Although vegetation growth in the Arctic is boosted by global warming, it’s not enough to offset the carbon released by the thawing of the permafrost beneath the surface, University of Florida researchers have found in the first experiment in the Arctic environment to simulate thawing of permafrost in a warming world.
Research conducted in Bimini in The Bahamas spanning almost two decades shows that female lemon sharks that were born there returned 15 years later to give birth to their own young, confirming this behavior for the first time in sharks. The study began in 1995, and has resulted in the capture, tagging, and release of more than 2,000 baby sharks.
A new research study combining marine physiology, neuroscience, pharmacology, and behavioral psychology has revealed a surprising outcome from increases of carbon dioxide uptake in the oceans: anxious fish.
Carbon dioxide pumped into the air since the Industrial Revolution appears to have changed the way the coastal ocean functions, according to a new analysis published this week in Nature. A comprehensive review of research on carbon cycling in rivers, estuaries and continental shelves suggests that collectively this coastal zone now takes in more carbon dioxide than it releases. The shift could impact global models of carbon’s flow through the environment and future predictions related to climate change.
Coastal portions of the world’s oceans, once believed to be a source of carbon dioxide (CO2) to the atmosphere, are now thought to absorb as much as two-thirds more carbon than they emitted in the preindustrial age, researchers estimate.
A review of scientific studies show that sea-level rise and shoreline retreat will drive an increase in future flood risk from hurricanes.
Global Temperature Report: November 2013.
In the first global assessment of its kind, a science team led by researchers at Scripps Institution of Oceanography at UC San Diego has produced a landmark report on the impact of fishing on a group of fish known to protect the health of coral reefs. The report, published in the journal Proceedings of the Royal Society B (Biological Sciences), offers key data for setting management and conservation targets to protect and preserve fragile coral reefs.
A new study led by the Wildlife Conservation Society and Zoological Society or London warns that the world’s largest tropical desert, the Sahara, has suffered a catastrophic collapse of its wildlife populations.
An intrepid atmospheric science department team from the University of Alabama in Huntsville (UAH) is tracking and measuring lake-effect snowstorms from the southern banks of Lake Ontario, all in the name of better future weather forecasting.
A chemical system developed by researchers at the University of Illinois at Chicago can efficiently perform the first step in the process of creating syngas, gasoline and other energy-rich products out of carbon dioxide.
The sounds of bubbles escaping from melting ice make underwater glacial fjords one of the loudest natural marine environments on earth, according to research to be presented at the fall meeting of the Acoustical Society of America (ASA).
The most detailed range-wide assessment of the bonobo (formerly known as the pygmy chimpanzee) ever conducted has revealed that this poorly known and endangered great ape is quickly losing space in a world with growing human populations. The loss of usable habitat is attributed to both forest fragmentation and poaching, according to a new study by University of Georgia, University of Maryland, the Wildlife Conservation Society, ICCN (Congolese Wildlife Authority), African Wildlife Foundation, Zoological Society of Milwaukee, World Wildlife Fund, Max Planck Institute, Lukuru Foundation, University of Stirling, Kyoto University, and other groups.
A new study reveals how pollution causes thunderstorms to leave behind larger, deeper, longer lasting clouds. Appearing in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences November 26, the results solve a long-standing debate and reveal how pollution plays into climate warming. The work can also provide a gauge for the accuracy of weather and climate models.
This Thanksgiving, the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) and Wind Cave National Park (WCNP) are marking the 100-year anniversary of the transfer and restocking of 14 bison from the Bronx Zoo to WCNP in South Dakota.
Think Greenland’s ice sheet is small today? It was smaller — as small as it's been in recent history — from 3-5,000 years ago, according to scientists who studied the ice sheet’s history using a new technique they developed for interpreting the Arctic fossil record.
A flying, insect-like robot will give an unprecedented look at Peru’s tropical cloud forest, one of the world’s most biodiverse ecosystems and a key indicator of global climate change.
A new paper from members of the HEAL (Health & Ecosystems: Analysis of Linkages) consortium delineates a new branch of environmental health that focuses on the public health risks of human-caused changes to Earth’s natural systems.
A temporary seismic array in Marie Byrd Land in West Antarctica recorded two bursts of activity in 2010 and 2011. Careful analysis of the events shows they originate from a subglacial volcano at the leading end of a volcanic mountain chain. The volcano is unlikely to erupt through the kilometer of ice that covers it but it will melt enough ice to change the way the ice in its vicinity flows.
Cats that live outdoors in the city do their darnedest to steer clear of urban coyotes. The cats cause less damage to wildlife in urban green spaces, such as city parks and nature preserves, because of that dodging, a new study suggests.
Wildlife Conservation Society Canada (WCS Canada) scientists said today that the draft South Saskatchewan Regional Plan released recently by the Alberta government falls far short of protecting vulnerable fish and wildlife populations and headwater sources of precious water that are cherished by southern Albertans.
Scientists have developed a new computer modeling technique that offers the promise, for the first time, of producing continually updated daylong predictions of wildfire growth throughout the lifetime of long-lived blazes. The technique, developed by a research team led by NCAR, combines detailed computer simulations with newly available satellite observations.
Penn State Meteorology professor Michael Mann to talk about climate change and political wars.
New book is first of its kind addressing Southeast climate change.
It’s not every day that fishermen catch the world’s largest fish species in their nets, but this is what recently happened in Indonesia’s Karimunjawa National Park, according to the Wildlife Conservation Society.
Scientists at Scripps Institution of Oceanography at UC San Diego and their colleagues are unraveling the mechanisms behind a little-known marine worm that produces a dazzling bioluminescent display in the form of puffs of blue light released into seawater.
A natural shift to stronger warm El Niño events in the Pacific Ocean might be responsible for a substantial portion of the global warming recorded during the past 50 years, according to new research at The University of Alabama in Huntsville (UAH).
University of Washington researchers have found that tree cover actually causes snow to melt more quickly in warm, Mediterranean-type climates around the world. Alternatively, open, clear gaps in the forests tend to keep snow on the ground longer into the spring and summer. Their findings were published this fall in Water Resources Research.
WCS and GIS software innovator Esri jointly produced an online Story Map that combines spatial data, cartography, and Web mapping tools to visually tell the story of the elephant poaching crisis.
A pair of microbes on the ocean floor “eats” methane in a unique way, and a new study provides insights into their surprising nutritional requirements. Learning how these methane-munching organisms make a living in these extreme environments could provide clues about how the deep-sea environment might change in a warming world.
Global Temperature Report: October 2013
The Mathematical Association of America offers the themed November issue of the College Mathematics Journal as one contribution to the international Mathematics of Planet Earth 2013 initiative.
University of Florida researchers find old bulbs work almost as well as newer ones in helping zap bugs. This saves millions of dollars and more mercury from entering waste stream.
A survey of Indiana residents tracks public acceptance of potential measures to address climate change in their communities.
Although a significant build-up in greenhouse gases in the atmosphere would alter worldwide precipitation patterns, geoengineering would also interfere with rainfall and snowfall. An international study, led by NCAR scientists, finds that “geoengineering” could result in monsoonal rains in North America, East Asia, and other regions dropping by 5-7 percent compared to preindustrial conditions because of less evaporation and reduced plant emissions of water.
Scientists have found a way to use coastal redwood trees as a window into historic climate, using oxygen and carbon atoms in the wood to detect fog and rainfall in previous seasons.
At least sixteen species of earthworms are now found in Vermont and elsewhere in New England. All are exotic and many are invasive. As they spread, they devour organic matter, disrupting forests and releasing carbon dioxide. But they also store carbon deep in the soil. So, do the worms, on balance, slow or accelerate climate change? Vermont researchers are on the case.
When early-foraging ant species are displaced by later-foraging ant species due to climate change, early blooming plant species suffer. The presence of effective dispersers is as important as abiotic requirements in shaping a plant's niche.
Scientists have fingerprinted a distinctive atmospheric wave pattern high above the Northern Hemisphere that can foreshadow the emergence of summertime heat waves in the United States more than two weeks in advance. The new research, led by scientists at NCAR, could potentially enable forecasts of the likelihood of U.S. heat waves 15-20 days out, giving society more time to prepare for these often-deadly events.
With ecological viability threatened, world resources draining and population burgeoning, the end is nigh. Or not, says Lawrence M. Cathles, Cornell professor of earth and atmospheric sciences in his article, “Future Rx: Optimism, Preparation, Acceptance of Risk,” in a special publication of The Journal of the Geological Society.
For the first time ever, scientists have documented a widespread extinction of bees that occurred 65 million years ago, concurrent with the massive event that wiped out land dinosaurs and many flowering plants. Their findings, published this week in the journal PLOS ONE, could shed light on the current decline in bee species.
Nitrogen and phosphorus export must be reduced via interdisciplinary cooperation
New discoveries, presented at the AVS Meeting in Long Beach, Calif., could impact applications ranging from artificial snowmaking to global climate models.
What's the best way to capture photovoltaic energy where snowfall is measured in feet?
A new study co-authored by Boston University Professor of Earth & Environment Ranga Myneni suggests the southern portion of the Amazon rainforest is at a much higher risk of dieback due to climate change than projections made in the latest report by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). If severe enough, the loss of rainforest could cause the release of large volumes of the greenhouse gas carbon dioxide into the atmosphere. It could also disrupt plant and animal communities in one of the regions of highest biodiversity in the world.
Almost a year after Hurricane Sandy, parts of New York and New Jersey are still recovering from billions of dollars in flood damage. Tufts University geologist Andrew Kemp sees the possibility of damage from storms smaller than Sandy in the future.
When it comes to economic growth and environmental impacts, it can seem like Newton’s third law of motion is the rule — for every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction — and that in most cases, the economy prospers and the environment suffers.
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