure and wellbeing.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-forest-traits-and-human-health-benefits">Forest traits and human health benefits </h2>



The study, which is part of the larger Dr. Forest research project, included 164 forests across five European countries. The researchers focused on seven ecological characteristics and their <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/urban-green-spaces-are-urgently-needed-across-the-global-south/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">influence</a> on various health outcomes.



The forests were not selected at random. They varied in structure, species mix, and density, allowing researchers to draw comparisons. This wide range of forest types provided a rare opportunity to explore how real-world differences affect human experiences and health.



The goal was not to judge forests as good or bad, but to understand how their differences shaped people’s health responses. What emerged was a nuanced view. Forests benefit health, but their structure can amplify or limit those effects.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-the-power-of-tree-diversity">The power of tree diversity</h2>



One of the key traits studied was tree species diversity. The findings showed that more diverse forests offered modest but positive health <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/urban-tree-layout-influences-human-health-and-mortality-rates/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">outcomes</a>. These effects were not dramatic, but they were consistent enough to support the idea that diversity is beneficial.



Tree diversity does not just matter for human health. It also supports broader biodiversity, helping insects, birds, and mammals thrive. This makes it a safe, low-risk strategy for forest managers aiming to enhance public health while improving ecosystem resilience.



More tree species create different textures, shapes, and colors, making forests more visually stimulating and ecologically stable. These aspects can subtly influence how people feel and behave when they visit such areas. 



While the direct health impacts may be limited, the indirect ones, through enhanced engagement and ecosystem strength, are valuable.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-canopy-structure-a-major-influence">Canopy structure: A major influence</h2>



Among the ecological features studied, canopy structure had the strongest impact. Dense canopies reduce heat by offering shade and help regulate the forest's internal climate. They also provide larger leaf surfaces, which trap fine particulate matter and improve air quality.



These benefits are especially important in urban settings, where heatwaves and pollution are on the rise. In such contexts, a well-structured canopy becomes more than a luxury. It is a necessity. The cooling effect alone can reduce heat stress and the risk of heat-related illnesses.



Yet, there are trade-offs. Denser canopies create more humid conditions. While that is good for moisture-loving plants, it also creates ideal habitats for ticks, which carry Lyme disease. 



In addition, less sunlight reaches the forest floor. This limits the growth of medicinal plants, reducing some of the forest's potential healing properties.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-mental-health-gains-beyond-structure">Mental health gains beyond structure</h2>



Perhaps the most consistent finding across the study was the benefit of simply being in a forest. Regardless of structure or biodiversity, spending time in a forest improved mental wellbeing. People reported lower anxiety and stress, along with more positive <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/surprising-mental-health-benefits-of-living-near-green-spaces/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">emotions</a>.



What enhanced these effects was how natural and biodiverse the forest felt to the visitor. Forests that looked wild, vibrant, and untamed tended to offer more psychological relief. This suggests that human perception plays a key role in shaping forest-based experiences.



“Our study shows that forests generally provide a mental health benefit, reducing anxiety and stress, regardless of their biodiversity or structure. As one in six people in England experience anxiety and depression each week, this research suggests that simply being in a forest can improve mental health,” noted Dr. Melissa Marselle, a lecturer in environmental psychology at the <a href="https://www.surrey.ac.uk" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">University of Surrey</a>.



“For the UK, this means preserving urban forests so people can easily access forests where they live, work and play for their mental wellbeing. Contact with forests could be prescribed by the NHS, as research shows that NHS nature prescriptions are effective at improving mental health.” 



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-designing-healthier-cities-with-forests">Designing healthier cities with forests </h2>



The study points to a pressing need in urban planning. It is not enough to plant trees and call it a forest. The structure, layout, and biodiversity of these spaces must be considered. Urban forests should reduce heat, absorb pollution, and offer mental rest.



This involves difficult trade-offs. Canopy density must balance between cooling the environment and letting in enough light. Species choices should consider both ecological function and visual appeal. Forests must feel natural to the human eye while also being safe and accessible.



Planners and health professionals can now use this evidence to shape better public spaces. Health services could integrate forest access into mental health treatments. Parks could be designed not just for recreation but also for healing. In a time when stress-related disorders are rising, these changes could make a meaningful difference.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-forests-are-essential-tools-for-public-health">Forests are essential tools for public health</h2>



This research redefines the role of forests. No longer just natural assets or scenic spots, they emerge as powerful contributors to public health. But their power lies in their details. Forests must be built, preserved, and managed with intention.



Tree diversity adds depth and life. Canopy structure shapes the microclimate and air. Visitor perceptions tie it all together. Forests that feel alive and balanced bring calm and strength to those who enter them.



Nature has always played a quiet role in healing. Now, with evidence in hand, we have the chance to shape that role more deliberately. Managed well, forests can support both ecosystems and the people who rely on them for peace and mental clarity.



The study is published in the journal <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41893-025-01547-3" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Nature Sustainability</a>.



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Forests provide different health benefits based on their structure

A walk in the forest often brings peace, calm, and a deep sense of renewal. From ancient times to modern therapy practices, forests have stood as symbols of balance and healing. But not all forests heal equally. As cities grow and public health concerns rise, scientists are uncovering how the design and structure of forests matter. The health benefits we get from green spaces, especially forests, depend not just on their presence, but on what they are made of. A new study from the University of Surrey...

More than half of teens have been at the mercy of a distracted . In a new survey from the <a href="https://umich.edu/">University of Michigan</a>, more than half of parents reported that their child has been a passenger in a car with a distracted teen driver behind the wheel. The top safety concerns expressed by the participants included distractions caused by loud music, cell phone use, or having other teens in the car.

The C.S. Mott Children's Hospital National Poll also revealed that nearly half of <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/social-media-mental-health/">teens</a> have ridden in the car with a friend who was speeding, while other kids admitted that their teen driver was impaired by alcohol, drugs, or sleep deprivation. 

"When teens start driving, there is rightfully a big focus on the safety of the drivers themselves," said poll co-director and Mott pediatrician Dr. Gary Freed. "But our poll suggests that parents should play an active role in not only preparing teens to be safe drivers - but to be safety-minded passengers when riding with friends."

The survey involved 877 parents who had at least one child between the ages of 14 and 18. Many of the parents said they tried to limit the time their teen spent in the car with a young driver, such as when there was bad weather, it was late at night, or when the driver had less than six months of experience. 

[caption id="attachment_1877861" align="aligncenter" width="650"]<a href="https://www.earth.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/09/distracted-driver.png"><img class="wp-image-1877861" src="https://www.earth.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/09/distracted-driver.png" alt="" width="650" height="545" /></a> Image Credit: C.S. Mott Children's Hospital National Poll on Children's Health at the University of Michigan[/caption]

"Many parents recognize that teens' minimal experience on the road is a disadvantage when there's a change in driving conditions," said Dr. Freed. "Some parents try to reduce their teens' risks in potentially hazardous situations, such as late nights or bad weather."

Car crashes are the leading cause of death among teens, and more than half of those who are killed are not driving. 

According to Dr. Freed, lack of experience can result in drivers not always reacting quickly to changes in road or driving conditions or paying as close attention to other cars or pedestrians as needed to stay safe. He encourages parents to talk to their kids about being responsible passengers by taking actions such as offering to hold the driver's phone, lowering radio volume, or asking the driver to slow down if necessary.

"Parents should try to empower their teen to be proactive in avoiding common situations that cause distractions to the driver and also speak up to stop any unsafe activities," said Dr. Freed. "Safe driving should be a shared responsibility for both teen drivers and passengers as the risks are high for each."

--

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: Shutterstock/Sean Locke Photography

More than half of teens have been at the mercy of a distracted

More than half of teens have been at the mercy...

The <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/rice-farming-environmental-impact/">way food is harvested</a>, how goods are manufactured, and where goods and food end up all have calculable environmental impacts, but tallying up the carbon footprint of a supply chain on a global scale is more than a challenge. 

For example, toilet paper purchased in one region of the United States may have started its journey along the supply chain with <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/americas-toilet-paper-destroying-forests/">logging in Canada</a>.

Researchers have combined satellite data with artificial intelligence to analyze the environmental impacts of a global supply chain for the first time, according to a report from the <a href="http://www.esa.int/Our_Activities/Observing_the_Earth/Tracing_the_environmental_impacts_of_supply_chains">European Space Agency </a>(ESA). 

Researchers at the <a href="https://www.wu.ac.at/en/">Vienna University of Economics and Business</a> developed a new way to evaluate global supply chain impacts as part of the <a href="https://www.wu.ac.at/ecolecon/research/global-resource-use/fineprint">ERC FINEPRINT project</a>. 

With FINEPRINT, images from the Copernicus Sentinel-2 and US Landsat satellites are used to map food production or mineral extraction sites and show the rippling environmental impacts. 

Researchers can take the satellite data and track the distribution of crops like soybeans and sugarcane. 

Machine learning is then used to map out changes in land use over time in these areas, and trade models like the <a href="https://www.fineprint.global/wp-content/uploads/2019/01/fineprint_brief_no_3.pdf">Food and Agriculture Biomass Input-Output Model</a> can track distribution from  production to consumption.  

“While remote sensing has been widely used to analyse a wide range of ecosystem changes such as deforestation, satellite data has rarely been connected to the underlying economic production, trade and consumption patterns that drive these changes,” said Victor Maus from the Vienna University of Economics and Business during a speech at <a href="https://www.esa.int/Our_Activities/Observing_the_Earth/ESA_s_-week_2019_opens_with_a_flourish">ESA’s ɸ-week</a> (Phi-Week). 

Having a way to monitor and assess the environmental impact of food or goods from production to consumption can help inform policymakers and ideally create more sustainable supply chains. 

“There is a huge, hitherto untapped potential to combine Earth observation and economic data to support efforts by business and policy in making supply chains more sustainable,” said Maus,

--

By <a href="mailto:kayvandette@gmail.com">Kay Vandette</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer 

Image Credit: Shutterstock/Travel mania

What are the environmental impacts of global supply chains?

The way food is harvested, how goods are manufactured, and...

More resources and collaboration urgently needed to adapt to climate change. Extreme weather events such as storms and floods are not only becoming more frequent as a result of <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/climate-change-heat-europe/">climate change</a>, but are also becoming more intense. For many experts and leaders, the immediate focus has shifted from preventing dangerous global warming to preparing for it.

Ban Ki-moon is the chair of the <a href="https://gca.org/global-commission-on-adaptation">Global Commission on Adaptation</a> and was the eighth Secretary General of the United Nations. In a feature for <a href="https://time.com/">Time Magazine</a>, Ki-moon emphasizes the urgent need for adaptation to climate change. 

"Hundreds of millions of people are living with the effects of global warming - some now irreversible. For those on the frontlines of climate change, developing coping mechanisms is a matter of survival. And yet the world is not paying enough attention to the need to adapt to a warming planet alongside our efforts to reduce our carbon emissions. We urgently need more resources, more collaboration and more political will to make adaptation a global priority," Ki-moon writes in Time.

He explains that well-executed adaptation methods also make the most sense economically.

"The Global Commission on Adaptation, which I co-founded about a year ago with Bill Gates and World Bank CEO Kristalina Georgieva, estimates that investing $1.8 trillion to improve climate resilience between now and 2030 in five critical areas - early-warning systems against cyclones and hurricanes, resilient infrastructure, better dryland agriculture, mangrove protection and water security - would yield up to $7.1 trillion in net benefits."

These findings are included in the organization's first report, which calls for changes that address underlying inequalities in society and involve more people in the decision-making process, particularly in those areas most affected by climate change. 

"Resourceful communities are already adapting to climate change with human ingenuity and solutions that range from green tech to biotech to high-tech. In 2017, Miami became the first city in the world to issue municipal bonds to finance climate adaptation at scale, and it could become a model for how governments finance investments in resilient infrastructure. Shanghai is greening districts with wetland areas, rooftop gardens, parks and permeable pavements to capture, slow down and filter stormwater. For about 20 years, Bangladesh has been investing in early-warning systems in the event of natural disasters; in building shelters; and in implementing evacuation drills," Ki-moon writes in Time.

"These are bright spots where adaptation has begun, but we need to do more of it, with more urgency and at scale. Let’s not compound our climate emergency with a failure of the imagination."

Most of the regions that are highly threatened by extreme weather and rising sea levels did the least to contribute to global warming, which makes adaptation even more imperative. 

"People everywhere are experiencing the devastating impacts of climate change. Those most impacted are the millions of smallholder farmers and their families in developing countries, who are struggling with poverty and hunger due to low crop yields caused by extreme changes in temperature and rainfall. With greater support for innovation, we can unlock new opportunities and spur change across the global ecosystem," said Bill Gates. More resources and collaboration urgently needed to adapt to climate change

"Adaptation is an urgent issue that needs support from governments and businesses to ensure those most at risk have the opportunity to thrive."

--

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>

Image Credit: Shutterstock/NASA/Sasa Kadrijevic

More resources and collaboration urgently needed to adapt to climate change

More resources and collaboration urgently needed to adapt to climate...

Over 20 percent of adult bike riders weren’t wearing a helmet during a crash. Even though there are fewer <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/bicycle-accidents-rise-cities/">cyclists</a> on the road compared to cars in the US, bicyclists face a much higher risk of crash-related injury and death, according to the <a href="https://www.cdc.gov/motorvehiclesafety/bicycle/index.html">Centers for Disease Control</a>, especially if the rider isn’t wearing a helmet. 

A recent study found that while bike helmets can protect against severe injuries and reduce mortality risk, over one-fifth of adult bike riders in the US were not wearing a helmet when in an accident. 

Ethnic minorities and men are less likely to wear a helmet, and as a result, face longer hospital stays, severe injuries, and a higher risk of death. 

Researchers from<a href="https://www.cdrewu.edu/"> Charles R. Drew University of Medicine &amp; Science</a> and the<a href="http://www.ucla.edu/"> University of California, Los Angeles</a> analyzed ten years of data from the <a href="https://www.facs.org/quality-programs/trauma/tqp/center-programs/ntdb">National Trauma Data Bank</a>. 

Accident data on 76,032 cyclists from 2002 through 2012 were included in the study, and only 22 percent of adults and 12 percent of young riders involved in an accident were wearing a helmet.  

Helmet use among Hispanic and Black individuals was much lower compared to White, Asian, and Pacific Islander individuals.

Fewer men, 21 percent compared to 28 percent of women, wore a helmet, and men were also 36 percent more likely to die compared to women when in an accident.  

Black and Hispanic individuals were 16 and 17 percent more likely to die due to injuries sustained in an accident compared to white individuals.  

“It is perhaps not surprising that females were more likely to have worn a helmet than males when involved in an accident,” the researchers said. “It is not entirely clear, however, why males in general had higher hospital and intensive care unit stay days, and in mortality.”  

The benefits of wearing a helmet speak for themselves, but the researchers emphasize a need for programs to help raise awareness about helmet use among different populations. 

While helmet laws have helped reduce bicycle fatalities and head injuries in some US states, the researchers stress that these benefits are not equal across all racial and ethnic groups. 

 “At-risk groups may benefit from injury prevention and outreach programmes that aim to increase helmet use,” the researchers wrote. “Our findings and other research suggests that mandatory helmet laws can improve injury and mortality outcomes of bicycling accidents.”

There are limitations to the study results, and the researchers say that more studies are needed to understand why helmet use and compliance with mandatory laws vary across different races and ethnicities.  

The researchers published their findings in the journal <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/02699052.2019.1650201">Brain Injury</a>. 

--

By<a href="mailto:kayvandette@gmail.com"> Kay Vandette</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/">Earth.com </a>Staff Writer 

Image Credit: Shutterstock/bbernard

Over 20 percent of adult bike riders weren’t wearing a helmet during a crash

Over 20 percent of adult bike riders weren’t wearing a...

Fight or flight response is triggered by a hormone released from our bones. The physiological changes that occur when the body goes into "<a href="http://www.earth.com/news/brain-fight-flight-response/">fight or flight</a>" mode after sensing danger are typically attributed to the release of the hormone adrenaline. But now, research from <a href="https://www.columbia.edu/">Columbia University</a> suggests that these fear-related changes in the body are actually initiated by our bones.

The study revealed that after the brain recognizes danger, it instructs the skeleton to flood the bloodstream with the bone-derived hormone osteocalcin, which is needed to turn on the fight or flight response.

"In bony vertebrates, the acute stress response is not possible without osteocalcin," said study senior author Dr. Gérard Karsenty. "It completely changes how we think about how acute stress responses occur."

"The view of bones as merely an assembly of calcified tubes is deeply entrenched in our biomedical culture," added Dr. Karsenty. About a decade ago, he demonstrated that the skeleton has hidden influences on other organs, including the pancreas, brain, and muscles.

In a series of follow-up studies, Dr. Karsenty discovered that osteocalcin also helps regulate metabolism, improves memory, and helps animals run faster with greater endurance.

"If you think of bone as something that evolved to protect the organism from danger - the skull protects the brain from trauma, the skeleton allows vertebrates to escape predators, and even the bones in the ear alert us to approaching danger - the hormonal functions of osteocalcin begin to make sense," said Dr. Karsenty. 

Dr. Karsenty speculated that, if bone evolved to protect us from danger, the skeleton would also be involved in the acute stress response that is activated in the presence of danger. 

To test this theory, the researchers exposed mice to urine from predators and monitored the bloodstream to look for changes. Within two to three minutes, the levels of osteocalcin spiked. The heart rate, body temperature, and blood glucose levels rose along with osteocalcin levels as the fight or flight response kicked in.

Among humans, the researchers observed sharply rising osteocalcin levels when individuals were under stress from public speaking or cross-examination. 

In another experiment, mice were genetically engineered so that they were unable to make osteocalcin or its receptor. When presented with the predator urine, these mice were indifferent. "Without osteocalcin, they didn't react strongly to the perceived danger. In the wild, they'd have a short day." Fight or flight response is triggered by a hormone released from our bones

Dr. Karsenty concluded that circulating levels of osteocalcin are enough to drive the acute stress response. "I have no doubt that there are many more new inter-organ signals to be discovered, and these interactions may be as important as the ones discovered in the early part of the 20th century."

The study is published in the journal <a href="https://www.cell.com/cell-metabolism/home">Cell Metabolism</a>.

--

By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer
Image Credit: Shutterstock/Admiral

Fight or flight response is triggered by a hormone released from our bones

Fight or flight response is triggered by a hormone released...

Rising temperatures could lead to a shortage in omega-3 fatty acids. Declines in global fish stocks due to climate change could lead to deficiencies in a crucial brain-building <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/omega-3s-seafood-healthy-aging/">omega-3 fatty acid </a>for a majority of the world’s population, according to a new study. 

Docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) is the most abundant fatty acid in the brain, and DHA plays an essential role in cell survival and neuroprotection. 

Even though DHA is a necessary fatty acid and crucial for brain development, we can’t make enough of the stuff on our own. Instead, people get DHA from fish or supplements. 

In a new study, researchers from <a href="https://www.dal.ca/">Dalhousie University,</a> the <a href="https://www.utoronto.ca/">University of Toronto</a>, and <a href="https://www.ryerson.ca/">Ryerson University</a> found that climate change could drastically limit DHA availability in the future. 

Ninety-six percent of the world’s population may not have enough access to DHA from fish by 2100, according to the study if global temperatures continue to rise. 

For the study, the researchers used data from the <a href="http://www.seaaroundus.org/">Sea Around Us database</a>, which shows how fishing impacts marine ecosystems. 

The researchers also collected data from the United Nations on fishery catches, and aquaculture to create a mathematical model that predicted annual DHA production in different United Nations Fishing Zones under various global warming scenarios. 

DHA is primarily produced by algae and makes its way up the aquatic food chain. 

The model’s predictions showed that countries like Greenland, Norway, and New Zealand where fish production is high and populations are smaller will not have to worry about DHA deficiencies. 

However, China, Japa, and most countries in Africa could lose ample access to domestic fish production and DHA. 

“According to our model, global warming could result in a 10 to 58% loss of globally-available DHA in the next 80 years,” the researchers said. “A decrease in levels will have the greatest effect on vulnerable populations and periods of human development, such as foetuses and infants, and may also affect predatory mammals, especially those in Polar Regions.”

The researchers published their findings in the journal <a href="https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s13280-019-01234-6">Ambio</a>.

--

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: Shutterstock/Michail Patakos

Rising temperatures could lead to a shortage in omega-3 fatty acids

Rising temperatures could lead to a shortage in omega-3 fatty...

Latest breakthrough could offer new insight into modern human evolution. In a groundbreaking new study, scientists have extracted genetic information from a <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/harvesting-eggs-northern-white-rhinos/">rhino</a> tooth that dates back 1.7 million years. The team identified an almost complete set of proteins in the tooth enamel, which is the largest and oldest genetic data to ever be recorded.

The discovery will help scientists to reconstruct animal evolution farther back in time than ever before. Prior to this study, the oldest DNA sequence was from a horse that was 700,000 years old, but the new data exceed this fossil record by one million years.

Study lead author Eske Willerslev is an evolutionary geneticist at <a href="https://www.sjc.edu/">St. John's College</a> and the University of Cambridge.

"This research is a game-changer that opens up a lot of options for further evolutionary study in terms of humans as well as mammals. It will revolutionize the methods of investigating evolution based on molecular markers and it will open a complete new field of ancient biomolecular studies," said Willerslev.

The DNA record of human evolution only covers the last 400,000 years, yet the ancestral lineages of modern humans and chimpanzees split about six to seven million years ago. This means that scientists are lacking genetic information for more than 90 percent of the evolutionary transition which gave rise to modern humans.

According to the researchers, the genetic links between modern humans and extinct species such as Homo erectus are also unclear because our current knowledge is based primarily on anatomical information instead of genetic data.

"For 20 years ancient DNA has been used to address questions about the evolution of extinct species, adaptation and human migration but it has limitations. Now for the first time we have retrieved ancient genetic information which allows us to reconstruct molecular evolution way beyond the usual time limit of DNA preservation," said study first author Professor Enrico Cappellini. "This new analysis of ancient proteins from dental enamel will start an exciting new chapter in the study of molecular evolution."

For their investigation, the researchers took samples of dental enamel from the tooth of a 1.77-million-year-old extinct rhinoceros that lived in Eurasia during the Pleistocene called Stephanorhinus. The team used mass spectrometry to sequence the ancient protein and retrieve genetic information.

"Mass spectrometry-based protein sequencing will enable us to retrieve reliable and rich genetic information from mammal fossils that are millions of years old, rather than just thousands of years old. It is the only technology able to provide the robustness and accuracy needed to sequence tiny amounts of protein this old," said study co-author Professor Jesper V. Olsen.

Professor Cappellini noted that dental enamel is abundant and also incredibly durable, which is why a high proportion of fossil records are teeth.

"We have been able to find a way to retrieve genetic information that is more informative and older than any other source before, and it's from a source that is abundant in the fossil records so the potential of the application of this approach is extensive," said Professor Cappellini.

The new technique may ultimately enable experts to build a more elaborate and accurate picture of the evolution of hundreds of species, including modern humans.

The study is published in the journal <a href="https://www.nature.com/">Nature</a>.

--

By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Image Credit: Mirian Kiladze, Georgian National Museum

Latest breakthrough could offer new insight into modern human evolution

Latest breakthrough could offer new insight into modern human evolution....

Artists that paint with their feet possess highly organized “toe maps” which connect each toe to an <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/music-flows-brain/">activated area in the brain</a>, a new study has revealed.

Hand maps have been well established in the brain, with each finger activating a different, closely connected, region. Each part of the body has a corresponding brain region laid out in a kind of body map, but this is the first study to identify toe maps in people.  

The study, conducted by researchers at the <a href="https://www.ucl.ac.uk/icn/">Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience at University College London</a>, sheds light on how the limbs are represented in the brain and how the brain adapts to limblessness.  

“We are interested in the brain area known as the somatosensory cortex because it has incredible organization,” said Harriett Dempsey-Jones, the first author of the study. “Within this brain region, each part of the body is laid out in an organization that roughly approximates what it looks like in the actual human body to form a body map.” 

Recent fMRI data has shown that the brain-body map is not as organized as previously thought when it comes to certain body parts like the feet. 

The researchers of the study regularly work with amputee and congenital limbless support groups and two artists, Tomy Yendell and Peter Longstaff, were recruited for the study.

[caption id="attachment_1877666" align="aligncenter" width="538"]<a href="https://www.earth.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/09/paint-feet.jpeg"><img class="size-full wp-image-1877666" src="https://www.earth.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/09/paint-feet.jpeg" alt="" width="538" height="546" /></a> How complex toe behavior supports organized, hand-like activity in the foot artists' foot. Image Credit: Dempsey-Jones et al./Cell Reports[/caption]

Yendell and Longstaff are prominent and talented artists in the UK, and both were born without arms. The two men learned to use their feet to perform most of their daily tasks, resulting in extreme foot dexterity. 

Handed people do not have toe maps in the brain, but non-human primates do, and the researchers wondered if limblessness had any effect on the brain’s body map or whether foot dexterity was represented differently in the brain. 

To help understand these questions, the researchers conducted fMRI tests with Yendell, Longstaff, and nine limbed volunteers. 

When the limbed participants were in the fMRI machine, a researcher touched one finger or toe and looked to see what part of the brain was activated. Each finger activated spots that were close in proximity to each other, but the limbed and handed individuals did not have any toe maps in the brain. 

“It turns out that even though we have individual digits on our feet - toes - when we touch each toe in order we do not see a nice organized pattern,” said Dempsey-Jones. 

For Yendell and Longstaff, the fMRI images showed activated regions of the brain corresponding to the toes similar to handed individuals with hand maps. 

The study creates more questions than answers, and there are many possible explanations as to why some individuals have toe maps while others do not.  

It may be that all primates are born with toe maps, but as humans don’t use their toes, this map fades over time. Another possibility is that humans don’t have toe maps, but if an individual starts to use their feet and toes more, they may develop one.  

“We know there is a critical period of plasticity early in life when the brain seems particularly capable of change,” said Daan Wesselink, a co-author of the study. “It could be that our artists were learning to use their toes when they were children during this time of maximal brain plasticity. We know the adult brain is more fixed once the critical period of plasticity closes. It may be that once that happens you can’t really change the brain in a major way, such as this.”

The researchers will continue studying how the brain represents different body parts and see if prosthetics can be incorporated into the brain’s body map. 

“Mapping out finger and toe activity in the brain can help advance brain-machine interface technology where the brain learns how to control each digit of a prosthetic,” said Dempsey-Jones.  

The researchers published their findings in the journal <a href="https://www.cell.com/cell-reports/fulltext/S2211-1247(19)31061-7">Cell Reports.</a> 

--

By <a href="mailto:kayvandette@gmail.com">Kay Vandette</a>,<a href="https://www.earth.com/"> Earth.com</a> Staff Writer 

Main Image Credit: Shutterstock/hedgehog94

Artists who paint with their feet have maps of their toes in the brain

Artists that paint with their feet possess highly organized “toe...

Homo sapiens <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/sophisticated-tools-ancestors-found/">first arose in Africa</a> around 300,000 years ago, but researchers are still working to piece together the origin and evolution of our species. 

Few fossils less than 500,000 years old have been discovered in Africa, there are gaps in the fossil record before Homo sapiens came onto the scene. 

In a new study, researchers from the <a href="http://www.cnrs.fr/">Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique</a> in France and <a href="https://www.cam.ac.uk/">Cambridge University</a> used virtual modeling to create a 3D skull of Homo sapiens’ oldest ancestor. 

By creating virtual 3D skull models, the researchers were able to expand the fossil pool and fill in the gaps of humanity’s evolutionary history. 

The researchers first measured 26 skulls of hominins from 29 different populations and identified links between cranial dimensions and each population’s location on the phylogenetic tree.

Once this relationship was established, the researchers were able to predict the skull dimensions of the ancestor of all Homo sapiens groups and create a corresponding virtual model dating back to roughly 300,000 years ago. 

[caption id="attachment_1877663" align="aligncenter" width="650"]<a href="https://www.earth.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/09/homo-sapien-skull.png"><img class="wp-image-1877663" src="https://www.earth.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/09/homo-sapien-skull.png" alt="" width="650" height="173" /></a> Image © Aurélien Mounier / CNRS-MNHN[/caption]

Surprisingly, the ancient skull had modern features including a round cranium, high forehead, and similar morphology to skulls dating back to 100,000 years. 

After the model was created, the researchers compared the 3D rendering to five African fossils which date back to 130,000 to 350,000 years ago, corresponding with the first appearance of Homo sapiens in Africa. 

The researchers theorize from the skull dimensions and comparisons that Homo sapiens arose through interbreeding between populations in South and East Africa. North African populations, though, are believed to have interbred with Neanderthals as early humans spread into Europe. 

The study supports the idea that a second migration out of Africa led to the successful spread of Homo sapiens into Europe, Asia, and later the Americas.

The researchers published their findings in the journal <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-019-11213-w">Nature Communications</a>.

--

By <a href="mailto:kayvandette@gmail.com">Kay Vandette</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer 

Main Image Credit: Shutterstock/Masarik

What the skull of our oldest Homo sapien ancestor looked like

Homo sapiens first arose in Africa around 300,000 years ago,...

Huge collection of Neanderthal footprints offer clues about their social behavior. The largest known collection of <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/early-neanderthals-europe/">Neanderthal</a> tracks is giving scientists new insight into the size and composition of social groups 80,000 years ago. Hundreds of Neanderthal footprints were discovered in an archaeological site in Normandy across what is now a coastal creek bed.

A team of experts led by Jérémy Duveau of the <a href="https://www.tripadvisor.com/Attraction_Review-g187147-d189241-Reviews-National_Museum_of_Natural_History-Paris_Ile_de_France.html">National Museum of Natural History</a> in Paris has meticulously analyzed the set of 257 fossilized footprints, finding that the tracks were preserved in dunes after they were rapidly covered up by sand. 

The conservation of this many footprints "requires sort of a miracle," said Duveau. Before this, he explained, only nine Neanderthal footprints were known from four different sites.

The tracks represent one of the only sites to reveal specific information about Neanderthal social groups. The size of the footprints, as well as eight handprints, indicate that most of them were left behind by children and adolescents. The youngest child was likely around two years old.

"By applying a morphometric method to a sample of fossil footprints made during a single brief occupation event, our analysis shows that they represent a small group with a majority of children and thus provides direct evidence of the composition of a Neandertal group," wrote the study authors.

The researchers noted that the size and shape of the ancient hominin prints are all consistent with those that would have been left behind by Neanderthals. The experts added that the tracks date back to a time in history when Neanderthals would have been the only hominin group in western Europe.

Stone tools that were uncovered at the site in northern France, known as Le Rozel, were similar to those found at other Neanderthal sites across Europe from around the same time. 

While no skeletal remains were found, Duveau said that the footprints "represent a unique snapshot of hominin life," providing a glimpse into past behavior that cannot usually be derived from body fossils or stone tools.

The study is published in the <a href="https://www.pnas.org/cgi/doi/10.1073/pnas.1901789116">Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences</a>. 

--

By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Image Credit: Dominique Cliquet

Huge collection of Neanderthal footprints offer clues about their social behavior

Huge collection of Neanderthal footprints offer clues about their social...

Investigation opened to see if NOAA violated policy by backing Trump on Dorian. Hurricane Dorian left a devastating path of destruction in the Bahamas, with 45 people now dead and thousands left homeless and seeking refuge. 

There is no doubt that Dorian hit the Bahamas the hardest, but Alabama, a state that the President had warned may be impacted by the storm, was left unscathed. 

Now, the acting chief scientist of the <a href="https://www.noaa.gov/">National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration </a>(NOAA) announced on Sunday in an email that he is investigating the agency’s response to President Trump’s claims about Dorian and Alabama. 

On September 1st, the President tweeted that Alabama would be “hit much harder than anticipated.” The claim was surprising because forecasts at the time showed minimal risk of Dorian impacting Alabama at all and the <a href="https://www.weather.gov/">National Weather Service’s</a> projections showed that the state was not in the forecasted path of the Hurricane. 

The President’s tweet was quickly refuted by a tweet issued by the <a href="https://twitter.com/NWSBirmingham/status/1168179647667814400">National Weather Service </a>stating that Alabama would not see any impacts from the storm. 

The uncertainty didn’t end there as headlines soon reported a seemingly doctored Dorrian forecast with a <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/weather/2019/09/04/president-trump-shows-doctored-hurricane-chart-was-it-cover-up-alabama-twitter-flub/">sharpie</a> extending the Hurricane’s path into Alabama, despite the danger to the state being null at the time. 

This set off a chain reaction of uncertainty and confusion, muddled even more by a statement issued by the NOAA on Friday that reportedly backed the President in his claims that Dorian was a threat to Alabama at the time of the tweet. 

The NOAA reprimanded the National Weather Service in the statement. 

“The Birmingham National Weather Service’s Sunday morning tweet spoke in absolute terms that were inconsistent with probabilities from the best forecast products available at the time,” the NOAA wrote in the statement. Investigation opened to see if NOAA violated policy by backing Trump on Dorian

Now, Craig McLean, the NOAA acting chief scientist has questions about that statement and why it was even issued in the first place. 

According to the <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/weather/2019/09/09/noaas-chief-scientist-will-investigate-why-agency-backed-trump-over-its-experts-dorian-email-shows/">Washington Post</a>, which obtained the email sent to NOAA staff by McLean, the chief scientists said that the rebuttal to the National Weather Service was “political” and jeopardized the public. 

“The NWS Forecaster(s) corrected any public misunderstanding in an expert and timely way, as they should,” McLean wrote in the email. “There followed, last Friday, an unsigned news release from ‘NOAA’ that inappropriately and incorrectly contradicted the NWS forecaster. My understanding is that this intervention to contradict the forecaster was not based on science but on external factors including reputation and appearance, or simply put, political.”

The fact that there were contradictory weather forecasts is a problem because the NOAA and the NWS are considered extremely reliable and accurate sources for weather predictions and if the agencies are placing politics over science, it puts the public’s trust and safety at risk. 

--

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: Shutterstock/lavizzara

Investigation opened to see if NOAA violated policy by backing Trump on Dorian

Investigation opened to see if NOAA violated policy by backing...

New research from the <a href="http://www.ox.ac.uk/">University of Oxford</a> is the first of its kind to link the consumption of poultry to an increased risk of blood cancer, as well as prostate cancer among men. In the study, thousands of cancer cases were associated with <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/age-chicken/">chicken</a> intake.

"Poultry intake was positively associated with risk for malignant melanoma, prostate cancer and non-Hodgkin's lymphoma," wrote the researchers.

The investigation was focused on 475,000 British residents who were tracked for a period of eight years from 2006 to 2014. The diets of the individuals were analyzed in comparison to their health conditions, particularly any illnesses that were suffered.

Over the study period, 23,000 new cancer cases were confirmed among the participants. Higher rates of chicken consumption were found to correspond with malignant melanoma, lymphoma, and prostate cancer.

Because the researchers only looked for associations between chicken intake and certain types of cancer, the underlying mechanisms were not identified. However, a number of factors were noted that may contribute to this link. 

For example, chicken meat itself may contain a carcinogen, or cancer risk may be elevated depending on how the chicken is cooked.

Previous studies have found that red meat can increase the risk of breast, prostate, and colorectal cancer due to how the blood from the meat product is digested. 

Prior to the current study, chicken was widely considered to be a healthy alternative to red meat. In addition, research conducted in the United States earlier this year found that women who switched to poultry from beef, lamb, or pork were almost 30 percent less likely to get breast tumors.

The Oxford researchers concluded that the positive associations of poultry intake with prostate cancer and non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma require further investigation.

The study is published in the <a href="https://jech.bmj.com/">Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health</a>.

--

By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Image Credit: Shutterstock/vaivirga

Poultry consumption linked to prostate cancer and lymphoma

New research from the University of Oxford is the first...

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



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



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



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



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



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



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



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



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



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

Is chocolate the next nutritional powerhouse?

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

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



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



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



Video/ Image Credit: ESA



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

Nushagak Bay in southwest Alaska

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



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



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



Video/ Image Credit: American Chemical Society&nbsp;



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



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

Flu viruses are more flexible than expected

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

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



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



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



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



Video/Image Credit: ESA&nbsp;



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

Lake Trasimeno in Central Italy

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



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



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



Video Credit: American Chemical Society&nbsp;



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



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

Detecting mercury contamination with the tap of a finger

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Today’s Video of the Day from the <a href="https://www.acs.org/">American Chemical Society</a> explores the ability of salt to transform the way that foods and beverages taste. Salt is known to cover up undesirable flavors, such as bitterness in coffee or beer, but how exactly does sodium chloride change the taste of other compounds?



One previous study showed that, not only does salt suppress bitterness, but also enhances sweetness and sourness. Another study revealed that bitterness reduction by salt seems to be happening at the tongue receptor level as well as in the brain.&nbsp;



While it is known that salt taste is mediated by the presence of sodium channels in the form of taste buds, experts believe that there is also an unknown receptor responsible for how we taste salt that has not yet been identified.&nbsp;



Video Credit: ACS Reactions



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



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

How does salt makes things taste better?

[sendtonews key="X0f6OHYoI4-2310561-12187" type="single"] Today’s Video of the Day from the...

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Today’s Video of the Day from the <a href="https://www.esa.int/">European Space Agency</a> features Santiago, the capital city of Chile. The city is located in the center of the Santiago Metropolitan Region, which has a population of about eight million people.&nbsp;



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



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



Video/ Image Credit: ESA



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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.

Santiago, Chile in South America

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

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

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



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



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



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



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



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



Video Credit: Johns Hopkins&nbsp;



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



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

Interactive map of the universe includes 200,000 galaxies

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

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



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



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



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



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



Video Credit: ESA&nbsp;&nbsp;



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



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



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



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



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



Video Credit: ESA&nbsp;



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



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

The city of Dublin on Ireland's east coast

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



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



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



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



Video/ Image Credit: ESA



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



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

The province of Zaragoza in northeast Spain

[sendtonews key="oL4FnPTGCV-2384527-12187" type="single"] Today's Video of the Day from the...

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



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



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



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



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



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



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



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



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



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



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

The rapid retreat of the Columbia Glacier

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

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



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



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



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



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



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



Video &amp; Image Credit: ESA



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



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

The Pyrenees Mountains in southwest Europe

[sendtonews key="6HyfrAJTBI-1831843-12187" type="single"] Today’s Video of the Day from the...

Earth,Like,Exoplanet,3d,Render

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Today's Video of the Day from <a href="https://www.nasa.gov/goddard">NASA Goddard</a> describes two exoplanets that are orbiting a star 218 light-years away. A team of researchers led by the University of Montreal has found evidence that these planets are "water worlds."



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



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



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



Video Credit: NASA Goddard



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



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



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

Two distant planets may be "water worlds"

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

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



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



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



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



Video Credit: NASA Goddard&nbsp;



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



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

Satellites reveal how Earth's systems are interconnected

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

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



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



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



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



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



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



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



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

Tiger sharks are shifting poleward as temperatures rise

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

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



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



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



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



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



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



Video Credit: ESA&nbsp;



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



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

Melt ponds on the Greenland Ice Sheet

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



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



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



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



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



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



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



Video Credit: ESA



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



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

The history of Mars is much more complex than we thought

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



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



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



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



Video Credit: Stowers Institute for Medical Research



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



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

Cavefish are healthy despite their sedentary lifestyle

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



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



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



Video Credit: NASA Earth Observatory&nbsp;



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



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

Satellites capture the world's biggest and fastest waves

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