Latest news with #ResearchLetters
Yahoo
4 days ago
- Science
- Yahoo
Scientists issue warning after making troubling discovery in waters off Antarctica: 'Could be more unstable'
A recent discovery by a team of Australian scientists reveals that an ocean current, which acts as a safeguard by protecting Antarctica from warm water that would otherwise melt the region's ice, is at risk of failing. Relatively little is known about the Antarctic Slope Current (ASC), but scientists do understand its importance in acting as Antarctica's last line of defense from preventing warm water from invading the region. New research that was recently published in Geophysical Research Letters looks at how this current, which acts as a vital barrier, "will respond to changes in wind, heating, and meltwater under climate change." "We found meltwater from Antarctica is speeding up the current, known as the Antarctic Slope Current," the authors of the study wrote in an article for the Conversation, per "And it's set to become even faster by mid-century." "A faster current could be more unstable," added the researchers. "This means eddies of warm water could eat away at Antarctica's ice, posing a major concern for the stability of Earth's climate system." The team of scientists warned that "humanity must act now" to protect this natural buffer, which is helping to keep Antarctica's ice shelves from vanishing. The study's authors point out that in vulnerable low-lying coastal regions, even a minimal sea-level rise of just a few centimeters can double the likelihood of flooding events. Rising sea levels allow saltwater to encroach further inland, contaminating freshwater supplies and impacting crop yields. The Union of Concerned Scientists has linked human activity to rising global temperatures that are melting ice sheets and releasing vast volumes of freshwater into the North Atlantic. This invasion of freshwater is disturbing the delicate balance of ocean circulation patterns and contributing to rising sea levels as the relatively less salty and less dense water takes up more space. A study published in May showed that the Northeastern U.S. experienced up to eight days of flooding annually because of the disruption of the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation. The research concluded that up to 50% of the total flooding events at monitored sites in the Northeast might be tied directly to the weakening circulation. Rising sea levels in Charleston, South Carolina, are making what used to be an occasional nuisance for the coastal city into a more routine disruption for the community, as rising tides bring water into homes and businesses. "Humanity must act fast to preserve the current, by cutting carbon emissions," warned the authors of the study on the changes to the ASC. "When it comes to Antarctica, this action isn't optional—it's the only way to hold the line." Transitioning from dirty energy sources to clean, renewable options is the most effective way to cut carbon pollution that is overheating our planet. Even relatively small changes we can make in our homes can help. Washing clothes in cold water, upgrading to LED bulbs, and unplugging "energy vampires" can have an impact and make a difference. Do you think America does a good job of protecting its natural beauty? Definitely Only in some areas No way I'm not sure Click your choice to see results and speak your mind. Join our free newsletter for good news and useful tips, and don't miss this cool list of easy ways to help yourself while helping the planet.
Yahoo
02-06-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Solar panel arrays may help sustain grasslands during drought: Study
The placement of solar panels in Colorado's grasslands could help decrease water stress and increase plant growth by about 20 percent during dry years, a new study has found. In these semi-arid areas, where grasslands often don't get as much water as they need, the partial shading offered by solar systems can help plants get through harsh summers, according to the study, published in Environmental Research Letters. The plants also benefit from any additional water that ends up collecting on the panels, the authors noted. 'Even though this solar array was designed to maximize energy generation — not to promote beneficial environmental conditions for the grasses grown beneath — it still provided a more favorable environment during a dry year,' lead author Matthew Sturchio, a postdoctoral researcher at Cornell University, said in a statement. In more temperate environments, although solar power arrays provide a critical source of renewable energy, they also reduce the availability of sunlight for plant growth. The diminished presence of local vegetation also means a decrease in plant-based carbon storage and the forage available for grazing animals. But during dry years in semi-arid Colorado, scientists found that grass growth on the east side of panels was in some cases considerably more productive than in adjacent open sites. In wet and normal years, the positive rate of production was reduced, but the east side of the panels still saw more grass growth than the neighboring control spots. The scientists suggested maximizing potential gains by adjusting panel arrays to changing environmental conditions — such as repositioning them to provide shade when air temperatures rise or configuring them to let in more light during growing seasons. 'With small changes in array design, configuration and management, we may even realize untapped benefits, particularly those related to water use,' Sturchio said. Going forward, Sturchio and senior author Alan Knapp, a biology professor at Colorado State University, said they are researching optimal ways to place solar power infrastructure in order to also support grazing livestock or habitat pollinators. 'PV solar arrays may provide a unique opportunity to harvest the sun for electrical energy, reduce greenhouse gas emissions and mitigate the climate change threat of increased water limitation to ecosystem functioning,' the authors concluded. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
The Hill
02-06-2025
- Science
- The Hill
Solar panel arrays may help sustain grasslands during drought: Study
The placement of solar panels in Colorado's grasslands could help decrease water stress and increase plant growth by about 20 percent during dry years, a new study has found. In these semi-arid areas, where grasslands often don't get as much water as they need, the partial shading offered by solar systems can help plants get through harsh summers, according to the study, published in Environmental Research Letters. The plants also benefit from any additional water that ends up collecting on the panels, the authors noted. 'Even though this solar array was designed to maximize energy generation — not to promote beneficial environmental conditions for the grasses grown beneath — it still provided a more favorable environment during a dry year,' lead author Matthew Sturchio, a postdoctoral researcher at Cornell University, said in a statement. In more temperate environments, although solar power arrays provide a critical source of renewable energy, they also reduce the availability of sunlight for plant growth. The diminished presence of local vegetation also means a decrease in plant-based carbon storage and the forage available for grazing animals. But during dry years in semi-arid Colorado, scientists found that grass growth on the east side of panels was in some cases considerably more productive than in adjacent open sites. In wet and normal years, the positive rate of production was reduced, but the east side of the panels still saw more grass growth than the neighboring control spots. The scientists suggested maximizing potential gains by adjusting panel arrays to changing environmental conditions — such as repositioning them to provide shade when air temperatures rise or configuring them to let in more light during growing seasons. 'With small changes in array design, configuration and management, we may even realize untapped benefits, particularly those related to water use,' Sturchio said. Going forward, Sturchio and senior author Alan Knapp, a biology professor at Colorado State University, said they are researching optimal ways to place solar power infrastructure in order to also support grazing livestock or habitat pollinators. 'PV solar arrays may provide a unique opportunity to harvest the sun for electrical energy, reduce greenhouse gas emissions and mitigate the climate change threat of increased water limitation to ecosystem functioning,' the authors concluded.
Hindustan Times
26-04-2025
- Science
- Hindustan Times
Spin cycle: Why Earth's rotational speed is changing
Talk about making the world go round. Earth's rotational speed is changing, and we're more than partly responsible. A gigantic dam, our extraction of groundwater, melting ice sheets and rising sea levels are among the human-linked factors altering Earth's spin. The thing all these factors have in common, is water. Where it stands, how it flows and where it settles has always shaped Earth's rotation. During the last Ice Age, which ended about 20,000 years ago, for instance, the weight of the ice was so great that it depressed the surface of the planet. As it melted, large parts of the planet returned to their original form, leading to shifts in the orbit then too. Giant earthquakes have also traditionally altered Earth's rotation, in tiny but still real ways. Anything that redistributes Earth's mass can cause such a change. One of the things now estimated to do this is the world's most powerful dam. China's Three Gorges Dam across the Yangtze River generates more hydroelectric power than certain small countries. Completed in 2006, it is over 7,500 ft long and 600 ft tall. At capacity, it holds back (and draws power from) 10 trillion gallons of water. Because this water has been moved from a lower elevation to a higher one, at a certain distance from the equator, it has likely caused a measurable shift in the Earth's spin. According to research by Benjamin Fong Chao, a geophysicist with the US National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), released in 2005, the dam has likely increased the length of a day by 0.06 microseconds (for context, there are a million microseconds in a second). Incidentally, other dams have been said to cause infinitesimal shifts in spin too; few have been studied as closely as the Three Gorges. Elsewhere, 'contemporary mass loss' and its impact on Earth's rotation are being studied on two primary fronts: the cracking and collapsing of ice sheets at the poles, and the extraction of massive volumes of groundwater over time. Through the 20th century, the Greenland ice sheet (the largest ice mass in the northern hemisphere) has had an estimated 7,500 billion tonnes of ice melt into the ocean. The rate of melting has since sped up. NASA estimates that about 270 billion tonnes are now being lost a year in Greenland, and another 135 billion tonnes are being lost in Antarctica. Meanwhile, humans pumped out more than 2,100 billion tonnes of groundwater between 1993 and 2010 alone, according to a study by Korean geophysicist Ki-Weon Seo, published in Geophysical Research Letters in 2023. Most of it eventually ended up in the sea. This shifting of mass directly affects Earth's rotation too. The direct implications of such shifts are felt in areas that rely on extreme precision, such as satellite orbits, GPS accuracy and the synchronisation of atomic clocks. The impacts of the factors causing the shifts, of course, are a matter of survival.
Yahoo
25-04-2025
- Science
- Yahoo
Study uncovers troubling fallout from harm caused by major companies: 'Every delay ... will burden future generations'
In 2024, the MIT Climate Portal estimated that "by the year 2300 … we could plausibly see a meter or more of sea level rise; in the worst case, the seas could rise a staggering 10 meters (33 feet) or more." According to a recent study from researchers with the Union of Concerned Scientists, nearly one to two of those feet could be attributed to past pollution — heat-trapping gases generated up through 2020 by major fossil fuel and cement producers. Scientists working in the United States, Austria, and Australia wanted to look at how pollution already generated by the Carbon Majors — the world's largest producers of fossil fuel and cement — has not only contributed to sea level rise so far but how it might continue to contribute to that rise in the long term. Their study, published in Environmental Research Letters, has projected that these past emissions will result in an additional one to two feet of sea level rise over the next 275 years. "We find that emissions traced to these industrial actors have contributed 37%-58% to present day surface air temperature rise and 24%-37% to the observed global mean sea level rise to date," the study's co-authors wrote. "Critically, these emissions through 2020 are expected to contribute an additional 0.26–0.55 m of global sea level rise through 2300." These increases are expected to come even if we can drastically reduce carbon pollution now. That's because, as lead author and former UCS fellow Shaina Sadai explained in a post for the nonprofit, even if emissions are cut to zero, "many complex systems on Earth will continue to respond to the heat already trapped. So, even in a future scenario where the world achieves the stabilization of air temperatures, the Earth's oceans and cryosphere (frozen regions like Antarctica) will continue to adjust." Sea level rise is expected to be a part of those ongoing changes. But that doesn't mean we should just give up. Island and coastal communities will continue to be disproportionately affected by global sea level rise as it persists over centuries. Delta Merner, associate director of the Science Hub for Climate Litigation at the UCS and a co-author of the paper, said in a statement that those impacts will include "infrastructure damage, habitat loss, saltwater intrusion, increased flooding, economic burdens and forced displacements." This new study has illustrated the significance of reducing carbon pollution with urgency, showing that every bit produced now will have lasting consequences. "Every delay in phasing out fossil fuels will burden future generations who need to adapt to rising seas and recover from loss and damage due to sea level impacts," Sadai warned in another UCS post. Do you think America has a plastic waste problem? Definitely Only in some areas Not really I'm not sure Click your choice to see results and speak your mind. This research hasn't projected the generational effects of past pollution in order to spur only individual action or even systemic change — although those are certainly important. By attempting to quantify the long-term impacts of the largest pollution producers, the co-authors also aim to hold the Carbon Majors accountable — perhaps so they can be expected to help address the problems their past emissions have already created as well as the damage they will continue to cause. "This study underscores that the past actions of fossil fuel and cement producers will have consequences long into the future," the co-authors wrote in their conclusion. "Future climate action should consider corporate accountability measures to prevent the continuation of practices that exacerbate climate change, and to mitigate the intergenerational harm associated with these impacts." We can use our voices to raise awareness about the consequences of our overheating planet. Learning about critical climate issues and then spreading the word by talking about them with friends and family is key. Now is also a vital time to support policymakers looking to hold major polluters meaningfully accountable for reducing emissions as well as funding solutions to the warming world's biggest challenges. Jennifer Jacquet, a professor of environmental science and policy who was not involved in the study, told The New Lede, "As our world changes significantly for the worse as a result of climate change, I expect we will try to hold accountable those most responsible for those changes — both in terms of the carbon pollution but also the information pollution — in the courts and in the global market, where this kind of study will be relied upon." Join our free newsletter for good news and useful tips, and don't miss this cool list of easy ways to help yourself while helping the planet.
