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The impacts of impacts

KAUST researchers have found that even low-speed solid-liquid impacts can cause cavitation and generate damaging shock waves. This challenges previous assumptions about the effects of such impacts. The team used high-speed cameras to study the impact of a flat-bottomed cylinder on a pool of liquid, observing that pressures below a cert...

SourceKing Abdullah University of Science & Technology (KAUST)·JournalNature Communications·TypeExperimental study·DateJan 31, 2022

Desert shrubs cranked up water use efficiency to survive a megadrought. It may not be enough.

In a new study, desert shrubs in the Southwest have increased their water use efficiency at unprecedented rates to survive a decades-long megadrought. The study found that despite this heroic increase, shrubs may not be adapting quickly enough to long-term drying trends in the West.

SourceUniversity of Utah·JournalProceedings of the National Academy of Sciences·TypeObservational study·DateDec 20, 2021

Warmer, dryer, browner

The 2018 Four Corners drought in the US was exacerbated by human-induced warming, with temperatures rising 2 degrees Celsius. The region's vegetation turned brown due to increased evaporation, resulting in economic losses of over $3 billion and impacts on Native American communities.

SourceUniversity of California - Santa Barbara·JournalBulletin of the American Meteorological Society·DateJan 23, 2020