The International Space Station (ISS) is not just a place to live in space - it’s an experimental laboratory. With astronauts onboard and Earth positioned below, the ISS offers a unique opportunity: long-duration research in microgravity.



<blockquote class="wp-block-quote">
It also provides low Earth orbit views of our planet, along with a human crew who support experiments, swap samples, and troubleshoot in real time.
</blockquote>



<blockquote class="wp-block-quote">
Since its launch, researchers have used the <a href="https://www.nasa.gov/international-space-station/">space station</a> to conduct hundreds of studies. These range from characterizing fluid behavior in zero gravity to tracking changes in the human body. Their work advances science by answering questions that can’t be studied on Earth.
</blockquote>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-science-without-gravity">Science without gravity</h2>



Without Earth's <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/matter-spacetime-gravitational-waves-fabric-of-the-universe/">gravity</a> pulling things down, scientists can run experiments that simply aren’t possible on the ground. For example, hot air doesn't rise. Flames take on a spherical shape. Fluids stop behaving the way they do in a glass of water.



This gives researchers a rare opportunity to examine physical, chemical, and biological processes in new ways. 



By eliminating variables like surface tension or capillary movement, they can get a much clearer picture of how things actually work.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-orbiting-lab-sees-it-all">Orbiting lab sees it all</h2>



The space station orbits Earth in about 90 minutes, traveling at 17,500 miles per hour from about 250 miles above the surface. 



This low vantage point means the ISS is able to make observations of the planet both in daylight and darkness, and from various angles and lighting conditions.



By being outside&nbsp;<a href="https://www.earth.com/news/climate-change-is-shrinking-earths-atmosphere-and-thats-bad-for-satellites/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Earth's atmosphere</a>&nbsp;and magnetic field, the ISS carries instruments that could not be used on Earth. 



That makes it possible to study space radiation, neutron stars, and other phenomena - along with how materials and living organisms behave in space.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-iss-crew-makes-science-possible">ISS crew makes science possible</h2>



Other <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/space-debris-issue-growing-exponentially-worse-now-threatens-working-satellites/">satellites</a> can carry instruments, but only the ISS has a living, breathing crew to run the science. Human operators are key. They adjust setups, monitor changes, fix problems, and pack samples for return to Earth.



This flexibility is critical for complex research on the ISS. It also means scientists can get a second chance if something doesn’t go as planned. 



Since experiments can stay on the station for months or even years, there's plenty of time to refine ideas and gather more data.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-body-changes-in-space">Body changes in space</h2>



Because the space station has been operating for over two decades, scientists have been able to track long-term changes - including how space affects the human body. One example: vision changes that <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/astronauts-can-survive-mars-space-journey-but-their-kidneys-will-be-permanently-damaged/">astronauts</a> began noticing after spending months in orbit.



Scientists launched the Fluid Shifts investigation in 2015 to understand what was happening. They suspected that in <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/microgravity-causes-big-problems-with-human-gene-expression/">microgravity</a>, fluids move from the lower to the upper body, increasing pressure in the head and possibly changing eye shape.



The study asked whether increased fluid pressure was the cause of these vision changes.



It ran through 2020 and tracked multiple astronauts over time. It marked a major step toward understanding the effects of spaceflight on human health.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-research-on-the-space-station">Research on the space station</h2>



Research on the space station takes time. First, scientists have to identify a question and come up with a possible answer. Then, they design an experiment to test it, decide what data to collect, and figure out how.



Getting that experiment into space is its own process. NASA reviews proposals based on scientific value and relevance. 



Once approved, studies are scheduled for future missions - often many months away. Training, hardware development, flight procedures, and data collection plans all need to be worked out.



Once the experiment is on board, astronauts begin collecting data. After that, the real work begins: analyzing results and writing them up. That alone can take a year or more.



Before a study is published, it goes through peer review. One analysis found that peer review alone takes an average of 100 days. Editors may also ask for revisions or more analysis before giving the green light.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-small-crew-big-science">Small crew, big science</h2>



One challenge with human research on the International Space Station is the limited number of subjects. With only about six people on board at any given time, gathering enough data takes longer.



Consider the Lighting Effects study, which tested whether adjusting the station’s lighting could improve <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/sleep-prepares-the-brain-for-the-future-while-protecting-memories-of-the-past/">sleep</a>, mood, and performance by syncing with astronauts’ circadian rhythms.



Because researchers needed data from several astronauts, the study ran from 2016 to 2020. Other long-term human studies have looked at heart muscle loss and nutrition, including how to grow fresh food in space.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-space-station-research-takes-time">Space station research takes time</h2>



Research in physical science can often move more quickly. Scientists can send up batches of materials and collect results faster. But even then, one round of experiments often leads to more questions.



<a href="https://www1.grc.nasa.gov/space/iss-research/msg/bass/">The Burning and Suppression of Solids </a>(BASS) series ran from 2011 to 2017, studying how different fuels behave in space. That work led to the Saffire series, which began in 2016 and ended in 2024.



These fire safety demonstrations helped answer critical questions about how to prevent and put out fires in space.



Scientific breakthroughs don’t happen overnight, especially not in <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/shifts-in-earths-orbit-triggered-ancient-megadroughts/">orbit</a>. But the space station gives researchers something priceless: time, access, and the ability to keep going.



The payoff? New insights into how our bodies work, how materials behave, and how we can prepare for longer missions. That’s not just useful for life in space - it helps improve life back on Earth, too.



-----



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What 20 years of space station research means for life on Earth

The International Space Station (ISS) is not just a place to live in space - it’s an experimental laboratory. With astronauts onboard and Earth positioned below, the ISS offers a unique opportunity: long-duration research in microgravity. It also provides low Earth orbit views of our planet, along with a human crew who support experiments, swap samples, and troubleshoot in real time. Since its launch, researchers have used the space station to conduct hundreds of studies. These range from characterizing fluid behavior in zero gravity to tracking changes...

The fact that heated liquids freeze faster than cold liquids is known as the Mpemba effect, which was observed as far back as the 4th century AD by Aristotle. Researchers from <a href="https://www.uc3m.es/">Universidad Carlos III De Madrid </a>(UC3M) are demonstrating how this phenomenon occurs in granular fluids.

Study co-author Antonio Lasanta is from the UC3M <a href="https://www.uc3m.es/ss/Satellite/UC3MInstitucional/en/Detalle/Organismo_C/1381812372440/1371206581851/_Gregorio_Millan_Barbany__University_Institute_for_Modelling_and_Simulation_in_Fluodynamics">Gregorio Millán Barbany University Institute for Modeling and Simulation on Fluid Dynamics, Nanoscience and Industrial Mathematics</a>. 

“We can simulate on a computer and make analytical calculations to know how and when the Mpemba effect will occur," said Lasanta."In fact, we find not only that the hottest can cool faster but also the opposite effect: the coldest can heat faster, which would be called the inverse Mpemba effect."

In 1960, a Tanzanian student named Erasto Mpemba explained to his teacher that the hotter mixture of ice cream froze faster than the cold one. This inspired a technical document on the subject, and frequent analysis of the effect began. 

Regardless of the widespread interest, there have been conflicting explanations on exactly what that the Mpemba effect is and under what circumstances it happens.

"It is an effect that, historically, has not been addressed in a rigorous manner but merely as an anomaly and a didactic curiosity," said co-author Antonio Prados."From our perspective, it was important to study it in a system with the minimum ingredients to be able to control and understand its behavior." 

This approach led the researchers to their own theory of what conditions cause the Mpemba effect to occur.

"The scenario that the effect will most easily occur in is when the velocities of the particles before heating or cooling have a specific disposition--for example, with a high dispersion around the mean value," said researcher Francisco Vega. 

This means that the <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/temperatures-rise-mortality-rates/">temperature</a> of the fluid can evolve more rapidly if the state of the particles is prepared before the cooling.

The research team is planning to carry out experiments to confirm their theory. According to the scientists, learning more about this effect may lead to useful applications in everyday life. The findings of the study are published in <a href="https://journals.aps.org/prl/">Physical Review Letters</a>.

--

By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Why hot water freezes faster than cold water

The fact that heated liquids freeze faster than cold liquids...

Remains buried in a chest 1,000 years ago are believed to be those of one of the most influential spiritual teachers of all time. An inscription on the box says that the human remains belong to Buddha, the enlightened one.

2,000 pieces of cremated bones were found inside of a ceramic box in Jingchuan County, <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/sulfur-dioxide-emissions-china/">China</a>, surrounded by 260 Buddhist statues. The chest had been buried by two monks, Yunjiang and Zhiming, who belonged to the Mañjuśrī Temple of the Longxing Monastery.

A team of archaeologists led by Hong Wu, a researcher at the <a href="http://www.tobunken.go.jp/materials/ekatudo/217653.html">Gansu Provincial Institute of Cultural Relics and Archaeology</a>, translated an inscription found on the box. According to the inscription, the monks collected the relics of Buddha for 20 years in order to promote Buddhism, and buried them in the hall of the temple. 

The inscription explains how the monks collected Buddha's relics, or śarīra: "Sometimes they received the śarīra from others' donations; sometimes they found them by chance; sometimes they bought them from other places; and sometimes others gave them the śarīra to demonstrate their wholeheartedness."

The chest was discovered around five years ago by workers who were repairing the road near the temple. Among the hundreds of remains are bones and teeth. The inscription does not mention the 260 statues found buried near the box, and it is unclear if they were buried there at the same time.

Siddhartha Gautama was born in modern day Nepal and traveled through Eastern India sometime between the 6th and 4th centuries BC. His philosophy and teachings formed the foundation of the Buddhist religion, and he became known as Gautama Buddha or simply Buddha.

Siddhartha was said to have left behind a royal inheritance to go on a religious quest.Once he found that various teachings were too extreme for him, Siddhartha was determined to find a middle way. Legend has it that Siddhartha sat under a pipal tree and vowed not to move until he found the truth. After 49 days, at age 35, he attained enlightenment.

Siddhartha died around 2,500 years ago at the age of 80. His cremated remains were divided among his disciples and royalty, and were spread far and wide.

The details of the discovery in Jingchuan County have recently been reported in English by the journal <a href="http://www.eastviewpress.com/Journals/CulturalRelics.aspx">Chinese Cultural Relics</a>.

--

By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Photo Credit: Chinese Cultural Relics

Cremated remains found in China may have belonged to Buddha

Remains buried in a chest 1,000 years ago are believed...

People who are more in touch with their own heartbeat may actually be more charitable, according to a new study. 

The research, conducted by scientists from <a href="http://www.anglia.ac.uk/">Anglia Ruskin University</a> and <a href="http://www.su.se/english/">Stockholm University</a>, is the first to attempt to find a physiological connection to charitable giving and altruistic behavior. 

“Despite clear biological and economic advantages of acting in self-interest, people consistently make decisions that benefit others, at a cost to themselves,” said Dr. Richard Piech, a co-author of the study. “Our study suggests that selfless acts may be influenced by signals from the body that reach the brain.”

The researchers set out to see if a physical response could explain why some people are naturally more <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/female-brain-wired-generous/">giving</a> than others. 

For the study, a group of participants was asked to play a computer game where they were continually asked to share sums of money between themselves and someone they hadn’t met before.

At the end of the game, the participants were given real money, but the amounts depended on how much they had given and received by other players. 

The researchers also had the participants complete a task where they had their heartbeat recorded and were then asked to listen to a series of sounds that were either in time or out of sync with their recorded heartbeats. 

The participants that could judge the sounds that were in beat with their own heart were found to be more generous during the giving game. 

The results found that the participant's generosity was directly related to how in tune they were with their heartbeat. 

The researchers note that further research will need to be done to determine exactly why being in touch with your heartbeat may determine your generosity, but the study shows a clear link between the two.

--

By <a href="mailto:kayvandette@gmail.com">Kay Vandette</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

People who are in touch with their heartbeats are more generous

People who are more in touch with their own heartbeat...

For almost eight years, scientists have been studying footprints left behind by a gigantic dinosaur in the mountains of France. The animal responsible for the prints, which make up the world's largest fossilized track, has been named Thunderfoot.

The huge <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/asteroid-dinosaurs/">dinosaur</a> footprints were ultimately found to extend over 500 feet through the French village of Plagne in the Jura Mountains.

20 prints were first discovered in 2009 by two scientists from the <a href="http://www.geologypage.com/2017/11/worlds-largest-dinosaur-tracks-discovered-jura-mountains.html">Oyonnax Naturalists' Society</a>. Digs at the site unearthed more footprints, and the track was found to contain 110 massive imprints.

The depth and length of the 150-million-year-old tracks exposed the size of the dinosaur, which was as long as three buses. The experts determined that the Sauropod weighed at least 38.5 tons and was 114 feet long.

The footprints featured five elliptical toe marks, while the handprints showed five circular finger marks arranged in the shape of a crescent.

The details of the study have been released to the public by the <a href="http://lgltpe.ens-lyon.fr/">Laboratoire de Geologie de Lyon</a>. The massive animal was named after the French village where it was discovered. The dinosaur’s scientific name is Brontopodus plagenensis, which means ‘Thunderfoot from Plagne.”

The research institution responsible for the excavation of the Plagne site is the <a href="http://www.cnrs.fr/">Centre national de la recherche scientifique</a>, or CNRS. 

A representative of CNRS said in a statement, “Dating of the limestone layers reveals that the trackway was formed 150 million years ago, during the Early Tithonian Age of the Jurassic Period. At that time, the Plagne site lay on a vast carbonate platform bathed in a warm, shallow sea.”

“The presence of large dinosaurs indicates the region must have been studded with many islands that offered enough vegetation to sustain the animals. Land bridges emerged when the sea level lowered, connecting the islands and allowing the giant vertebrates to migrate from dry land in the Rhenish Massif.”

The Jurassic Period was named after the Jura Mountains because rocks from this time period were found there. The dinosaurs are thought to have left their tracks in the mud, which dried before becoming covered with the water and sediment that preserved them.

--

By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer
Photo Credit: P. Dumas

Dinosaur who left longest footprint trail named Thunderfoot

For almost eight years, scientists have been studying footprints left...

Many studies have proven that negative emotions affect sleep. As we recently reported, <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/bed-angry-bad-health/">going to bed angry</a> makes it harder to relax into sleep and can affect overall health and wellbeing. 

Now, a new study has found that going to bed angry or dwelling on negative memories will make it easier to recall and linger on those experiences later on.

The brain, as it turns out, is programmed to dwell on negative memories and strengthens them while we sleep. Emotions are also a prominent factor in how we recall memories, the stronger the emotion, the better our ability to remember the experience. 

The study was conducted by researchers from the<a href="http://www.bidmc.org/"> Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Centre</a> in Boston. For the study, the researchers had 57 participants view a series of images in each eye. 

The images were either upsetting or neutral, and the research team was able to visually track the different parts of the brain that processed each image. After that, half of the participants went to sleep and the other stayed awake. 

Twelve hours later, researchers asked the participants to remember the images. Those who had gone to sleep were able to remember a higher number of negative images than those who stayed awake. 

The results show that going to bed after experiencing something emotionally upsetting will only strengthen that memory and our ability to recall it later on. 

“This would provide an explanation of how sleep selectively stabilizes emotional memories,” Roy Cox, the study's lead author, told the <a href="https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/brain-dwells-on-negative-memories-while-we-sleep-w5bxknkf7">Times</a>. 

A previous 2015 study, which also showed similar results, focused on how emotions play an essential role in memory recall. Strong emotions can make both negative and positive memories more vivid. 

Going to sleep angry or dwelling on something embarrassing or upsetting that happened that day isn’t just bad for your sleep, it also means that you will be able to clearly recall that event in the future 

--

By<a href="mailto:kayvandette@gmail.com"> Kay Vandette</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/">Earth.com </a>Staff Writer

The brain strengthens bad memories as we sleep

Many studies have proven that negative emotions affect sleep. As...

As the command center of our body, the <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/poor-sleep-effects-brain/">brain</a> is one of the more intriguing areas of scientific study. One of the major questions scientists have had for a long time is how the brain can continue to learn new skills without needing to grow in size or volume throughout an individual’s lifetime.

A recent study has shown that the number of brain cells – like neurons and glial cells – increases initially as we learn. But ultimately, our brain gets rid of many cells or assigns them to other roles.

“Brain matter volume increases in the initial stages of learning, and then renormalizes partially or completely," says Elisabeth Wenger, lead author of the paper and a neuroscientist at the <a href="https://www.mpib-berlin.mpg.de/en">Max Planck Institute for Human Development</a> in Berlin. “This seems to be an effective way for the brain to first explore the possibilities, call in different structures and cell types, select the best ones, and get rid of the ones that are no longer needed.”

The study analyzed right-handed individuals who were learning how to write and draw with their left hands. Results showed that after a month, their brain volume increased, but three weeks later it returned almost back to normal. Other studies were also analyzed in which monkeys learned to use a rake to retrieve food and rats learned to differentiate between sounds – these studies had similar results.

“We are definitely not the first to suggest or introduce the expansion-renormalization model,” says Wenger. “I think we are just the ones who are now promoting it in the field of grey matter volume changes in humans.” The researchers think that this theory may be able to influence how future research designs neural studies. 

“In a way, it is now apparent that the typical design is just insufficient to show the full scope of changes that happen,” Wenger says. “This theory calls for study designs with more measurement time points to properly display changes in brain volume.”

--

By <a href="mailto:certz@earth.com">Connor Ertz</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Our brains grow as we learn, and then make cuts

As the command center of our body, the brain is...

Geoengineering is the large-scale manipulation of Earth's climate in an attempt to offset the effects of <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/toxic-mercury-arctic-soil/">global warming</a>. Scientists are now warning that proposed geoengineering methods could have a devastating effect on some regions of the globe, particularly those prone to bad storms or prolonged drought.

Climate experts from the <a href="https://www.exeter.ac.uk/">University of Exeter</a> have determined that conducting geoengineering in one hemisphere would likely have a damaging impact on the other.

For example, introducing aerosols artificially into the atmosphere in the northern hemisphere would reduce tropical cyclone activity which kicks up extreme events such as Hurricane Katrina. But, at the same time, this would lead to increased likelihood for drought in a region of Africa south of the Sahara known as Sahel.

As a result of their findings, the research team is asking policymakers worldwide to strictly regulate any geoengineering programs in the future to prevent causing natural disasters in other parts of the world.

Dr. Anthony Jones is a climate expert from the University of Exeter and the lead author of the study.

"Our results confirm that regional solar geoengineering is a highly risky strategy which could simultaneously benefit one region to the detriment of another,” said Dr. Jones. “It is vital that policymakers take solar geoengineering seriously and act swiftly to install effective regulation."

The researchers focused their investigation on the impact that releasing aerosols into the atmosphere would have on the frequency of tropical cyclones.

This controversial geoengineering approach, known as stratospheric aerosol injection, was designed to cool the Earth's surface by reflecting some sunlight before it reaches the surface. The process mimics the conditions that occur naturally after volcanic eruptions when aerosols are injected into the atmosphere.

For their study, the researchers used computer simulations to closely examine the effect of hemispheric stratospheric aerosol injection on tropical cyclone frequency in the North Atlantic. The projections revealed that releasing aerosols in the northern hemisphere would decrease North Atlantic tropical cyclone frequency, while injections contained to the southern hemisphere may potentially enhance it.

"This research shows how a global temperature target such as 1.5 or 2C needs to be combined with information on a more regional scale to properly assess the full range of climate impacts,” said co-author Jim Haywood.

The research is published in the journal <a href="https://www.nature.com/ncomms/">Nature Communications</a>.

--

By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Artificially cooling the planet could have devastating effects

Geoengineering is the large-scale manipulation of Earth's climate in an...

Researchers from <a href="https://med.nyu.edu/">NYU School of Medicine</a> have discovered that mammals can identify scents much faster than previously realized. In less than one-tenth of a second, a <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/ancient-mammals-nocturnal-dinosaurs/">mammal</a> can distinguish between one odor and another, according to the new study.

By conducting tests on mice, researchers found that chemical particles which trigger the sense of smell known as odorants only need to reach a few signaling proteins on the inside lining of the nose for a familiar scent to be identified. The scientists also found that the mice could distinguish between odors regardless of how concentrated the scents were.


"Much like human brains only need a few musical notes to name a particular song once a memory of it is formed, our findings demonstrate that a mouse's sense of smell needs only a few nerve signals to determine the kind of scent," said senior researcher Dmitry Rinberg.

As soon as an odorant docks into its olfactory receptor protein on a nerve cell in the nose, the cell signals a region of the brain that assigns odor and the smell is identified, explained Rinberg. 

The most important of the research team's findings was that mice recognize a scent right after activation of the first few olfactory brain receptors, usually within the first 100 milliseconds of inhaling an odorant. 

This was significant because earlier studies in animals had found that it takes as long as 600 milliseconds for the majority of olfactory brain receptors involved in smell to become fully activated. Previous experiments in mice showed that their smell receptors peaked after approximately 300 milliseconds because they have a faster sense of smell.

In addition, researchers had not described the role of concentration in the odor identification process prior to the current analysis. Earlier investigations had shown that more receptors were activated by highly concentrated scents, but Rinberg’s study revealed that mice could quickly differentiate between scents regardless of concentration.

Rinberg’s team plans to develop more animal experiments to link brain cell activity to smell identification. They will also examine how their findings can be applied to people.

The study is published in the journal <a href="https://www.nature.com/ncomms/">Nature Communications</a>.

--

By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Mammals can identify smells in a fraction of a second

Researchers from NYU School of Medicine have discovered that mammals...

According to recent research, drinking coffee and eating peanuts, walnuts, and tree nuts have substantial benefits for heart health. People who regularly eat nuts have a lower risk of cardiovascular disease, while drinking <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/climate-change-coffee-industry/">coffee</a> decreases the risk of heart failure and stroke.

A study published in the <a href="http://www.onlinejacc.org/">Journal of the American College of Cardiology</a> is the largest study to examine the link between nut consumption and heart health. The researchers set out to examine the association between specific types of nuts and the incidence of cardiovascular disease.

The analysis examined over 210,000 individuals who had previously engaged in one of three major studies. The participants had self-reported on medical history, lifestyle, and health conditions every two years and the research team was able to follow up on the study subjects for up to 32 years.

The study revealed a consistent inverse connection between total nut consumption and total cardiovascular disease and coronary heart disease. 

In addition, eating walnuts at least once per week was linked to a 19 percent lower risk of cardiovascular disease and 21 percent lower risk of coronary heart disease. Those who had eaten peanuts or tree nuts at least twice per week had a 13 percent lower risk of cardiovascular disease and a 15 percent lower risk of coronary heart disease. 

Overall, participants who consumed five or more servings of nuts a week had a 14 percent lower risk of cardiovascular disease and a 20 percent lower risk of coronary heart disease than participants who rarely or never consumed nuts. 

"Our findings support recommendations of increasing the intake of a variety of nuts, as part of healthy dietary patterns, to reduce the risk of chronic disease in the general populations," said lead author Marta Guasch-Ferre.

Preliminary research reveals similar heart health benefits from coffee. An analysis was developed based on the long-running Framingham Heart Study, which provides information about cardiovascular health based on certain diets.

The analysis revealed that drinking coffee has a significant effect on cardiovascular health. Compared with non-coffee drinkers, those who drank coffee had a reduced risk of developing heart failure by 7 percent and stroke by 8 percent with every additional cup of coffee consumed per week.

The findings of this study are being presented at the <a href="http://professional.heart.org/professional/EducationMeetings/MeetingsLiveCME/ScientificSessions/UCM_316900_Scientific-Sessions.jsp">American Heart Association's Scientific Sessions 2017</a>.

--

By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Coffee and nuts both found to improve heart health

According to recent research, drinking coffee and eating peanuts, walnuts,...

Researchers have discovered evidence of why head and face pain causes more suffering than pain elsewhere in the body. It turns out that pain in the head, face, eyes, ears, and teeth is more than just physically uncomfortable, but is emotionally disruptive as well.

The scientists found that sensory nerves are wired directly from the head and face into one of the brain's key emotional signaling centers. Other sensory neurons in the body are only connected to this hub indirectly.

Study senior author Fan Wang is a professor of Neurobiology and Cell Biology at <a href="https://www.duke.edu/">Duke University</a>.

"Usually doctors focus on treating the sensation of pain, but this shows the we really need to treat the emotional aspects of pain as well," said Wang.

Pain signals from the head are carried through two groups of sensory <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/scientists-identify-sleep-apnea/">neurons</a> to the brain, and there is a possibility that these neurons are simply more sensitive to pain than other neurons in the body. However, this would not explain the elevated fear and emotional suffering that comes along with head-face pain, said Wang

"There has been this observation in human studies that pain in the head and face seems to activate the emotional system more extensively," said Wang. "But the underlying mechanisms remained unclear."

The research team set out to examine the neural circuitry underlying head-face pain and pain elsewhere in the body. To do this, they tracked brain activity in mice after irritating either a paw or the face. 

The scientists found that injury to the face caused increased activity in the brain's parabrachial nucleus (PBL), a region that is directly wired into the brain's emotional centers. Next, the team used advanced technology to identify the neurons which caused this heightened PBL activity.

"It was a eureka moment because the body neurons only have this indirect pathway to the PBL, whereas the head and face neurons, in addition to this indirect pathway, also have a direct input," said Wang. "This could explain why you have stronger activation in the amygdala and the brain's emotional centers from head and face pain."

Further testing revealed that activating this pathway triggered face pain, while suppressing the pathway reduced the face pain.

"We have the first biological explanation for why this type of pain can be so much more emotionally taxing than others," said co-author Wolfgang Liedtke. 

Liedtke explained that the findings of the study could lead to innovative treatments for devastating head and face pain.

"This will open the door toward not only a more profound understanding of chronic head and face pain, but also toward translating this insight into treatments that will benefit people,” said Liedtke.

The research is published in the journal <a href="https://www.nature.com/neuro/">Nature Neuroscience</a>.

--

By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Why head and face pain hurts more than other types

Researchers have discovered evidence of why head and face pain...

More than 15,000 scientists in 184 countries have signed a publication which warns about the harm that negative environmental trends are causing humanity. The issues addressed by the experts include <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/humans-driving-climate-change/">climate change</a>, species extinctions, deforestation, human population growth, and loss of access to fresh water.

The article includes steps that can be taken to reverse negative trends. However, the authors suggest that it may take a massive upsurge of public pressure to convince political leaders to take the corrective actions. Some of the recommended activities include the development of more terrestrial and marine reserves and stricter anti-poaching laws and restraints on the wildlife trade with stronger enforcement. 

The experts also express a need for promoting a dietary shift toward plant-based foods and expansively adopting renewable energy and other "green" technologies.

In 1992, over 1,700 scientists signed the "World Scientists' Warning to Humanity" published by the Union of Concerned Scientists. Trends in nine environmental issues have worsened since this publication, suggesting that humanity is continuing to risk its own future. 

Among some of the concerning facts presented by the authors are: a 26 percent reduction in the amount of freshwater available per capita, a 75 percent increase in the number of ocean dead zones, a loss of nearly 300 million acres of forestland, on-going increases in global carbon emissions and average temperatures, and a 35 percent rise in human population. 

On the other hand, the authors say that progress has been made in addressing some of the negative trends over the last 25 years. For example, the use of ozone-depleting chemicals has been reduced while energy generated from renewable sources has increased. There has also been a rapid decline in fertility rates and deforestation rates in some regions. The authors say that this “shows that positive changes can be made.”

The interdisciplinary team of scientists was led by William Ripple, distinguished professor in the College of Forestry at <a href="http://oregonstate.edu/">Oregon State University</a>. The evidence of "substantial and irreversible harm" to the Earth identified by the authors is based on a collection of data maintained by government agencies, nonprofit organizations, and individual researchers.

"Some people might be tempted to dismiss this evidence and think we are just being alarmist," said Ripple. "Scientists are in the business of analyzing data and looking at the long-term consequences. Those who signed this second warning aren't just raising a false alarm. They are acknowledging the obvious signs that we are heading down an unsustainable path. We are hoping that our paper will ignite a wide-spread public debate about the global environment and climate."

The groundbreaking article,"World Scientists' Warning to Humanity: A Second Notice,” is published in the international journal <a href="https://www.aibs.org/bioscience/">Bioscience</a>. Scientists who did not sign the warning prior to publication can endorse the published warning by visiting <a href="http://scientists.forestry.oregonstate.edu/">http://scientists.forestry.oregonstate.edu/</a>.

--

By <a href="mailto:csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

15,000 scientists across the globe warn of environmental threats

More than 15,000 scientists in 184 countries have signed a...

Heart-stopping sex is pretty uncommon, scientists say – and that’s a good thing for those who want to keep their tickers in top shape.

In a memorable scene in a 2004 episode of the show “House, M.D.,” Dr. Alison Cameron describes the supposed dangers of sex, including constricted arteries, racing heartbeat and rising blood pressure. “If God hadn't made it unbelievably fun, the human race would've died out eons ago,” she tells her colleagues.

But the fictional description may not be completely accurate, it seems. Sex is rarely a triggering factor in sudden cardiac arrest, according to new preliminary research by Dr. Sumeet Chugh and his colleague Dr. Aapo Aro. 

The doctors, both from <a href="https://www.cedars-sinai.edu/Patients/Programs-and-Services/Heart-Institute/">Cedars-Sinai Heart Institute</a>, looked at more than 4,500 cases of sudden cardiac arrest that occurred in adults between 2002 and 2015 in the northwestern United States. Out of those cases, they found only 34 that occurred during or within an hour after sex. 

In both groups, heart disease and the use of heart medication was common, Chugh and Aro said.

In the rare cases in which cardiac arrest does occur during sex, most of the victims are men – a full 94 percent, to be exact. Or, to look at the statistics another way, about 1 in 100 cases of sudden arrest in men are associated with sex, while in women it’s more like 1 in 1,000.

But the most worrying of their discoveries about literally heart-stopping sex is that bystanders performed CPR in only one-third of sex-related cardiac arrest, even though partners witnessed each heart attack.

While the research adds to conversations about sexual activity and safety between doctors and their patients, it also emphasizes the need for better education about CPR. The public needs to be informed not just about how to perform CPR, but also that it can be essential regardless of where or when a heart attack occurs.

The research was funded by grants from the <a href="https://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/">National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute</a> secured by Dr. Chugh. The findings were presented at the American Heart Association’s <a href="http://professional.heart.org/professional/EducationMeetings/MeetingsLiveCME/ScientificSessions/UCM_316900_Scientific-Sessions.jsp">Scientific Sessions 2017</a>. 

—

By <a href="mailto:kcathey@earth.com">Kyla Cathey</a>, <a href="http://www.earth.com">Earth.com</a> staff writer

Heart-stopping sex? It's rare, science shows

Heart-stopping sex is pretty uncommon, scientists say – and that’s...

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



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

Remote sensing will revolutionize the way we monitor trees

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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



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

Wetlands are a major source of methane emissions

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



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



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



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



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



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



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



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



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



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



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

The rapid retreat of the Columbia Glacier

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

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



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



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



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



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



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



Video &amp; Image Credit: ESA



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



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

The Pyrenees Mountains in southwest Europe

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

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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

[sendtonews key="3UUsNkFOuS-2487333-12187" type="single"] Today's Video of the Day from NASA...

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



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



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



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



Video Credit: NASA Goddard



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



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



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

Two distant planets may be "water worlds"

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

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



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



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



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



Video Credit: NASA Goddard&nbsp;



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



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

Satellites reveal how Earth's systems are interconnected

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