For centuries, desert travelers have relied on oases as life-giving sanctuaries. These pockets of green have sustained communities, fueled trade, and sparked imaginations. Yet, <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/thriving-reefs-oases-corals/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">oases</a> are under pressure. New research exposes the delicate balance between human intervention and natural forces such as <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/pastoralists-desertification-sahara/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">desertification</a> shaping the fate of these vital ecosystems.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-what-is-an-oasis">What is an oasis?</h2>



An oasis isn't simply a desert mirage. It's a distinct, well-defined area where vegetation thrives, contrasting sharply with the surrounding arid landscapes. This extraordinary phenomenon is made possible by a dependable water source, which could be:



<ul>
<li>Groundwater:&nbsp;Underground water that reaches the surface, creating a natural spring or well.</li>



<li>Mountain runoff:&nbsp;Water from rain or melting snow that flows down from higher elevations, gathering in low-lying desert areas.</li>
</ul>



Despite covering only a tiny fraction (around 1.5%) of our planet's land area, oases play a disproportionately important role. They provide essential resources and support around 10% of the world's population, offering a lifeline in otherwise harsh, dry environments.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-human-efforts-to-expand-oasis">Human efforts to expand oasis</h2>



Recent research offers a surprising insight into the changing nature of oases. Counterintuitively, between 1995 and 2020, the total area of oases worldwide increased by a staggering 85,000 square miles. While this might seem like a positive development, there's a crucial caveat. 



The majority of this expansion is not a natural phenomenon but the result of deliberate human intervention. Here's how it happens:



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-large-scale-irrigation-projects">Large-scale irrigation projects</h3>



Governments and private entities embark on ambitious projects to divert water from rivers, lakes, or drill deep wells to tap into underground aquifers. This water is then channeled into desert regions, transforming them into artificially-created oases.



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-water-intensive-agriculture">Water-intensive agriculture</h3>



The primary objective of many artificial <a href="https://www.earth.com/image/heart-shaped-oasis-on-the-nile-river/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">oases</a> is to support agriculture in otherwise barren areas. This involves growing crops that may not be naturally suited to arid environments, leading to high water demands.



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-urbanization-and-development">Urbanization and development</h3>



In some cases, artificial oases are created to support urban growth or industrial development in desert regions. These projects often require substantial and ongoing water resources.



However, the crucial issue with artificial oasis expansion lies in its potential unsustainability. These projects often rely on water sources that are either finite or overexploited. 



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-desertification-and-oases">Desertification and oases</h2>



On the flip side, a relentless process called <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthpedia-articles/desertification/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">desertification</a> poses a severe threat to oases. Desertification is the gradual transformation of fertile land into barren desert, often caused by factors such as climate change, overgrazing, and unsustainable water use. Desertification has led to the loss of approximately 52,000 square miles of oases during the same 25-year period.



“Although the scientific community has always emphasized the importance of oases, there has not been a clear map of the global distribution of oases,” said Dongwei Gui, a geoscientist at the <a href="https://english.cas.cn" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Chinese Academy of Science</a> who led the study.



“Oasis research has both theoretical and practical significance for achieving United Nations Sustainable Development Goals and promoting sustainable development in arid regions.”



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-net-result-of-desertification-precarious-oases-growth">Net result of desertification: Precarious oases growth</h2>



At first glance, the expansion of oases might seem like a promising development – a victory against harsh desert conditions. However, a closer examination paints a far more complex and worrying picture. While the total area of oases has increased by approximately 33,400 square miles, this net growth masks a deeper problem. 



Much of the recent growth in oasis areas is a direct result of artificial expansion projects. These human-made oases mask simultaneous losses of natural oases due to <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/sand-and-dust-storms-have-become-unpredictable-and-dangerous/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">desertification</a>.



Many artificial oases depend on unsustainable water practices. This includes tapping into rapidly depleting groundwater sources or diverting water from ecosystems that rely on those rivers or lakes for their own survival. It's a trade-off, sacrificing one area for the short-term growth of another.



This reliance on unsustainable water use casts a long shadow on the future of these oases. As water resources dwindle and ecosystems are disrupted, the artificial expansion will become increasingly difficult to maintain. The very existence of these oases becomes precarious.



The net growth figure, while seemingly positive, hides a troubling reality. It underscores the delicate and vulnerable nature of these ecosystems and raises serious questions about whether this artificial expansion is simply a short-term solution with potentially devastating long-term consequences.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-why-do-we-save-oases-from-desertification">Why do we save oases from desertification?</h2>



Oases serve as irreplaceable havens in the world's drylands. They:



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-provide-essential-water">Provide essential water</h3>



<ul>
<li>Drinking and domestic needs:&nbsp;Oases serve as primary water sources for communities living within them, fulfilling basic human needs.</li>



<li>Farming:&nbsp;Irrigation from oases enables agriculture even in arid regions, providing food and supporting local economies.</li>



<li>Livestock:&nbsp;Oases provide water to animals raised for sustenance or livelihood, crucial for pastoral and nomadic populations.</li>



<li>Industry and development:&nbsp;Some oases support small-scale industries or other development projects that depend on access to water.</li>
</ul>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-support-biodiversity">Support biodiversity</h3>



<ul>
<li>Unique habitats:&nbsp;Oases create distinct micro-ecosystems within harsh desert environments, allowing specialized plants and animals to flourish.</li>



<li>Endemic species:&nbsp;Some oases harbor plants and animals found nowhere else on Earth, contributing to global biodiversity.</li>



<li>Migratory stopovers:&nbsp;Oases act as vital resting and refueling points for migratory birds and other wildlife traveling through arid regions.</li>
</ul>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-offer-resilience-against-climate-change">Offer resilience against climate change</h3>



<ul>
<li>Buffers against drought:&nbsp;Oases can provide water and sustenance during extended periods of drought, offering respite to both people and wildlife.</li>



<li>Microclimates:&nbsp;The vegetation and water presence in oases can create slightly cooler and more humid conditions locally, mitigating the harshness of the desert climate.</li>



<li>Adaptation strategies:&nbsp;Traditional oasis management practices may offer valuable lessons for adapting to water scarcity and climate change in wider regions.</li>
</ul>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-oases-are-under-attack-on-multiple-fronts">Oases are under attack on multiple fronts </h2>



<ul>
<li>Overexploitation of groundwater:&nbsp;As discussed, excessive pumping of groundwater for irrigation or other needs can deplete aquifers faster than they naturally recharge, endangering the long-term survival of the oasis.</li>



<li>Climate change:&nbsp;Rising temperatures increase evaporation rates, making water scarcity even more severe. Changing rainfall patterns can disrupt the delicate water balance that sustains oases.</li>



<li>Loss of glaciers:&nbsp;Glacier meltwater is a lifeline for many oases. As glaciers retreat due to climate change, this essential water source diminishes, threatening the oasis's future.</li>
</ul>



“While higher temperatures increase glacier melt, temporarily boosting oases’ water supplies, as glaciers gradually disappear, the yield of meltwater will eventually decrease, leading to the shrinkage of oases once again,” Gui said.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-oases-and-desertification">Oases and desertification</h2>



The delicate state of our oases demands a transformative approach. Here's what we can do:



<ul>
<li>Sustainable water management:&nbsp;Promote water conservation, efficient irrigation techniques, and find ways to replenish groundwater sources.</li>



<li>Ecological land use:&nbsp;Halt destructive practices like overgrazing and support traditional land management that works in harmony with nature.</li>



<li>International cooperation:&nbsp;Many rivers cross borders, and oases depend on them. Countries must work together to protect vital water resources.</li>
</ul>



“Due to the unique mechanism of oasis formation, a river basin often nurtures multiple oases across several countries, making transboundary cooperation key to addressing water scarcity and promoting sustainable development,” Gui said.



Oases represent extraordinary resilience. In the face of harsh conditions, they offer life and beauty. Yet, their future hangs in the balance. By understanding the intricate dynamics shaping them and embracing sustainable practices, we have the power to safeguard these fragile wonders for generations to come.



The study is published in the journal <a href="https://agupubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1029/2023EF004086" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Earth's Future</a>.



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Oases face severe threats from desertification

For centuries, desert travelers have relied on oases as life-giving sanctuaries. These pockets of green have sustained communities, fueled trade, and sparked imaginations. Yet, oases are under pressure. New research exposes the delicate balance between human intervention and natural forces such as desertification shaping the fate of these vital ecosystems. What is an oasis? An oasis isn't simply a desert mirage. It's a distinct, well-defined area where vegetation thrives, contrasting sharply with the surrounding arid landscapes. This extraordinary phenomenon is made possible by a dependable water source,...

It’s no surprise that a diet high in fat can cause a number of health issues, both short- and long-term. For years, scientists have stressed the importance of supplementing your diet with plenty of fruits and vegetables. Now, a new study has found that a hormone in plants may reverse the brain damage caused by a high-fat diet.

Researchers from <a href="https://www.uji.es/">Jaume I University</a> in Castelló de la Plana, Spain, fed mice a fatty diet, causing them to develop inflammation of the nervous system – similar to what happens in Alzheimer’s patients. However, after the mice had their diets supplemented with abscisic acid – a plant hormone – the damage was reversed. It is believed that abscisic acid reduces inflammation in the region of the <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/brain-scans-skill-level/">brain</a> that is responsible for storing memories.

The study – published in the journal <a href="https://link.springer.com/journal/12035">Molecular Neurobiology</a> – assessed how insulin levels and expression of genes associated with inflammation in the nervous system were affected in mice. They found that the rodents who consumed a fatty diet had reduced expression of an insulin receptor in the hippocampus. The hippocampus is a region of the brain associated with emotions and memory – in particular, long-term memories.

“We have been able to prove that the expression of proteins required for the proper functioning of insulin decreases in neuro-inflammatory situations induced by a high-fat diet,” says study author Alberto Ribes Navarro. But when the researchers supplemented the rodents’ diets with abscisic acid, the inflammation was reversed. “With the addition of abscisic acid to the high-fat diet it is possible to recover the expression of these genes, even reaching normal levels,” adds Ribes Navarro.

In plants, abscisic acid plays a role in seed development, flower growth, and improving plant tolerance to harsh conditions – such as drought and cold. 

Moving forward, the researchers plan to investigate the common causes of diseases like dementia and insulin resistance (type 2 diabetes), as inflammation of the nervous system is linked to both insulin resistance and dementia. 

--

By <a href="mailto:certz@earth.com">Connor Ertz</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Brain damage from a fatty diet reversed using hormone from plants

It’s no surprise that a diet high in fat can...

Researchers from the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Naval_Undersea_Warfare_Center">US Naval Undersea Warfare Center</a> have discovered that when marine algae produce gas bubbles during photosynthesis, a distinctive ringing noise is released. The study also revealed that the intensity of the sound coincides with the degree of algal cover on coral reefs.

The findings of the investigation, which was led by husband-and-wife team Simon and Lauren Freeman, may ultimately result in a fast and easy method of measuring algal cover. Across coral reefs, algal cover is one of the best indications of stress.

Coral reefs generate a lot of noise from sources such as water movement and marine life. A previous study by Lauren Freeman identified a component of the underwater soundscape that correlated with the abundance of macroalgae present over the reef. The mechanism underlying the noise, however, remained a mystery. 

In the current study, the researchers set out to determine whether or not the sounds may be emanating from the algae themselves. The analysis was focused on sound emissions from a tank of the Hawaiian invasive algae, Salicornia gracilaria. 

The ringing noise, which ranged from two to 20 kiloHertz, was found to be produced as gas bubbles oscillated and formed spherical shapes in the water. The sounds matched the noise range of oceanic <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/rehabilitating-coral-reefs/">coral reefs</a>.

“We discovered that algae make sound by first listening to coral reefs, and finding a link between what we heard and how much algae had smothered the coral,” said Simon Freeman. “Intrigued, we performed experiments with algae in tanks to verify the source, and how the sounds made by algae contributed to coral reef soundscapes."

The study is published in the journal <a href="https://journals.plos.org/plosone/">PLOS ONE</a>.

--

By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Image Credit: Simon Freeman

Gas bubbles produce a distinctive sound during photosynthesis

Researchers from the US Naval Undersea Warfare Center have discovered...

The trade of illegal animals remains a pervasive global issue impacting a wide array of species that also gets a good deal of media attention.  I’ve walked through the forest in the Bahamas to a parrot nest site where we were collecting data only to find the parrot chicks taken to be sold as pets.  I’ve seen monitor lizards barely alive, crowded together in mesh bags at western African bush meat markets. The illegal trade in animals alive as pets or dead as food or ornament is certainly sickening.  

Poaching is on the rise.  The <a href="https://www.worldwildlife.org/threats/illegal-wildlife-trade">WWF</a> cites and increase in <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/southern-white-rhinoceros-calf/">rhino</a> poaching in South Africa of 7,700% from 2007 to 2013. That’s a rise in poached individuals from 13 to 1,004.  <a href="https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2016/09/fighting-illegal-wildlife-and-forest-trade/">The World Economic Forum</a> says that the illegal wildlife trade is a $23 billion industry.  Many people have waded into the screaming match over what is becoming of wildlife, especially African wildlife.  Outrage was widespread over the baiting and killing of <a href="https://abcnews.go.com/International/cecil-lion-baited-killed-book-alleges/story?id=53528189">Cecil the lion</a>.  But there is another illegal trade that is also destroying our planet and its wild places that is less talked about.  Many people may not even be aware at all that plants are also being sold on the black market.

I myself had never considered much the plight of pilfered plants until I read <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Orchid-Thief-Obsession-Ballantine-Readers/dp/044900371X">The Orchid Thief</a> by Susan Orlean.  The book is a personal story, highlighting the contradictory and twisted narratives of those involved in buying and selling orchids, sometimes illegally.  The story is interesting and thought provoking but the problems it highlights are deep and global. <a href="http://www.illegalwildlifetrade.net/2017/08/31/cites-international-plant-trade/">IllegalWildlifeTrade</a> reports that there were 220 illegal plant seizures made in 2016 at Heathrow Airport in London alone. 

<a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2016/11/28/us/venus-flytraps-poaching-north-carolina.html">The New York Times</a> reported in 2016 on the trade of illegal Venus Flytraps (Dionaea muscipula) in the Carolinas.  In the wild the Venus Flytrap now only grows in a 75 mile radius from Wilmington North Carolina.  The plant was first described in 1760 by the colonial governor and been protected in the state since 1956.  State permits are available to collect Venus Flytraps on private land but poachers don’t stop there. Public lands are slowly being picked of Venus Flytraps all to sell the plants illegally for about 25 cents each.  Sergeant Dean of North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission told The New York Times that as many as 1 to 2,000 plants can be collected at one time.  These are serious numbers when as the Nature Conservancy estimates, there could only be as many of 35,000 Venus Flytraps left in the wild.  Even nurseries have been robbed in the criminal mania over the rare plants. 

Much like many of the Orchids and all Venus Flytraps, wild ginseng grows in the hot and humid landscape of the southeastern United States.  In Great Smoky Mountain National Park, ginseng has been poached and sod at up to hundreds of dollars a pound in Asian markets. Billy Joe Hurley of North Carolina has been convicted at least five times of poaching ginseng from the National Park, <a href="https://www.smithsonianmag.com/science-nature/fight-against-ginseng-poaching-great-smoky-mountains-180958858/">Smithsonian</a> reports.  

American Ginseng has long been used as a medicine by Native Americans.  French missionaries realizing the similarity between the American ginseng and the Asian ginseng introduced the American plant to Asia and soon sold the plant at a profit.  The ginseng trade became a reasonable way to make some profit for relatively poor farmers in the area. Wild plants are more valuable to sell than those raised in captivity and so collecting the plant in the wild, even illegally continues.  Ginseng is said to have many properties, including an immune booster, a mild stimulant and the ability to turn itself invisible to the unworthy collector. One of the more down to earth properties of ginseng is that the picky plant is an indicator of good forest health.  From 1992 to 2016, a lab working with Great Smoky Mountain National Park received 15,000 illegally harvested ginseng roots from the National Park. 

Asia has created a market for all sorts of illegal wildlife products.  Besides ginseng, parts of tigers, rhinoceros, pangolin even narwhal and other species are used in traditional medicine.  Recently there’s been a growing trend in China and Korea for the demand of succulents. Succulents are plants that usually have fleshy parts for the retention of water, an adaptation to the arid conditions they grow in.  Botany and horticulture use the term succulent differently, especially in reference to cacti but as many as 25 plant families have succulent members in them. 

Aloe as in the plant source of that gel you might smear across a nasty sunburn, is one of the more famous succulents.  Succulents of the Dudleya genus consist of 45 species found in the southwestern United States.  The genus is widespread but may be slowly disappearing in California. <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2018/apr/27/stolen-succulents-california-hipster-plants-at-center-of-smuggling-crisis">The Guardian</a> reported in April of this year that there were five busts of poachers trying to smuggle and sell Californian succulents in Asia.  The busts consisted of 3,500 poached Dudleya sp. succulents.  Five inch succulents can sell for $40-$50 in China or Korea.  The trend in succulents among Chinese and Korean consumers seems to be just getting underway, the future of these plants remains uncertain.  It also seems bizarre that a succulent, something easily purchased in any Home Depot or Walmart garden center would be part of an illegal smuggling operation.  

Probably the most well-known example of illegal plant trading is the sale of exotic hard woods and other illegal logging operations.  Illegal logging can threaten everything from the wintering grounds of Monarch butterflies in Mexico to rare hardwood trees cut down in Madagascar.  <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2016/sep/29/wildlife-summit-cracks-down-on-illegal-rosewood-trade">The Guardian</a> reports that China once again is fueling a trade in illegal plants, this time for rosewood furniture.  In 2016 a Convention on the Trade in Endangered Species (CITES) placed all 300 species of rosewood under trade restrictions, to eliminate any ambiguity as to the legality of a wood product.  The UN says rosewood is the most trafficked wild product. The rosewood trade in 2016 was a $2.2 billion a year industry. It’s been reported that the trade in rosewood has led to the rise of international gangs that move from region to region, country to country poaching all of the rosewood available.  <a href="https://news.nationalgeographic.com/2017/08/wildlife-watch-illegal-logging-papua-new-guinea/">National Geographic</a> reports that American consumers aren’t blameless either.  Big home improvement stores sometimes sell illegal wood from places like Papua New Guinea to unwitting consumers.  Hardwood floors aren’t always sourced ethically or legally. 

The trade in plants just highlights the dark side of human nature and more to the point our western culture.  People rarely think about where products they use or desire come from and what the true cost is. From house plants and herbal remedies to furniture and flooring, we simply don’t seem to care what it means to the natural environment that foster our consumption.  Next time you buy a plant or a piece of wood, think about how it came to a store near you. 

--

By <a href="mailto:zachfitzner@yahoo.com">Zach Fitzner</a>, <a href="http://earth.com">Earth.com</a> Contributing Writer

Illegal plant trade persists globally, largely unchecked

The trade of illegal animals remains a pervasive global issue...

Earlier and warmer <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/baby-birds-hatch-late/">springs</a> may give plants a head start initially, but a new study has found it doesn’t benefit plant productivity or growth in the long run. 

Researchers from the <a href="https://www.leeds.ac.uk/">University of Leeds</a> recently conducted a study that questions climate models that include plant productivity to measure carbon capture. 

Previously it was theorized that if plants have a longer growing season, they’ll have longer to accumulate more biomass and store and process more carbon. 

The study, published in the journal Nature, shows that earlier springs due to climate change may cause an early boost in plant productivity but this degrades in the later summer and autumn months. 

Instead, current climate models underestimate the negative impacts an early, warm spring has on plant productivity. 

“Based on future climate predictions, warmer springs are set to become the standard,” said  Wolfgang Buermann, the lead author of the study. “There is a great need to make sure our models are accurately incorporating the effects of warmer springs on our ecosystems and how this, in turn, impacts climate change. Without this, we cannot accurately predict how global temperatures may continue to change, the effect this could have on weather or the potential threat to public health.”

The researchers examined 30 years worth of satellite images covering 41 million kilometers squares of land north of the 30th parallel on the globe. 

Having access to so much data allowed the researchers to survey greenness in the northern regions and assess the temperature, season, and green coverage across landscapes in the UK, Canada, Germany, France and Russia. 

The researchers were able to determine how much photosynthesis had taken place at a specific location and how much biomass was gained. 

“Northern regions have experienced substantial warming since the early 1970s, changing how many ecosystems function,” said Buermann. “There has been a limited understanding of the full impact of shorter winters and longer summers on plants until now. The availability of satellite images has allowed us to survey all of the world's northern regions and get a full picture of how plants are reacting to the shifting seasons.” 

After analyzing the different images, the researchers realized that the northern hemisphere is becoming greener and greener in the spring but in many areas plant productivity and biomass decreases in the later months. 

This limits how much carbon the plants in the area can capture, and the researchers suggest that even though the plants are starting to grow sooner, their growth cannot be sustained because there are limited water resources available as the months go on.

If warmer springs are soon to become standard for many parts of the world, it will be important to have accurate models projecting the future impacts that climate change will have on global vegetation.

--

By <a href="mailto:kayvandette@gmail.com">Kay Vandette</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Earlier springtime hinders seasonal plant growth

Earlier and warmer springs may give plants a head start...

A new berry may soon be coming to your supermarket thanks to gene editing technology.

Groundcherries are a little-known fruit native to Central and South America. With a distinct and delicious taste, groundcherries are well-loved by those who have been lucky enough to try them, but because they have remained undomesticated, the berry has yet to reach mainstream markets.

This makes the groundcherry an orphan crop, a group of plants that are grown locally in small-scale. Quinoa is a rare example of an orphan crop that can be found in supermarkets across the world, but most orphan crops are only known in their native regions.

Researchers from <a href="https://www.hhmi.org/">Howard Hughes Medical Institute</a> and the <a href="https://btiscience.org/">Boyce Thompson Institute</a> recently published a study outlining plans to make the groundcherry a feasible option for large-scale agricultural production.

According to the results, published in the journal Nature Plants, it’s now possible with gene editing and genomic research to take a wild plant and domesticate it in a matter of years.

“I firmly believe that with the right approach, the groundcherry could become a major berry crop,” said Zachary B. Lippman, an author of the study. “Some scientists might consider the idea a reach, he adds. “But I think we're now at a place where the technology allows us to reach.”

Groundcherries are drought tolerant and have a complex flavor, according to Lippman, which makes them an excellent candidate for large-scale production.

However, getting the plants to a place where they can be grown as a major crop through using traditional breeding methods would be a costly and time-consuming investment.

Instead, the researchers turned to gene editing to see if it was possible to speed up the domestication process for the groundcherry.

In order to domesticate the groundcherry, the researchers used genome sequencing, gene editing CRISPR technology, and gene identification to improve the plant.

As it’s grown now, the groundcherry needs to be more compact, with larger fruits and flowers and a more robust flavor to be more appealing to a mass market, according to the researchers.

This study is the first of its kind that showcases how genome editing could make orphan crops widely available.

The researchers say that some traditional plant breeding will be needed to make the groundcherry ready for large-scale production.

Exactly when the groundcherry will be available at your local supermarket, the researchers can’t say, but the study gives hope to creating new, innovative methods for improving crops and making orphan crops mainstream. 

--

By <a href="mailto:kayvandette@gmail.com">Kay Vandette</a>,<a href="https://www.earth.com/"> Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Image Credit: Sebastian Soyk

Little-known berry could become the next big fruit

A new berry may soon be coming to your supermarket...

An international research team led by <a href="http://www.anu.edu.au/">Australian National University</a> has found that the productivity of corn can be boosted by targeting the enzyme in charge of capturing <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/co2-emissions-cost-us-economy/">CO2</a> from the atmosphere.

Corn is a staple food for billions of people around the world, with more maize grown annually than rice or wheat. In Australia, maize takes up a lot of space geographically but is still a relatively small plant.

According to the new research, however,  maize has the potential to become the crop of the future for both fuel and food. 

“We developed a transgenic maize designed to produce more Rubisco, the main enzyme involved in photosynthesis, and the result is a plant with improved photosynthesis and hence, growth. This could potentially increase tolerance to extreme growth conditions,” said study lead author Dr. Robert Sharwood.

“There is an urgent need to deliver new higher-yielding and highly adapted crop species, before crops are affected by the expected climate change conditions. These conditions will increase the threats against global food security, and the only way to prepare for them is through international research collaborations.”

All plants use photosynthesis to capture carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, but this is not always done in the same way. Plants like wheat and rice use the less efficient C3 photosynthetic path, while other plants such as maize use the more efficient C4 path.


Rubisco is the main enzyme of photosynthesis which controls the conversion of CO2 into organic compounds. In C4 plants, Rubisco works much faster and is much more resilient. 

“Maize has one of the most efficient Rubiscos and they need less nitrogen to work,” said study co-author David Stern. “So, our main question was, if we increase Rubisco content in maize, what would it do for the plant? We found that by boosting Rubisco inside the maize cells, we get an increase in crop productivity.”

This discovery shows that, even in the more productive C4 crop species, there is room for improvement.

“In our study we improved CO2 assimilation and crop biomass by 15%, but now we know that we can also increase the pool of active Rubisco and these numbers will increase even higher,” said Dr. Sharwood.

“Our next step is to do field trials to see how our maize behaves in real field conditions. We have tested them in glasshouse and cabinet conditions, but now we need to go into the next phase.”

The study is published in the journal <a href="http://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

New discovery could increase the productivity, resilience of corn

An international research team led by Australian National University has...

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA

A new study has revealed that some invasive plant species are helping ecosystems absorb more “blue carbon,” which is <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/carbon-storage-ocean-floor/">carbon</a> that is stored in salt marshes, mangroves, and seagrasses along the coast. The introduction of invasive animal species, on the other hand, can have the exact opposite effect. 

While blue carbon has been discussed in terms of climate change, the subject has not been explored much regarding invasive species. Study lead author Ian Davidson is a marine invasions biologist at the Smithsonian Environmental Research Center (SERC).

“We were aware of the effects of invasions on other facets of these habitats, but this was the first time we really delved into blue carbon storage,” said Davidson. 

The research is the first of its kind to look exclusively at marine habitats when addressing the issue of invasions and carbon storage. Previous studies on carbon storage have focused primarily on terrestrial environments such as forests. 

However, marshes and mangroves can store carbon at a rate that is up to 40 times faster than forests. Biologists estimate that the world has lost anywhere from 25 to 50 percent of its blue carbon habitats in the last century, with an additional 8,000 square kilometers vanishing every year. 

As policymakers work to mitigate both climate change and the impacts of invasive species, a better understanding of blue carbon ecosystems has become urgent.

“It's now part of global climate change solutions to get carbon credits in forests,” said study co-author and SERC marine biologist Christina Simkanin. “But for blue-carbon habitats, the marine version, that has been slower to materialize.”

The research team gathered data from 104 different studies, involving 345 comparisons around the world. Each study compared an invaded blue-carbon ecosystem to a similar uninvaded one. 

The scientists used the data to calculate how much plant-based biomass or soil carbon changed at each site in the presence of an invasive species.

The study revealed that when the most powerful plants invaded, biomass skyrocketed. These invaders more than doubled an ecosystem's biomass and potential to store carbon.

“When you have these essentially ‘ecosystem engineers’ come into the system, not only are they helping build habitat, they seem to be doing it more aggressively and more efficiently,” said Davidson.


On the other hand, when plants like algae invaded and took over, biomass fell by more than a third. In addition, invasive animal species cut biomass nearly in half, leaving ecosystems much less effective as blue-carbon sinks.

“Introduced animals are essentially going in there eating, trampling, cutting and destroying biomass,” Davidson explained.

Salt marshes were found to get the biggest biomass boost from their invaders - by an average of about 91 percent. The study authors pointed out that they found very limited research available on seagrasses and mangroves, and that salt marshes made up a huge portion of the data they were able to analyze. 

Study co-author Grace Cott concluded: “Ecosystem managers will be faced with a decision to eradicate or control invasive species. The information contained in this study can help managers make decisions if carbon storage is a function they want to enhance.”

The study is published in the journal <a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/journal/13652486?systemMessage=Wiley+Online+Library+will+be+disrupted+on+27+October+from+10%3A00-12%3A00+BST+%2805%3A00-07%3A00+EDT%29+for+essential+maintenance">Global Change Biology</a>.

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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

Image Credit: Gary Peresta/Smithsonian Environmental Research Center

Some invasive plant species help store more blue carbon

A new study has revealed that some invasive plant species...

Scientists seek use for plant byproduct of biofuels. Lignin, a difficult-to-use plant byproduct, has long presented a challenge to the growing biofuel industry.

Now, a new study points to a possible breakthrough that could let scientists burn past that obstacle.

A team of scientists at the <a href="https://www.wisc.edu/">University of Wisconsin-Madison</a>, <a href="https://www.glbrc.org/">Great Lakes Bioenergy Research Center</a> and <a href="https://cbi.ornl.gov/">Center for Bioenergy Innovation</a> have stumbled onto a new type of lignin that could turn the plant byproduct from a nuisance to a building block for a range of bioproducts. Scientists seek use for plant byproduct of biofuels

As <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/study-reveals-how-the-tips-of-plants-block-viruses/">plants</a> are turned into fuel, one of the most pervasive byproducts is lignin. The fibrous material is difficult to convert into something more useful, because most types of the plant byproduct contain several different types of monomers, or lignin molecules. Because of this, the molecules often become malformed in the process of extracting fuel.

But C-lignin – short for catechyl lignin – only has one type of monomer, which means that it stands up better to the process of turning plants into fuel. C-lignin was discovered by Dr. Richard Dixon of CBI in cactus seeds, and can also be found in the coating of vanilla seeds.

Not only did the plant material hold up better under the biofuel process, it also withstood chemical pre-treatment better than other types of lignin.

"Even the weakest of acid or alkali treatments destroys other lignin, but every time I checked the C-lignin after a reaction, it was almost entirely intact," UW-Madison graduate student Yanding Li said in a press release about the discovery. "We can then create a good quality monomer in high yield for use as a platform chemical."

The find is a huge step forward for making biofuel production more efficient and less wasteful. Until now, some industries – paper factories, for example – have been burning lignin because it’s too difficult to use easily.

C-lignin’s uniform nature makes the plant byproduct much easier to work with.

"The regular and linear nature of this lignin, combined with the relatively simple chemistry to depolymerize it, makes producing high yields of simple monomers fairly straightforward," co-author Dr. John Ralph of UW-Madison said.

The research has been published in the journal <a href="http://advances.sciencemag.org/">Scientific Advances</a>.

Scientists seek use for plant byproduct of biofuels

Scientists seek use for plant byproduct of biofuels. Lignin, a...

A survey of over 3,000 high school students has revealed that most 10th-graders who have tried <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/medical-marijuana-chronic-nerve-pain/">cannabis</a> have used the drug in more than one form, including products that were combustible, edible, or vaporized.

Many people associate marijuana with smoking a joint or smoking out of a pipe, which are forms of combustible marijuana use. There are also noncombustible types of marijuana use, such as eating an edible or inhaling vapor.

Research has shown that cannabis use in adolescents is associated with an increased risk of impaired cognitive development, lower educational attainment, and chronic use throughout adulthood. 

As more states are legalizing both medical and recreational cannabis, there is an increasing normalization of cannabis use in society. The abundance of new cannabis products is raising concerns about pediatric health.

The research team, which was led by Dr. Adam M. Leventhal of the University of Southern California <a href="https://keck.usc.edu/">Keck School of Medicine</a>, surveyed 3,177 10th-graders at ten Los Angeles area high schools from January to October 2015. 

The participants self-reported on their sex, race, and socioeconomic status; if they had ever used marijuana; past 30-day use of cannabis; and the frequency of use in past 30 days of combustible, edible, and vaporized cannabis.

Out of the 33.9 percent of 10th-graders who reported using cannabis, combustible products were used the most, followed by cannabis products that were edible or vaporized. The study also revealed that 61.7 percent of 10th-graders who had ever used marijuana had tried more than one cannabis product.

It is not clear whether the 10th-graders who used two or more different cannabis products first used noncombustible products and then transitioned to combustible cannabis or vice versa. The survey also did not distinguish between the potency, strain, or types of cannabis products.

The study is published in the journal <a href="https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamanetworkopen">JAMA Network Open</a>.

--

By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Most teens who use cannabis have tried different types

A survey of over 3,000 high school students has revealed...

The public has an appetite for the darker side of nature. Killer sharks, killer bees, killer snakes, just about anything that kills, especially when people or their pets are the victims. 

Though the credulity that gives these sensationalized stories traction is often frustrating to conservationists, who rightly point out that when they are accurate at all, they represent extremely rare events, the tendency is an understandable one. 

In a time when many peoples’ day to day life is almost completely divorced from the natural world and the dangers it may entail, the frisson of fear that these tales inspire brings us back to the savannah from whence we came, a place where humans were in fact prey to other animals and regularly succumbed to the defensive strategies of snakes, scorpions, and insects. Coverage of shark attacks and coyotes grabbing helpless lap dogs from their owners’ arms remind us, at a comfortable remove, of the natural horrors that civilization keeps at bay.

It was thus no surprise when, in 2013, a story about a Chilean plant that supposedly impaled sheep on its razor-like leaves and nourished itself from their decaying carcasses like a sword-wielding Audrey II, went viral. Outlets from the <a href="https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2346407/Sheep-eating-plant-kills-animals-spikes-set-flower-Surrey-garden-centre-time-15-years.html">Daily Mail</a> to the <a href="https://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/06/20/sheep-eating-plant-bloom-puya-chilensis-photos_n_3474003.html">Huffington Post</a> lapped up the salacious anecdote and so did their readers. 

It originated with a <a href="http://press.rhs.org.uk/RHS-Gardens/Press-releases/Sheep-Eating-Plant-Flowers-for-the-First-Time-at-R.aspx">press release</a> from the Royal Horticultural Society about a specimen of Puya chilensis, a large species of bromeliad native to the Chilean coastal mattoral (an ecosystem of dry mountain slopes). The plant was preparing to bloom for the first time at the RHS’s garden at Wisley after having taken 15 years to mature. According to the RHS, the plant was known for trapping sheep in its admittedly intimidating spines; this was supposedly an indication of carnivorous tendencies. When the ensnared animal died, its rotting corpse served as the “grisly equivalent of a bag of fertiliser.” The press release further explained that shepherds in the Puya’s native Chile were known to burn the plant to keep their sheep from becoming its victims. 

While that’s all very titillating, a bit of digging reveals that there is very little truth to the story. <a href="https://woollydays.wordpress.com/2013/06/22/puya-chilensis-media-fooled-by-sheep-eating-plant/">One blogger</a> spotted the absurdity right off, even querying the RHS about it. Though a spokesperson eventually responded with some sources verifying the plant’s taste for flesh, none appear to be particularly reliable. 

Further investigation casts even more doubt on this as a viable evolutionary strategy. The coastal slopes that P. chilensis inhabits in its native Chile do not host any native mammals of sheep size. In fact, there haven’t been any <a href="http://rchn.biologiachile.cl/pdfs/1987/2/Fuentes_et_al_1987.pdf">since the Pleistocene</a>. While more recently humans have indeed introduced <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/human-sheep-hybrids-organs/">sheep</a> and goats to the Chilean mattoral, these plants far predate their presence, thus puncturing any notions that they evolved to feed upon them. There are a number of smaller mammals that make these arid slopes their home, including the culpeo fox (Lycalopex culpaeus) and the degus (Octodon degus; Octodon lunatus) and they appear to be unharmed by their regular proximity to the plant. In fact, the moon-toothed degu (O. lunatus) is <a href="https://www.researchgate.net/publication/264541984_Activity_overlap_of_range_areas_and_sharing_of_resting_locations_in_the_moon-toothed_degu_Octodon_lunatus">known to rest</a> amongst the defensive spines. That would seem to be a risky strategy if the plant were in fact as blood-thirsty as it is said to be. 

The plant supports other animals as well, notably birds. Avifauna such as the giant hummingbird (Patagona gigas) and green-backed firecrown (Sephanoides sephaniodes) make use of the copious nectar produced by its lime-yellow blossoms, which brim with so much of the sweet substance than it can provide a mouthful to thirsty humans too. Chileans have found additional uses for this supposedly deadly plant. Along with other species of Puya, a genus containing over 100 plants, all native to South America, it is referred to by natives as chagual. The fibres from its grey-green leaves have historically been used to make fishing nets. And the tender internal leaves are chopped and eaten in salads. (Degus are also reported to favor these parts of the plant, further casting doubt on its carnivorous habits.) Sections of its flowering stems were once used as corks. And extracts of the leaf are employed as astringents.

The RHS wasn’t wrong, though, about P. chilensis’s slow and deliberate reproductive habits. The striking flowers do indeed take some 15 to 20 years to appear. Nonetheless, the plant itself is rather easy to cultivate in dry, well-drained soils, spreading by offsets and forming colonies in many botanical gardens. And for all the build up, the flowering period lasts a scant week. Once a specimen gets going though, its spectacular 6 to 12 foot flowering stalks do appear year after year. Several of its relatives are equally striking. P. berteroniana, another favorite of botanical gardens, produces towers of bluish-green flowers. And P. raimondii of Bolivia and Peru is the tallest plant in the bromeliad family. Its flowering stalks reach skyscraping heights of 50 feet.

While P. chilensis may not be the botanical savage it was marketed as, it is nonetheless a fascinating and gorgeous plant worthy of the attention of botanists and amateur plant enthusiasts alike. Supremely adapted to the harsh climes of the Chilean mountain slopes and boasting on otherworldly form evocative of cinematic alien landscapes, it is a natural wonder in no need of a bloody evolutionary backstory. 

--

By <a href="mailto:rtpallardy@gmail.com">Richard Pallardy</a>, <a href="http://earth.com">Earth.com</a> Contributing Writer

Image Credit: <a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/arripay/34381888044/in/photolist-sjKnJe-8ZdvKB-c1W3Dm-9B8MKp-47x2TK-9DYCeQ-K6HvYu-EHJgd6-wUtz18-wBQzo5-wSa7vy-Uodatb-on1Zy9-Dy4tvS">Tanya Hart</a>

The myth of the Chilean plant that supposedly murdered sheep

The public has an appetite for the darker side of...

A new study has found that planting trees outside low-achieving and disadvantaged schools may help improve academic performance for the students. 

Access to green spaces has been found to have many benefits for both physical and mental <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/neighborhood-greenspace-may-reduce-adolescent-aggressive-behavior/">health and wellbeing</a>. As we reported recently, nearby green areas have been shown to improve children’s <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/green-spaces-childrens-respiratory/">respiratory health</a> and drastically <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/quality-life-megacities-trees/">improve quality of life</a> in large cities.

Researchers from the <a href="https://aces.illinois.edu/">University of Illinois College of Agricultural, Consumer, and Environmental Sciences</a> conducted a study published in the journal Frontiers in Psychology to examine any potential links between greenness and academic achievement for schools with predominantly low income students. 318 public elementary schools in Chicago were included in the study. 

“The goal was to see if the greenness-academic achievement relationship holds for poor, urban schools because that's where it matters,” said Ming Kuo, the leader of the research. “That's where educators and policymakers are desperately trying to find ways to help kids reach their potential.”

High-resolution aerial imagery was used to quantify tree and grass cover for each school. The researchers then compared greenness to the academic performance for the schools using standardized test scores for math and reading. 

The researchers found that tree cover was a reliable predictor of academic performance, both for reading and math. If there were more trees, the better the standardized test scores were. 

Other factors like the number of students in each classroom, gender ratios, and the number of bilingual students had no impact on test scores or academic performance.

The results showed that having trees outside of a school impacted academic performance and the schools considered the most disadvantaged had half the number of trees as the least disadvantaged schools. 

While the study does not prove any cause and effect between tree cover and academic performance, it does suggest that simply planting more trees in schoolyards across disadvantaged districts,may improve academic performance. 

“Early math skills are one of the best predictors of later success, not just in math, but in school in general,” said Kuo. “So what we have here is a very exciting clue that maybe simply greening--planting trees in schoolyards--could potentially have a significant impact in math achievement and school success down the line for these kids. And you don't have to plaster the schoolyard with trees - just bringing schools up to average looks like it could have a substantial effect.”

--

By <a href="mailto:kayvandette@gmail.com">Kay Vandette,</a> <a href="https://www.earth.com/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer 

Image Credit: Melissa Oquendo

Planting trees at disadvantaged schools can improve performance

A new study has found that planting trees outside low-achieving...

Researchers at the <a href="https://www.bnl.gov/">U.S. Department of Energy's Brookhaven National Laboratory</a> have uncovered new details about the oil production process in plant cells. The discovery could ultimately lead to new methods of modifying plants to produce massive of amounts of oil that could be used as <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/europe-biofuel-deforestation-warming/">biofuels</a>.

A previous study led by Brookhaven Lab biochemist John Shanklin demonstrated a clear association between a sugar-signaling molecule called KIN10 and another protein that initiates oil production known as WRINKLED1. 

The researchers expanded upon this finding and discovered that by increasing sugar accumulation in plant leaves they could also boost oil production. The current study provides a better understanding of the link between sugar signaling and oil production by identifying the exact molecules underlying this connection. 

“If you were a cell, you'd want to know if you should be making new compounds or breaking existing ones down,” said Shanklin. “Making oil is demanding; you want to make it when you have lots of energy - which in cells is measured by the amount of sugar available. By understanding how the availability of sugar drives oil production, we hope to find ways to get plants to boost the priority of making oil.”

In the follow-up investigation, study first authors Zhiyang Zhai and Jantana Keereetaweep set out to determine how different molecular components interact to drive up oil production when sugar is abundant. The team used a new technique called microscale thermophoresis, which measure the strength of molecular interactions with great precision using fluorescent dyes and heat.

“You label the molecules with a fluorescent dye and measure how they move away from a heat source,” said Shanklin. “Then, if you add another molecule that binds to the labeled molecule, it changes the rate at which the labeled molecule moves away from the heat.”

Shanklin said the application of this emerging technique was the key to solving this particular research problem.

The levels of a molecule known as trehalose 6-phosphate (T6P) rise and fall with those of sugar. The study revealed that T6P interacts directly with the KIN10, and this binding interferes with KIN10's ability to shut off oil biosynthesis.

“By measuring the interactions among many different molecules, we determined that the sugar-signaling molecule, T6P, binds with KIN10 and interferes with its interaction with a previously unidentified intermediate in this process, known as GRIK1, which is needed for KIN10 to tag WRINKLED1 for destruction. This explains how the signal affects the chain of events and leads to increased oil production,” said Shanklin. “It's not just sugar but the signaling molecule that rises and falls with sugar that inhibits the oil shut-off mechanism.”

In order to apply this knowledge for increasing oil production, further research is required to get a closer look at the interaction of T6P with its target protein, KIN10. With the help of Brookhaven's National Synchrotron Light Source II (NSLS-II), the team will use extremely bright x-rays to reveal exactly how the interacting molecules fit together.

The study is published in the journal <a href="http://www.plantcell.org/">The Plant Cell</a>.

--

By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Boosting oil production in plants can help produce biofuels

Researchers at the U.S. Department of Energy's Brookhaven National Laboratory...

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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

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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

[sendtonews key="LvS8v8bp9z-2564889-12187" type="single"] Today's Video of the Day from the...

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



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



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



Video Credit: ACS Reactions



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



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?

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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

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

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



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



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



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



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



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



Video Credit: Johns Hopkins&nbsp;



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



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Interactive map of the universe includes 200,000 galaxies

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

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



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



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



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



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



Video Credit: ESA&nbsp;&nbsp;



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



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Lesotho: Africa's "Kingdom in the Sky"

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



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



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



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



Video Credit: ESA&nbsp;



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



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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



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The province of Zaragoza in northeast Spain

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



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



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



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



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



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



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



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



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



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



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The rapid retreat of the Columbia Glacier

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



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



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



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



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



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



Video &amp; Image Credit: ESA



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



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The Pyrenees Mountains in southwest Europe

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



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



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



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



Video Credit: NASA Goddard



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



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



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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



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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



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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



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



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Cavefish are healthy despite their sedentary lifestyle

[sendtonews key="vpljfR2VBX-2560867-12187" 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> 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



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Satellites capture the world's biggest and fastest waves

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



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



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



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



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



Video Credit: European Space Agency&nbsp;



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

Satellites have become essential to our survival

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