Today's Image of the Day from <a href="https://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/">NASA Earth Observatory</a> features an astronaut photograph of the Cape Cod peninsula, located in the easternmost portion of Massachusetts. The peninsula extends into the Atlantic Ocean and is a significant feature of the East Coast of the United States.



Cape Cod peninsula is characterized by its beaches, villages, and seafood. It's a popular tourist destination, particularly in the summer months, with people visiting for its beautiful landscapes and unique culture.



Cape Cod consists of 15 towns, including Provincetown, Hyannis, Falmouth, and Chatham. Each town has its own distinctive character and attractions. For example, Provincetown, located at the tip of the peninsula, is known for its vibrant LGBTQ+ scene, while Hyannis is famous as a ferry gateway to the islands of Martha's Vineyard and Nantucket.



The Cape Cod National Seashore, a national park covering much of the Outer Cape, including the entire east-facing coast, provides opportunities for hiking, biking, and beachgoing.



Historically, Cape Cod was a landmark for early explorers of the Americas. It was among the first places settled by the English in North America in the Pilgrim Fathers' era, and it played a key role in the early history and development of the United States.&nbsp;



Today, the Cape's history is preserved in numerous museums, historic sites, and lighthouses. In addition, a variety of wildlife can be found in the region, such as whales, seals, and many species of birds.



"The variety of ecosystems within Cape Cod National Seashore sustain over 450 species of amphibians, reptiles, fish, birds, and mammals, including 32 species that are rare or endangered," says NASA. "One of those species is the American oystercatcher, a large shorebird that uses a knife-like bill to eat shellfish."



Image Credit: NASA Earth Observatory&nbsp;



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Cape Cod peninsula in the northeastern United States

Today's Image of the Day from NASA Earth Observatory features...

Today's Image of the Day from <a href="https://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/">NASA Earth Observatory</a> features the Amundsen Gulf in northern Canada, where ice is typically covered with ice that is fastened to surrounding coastlines. According to NASA, the breakup of this ice tends to be rapid when the melting season arrives in spring.



"Patches of fast ice remained in the eastern part of the gulf in late May, but summer weather will ultimately clear it away as well. The Amundsen Gulf, the western entrance to the Northwest Passage, is usually ice-free by August," says NASA.



Walt Meier, a senior research scientist at the National Snow and Ice Data Center, said that winds play an important role in the breakup of the ice. He noted that an area of low pressure centered south of the gulf prior to the breakup fueled strong easterly winds and large waves that broke up the ice and sent chunks of it drifting west.&nbsp;



This year's spring breakup occurred earlier than usual, which aligns with the overall trend in the Beaufort Sea region in recent decades, noted NASA.



“Over a period of two decades, the Amundsen Gulf had the highest interannual variability of anywhere across the entire Northwest Canadian Arctic,” said Eleanor Wratten, a researcher at Northumbria University and the lead author of an analysis of decades of MODIS observations of fast ice in the Northwest Canadian Arctic.&nbsp;



“We saw the timing of breakup change considerably from one year to the next, but the general pattern looked similar to what you see here. Ice usually remains in the southern bays the longest, with breakup veering toward the strait in the southeastern portion of the gulf.”



The image was captured by the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) on NASA’s Aqua satellite on May 30, 2023.



Image Credit: NASA Earth Observatory&nbsp;



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Spring ice breakup in the Amundsen Gulf

Today's Image of the Day from <a href="https://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/">NASA Earth Observatory</a> features Nova Scotia, where unusually large fires have led to the evacuation of thousands of people. The photograph, which was captured by an astronaut on the International Space Station, shows smoke rising from a fire near the town of Shelburne on May 29, 2023.



"By the morning of May 31, after four days of burning, the fire had scorched 17,000 hectares (66 square miles) near the southern tip of Nova Scotia," says NASA. "It became the largest forest fire in the province’s history, according to CBC Nova Scotia, exceeding the area burned by a fire in Guysborough County over six days in June 1976."



"Fires have burned in Canada for weeks, as the western part of the country experienced a record-breaking streak of hot weather in mid-May."&nbsp;



"Several regions in Canada also had an abnormally dry spring; Nova Scotia received about half of the usual amount of rainfall in April. Authorities classified both the Halifax and Shelburne County fires as uncontrolled on May 31 and expected the fires to grow as dry and windy conditions continued."



Image Credit: NASA Earth Observatory&nbsp;



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Smoke rises from fires in Nova Scotia

Today's Image of the Day from <a href="https://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/">NASA Earth Observatory</a> features Lake Hamun, a seasonal lake in the Sistan region on the Afghanistan-Iran border. The lake and surrounding wetlands have been shrinking as a result of persistent drought, leading to reduced vegetation and exposed dust. These changes have transformed the basin into a major source of dust storms.



"While dust storms are most common in the summer, they happen year-round as long as the lake is dry and the winds are strong. That was the case on January 12, 2023, when the Visible Infrared Imaging Radiometer Suite (VIIRS) on the NOAA-20 satellite captured this image of dust streaming from the dry lake bed," says NASA.



In January 2023, a team of experts led by UCLA reported that airborne dust has likely increased by 55 percent on a global scale since pre-industrial times. The researchers said this is largely due to more frequent dust storms in Asia and North Africa.&nbsp;



The team estimates that the cooling effect of airborne dust has likely masked about eight percent of the warming caused by greenhouse gases since the preindustrial era.



“Our findings imply that greenhouses gases alone could cause even more climate warming than models currently predict,” said UCLA atmospheric physicist Jasper Kok. “This is of tremendous importance because better predictions can inform better decisions of how to mitigate or adapt to climate change.”



Image Credit: NASA Earth Observatory&nbsp;



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



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Lake Hamun is a major source of dust storms

Today's Image of the Day from <a href="https://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/">NASA Earth Observatory</a> features Typhoon Mawar, also known as "Betty," which is the first typhoon of the season in the northwest Pacific. The intense storm struck Guam and the Philippines before heading toward Taiwan and southern Japan.



"With sustained winds that reached 295 kilometers (185 miles) per hour on May 25, the super typhoon grew to be one of the strongest May storms on record," says NASA.&nbsp;



"The Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) on NASA’s Aqua satellite acquired this natural-color image of Mawar at 05:20 Universal Time on May 30, 2023. Though the storm appeared to be bearing down on Taiwan, it was in the process of turning north and away from the island."



"After rapidly intensifying between May 24 and 25, Mawar then weakened significantly as it encountered cooler water temperatures and less favorable wind shear conditions as it neared Taiwan."



NASA reports that although Mawar did not strike the Philippines or Taiwan directly, the outer bands of the storm brought heavy rains to northern Luzon and rough seas to the eastern coast of Taiwan.



Image Credit: NASA Earth Observatory&nbsp;



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Typhoon Mawar is one of the strongest May storms on record

Climate change is revealing secrets trapped within our planet's <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/arctic-lakes-are-releasing-methane-from-melting-permafrost/">permafrost</a>. As the icy layers melt at an alarming rate, they are uncovering organisms thought to be extinct - ancient "zombie viruses" that have been perfectly preserved for thousands of years. Scientists are discovering that these long-dormant microbes still possess the potential to infect and spread.



As global warming accelerates, the permafrost is thawing increasingly fast, along with the potential for zombie viruses to become infectious again. This warning comes from an international team of researchers from Russia, Germany, and France. The team includes experts in genomics, microbiology, and geoscience, some of whom have been tracking these re-emerging zombie viruses for almost a decade. The findings were published earlier this year in the journal <a href="https://www.mdpi.com/journal/viruses">Viruses</a>.



<h2 id="h-early-warning-signs">Early warning signs</h2>



<h3 id="h-1918-influenza-virus">1918 Influenza virus</h3>



One of the earliest signs of the viral resurrection came from a somewhat unexpected place. In the late 1990s, Swedish pathologist Dr. Johan V. Hultin found RNA of the 1918 Influenza virus in the lungs of an Inuit woman buried nearly 80 years prior in a mass grave of influenza victims near a remote village outside Brevig Mission, Alaska.&nbsp;



The discovery was possible because the permafrost had preserved enough RNA from the virus to enable researchers to sequence the entire 1918 strain's genome. But this victory was a double-edged sword, heralding the potential for other diseases long frozen in the ice to re-emerge in our modern world.



<h3 id="h-two-giant-viruses-emerge-in-siberia">Two giant viruses emerge in Siberia</h3>



Another zombie virus, Pithovirus sibericum, was discovered 100 feet beneath the Siberian permafrost in 2014. This ancient virus is so gigantic that it can be seen under an ordinary high school-style light microscope.&nbsp;



French scientists from the <a href="https://www.univ-amu.fr/en">University of Aix-Marseille</a> managed to resurrect the 30,000-year-old P. sibericum by exposing amoebas to the virus. "This is the first time we've seen a virus that's still infectious after this length of time," said ProfessorJean-Michel Claverie.



While P. sibericum does not pose an immediate threat to humans or animals, its re-emergence serves as a stark warning. The scientists noted the ease with which these new viruses were isolated, suggesting that infectious particles of many other viruses specific to various hosts — including humans and animals — probably remain abundant in ancient permafrost.



Mollivirus sibericum, another giant virus, was found alongside P. sibericum in the same 30,000-year-old Siberian permafrost samples. Though not a direct threat to humans or animals, the proximity of these two giant viruses left scientists concerned about the potential treasure trove of pathogens that the permafrost might be hiding. 



"We cannot rule out that distant viruses of ancient Siberian human (or animal) populations could reemerge as Arctic permafrost layers melt and/or are disrupted by industrial activities," the researchers warned in their 2015 study.



<h3 id="h-the-return-of-smallpox">The return of smallpox</h3>



Smallpox was eradicated by the World Health Organization in 1980. However, in 2004, French and Russian scientists discovered traces of smallpox in an icy 300-year-old Siberian mummy, frozen in the tundra of Russia's Sakha Republic.



The chilling discovery can be traced back to the late 17th to early 18th centuries when the Siberian region was gripped by a severe smallpox outbreak. This mummy was discovered in a mass grave, a hastily arranged burial site from that era, preserved perfectly in the permafrost. Notably, this burial was unusual, as it contained not one but five frozen mummies, all believed to be victims of the same smallpox outbreak.



<h2 id="h-climate-change-and-an-unclear-future">Climate change and an unclear future</h2>



For the authors of the new paper in the journal Viruses, this discovery of the 2004 smallpox virus serves as a grim example of the potential threat thawing permafrost may pose. "Probably for safety/regulatory reasons, there were not follow-up studies attempting to "revive" these viruses (fortunately)."



However, the lack of attempts to reanimate these viruses does not discount the possibility that they might revive on their own, given the right conditions. Permafrost is melting at unprecedented rates, potentially setting the stage for ancient pathogens to return. "Very few studies have been published on this subject," said the researchers.



While these zombie viruses may not pose an immediate threat, their re-emergence is a stark reminder of the potential health risks associated with climate change. As scientists continue to study these ancient pathogens, they underscore the importance of understanding and addressing the profound impacts of global warming on our planet's frozen frontiers.



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Climate change is unleashing ancient "zombie viruses"

Climate change is revealing secrets trapped within our planet's permafrost....

Researchers at Cal State University have discovered that juvenile great white sharks are far more prevalent along the California coastline than previously assumed. This presence has shed new light on the reality of human-shark interactions and possibly on how climate change may be affecting shark <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/dads-lead-young-birds-on-their-first-migration/">migration</a> patterns.



A two-year research project led by Professor Christopher Lowe, director of the Shark Lab and a professor of Marine Biology at <a href="https://www.csulb.edu/">Cal State Long Beach</a>, relied on drone technology to observe more than two dozen beaches along the state's extensive shoreline.



The study's target demographic was juvenile great whites, aged between one and five years. To the researchers' surprise, these young great whites appeared to be particularly concentrated in two locations: southern Santa Barbara County and central San Diego County.



The intriguing aspect of this finding was not just the unexpected frequency of the juvenile sharks in these regions but the nature of their interaction - or lack thereof - with humans. According to the results released last Friday, these aggregation sites often witnessed sharks and humans sharing the oceanic playground simultaneously 97 percent of the time.



<h2 id="h-minding-their-own-business">Minding their own business</h2>



The notion of sharks circling in the same waters as surfers and stand-up paddle boarders might immediately bring to mind scenes from Steven Spielberg's iconic film "Jaws." Yet, the researchers emphasize that their observations provide a clear contrast to these sensationalized Hollywood scenarios.&nbsp;



Rather than menacing predators, the young sharks "tend to mind their own business," says Patrick Rex, a lab technician at the Shark Lab. The researchers frequently observed juvenile whites swimming within 50 yards of where the waves break, even coming within 10 feet of beachgoers - who were often unaware of a shark's presence.



The important question that arises from these observations, Rex points out, is not about fear but about perception: “People think, 'If I see a shark in the lineup (the area where waves begin breaking), I'm going to get bitten or I'm in danger.' And what we've seen is that that's not necessarily the case."



During the entire period of the study, no shark bites were reported at any of the observed beaches. In fact, shark bites in California are quite rare, with the state Department of Fish and Wildlife documenting only 209 incidents from 1950 to November 2022.



<h2 id="h-new-insights">New insights</h2>



This proximity to humans without any significant incident has led the scientists to theorize that these sharks have started to recognize humans as "not food." Although this is not a definitive conclusion, given the complexities of understanding why sharks bite humans in the first place, it does offer a glimmer of insight into the nature of these majestic creatures.



These findings offer invaluable information to lifeguards, particularly those operating in these aggregation sites, to help ensure safe swimming and water recreation. The research also offers a fascinating window into the behaviors of young sharks, who tend to spend their time at these spots feeding on stingrays and small fish at the seafloor.



Interestingly, this research may also be offering insights into broader environmental shifts. The scientists noted that some of the sharks they were observing did not leave the California waters as they traditionally would when the colder seasons set in.&nbsp;



Rex suggests that climate change and the resultant warmer waters might be causing this shift in migratory patterns. "It means that the sharks may not be making that long migration anymore," he explained. However, he was quick to caution that this was an early hypothesis, with more data and time needed before firm conclusions could be drawn.



These intriguing findings emphasize the importance of continued marine research, the results of which not only bring us a deeper understanding of these incredible creatures but also of our role and responsibility in the delicate balance of our shared environment.



<h2 id="h-more-about-great-whites">More about great whites</h2>



Great white sharks are the largest predatory fish in the world, with adults typically measuring 13 to 15 feet in length, although specimens exceeding 20 feet have been recorded. These sharks are known for their torpedo-shaped bodies, which allow for speed and agility in the water, and their iconic white underbellies, which gives them their common name. Their back and sides are typically a slate-gray color, providing an effective camouflage in the water.



Great whites have a global distribution, and are primarily found in cool, coastal waters. They have been observed in waters with temperatures ranging from 54-75°F (12-24°C), which means they can be found in seas off the coasts of the United States, South Africa, Japan, Oceania, Chile, and the Mediterranean, among others.



Great white sharks are apex predators, meaning they have no natural predators aside from the occasional killer whale. Their diet mainly consists of fish, seals, small cetaceans (like dolphins), sea turtles, sea birds, and even other sharks. They are known for their "breaching" behavior when hunting seals, propelling themselves out of the water in an impressive display of power and agility.



Despite their reputation, attacks on humans are relatively rare and are usually a case of mistaken identity, such as a shark confusing a surfer for a seal. Contrary to popular belief, humans are not a preferred food source for these sharks.



Great whites are ovoviviparous, which means eggs develop and hatch within the body of the female and are born live. Little is known about their breeding habits, but pups are generally around 5 feet long at birth and are immediately self-sufficient.



These sharks are migratory and can travel thousands of miles. A famous shark named Nicole traveled from South Africa to Australia and back in nine months, a journey of over 12,000 miles.



Unfortunately, great white sharks are currently listed as vulnerable by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN). They face threats from hunting (for their fins, teeth, and as trophies), accidental catch (bycatch) in fishing gear, and pollution. Efforts are being made to protect these majestic creatures and ensure their survival for future generations.



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Great whites are far more prevalent than expected on the California coast

Researchers at Cal State University have discovered that juvenile great...

In a landscape that showcases the beauty of nature, with the stunning backdrop of the snow-capped Himalayas, it seems shocking to realize that Nepal is the most polluted country in the world. Residents of this landlocked nation in South Asia are exposed to alarming levels of air pollution.



According to recent data by Oxford University's <a href="https://ourworldindata.org/">Our World in Data</a> platform, Nepal's average fine particulate matter (PM2.5) levels stand at a staggering 99.73 micrograms per cubic meter (μg/m3) throughout the year.&nbsp;



To grasp the scale of the problem, consider that this figure is almost twenty times higher than the World Health Organization's (WHO) guideline limit of 5μg/m3. The pollution levels in the United Kingdom and the United States, comparatively, are significantly lower, standing at 10.47μg/m3 and 7.41μg/m3, respectively, ranking them as the 24th and ninth cleanest countries.



<h2 id="h-the-top-five-most-polluted-countries">The top five most polluted countries&nbsp;</h2>



The data, collected in 2017, reports PM2.5 levels for 195 countries worldwide. Following Nepal, Niger and Qatar are the second and third most polluted countries, with respective concentrations of 94.05μg/m3 and 91.19μg/m3. The researchers noted North Africa's high levels of pollution, attributing the issue in part to the region's dry conditions and abundance of dust and sand sources.



India, with a staggering population of 1.4 billion, and Saudi Arabia also fall in the top five, with PM2.5 exposures of 90.87μg/m3 and 87.95μg/m3 respectively. Excluding Qatar, PM2.5 levels in each of the top five countries have increased since 1990, indicating that efforts to reduce pollution have been unsuccessful in these nations.



Dr. Raj Tiwari, an assistant professor in Climate Change Data Science at the University of Hertfordshire, expressed deep concern over these findings. "Countries like Nepal (South Asia), Niger (Africa), and Qatar (Middle East) are on the top end for PM2.5, with an exposure of more than 90 - which is very alarming," said Dr. Tiwari.



The smallest increase in PM2.5 levels among the top five was witnessed in Nepal, with a leap of 12.13μg/m3. The list of the countries with the poorest air quality also included Egypt, Cameroon, Nigeria, Bahrain, and Chad.



Contrasting these high pollution levels, Finland logged the lowest PM2.5 mean annual exposure at 5.86μg/m3, although still slightly exceeding WHO's safety levels. Brunei, New Zealand, Sweden, Canada, and Iceland also reported relatively low levels of the harmful PM2.5 particles. However, these figures remain above the WHO's recommended safety levels, highlighting the global scope of the air pollution problem.



<h2 id="h-air-pollution-and-mortality-rates">Air pollution and mortality rates</h2>



The adverse health impacts of air pollution are starkly portrayed by the national death rates linked to outdoor air pollution in 2019. Despite Nepal reporting the highest PM2.5 levels, it was Uzbekistan, a Central Asian country with a population of 20.5 million, that haf the most significant fatality rate. The country registered 179 deaths per 100,000 people due to air pollution, a more than twofold increase from the 81 deaths reported in 1990.



Uzbekistan was closely followed by Egypt and Qatar, which recorded death rates of 161 and 133 per 100,000 people, respectively. Considering that these countries are not the most polluted based on PM2.5 levels, the elevated death rates highlight the severe health risks associated with air pollution.



Dr. Tiwari elaborated on the role economics play in these patterns: "Further analysis on death rates from outdoor air pollution is really an eye-opener, as it clearly shows how air pollution is highly linked with the economy of the countries."



According to the United Nations, poorer countries tend to have less stringent air pollution laws, lower vehicle emission standards, and higher numbers of coal power stations. Such factors contribute to the higher levels of pollution and subsequent health impacts seen in these countries.



In stark contrast, Finland, the country with the world's lowest PM2.5 exposure, also reported the lowest number of deaths due to pollution exposure, with just three deaths per 100,000.



However, even as air pollution exacts a significant toll on public health, it is not the leading cause of death globally. The Global Burden of Disease study, published in <a href="https://www.thelancet.com/">The Lancet</a>, reported that high blood pressure was the leading cause of death in 2019, accounting for 10.85 million fatalities, closely followed by smoking, which was responsible for 7.69 million deaths.



<h2 id="h-more-about-fine-particle-pollution">More about fine particle pollution</h2>



PM2.5 are particles less than 2.5 micrometers in diameter, so tiny that they're about one ten-thousandth of an inch. These particles can be composed of various materials, including dust, soot, metals, and harmful chemicals. Emissions from vehicles and industrial facilities, particularly those burning fossil fuels, are the primary sources of such pollutants.



Due to their extremely small size, PM2.5 particles can be inhaled deep into the lungs, causing long-term damage. A wealth of scientific evidence has linked long-term exposure to these particles to a heightened risk of severe illnesses and premature death, primarily due to cardiovascular and respiratory diseases.&nbsp;



Beyond physical ailments, air pollutants have also been tied to neurological effects, with studies showing correlations between exposure and increased risks of dementia and cognitive decline.



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An invisible crisis: Ranking the world's most polluted countries

In a landscape that showcases the beauty of nature, with...

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Banks Peninsula on New Zealand&#8217;s South Island Today&#8217;s Video of the Day from the <a href="https://www.esa.int/">European Space Agency</a> features the Banks Peninsula on the South Island of New Zealand.
The peninsula was named after British biologist Joseph Banks who sailed with Captain Cook. It consists of two overlapping extinct volcanoes &#8211; the Lyttelton Volcano and the Akaroa Volcano. 
Banks Peninsula was formed by several volcanic eruptions that took place around eight million years ago.  the South American land was a small island in 1643, and Dutch cartographers subsequently renamed Tasman&#8217;s discovery Nova Zeelandia from Latin, after the Dutch province of Zeeland. 
The city remained part of the colony of New South Wales until becoming the separate Colony of New Zealand on 1 July 1841.  In 1891 the Liberal Party came to power as the first organized political party. Generally snow season comes as early June until early October, though cold snaps can occur outside this season. Also the snowfall is common in the eastern and southern parts of the South Island and mountain areas across the country. Also The forests there  were dominated by birds, and the lack of mammalian predators led to some like the kiwi, kakapo, weka and takahē evolving flightlessness.
Video Credit: ESA
&#8211;&#8212;
By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Banks Peninsula on New Zealand's South Island