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Shrinking Birds | Earth Wise

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A new study by researchers at Yale University looks at the way bird morphology is changing in response to the warming climate.  As temperatures rise, birds’ bodies are growing smaller, but their wings are growing longer.

In the study, published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, the scientists analyzed two independently collected datasets containing 40 years of morphology changes in 129 bird species comprising 52 migratory species in North America and 77 South American species.

In both datasets, similar changes were observed over the 40-year period.  The overall trend makes sense given that being smaller and having longer wings both would help birds to stay cool in warmer weather.  What was less obvious was that the changes to the birds were much greater among the smallest bird species.

One possible explanation is that smaller species tend to reproduce on a shorter time scale and therefore evolve more quickly.  However, the study found no link between generation length and the changes in body size.

Another possible explanation is that smaller species tend to have larger populations, which means there is a greater chance of having individuals with desirable new traits that can get passed on.  But the scientists found no link between population size and shifts in body size either.

At this point, it is unclear why smaller birds are shrinking more.  More research is needed to figure out why larger birds are slower to adapt to climate change.  In general, larger species of animals have an increased risk of extinction.  This new research suggests that larger body size exacerbates extinction risk by limiting the ability for birds to adapt to the changes we are making to the climate.

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Birds Are Shrinking as the Climate Warms — and Small Birds Are Shrinking Faster

Photo, posted October 30, 2018, courtesy of N. Lewis / National Park Service via Flickr.

Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio

A New Deep-Sea Reef In The Galapagos | Earth Wise

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Like in many other places around the world, ocean warming has mostly destroyed the shallow-water reefs in the Galapagos Islands.  The islands are some of the most carefully protected places in the world, but they can’t escape the effects of a warming planet.

Recently, however, scientists have discovered a healthy, sprawling coral reef hidden deep under the sea in the Galapagos.  More than 1,300 feet underwater, the reef extends for several miles along the ridge of a previously unknown volcano in the Galapagos Marine Preserve.

The reef is pristine and is teeming with all sorts of marine life including pink octopus, batfish, squat lobsters, and a variety of deep-sea fish, sharks, and rays.

The expedition that discovered the new reef was led by the University of Essex in the UK.  Prior to this discovery, scientists thought that coral reefs were all but gone from the Galapagos.  A period of ocean warming in 1982 through 1983 wiped out more than 95% of the corals in the archipelago.  Only a few reefs in shallow waters remained.  The newly discovered reefs are sheltered deep under the sea and would have been protected from the deadly heat.

According to the scientists from the expedition, the newly discovered reef potentially has global significance because it represents a site that can be monitored over time to see how such a pristine habitat evolves with the ongoing climate crisis.  Reefs like this are clearly very old because coral reefs take a long time to grow. Finding this one means that it is likely that there are more healthy reefs across different depths that are waiting to be discovered.

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Pristine Deep-Sea Reef Discovered in the Galápagos

Photo, posted March 28, 2009, courtesy of Derek Keats via Flickr.

Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio

Record Polar Ice Melting | Earth Wise

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Sea levels are rising and ocean warming is responsible for the bulk of that rise.  As water heats up, it expands, which drives up sea levels.  But on top of that, global warming is melting the polar ice sheets, and that is leading to about a quarter of the world’s sea level rise. So far, polar melting has fueled about an inch of sea level rise, two-thirds from Greenland and one third from Antarctica.   According to scientists, by the end of this century, melting polar ice caps could raise sea levels between 6 and 10 inches.

The seven worst years for polar ice sheet melting have occurred during the past decade.  The worst year on record was 2019.  The loss in 2019 was driven by an Arctic summer heatwave, which resulted in record melting from Greenland, amounting to nearly 500 billion tons melted that year.  Antarctica lost 180 billion tons of ice that year, mostly due to melting glaciers and record melting from the Antarctic Peninsula.

Ice losses from Greenland and Antarctica can now be reliably measured by satellites in space.  A team of researchers led by Northumbria University in the UK has combined 50 satellite surveys taken between 1992 and 2020.

They have found that the Earth’s polar ice sheets have lost over 8,000 billion tons of ice over that time period.  That much ice corresponds to an ice cube roughly 12 miles high.

The satellite technology is now at the stage where the ice sheet status can be continuously updated.  Such monitoring is critical to predict the future behavior of the ice sheets and provide risk warnings of the dangers that coastal communities around the world will face.

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Polar ice sheet melting records have toppled during the past decade

Photo, posted December 19, 2017, courtesy of Jasmine Nears via Flickr.

Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio

Life In The Garbage Patch | Earth Wise

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A team of scientists has found thriving communities of coastal creatures living thousands of miles from their original homes and now ensconced on plastic debris in the Great Pacific Garbage Patch. 

A new study published in the journal Nature Ecology & Evolution reports that dozens of species of coastal invertebrate organisms – including tiny crabs and anemones – have been able to survive and reproduce on plastic garbage that has been floating in the ocean for years.

The Great Pacific Garbage Patch is an area in the ocean between California and Hawaii, larger than Texas, where plastic debris has been collected by the North Pacific Subtropical Gyre, one of five huge, spinning circular currents in the world’s oceans.  The patch is estimated to contain about 1.8 trillion pieces of plastic weighing an estimated 90,000 tons.  The Ocean Cleanup Initiative is dedicated to removing this immense accumulation of plastic, but it is an immense job.

Researchers discovered this new ecosystem after analyzing plastic samples collected by The Ocean Cleanup organization during its expeditions in the Pacific.  They were surprised to find 37 different invertebrate species that normally live in coastal water and only a dozen species that live in open waters.  These species have made their way from North America and have thrived.  So, the garbage patch has created a novel community that didn’t previously exist.

Debris from the Great Pacific Garbage patch constitutes the majority of debris arriving on Hawaiian beaches and reefs.  Hawaii’s fragile marine ecosystems have long been protected from invasive species because of the very long distances from North America or Asia.  With the coastal species now inhabiting the garbage patch, there is increased danger of colonization by them in Hawaii’s ecosystems.

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Coastal species persist on high seas on floating plastic debris

Photo, posted September 30, 2020, courtesy of Kees Torn via Flickr.

Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio

Arctic Warming And Weather At Mid-Latitudes | Earth Wise

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Some of the most striking images of climate change are those of melting glaciers in the Arctic and polar bears stranded on shrinking sea ice. The Arctic has been warming at a rate twice as fast as the global average.  In recent years, there has been growing recognition of the Arctic’s role in driving extreme weather events in other parts of the world.

Winters in the midlatitude regions have seen more extreme weather events.  The past winter saw record-breaking cold temperatures and snowfall in Japan, China, and Korea.   Many parts of Eurasia and North America experienced severe cold snaps, with heavy snowfall and prolonged periods of subzero temperature.  On the other hand, Europe saw its second warmest winter on record with record high temperatures in many places, much drier than normal conditions, and the closure of many ski resorts.

A study published in the journal Climate and Atmospheric Science by scientists from South Korea and the U.S. looked at various climate projection models as well as historic climate data to assess what is likely to happen to weather in the mid-latitudes as the Arctic continues to warm.  Warmer Arctic Sea temperatures usually result in lower winter temperatures in East Asia and North America as ocean currents and the jet streams are altered.

The study shows that Arctic warming-triggered cold waves in the mid-latitudes are likely to persist in a warmer future, but that such events will become more difficult to predict.  The study highlights the importance of continued efforts to better understand the interactions between Arctic warming and the climate of the midlatitudes.   There need to be better ways to predict the extreme weather events that are likely to come.

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Gwangju Institute of Science and Technology Researchers Correlate Arctic Warming to Extreme Winter Weather in Midlatitude and Its Future

Photo, posted August 31, 2006, courtesy of Hillebrand / USFWS via Flickr.

Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio

Scientists Call For Geoengineering Research | Earth Wise

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A group of more than 60 climate researchers has published an open letter calling for accelerated research into what is called solar radiation management.  This means changing the amount of solar energy reaching the surface of the earth by adding various substances into the stratosphere or into the clouds in order to help cool down the planet.

This form of geoengineering is controversial to say the least.  While such approaches would most likely be successful in cooling things down, such climate manipulation could have dangerous and unexpected consequences.

For their part, the scientists explicitly state that they do not support the use of solar radiation management or SRM.  Their position is that our current level of knowledge is not sufficient to accurately assess potential risks and consequences.  What they are advocating is for scientific research to be conducted to support the assessment of the potential effectiveness of various SRM techniques, to determine how these techniques would affect climate change under various greenhouse gas scenarios, and to determine the capabilities for detecting and attributing possible impacts of SRM interventions.

The letter was a response to a larger group of scientists and academics who called for a strict ban on geoengineering, saying that it could divert attention and resources from much-needed greenhouse gas reductions.  The new letter claims that gaining additional knowledge about SRM is a critical part of making effective and ethical decisions about its implementation.  They state that we have no right to ban the ability to search for a solution to the mess we created.

Opponents of such research are concerned that even pursuing it normalizes in the public eye what could potentially be a catastrophically dangerous activity.

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60 Scientists Call for Accelerated Research Into ‘Solar Radiation Management’ That Could Temporarily Mask Global Warming

Photo, posted February 11, 2006, courtesy of Janice Waltzer via Flickr.

Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio

Counting Trees | Earth Wise

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Scientists estimate that there are about 3 trillion trees on the earth.  A huge number but probably half as many as there were before people entered the picture.  And we’re losing about 10 billion trees a year to toilet paper, timber, farmland expansion, and other human activity.  Trees play a crucial role in taking carbon dioxide out of the atmosphere and storing it away.  For this reason, trees have become an integral part of the effort to mitigate climate change.

There are major initiatives underway around the world to plant more trees.  Part of this is driven by the increasing use of carbon credits by companies trying to offset their carbon emissions.   These credits are earned by either planting new trees or paying farmers or other landowners not to cut down existing trees.  But how many trees are actually planted and how many survive over time?

Whether these efforts are really resulting in more trees and more carbon storage is not easy to determine.  Current international inventories of global tree-sequestered carbon are subject to great uncertainty.

Researchers from the University of Copenhagen and NASA have developed a method for mapping large numbers of trees and determining their carbon content.  Using artificial intelligence techniques to analyze ultra-high-resolution satellite images, they can count trees, determine their individual species, and measure their carbon content.

A study of images from Africa’s Sahel region found that it is home to nearly 10 billion trees that are currently storing 840 million tons of carbon.

Now that the groundwork for this new methodology is complete, it is ready to be deployed by public agencies, NGOs, and other interested in monitoring the numbers of trees and their carbon content.

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The counting of nine billion trees could help manage climate credits and nature restoration

Photo, posted October 27, 2018, courtesy of Ian Dick via Flickr.

Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio

Keeping The Keeling Curve Going | Earth Wise

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The world’s longest-running record of direct readings of carbon dioxide levels in the atmosphere is the Keeling Curve, measurements taken at the summit of Mauna Loa in Hawaii.  The readings have been going on with almost no interruption since Charles Keeling began taking them in the 1950s.  But the eruption of Mauna Loa last November toppled power lines at the mountaintop observatory and buried a mile of the main road up the mountain in lava.

Scientists have been scrambling to resume measurements and the near-term solution has been to take them, for the first time, on Mauna Kea, the neighboring large volcano about 25 miles away.  The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration flew in and installed instruments at the Mauna Kea observatory so that only about a week went by without measurements.   It happened so quickly because months earlier, NOAA had already started looking into installing a backup site on Mauna Kea where there is an observatory run by the University of Hawaii.

NOAA used helicopters to install solar panels and batteries on Mauna Loa to restore power in the short term since it will be months before a new road can be built on the still-cooling lava. The plan is to collect parallel measurements for a year to see if Mauna Kea, which hasn’t erupted for thousands of years, might become a long-term backup for Mauna Loa.

The Hawaiian volcanoes are uniquely suited for the measurements because they are surrounded by thousands of miles of empty ocean and are very high up, away from towns, cars, and forests.  Scientists are now monitoring measurements from the two sites to see how they compare.

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Battling Lava and Snowstorms, 2.5 Miles Above the Pacific

Photo, posted November 2, 2015, courtesy of Neal Simpson via Flickr.

Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio

Great Salt Lake In Danger | Earth Wise

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Utah’s Great Salt Lake has been plagued by excessive water use and extensive drought conditions.  As of January, the lake dropped to record-low water levels, losing 73% of its water and exposing 60% of its lakebed. According to scientists, the lake could disappear entirely within five years.

Great Salt Lake is what is known as a “terminal lake,” which means that it is fed only by rain, snow, and runoff and has no rivers that take water to the ocean.  As a result, salt and minerals build up over time.  With so much salt in the water, only brine flies and shrimp can survive in it.  The unique ecosystem supports 10 million migratory birds.  As the lake continues to dry up, the water is becoming too salty for even algae and microbes to survive.  With shallow mud replacing previous shallow water, the nests of the 80,000 white pelicans that annually come to the lake are endangered by predators that can simply walk over to the eggs.

The historic low water levels have exposed 800 square miles of lakebed.  This lakebed holds centuries of natural and manmade toxins like mercury, arsenic, and selenium.  The exposed mud ultimately turns to dust that is carried off into the air.  This is contributing to what is already some of the worst winter air pollution in the nation.  Scientists warn that the unfolding ecological disaster may become a human health disaster.

State officials and university researchers have formed a “Great Salt Lake Strike Team” looking for ways to get more water to the lake.  There are a number of so-called moonshot proposals to save the lake.  It remains to be seen what will be done, but the clock is ticking.

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Great Salt Lake will disappear in 5 years without massive ‘emergency rescue,’ scientists say

Scientists fear a Great Toxic Dustbowl could soon emerge from the Great Salt Lake

Photo, posted September 19, 2009, courtesy of John Morgan via Flickr.

Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio

Cheaper Carbon Capture | Earth Wise

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As the years roll by without sufficient progress in reducing carbon dioxide emissions, the need for technologies that can capture CO2 from its sources or remove it from the air becomes stronger and stronger.  People have developed various ways to capture carbon dioxide, but to date, they generally suffer from some combination of being too costly or not being able to scale up to the necessary magnitude.

Scientists at the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory in Richland, Washington recently announced the creation of a new system that they claim is the least costly to date that captures carbon dioxide and turns it into a widely-used chemical: methanol.

Technologies that simply capture carbon dioxide that then needs to be stored in some secure location are difficult to implement from a cost perspective.  The PNNL researchers believe that turning CO2 into methanol can provide the financial incentive for widespread implementation.   Methanol can be used as a fuel, a solvent, or an important ingredient in plastics, paint, construction materials, and car parts.

The system is designed to be installed in fossil fuel-fired power plants as well as cement and steel plants.  Using a capture solvent developed by PNNL, the system grabs carbon dioxide molecules before they are emitted and converts them into methanol. Creating methanol from CO2 is nothing new, but capturing the carbon dioxide and converting into methanol in one continuously flowing system is new.

More work is needed to optimize and scale the process and it may be several years before it is ready for commercial deployment.

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Scientists Unveil Least Costly Carbon Capture System to Date

Photo, posted November 25, 2022, courtesy of Massachusetts Department of Environmental Conservation via Flickr.

Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio

Planting Millions Of Trees Isn’t So Easy | Earth Wise

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There are initiatives around the world to plant millions of trees as a way to fight climate change.  Unfortunately, scientists have observed that many of these projects are ill-conceived and poorly managed.  Some have failed to grow any forests at all.

One such project was an attempt to plant a million mangrove seedlings in coastal mud on the Filipino island of Luzon in 2012.  Ten years later, less than 2% of the trees have survived.  The other 98% have died or have washed away.  The problem was that the site of the project was ecologically unsuited to mangroves because it is too waterlogged and there is no oxygen available except in a few sheltered spots.

In 2019, the Turkish government managed the planting of 11 million trees in 2,000 sites across the country.  A later survey found that 90% had died, although the government denies that assertion.

Many other projects have also had dismal results.  The causes of failure vary but include planting single species of trees that become vulnerable to disease, competing demands for land, changing climate, planting in areas not previously forested, and lack of ongoing care for the saplings including watering them.

Nobody is opposed to mass tree planting.  There is no anti-tree lobby.  But tree planting is sometimes a form of greenwashing.  It is great for public relations but unless it is done properly with appropriate planning, it can be a waste of effort and money.  The result can be a phantom forest that does nothing for the climate.

Forest planting can work if the social and environmental conditions are right, and if planting is followed by long-term monitoring and care of the trees.

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Phantom Forests: Why Ambitious Tree Planting Projects Are Failing

Photo, posted April 20, 2016, courtesy of the U.S. Navy / Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class John Benson via Flickr.

Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio

Trees Are Growing Bigger | Earth Wise

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The alarming rate of carbon dioxide flowing into the atmosphere is having a real and actually positive effect on plant life. Higher concentrations of carbon dioxide make plants more productive because photosynthesis makes use of the sun’s energy to synthesize sugar out of carbon dioxide and water.  Plants make use of the sugar both as a source of energy and as the basic building block for growth.  When carbon dioxide levels go up, plants can take it up faster, supercharging the rate of photosynthesis.

In a new study published in the journal Nature Communications, scientists at Ohio State University found that trees are feasting on decades of carbon dioxide emissions and are growing bigger as a result. 

The researchers tracked wood volume in 10 different tree groups from 1997 to 2017 and found that all of them except aspens and birches grew larger.  Over that time period, carbon dioxide levels climbed from 363 parts per million to 405 parts per million.  According to the study, each 1% increase in lifetime CO2 exposure for trees has led to more than a 1% increase in wood volume.

In the big picture, the news isn’t so positive.  The global warming caused by increasing carbon dioxide levels increasingly threatens the forests of the world.  It has led to worsening droughts, insect infestations, and wildfires.  So overall, increasing levels of carbon dioxide are by no means a good thing for the world’s trees.  However, since trees are growing bigger more quickly, it means that planting them is an increasingly cost-effective method for fighting climate change because the same number of trees can sequester more carbon.

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As Carbon Dioxide Grows More Abundant, Trees Are Growing Bigger, Study Finds

Photo, posted September 12, 2015, courtesy of Nicholas A. Tonelli via Flickr.

Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio

Resurrecting The Tasmanian Tiger | Earth Wise

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Tasmanian tigers earned their nickname because of the stripes along their back, but they were not felines.  In fact, they were carnivorous marsupials, the type of Australian mammal that raises its young in a pouch.

Tasmanian tigers, also known as thylacines, were once native to the Australian mainland, as well as the islands of Tasmania and New Guinea.  Dog-like in appearance, Tasmanian tigers were extensively hunted after European colonization.  The last known Tasmanian tiger died in captivity in 1936.

Nearly 100 years after its extinction, the Tasmanian tiger may live once again.  Scientists in Australia and the United States have launched an ambitious multimillion dollar de-extinction project to genetically resurrect the Tasmanian tiger.

In order to bring back the animal, researchers will have to take stem cells from a living species with similar DNA – like the fat-tailed dunnart – and use gene editing techniques to turn them into “Tasmanian tiger” cells – or the closest approximation possible.  The team will need new assisted reproductive technologies to use the stem cells to make an embryo, which will then have to be transferred into an artificial womb or a dunnart surrogate to gestate.  The research team is optimistic that there could be a hybrid baby Tasmanian tiger in 10 years. 

The ambitious project is a partnership between scientists at the University of Melbourne and the Texas-based company Colossal Biosciences.  This is the second de-extinction undertaking by Colossal Biosciences, which announced last year it planned to use its technology to recreate the woolly mammoth, and return it to the Arctic tundra.

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Scientists want to resurrect the extinct Tasmanian tiger

Tasmanian tiger: Scientists hope to revive marsupial from extinction

Photo credit: E.J. Keller, from the Smithsonian Institution archives, courtesy of Flickr.

Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio.

Rewilding The American West | Earth Wise

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Oregon State University scientists have proposed a series of management changes for western federal lands aimed at re-establishing ecosystems there.  Their proposal would result in more gray wolves and beavers in nearly 200,000 square miles of federal lands in 11 states.

In each of those states, the researchers identified areas containing prime wolf habitat.  Gray wolves were hunted to near extinction in the West but have been gradually reintroduced in some areas starting in the 1990s.  Wolf restoration offers significant ecological benefits by helping to naturally control the population of grazing animals such as elk.  This in turn facilitates the regrowth of vegetation species such as aspen, which ultimately supports diverse plant and animal communities.

Beaver populations, which used to be robust across the West, declined roughly 90% after settler colonialism and are now nonexistent in many areas.  By felling trees and shrubs and constructing dams, beavers enrich fish habitat, increase water and settlement retention, maintain water flows during droughts, and increase carbon sequestration.

According to the researchers, the biggest threat to these western lands is livestock grazing, which has degraded ecosystems to a great extent.  They recommend the removal of grazing on about 30% of the federal lands being used for that purpose and instead would have rewilding efforts go on. 

The American West is going through a period of converging crises including extended drought and water scarcity, extreme heat waves, massive fires, and loss of biodiversity.  Rewilding is a way to reestablish long-standing ecosystems.

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More wolves, beavers needed as part of improving western United States habitats, scientists say

Photo, posted October 1, 2020, courtesy of Tina DaPuglet via Flickr.

Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio.

Some Good News For The Great Barrier Reef | Earth Wise

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It seems like there has been nothing but dire news from Australia’s Great Barrier Reef.  Earlier this year, there was yet another mass bleaching event – the fourth in seven years and the first ever to strike during a cooler La Niña phase in the Pacific.  But this bleaching event was less severe than other recent ones, which makes it possible for parts of the reef to bounce back.

In particular, in the northern and central stretches of the reef, scientists have recorded the most extensive coral cover seen in 36 years of study.  In areas where coral cover has expanded, it is mostly fast-growing Acropora corals driving the growth.  That isn’t the best outcome, given that Acropora are particularly vulnerable to strong waves, highly susceptible to bleaching, and are the preferred target of crown-of-thorns starfish.

Those creatures are a major problem for the Great Barrier Reef.  In contrast to the upper stretches of the reef, the southern third actually saw coral cover drop from 38 to 34 percent over the course of the past year.  Scientists blame the decline on an outbreak of crown-of-thorns starfish, which prey on corals.  The starfish grow faster and eat more in warmer, more acidic waters.   Carbon emissions are both raising ocean temperatures and turning waters more acidic.

The large increases in hard coral cover in the reef are certainly good news, but it is important to understand that they can be quickly negated by disturbance on reefs where Acropora corals predominate.  Warming temperatures and mass bleaching events continue to pose a critical threat to all reefs, especially when there are crown-of-thorns starfish outbreaks and increasing frequency of tropical cyclones.

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Parts of Great Barrier Reef See Most Extensive Coral Cover In 36 Years

Photo, posted July 15, 2019, courtesy of Kenneth Lu via Flickr.

Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio.

Progress On Artificial Photosynthesis | Earth Wise

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Photosynthesis is the process by which plants use the energy from sunlight to turn water and carbon dioxide into biomass and ultimately the foods we and other organisms eat.  Scientists at the University of California Riverside and the University of Delaware have found a way to create food from water and carbon dioxide without using biological photosynthesis and without needing sunlight.

The research, recently published in the journal Nature Food, uses a two-step electrocatalytic process to convert carbon dioxide, electricity, and water into acetate, which is the primary component of vinegar.   Food-producing microorganisms then consume the acetate in order to grow.   Solar panels are used to generate the electricity to power the electrocatalysis.  The result is a hybrid organic-inorganic system that is far more efficient in converting sunlight into food than biological photosynthesis.

The research showed that a wide range of food-producing organisms can be grown in the dark directly on the acetate output of the electrolyzer.  These include green algae, yeast, and the fungal mycelium that produce mushrooms.   Producing algae with this technology is about 4 times more energy efficient than growing it with photosynthesis.  Yeast production is about 18 times more energy efficient than the typical method of cultivating it using sugar extracted from corn.

Artificial photosynthesis has the potential to liberate agriculture from its complete dependence on the sun, opening the door to a wide range of possibilities for growing food under the increasingly difficult conditions imposed by the changing climate.

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Artificial photosynthesis can produce food without sunshine

Photo, posted September 7, 2016, courtesy of Kevin Doncaster via Flickr.

Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio.

A Geoengineering Research Plan | Earth Wise

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The 2022 federal appropriations act, signed into law in March, directed the Office of Science and Technology Policy to develop a cross-agency group to coordinate research on climate interventions, in partnership with NASA, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, and the Department of Energy.

The group is tasked with creating a research framework to “provide guidance on transparency, engagement, and risk management for publicly funded work on solar geoengineering research.”  The group is supposed to develop a five-year plan that will define research goals for the field, assess the potential hazards of climate interventions, and evaluate the level of federal funding required to carry out the work.

This marks the first federally coordinated effort of this kind and is especially significant because it contributes to the perception that geoengineering is an appropriate and important area of research as the climate continues to warm.

It is an understatement to say that such research is controversial.  Geoengineering has often been a taboo topic among scientists. There are significant questions about potential environmental side effects and concerns that the impact of any such efforts would be felt unevenly in different parts of the world.  There are challenging questions about global governance , including who should be able to make decisions about any potential deployment of climate interventions and what the goals of such interventions should be.

These are momentous issues to grapple with, but as the threat of climate change grows and nations continue to fail to make rapid progress on emissions, researchers, universities, and nations are increasingly motivated to seriously explore the potential effects of geoengineering approaches.  We can’t hide from the fact that these issues are going to be explored.

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The US government is developing a solar geoengineering research plan

Photo, posted June 28, 2013, courtesy of Fernando Aramburu via Flickr.

Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio.

Less Phytoplankton In The Gulf Of Maine | Earth Wise

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Phytoplankton, also known as microalgae, are the base of the marine food web and also play a key role in removing carbon dioxide from the air.  They are eaten by primary consumers like zooplankton, small fish, and crustaceans. 

Phytoplankton, like land plants, absorb carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and use photosynthesis to grow.  Then they become a food source for other organisms and ultimately for people who depend upon marine ecosystems.   If phytoplankton productivity is disrupted, there can be adverse effects on regional fisheries and the communities that depend on them.

The Gulf of Maine is becoming warmer and saltier, because of ocean currents pushing warm water into the gulf from the Northwest Atlantic.  These temperature and salinity changes have led to a significant decrease in the productivity of phytoplankton.   According to a new paper from scientists at Bigelow Laboratory of Ocean Sciences in Maine, phytoplankton are about 65% less productive in the gulf than they were 20 years ago.

The study’s results come from the analysis of the Gulf of Maine North Atlantic Time Series, a 23-year sampling program of the temperature, salinity, chemical, biological, and optical measurements of the gulf.  The scientists refer to what they describe as a giant windmill effect happening in the North Atlantic, which is changing the circulation of water coming into the Gulf of Maine.  In the past, inflows from the North Atlantic brought water from the Labrador Current, which made the gulf cooler and fresher.  The new circulation is making the water warmer and saltier.

These changes have significant implications for higher marine species, fisheries, the lobster industry, and other activities in the states that border the Gulf of Maine.

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NASA-funded Study: Gulf of Maine’s Phytoplankton Productivity Down 65%

Photo, posted November 15, 2015, courtesy of Paul VanDerWerf via Flickr.

Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio.

Saving Money By Predicting The Wind | Earth Wise

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Managing an electrical grid that utilizes significant amounts of intermittent generation sources – solar and wind power – brings with it some unique challenges.  There are abundant wind resources in this country and more and utilities are taking advantage of these resources.   But there are times when there is more wind, times when there is less wind, and times when there is no wind at all.   Utilities need accurate wind forecasts to determine when they need to generate or purchase energy from alternative sources.

Poor wind forecasts can cost utilities a lot of money.  If there is overprediction – that is, when there is less wind than predicted – utilities have to purchase energy off the spot market at higher prices.  If there is underprediction – more wind than predicted – utilities may needlessly burn fossil fuels and waste money that way. 

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration produces wind forecasts using its High-Resolution Rapid Refresh (HRRR) weather model, which provides hourly updated forecasts for every part of the United States looking forward up to 48 hours.  The model generates predictions of wind speed and direction at multiple levels of the atmosphere, information that utilities can use to predict the output of their wind turbines.

A new study by economists and scientists from Colorado State University and NOAA estimated the financial impact of the HRRR model on wind farm production.  The research team calculated that increasingly accurate weather forecasts over the last decade have saved consumers over $150 million a year.   Estimates are that if the newest model was in use in previous years, the savings would have been over $300 million a year.

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NOAA wind forecasts result in $150 million in energy savings every year

Photo, posted May 2, 2022, courtesy of California Energy Commission via Flickr.

Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio.

Skydiving Salamanders | Earth Wise

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The redwoods of the California coast are the tallest trees in the world.  They are typically a couple of hundred feet tall and the tallest rise to a height of as much as 380 feet.  Scientists have been studying the unique world of the redwood forest canopy for years.  There are multiple animals that actually live up there.  In fact, some spend their entire lives at the top of a single tree.

Over the past 20 years, researchers have been climbing redwoods to observe, capture, and mark salamanders that live in the canopy.  The most arboreal species, called the wandering salamander, is a four-inch-long creature what moves up and down the branches of a tree where it spends its entire life.  The researchers discovered a remarkable ability for the little amphibian.

The salamander readily leaps from perches in the crowns of redwood trees and has the ability to easily maneuver in midair back to a trunk or branch before it plummets to the ground.  When the salamanders were startled by climbing researchers, they simply leap from the canopy and find their way to another perch lower in the tree.

The salamanders assume a skydiving posture with their forelimbs splayed out and can steer themselves by pumping their tails up and down.  They can flip themselves over if they end up upside down.  They have an impressive level of control.

What is most remarkable is that the salamanders, apart from having slightly larger foot pads, look no different from other salamanders that aren’t skydivers.  They have no skin flaps or other anatomical adaptations that would give them the ability to glide.  The researchers hope to eventually figure out just how these creatures have become expert skydivers.

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Skydiving salamanders live in world’s tallest trees

Photo, posted August 5, 2010, courtesy of Benson Kua via Flickr.

Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio.

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