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. 



The space station 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 <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.



<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. The space station 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...

During the Age of Dinosaurs, ancient mammals hid in the shadows and ate the terrible lizards’ leftovers, right? Well, not always. The fossil remains of marsupial relative Didelphodon vorax are crushing that misconception.

The little mammal was about the size of a modern badger, based on the size of four fossils found in 66 to 69 million-year-old Hell Creek Formation deposits, in North Dakota and Montana, according to <a href="http://www.nature.com/articles/ncomms13734">a new study</a>.

Each of the four fossils included at least a partial set of chompers: nearly a full skull, a partial snout, and two upper jaw bones. Like most metatherians – Cretaceous Period ancestors and relatives of modern marsupials – many of the main remains of D. vorax are dental.

In D. vorax’s case, though, those strong, strong teeth didn’t just survive more than 60 million years. They provided the Cretaceous critter with one heck of a powerful bite.

To determine just how powerful, researchers scanned the fossils and compared them to skulls and jaws from modern mammals with known bite forces. Even the researchers were surprised by the results: pound for pound, D. vorax has the most powerful bite of any mammal that has ever lived.

The power of the marsupial relative's bite and the shape of its teeth would have allowed it to bite through bone and shell with ease, the study found. That would have let it fit equally well into roles as a predator or a scavenger. D. vorax might even have been able to hunt prey roughly equal to its own size, including small dinosaurs.

The carnivorous mammal didn’t just compete for meat with its reptile rivals, however. By studying the microwear patterns on the teeth, the research team discovered that D. vorax was an omnivore that ate vertebrates, bugs, shellfish, and plants. 

Beyond just learning about D. vorax, the researchers also gained new clues to the evolution of modern marsupials. They found five lines of marsupial ancestors, and that marsupial relatives in North America began getting larger along with other mammals more than 80 million years ago.

The researchers believe the modern pouched mammals primarily evolved in South America after the mass extinction approximately 66 million years ago.

The study was published in the journal <a href="http://www.nature.com/">Nature</a>.

---

By <a href="mailto:oliviagharvey24@gmail.com">Olivia Harvey</a>, <a href="http://earth.com">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Marsupial relative in Age of Dinosaurs packed powerful bite

During the Age of Dinosaurs, ancient mammals hid in the...

Mexico’s endangered vaquita porpoises are now on the edge of extinction, according to a pair of new papers. The researchers blame the marine mammals’ declining population on an increase in illegal fishing in the vaquitas’ range.

One study, published in the journal <a href="http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/cobi.12789/abstract">Conservation Biology</a>, used a sophisticated network of acoustic detectors to record the decline of Mexico’s vaquitas. The acoustic array shows a 34 percent decline each year in the population of endangered porpoises.

That decline means only about 60 of the rare vaquita porpoises remain in the world, according to a paper by the same team of researchers, published in the journal <a href="http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/conl.12331/full">Conservation Letters</a>.

The illegal fishing that is cutting down their numbers isn’t even targeting the marine mammals, according to the researchers. Instead, their deaths are collateral damage from totoaba fishing, called “bycatch.” 

Totoaba fishing took off in the 1940s and continues today, even though the large fish was declared endangered in 1986 and critically endangered ten years later.

The fish are prized for their bladders, which can net as much as $100,000 on the Chinese black market, according to the <a href="https://eia-international.org/time-short-to-save-vaquita-by-tackling-illegal-fish-trade">Environmental Investigations Agency</a>.

Although the Mexican government banned gill net fishing in waters inhabited by the vaquita for two years, the acoustic study found that gill net fishing is still happening. 

It wasn’t the first sign that people had been violating the ban, which was instituted in April 2015. Surveillance activities and collection of discarded gill nets in the vaquitas’ waters have also washed up evidence of illegal fishing of the totoaba fish and, by extension, the vaquitas, despite patrols by the Mexican Navy, law enforcement, and environmental groups. 

Unless more action is taken to stop illegal fishing in the vaquitas’ home waters, their extinction is imminent, said Armando Jaramillo-Legorreta of the Department of the Environment and Natural Resources in Mexico, who led the research.

---

By <a href="mailto:oliviagharvey24@gmail.com">Olivia Harvey</a>, <a href="http://earth.com">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Vaquita porpoises fall victim to illegal fishing in Mexico

Mexico’s endangered vaquita porpoises are now on the edge of...

Our brains are big and complex, able to take in and process a massive amount of information – and human brain size and complexity may be due in part to a ‘typo’ in our DNA, according to <a href="http://advances.sciencemag.org/content/2/12/e1601941">a new study</a>.

The genetic mutation is likely to go back millions of years. Our closest cousins, the extinct Neanderthals and Denisovans, were brainiacs, too. It’s not present in our closest living relatives, chimpanzees, however. Their brains are about a third the size of our own. 

That means the mutation probably cropped up no earlier than 5 or 6 million years ago, when the ancestors of humans and chimpanzees first started down separate evolutionary paths, the researchers said. 

During that time period, between 2 and 6 million years ago, human ancestors began walking upright and using tools. At the same time, human brain size began expanding. 

Eventually, early humans began traveling from Africa to other parts of the world. About 800,000 years ago, their brains began growing rapidly, around the same time early humans were learning how to adapt to new habitats and environments.

Last year, researchers found a gene that appeared to linked to growth of the neocortex, the part of the brain connected with vision, hearing, spatial reasoning, conscious thought, and language. In humans, about 76 percent of the brain is the neocortex.

Now, researchers have figured out why that gene works the way it does. 

The tiny mutation to human DNA – called a point mutation – allows for certain stem cells to grow in a way that leads to a larger neocortex.

All living humans appear to have have this genetic mutation, the researchers said.

Scientists aren’t sure what caused the mutation, or if it was the only genetic change that played a role in developing modern humans’ intelligence. 

Larger brains have been mostly beneficial to humanity. They've allowed for the myriad inventions and innovations that make modern life more comfortable. 

However, human brain size has also made childbirth <a href="http://humanorigins.si.edu/human-characteristics/brains">more dangerous</a> for mothers and infants. Human infants have larger heads for their body size compared to other mammals, making childbirth painful for their mothers. Their skulls are also not yet fully developed – the “<a href="http://www.sciencemag.org/news/2012/05/infants-flexible-heads-stretch-back-millions-years">soft spots</a>” allow room for their head and brain to grow extensively in the first years after birth, but also make them vulnerable. 

The study was published in the journal <a href="http://advances.sciencemag.org/">Scientific Advances</a>.

---

By <a href="mailto:oliviagharvey24@gmail.com">Olivia Harvey</a>, <a href="http://earth.com">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Accidental intelligence: human brain size may be due to DNA 'typo'

Our brains are big and complex, able to take in and...

The Polar Vortex got an early start this year, and those months of warm-up have it ready to lay a freezing smackdown on the the upper Midwest and East Coast in the U.S.

The weekend is expected to bring the first breath of winter to the Northeastern U.S. this weekend, and could close roads by Monday, according to meteorologists with <a href="http://www.accuweather.com/">Accuweather.com</a> and <a href="http://www.weatherbell.com/">WeatherBELL Analytics</a>, two private forecasting firms. 

The weather will likely be mild in the beginning of next week, but it won’t last. By Wednesday or Thursday, freezing air will drift south from Canada into the northern Plains and upper Midwest. By next weekend, it will work its way east.

After looking at models of the current Arctic blast gathering above Canada, Ryan Maue of WeatherBELL <a href="https://twitter.com/RyanMaue/status/806176153031602176?lang=en">tweeted</a> that it looked similar to the Polar Vortex of 2014, the first time most Americans were introduced to the weather event. The Northwest might get some cold weather late next week, too, he <a href="https://twitter.com/RyanMaue/status/807298971471376385?lang=en">tweeted</a>.

The Polar Vortex is swirling mass of frigid air that usually stays high in the atmosphere above the North Pole – hence the name.

But in recent years, instability in the Polar Vortex combined with unusual behavior in the jet stream has allowed tentacles of icy air from the vortex to unfurl over parts of North America, Europe and Asia, bringing record freezing temperatures with them. 

Some scientists studying the phenomenon think <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/polar-vortex-linked-loss-arctic-sea-ice/">melting sea ice</a> in the Arctic Circle could be playing a role in the unstable vortex, making the freezing air break free for the south more often. However, the <a href="http://www.nws.noaa.gov/om/cold/polar_vortex.shtml">National Weather Service</a> points out that the U.S. has suffered cold weather from the vortex in the past, with notable cold in 1977, 1982, 1985, and 1989.

The Arctic blasts this weekend and next week – which Accuweather meteorologists say with bring <a href="http://www.accuweather.com/en/weather-news/snow-wintry-mix-may-cause-delays-and-closures-in-northeastern-us-by-monday/70000234">piles of snow</a> from Chicago north, sleet or rain to the rest of the East Coast, and <a href="http://www.accuweather.com/en/weather-news/rain-snow-to-hammer-northwestern-us-into-the-weekend/70000231">snow and heavy rain</a> in the Pacific Northwest – are expected to bring single-digit or below-zero temperatures to much of the northern U.S.

---

By <a href="mailto:oliviagharvey24@gmail.com">Olivia Harvey</a>, <a href="http://earth.com">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Polar Vortex is back and it's going to get ugly

The Polar Vortex got an early start this year, and...

Meadow restoration in California. Could restoring some of the surviving meadows in the Sierra Nevada mountains help California bring its carbon emissions down to 1990 levels in the next three years?

The question spurred a team of researchers from the <a href="http://www.unr.edu/">University of Nevada, Reno</a> and citizen scientists with the <a href="http://earthwatch.org/expeditions">Earthwatch Institute</a> to hit the trails, armed with equipment to investigate.

Settlement in the mountains along the California and Nevada border since the mid-1800s has led to the destruction of many of the region’s meadows, said Dr. Ben Sullivan, a professor with the university’s Soil Science Laboratory – and released the carbon stored in the soil for long periods into the atmosphere. 

Water use also dried out the soil in former meadows, microbes move in, degrading the carbon and causing it to be released as gas, he explained. 

While trees and shrubs move into the former meadow space, they can’t take in nearly enough carbon to keep up, Sullivan added. A single acre of meadow can release more carbon through degradation than 11 acres of forest can absorb, he said.

The university decided to team up with Earthwatch Institute and its ranks of volunteer citizen scientists to study four meadows in the Truckee River watershed. Volunteers included 75 citizens from the local area, including a team of high school students from Reno and college students from UNR and the <a href="https://forestrycamp.berkeley.edu/">Berkeley Forestry Field Camp</a>.

The researchers and citizen scientists took samples from trees, shrubs, grasses, and soils. They also measured diameter and height of trees and shrubs and collected other data.

The volunteers’ help allowed the sampling to be done over the course of a few days instead of several weeks, and gave the students valuable experience in the field, Sullivan said. 

Sullivan and his team at the UNR Soil Science Lab will use the collected data to determine how much carbon is being stored in the four meadows, and create a model that can be used by the <a href="https://www.arb.ca.gov/">State of California Air Resources Board</a> to sell carbon credits in exchange for the meadows’ restoration. The board’s cap-and-trade program is one of a number of efforts to bring California’s carbon emissions down to 1990 levels by 2020.

Sullivan hopes to expand the research to more meadows in the Sierras. 

—

Organizations participating in the data collection expeditions included University of Nevada, Reno, the Earthwatch Institute, the <a href="http://berkeley.edu/">University of California, Berkeley</a>, the <a href="http://www.plumascorporation.org/">Plumas Corporation</a>, <a href="http://caltrout.org/">CalTrout</a>, and the <a href="https://www.truckeeriverwc.org/">Truckee River Watershed Council</a>.

---

By <a href="mailto:oliviagharvey24@gmail.com">Olivia Harvey</a>, <a href="http://earth.com">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Scientists, citizens team up for Sierra Nevadas meadow restoration, California carbon credits

Meadow restoration in California. Could restoring some of the surviving...

Driving an electric car may seem like one of the most environmentally-friendly decisions one can make. But upon taking a closer look at the manufacturing side, it may turn out that the batteries and electricity needed for the electric car could have come from fossil fuel burning. This begs the question: what exactly is the environmental footprint of electric car?

Scientists from the <a href="https://www.ntnu.edu">Norwegian University of Science and Technology’s</a> <a href="http://www.ntnu.edu/indecol">Industrial Ecology Programme</a> examined the environmental costs of electric cars and published their findings in a report in this week’s issue of <a href="http://www.nature.com/nnano">Nature Nanotechnology</a>. The team provides a model for developers to use alternative nanomaterials for batteries in hopes of creating the most environmentally sustainable cars.

The report illustrates the environmental impacts of the extraction, refining, synthesis, performance, and durability and recyclability of the materials used. The team evaluated the most eco-friendly nanomaterials for building lithium-ion batteries and proton exchange membrane hydrogen fuel cells.

"Our analysis of the current situation clearly outlines the challenge,” said the team. “The materials with the best potential environmental profiles during the material extraction and production phase.... often present environmental disadvantages during their use phase... and vice versa.”

By outlining the environmental costs of each material used to build electric cars, the team hopes that engineers will “make the right design trade-offs that optimize LIB and PEMFC nanomaterials for EV usage towards mitigating climate change.”

---

By <a href="mailto:oliviagharvey24@gmail.com">Olivia Harvey</a>, <a href="http://earth.com">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

How environmentally friendly is the electric car?

Driving an electric car may seem like one of the...

Materials scientists at <a href="http://www.rice.edu/">Rice University</a> have taken a very close look at the binders used in construction, in hopes of creating eco-friendly programmable cement.

Led by Dr. Rouzbeh Shahsavari, the team of scientists dug down to the microscopic level so they could study the semi-crystalline particles that make up cement. Through experimentation, the team was able to watch the crystallization of the calcium-silicate hydrate particles that make up cement through nanoscale reactions, a process called morphogenesis.

Using the knowledge gained in those experiments, the scientists were able to synthesize C-S-H particles in a variety of shapes and sizes, rather than their natural blobby form. 

That led the scientists to an unsurprising conclusion: cement made from particles of ordered shapes and sizes is more durable and less porous.

The new cement-making process is greener than the current one for a couple of solid reasons. Stronger cement means stronger concrete, and stronger concrete means less can be used in the building process, the researchers said. Since concrete production is a top greenhouse gas producer, being able to use less may be good news for the atmosphere.

By making cement less porous, it also better protects materials inside or underneath from chemicals, Shahsavari said.

The morphogenesis process created by the team uses the “seed particles” to control how the rest of the particles in the programmable cement form. It involves adding positive or negative ionic surfactants and calcium silicate in small amounts to C-S-H, then exposing the mixture to carbon dioxide and ultrasonic sound to create the desired particle shapes. Once the seed particles settle on a shape, the rest follow their lead.

The team has collected its data into a morphology diagram that can serve as a recipe for builders and manufacturers.

The techniques the team used can be adapted for other uses, Shahsavari said, both with building materials like ceramics or colloids, or for medical purposes like bone tissue engineering or drug delivery.

The study was published in the Royal Society of Chemistry's <a href="http://pubs.rsc.org/en/journals/journal/TA">Journal of Materials Chemistry A</a>. The research was funded by the <a href="https://www.nsf.gov/">National Science Foundation</a> and the <a href="http://www.energy.gov/">Department of Energy</a>.

---

By <a href="mailto:oliviagharvey24@gmail.com">Olivia Harvey</a>, <a href="http://earth.com">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Programmable cement could offer greener concrete

Materials scientists at Rice University have taken a very close...

What if there was a way to capture carbon dioxide and convert it to methanol fuel on a large scale – easily and affordably?

The greenhouse gas carbon dioxide can currently be turned into methanol, a “clean” liquid fuel, but the process is requires a complex and costly series of steps. It’s a solution to rising levels of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere, but not an economically feasible or efficient one.

Dr. Karl Johnson, a professor at the University of Pittsburgh’s <a href="http://www.engineering.pitt.edu/">Swanson School of Engineering</a>, and Dr. Jingyun Ye, a postdoctoral associate, didn’t want to let that transformation of greenhouse gas go, though.

They believed that the ability to convert carbon dioxide to methanol on a large scale could solve two problems at once, Johnson said, reducing carbon emissions and creating clean fuel. Carbon dioxide has been linked to climate change, and is often produced by use of fossil fuels.

The pair teamed up to see whether they could <a href="http://pubs.rsc.org/en/Content/ArticleLanding/2016/CY/C6CY01245K#!divAbstract">create a catalyst</a> that would make the conversion process of carbon dioxide to methanol more efficient and cost-effective. Their goal was to reduce the number of steps and materials needed to transform the greenhouse gas into liquid fuel.

Johnson and Ye’s hoped to design a single material that could both capture and convert carbon dioxide to methanol. 

With computer modeling, they were able to design a potential catalyst that uses a microporous metal organic framework and dihydrogen – molecular hydrogen made up of two atoms – to convert carbon dioxide to methanol. The framework breaks down the dihydrogen in such a way that it binds to the CO2 and reforms as methanol. 

They published their design in the journal <a href="http://pubs.rsc.org/en/journals/journalissues/cy">Royal Society of Chemistry Catalysis Science &amp; Technology</a>. Their research was funded by a grant from the <a href="http://www.energy.gov/">U.S. Department of Energy</a>. 

---

By <a href="mailto:oliviagharvey24@gmail.com">Olivia Harvey</a>, <a href="http://earth.com">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Engineers design catalyst to transform carbon dioxide to methanol

What if there was a way to capture carbon dioxide...

California biologists have been working out the solution to a slippery problem: why can salmon embryos raised in laboratories survive higher temperatures than their river-born cousins?

The team of scientists from the <a href="http://www.noaa.gov/">National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration</a> and the <a href="https://www.ucsc.edu/">University of California, Santa Cruz</a> hoped to work out the answer to that dilemma so scientists could ensure better survival rates for the fish. 

They suspected the answer to their question might rely on oxygen and water flow. 

The <a href="http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/ele.12705/abstract">new research</a> focused on the endangered Chinook salmon in the Sacramento River to determine which temperature conditions are best for their eggs and young. The team began by reviewing laboratories, working with the hypothesis that Sacramento River conditions have never been warm enough to cause high mortality rates among salmon embryos.

They were in for a splash of cold water on their hypothesis, though. Data from the field showed that temperature-related mortality among the young salmon exceeded 75 percent in some years, even in temperatures that lab-raised salmon survived.

So they dove into the problem, determined to find out what caused the difference. What they discovered was that the laboratory studies didn’t take into account a major factor in salmon egg health: water flow. 

In the laboratory temperature studies, water in the tanks often flowed two to three times faster than it does in the Sacramento River and its tributaries, where salmon spawn in the wild. The faster water flows meant more oxygen for the lab-raised salmon embryos than their wild counterparts, which meant they could withstand warmer waters.

By studying laboratory and field studies, the NOAA and UC Santa Cruz team was able to work out that the Sacramento River’s slower flow meant embryos began dying at temperatures about 3 degrees Celsius lower than the lab embryos.

The new study also offered an answer to why salmon eggs laid in cold weather are often larger than those laid in warmer seasons. Larger eggs need more oxygen than smaller ones, the researchers found, and colder water holds more oxygen than warmer. 

It wasn’t just salmon that showed this egg size trend, either; the researchers looked at 180 different species of fish and found that fish consistently lay larger eggs in high-flow water conditions, even if temperatures are warmer. They also found that some fish have adapted to warmer temperatures by staying at their nests to fan the eggs with their tails. 

The Chinook salmon in the Sacramento River are winter-run salmon, but spawn in the summer months – the only salmon on the Pacific Coast to spawn in summer. Because of this schedule and their preference for cold water spawning sites, the fish are dependent on California’s snowmelt-fed rivers and creeks, <a href="http://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/stories/2015/09/spotlight_chinook_salmon.html">according to NOAA</a>.

The study was published in the journal <a href="http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/journal/10.1111/(ISSN)1461-0248">Ecology Letters</a>.

---

By <a href="mailto:oliviagharvey24@gmail.com">Olivia Harvey</a>, <a href="http://earth.com">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Biologists seek out best water temperature for salmon embryos' survival

California biologists have been working out the solution to a...

It’s called “the critical zone” and it refers to the section of Earth that is most crucial to human survival. The critical zone exists between the tops of the tallest trees and stretches down into soil and rock. The bottom of the critical zone is marked by the start of the weathering zone, which is the area where soil is made. 

The critical zone truly is everything for humans. It’s where we grow our food and what we build our homes on top of. It holds our water and supports all life forms. 

<a href="http://www.psu.edu">Pennsylvania State University</a> professor Henry Lin recently published a review on research about the critical zone in the <a href="http://vzj.geoscienceworld.org/">Vandose Zone Journal</a>. Lin argues that the critical zone is more than just a physical space, that it’s also a research approach that can shed new light on understand Earth’s layers from a macro perspective. 

"The critical zone approach provides a framework for combining below ground and above ground, nonliving and living, and space and time in our ecosystems," said Lin. "To truly understand this zone, research from many areas must be mixed into one framework. It includes perspectives on time, depth, and coupling."

All three concepts affect the critical zone in different ways. Time is an important framework in order to understand soil changes over time and how this has affected waterflow and vegetation growth. Depth is significant because of how much of the zone exists underground where we processes occur that we cannot see. And a coupling framework allows for the study of how the zone impacts the larger ecosystem and our natural resources. 

Human activity has caused both intentional and unintentional changes to the critical zone. Lin argues that further study of how the critical zone has changed overtime can allow us to more accurately predict what will happen in the future. 

"With our ongoing development, the critical zone is under ever-increasing pressures from humans, such as rapid growth of human and livestock population, land use increases, and global environmental changes," said Lin. "Possible negative effects include degraded soil health and water quality. It's important to continue closely studying this area."

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By <a href="mailto:oliviagharvey24@gmail.com">Olivia Harvey</a>, <a href="http://earth.com">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Why Earth’s critical zone is so very critical

It’s called “the critical zone” and it refers to the...

Biodiversity variables can help slow species loss

Scientists believe that Earth has undergone five major species extinctions in its history. The sixth, they say, is happening right now. Each year, thousands of species on Earth go extinct, and the trend will only continue if action is not taken. But while climate change data is readily available to influence policy decisions, data on changes in biodiversity has remained scarce. Enter: essential biodiversity variables.

Essential biodiversity variables is a term that refers to the measurements recorded to track and manage changes in biodiversity. The concept was coined by GEO BON (<a href="http://geobon.org/">Group of Earth Observation Biodiversity Observation Network</a>) in the interest of providing hard evidence of species loss. The team compared essential biodiversity variables to stocks. The price of a stock share varies depending on supply and demand and the price of all shares determines the index of the stock exchange. Similarly, data recorded pertaining to the populations and locations of species calculates the biodiversity variable. This, in turn, helps highlight which indices require the most attention on a policy making level. Biodiversity variables can be a way to correct misconceptions and protect biodiversity across the planet. 

According to Dr. Dirk Schmeller, researcher at the <a href="http://www.ufz.de/index.php?en=33573">Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research - UFZ</a>, “At the beginning there was a lot of hype surrounding the biodiversity variables. There was widespread discussion about them, but many people don't really understand what they are and what they can do. The EBVs are the link between the raw data and the indices. They enable us to document critical changes in biodiversity and provide the data basis on which politically relevant indices can be calculated, so that appropriate decisions can be made. So we can say to decision-makers, we need more monitoring or more capacity in this or that area.”

"It will take a few years before everything works in the way we envisage," said Dr. Schmeller. "The more information we can provide about biodiversity, the more it will influence policy decisions - even though biodiversity still often takes a back seat where economic affairs are concerned."

Biodiversity variables can help slow species loss

Biodiversity variables can help slow species loss Scientists believe that...

Clams don’t speak, so what can they tell scientists about the ocean? A lot, it turns out – the sea’s history is written in clam shells.

Dr. Alan Wanamaker, now a professor at <a href="https://www.iastate.edu/">Iowa State University</a>, learned how to read that record while he was working as a postdoctoral researcher in Wales.

At <a href="https://www.bangor.ac.uk/">Bangor University</a>, he was put in charge of sorting through thousands of Arctica islandica clams gathered from the North Icelandic Shelf, located in the North Atlantic. The goal was to study the clam shells and use them to create a 1,000-year-long record of life in the marine climate of that area.

Wanamaker processed the clams by sectioning shells, saving portions of each one in epoxy, radiocarbon dating, determining oxygen isotopes, and more. 

He also looked for clam growth rings. Like trees, clam shells grow a little each year, and how the shell grows in a certain year can tell scientists about the ocean conditions they were living in, including temperature. Since some of the clams were alive – and the species can live for up to 500 years – Wanamaker was able to work backwards and overlap specimens to build a chronological record.

When he completed his postdoctoral studies, the work was taken up by Dr. Paul Butler of Bangor University and Dr. David Reynolds, a postdoctoral research associate at <a href="http://www.cardiff.ac.uk/">Cardiff University</a>.

Now, the three and eight others who worked on the project have <a href="http://www.nature.com/articles/ncomms13502">published their research</a>, with Reynolds taking the role of lead author. The work provides a record of more than 1,000 years of marine history, with a focus on the oxygen isotopes. 

The work begins to fill a major gap in data about ocean climate through history, the researchers said. Because of lack of data, there has been debate in recent years over what role, if any, the North Atlantic plays in climate change, they said. 

Their research indicates that the North Atlantic has played a role in previous transitions in surface temperatures in the Northern Hemisphere, the researchers said.

One interesting item from the data, Wanamaker said, was that for most of the chronology, ocean temperature changes preceded atmospheric changes. However, after the Industrial Revolution began in the 1800s, that flipped, he said; for the past 200 years, atmospheric temperatures have led any oceanic warming or cooling.

Even without that important data, however, the study would make history for ocean science. It’s the first time that scientists have been able to piece together a year-by-year chronology of ocean conditions for such a long period of time, Wanamaker said.

Their study was published online by the journal <a href="http://www.nature.com/ncomms/">Nature Communications</a>. Funding was provided by the <a href="http://www.nerc.ac.uk/">United Kingdom's Natural Environment Research Council</a> and the <a href="https://europa.eu/european-union/index_en">European Union</a>.

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By <a href="mailto:oliviagharvey24@gmail.com">Olivia Harvey</a>, <a href="http://earth.com">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Clam shells help scientist interpret 1,000 years of ocean history

Clams don’t speak, so what can they tell scientists about...

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

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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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