Articles tagged with Climate Change
A study of over 27,000 heart attack patients found an increase in heat-induced heart attacks in recent years, particularly among individuals with diabetes or hyperlipidaemia. Climate change is suspected to be a contributing factor, but the exact mechanism behind these deaths remains unclear.
A recent review paper by San Francisco State University Professor Jonathon Stillman examines the potential impacts of future heat waves on humans and wildlife. The study suggests that extreme heat events could become more frequent and intense, posing significant threats to human mortality and wildlife populations.
Scientists have found a new way for microorganisms to convert nitrogen into a form usable by organisms in the Arctic Ocean. This process, known as nitrogen fixation, could make phytoplankton more productive, ultimately decreasing atmospheric carbon levels.
A Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU) team deployed an autonomous underwater vehicle to collect data on phytoplankton, which form the base of the marine food chain. The AUV created a 3-D map of hot spots, providing clues about declining seabird populations.
A new method using rapid laser imaging has expanded the number of analyzed shell records, allowing for greater accuracy and longer time periods in reconstructed records. This technique enables researchers to study human and ecological responses to past climate changes, gaining insights into future climate change impacts.
Researchers reconstructed fire activity using lake-sediment records, finding extensive burning occurred after mature forests developed. They also saw increased fire activity with rising temperatures, particularly in the past 100 years.
Scientists at Cornell Lab of Ornithology used data on 77 North American migratory bird species to predict that climate change will lead to unpredictable ecosystem disruption. By the middle of the next century, migratory birds will experience novel climates during all phases of their annual life cycles.
A global team predicts that by 2050, 49% of the world's population will live in areas where Aedes aegypti and Aedes albopictus mosquitoes are established. Climate change and human migration patterns drive the spread of these disease-carrying insects.
Researchers discovered thousands of tiny 'ice quakes' on the McMurdo Ice Shelf that appear to be caused by pools of partially melted ice expanding and freezing at night. This phenomenon may help track glacier melting and explain the breakup of large ice shelves.
A new study finds that California's wildfire season is no longer influenced by winter precipitation, but rather by decades of fire suppression and rising temperatures due to climate change. The research team used tree rings and historical records to reconstruct fire and moisture patterns over the past 400 years.
A new study suggests that incumbent politicians often negotiate weak treaties to improve their reelection chances, rather than prioritizing effective climate change mitigation. This analysis from the Journal of Political Economy explores how domestic policymakers' incentives and election fears drive treaty outcomes.
Researchers have created high-resolution maps to predict the spread of mosquito-borne diseases, pinpointing areas of concern like large urban areas in southern US and China. The tool will help public health officials target interventions efficiently to reduce disease burden.
A Yale University study predicts that human land-use will increase the extinction risk for 1,700 species by 2070. This is due to habitat loss and fragmentation, particularly in Central and East Africa, Mesoamerica, South America, and Southeast Asia.
A new theory suggests that our relationship with the environment is like a social exchange, leading to the belief that eco-friendly behavior can cancel out harmful ones. Researchers argue that this mindset can lead to misguided quick fixes and that stricter legislation and immediate feedback on environmental impact are needed.
A new study shows tree rings offer a unique perspective on climate change, matching high-tech data over short-term periods. The method reveals strong agreement between trees' own productivity estimates and satellite-derived data.
A Rutgers-led study finds that climate change has led to a decline in sustainable catches for many species of fish and shellfish, with estimated losses ranging from 15% to 35% in some regions. The study highlights the need for fisheries managers to address overfishing and account for climate change in their decision-making.
Researchers developed a method to visualize climate risks and their cause-effect relationships across seven sectors, including water, food, energy, and more. The study identified 253 causal relationships between climate drivers and risk factors, highlighting the interconnectedness of climate impacts on human security and health.
A recent study reconstructed the evolutionary history of amoebae, showing that life on Earth was more diverse than previously thought, with ancestors of Thecamoebians evolving at least 750 million years ago. This discovery changes our understanding of current climate change and provides new insights into the evolution of life.
A new study predicts the Arctic Ocean could be ice-free in the summer as early as 2030, with climate models suggesting a shift towards an ice-free Arctic on the earlier side of forecasts. The study used long-term temperature cycles in the tropical Pacific to narrow the uncertainty range of when the first ice-free Arctic summer will occur.
A study using Twitter data found that people tweet more about unusual temperatures, but comment less when those temperatures recur. The study suggests that major warming from climate change may not be perceived as remarkable due to a rapidly adjusting normal baseline.
Research led by University of East Anglia finds that policies supporting renewable energy and energy efficiency are helping reduce CO2 emissions in 18 developed economies. The study suggests that these efforts need to be expanded and enhanced to limit climate change.
Researchers found that tree growth is constrained more by climate than competition for resources in harsh conditions, but not under mild conditions. The study provides important insights into how forest growth will respond to changing climate and could inform land management strategies.
New research finds humans struggle to accurately classify snail shells due to differences in colour perception. A study using spectrometry reveals distinct clusters for brown, pink, and yellow snails, providing a baseline measure for future studies on animal colour and genetics.
A new study suggests climate change played a role in the decline of Cahokia, a prehistoric city near St. Louis. Researchers analyzed fecal records and lake sediment cores to find correlations between population size and environmental conditions.
Jacob Job will track migratory songbirds across six ecosystems, interviewing people who share the land with birds to explore conservation efforts. The project aims to reintroduce people to nature while highlighting human activities causing climate change.
A new study finds that ocean warming is the primary cause of coral decline, contrary to the effectiveness of managed resilience efforts. Coral reefs face devastating impacts from extreme temperatures and mass bleaching, highlighting the need for drastic greenhouse gas emissions reduction.
A new MIT study finds that climate change is shifting the energy in the atmosphere, leading to stronger thunderstorms and more stagnant conditions. Rising global temperatures are redistributed, with more energy available for local convective processes like thunderstorms and less for larger, milder extratropical cyclones.
Researchers discover that virus-infected bacteria can produce new viruses to attack their original invader, a form of resistance previously unknown. This competitive interaction helps stabilize microbial populations in marine systems, crucial for biogeochemical processes related to climate change.
A recent breakthrough in plant growth has increased crop yields by 40% by creating a shortcut for a glitch that plagues most food crops. This technology, part of the Realizing Increased Photosynthetic Efficiency (RIPE) project, aims to improve photosynthesis and boost worldwide food productivity.
The Partisan Climate Opinion Maps reveal new data on how Republican and Democratic climate and energy opinions vary across all 50 states and 435 congressional districts. The maps show substantial heterogeneity in climate opinions despite US partisan polarization.
A new study found that high-tide flooding is already impacting businesses' experiences and profits, with downtown Annapolis losing 3,000 visits in 2017 due to flooding. Rising seas are expected to increase flooding days by 2035, affecting 170 coastal communities.
Researchers reconstructed past rainfall patterns in south-east Queensland using preserved paper-bark tea tree leaves from North Stradbroke Island, finding a generally wet period around 5000-6000 years ago. The study suggests that the probability of a drought worse than the Millennium Drought may be as much as 10 times higher.
A Dartmouth College study reveals a complex relationship between climate change, wetland loss, and mercury pollution in marine food webs. Higher levels of mercury are associated with higher organic carbon in coastal waters, leading to increased methylmercury levels in estuarine fish.
A new study reveals that naturally occurring carbon gases trapped in undersea reservoirs escaped to superheat the planet in prehistory, disrupting the Earth's atmosphere and causing global warming. The findings challenge the long-standing paradigm that ocean water alone regulated carbon dioxide in the atmosphere during glacial cycles.
A new EU Pilot Project will monitor butterfly population trends across Europe to assess the health of the environment and inform EU biodiversity and agricultural policies. The project, ABLE, aims to build on existing data from thousands of volunteers in 11 EU countries and expand monitoring to cover at least eight additional countries.
A recent study predicts that climate change and rising sea levels will destroy the Sundarbans region, home to around 4,000 Bengal tigers, by 2070. The researchers used computer simulations to assess the future suitability of the area for tigers and their prey species.
Researchers found that despite reports of big trees being more vulnerable to drought, small trees in open areas lost leaves, while shaded trees surprisingly added leaf area. This response is dependent on environmental conditions imposed by the rainforest's structure.
A new study finds that climate change increases the risk of mental health problems in children born to mothers with prenatal depression who experience natural disaster-related stress. Infants of depressed mothers displayed greater distress and fear, less smiling and laughter, and lower soothability.
A Northwestern University team found that southern Greenland's climate was relatively warm when the Norse lived there between 985 and 1450 C.E., about 1.5-degrees Celsius warmer than surrounding cooling centuries.
Researchers found that leaves in grassland communities change their nutrient content in response to fertilisation, climate and soil conditions. This discovery provides a new tool for understanding the impact of environmental changes on ecosystems.
Climate change is warming the ocean but land faster, increasing continental aridity and aerosol concentration. This leads to a heightened risk of smog and air pollution, posing health problems for people, animals, and plants worldwide.
Research reveals that pika populations decline at lower elevations with high vapor-pressure deficit, while mid-elevation pikas face cold stress. High-elevation pikas thrive with sufficient snow cover, promoting healthy reproduction and population growth.
Researchers discovered a global pattern of extreme rainfall teleconnections linked to jetstreams, which could enhance weather forecasting and damage mitigation. The study's findings have practical relevance for improving predictions of extreme rainfall events.
The first 'OSNAP' results show that deep water formation in the Labrador Sea plays a minor role in Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation (AMOC) variability. Instead, deep waters moving south through the abyssal basins east of Greenland dominate AMOC variability.
Researchers have discovered global connections in extreme rainfall events, which could lead to better forecasts and more accurate climate models. By analyzing satellite data, the team found that extreme rainfall events are connected across the world through atmospheric patterns.
A new study by the American Heart Association finds that rising temperatures from climate change may lead to a significant increase in congenital heart defects among newborns in the US. The research estimates up to 7,000 additional cases in eight states over an 11-year period.
A study published in Nature Sustainability identified 226 food production shocks across 134 nations over a 53-year period. The research found that extreme weather events and geopolitical factors are major drivers of these shocks, posing a growing danger to global food production.
A recent study confirms that carbon dioxide can be securely stored in underground rocks even when geological faults are present. The research found minimal possibility of gas escaping from fault lines back into the atmosphere.
Researchers discovered that the European flounder, once abundant in the Gulf of Finland, has almost completely disappeared due to worsening environmental conditions. The decline mirrors the loss of this species from local assemblages, highlighting the need for proper management and monitoring.
A new Tulane University study found that lower-carbon diets are not only good for the environment but also healthier, with Americans eating less red meat and dairy. Diets high in saturated fat and greenhouse gas emissions were found to have a negative impact on nutritional value.
A study found that adolescent girls exposed to severe drought conditions in rural Lesotho had higher rates of HIV and were more likely to engage in high-risk behaviors. The researchers call for a coordinated policy to attenuate the effects of drought on HIV infection in southern Africa.
A new mathematical model predicts a 50-99% decline in ringed seal populations by 2100, primarily driven by insufficient snow on the ice. This decline will lead to smaller juvenile populations and reduced survival rates for adults.
New research by Oregon State University suggests that coastal cutthroat trout and giant salamanders can recover from drought conditions within just a few years. The study found that the fish populations were negatively affected by hot, dry summers, but recovered quickly in predrought form.
Scientists found evidence of a climate feedback that prolonged the Paleocene-Eocene Thermal Maximum (PETM), considered an analogue for modern climate change. The study suggests that long-lasting impacts on global temperature may occur even with reduced greenhouse gas emissions.
Researchers found that Gulf of Aqaba corals can maintain normal physiological function despite increased temperatures and ocean acidification, producing healthy offspring with similar reproductive output. This study suggests that the Gulf of Aqaba may be a safe haven for corals in the face of climate change.
A recent study found that Antarctic krill populations have shifted southward due to warming in their key habitat, posing major implications for the food web and biogeochemical cycling. The team analyzed data from scientific surveys spanning nearly a century and found a substantial change in the krill population over time.
Paying a living wage to garment industry workers in BRIC countries may increase Western European clothing prices by 12.5%, but could lead to more jobs and less poverty, while keeping global carbon emissions roughly the same. The study challenges conventional wisdom that higher wages are bad for the environment.
A two to three-fold increase in heatwave activity has been identified in the UK, with frequency, duration, and severity significantly rising. This analysis of historical temperature data provides a new understanding of climate change's impact on heatwaves.
A new study reveals that many European freshwater fish species, especially those in the Mediterranean region, are threatened by climate change. The research identifies regions and species particularly susceptible to rising water temperatures and changing habitats.
A new study found that a conversion message by British environmentalist Mark Lynas, who turned from an opponent to an advocate of GM crops, had a greater impact on public attitudes than a direct advocacy message. The study suggests that people's minds may be more easily changeable on this issue.