A recent study shows that reading chemical marks on just two stretches of human DNA can estimate a person’s chronological age to within about 1.36 years - if the person is younger than 50.



The work comes from the <a href="https://en.huji.ac.il/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Hebrew University</a> of Jerusalem, where Professor Tommy Kaplan and his colleagues trained a deep learning model called <a href="https://github.com/MagNet-DL/magnet" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">MAgeNet</a> to read single‑molecule methylation patterns.



“It turns out that the passage of time leaves measurable marks on our <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/earth-day-2025-our-power-our-planet/">DNA</a>,” said Kaplan, enthused about this finding he credits to the team’s focus on high‑resolution data.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-dna-tags-like-a-clock">DNA tags like a clock</h2>



<a href="https://www.earth.com/news/some-genes-may-predict-infertility-and-disease-by-flipping-like-a-light-switch/">DNA methylation</a> is a steady change that happens over time, where a small chemical tag gets added to specific spots in the DNA.



Because methylation builds up or fades in predictable ways as people age, scientists have treated it as a molecular clock for more than a decade.



Earlier age prediction models looked at hundreds of scattered DNA sites, but MAgeNet focuses on just two specific regions. 



It studies thousands of individual DNA fragments from those regions and runs them through a layered AI system to figure out a person’s age.



The network learns whether each fragment is fully methylated, partly marked, or untouched, then weighs more than 130,000 possible patterns to calculate a final age prediction.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-two-dna-regions-determine-age">Two DNA regions determine age</h2>



Horvath’s 2013 epigenetic clock needed 353 CpGs and still missed the mark by almost four years on individual <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/hundreds-of-exoplanets-are-much-larger-than-we-thought/">blood</a> samples.



Non‑linear “<a href="https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC10545910/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">GP‑age</a>” modeling cut that error to about two years using 30 <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/neuroscience/cpg-site" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CpG</a>s, but it still relied on array data that blurs single‑molecule details. Pyrosequencing <a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/26026729/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">work</a> later trimmed the list to five CpGs yet could not beat a 3.9‑year median error.



Kaplan’s team showed that focusing on pattern combinations rather than single averages lets a neural network squeeze out nearly twice the accuracy of any earlier clock.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-age-test-informs-care">Age test informs care</h2>



MAgeNet’s predictions did not change when researchers stratified volunteers by body‑mass index, smoking history, or sex, suggesting that the two‑locus signatures are insulated from lifestyle noise.



Such stability could help physicians decide whether a patient’s treatment plan matches cellular age rather than calendar age, a crucial distinction in emerging “<a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-023-39786-7" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">gerotherapeutic</a>” trials that target biological aging.



The study also tracked 52 Jerusalem residents a decade apart and found that early deviations between predicted and calendar age remained almost unchanged ten years later.



This fact implies that the methyl tags lay down a durable timestamp rather than fluctuating with short‑term health shifts.



Because the assay works on as few as 50 DNA molecules, even a pediatric finger prick or archived neonatal blood spot could, in principle, reveal whether growth‑related <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/astonishing-global-heat-in-january-2025-defied-climate-expectations/">therapies</a> are accelerating or slowing a child’s cellular timeline.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-forensics-and-dna-age-testing">Forensics and DNA age testing</h2>



Forensic scientists have long sought a tool that can reveal a suspect’s age from a trace <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/everyday-dna-damage-requires-constant-repair-by-cells-to-prevent-disease/">DNA profile</a>, something standard methylation arrays could not deliver without milligrams of tissue.



The Hebrew University team showed that down‑sampling their libraries to the equivalent of 20 genomic copies still kept the median error below four years, a tolerance well within the age ranges investigators typically publish in bulletins.



Urine samples predicted age within 2.5 years, while saliva lagged at 6.4 years, indicating that re‑training the model on cell type-specific data could broaden its courtroom utility.



Because most criminal suspects are under 40, the sub‑one‑year error seen in that age band may finally let agencies add an accurate number, not just a broad bracket, to DNA‑based composite sketches.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-clock-slows-after-60">Clock slows after 60</h2>



What drives some CpG clusters to tick in lockstep while others drift stochastically remains unclear. The authors speculate that nucleosome positioning and local enzyme kinetics may set the pace.



They also note that the clock’s error grows past age 60, hinting that accumulated epigenetic noise or selective survival of certain <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/blood-stem-cells-grown-in-the-lab-for-first-time-ever-leukemia-treatment/">blood cell</a> types begins to obscure the signal after mid‑life.



Future work aims to attach unique molecular identifiers during PCR to remove duplicate reads, a simple change that could shave away the remaining variance in the model.



A broader donor pool will test whether ethnicity, chronic disease, or extreme environments push the two‑locus DNA age clock off course, or whether, as the early data suggest, every cell on the planet keeps DNA time with the same molecular second hand.



The study is published in <a href="https://www.cell.com/cell-reports/fulltext/S2211-1247(25)00729-6" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Cell Reports</a>.



-----



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New DNA test can tell your exact age from just a tiny blood sample

A recent study shows that reading chemical marks on just two stretches of human DNA can estimate a person’s chronological age to within about 1.36 years - if the person is younger than 50. The work comes from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, where Professor Tommy Kaplan and his colleagues trained a deep learning model called MAgeNet to read single‑molecule methylation patterns. “It turns out that the passage of time leaves measurable marks on our DNA,” said Kaplan, enthused about this finding he credits to the team’s...

An average of two vertebrate species go extinct every year but few people notice, according to a new study.

Extinctions often attract little attention because the rate seems relatively low and doesn’t pose an immediate threat to natural systems, according to the <a href="https://www.stanford.edu/">Stanford University</a> study. 

"This is the case of a biological annihilation occurring globally, even if the species these populations belong to are still present somewhere on Earth," said co-author Rodolfo Dirzo. 

A 2015 study co-authored by Paul Ehrlich, Stanford Professor Emeritus of Biology, showed that Earth has entered an era of <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/fossil-footprints-recovery-extinction/">mass extinction</a> unparalleled since the dinosaurs died out 66 million years ago. 

In the new study, researchers mapped the ranges of 27,600 species of birds, amphibians, mammals and reptiles - representing nearly half of known terrestrial vertebrate species - and analyzed losses in 177 well-studied mammal species between 1990 and 2015.

More than 30 percent of vertebrate species are declining in population size and range, the study found. All of the 177 mammals for which the researchers had detailed data have lost 30 percent or more of their geographic ranges, and more than 40 percent have lost more than 80 percent, the study said.

Tropical regions have been the hardest hit, particularly the mammals of south and southeast Asia, where all the large-bodied species of mammals analyzed have lost more than 80 percent of their geographic ranges.

As many as 50 percent of the number of animals on Earth have disappeared, as have billions of animal populations. This amounts to "a massive erosion of the greatest biological diversity in the history of Earth," the authors write.

"The massive loss of populations and species reflects our lack of empathy to all the wild species that have been our companions since our origins," said the new study's lead author, Gerardo Ceballos of the<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Autonomous_University_of_Mexico"> National Autonomous University of Mexico</a>. "It is a prelude to the disappearance of many more species and the decline of natural systems that make civilization possible."

The researchers call for curbs on human overpopulation and overconsumption - and challenge society to move away from "the fiction that perpetual growth can occur on a finite planet."

The study was published in the journal <a href="http://www.pnas.org/">Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences</a>.

--

By: <a href="mailto:dbeasley@earth.com">David Beasley, </a><a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Source:<a href="https://www.stanford.edu/">Stanford University</a>

Image: Gerardo Ceballos

Population declines underway, two species go extinct each year

An average of two vertebrate species go extinct every year...

Commercial brain training games have no effect on decision-making or cognitive function beyond the practical effects of the training tasks, according to a new study.

Researchers at the <a href="http://www.med.upenn.edu/">University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine</a> studied whether brain training regimes could reduce risky or <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/brain-controls-impulses-good-decisions/">impulsive choices</a>.

The researchers recruited two groups of 64 healthy young adults. One group was asked to follow the Lumosity™ regimen, performing the executive function games for 30 minutes a day, five days a week for 10 weeks. The other group had the same schedule but played online video games. Both groups were told the study was investigating whether playing online video games improves cognition and changes decision making.

In an assessment of impulsive decision-making, participants were asked to choose between smaller rewards now and larger rewards later. For risky decision-making, they were asked to pick larger rewards at a lower probability versus smaller rewards at a higher probability.

The training didn't produce changes in brain activity or decision-making during these tasks, the researchers found.

"The logic would be that if you can train cognitive abilities and change activity in these brain structures,then that may change your likelihood of impulsive behavior,” said Joseph Kable, co-leader of the study.

The study participants were also asked to complete a series of cognitive tests that were not part of the training to see if the program had any effect on their general cognitive abilities. While both groups showed improvement, the researchers found that commercial brain training didn't lead to any more improvement than online video games. Although the training alone did not produce the desired benefits, initial results show that combining cognitive exercises with non-invasive brain stimulation enhances self-control over smoking behavior, the study said.

Researchers are now conducting clinical trials to learn whether this combination approach can alter other risky behaviors such as unhealthy eating or improve attention and impulse control in persons with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder.

The study was published in the <a href="http://www.jneurosci.org/">Journal of Neuroscience</a>.

--

By: <a href="mailto:dbeasley@earth.com">David Beasley, </a><a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Source: <a href="http://www.med.upenn.edu/">University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine</a>

Brain training does not affect decision making or function

Commercial brain training games have no effect on decision-making or...

Researcher H. Arthur Woods of the <a href="http://www.umt.edu/">University of Montana, Missoula</a>, and his team went on a mission to Antarctica in order to explore the phenomenon of “polar gigantism.” For years, scientists have observed that polar species tend to have larger bodies than their temperate and tropical relatives. This has led to researchers wondering how these larger species function physiologically – including how they get enough oxygen to all parts of their body. Woods and colleagues were studying this phenomenon in sea spiders – looking at their beating hearts under microscopes – when he realized that the spiders’ hearts were beating very weakly. 

In fact, their hearts weren’t pushing any blood past the spiders’ central area. What Woods then noticed was that the spiders’ guts were exhibiting strong and organized contractions.

“My 'aha!' moment was to consider that maybe all that sloshing of blood and guts was not about digestion but instead about moving respiratory gases around,” says Woods.

The researchers point out that sea spiders have a unique gut to begin with, as their guts branch our from their center and sections of gut tube extend to the end of every leg. 

Woods explains, “In effect, sea spiders guts are ‘space-filling’ and ubiquitous in their bodies in the same way that our circulatory systems are space-filling and ubiquitous.”

The <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/ground-spiders-ambush-prey/">spiders</a> are able to use this system to move fluids through gut peristalsis, which is the movement of waves of involuntary constriction and relaxation of muscles. Humans use gut peristalsis as well in order to mix our gut contents and move them through our digestive system.

Woods and his team performed a series of experiments and observations in 12 sea spider species. They used video microscopy of tracers in the spiders’ hemolymph and guts while manipulating the guts’ ability to contract – effectively allowing them to test and confirm their hypothesis.

Researchers say they are not sure if this physiological function first arose for purely digestive functions and the respiratory benefits came later or vice versa. But they do know that this discovery is a prime example of the diversity of evolutionary solutions that Earth’s organisms find. 

More information on this study can be found in the journal <a href="http://www.cell.com/current-biology/home">Current Biology</a>.

--

By <a href="mailto:certz@earth.com">Connor Ertz</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Source: <a href="http://www.cell.com/">Cell Press</a>

Image: Timothy R. Dwyer (PolarTREC 2016), Courtesy of ARCUS

Sea spiders use their guts, not their hearts, to pump oxygen

Researcher H. Arthur Woods of the University of Montana, Missoula,...

Rote memorization of historical dates or multiplication tables won’t help children be successful in the long run.

Instead, teachers and parent should focus on teaching the “six C’s” – communication, critical thinking, content, creative innovation, collaboration and confidence.

At least, so say Drs. Kathy Hirsh-Pasek and Roberta Michnick Golinkoff in their new book, <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Becoming-Brilliant-Successful-Children-Lifetools/dp/1433822393">Becoming Brilliant: What Science Tells Us About Raising Successful Children</a>.

Golinkoff, a psychologist and linguist, and Hirsh-Pasek, also a psychologist who specializes in early childhood education, wrote their book to offer parents a number of strategies and solutions to offer teachable moments that will lead their children to successful adulthood. The pair are worried that educational strategies that focus on rote memorization for standardized tests are failing to truly teach children how to be lifelong learners and thinkers.

In an interview with <a href="http://www.npr.org/sections/ed/2017/07/04/534431831/a-plan-for-raising-brilliant-kids-according-to-science">NPR</a> last year, Hirsh-Pasek compared the problem to climate change.

"What we do with little kids today will matter in 20 years," she told the nonprofit news organization. "If you don't get it right, you will have an unlivable environment. That's the crisis I see."

Education in the U.S. focuses heavily on “content” to the exclusion of the other C’s, the book claims. It cites a number of recent studies and new research to back up its proposed educational strategies.

“We're training kids to do what computers do, which is spit back facts. And computers are always going to be better than human beings at that,” Hirsh-Pasek said.

She and Golinkoff put the “six C’s” in context, showing how they all work together. Students who fail to learn the C’s may struggle through life regardless of how well they score on tests, the scientists said.

The strategies they lay out in the book don’t require any special classes or equipment, Golinkoff said. They just require challenging children to work with others and look at problems from a variety of perspectives.

“At school, when kids are being encouraged to get the one right answer and fill in that bubble, people can do things that enable their children to solve problems in multiple ways: ‘Can you think of different ways to make the bed?’” she explained.

—

By <a href="mailto:kcathey@earth.com">Kyla Cathey</a>, <a href="http://www.earth.com">Earth.com</a> staff writer

Rote memorization won't help children be successful in life, scientists say

Rote memorization of historical dates or multiplication tables won’t help...

Researchers from the <a href="http://www.arizona.edu/">University of Arizona</a> are taking a new look at past temperatures in Greenland to determine how quickly the country’s massive ice sheet is melting. 

Atmospheric scientists J. E. Jack Reeves Eyre and Xubin Zeng say that observing past and present surface air temperatures can help establish the rate at which the ice has melted and help predict how fast it will continue to disappear. Previous research suggests that the Greenland ice sheet began vanishing in 1900, and the annual rate of shrinkage has doubled since 2003. 

The loss of this enormous sheet could have a major impact on rising <a href="https://www.earth.com/video/measuring-sea-levels-rising/">sea levels</a>. Greenland’s ice covers an area of land larger than France, Germany, and Italy combined. The sea would rise an additional 7 meters, or 23 feet, in the event that all of Greenland’s ice melted.

"Greenland is particularly important to global climate change because it has the potential to cause a big change in sea level," explains Reeves Eyre. "Knowing how it's going to change over the next century is important."

Calculating the average temperature of Greenland in the 20th century is challenging due to the fact there were only coastal weather stations in the country until 1995. Remote sensing data, climate models, and other methods have been used to establish Greenland’s average temperatures last century, but the studies produced conflicting results.

For the current study, the scientists looked at data sets from 16 previous evaluations. They divided the temperature data into three categories to get an unbiased view of which studies were more accurate. The team ultimately combined the findings of the two best analyses.

"By studying a wide range of available data and combining two of the best data sources, we've come up with a combination that best represents the whole distribution of temperatures over Greenland from 1880 to 2016," says Eyre. "Using this dataset is the best way to evaluate climate models and their projection of temperature change over Greenland."

The findings of the study, published in the journal <a href="http://www.the-cryosphere.net/">The Cryosphere</a>, will be used to improve climate models to more accurately predict how Greenland will respond to future warming.

--

By <a href="mailto:csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Source: <a href="http://www.arizona.edu/">University of Arizona</a>

Greenland is melting, but the question is how quickly?

Researchers from the University of Arizona are taking a new...

Researchers from <a href="https://www.osu.edu/">Ohio State University</a> discovered physical movements that coincide with the mind’s decision-making process. The research team focused on the hands of participants, which revealed the internal struggle that some of the individuals were encountering as they made decisions.

The study used several experiments to measure self-control, and revealed that people with more self-control make a direct <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/self-driving-cars-ethical-decisions/">decision</a>, while those with less self-control hover between the choices. The individuals were observed while they selected options that would be smarter and more beneficial in the long run versus more tempting options that would provide instant gratification.

For one experiment, the college students were asked to choose between two food options in the opposing top corners of a computer screen. Those who were struggling with self-control held the computer mouse in the direction of the unhealthy food choices.

“Our hand movements reveal the process of exercising self-control,” said co-author of the study Paul Sillman. “You can see the struggle as it happens. For those with low self-control, the temptation is actually drawing their hand closer to the less-healthy choice.”

Before beginning the evaluation, the students were told they would have the choice of real foods after the test. The researchers noticed that the students who ultimately chose a candy bar over an apple were the same individuals who hovered in the direction of the unhealthy food options during testing. On the other hand, the participants who exercised self-control and made direct choices during their tests avoided temptation and chose the apple over the candy bar.

“The more they were pulled toward the temptation on the computer screen, the more they actually chose the temptations and failed at self-control,” Stillman said.

Previous research has indicated that two independent systems are involved in self-control decisions, but the findings of this study suggest otherwise. The direction of the computer mouses were curved instead of straight, which implies the food options were battling it out in the brain.

“Our results suggest a more dynamical process in which the healthy and unhealthy choices are competing from the very beginning in our brains and there isn’t an abrupt change in thinking,” said Stillman. “That’s why we get these curved trajectories.”

--

By: <a href="mailto:csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Source:<a href="https://www.osu.edu/">Ohio State University</a>

Involuntary movements reveal the brain’s battle for self control

Researchers from Ohio State University discovered physical movements that coincide...

Volcanic activity in the oceans induced by falling sea levels may have caused an unusual decline in the Earth’s temperature 80,000 years ago, according to a new study.

Although temperatures dropped, the amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere remained relatively stable for several thousand years, according to the study by <a href="http://www.geomar.de/en/">GEOR MAR Helmholtz Centre for Ocean Research Kiel</a> and the<a href="https://www.awi.de/en.html"> Alfred-Wegener-Institute Helmholtz Centre for Polar and Marine Research</a>.

Normally, if the temperatures decline, CO2 values also decrease and vice versa, the authors said.

Researchers analyzed why <a href="https://www.earth.com/video/ocean-circulation-absorb-carbon-dioxide/">CO2</a> levels were stable during the temperature drop during the last transition to glacial conditions. They investigated the response of mid-ocean ridges and of 43 ocean island volcanoes to glacial sea level changes.

During the development of glacial conditions, temperatures decrease and ice sheets form, redistributing water from the ocean to continental regions. Sea level falls, decreasing pressure on the seabed and the Earth’s crust, and increasing magma production, the authors said.

"To better understand and quantify these processes, we developed a comprehensive computer model that we integrated with geodynamic data,” said Jörg Hasenclever, the lead author of the study. “In addition to this we analyzed paleo-climate data and carried out simulations with a model of the global carbon cycle." 

Close interactions between the solid earth and the climate system exist on geologically relatively short time scales of about 5,000 to 15,000 years, the study suggests.

"Such interactions could provide a novel component for earth system research to better understand the climate evolution at times of glacial sea level changes," co-author Gregor Knorr said. 

The study was published in the journal <a href="https://www.nature.com/ncomms/">Nature Communications</a>.

--

By: <a href="mailto:dbeasley@earth.com">David Beasley, </a><a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Source: <a href="http://www.geomar.de/en/">GEOR MAR Helmholtz Centre for Ocean Research Kiel</a>

Sea-level declines, volcanoes explain unusual temperature drop

Volcanic activity in the oceans induced by falling sea levels...

A new study reveals how strike-slip faults form in the Earth’s crust, as two tectonic plates slide past one another, generating <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/slow-earthquakes-tsunami-generation/">earthquakes</a>.

In addition to a video description, <a href="http://www.umass.edu/">University of Massachusetts at Amherst </a> researchers re-enacted the events in wet clay in the lab.

"When I give talks to other geologists I put up a picture of a fault and ask, wouldn't you love to be able to see exactly how that formed?,” said structural geologist Michele Cooke. “Well, in my lab that's what we do. We set up the conditions for faulting on a small scale and watch them unfold.”

The researchers have developed methods that allow them to see faults grow in very, very fine detail, at a finer resolution than anyone has documented before," Cooke said.

In two-hour experiments, the researchers load a tray with kaolin, also known as china clay, prepared so its viscosity and length scale to that of the earth's crust. One scenario begins with a pre-existing fault, another with localized displacement beneath the clay, and a third that is characterized by a displacement across a wider zone of shear beneath the clay.

The scientists record strain localization and fault evolution that represents millions of years at the scale of tens of kilometers during the maturation of strike-slip faults. "We have captured very different conditions for fault formation in our experiments that represent a range of conditions that might drive faulting in the crust,” Cooke said.

One surprising finding was that faults “shut off along the way,” Cooke said. This is the first experiment to document this.

“Another especially surprising finding is that fault irregularities, which are inefficient, persist rather than the system forming a straight, efficient fault," she said.

The study identifies four stages in fault evolution: pre-faulting, localization, linkage and slip. The process starts simply, advances to a complex peak, and simplifies again before lengthening into a "through-going" or continuous single, surface crack, the research found.

“What you're left with at the end is a long fault with abandoned segments on either side, which is something we see in the field all the time,” Cooke said.”It's a nice confirmation that our lab experiments replicate what is going on within the Earth."

The study was published in the <a href="http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/journal/01918141">Journal of Structural Geology</a>.

--

By: <a href="mailto:dbeasley@earth.com">David Beasley, </a><a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Source: <a href="http://www.umass.edu/">University of Massachusetts at Amherst</a>

How strike-slip faults form and lead to earthquakes

A new study reveals how strike-slip faults form in the...

Scientists have discovered a geomagnetic “fingerprint” that will allow them to study the Earth’s magnetic field and its past with finer resolution.

"This is something of a Holy Grail discovery," said Maureen Walczak, a post-doctoral researcher at <a href="http://oregonstate.edu/">Oregon State University</a> and lead author on the study. "It is an important first step in better understanding the magnetic field, and synchronizing sediment core data at a finer scale."

Researchers made the discovery while studying two high-resolution sediment cores from the <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/500-year-old-fish-trap-alaska/">Gulf of Alaska</a>. They compared those records with sediment cores from other sites in the Pacific Ocean to capture a magnetic fingerprint, which is based on the orientation of the magnetite in the sediment, which acts as a magnetic recorder of the past.

The magnetic signal found in the cores now covers an area spanning from Alaska to Oregon, and over to Hawaii, researchers said.

"Magnetic alignment of distant environmental reconstructions using reversals in the paleomagnetic record provides insights into the past on a scale of hundreds of thousands of years," Walczak said

It will allow scientists to compare events between ocean basins, and “really get down to the nitty-gritty of how climate anomalies are propagated around the planet on a scale relevant to human society,” said Walczak.

The Earth’s magnetic field changes, which shields the planet from solar winds and cosmic radiation, changes over over time, researchers said. About 800,000 years ago, the field was reversed, meaning that a compass would have pointed south. Magnetic field reversals occur every several hundred thousand years, the authors said.

The magnetic field is generated by a fluid outer core of iron, nickel and other metals that creates electric currents, which in turn produce magnetic fields. It is well known that the field changes but the new research can help explain the reasons why, the study authors said.

The research was published in the journal <a href="http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/journal/0012821X">Earth and Planetary Science Letters</a>.

--

By: <a href="mailto:dbeasley@earth.com">David Beasley, </a><a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Source: <a href="http://oregonstate.edu/">Oregon State University </a>

Earth’s magnetic field is simpler than scientists thought

Scientists have discovered a geomagnetic “fingerprint” that will allow them...

Greenland sharks, rare vertebrates found deep in the waters of the Atlantic Ocean, have incredibly long life spans of up to 400 years. The biology and genetic makeup of these fascinating creatures is relatively unknown. Scientists now believe that these sharks may hold the secret to longer life in humans.

Researchers from the <a href="https://en.uit.no/om/art?p_document_id=343547&amp;dim=179040">Arctic University of Norway</a> have set out to determine what is in the genetic makeup of <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/melting-wave-glacier-greenland/">Greenland</a> shark that allows them to live a longer life. They are mapping the DNA of the sharks to discover “unique genes” that will disclose the mystery behind the sharks’ resilience and longevity.

The researchers collected DNA from the fins of the Greenland sharks, some of which were alive in the Georgian era. They were able to sequence the full genome of almost 100 sharks. The team is examining the DNA in an effort to find out what dictates the life expectancy of animals and humans. 

Professor Kim Praebel is leading the study. She spoke about the research at a conference in Exeter.  

'This is the longest living vertebrate on the planet,” said Professor Praebel. “Together with colleagues in Denmark, Greenland, USA, and China, we are currently sequencing its whole nuclear genome which will help us discover why the Greenland shark not only lives longer than other shark species but other vertebrates.”

Genetic data from the sharks may be able to shed light on the impact of climate change and show what effect it has had on the sharks over centuries. The study may also reveal when contaminants from human activities began changing the ocean’s dynamics and to what extent commercial fishing has impacted Greenland sharks.  

While the researchers continue on their quest to find the “long-life” genes, they are getting some insight into the behavior of Greenland sharks.

“Since the Greenland shark lives for hundreds of years, they also have enough time to migrate over long distances and our genetic results showed exactly that,” said Professor Praebel. “Most of the individuals in our study were genetically similar to individuals caught thousands of kilometers away.”

--

By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer 

Source: <a href="https://en.uit.no/om/art?p_document_id=343547&amp;dim=179040">Arctic University of Norway</a>

Image Credit: Julius Nielsen

400 year-old sharks may hold the secret to longer life for humans

Greenland sharks, rare vertebrates found deep in the waters of...

Researchers have made an alarming discovery of an anaerobic bacteria in sandboxes in the city of Madrid. Clostridium difficile was found to be widely distributed in sandboxes for children and <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/test-predicts-best-guide-dogs/">dogs</a>. 

The researchers also detected the presence of genetically diverse strains of Clostridium difficile, which may be more toxic and resistant to treatment. This poses a major health risk for animals and children who are exposed to the bacteria.

Symptoms of infection include diarrhea, fever, nausea, and abdominal pain. Clostridium difficile can lead to sepsis or inflammation of the colon, both of which are life-threatening conditions.

Professor Jose Blanco co-authored the <a href="http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/journal/10.1111/(ISSN)1863-2378">Zoonoses and Public Health</a> study. He expressed an urgent need for further testing. "Our results are just a call to action. A ‘One Health’ approach is required in future environmental surveys for this emerging pathogen," said Professor Blanco.

Clostridium difficile infection is spread by bacterial spores in feces. This anaerobic bacteria is commonly present in soil. The bacteria is easily spread by contact with contaminated surfaces. 

Inflammation of the colon caused by C.difficile is a common diagnosis with over 200,000 cases in the United States every year. This infection is treatable but some cases are deadly. It most commonly affects older adults in hospitals and retirement homes.

According to the <a href="http://www.mayoclinic.org/">Mayo Clinic</a>, however, “studies show increasing rates of C. difficile infection among people traditionally not considered high risk, such as younger and healthy individuals without a history of antibiotic use or exposure to health care facilities.”

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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 

Source: <a href="http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/journal/10.1111/(ISSN)1863-2378">Zoonoses and Public Health</a>

Playground sandboxes found to contain infectious bacteria

Researchers have made an alarming discovery of an anaerobic bacteria...

A new study by the <a href="https://ist.ac.at/">Institute of Science and Technology Austria</a> uncovers some of the mystery behind sex chromosomes in butterflies.

Female <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/promiscuous-female-butterflies-control-fertilization/">butterflies</a> determine the sex of offspring by passing along Z (male) or W (female) chromosomes, according to the study. Males are ZZ, females are ZW.  Birds and some fish also have ZW pairs. The Z chromosome is larger and has many genes, while the W consists mainly of repetitive DNA.

W-chromosomes often degenerate and lose genes, the researchers said. 

Female butterflies somehow compensate for the loss of genetic information in a biological phenomenon called dosage compensation.

Previous studies have provided an incomplete picture, with some species having complete compensation of the Z while others seemingly less so.

"Dosage compensation is common and well understood in XY species, but there has been speculation for decades that ZW species may not have it," said study leader Beatriz Vicoso. "The inconsistent patterns in butterflies and moths had further muddled the picture."

The researchers tried to clear up the confusion with an examination in butterflies and moths.

They examined the gene expression patterns in two butterfly and two moth species to better understand dosage compensation.

Contrary to previously inconsistent findings, dosage compensation appears to be common in somatic tissues throughout the clade. The expression of Z-linked genes is consistently equalized between the sexes in all species studied, the study found.

However, testing of tissue in the testis and ovaries revealed that Z-chromosome expression was not balanced between the sexes. This is probably due to a masculinization of the Z chromosome.

Removing those strongly sex-biased genes restored balance between male and female gene expression of the Z chromosome. 

The bias is found in the accumulation of genes with testis-specific function, the authors speculated.

"Our study shows that these inconsistencies were due to differences in experimental setup, and that dosage compensation is not just possible but widespread in this ZW group," said Vicoso.

There is still much to be learned, but the study results “take us one step closer to understanding what drives some species to balance the expression of their sex chromosome, while other do not," Vicoso said.

The study was published in the journal <a href="https://academic.oup.com/mbe">Molecular Biology and Evolution</a>. 

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By: <a href="mailto:dbeasley@earth.com">David Beasley, </a><a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Source: <a href="https://academic.oup.com/mbe">Molecular Biology and Evolution</a>

Unraveling the mystery of butterfly sex chromosomes

A new study by the Institute of Science and Technology...

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

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

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Today’s Video of the Day from the <a href="https://www.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

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

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Today’s Video of the Day from 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



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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

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

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