Genetic,Brain,Disorders,,Conceptual,3d,Illustration.,Mutations,In,The,Dna

When folks picture Neanderthals, the image often involves heavy brows, furry pelts, and stone tools. Yet pieces of their DNA are still part of the modern human genome. Recent research suggests that some of these genetic variants inherited from Neanderthals could be linked to autism spectrum disorder.



About 50,000-60,000 years ago, small groups of modern humans trekked out of Africa into Eurasia. They met Neanderthals, exchanged tools, and also exchanged genes <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/dna-analysis-reveals-most-recent-modern-human-to-interbreed-with-neanderthals/">through interbreeding</a>. 



It has been estimated that Eurasian-derived populations have approximately <a href="https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.adq3010" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">2% Neanderthal DNA</a>, which was acquired during introgression events occurring shortly after anatomically modern humans migrated out of Africa.



Later, some descendants journeyed back to Africa, sprinkling a much thinner dusting of Neanderthal genes across the continent. 



That genetic shuffling means nearly everyone on Earth carries at least a trace of <a href="https://www.nhm.ac.uk/discover/the-neanderthal-in-us.html" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Neanderthal ancestry</a>, though the amount varies.



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



Genetic leftovers can be helpful. Certain <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-017-06587-0" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Neanderthal alleles</a> boost immune responses or aid survival at high altitudes. 



Many others never meshed well with our biology and were slowly weeded out by natural selection. Brain-related genes are especially unforgiving; even minor glitches can prove disruptive. 



With the recent sequencing of multiple <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0092867424001168" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">archaic human genomes</a>, there has been growing interest concerning the influence of archaic human-derived alleles on modern health.



Yet some Neanderthal variants slipped past that filter. They linger in regions tied to perception, memory, and social understanding, sparking curiosity about their subtle effects.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-autism-clues-in-neanderthal-dna">Autism clues in Neanderthal DNA</h2>



The study linking autism to Neanderthal DNA was led by researchers from <a href="https://www.clemson.edu/">Clemson University</a> and <a href="https://www.luc.edu/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Loyola University</a>.



The authors compared whole-genome data from autistic people, their unaffected siblings, and unrelated controls across diverse ethnic backgrounds. 



They saw that both rare and common Neanderthal-derived variants appeared more often in autistic participants. 



The pattern wasn’t about carrying more <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/scientists-inject-40000-year-old-neanderthal-dna-gli3-gene-into-mice-with-incredible-results/">Neanderthal DNA</a> overall; it hinged on possessing particular snippets.



One striking theme involved genes that guide how distant brain regions talk to each other. 



Visual-processing circuits appeared to run hotter, while the so-called default mode network, linked to daydreaming and social reflection, ran cooler. 



Those connectivity signatures match traits many autistic individuals report - keen pattern recognition alongside social fatigue.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-seeing-the-world-in-sharp-focus">Seeing the world in sharp focus</h2>



Functional MRI scans from the same project confirmed this pattern. People who carried a higher load of the identified <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/inner-ears-of-neanderthals-reveals-catastrophic-population-event-during-their-evolution/">Neanderthal variants</a> - whether autistic or not - showed stronger signaling in visual areas. 



Meanwhile, pathways that normally hum during casual conversation or idle thought stayed quieter. 



The result hints that these ancient genes might sculpt a cognitive profile tuned for intense observation and precise motor planning.



Archaeologists note a similar nuance in Neanderthal craftsmanship and stone tool making skills. 



Their <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Levallois_technique" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Levallois technique</a> required stepwise planning, spatial reasoning, and sustained focus - skills that resonate with strengths many autistic thinkers display today.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-an-evolutionary-twist">An evolutionary twist</h2>



Why would such variants stick around? One idea points to the small, tight-knit bands <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/humans-and-neanderthals-species-face-structure-evolved-differently/">Neanderthals</a> likely formed. In that setting, visual scouting for game, shelter, or stone resources could outweigh complex social juggling. 



When Homo sapiens groups interbred with them, those advantageous perceptual talents may have proved useful enough to persist.



The study does not argue that Neanderthal DNA “causes” autism. Instead, it suggests that a handful of inherited tweaks can raise the odds of certain traits emerging along a spectrum. 



Those traits might have offered benefits in <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/new-theory-explains-why-neanderthals-vanished-and-homo-sapiens-are-alive-today/">ancestral environments</a> - and still do in fields that prize logic, detail, and pattern spotting.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-neanderthal-contributions-to-autism">Neanderthal contributions to autism</h2>



Researchers stress that genetics is only part of the autism puzzle. Environment, early development, and countless other genes interact in ways science is still charting. 



Even so, identifying concrete Neanderthal contributions helps explain why autism exists worldwide, independent of culture or upbringing. 



It also reframes <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/placenta-hormones-may-have-driven-human-brain-evolution/">neurodiversity</a> as a legacy of humanity’s mixed heritage rather than a modern anomaly.



Many families notice clusters of analytical talent - mathematicians, engineers, visual artists - scattered among autistic and non-autistic relatives alike. The new findings offer a biological thread connecting those shared gifts.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-what-happens-next">What happens next?</h2>



“We hope this research will lead to further investigation into the ongoing influences of ancient hybridization between <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/neanderthals-and-humans-had-multiple-waves-of-contact/">Homo sapiens and Neanderthals</a> in brain development, human intelligence, and overall human health, as well as spur work into additional clinical resources for this complex population,” the research team wrote.



Future projects will likely probe other neurodevelopmental conditions, explore how Neanderthal variants interact with modern lifestyles, and refine personalized supports. 



As we continue to discover, the story of human evolution didn't stop with one lineage replacing another. It wove their strengths together, leaving fingerprints that guide our thoughts, perceptions, and innovations in modern humans to this day.



The full study was published in the journal <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41380-024-02593-7" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Molecular Psychiatry</a>.



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Scientists link autism to Neanderthal DNA found in modern humans

When folks picture Neanderthals, the image often involves heavy brows, furry pelts, and stone tools. Yet pieces of their DNA are still part of the modern human genome. Recent research suggests that some of these genetic variants inherited from Neanderthals could be linked to autism spectrum disorder. About 50,000-60,000 years ago, small groups of modern humans trekked out of Africa into Eurasia. They met Neanderthals, exchanged tools, and also exchanged genes through interbreeding. It has been estimated that Eurasian-derived populations have approximately 2% Neanderthal DNA, which was...

According to a major review study published in the journal <a href="https://dx.doi.org/10.1126/science.abn7950">Science</a>, if global temperature rises beyond 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels, multiple dangerous climate tipping points would be triggered, with this risk increasing substantially with every tenth of a degree of future warming. These findings provide strong scientific support for the Paris Agreement and associated efforts to limit global warming to 1.5°C, by showing that the risk of tipping points escalates beyond this level.



By synthesizing evidence for tipping points, their temperature thresholds, timescales, and impact from a comprehensive review of more than 200 scientific articles published after 2008 – when the notion of “tipping points” was first introduced in the scientific vocabulary and rigorously defined – the researchers found that human emissions have already pushed our planet into the danger zone.&nbsp;



The analysis revealed that five of the sixteen tipping points currently identified may be triggered even at today’s temperatures: melting of the Greenland and West Antarctic ice sheets, widespread abrupt permafrost thaw, collapse of convection in the Labrador Sea, and large-scale die-offs of tropical coral reefs.



“We can see signs of destabilization already in parts of the West Antarctic and Greenland ice sheets, in permafrost regions, the Amazon rainforest, and potentially the Atlantic overturning circulation as well,” said study lead author David Armstrong McKay, a georesilience analyst at the <a href="https://www.stockholmresilience.org/">Stockholm Resilience Center</a>. “The world is already at risk of some tipping points. As global temperatures rise further, more tipping points become possible.”



According to Dr. McKay and his colleagues, the chance of crossing more tipping points could be reduced by rapidly and immediately cutting greenhouse gas emissions. However, while the <a href="https://www.ipcc.ch/assessment-report/ar6/">Sixth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change</a> (IPCC) argued that risks of triggering climate tipping points become high at 2°C above pre-industrial temperatures and very high at 2.5-4°C, this new analysis indicates that our planet may have already left a “safe” climate state when temperatures exceeded just 1°C. Thus, even if temperatures stop rising, once the ice sheets, oceans, or rainforests have passed a threshold, they will carry on degrading for decades, even if emissions are stopped.



“The world is heading towards 2-3°C of global warming. This sets Earth on course to cross multiple dangerous tipping points that will be disastrous for people across the world. To maintain livable conditions on Earth, protect people from rising extremes, and enable stable societies, we must do everything possible to prevent crossing tipping points. Every tenth of a degree counts,” concluded study co-author Johan Rockström, the director of the <a href="https://www.pik-potsdam.de/en">Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research</a>. &nbsp;&nbsp;



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By <a href="mailto:andrei.ionescu5891@gmail.com">Andrei Ionescu</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer&nbsp;&nbsp;

Tipping points could be triggered without further warming

According to a major review study published in the journal...

<a href="https://www.earth.com/news/deforestation-threatens-two-new-fish-species-with-extinction/">Deforestation</a> in tropical regions currently continues apace, despite public outcries, the efforts of concerned groups, and media attention worldwide. The clearing of forests jeopardizes plans to cut back greenhouse gas emissions, conserve biodiversity in these areas and protect the valuable ecosystem services provided by tropical forests. Although there have been renewed commitments to reduce deforestation, made for example at the climate COP26 in 2021, the drivers of deforestation are poorly understood.



A new study published in the journal <a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.1126/science.abm9267">Science</a> has reviewed the extent to which agricultural expansion drives deforestation in tropical regions. In the past, agriculture has been cited as driving 80 percent of deforestation, but the international team of researchers responsible for the current research say this figure is much higher.&nbsp;



“Our review makes clear that between 90 and 99 percent of all deforestation in the tropics is driven directly or indirectly by agriculture. But what surprised us was that a comparatively smaller share of the deforestation – between 45 and 65 percent –​​ results in the expansion of actual agricultural production on the deforested land. This finding is of profound importance for designing effective measures to reduce deforestation and promote sustainable rural development,” said study lead author Florence Pendrill from <a href="https://www.chalmers.se/en">Chalmers University of Technology</a>, Sweden.



The review undertaken by the researchers focused on pantropical assessments of deforestation drivers in 87 tropical and subtropical countries covering most of Latin America, Africa south of the Sahara, and South and Southeast Asia. These data were combined with national-level estimates of deforestation in 11 of the countries with the highest rates of deforestation. Their focus was on the time period between 2011 and 2015.&nbsp;



The researchers record significant obstacles to determining rates of deforestation from the literature, mostly because previous studies use a diversity of methods to measure this and even to define what is meant by deforestation. The current researchers defined deforestation as “a persistent conversion of natural forest to any other land use, such as agriculture or human settlements, or to tree plantations,” and then reviewed studies from different sources to derive estimates of the rate of deforestation that were in line with their chosen definition.



The analysis revealed that between 6.4 and 8.8 million hectares (Mha) of tropical forest were cleared for agricultural and other use each year between 2011 and 2015. However, not all of this newly cleared land actually ended up being used for productive agriculture. The researchers report a discrepancy in the region of 2.0–4.5 Mha per year between forest cleared in the name of agriculture and the presence of newly created, active agricultural lands. This is consistent with previous regional and pantropical remote sensing studies that identify large tracts of unused land following forest clearance.&nbsp;



This discrepancy is present across all three continents considered in the study, and amounts to 1.0 to 2.0 Mha per year in Latin America, 0.0 to 1.3 Mha per year in Africa, and 1.1 to 1.2 Mha per year in Asia. The reasons why cleared forests are not converted into productive agricultural land include contested land claims, unsustainable practices like growing pasture for cattle on nutrient poor soils, and the unexpected collapse of markets. In addition, forest is often cleared for speculative purposes or to strengthen claims on uninhabited land, and is then subsequently abandoned.



“A big piece of the puzzle is just how much deforestation is ‘for nothing,’”&nbsp;observed Professor Patrick Meyfroidt from UCLouvain and F.R.S.-FNRS in Belgium.&nbsp;“While agriculture is the ultimate driver, forests and other ecosystems are often cleared for land speculation that never materialized, projects that were abandoned or ill-conceived, land that proved unsuitable for cultivation, as well as due to fires that spread into forests neighboring cleared areas.”



Newly deforested land that is used for agricultural purposes is most often used for pasture development and the rearing of cattle. In addition, only a handful of consumer commodities are responsible for the majority of deforestation linked to actively producing agricultural land&nbsp;–&nbsp;these include soy, palm oil and rubber, as well as coffee, cocoa, rice, maize and cassava. Recent initiatives to halt deforestation have called for a ban on such produce that is cultivated on deforested land.



“Sector specific initiatives to combat deforestation can be invaluable, and new measures to prohibit imports of commodities linked to deforestation in consumer markets, such as those under negotiation in the EU, UK and USA represent a major step forward from largely voluntary efforts to combat deforestation to date,”&nbsp;said Dr. Toby Gardner of the Stockholm Environment Institute and Director of the supply chain transparency initiative, Trase.



“But as our study shows, strengthening forest and land-use governance in producer countries has to be the ultimate goal of any policy response. Supply chain and demand-side measures must be designed in a way that also tackles the underlying and indirect ways in which agriculture is linked to deforestation. They need to drive improvements in sustainable rural development, otherwise we can expect to see deforestation rates remaining stubbornly high in many places,”&nbsp;Dr. Gardner added.



The study’s findings point to the need for supply chain interventions to go beyond a focus on specific commodities and risk management, to help drive genuine partnerships between producer and consumer markets and governments. This needs to include strong incentive-based measures that make sustainable agriculture economically attractive, while&nbsp;disincentivizing further conversion of native vegetation and supporting the most vulnerable smallholder farmers. The authors say this should include a stronger focus on domestic markets, often the biggest drivers of demand for many commodities, including beef, and a strengthening of partnerships between companies, governments and civil society in producer jurisdictions.



Finally, the study highlights three critical gaps where a stronger evidence base is needed to better target efforts to reduce deforestation; “The first is that without a globally and temporally consistent data product on deforestation we cannot be confident about overall trends in conversion. The second is that except for oil palm and soy, we lack data on the coverage and expansion of specific commodities to know which are more important, with our understanding of global pasture and grazing lands being especially dire. The third is that we know comparatively very little indeed about tropical dry forests, and forests in Africa,” said&nbsp;Professor Martin Persson of Chalmers University&nbsp;of Technology.&nbsp;



“What is most worrying, given the urgency of the crisis is that each of these evidence gaps poses significant barriers to our ability to drive down deforestation in the most effective way – by knowing where the problems are concentrated, and understanding the success of efforts to date," said Professor Persson.



Despite these knowledge gaps and remaining uncertainties, the study stresses that a step-change in efforts is urgently needed to effectively tackle and curb deforestation and conversion of other ecosystems and to foster sustainable rural development. The Glasgow Declaration on Forests recognized the importance of jointly addressing the crises of climate and biodiversity loss and set a new level of ambition for tackling deforestation and promoting sustainable agriculture. The authors of this new study say it is paramount that we begin to see individual countries and policymakers prioritize the realization of this ambition.



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By <a href="mailto:bosman@truewan.co.za">Alison Bosman</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Tropical forest land sometimes gets cleared for "nothing"

Deforestation in tropical regions currently continues apace, despite public outcries,...

Each day, approximately one quadrillion gallons of water are silently pumped by trees from their roots to the treetops – an astonishing feat accomplished by using only sunlight. While scientists have long known that it takes a huge amount of energy to lift all this liquid, what this amount is precisely remained a mystery.&nbsp;



Now, a team of researchers from the <a href="https://www.ucsb.edu/">University of California, Santa Barbara</a> has quantified for the first time the tremendous amount of power used by plants to move water through their xylem – a type of transport tissue in <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/alarming-number-of-european-vascular-plants-are-threatened/">vascular plants</a> – to their leaves. Their analyses revealed that, on average, it added up to 14.2 percent of the energy that plants gather through photosynthesis. This amount is comparable to the production of all humanity’s hydropower.&nbsp;&nbsp;



“It takes power to move water up through the xylem of the tree. It takes energy. We’re quantifying how much energy that is,” said study lead author Gregory Quetin, a postdoctoral researcher in Ecology at UC Santa Barbara. This energy is a surplus to what plants produce through photosynthesis. “It’s energy that’s being harvested passively from the environment, just through the tree’s structure.”



Complex plants accomplish this amazing feat with a vascular system, in which tubes called xylem bring water from the roots to the leaves, while another type of tubes, known as phloem, transport sugar produced in the leaves to the rest of the plant. “Vascular plants evolving xylem is a huge deal that allowed for trees to exist,” Dr. Quetin explained.



By contrast to those of animals, plant circulatory systems are open and powered passively, with sunlight evaporating water, which then escapes from pores into the leaves, and creates a negative pressure that pulls up the water beneath, through a process called “transpiration.” Unlike in the case of photosynthesis, the energy produced by transpiration does not need to be processed before being used.



The scientists combined a global database of plant conductance with mathematical models of sap ascent to calculate how much power plants devote to pumping water. They found that the Earth’s forests consume about 9.4 petawatt-hours per year – an amount similar to global hydropower production. Surprisingly, little of this energy is used in fighting gravity, most of it going into overcoming the resistance of plants’ stems.



Since plants vary widely in how conducive their stems are to water flow, there is still some uncertainty regarding how much energy particular plants produce. “I think this uncertainty highlights that there is still a lot we don’t know about the biogeography of plant resistance (and to a lesser extent, transpiration). This is good motivation for continued research in these areas,” Dr. Quetin concluded.



The study is published in the <a href="https://agupubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1029/2022JG006922">Journal of Geophysical Research: Biogeosciences</a>.&nbsp;



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By <a href="mailto:andrei.ionescu5891@gmail.com">Andrei Ionescu</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer&nbsp;&nbsp;

How much energy do plants use to lift water from the soil?

Each day, approximately one quadrillion gallons of water are silently...

A,Helicopter,Dropping,Water,On,A,California,Wildfire,In,Rugged

<a href="https://www.earth.com/news/record-breaking-wildfire-years-are-just-getting-started/">Wildfires</a> erupting in areas such as forests, grasslands, or prairies have recently grown in frequency and intensity – most likely due to climate change – increasingly impacting a variety of ecosystems, as well as human lives. Although wildfires are often considered ecologically beneficial, they also have many negative effects, such as degradation of air quality from the smoke and pollutants released.



In a new study, experts from the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.nasa.gov/langley/">NASA Langley Research Center</a>, in collaboration with scientists from the <a href="https://www.noaa.gov/">National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration</a> (NOAA), have monitored the levels of carbon monoxide (CO) and ozone (O3) in wildfire plumes in order to better understand the effects of wildfires on air quality.&nbsp;



While CO is directly generated during wildfires, O3 is produced from precursors emitted during wildfires and depends on various factors for its production, while their presence within wildfire plumes determines the plume age. Thus, reliably assessing its concentrations is crucial for better understanding how wildfires affect the air quality, weather, and climate.



The scientists measured the atmospheric CO and O3&nbsp;levels across the continental U.S. by using a&nbsp;remote sensor called “National Airborne Sounder Testbed-Interferometer” (NAST-I) that provided both high spatial and spectral resolution.&nbsp;



“The NAST-I, onboard NASA ER-2 aircraft, covers a space large enough to monitor the wildfire plume from its origination, evolution, and transport, and provides 3D distributions of the O3&nbsp;and CO concentrations at a higher spatial resolution compared to that of satellite infrared-ultraspectral sensors,” said study lead author Daniel K. Zhou, a physical scientist at NASA.



Based on their measurements, the researchers estimated the plume age by observing the differential concentrations ratios of O3&nbsp;and CO. “Our results showed enhanced levels of CO in the evolving plume as it was transported away from the site of the fire. The plume age was associated with the plume distance in both vertical and horizontal directions,” Zhou explained.



These findings – published in the <a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.1117/1.JRS.16.034522">Journal of Applied Remote Sensing</a> - provide important insights into the effects of wildfires on the atmosphere and the steps needed to mitigate their negative impact on air quality and thus public health.&nbsp;



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By <a href="mailto:andrei.ionescu5891@gmail.com">Andrei Ionescu</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer&nbsp;&nbsp;

Measuring the effect of wildfires on air quality

Wildfires erupting in areas such as forests, grasslands, or prairies...

Endangered,Hawaiian,Green,Sea,Turtle

Besides climate change, one of the most serious threats to wildlife biodiversity is the illegal killing and trafficking of animals and plants. Although many existing laws aim to stop <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/some-sunscreens-lose-effectiveness-and-become-harmful/">wildlife trade</a>, it still remains one of the most lucrative illicit industries worldwide, with many endangered animals being exploited for their pelts, or used as medicine, aphrodisiacs, spiritual artifacts, or simply curiosities.&nbsp;



A research team led by the <a href="https://www.asu.edu/">Arizona State University</a> (ASU) has now estimated that over 1.1 million sea turtles have been illegally killed and trafficked between 1990 and 2020, with as many as 44,000 turtles exploited each year during the past decade in 65 countries or territories, and in 44 of the world’s 58 major sea turtle populations. Surprisingly though, the study also revealed that the illegal exploitation of turtles has in fact declined by 28 percent over the last decade.



“The decline over the past decade could be due to increased protective legislation and enhanced conservation efforts, coupled with an increase in awareness of the problem or changing local norms and traditions,” said study co-first author Kayla Burgher, a doctoral student in Environmental Life Sciences at ASU.



Moreover, most of the poaching during the last ten years occurred in large, stable, and genetically diverse sea turtle populations. “What this means is that most of these sea turtles came from healthy, low-risk populations, which suggests that, with a few exceptions, current levels of illegal exploitation are likely not having a major detrimental impact on most major sea turtle populations throughout the world’s oceans,” explained study co-first author Jesse Senko, an assistant professor of Ecology and Animal Behavior at ASU.



However, according to Professor Senko, this apparent silver lining should be approached with caution. “Assessing any illegal activity is difficult, and the take and trade of sea turtles is no exception, especially when it becomes organized or connected to crime syndicates. Our assessment also did not include eggs or turtle products, such as bracelets or earrings made from sea turtle shells that could not be easily attributed to individual turtles.”



The scientists found that Vietnam was the most common country of origin for illegal turtle trafficking, while China and Japan were the main destination for the trafficked turtle products. During the three decades investigated, 95 percent of poached sea turtles came from two species, the green and hawksbill turtles, both of which are currently endangered.



“Our assessment is an important foundation for future research and outreach efforts regarding illegal sea turtle exploitation. We believe this study can help conservation practitioners and legislators prioritize conservation efforts and allocate their resources to best help protect sea turtle populations from harmful levels of exploitation worldwide,”&nbsp;Burgher concluded.



The study is published in the journal <a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1111/gcb.16378">Global Change Biology</a>.



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By <a href="mailto:andrei.ionescu5891@gmail.com">Andrei Ionescu</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer&nbsp;&nbsp;

Over one million sea turtles poached in the last three decades

Besides climate change, one of the most serious threats to...

White-necked jacobins are a charming species of hummingbird common to neotropical lowlands and cloud forests. When they’re juveniles, the <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/woodpeckers-and-other-birds-can-taste-sugar-but-how/">birds</a> all sport tri-color plumage with blue heads, green backs and white bellies. As the birds become adults, their coloration changes.&nbsp;



Male jacobins retain the stunning tricolor pattern, but females generally become a dull green with white bellies. Surprisingly, 20 percent of females buck the trend and remain brightly colored like males.&nbsp;



A new study published in the journal <a href="https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/10.1098/rspb.2022.0332">Proceedings of the Royal Society B</a> has explored the mystery of why some females look like males. Do the females colored like males act like them, and is there a benefit to their appearance?



Male white-necked jacobins are aggressive and territorial but the researchers saw none of this behavior among the females with male plumage. Males and females also exhibit different feeding behaviors. Males tend to hang around a few feeding spots for long times while females, regardless of plumage type, visit more feeding locations for briefer intervals.



“Females with male-like plumage don’t seem to be behaving any differently than other females. All evidence instead indicates that females that look like males are engaging in deceptive mimicry,' said study lead author Jay Falk, a postdoctoral researcher at University of Washington.



Beyond observing behaviors, Falk and other scientists measured the birds and found no difference between the average size of females with different plumage. The results showed that both were slightly smaller than males. 



The researchers also measured the birds' strength by testing their ability to lift a small chain of beads while flying. Both types of females had the same strength on average, while males could lift more weight.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;



One possible benefit of the mimicry is that females that look like males experience less aggression than other females. In a previous study published in <a href="https://www.cell.com/current-biology/fulltext/S0960-9822(21)01033-2">Current Biology</a>, Falk and colleagues showed that females with male-like coloration were able to spend longer periods eating at feeders.  



Going forward, the team wants to look at the genetics of the birds to see what differences there may be and how these changes have evolved. There are some reports that different species of hummingbirds might display the same mimicry, which means it may be more common than we know.&nbsp;&nbsp;



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By <a href="mailto:zachfitzner@yahoo.com">Zach Fitzner</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Female hummingbirds mimic males to avoid violence

White-necked jacobins are a charming species of hummingbird common to...

A new study published in the journal Nature describes how marine predators utilize anticyclonic (clockwise-rotating) ocean eddies to obtain food. The research suggests that marine predators follow anticyclonic eddies as they move throughout the open <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/new-insights-into-the-day-night-cycle-of-the-global-ocean/">ocean</a> - in pursuit of the biomass they contain. 



Study lead author Dr. Martin Arostegui is a postdoctoral scholar at the <a href="https://www.whoi.edu/">Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution</a> and the University of Washington Applied Physics Laboratory.



"We discovered that anticyclonic eddies - rotating clockwise in the Northern Hemisphere - were associated with increased pelagic predator catch compared with eddies rotating counter-clockwise and regions outside eddies," explained Dr. Arostegui. "Increased predator abundance in these eddies is probably driven by predator selection for habitats hosting better feeding opportunities."



The study's data consisted of over 20 years of commercial fishery information and satellite data from the North Pacific Subtropical Gyre. This nutrient-poor region sustains marine predators that are important to the Pacific Island nations.



The scientists studied marine predators in various latitudes and depths, including an ecologically diverse sample of warm and cold-blooded fishes. The team concluded that the anticyclonic eddies have an expansive effect on the food chain, from top to bottom.&nbsp;



"The idea that these eddies contain more food means they're serving as mobile hotspots in the ocean desert that predators encounter, target and stay in to feed," said Dr. Arostegui.



The study also highlights the interconnectedness between the surface and deep ocean, which is essential to consider when contemplating deep sea fishery management. Knowing more about deep sea prey fisheries and the ecosystem benefits of deep ocean eddies will help managers make more informed decisions.



"The ocean benefits predators, which then benefit humans as a food source," said Dr. Arostegui. "Harvesting the food that our food eats, is something we need to understand in order to ensure the methods are sustainable for both the prey and the predators that rely on them. That is critical to ensuring both ocean health and human wellbeing as we continue to rely on these animals for food."



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By <a href="mailto:nire518@gmail.com">Erin Moody </a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Ocean eddies help marine predators find food

A new study published in the journal Nature describes how...

The microbes that reside in our intestines, collectively known as the gut microbiome, have a role in our gastrointestinal <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/how-does-nature-affect-human-health-in-urban-areas/">health</a>. Gut microbes also influence the immune system, the endocrine system, our mental health and the development of several health conditions - including inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), Crohn’s disease, cardiovascular disease, obesity and type 2 diabetes.&nbsp;



Previous studies have shown that exposure to airborne pollutants in adult humans and in animal models is associated with changes in the composition and function of the gut microbiome. There have not, however, been any investigations into the potential effects of air pollution on the development of the gut microbiome in infants. This community of microorganisms develops within the first two to three years of life and is influenced by various factors.&nbsp;



A new study led by researchers from the <a href="https://www.colorado.edu/">University of Colorado at Boulder</a> has now shown that the quality of air inhaled by an infant during its first six months of life may be one of these factors. The study,&nbsp;published in the journal&nbsp;Gut Microbes, is the first to show a link between inhaled pollutants – such as those from traffic, wildfires and industry – and changes in infant microbial health during this critical window of development.



“This study adds to the growing body of literature showing that air pollution exposure, even during infancy, may alter the gut microbiome, with important implications for growth and development,” said study senior author Tanya Alderete, assistant professor of Integrative Physiology at CU Boulder.



Newborns have a relatively small population of resident gut microbes, but this changes rapidly in their first months of life. Exposure to mother’s milk, solid food, antibiotics and other environmental influences shapes the composition of the microbial community that becomes established in the gut. Within the first two to three years of life, a child’s microbiome becomes fully developed.



Those microbes, and the metabolites, or by-products, they produce when they break down food or chemicals in the gut, influence the bodily systems that affect , among other things, appetite, insulin sensitivity, immunity, mood and cognition. While many are beneficial, some microbiome compositions have been associated with diseases and chronic illnesses.



“The microbiome plays a role in nearly every physiological process in the body, and the environment that develops in those first few years of life sticks with you,” said first author Maximilian Bailey, who graduated in May with a master’s in Integrative Physiology and is now a medical student at Stanford University.



In order to obtain data on infant gut microbes, the researchers collected fecal samples from 103 healthy, six-month old, primarily breast-fed Latino infants who were enrolled in the Southern California Mother’s Milk Study. They then used genetic sequencing techniques to identify the species of bacteria that were present in the samples.



Using their street addresses and data from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s Air Quality System, which records hourly data from monitoring systems, the researchers estimated exposure to air pollution for each infant. Specifically, the researchers considered levels of PM2.5 and PM10 (fine inhalable particles from things like factories, wildfires and construction sites) and Nitrogen Dioxide (NO2), a gas largely emitted in vehicle exhaust fumes.



The results of the analysis showed that increased exposure during the first six months to the air pollutants considered was associated with changes in the infant gut microbiota at multiple taxonomic levels. Different genera and species of microbes were characteristic of infants exposed to higher levels of air pollution.&nbsp;



Many of these infant gut bacteria associated with exposure to polluted air have previously been linked with adverse health outcomes such as systemic inflammation, gastroenteritis, multiple sclerosis, and mental health disorders. Further, several of the identified taxa are involved in the production of important gut microbial derived metabolites that play an integral role in human physiology, state the authors.



“Overall, we saw that ambient air pollution exposure was associated with a more inflammatory gut-microbial profile, which may contribute to a whole host of future adverse health outcomes,” said Alderete.



For instance, infants with the highest exposure to PM2.5 had 60 percent less&nbsp;Phascolarctobacterium, a beneficial bacterium known to decrease inflammation, support gastrointestinal health and aid in neurodevelopment. Those with the highest exposure to PM10 had 85 percent more of the microorganism&nbsp;Dialister,&nbsp;which is associated with inflammation.



The researchers state that inhaled pollutants have the potential to reach the gut because they first become trapped in mucus in the respiratory tract, after which ciliary action moves the mucus up to the back of the throat, where it is ingested down the esophagus and into the gut. Infants are particularly vulnerable to the health hazards of air pollution because they breathe faster and their gut microbiome is just taking shape. “This makes early life a critical window where exposure to air pollution may have disproportionately deleterious health effects."



It is often people from racial minority groups and low-income communities who tend to work, live and attend school in areas closer to busy highways or factories, placing them at even greater risk. One 2018 Environmental Protection Agency study found that communities of color are exposed to as much as 1.5 times more airborne pollutants than their white counterparts.



“Our findings highlight the importance of addressing the impact of pollution on disadvantaged communities and point to additional steps all families can take to protect their health,” said Alderete, who hopes her research will influence policymakers to move schools and affordable housing projects away from pollution sources.



In terms of the steps families can take to protect their health, Alderete advises the following to reduce exposure to both indoor and outdoor pollutants:



<ul><li>avoid walking outdoors in high-traffic zones;</li><li>consider a low-cost air-filtration system, particularly for rooms children spend a lot of time in;</li><li>while cooking, open the windows;</li><li>and for new moms, breastfeed for as long as possible.</li></ul>



“Breast milk is a fantastic way to develop a healthy microbiome and may help offset some of the adverse effects from environmental exposures,” Alderete said.



According to the researchers, their results suggest air pollution may be an important factor in the development of the gut microbiome. The findings have significant public health relevance since 99 percent of the world’s population is estimated to live in areas where air quality guidelines are not met.



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By <a href="mailto:bosman@truewan.co.za">Alison Bosman</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Pollution alters gut microbes in babies in dangerous ways

The microbes that reside in our intestines, collectively known as...

Agriculture,,Sugarcane,Field,At,Sunset.,Sugarcane,Is,A,Grass,Of

Bioenergy is derived from the use of materials produced by living organisms. It is considered to be more environmentally friendly than fossil fuels because it is sustainable and does not add any extra carbon dioxide to the atmosphere than would be added if the organism had been left to die and decay. Corn and sugar cane, for example, can be used to produce combustible materials such as pellets for fuel once the corn kernels and sugar have been removed.&nbsp;



Although there have been debates about using land to grow <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/some-crops-have-higher-yields-in-an-urban-environment/">crops</a> for bioenergy at the expense of growing crops for human food, biofuels such as sustainably grown wood, ethanol from sugar cane and corn, and methane gas from decomposing manure, are all currently produced and used in various parts of the world. It is clear that biofuels provide a useful alternative to fossil fuels and could form part of a strategy for reducing dependence on petrochemicals while at the same time still producing enough energy to meet demand.



However, research led by scientists at the <a href="https://www.york.ac.uk/">University of York</a> has found that climate change is likely to reduce the availability of biomass for energy production because crop yields will decrease in future. The experts warn that as temperatures rise, the window of opportunity to maximize the use of biomass from plants, wood and waste as a renewable energy source and an alternative to petrochemicals will start closing.



“Biomass fuels and feedstocks offer a renewable source of energy and a viable alternative to petrochemicals, but the results of our study act as a stark warning about how climate change will put their availability at risk if we continue to allow global temperatures to rise," said study co-author &nbsp;<a href="https://www.york.ac.uk/chemistry/staff/academic/a-c/jclark/">Professor James Clark</a>.



“There is a tipping point where climate change will severely impede our ability to mitigate against its worst effects. Biomass with carbon capture and storage, including the manufacture of bio-based chemicals, must be used now if we are to maximize its advantage."



In the latest report by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) and in many assessments of climate mitigation, bioenergy with carbon capture and storage (BECCS) has been highlighted as a crucial element of the strategy for meeting the target of 2 °C or 1.5 °C warming set out in the Paris Agreement. BECCS is a geo-engineering <a href="https://www.fern.org/fileadmin/uploads/fern/Documents/Fern%20BECCS%20briefing_0.pdf">technique</a> that, in addition to being an alternative for fossil fuel energy, stores carbon and prevents it from entering the atmosphere as carbon dioxide (CO2). This makes it a negative emissions technology.



The IPPC has suggested that the potential range of negative emissions from BECCS is between 0 and 22 gigatons per year, but as of 2019 only five facilities around the world were actively using BECCS technologies. In total they were capturing approximately 1.5 million tons of CO2 per year.&nbsp;



The researchers found that if urgent action is not taken to reduce fossil fuels in favor of bioenergy and other renewables, climate change will decrease crop yields - reducing the availability of biomass in future. Declining food production is also likely to lead people to clear natural landscapes in favor of croplands, which will further increase greenhouse gas emissions from land use change and further accelerate the rate of climate change.&nbsp;



For example, the modeling showed that when the implementation of large-scale BECCS technology is delayed from 2040 to 2060, the yields of agricultural residue for use in biomass technologies would be reduced and this would negatively impact the capacity of BECCS to be effective. The experts said that this would lead to an increase in global warming from 1.7 to 3.7°C by 2200, which would cause crops to be less productive, resulting in a decrease in global average daily crop calories per capita from 2.1 million calories to 1.5 million calories.



The researchers calculate that in this scenario, the scale of the food trade would need to increase by 80 percent from 2019 levels in order to avoid severe food shortages in many parts of the developing world worst affected by climate change.&nbsp;



Professor Clark added: “If negative-carbon mitigation technologies relying on biomass could be widely deployed in the short term, there is still hope that we can alleviate global warming and a global food crisis.”



The study is published in the journal <a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.1038/s41586-022-05055-8">Nature</a>.



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By <a href="mailto:bosman@truewan.co.za">Alison Bosman</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Bioenergy can slow climate change - but the window is closing

Bioenergy is derived from the use of materials produced by...

Although it is known that parents control the dietary choices of their children during early childhood, the increasing independence experienced during adolescence brings with it more freedom when it comes to food choices. This time of life also brings enormous physical and emotional changes in a young person, which is often associated with an increase in comfort eating, or eating as a means to relieve stress.&nbsp;



A recent study, published in the <a href="http://www.jneb.org/">Journal of Nutrition Education and Behavior</a>, investigates how various feeding practices used by parents influence the emotional eating behavior of vulnerable adolescents. The researchers explored the association between intentional parental feeding practices, such as monitoring an adolescent’s caloric intake or restricting access to certain foods, and the adolescent’s emotional eating. In addition, the role of the parent’s own eating behavior was investigated.&nbsp;



“Emotional eating was previously found to be more learned than inherited. This study examined not only the interaction between parents when feeding their children, but also what children learned from watching their parents eat,” said study lead author Joanna Klosowska, an expert in the Department of Public Health and Primary Care at Ghent University.



The initial study was conducted in 2017 with 218 families. Additionally, longitudinal data collected in 2013 were also available. One parent from each family completed the Child Feeding Questionnaire, as well as the Child Feeding Practices Questionnaire, and both adolescent and parent completed the Dutch Eating Behavior Questionnaire. Emotion regulation was assessed with the Dutch version of the child-reported FEEL-KJ questionnaire. The adolescent's body weight and height were measured by researchers.



Over the four years between 2013 −2017, covering the years from late childhood to mid-teens, adolescents reported a considerable increase in emotional eating, from below the average in 2013 to above the average in 2017, according to the norms for the Dutch population. Emotional eating is characterized by reaching for food in times of stress or discomfort, as a way of regulating one’s emotions, easing one’s emotional distress and finding comfort. Using food in this way during adolescence can lead to life-long problems with weight control.



During the same time period, adolescents who battled to regulate their own emotions were more likely to show emotional eating patterns. Emotional regulation is the process whereby a person regulates the emotions they have, how they experience them and how they express them. Resorting to emotional eating, or “eating one’s stress away” can be seen as a maladaptive way of regulating one’s emotions during adolescence.&nbsp;



The study found that when parents use food as a reward, or restrict and monitor an adolescent’s access to food, this is associated with an increased tendency by the adolescent to use emotional eating as a coping strategy. On the other hand, involving a child in meal preparations had the opposite effect – it was associated with higher levels of emotional regulation and lower levels of emotional eating in the adolescent participants.



Additionally, the researchers found a negative link between the extent to which parents restrained their own eating behavior and the use of emotional eating by their adolescent children. This means that the more a parent limited his or her own consumption of food for the purpose of health or dietary goals, the less the adolescent child resorted to emotional eating as a means of regulating his or her own emotions.&nbsp;



According to Klosowska, restrictive parenting was most damaging, whereas restrained eating by the parent seemed to be the most beneficial. Clearly, the different feeding practices used by parents can influence adolescent eating behavior, particularly in instances of increased vulnerability to maladaptive approaches to emotional regulation.&nbsp;



“This study suggests that parents continue to play an important role in their child's eating behavior into their teen years,” said Klosowska. “Additional research is needed to understand the [way in which] restrained eating demonstrated by a parent impacts the emotional eating of a child.”



The full article is available at: <a href="https://www.jneb.org/article/S1499-4046(22)00371-2/fulltext">https://www.jneb.org/article/S1499-4046(22)00371-2/fulltext</a>.&nbsp;



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By <a href="mailto:bosman@truewan.co.za">Alison Bosman</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Emotional eating by teens is influenced by their parents

Although it is known that parents control the dietary choices...

The pine rockland ecosystem of southern Florida evolved atop ancient <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/climate-played-a-key-role-in-shifting-ancient-coral-reefs/">coral reef</a> systems and came to support an abundance of rare plant and animal species. The limestone substrate of the dead corals is good for trees but, unfortunately, it’s a good foundation for houses as well. Human development has led to the destruction of much of the pine rocklands and poses a threat to the wildlife that makes them home.&nbsp;



The rim rock crowned snake, Tantilla oolitica, is one of the rare species to live in the pine rocklands. Since 1975, the small snake has been listed as threatened in Florida, and efforts are ongoing to list it federally.&nbsp;



Given the rareness of the snake, it was a surprise when a rim rock crowned snake was found dead, and with prey still sticking out of its mouth. The small snake, it seems, was trying to swallow a giant centipede when it died.



“I was amazed when I first saw the photos,” said study co-author Coleman Sheehy, herpetology collection manager at the Florida Museum of Natural History. “It’s extremely rare to find specimens that died while eating prey, and given how rare this species is, I would never have predicted finding something like this. We were all totally flabbergasted.”



The snake was discovered by a visiting hiker in John Pennekamp Coral Reef State Park on Key Largo, and was given to the Florida Museum for analysis.



It seemed likely that the snake died of asphyxiation from swallowing a too large prey animal, but the scientists couldn’t be sure without looking closer. A traditional autopsy would require cutting the snake open and damaging a valuable specimen. Modern technology, however, offers some alternatives, and the experts chose to conduct a CT scan.&nbsp;



The results of the CT scan showed that the centipede bit the predatory snake but it was choking that likely caused the reptile’s demise. The CT scans were made <a href="https://www.morphosource.org/concern/media/000435339?locale=en">available</a> online for free and the scientists hope that others will glean more valuable information from them.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;



The study is published in the journal <a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/ecy.3857">Ecology</a>.



Image Credit: Photo by Drew Martin/ <a href="https://www.floridamuseum.ufl.edu/science/north-americas-rarest-snake-found-biting-off-more-than-it-could-chew/">https://www.floridamuseum.ufl.edu/science/north-americas-rarest-snake-found-biting-off-more-than-it-could-chew/</a>



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By <a href="mailto:zachfitzner@yahoo.com">Zach Fitzner</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Rare snake found with last meal in its mouth

The pine rockland ecosystem of southern Florida evolved atop ancient...

Acqua,Alta,In,Venice

Although great strides have been made in flood and drought risk mitigation, their impact on the world population is increasing. The effect is seen most clearly when a second climate disaster hits an already damaged area.&nbsp;



By analyzing 29 pairs of flood events and 15 droughts worldwide, the researchers set out to determine how risks were managed between the first and second events.&nbsp;&nbsp;



The scientists found that, in many cases, the risk factors did not improve. However, Barcelona and Central Europe stuck out as successful, even though these areas remain vulnerable.&nbsp;



"The improvements in Barcelona's rainwater network over the last twenty years have been decisive in alleviating the effects of floods in the city. In fact, while in the Metropolitan Area of Barcelona there has been a slight increase in flooding since 1981, this trend is negative in Barcelona. However, this is not enough," said study co-author Professor María del Carmen Llasat.



Flood mitigation actions in Germany and Austria were also considered successful. Barcelona, Germany, and Austria have a couple things in common: an investment in infrastructure such as dykes and stormwater reservoirs, and better government engagement, including warning systems.



However, even these mitigation measures come with risks. Professor Llasat explained: "Large investments such as those made in the city of Barcelona or in Central Europe are not possible for everyone. In fact, they would not be desirable either. Recent studies have shown that they can lead to a false sense of security (especially in the case of river flooding), as they increase the occupation of flood zones and thus the associated risk."



The experts believe the way to true success is community-based flood mitigation that involves nature-based solutions.



"It is necessary for the administration to improve its knowledge of risk, the distribution of the most flood-prone areas in the city, how to act when there are heavy rains, etc.," said Professor Llasat.



"Regarding the citizens, it is necessary to become aware that this risk will increase with climate change and that we will need citizen participation. Education in schools, compulsory information on flood risks, improved warnings to the population and guidelines on how to act both preventively and during the emergency are also some of the points that should be considered to reduce the impact of these natural events."&nbsp;



The research is published in the journal <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-022-04917-5">Nature</a>.



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By <a href="mailto:nire518@gmail.com">Erin Moody </a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

As flood risks increase worldwide, who is prepared?

Although great strides have been made in flood and drought...

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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https://youtu.be/Ug657J67iEo?si=w96YjGMsg939LD_3
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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

[sendtonews key="0ynNMYkMKa-2340414-12187" type="single"] Today’s Video of the Day from the...

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Today's Video of the Day from the <a href="https://www.acs.org/">American Chemical Society</a> (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

[sendtonews key="G9bUoxcjr4-2511624-12187" 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 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

[sendtonews key="iuA5mpp3jv-1641775-12187" 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.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



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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

[sendtonews key="JRaP49ISmm-2357509-12187" type="single"] Today’s Video of the Day from the...

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

[sendtonews key="EjmSP20gQK-2593093-12187" 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 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

[sendtonews key="oL4FnPTGCV-2384527-12187" 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.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

[sendtonews key="f8fukm28Vz-2491833-12187" type="single"] Today's Video of the Day from NASA...

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



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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



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Two distant planets may be "water worlds"

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

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



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



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



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



Video Credit: NASA Goddard&nbsp;



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



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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