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Summers are getting hotter

November 7, 2023 By EarthWise Leave a Comment

Climate scientists have warned for decades that a seemingly small change in the global average temperature can lead to large changes in extreme heat. So far, the world has warmed by 1.2 degrees Celsius (or 2.2 degrees Fahrenheit) and that has been enough to cause big changes in summer heat.

This past summer was the hottest on record. The heat fueled deadly wildfires across the Mediterranean. Record highs caused Chinese cities to suspend outdoor work. Weeks of triple-digit temperatures in the U.S. southwest led to heat-related hospitalizations and deaths.

But not every recent summer has been hotter everywhere. Even this summer saw average or even colder than average temperatures in some places. But the distribution of summer temperatures across the Northern Hemisphere has shifted dramatically in recent decades.

Less than 1% of summers in the middle of the 20th century were extremely hot for their location. Over the past decade, more than a quarter of summers were extremely hot for their location.

Between 1950 and 1980, about a third of summers across the hemisphere were near average in temperature; a third were considered cold; a third were hot. Only a few summers in a few places were either extremely cold or extremely hot. Over the past decade, the vast majority of summers have either been hot or extremely hot.

We experience summer weather in the location where we spend our time, and it is entirely possible that our own experience may have been unremarkable. We may even have had a cool, rainy summer. But on a global scale, summers are getting hotter and hotter and making it harder to ignore what is happening to our planet.

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It’s Not Your Imagination. Summers Are Getting Hotter.

Photo, posted August 21, 2022, courtesy of Bonnie Moreland via Flickr.

Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio

Aluminum In Batteries | Earth Wise

September 1, 2023 By EarthWise 1 Comment

Batteries are playing a bigger and bigger role in our lives. Apart from their use in ubiquitous smartphones, laptops, and other devices, millions of electric vehicles are hitting the roads, and utilities are installing giant banks of batteries to store energy generated by wind and solar farms.

The necessary characteristics of batteries are high energy density and stability. The latter is needed so that batteries can be safely and reliably recharged thousands of times. For decades, lithium-ion batteries have been the go-to for all these modern battery applications. And they have gradually gotten better and cheaper all the time. But the improvements are getting smaller, and the price reductions have limits.

For these reasons, researchers are always looking for batteries with higher energy density – so that, for example, electric cars can drive farther on a charge – and that can be made more cheaply, are not flammable, and are very stable.

Since the 1970s, researchers have investigated the use of aluminum for the anode of batteries because its properties would allow more energy to be stored. However, when used in lithium-ion batteries, aluminum developed fractures and failed after a few cycles.

Researchers at Georgia Tech University have developed a type of aluminum foil with small amounts of other materials that create specific microstructures. Used in battery anodes, this material does not degrade and appears to be a path to a better battery. When incorporated into a solid-state battery that does not contain the flammable liquid found in standard lithium-ion batteries, the result is a battery that checks most of the boxes in the search for a better battery.

Much more work is needed to assess the potential for the aluminum-based battery, but it looks very promising.

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Aluminum Materials Show Promising Performance for Safer, Cheaper, More Powerful Batteries

Photo, posted August 27, 2019, courtesy of Marco Verch via Flickr.

Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio

A Geoengineering Research Plan | Earth Wise

July 22, 2022 By EarthWise Leave a Comment

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.

Global Flood Risk From Melting Ice | Earth Wise

December 13, 2021 By EarthWise Leave a Comment

Approximately 10% of the land area on Earth is covered by ice. This includes glaciers, ice caps, and the ice sheets of Antarctica and Greenland. Nearly 70% of all fresh water on earth is locked away in ice. If all this land ice were to melt, global sea levels would rise by more than 200 feet.

According to new research led by researchers at the University of Leeds in the U.K., global warming is causing extreme ice melting events in Greenland to become more frequent and more intense over the past 40 years, leading to an increased risk of flooding worldwide.

According to the findings, which were recently published in the journal Nature Communications, approximately 3.85 trillion tons of ice has melted from the surface of Greenland and into the ocean during the past decade alone. That’s enough melted ice to cover all of New York City with nearly 15,000 feet of water.

Rising sea levels threaten the lives and livelihoods of those living in coastal communities around the world. Beyond the obvious risk of flooding in low-lying areas, rising seas also disrupt marine ecosystems that many coastal communities rely on for food and work.

Rising sea levels can also alter patterns of ocean and atmospheric circulation, which in turn affect weather conditions around the planet.

Estimates from models suggest that melting ice from Greenland will contribute between 1 inch and 9 inches to global sea level rise by 2100.

These findings are just another reminder of how we need to act urgently to mitigate climate change if we want to prevent the worst-case scenarios from becoming reality.

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Increased frequency of extreme ice melting in Greenland raises global flood risk

Photo, posted April 21, 2017, courtesy of Markus Trienke via Flickr.

Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio.

Carbon From 25 Cities | Earth Wise

September 10, 2021 By EarthWise Leave a Comment

There are roughly 10,000 cities in the world, defined as places with at least 50,000 inhabitants with a sufficient population density. Roughly half the world’s population lives in cities.

Urban carbon emissions are one of the world’s biggest problems with respect to the climate. A new study has determined that just 25 cities globally are responsible for 52% of urban greenhouse gas emissions.

The study gathered data on greenhouse gas emissions in 167 cities in 53 countries. The results were that megacities in Asia, such as Shanghai and Tokyo, were among the biggest total emitters, and that major cities in Europe, the US, and Australia tended to have larger per capita emissions. Several Chinese cities, however, matched levels seen in developed countries. Researchers tracked emissions over time in 42 of the cities studied. Some cities saw declining emissions in the period between 2005 and 2016. These included Oslo, Houston, Seattle, and Bogota. Others saw large increases, including Rio de Janeiro, Johannesburg, and Venice.

The largest sources of emissions are power generation, industry, and transportation. In a third of the cities, road transportation alone accounted for over 30% of emissions. (Railways, waterways, and aviation combined only accounted for less than 15% of total emissions).

Half of the world’s population lives in cities, but cities are responsible for more than 70% of greenhouse gas emissions. Thus, cities have a big responsibility for the decarbonization of the global economy. Of the 167 cities in the study, 113 have set emission-reduction targets. But as the study shows, cities have much more work to do to meet the goals of the Paris Climate Agreement.

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Two Dozen Large Cities Produce 52 Percent of Urban Carbon Emissions

Photo, posted December 1, 2017, courtesy of Hector Galbis via Flickr.

Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio.

Pandemic Lockdowns And Carbon Emissions | Earth Wise

November 25, 2020 By EarthWise Leave a Comment

The early months of the COVID-19 pandemic saw many human activities reduced to a fraction of what they were previously. Notably, air pollution in major cities was dramatically lower than it had been in decades. Now, a new study has looked at the effect of the pandemic shutdowns on carbon dioxide emissions.

An international team of climate scientists has published an assessment of carbon dioxide emissions by industry, transportation, and other sectors from January through June. According to their measurements, this year’s pandemic lockdowns resulted in a 9% decline in emissions from 2019 levels.

An earlier study reported a 17% drop in CO2 emissions, but the new study was more comprehensive and detailed.

The new data includes estimates of day-by-day, sector-specific and country-level differences in CO2 emissions derived from frequently updated data sources, some of which are nearly in real-time. It tracks the effects of COVID-19-related disruptions of human activities in China starting in February and in the United States and Europe in March through May.

The data revealed the resumption of emissions in many regions, such as in China, where they are now back to pre-pandemic levels. Emissions in the Americas and Europe have been slower to recover, especially in the US, where COVID-19 hotspots are continuing to emerge.

The reduction in carbon emissions has been due mostly to transportation with fewer people driving to work and traveling by air. Even by June, when lockdowns were easing, global emissions were still significantly reduced. In any case, a pandemic is a highly undesirable and unwelcome way to reduce carbon emissions, but the data from this year does show that it is effective.

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Pandemic lockdowns caused steep and lasting carbon dioxide decline

Photo, posted August 7, 2020, courtesy of Michael Mueller via Flickr.

Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio.

Benefits Of A Zero-Emissions Boston | Earth Wise

May 25, 2020 By EarthWise Leave a Comment

Many countries, states, and cities around the world have set goals to become carbon neutral, typically by the year 2050. These goals are based on the desire to mitigate the effects of climate change that are steadily increasing as a result of the buildup of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. But reducing emissions is not just a way to combat climate change, it can also be a major contributor to improved public health.

The City of Boston has set a goal to become carbon neutral by 2050. A new study by the School of Public Health at Boston University published in the journal Environmental Research Letters looked at the consequences of eliminating fossil fuel emissions in the greater Boston area.

According to their modeling, eliminating emissions would save 288 lives a year by reducing fatal and non-fatal cardiovascular and respiratory illnesses. The resulting decrease in medical costs and lost and reduced work could save $1.7 billion a year in Suffolk County and $2.4 billion a year for the entire 75-square-mile zone modeled in the study.

The study looked at the amounts of two air pollutants known to harm human health: PM2.5 (particulates with a diameter of less than 2.5 microns) and ozone. They compared the current levels of these pollutants to what would be present when contributions from motor vehicles, generators, rail, industry, oil- and gas-burning, shipping and boating, and residential wood fires were eliminated.

The study focused on the City of Boston’s climate action plan, but actions taken by Boston will not take place in a vacuum. Many cities across the region are taking similar actions. The overall results will come from the collective actions across New England.

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A Zero-Emissions Boston Could Save 288 Lives and $2.4 Billion Annually

Photo, posted August 31, 2019, courtesy of Eric Kilby via Flickr.

Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio.

Community Action And Coral Reefs

January 1, 2020 By EarthWise Leave a Comment

Coral reef habitats are some of the densest and most varied ecosystems on earth. While coral reefs cover just 0.2% of the ocean floor, scientists estimate that nearly one million different species of fish, invertebrates, and algae can be found in or around coral reefs.

However, climate change is wreaking havoc on the health of coral reefs. Warming and acidifying oceans are resulting in enormous coral losses. Overfishing, development, and pollution are also threatening coral reef health.

According to new research, positive community action can help boost fish populations in coral reefs and safeguard future fish numbers. The paper, which was recently published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, details the social and ecological outcomes of work being done in Papua New Guinea since 2001.

These communities have established a traditional system of rotational fishing closures in order to manage their fisheries resources. They ban fishing on part of their reefs for a few years, and then open these closures when village elders believe fish behavior has changed and fish populations have recovered. They then close a different part of their reefs, and repeat the process.

The researchers found that these rotational practices resulted in more than twice as many fish on the closed reefs as compared to open ones, and the closures made fish less scared of people and easier to catch. But the researchers did caution that this short term boost in fish numbers may not be enough to stop the overall impact of fishing.

Globally, more than 500 million people depend on coral reefs for food, income, and coastal protection. Balancing community needs with environmental needs can be tricky business.

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Positive community action can help coral reef health

Photo, posted October 11, 2011, courtesy of Paul Toogood via Flickr.

Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio.

Collecting Clean Water From The Air

February 6, 2019 By EarthWise Leave a Comment

Clean water is an essential requirement for human life and there are many places where it is a scarce commodity. In the world’s deserts, getting water to people requires feats of engineering and irrigation that can be cumbersome and expensive.

Researchers at Ohio State University have produced a couple of new studies that explore options for gathering water from fog and condensation that are based on principles of biomimicry: copying strategies already in use by plants and animals.

The researchers looked at how cactus, beetles and desert grasses all collect water condensed from nighttime fog, gathering droplets from the air and filtering them to roots or reservoirs.

The cactus they studied collects water on its barbed tips before guiding droplets down conical spines to the base of the plant. They learned that conical shapes gather more water than do cylindrical shapes. This is because of a physics phenomenon called the Laplace pressure gradient.

The beetles they studied collect drops of water on waxy, water-repellent bumps on their backs. The water then slides towards the beetle’s mouth on the flat surface between the bumps. Based on this, the researchers experimented with structures that include multiple hydrophilic cones with spaces in between where water droplets can coalesce.

From grasses, they learned that grooved surfaces move water more quickly than ungrooved surfaces – in fact, about twice as much.

The work so far has been on a laboratory-level, but the researchers envision scaling up to structures in the desert that can gather water from fog or condensation and supplement public systems or wells either on a house-by-house basis or on a community-wide basis. Copying cacti, beetles and grasses could supply clean water to people in the desert.

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