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ScienceDaily: Earth & Climate News |
Biological material boosts solar cell performance Posted: 22 Oct 2019 09:11 AM PDT Next-generation solar cells that mimic photosynthesis with biological material may give new meaning to the term 'green technology.' Adding the protein bacteriorhodopsin (bR) to perovskite solar cells boosted the efficiency of the devices in a series of laboratory tests, according to an international team of researchers. |
Satellite data used to calculate snow depth in mountain ranges Posted: 22 Oct 2019 09:11 AM PDT Bioscience engineers have developed a method to measure the snow depth in all mountain ranges in the Northern Hemisphere using satellites. This technique makes it possible to study areas that cannot be accessed for local measurements, such as the Himalayas. |
Lead isotopes a new tool for tracking coal ash Posted: 22 Oct 2019 08:22 AM PDT Scientists have developed a forensic tracer that uses lead isotopes to detect and measure coal fly ash in dust, soil and sediments. Tests show the new tracer can distinguish between the isotopic signature of lead derived from coal ash and lead that comes from other major human or natural sources. Exposure to fly ash from dust, soil or sediments has been linked to numerous diseases and health concerns. |
Are humans changing animal genetic diversity worldwide? Posted: 22 Oct 2019 08:21 AM PDT Human population density and land use is causing changes in animal genetic diversity, according to new research. The research show that environmental changes caused by humans are leading to changes in genetic variation in thousands of species of birds, fish, insects, and mammals. The evidence for human impacts was most clear for insects and fish species. |
Exposure to environmental PCBs impairs brain function in mice Posted: 22 Oct 2019 06:28 AM PDT Human-made toxic chemicals that linger indefinitely in the environment disrupt the performance of critical helper cells in the mouse brain, leading to impaired function over long-term exposures. |
Dry season increase in photosynthesis in Amazon rain forest Posted: 22 Oct 2019 06:28 AM PDT A new study demonstrated the potential of the TROPOspheric Monitoring Instrument on board the Copernicus Sentinel-5 Precursor satellite to measure and track chlorophyll fluorescence and photosynthesis of tropical forests in the Amazon. |
New flame retardants, old problems Posted: 22 Oct 2019 05:07 AM PDT New flame retardants escaping from our TVs, other electrical and electronic products, and children's car seats are just as toxic as the flame retardants they're intended to replace, according to a new study. The authors found that the replacement chemicals, called organophosphate flame retardants, have been associated with lower IQ in children, reproductive problems, and other serious health harms. |
New study underpins the idea of a sudden impact killing off dinosaurs and much of the other life Posted: 22 Oct 2019 05:07 AM PDT Fossil remains of tiny calcareous algae not only provide information about the end of the dinosaurs, but also show how the oceans recovered after the fatal asteroid impact. |
Fish more tolerant than expected to low oxygen events Posted: 22 Oct 2019 05:07 AM PDT Fish may be more tolerant than previously thought to periods of low oxygen in the oceans, new research shows. |
Amazon's white bellbirds set new record for loudest bird call Posted: 21 Oct 2019 03:33 PM PDT Biologists report that they have recorded the loudest bird calls ever documented, made by dove-sized male white bellbirds as part of their mating rituals in the mountains of the northern Amazon. |
Catastrophic events carry forests of trees thousands of miles to a burial at sea Posted: 21 Oct 2019 03:33 PM PDT While studying sediments in the Bay of Bengal, an international team finds evidence dating back millions of years that catastrophic events likely toppled fresh trees from their mountain homes on a long journey to the deep sea. The discovery may add to models of the Earth's carbon cycle. |
How rat-eating monkeys help keep palm oil plants alive Posted: 21 Oct 2019 03:33 PM PDT Found as an ingredient in many processed and packaged foods, palm oil is the most widely consumed vegetable oil. Now, researchers have discovered an unlikely ally for palm oil production: pig-tailed macaques. |
Replacing coal with gas or renewables saves billions of gallons of water Posted: 21 Oct 2019 02:13 PM PDT The transition from coal to natural gas in the US electricity sector is reducing the industry's water use, research finds. For every megawatt of electricity produced using natural gas instead of coal, the water withdrawn from rivers and groundwater drops by 10,500 gallons, and water consumed for cooling and other plant operations and not returned to the environment drops by 260 gallons. Switching to solar or wind power could boost these savings even more. |
New deep-water coral discovered Posted: 21 Oct 2019 01:11 PM PDT A new octocoral species was recently discovered in a biodiversity hotspot and World Heritage Site in Pacific Panama. It inhabits an unexplored and understudied marine ecosystem, under increasing need for protection: the mesophotic coral communities. |
Humpback whale population on the rise after near miss with extinction Posted: 21 Oct 2019 01:11 PM PDT A new study finds that the western South Atlantic humpback population has grown to 25,000 whales. Researchers believe this new estimate is now close to pre-whaling numbers. |
Climate warming promises more frequent extreme El Niño events Posted: 21 Oct 2019 12:33 PM PDT New research, based on 33 historical El Niño events from 1901 to 2017, show climate change effects have shifted the El Niño onset location from the eastern Pacific to the western Pacific and caused more frequent extreme El Niño events since the 1970's. Continued warming over the western Pacific warm pool, driven by anthropogenic climate change, promises conditions that will trigger more extreme events in the future. |
GenBank can be trusted, study shows Posted: 21 Oct 2019 12:33 PM PDT Scientists working to identify coral reef organisms analyzed more than 4.7 million animal DNA sequences from GenBank, the most commonly used tool used to identify environmental DNA, and discovered that animal identification errors are surprisingly rare -- but sometimes very funny. |
Lead pollution from Native Americans attributed to crushing galena for glitter paint Posted: 21 Oct 2019 11:47 AM PDT A new study of Native American use of galena increases understanding of how they were using the land and its resources. |
Large-scale afforestation of African savannas will destroy valuable ecosystems Posted: 21 Oct 2019 10:50 AM PDT Scientists from around the world argue that the suggested afforestation of large areas of Africa to mitigate climate change will destroy valuable ecological, agricultural, and tourist areas, while doing little to reduce global CO2 levels. |
Antarctic ice cliffs may not contribute to sea-level rise as much as predicted Posted: 21 Oct 2019 10:50 AM PDT Researchers report that in order for a 90-meter ice cliff to collapse entirely, the ice shelves supporting the cliff would have to break apart extremely quickly, within a matter of hours -- a rate of ice loss that has not been observed in the modern record. |
Plant physiology will be major contributor to future river flooding Posted: 21 Oct 2019 09:45 AM PDT Researchers describe the emerging role of ecophysiology in riparian flooding. As an adaptation to an overabundance of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere, trees, plants and grasses constrict their stomatal pores to regulate the amount of the gas they consume, a mechanism that limits the release of water from leaves through evaporation. This saturates soils and causes more efficient run off and river flooding. |
It takes two -- a two-atom catalyst, that is -- to make oxygen from water Posted: 21 Oct 2019 08:48 AM PDT The search for sustainable approaches to generating new fuels has brought scientists back to one of the most abundant materials on Earth -- reddish iron oxide in the form of hematite, also known as rust. |
Clay minerals call the shots with carbon Posted: 21 Oct 2019 08:18 AM PDT Clay minerals suspended in seawater binds sedimentary organic carbon to their mineral surfaces. But the quantity of carbon that is bound and the source of that carbon very much depends on the clay mineral in question. A research team has shown this by studying sediments in the South China Sea. |
Widespread drying of European peatlands in recent centuries Posted: 21 Oct 2019 08:18 AM PDT Researchers examined 31 peatlands across Britain, Ireland, Scandinavia and continental Europe to assess changes in peatland surface wetness during the last 2,000 years. |
'Artificial leaf' successfully produces clean gas Posted: 21 Oct 2019 08:18 AM PDT A widely-used gas that is currently produced from fossil fuels can instead be made by an 'artificial leaf' that uses only sunlight, carbon dioxide and water, and which could eventually be used to develop a sustainable liquid fuel alternative to gasoline. |
No place like home: Species are on the move, but many have nowhere to go Posted: 21 Oct 2019 07:49 AM PDT Since the 1970s, insects in the warmer half of Britain have been flying, hopping and crawling northwards at an average rate of around five metres per day. However, a new study has analysed 25 million recorded sightings of 300 different insect species and found there is huge variation in the rates at which they are moving and that not all species are able to keep pace with the warming conditions. |
Biodiversity of insects modeled from space satellite data Posted: 21 Oct 2019 07:39 AM PDT With freely available radar data from satellites, biodiversity in forests can be analysed very well. Researchers now report that biodiversity even of tiny insects can be reliably modeled from space. |
Assessing the benefits and risks of land-based greenhouse gas removal Posted: 21 Oct 2019 06:40 AM PDT Researchers have assessed the benefits and risks associated with six different land-based greenhouse gas removal options in light of their potential impacts on ecosystems services and the UN Sustainable Development Goals. |
Gimme six! Researchers discover aye-aye's extra finger Posted: 21 Oct 2019 05:28 AM PDT The world's weirdest little primate has gotten even weirder, thanks to the discovery of a tiny extra digit. Aye-ayes possess small 'pseudothumbs' -- complete with their own fingerprints --- that may help them grip objects and branches as they move through trees. This is the first accessory digit ever found in a primate. |
Making connections: Bringing astrophysical processes down to Earth Posted: 21 Oct 2019 05:27 AM PDT Magnetic reconnection, a process in which magnetic field lines tear and come back together, releasing large amounts of kinetic energy, occurs throughout the universe. The process gives rise to auroras, solar flares and geomagnetic storms that can disrupt cell phone service and electric grids on Earth. A major challenge in the study of magnetic reconnection, however, is bridging the gap between these large-scale astrophysical scenarios and small-scale experiments that can be done in a lab. |
Volcanic ash sparks a new discovery Posted: 21 Oct 2019 05:27 AM PDT Imagine you're getting ready to fly to your favorite vacation destination when suddenly a volcano erupts, sending massive amounts of volcanic ash into the atmosphere, and forcing the cancellation of your flight. That's exactly what happened in April 2010 when Eyjafjallajokull, a volcano in Iceland, erupted and disrupted air travel in Europe for 6 days. Scientists are now using plasma physics to predict the characteristics of these hazardous ash plumes. |
California's crashing kelp forest Posted: 21 Oct 2019 05:27 AM PDT First the sea stars wasted to nothing. Then purple urchins took over, eating and eating until the bull kelp forests were gone. The red abalone starved. Their fishery closed. Red sea urchins starved. Their fishery collapsed. And the ocean kept warming. This ecological horror story movie took place between 2013-2017, with lasting impacts. This study chronicles the catastrophic shift in 2014 from a robust bull kelp forest to a barren of purple sea urchins. |
Mars once had salt lakes similar to those on Earth Posted: 18 Oct 2019 03:10 PM PDT Mars once had salt lakes that are similar to those on Earth and has gone through wet and dry periods. |
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