How did life on Earth begin? People have been asking that for ages. The answers remain scattered across rocks, oceans, and ancient landscapes. One clue hides in an essential ingredient for life - phosphorus.



Phosphorus is everywhere in living things. It holds together DNA and RNA. It forms the framework of cell membranes. No life can grow or function without it. 



Yet, phosphorus mostly stays trapped in rocks. It hides inside phosphate minerals, which barely dissolve in water. That raises an old and puzzling question: how did early Earth get enough phosphorus to <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/scientists-discover-one-simple-rule-that-explains-all-life-on-earth-bioregions/">spark</a> life?



Yuya Tsukamoto and Takeshi Kakegawa from <a href="https://www.tohoku.ac.jp/en/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Tohoku University</a> took that question seriously. They decided to look where most people wouldn’t - deep under the sea, in rocks that are billions of years old.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-key-element-for-life-on-earth">Key element for life on Earth</h2>



The researchers focused on the Pilbara Craton in Western Australia, which holds some of the oldest known seafloor rocks. 



The rocks are an astonishing 3.455 billion years old. The team's discovery wasn’t subtle. It jumped out from the data.



"We analyzed 3.455-billion-year-old basaltic seafloor rocks in drill core samples recovered from the Pilbara Craton, Western Australia, discovering that P was significantly leached from the hydrothermally altered rocks compared to the least altered rocks," explained Tsukamoto.



He noted that further mineralogical analyses indicated that phosphate minerals had undergone dissolution in rocks where P was depleted. 



Simply put, hot fluids moved through these rocks and pulled phosphorus out. That phosphorus didn’t just disappear. It entered the surrounding seawater, turning parts of the ocean into phosphorus-rich zones.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-tracking-the-source-of-phosphorus">Tracking the source of phosphorus </h2>



The rocks alone didn’t tell the whole story. The team wanted to understand what made this phosphorus release possible. They uncovered two kinds of hydrothermal fluids that shaped this <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/third-state-of-existence-beyond-life-and-death-confirmed-by-scientists/">process</a>.



One type was hot, rich in sulfur, and capable of breaking down minerals quickly. The other was more surprising - mildly acidic to alkaline fluids at lower temperatures. 



These fluids were common in the Archean era because Earth’s atmosphere back then was filled with carbon dioxide. That unique atmosphere made these fluids react in unexpected ways with the rocks.



The result? Massive amounts of dissolved phosphate in the water. The numbers were shocking. These fluids could carry up to 2 millimolar phosphate - nearly 1,000 times higher than what’s found in modern seawater.



Suddenly, early <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/luca-last-universal-common-ancestor-progenitor-all-life-on-earth/">Earth</a> wasn’t a barren place. Its oceans were filled with phosphorus.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-earth-s-oceans-held-elements-for-life">Earth’s oceans held elements for life</h2>



This wasn’t just a chemistry experiment. The results changed how scientists think about early Earth. The researchers calculated how much phosphorus these underwater systems could release. 



The findings were stunning. The amount of phosphorus released into the oceans by these hydrothermal systems could match, or even exceed, the amount entering modern oceans through rivers and weathering of land rocks.



"Importantly, this study provides direct evidence that submarine hydrothermal activity leached P from seafloor basaltic rocks and quantifies the potential P flux from these hydrothermal systems to the early ocean," adds Tsukamoto.



Imagine ancient oceans filled with nutrients. These phosphorus-rich waters may have supported some of Earth’s earliest microbial life. 



The ancient communities didn’t need a vast, lush <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/rocks-reveal-the-turning-point-when-oxygen-changed-earth-forever/">planet</a>. It only needed these hidden underwater environments to get started.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-hot-springs-and-hidden-worlds-on-land">Hot springs and hidden worlds on land</h2>



The study didn’t stop there. It also pointed to something beyond the oceans - hot springs on land. Hydrothermal systems aren’t just found under the sea. They exist on land too, in places like hot springs. 



These environments might have also released phosphorus on early Earth. That means life’s building blocks weren’t limited to deep-sea vents. They could have existed in steaming pools on land.



This opens the door for more discoveries. Scientists now plan to study how phosphate behaves in rocks across different periods of Earth’s history. By tracing phosphorus through time, they hope to unlock new chapters of Earth’s story.



The message is clear: Life’s ingredients may have come from places on Earth we’ve only just begun to explore. Deep beneath the waves, within rocks touched by ancient fluids, the story of life may have quietly begun.



The study is published in the journal <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0016703725003266?via%3Dihub" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta</a>.



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Earth may have always held the key ingredients for life

How did life on Earth begin? People have been asking that for ages. The answers remain scattered across rocks, oceans, and ancient landscapes. One clue hides in an essential ingredient for life - phosphorus. Phosphorus is everywhere in living things. It holds together DNA and RNA. It forms the framework of cell membranes. No life can grow or function without it. Yet, phosphorus mostly stays trapped in rocks. It hides inside phosphate minerals, which barely dissolve in water. That raises an old and puzzling question: how did...

When the Spanish conquistador Hernando Cortés landed in Mexico in 1519, the native population was about 25 million. Just 100 years later, the population had plunged to around 1 million, as a result of war and a number of epidemics.

In 1576, the outbreak of a mysterious disease is estimated to have killed between 7 and 17 million of the Aztec people, effectively destroying the Aztec empire. It was known to the locals as cocoliztli, and presented as red spots on the skin, as well as vomiting and bleeding from various orifices. This epidemic was one of the most deadly in human history, and now scientists may know what caused it.

In a study from the <a href="http://www.shh.mpg.de/en">Max Planck Institute for the Science of Human History</a> (MPI-SHH), researchers analyzed ancient teeth and found that the collapse of the Aztec civilization may have been due to an epidemic of salmonella – the food poisoning bacteria. Scientists looked at samples of pulp from inside the teeth of skeletons found in an untouched cemetery in Oaxaca, Mexico. Ten of the skeletons whose burials were dated after the Spanish conquest tested positive for salmonella, but none of the five skeletons buried before the conquest tested positive for the bacteria.

These findings make salmonella “a strong candidate” for the cause of the devastating epidemic that wiped out the Aztecs and other civilizations like the Mixtecs. It did so by leading to a condition called enteric fever, which is still the cause of millions of deaths globally. Spread by poor sanitation – and likely brought by the European travelers – this disease causes high fevers, <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/birds-dehydration-climate-change/">dehydration</a>, and gastrointestinal complications.

This study is the first example of scientists finding molecular evidence of this bacterium using ancient material from the New World. 

“A key result of this study is that we were successful in recovering information about a microbial infection that was circulating in this population, and we did not need to specify a particular target in advance,” says Alexander Herbig of the MPI-SHH and co-author of the study. 

Not only have we learned more about the history of the people and civilizations that came before us, but this result was achieved through advancing science and technology in our current world.

--

By <a href="mailto:certz@earth.com">Connor Ertz</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Salmonella poisoning wiped out the Aztec Empire

When the Spanish conquistador Hernando Cortés landed in Mexico in...

Plague, also known as the Black Death or the Bubonic Plague, is caused by the bacterium Yersinia pestis. There have been several major pandemics and outbreaks of the plague, including the Great Plague of 1665 when reportedly 7,000 people a week died in London. 

The Black Death which hit medieval Europe in 1347 saw such rapid mortality rates, sometimes half of a city’s entire population, that mass graves became a necessary way to bury the dead. 

The impacts of the plague are well known, and when determining the cause of the outbreaks, many scientists blamed rats, which carried fleas infected with Yersinia pestis. This theory is so widely held that most people would say with certainty that <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/rats-major-cities-monitored/">rats</a> caused the spread of the Black Death. 

However, a new study conducted by researchers from the <a href="http://www.uio.no/english/">University of Oslo, Norway</a>, found that rats may have been unfairly blamed all these years, and that infection was likely spread by human fleas and lice. 

Many people were infected with fleas and lice, and thanks to close living quarters and sharing beds, the black death could have quickly spread from human to human. 

Frequent bathing was also not as common an activity during the middle ages, at least not by today’s current standards of hygiene. 

For the study, the researchers ran models using both rats and human fleas and lice to see if rates of infection matched the mortality patterns from nine different European plague outbreaks during the Second Pandemic. 

The rat models, even supposing there was one rat for every human at the time, didn’t come close to matching the real spread of infection during the plague. Instead, the human-parasite model came much closer to matching the mortality records of the time. 

This means that as humans were infected with the plague, their fleas and lice would spread to other humans close by, and with them the disease, rather than rats spreading the disease. 

The study could help inform plague research and shed light on just how the plague spread. The Great Plague and Black Death wiped out millions in Europe and with the plague still causing outbreaks today, it’s important to better understand how it spread and what set it apart from plague today. 

“The plague really transformed human history, so it’s really important to understand how it was spreading and why it was spreading so fast,” Katharine Dean, the study’s lead author, told <a href="https://news.nationalgeographic.com/2018/01/rats-plague-black-death-humans-lice-health-science/">National Geographic. </a>

--

By <a href="mailto:kayvandette@gmail.com">Kay Vandette</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/">Earth.com </a>Staff Writer

Fleas and lice, not rats, were to blame for the Black Death

Plague, also known as the Black Death or the Bubonic...

Seismologist Susan Hough of the <a href="https://www.usgs.gov/">United States Geological Survey</a> set out to challenge the idea that certain phases of the <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/meteor-showers-lunar-eclipse/">Moon</a> can trigger earthquakes. After matching 204 earthquakes with their corresponding dates, Hough was able to determine that the lunar phase of the Moon does not contribute to the risk of earthquakes.

There is a long-standing myth that large earthquakes are more likely to happen during certain phases of the Moon or at certain times of the year. Hough’s analysis confirms that this is a false belief. 

Hough explained that patterns found when linking large earthquakes with the Moon’s cycles “are no different from the kinds of patterns you would get if the data are completely random.” Hough examined the date and lunar phase for 204 earthquakes, which were magnitude 8 or larger, dating back to the 1600s.

Hough did see some unusual patterns in the data, such as the occurrence of 16 large earthquakes on a single day seven days after a new moon. This turned out to be insignificant, however, because “the lunar tides would be at a minimum at this point, so it doesn't make any physical sense.”

Hough explained that the Moon and Sun do cause solid Earth tidal stresses, which are ripples through the Earth itself and not just in the ocean. She said that this could be one of the stresses that contributes in some way to earthquake nucleation

“There is in some cases a weak effect, where there are more earthquakes when tidal stresses are high, but if you read those papers, you'll see that the authors are very careful,” said Hough. “They never claim that the data can be used for prediction, because the modulation is always very small.”

Hough pointed out that the idea that the Sun and Moon's positions in the sky can modulate earthquake rates has a long history.

“Sooner or later there is going to be another big earthquake on a full moon, and the lore will pop back up. The hope is that this will give people a solid study to point to, to show that over time, there isn't a track record of big earthquakes happening on a full moon.”

The study is published in <a href="https://pubs.geoscienceworld.org/srl">Seismological Research Letters</a>.

--

By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Earthquakes are not triggered by the phases of the moon

Seismologist Susan Hough of the United States Geological Survey set...

These days, energy production is heavily reliant on aspects of efficiency as well as sustainability – especially given how many options we have at our disposal. In the United Kingdom, the government has stated that shale gas has the potential to provide greater energy security, growth, and jobs for the public, saying that it is “encouraging safe and environmentally sound exploration to determine this potential.” But a recent study from the <a href="http://www.manchester.ac.uk/">University of Manchester</a> has found that shale gas is actually one of the least sustainable options for producing electricity.

In this major study – the first of its kind – researchers considered environmental, economic, and social sustainability of shale gas in the UK and compared it to eight other electricity generating options. These other options were coal, nuclear, natural gas, liquefied natural gas (LNG), solar photovoltaics (PV), wind, hydro and biomass. Comparing these options against 18 sustainability indictors, the results showed that shale gas ranked seventh out of the nine electricity options. 

For shale gas to be considered as sustainable as the best options – wind and solar PV, massive improvements would need to be made, including a 329-fold reduction in environmental impact and 16 times higher employment in the sector. Furthermore, the environmental and social sustainability of shale gas would need to be improved by up to 100 times for it to compete with domestic natural gas and imported LNG.

“Many countries are considering exploitation of shale gas but its overall sustainability is disputed,” says Adisa Azapagic, a professor at the <a href="http://www.manchester.ac.uk/">University of Manchester</a>’s School of Chemical Engineering &amp; Analytical Science. “Previous studies focused mainly on environmental aspects of shale gas, largely in the US, with scant information on socio-economic aspects.”

Despite the government’s positive position on shale gas in the UK, Scotland has banned fracking and there is strong opposition throughout most of the <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/theresa-may-plastic-plan/">United Kingdom</a>. The main argument against shale gas is the environmental impact that comes from fracking. However, supporters of this process indicate that it helps improve national energy security and carries many economic benefits. But the research shows a different picture: “The results also suggest that any future electricity mix would be more sustainable with a lower rather than a higher share of shale gas,” explains Azapagic. 

With this new research, hopefully the findings will be used to help inform UK policy makers, the industry, and consumers of the potential harm that could come with implementing increases in shale gas production.

--

By <a href="mailto:certz@earth.com">Connor Ertz</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Shale gas found to be inefficient form of electricity production

These days, energy production is heavily reliant on aspects of...

A team of biochemists from <a href="https://www.usu.edu/">Utah State University</a> have investigated how methane is produced. The experts are challenging a long-held notion that methane is exclusively made by living organisms during a process called methanogenesis.

While most of the focus on harmful greenhouse gases is focused on carbon dioxide (CO2), <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/methane-ocean/">methane</a> is at least 30 times more potent than CO2 as a heat-trapping gas. The reason more emphasis is usually placed on carbon dioxide emissions compared to methane emissions is because CO2 lingers much longer in the atmosphere. 

Methane is the primary component of natural gas, which is a critical source of fuel for cooking, heating, and electricity generation. Because of this, there is widespread interest in how the gas is made.

The results of the study, which also included biochemists from the <a href="http://www.washington.edu/">University of Washington</a>, revealed a bacterial, iron-only nitrogenase pathway for methane formation. The researchers also established that the iron-only variant of nitrogenase can transform carbon dioxide into methane in a single, enzymatic step.


Study co-author Lance Seefeldt is a professor in the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry at Utah State University.

“Our findings are significant because they give scientists a second target to chase in understanding biological methane formation and rising methane emissions,” said Professor Seefeldt. “In addition, the discovery could drive efforts to turn waste gases into usable fuels.”

The professor said that the ability to accomplish a large-scale transition to clean, alternative fuels will have extensive benefits.

“It's currently a 'holy grail' of energy science,” said Professor Seefeldt. “The knowledge we're gradually gaining could be used to make fuels from waste gases, helping to improve the environment.”

The study findings are published online in the journal <a href="https://www.nature.com/nmicrobiol/">Nature Microbiology</a>.

--

By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Biochemists reveal how the Earth produces methane

A team of biochemists from Utah State University have investigated...

Experts are now developing technology that may be able to translate some of the mysterious vocalizations of animals into English. This would not only help humans and <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/easiest-pets-care/">animals</a> to communicate better, but may also enable humans to better care for animals.

Recent advancements in artificial intelligence systems are beginning to make animal language translation a reality. One new program, in particular, can interpret the calls of marmosets and report what the monkeys are saying.

Dr. Con Slobodchikoff of <a href="https://nau.edu/">Northern Arizona University</a> has studied prairie dogs for more than 30 years and has determined that they have “a sophisticated communication system that has all the aspects of language.” 

According to <a href="http://www.cbc.ca/news">CBC News</a>, Dr. Slobodchikoff <a href="http://www.cbc.ca/beta/news/technology/prairie-dogs-language-decoded-by-scientists-1.1322230">explained</a>: “They're able to describe the color of clothes the humans are wearing, they're able to describe the size and shape of humans, even, amazingly, whether a human once appeared with a gun.”

The Biology professor teamed up with a computer scientist to design an algorithm that will be able to turn prairie dog vocalizations into English. He has also created a company called Zoolingua, a team that is dedicated to developing a tool which will help humans to understand the verbal and non-verbal language of other animals as well. 

Dr. Slobodchikoff told CBC News, “We could potentially have something maybe the size of a cellphone in five to 10 years where a dog would say, ‘Woof’ and the device would say, ‘I want to eat chicken tonight,’ or a cat could say, ‘Meow’ and the device would say, ‘My litter box is filthy, please clean it.’" 

In a book entitled, “Chasing Doctor Dolittle: Learning the Language of Animals,” Dr. Slobodchikoff presents evidence of what he considers to be animal language according to his own research and also based on other scientific studies.

--

By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

New translator technology could help us understand our pets

Experts are now developing technology that may be able to...

Just how bad are energy drinks for your health? For young people, the answer isn’t good. A new study has found that more than half of Canadian youths who have consumed energy drinks have experienced negative health effects.

Drinking the sugary, caffeine-laden beverages could be even riskier for young people than consuming coffee, the researchers found.

"Most risk assessments to date have used coffee as a reference for estimating the health effects of energy drinks; however, it is clear [energy drinks] pose a greater health risk," said Dr. David Hammond of the <a href="https://uwaterloo.ca/">University of Waterloo</a> in a press release about the study. "The health effects from energy [drinks] could be due to the different ingredients than coffee, or the ways in which they [are] consumed, including with alcohol or during physical activity; regardless, the findings suggest a need to increase surveillance of health effects from these products."

The study surveyed 2,055 young Canadians from the ages of 12 to 24. More than half of those who said they’d consumed energy drinks in the past reported that they’d also experienced negative health events they associated with the beverages, the researchers found.

Among the findings:
<ul>
 	<li style="font-weight: 400;">24.7 percent reported experiencing a fast heartbeat</li>
 	<li style="font-weight: 400;">24.1 percent reported difficulty sleeping</li>
 	<li style="font-weight: 400;">18.3 percent reported experiencing headaches</li>
 	<li style="font-weight: 400;">5.1 percent reported nausea, vomiting or diarrhea</li>
 	<li style="font-weight: 400;">5 percent sought medical attention</li>
 	<li style="font-weight: 400;">3.6 percent reported experiencing chest pains</li>
 	<li style="font-weight: 400;">0.2 percent reported having a seizure</li>
</ul>
"The number of health effects observed in our study suggests that more should be done to restrict consumption among children and youths," Hammond said in the press release. "At the moment, there are no restrictions on children purchasing energy drinks, and they are marketed at the point-of-sale in grocery stores, as well as advertising that targets children."

The researchers believe the study supports regulations that would ban caffeinated energy drink makers from marketing the drinks to children and teens, as well as recommendations that people not drink them during athletic activities.

The study has been published in the <a href="http://cmajopen.ca/">Canadian Medical Association Journal Open</a>. 

—

By <a href="mailto:kcathey@earth.com">Kyla Cathey</a>, <a href="http://www.earth.com">Earth.com</a> staff writer

Are caffeinated energy drinks bad for young people's health?

Just how bad are energy drinks for your health? For...

Counting fish and other species in marine protected areas has long been a chore. But a new method for using hydroacoustics may have made things a lot easier for marine biologists monitoring sea life populations.

An international team of researchers  – including scientists from the <a href="https://scripps.ucsd.edu/">Scripps Institution of Oceanography</a> based at the University of California, San Diego – tested a new method of using hydroacoustics to measure fish populations inside and outside of Mexico’s <a href="http://www.cabopulmopark.com/">Cabo Pulmo National Park</a>.

The researchers found that the number of fish inside the park’s protected areas was four times higher than outside. They also found that the new hydroacoustic method for counting fish is more cost-effective than traditional tools. 

"Managers and authorities in many countries spend a lot of financial resources assessing marine protected areas," study co-author Dr. Octavio Aburto said in a press release. "The results of this paper demonstrate that it is possible to use acoustic technologies to generate information about marine resources inside MPAs in a faster and less expensive way, reducing the costs for governments in ocean conservation."

Scripps marine biologists have been monitoring the fish populations at Cabo Pulmo since 2002. The marine protected area was created after fishermen requested protections for their waters in 1995. In the past, counting fish in the MPA required a visual census by scuba divers.

The new method uses hydroacoustic equipment mounted on boats. The equipment was used to scan the water in columns and rows, creating images of schools of fish.

"Both hydroacoustics and marine protected areas are well-established but it is novel to use the former to assess the latter," said lead author Dr. Jack Egerton, then a researcher at <a href="https://www.bangor.ac.uk/">Bangor University</a> in Wales, who now works at the <a href="https://www.utexas.edu/">University of Texas</a>. "Through this, we have been able to see how important the Cabo Pulmo National Park is for fish populations in the area."

The method does have downsides, however. The hydroacoustic method can only return approximate data on fish size and weight, and cannot return species-specific data. 

The study has been published in the journal <a href="http://www.nature.com/srep/">Scientific Reports</a>. The study was funded by the <a href="https://www.nsf.gov/">National Science Foundation</a>, <a href="https://www.packard.org/">David and Lucile Packard Foundation</a>, the <a href="https://bajacoastal.org/">Baja Coastal Institute</a>, the <a href="https://icfdn.org/">International Community Foundation</a> and the <a href="http://helmsleytrust.org/">Helmsley Charitable Trust</a>.

—

By <a href="mailto:kcathey@earth.com">Kyla Cathey</a>, <a href="http://www.earth.com">Earth.com</a> staff writer

Image credit: Octavio Aburto, <a href="https://scripps.ucsd.edu/">Scripps Institution of Oceanography at UC San Diego</a>

Counting fish just got a whole lot easier thanks to hydroacoustics

Counting fish and other species in marine protected areas has...

The underwater Havre volcano, discovered near New Zealand in 2002, was the site of what may be the largest deep-sea eruption in decades – and it could have a profound effect on human understanding of underwater volcanic activity.

In 2012, the volcano was the site of a massive deep-sea eruption. At first, scientists didn’t realize just how massive it was.

But a new study, published in the journal <a href="http://advances.sciencemag.org/content/4/1/e1701121">Science Advances</a> on Jan. 10, revealed that it may be the largest recorded deep-sea eruption of the past century. Lead author Dr. Rebecca Carey compared the eruption to the explosion of Mount St. Helens in 1980.

"We then knew that this was an event that only happens on land about four times per century," she told <a href="http://www.newsweek.com/">Newsweek</a> in an email. "On the seafloor they are as common; however, always undetected."

It was sheer coincidence that allowed Carey, a volcanologist at the <a href="http://www.utas.edu.au/">University of Tasmania</a>, and her team to observe the eruption. Until just before the 2012 event, Carey had been more focused on land-based volcanoes. 

But the 2012 eruption sent a plume and a massive, 150-square-mile chunk of floating pumice up to the surface, drawing geologists’ attention. Carey and an international team of fellow scientists prepared a fleet of automatic and remote-operated underwater vehicles to study the aftereffects of the deep-sea eruption.

The scientists carried out their investigations in 2015, gathering data about seafloor changes, expelled materials and other signs of the magnitude of the volcanic eruption.

“The 2012 submarine eruption of Havre volcano in the Kermadec arc, New Zealand, is the largest deep-ocean eruption in history and one of very few recorded submarine eruptions involving rhyolite magma,” the researchers conclude in the newly published study.

The scientists based their findings on the appearance of 14 new vents at the volcanic site – a sign of a massive eruption – as well as massive chunks of pumice linked to the event.

While the deep-sea eruption is the largest on record, the researchers do admit that very little is known about volcanic activity deep in the ocean, although that’s where 75 percent of the world’s active volcanoes are found. This study, however, helps to fill in those gaps.

"This event is a scientific goldmine," Carey said. 

—

By <a href="mailto:kcathey@earth.com">Kyla Cathey</a>, <a href="http://www.earth.com">Earth.com</a> staff writer

Image credit: Multidisciplinary Instrumentation in Support of Oceanography (MISO) Facility, <a href="http://www.whoi.edu/">Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution</a>

Deep-sea eruption of Havre volcano was largest in a century

The underwater Havre volcano, discovered near New Zealand in 2002,...

<a href="https://oco.jpl.nasa.gov/">Orbiting Carbon Observatory-2</a>, a NASA mission launched in 2014, has spent years sending back information about global hotspots for atmospheric carbon.

In a few short years, it will be joined by a new satellite, the Geostationary Carbon Observatory, to give <a href="https://www.nasa.gov/">NASA</a> scientists another vantage point for studying carbon in the Earth’s atmosphere. 

GeoCarb, slated for launch in the early 2020s, will remain locked on to the Americas. While in geosynchronous orbit more than 22,000 miles above the ground, it will measure carbon levels over the land making up North and South America and return the data to NASA scientists for analysis. The satellite will be able to collect up to 10 million observations daily.

It’s a change from OCO-2, which has an orbit that allows it to take samples from all over the globe. While the existing satellite can also take many samples daily, its low-Earth orbit means those samples are widely spaced and miss out on the ability to observe a region over time.

"GeoCarb will complement measurements by OCO-2 and other low-Earth orbiting satellites by filling in data gaps in both time and space," Dr. Berrien Moore said in a <a href="https://www.jpl.nasa.gov/news/news.php?feature=7039&amp;utm_source=iContact&amp;utm_medium=email&amp;utm_campaign=NASAJPL&amp;utm_content=daily20180111-4">press release</a>. "It will be more of a regional mapping mission than a global sampling mission."

Moore, of the <a href="http://www.ou.edu/">University of Oklahoma</a>, is the project’s principal investigator.

The new NASA mission will expand the agency’s ability to monitor carbon emissions, such as adding the ability to observe how weather patterns might change carbon concentrations over land masses.

"That's the power a geostationary orbit brings," Moore said. "Data from OCO-2 have already shown that large-scale weather patterns such as El Niño and La Niña affect the large-scale pattern of atmospheric carbon dioxide concentrations, and that's extremely important."

NASA scientists will also be able to look into unanswered questions, such as the true impact of methane emissions over the continental United States, or how well the Amazonian rainforests remove carbon dioxide from the atmosphere.

The satellite could also help NASA track methane leaks, saving the natural gas industry millions of dollars each year.

GeoCarb will use technology pioneered by OCO-2, with instruments designed to measure carbon and methane levels using reflection, as well as to monitor plant photosynthesis. 

The exact orbital location for GeoCarb has not yet been assigned by <a href="https://ses-gs.com/">SES-Government Solutions</a>.

—

By <a href="mailto:kcathey@earth.com">Kyla Cathey</a>, <a href="http://www.earth.com">Earth.com</a> staff writer

Image credit: NASA/Lockheed Martin/University of Oklahoma

NASA mission will change how we see atmospheric carbon

Orbiting Carbon Observatory-2, a NASA mission launched in 2014, has...

For many busy people of all ages, <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/scent-reduce-stress/">stress</a> is often thought of as an inescapable part of life. But in many cases, stress can actually make you physically sick.

Besides affecting emotions and behavior, stress symptoms can cause headaches, muscle tension, and stomach issues.

Now, a new study reveals the science behind how stress can aggravate certain cells and cause allergic reactions or even disease. 

The study was conducted Adam Moeser, a researcher from <a href="https://msu.edu/">Michigan State University</a>, who specializes in stress-induced diseases. 

Moeser’s work illustrates how the stress receptor CRF1 interacts with immune cells called mast cells and can control the cells’ defense response to allergens. 

For example, when exposed to a severe allergy or high-level stress, histamine can cause a major allergic reaction. Histamine is a chemical substance in the body that helps get rid of irritants and allergens, and stress can amplify the histamine’s normal response. 

“Mast cells become highly activated in response to stressful situations the body may be experiencing,” said Moeser. “When this happens, CRF1 tells these cells to release chemical substances that can lead to inflammatory and allergic diseases such as irritable bowel syndrome, asthma, life-threatening food allergies and autoimmune disorders such as lupus.” 

Moeser conducted several lab experiments with mice, studying how the mice were impacted by either allergic or physiological stress. 

One group of mice had normal CRF1 receptors on the mast cells, while a second group had the CRF1 receptors removed from their cells. 

The CRF1 deficient mice showed decreased levels of disease regardless of the type of stress they were exposed to. Allergic stress exposures resulted in a 54 percent reduction in disease and the physiological stress correlated with a 63 percent decrease in disease. 

“While the 'normal' mice exposed to stress exhibited high histamine levels and disease, the mice without CRF1 had low histamine levels, less disease and were protected against both types of stress,” said Moeser. “This tells us that CRF1 is critically involved in some diseases initiated by these stressors.” 

The research could help create new treatments for stress-induced diseases like asthma and irritable bowel syndrome, and serves as a reminder to monitor stress levels in the interest of your own health.

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By <a href="mailto:kayvandette@gmail.com">Kay Vandette</a>,<a href="https://www.earth.com/"> Earth.com </a>Staff Writer

How stress can make you sick and induce allergies

For many busy people of all ages, stress is often...

After analyzing the chemical composition of two meteorites that fell to Earth in 1998, researchers have discovered that the rocks contain the building blocks of life itself. These are the first <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/life-earth-meteorites-ponds/">meteorites</a> found to possess both water and a mix of complex organic compounds, including hydrocarbons and amino acids, which are needed to sustain life. 

X-rays were performed to study the composition of tiny blue and purple salt crystals extracted from the rocks at the <a href="http://www.lbl.gov/">Department of Energy's Berkeley Lab</a>. The team also found evidence of the origins of the meteorites - the dwarf planet Ceres and the asteroid Hebe.

The study not only provides evidence of the possibility of life on other planets, but also provides the first comprehensive chemical breakdown of organic matter and liquid water found in meteorites that have crashed onto the Earth.

Study co-author David Kilcoyne compared the findings to the preservation of insects in amber. Queenie Chan is a planetary scientist at <a href="http://www.open.ac.uk/">The Open University</a> and lead author of the study.

“This is really the first time we have found abundant organic matter also associated with liquid water that is really crucial to the origin of life and the origin of complex organic compounds in space,” said Chan. “We're looking at the organic ingredients that can lead to the origin of life.”

In addition to their potential to trap and carry biomolecules, the crystals carried microscopic traces of water that are believed to date back to the beginning of the solar system 4.5 billion years ago.

Chan explained that the resemblance of the crystals found in the meteorites, which crashed into Texas and Morocco a few months apart in 1998, indicate that their asteroid hosts may have crossed paths and mixed materials. 

There is also some evidence that supports the idea of a collision, perhaps by a small asteroid fragment impacting a larger asteroid. This means that it is possible that organic matter is being passed from one host to another in space.

“Things are not as simple as we thought they were,” said Chan. “Everything leads to the conclusion that the origin of life is really possible elsewhere. There is a great range of organic compounds within these meteorites, including a very primitive type of organics that likely represent the early solar system's organic composition.”

The study is published in the journal <a href="http://advances.sciencemag.org/">Science Advances</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

Meteorites reveal that life outside of Earth is certainly possible

After analyzing the chemical composition of two meteorites that fell...

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

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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.esa.int/">European Space Agency</a> features Kainji Lake, a reservoir on the Niger River.



In 1968, Kainji Lake was created by the construction of the Kainji Dam. The Niger River, the third longest in Africa, enters the lake in the north.&nbsp;



According to <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/rivers-in-the-american-west-are-a-lifesaving-resource-for-birds/">ESA</a>, the creation of the lake submerged Foge Island and the town of Bussa and permanently flooded other riverine settlements, leaving around 50,000 people displaced.&nbsp;



Large parts of Foge Island are temporarily exposed during low water tides, and the land is often used by migrating fishermen. Kainji Dam is a dam across the Niger River in Niger State of Central Nigeria. 



Wild mammals occur at relatively low densities due to illegal hunting. Lake Kainji has suffered a dramatic decline as a fishery due to the high numbers of artisanal and subsistence fisherfolk using the lake. It has been suggested that a period of closure, together with controlled fishing rights may help improve fish stocks.



Kainji Lake National Park is the oldest of its kind in Nigeria. The park contains three distinct areas: a part of the Kainji Lake, the Borgu Game Reserve to the west of the lake, and the Zugurma Game Reserve to the southeast. The park is home to around 65 mammal species, 350 bird species, and 30 species of reptiles and amphibians. 



Video/ Image Credit: European Space Agency&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.

Kainji Lake in north central Nigeria

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



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



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



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



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



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



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



Video Credit: Amanda Nguyen/University of Illinois



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



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

Designing crops that can beat the heat

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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



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

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



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



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



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



Video Credit: NASA Goddard&nbsp;



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



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Remote sensing will revolutionize the way we monitor trees

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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

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



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



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



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



Video Credit: NASA Goddard



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



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Wetlands are a major source of methane emissions

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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

[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...

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Today’s Video of the Day from <a href="https://www.stowers.org/">Stowers Institute for Medical Research</a> describes why experts are studying zebrafish to gain a better understanding of how the immune system responds to injury. Zebrafish have the ability to repair and regenerate organs.



“Organ regeneration offers an exciting opportunity for studying the immune system and to inquire why some species can regenerate organs like the heart or missing limbs while others like humans cannot,” explained Dr. Tatjana Piotrowski.



Zebrafish sensory organ hair cells are an ideal system to investigate the pathways and cell types involved in regeneration since they are easily destroyed with antibiotics and begin regenerating within five hours. This enabled the researchers to identify the exact timing and genetic programs for each anti-inflammatory macrophage activation state.&nbsp;



“Our hypothesis is that human macrophages do not receive the proper chemical activation 'cocktail' to instruct pro-regenerative processes,” said Dr. Nicolas Denans. “Identifying the molecular recipe of macrophage activation in zebrafish may one day enable us to design regenerative immunotherapies in humans.”&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;



“The new evidence is a valuable resource for comparative studies on the genetic programs involved in macrophage-mediated repair and regeneration. In other words, different types of injuries may induce different kinds of inflammatory responses. We want to decipher whether this 'language' is universal or if there are a variety of dialects."



Video Credit: Stowers Institute for Medical Research&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.

How the immune system responds to injury

[sendtonews key="0dEcERCq61-2283382-12187" type="single"] Today’s Video of the Day from Stowers...

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



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



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



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



Video/ Image Credit: NASA Goddard



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



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

2022 illustrated the consequences of a warming climate

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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"

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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

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