Articles tagged with Climate Change
Researchers at NEIKER felled pine trees and attached sensors to measure the force exerted on them, recording the degree of tilt to determine the roots' resistance and trunk strength. The study aims to provide forestry experts with tools to manage woodlands better and mitigate wind damage risks.
A Syracuse University geologist has discovered a correlation between earthquakes and landslides in Peru, suggesting that earthquakes may be the primary trigger for landslide activity. By analyzing river sediment particles, he found that erosion rates from landslides have not changed in response to climatic changes.
A Virginia Tech graduate student has received a U.S. Environmental Protection Agency fellowship to study the effects of mercury contamination on red-winged blackbird populations. Her research aims to investigate how stress hormones and disease are connected in birds, with potential implications for understanding avian malaria infections.
Researchers have discovered that cold-water corals can fuse the skeletons of genetically distinct individuals, creating stable reefs in the dark depths of the ocean. This adaptation allows them to conserve energy and strengthen their habitats, potentially aiding their survival under future climate changes.
A new study published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences found that even stringent fertility restrictions or catastrophic mass mortality would not significantly reduce the world population by 2100. Instead, researchers suggest focusing on policies and technologies that reverse rising consumption of natural resources...
Research from UC Davis and Aarhus University reveals high mantle temperatures are essential for producing large amounts of magma at Bárðarbunga volcano in Iceland. This finding supports the critical role of mantle plumes in forming large igneous provinces.
A recent study published in Nature found that no-till farming often leads to yield declines compared to conventional tillage systems, except in dryland areas where it can show promise. Implementing all three conservation agriculture principles is crucial for maximizing yields and minimizing environmental impacts.
A new study by Montana State University researchers found that extreme weather events can significantly impact the chemical composition of tea. Samples from two extreme weather events revealed a 50% decrease in certain antioxidant compounds and a corresponding drop in household income for tea farmers.
A new species of microbe, Methanoflorens stordalenmirensis, has been found to control the release of methane from thawing permafrost soils, affecting global climate change predictions. The study reveals that this microbe plays a significant role in amplifying climate change by controlling greenhouse gas emissions.
A research team led by UT Austin is studying frozen methane under the Gulf of Mexico, a substance with huge potential to increase the world's energy supply. The four-year project will acquire intact samples to better understand how to produce these deposits and unlock their enormous energy resources.
The Karakoram glacier anomaly is a cold case of climate science solved by researchers from Princeton University. The unique seasonal pattern keeps the mountain range relatively cold and dry during summer, sustaining glacier mass. This high-resolution model predicts stable snowfall and water availability until 2100.
Research from Durham University found that Alpine Chamois have decreased in body size over the past 30 years, with young animals now weighing 25% less than those of the same age in the 1980s. The study suggests that climate change is affecting how chamois behave, leading to reduced body size.
Researchers found Madison's urban heat island effect peaks in summer, with downtown averaging 7 degrees warmer at night and 3 degrees warmer during the day compared to rural areas. The study also highlights the impact of snow cover and vegetation on temperature differences between urban and rural areas.
The Sahel region is experiencing a shrinking margin between supply and demand for primary production, driven by population growth and increasing consumption. The study found that the rate of increase in food needs was 2.2% per year, while crop production remained largely unchanged over the past decade.
A new software program, SOGP 1.0, enables researchers to reconstruct historical global precipitation patterns, providing insights into major weather events like the Dust Bowl. The tool allows for detailed analysis of oceanic and land-based data, improving our understanding of climate change.
Research suggests that human activities such as clear-cutting and fire suppression have a greater impact on forest tree composition than climate change. The study analyzed 190 datasets to determine the relative impacts of climate versus altered disturbance regimes for various biomes across the eastern United States.
Researchers explore challenges and opportunities of mining large climate datasets with powerful analytical methods, scientific theory, and solid data engineering. By combining theory and Big Data, scientists aim to explain and predict important climate change phenomena.
Researchers found a strong correlation between Northern Hemisphere seabird diversity and environmental stressors, with puffins and auks serving as indicator species. The study suggests that climate change has shaped the geographic distribution and population size of existing species over the past 5 million years.
Researchers from the Niels Bohr Institute have calculated a worst-case scenario for sea level rise, predicting a maximum of 1.8 meters by the end of this century. The study combines IPCC estimates with expert community data, indicating a likelihood of less than 5% for sea levels exceeding 180cm.
Climate change is projected to drive large-scale shifts in fish populations, with some species moving away from their current habitats at a rate of up to 26 kilometers per decade. This could lead to significant losses in tropical regions, including the loss of important fisheries and communities that rely on fish for food and nutrition.
A study using satellite observations and climate models found that long-term ocean warming in the upper 700 meters has likely been underestimated. The researchers used a large suite of climate model simulations to estimate temperature changes, which suggests global ocean warming has been underestimated by 24-58%.
Research reveals China's carbon intensity increased by 3% due to economic growth, offsetting efforts to reduce emissions. Despite improvements in carbon efficiency in some provinces, industrial projects and production expansion negate gains.
Researchers directly observed multiple parts of Greenland's subglacial plumbing system and found that it adapts to increased meltwater over the course of the summer season. The findings suggest that a component of the system is changing in response to climate change, potentially slowing down the ice sheet's movement towards the sea.
A study by researchers links California's ongoing drought to human-caused climate change, showing a persistent region of high atmospheric pressure over the Pacific Ocean is more likely to form in modern greenhouse gas concentrations. The extreme conditions led to unusually low precipitation and triggered wildfires and air pollution.
A Stanford University study links California's ongoing drought to human-caused climate change, finding that a persistent high atmospheric pressure region over the Pacific Ocean is three times more likely to form in the present climate. This blocking ridge prevented winter storms from reaching California during the 2013 and 2014 rainy s...
Phytoplankton are crucial for fish populations and Earth's carbon cycle, with a perpetual dance between predators and prey affecting their growth cycles. Tiny imbalances in this relationship cause massive phytoplankton blooms, impacting ocean productivity, fisheries, and carbon cycling.
Research from ARC Centre of Excellence for Climate System Science highlights Australia's climate as heavily influenced by global warming. Global warming doubled the chance of intense heat waves, tripled the likelihood of heatwave events and increased extreme summer temperatures across the country.
The Global Carbon Project predicts a 2.5% rise in CO2 emissions in 2014, reaching a record 40 billion tons, surpassing the 1,200 billion-ton quota for limiting global warming to 2°C. This could lead to climate change catastrophe if not addressed immediately.
A new study finds that shale gas has comparable greenhouse gas emissions to conventional natural gas, but is better than renewables in some areas. However, it's worse than coal in others. The researchers recommend strict regulation to mitigate the environmental impacts of shale gas.
Research finds increasing variability in coastal upwelling currents linked to short-term declines in fish growth and seabird reproduction. Tree ring data reveals 4 out of 10 most extreme poor upwelling years occurred since 1950, highlighting the importance of upwelling for ecosystem conservation.
Research suggests that fall foliage seasons in the US could be delayed by one to three weeks by the end of the century, affecting agriculture, water supplies, and ecosystems. Daily temperatures and daylight hours can predict leaf coloration, with regional differences playing a significant role.
A new study reveals peak tornado activity in the central and southern Great Plains of the US is starting and ending earlier than it did half a century ago. The shift in tornado activity could help states in 'Tornado Alley' better prepare for these violent storms, with some states experiencing an average shift of 14 days compared to 1954.
A new study by University of New Hampshire sociologists found that coastal residents' views on environmental issues are deeply divided along party lines, with Democrats expressing greater concern about environmental problems than Republicans.
A study by NOAA's NCCOS found that warming Atlantic temperatures are causing fish communities to shift towards deeper, warmer waters. The researchers used year-round bottom water temperature data and fish community surveys to detect climate change-induced shifts in algal populations.
A team of researchers challenged traditional views on how birds ended up in the Neotropics, proposing speciation driven by bird movements across physical barriers. The CCNY analysis suggests that geological changes may not have been the primary driver of biodiversity.
Researchers found nanodiamonds and high-temperature materials in Europe, North America, and South America, indicating a major extraterrestrial impact event. The discovery supports the cosmic impact hypothesis for the Younger Dryas period's sudden climate change.
Physics researcher Alice Bean will work with the US Department of State's Office of Faith Based and Community Initiatives to communicate global climate change policy to critical faith-based audiences. She aims to foster communication, respect, and alliance between scientists and religious communities to combat climate change.
A recent slowdown in global warming is attributed to a natural cooling phase known as multidecadal variability (MDV) and a downturn of the secular warming trend. Scientists analyzed surface temperature data records to identify this hiatus period, which coincides with natural cooling phases.
The Stanford-led study synthesizes 165 academic studies and government databases to assess the environmental costs and benefits of fracking. Fracking's influence on local air pollution, earthquakes, and supplies of clean water is also examined. The study finds that oil and gas extraction can reduce water consumption compared to coal po...
Researchers at UC San Diego discover that moving rocks requires a rare combination of events: water-filled playa, freezing temperatures, and thin sheets of 'windowpane' ice. Light winds drive the ice panels across the playa, pushing rocks in front of them.
The Cloud-Aerosol Transport System (CATS) will provide critical measurements on the International Space Station, demonstrating new technology and proving inexpensive missions can make accurate climate predictions. The instrument will track aerosols over population centers and reveal shifts in global climate.
A new computer model simulates how plants grow under varying conditions, providing valuable insights into nutrient distribution and adaptation to changing climates. The study's findings could lead to the development of crop varieties with high yields in specific environmental conditions.
A global research agenda is necessary to address the challenges of climate-smart agriculture, which aims to improve farm productivity while maintaining ecosystem services. The initiative focuses on three key areas: farm and food systems, landscape and regional issues, and institutional and policy matters.
A study published in Yale's Journal of Industrial Ecology found that Blu-ray Discs delivered via retail stores caused lower carbon emissions than game files downloaded over broadband Internet. The majority of emissions resulted from gameplay, production, and distribution.
Rising geothermal water temperatures threaten the Devils Hole pupfish population, with a shortened recruitment period and reduced food availability. Climate change could lead to further decline of this rare species, which has numbered as few as 35 individuals.
Researchers at Florida State University analyzed an ancient Martian meteorite to determine the Red Planet's climate history. The team found evidence of a dramatic climate shift dating back 4.4 billion years, suggesting Mars has been cold and dry for at least 1.7 billion years.
A new MIT study suggests that extreme snow events will still occur even in a future with significant warming. In some regions, such as the Northern Hemisphere, average snowfall may decrease, but snowfall extremes intensify.
Researchers at Duke University have identified a gene, called OSCA1, that helps plants sense water availability and adjust their water conservation machinery accordingly. The findings could lead to new ways to help crops thrive when water is scarce.
Scientists have found abundant nanodiamonds distributed across three continents, providing conclusive evidence of a 13,000-year-old cosmic impact. The discovery supports a hypothesis linking the impact to the mass extinction of megafauna in North America.
Researchers studied century-old museum specimens to understand how climate change will impact a common tree pest. They found that scale insect populations increased in warmer urban areas and are also rising in rural forests, suggesting cities may be a preview of what to expect elsewhere.
A comprehensive review examines potential influences on recent UK winter floods, including the role of global oceans and wind patterns. The study suggests that natural fluctuations may be responsible for extreme weather events, but also notes the importance of understanding the impact of climate change.
A study by UC Irvine and Princeton University found that existing power plants will emit approximately 300 billion tons of carbon dioxide over their lifetimes. The emissions growth rate is around 4% per year, largely driven by the rapid expansion of coal-burning power plants in countries like China and India.
A new study from Princeton University and the University of California-Irvine finds that future coal-fired and natural-gas power plants will commit the world to decades and billions of tons of greenhouse gas emissions. The 'commitment accounting' method assigns all future emissions to the year a facility begins working, revealing a sig...
Researchers find that El Niño and La Niña events, as well as weakened solar activity and aerosol concentrations, contributed to the recent slowdown in global warming. The study suggests that short-term climate fluctuations can be explained by natural factors without contradicting long-term warming trends.
A recent study published in PLOS ONE has found that older Caribbean coral species exhibit fewer diseases and better immunity than newer species. Researchers examined 140 samples of 14 species, including the ancient Porites astreoides coral, which has been around for over 200 million years.
More than 500 delegates from 62 countries have issued a call to action to address the impacts of climate change on human health and the global environment. The ecohealth community has developed a vision and commitment to action that will bring together existing efforts to respond to climate change.
Scientists have found that ancient El Niño cycles were as strong and frequent 10,000 years ago as they are today. The new record, based on analysis of 25-foot piles of shells, contradicts a widely held interpretation of past climate, suggesting that current understanding of the El Niño system is incomplete.
Researchers found that ocean oxygen increased from 1950 to 1990, contrary to conventional wisdom, due to weaker trade winds. Now, climate change may cause the tropical anoxic zone to shrink as trade wind speed decreases.
A new study from Dartmouth College suggests that climate warming can affect the success of invasive species in different ways. The research found that warmer temperatures can favor non-native crustacean zooplankton by increasing their growth rate and making them less vulnerable to predators.
A consortium of Missouri universities and research institutions will examine how climate change affects agriculture in the state. Researchers will focus on plant stress, soil changes, and regional weather patterns.