Remote Community in Ireland Survived a Millennium of Environmental Change
Study finds social conditions key to long-term resilience during times of dramatic change. A remote community in Ireland was adaptable enough to persevere through a…
Environment
Plastic-Eating Enzyme Could Supercharge Recycling and Eliminate Billions of Tons of Landfill Waste
A new enzyme variant can break down environment-throttling plastics that typically take centuries to degrade in just a matter of hours to days. It was …
Many “Eco-Friendly” Children’s Products Actually Contain Toxic PFAS Chemicals
Clothing, bedding, and furniture labeled as water- or stain-resistant are most likely to contain PFAS. With more consumers demanding products free of toxic ingredients, determining…
Microplastics Can Carry Parasites to Ocean, Affecting Wildlife and Human Health
Pathogens Can Hitch a Ride on Plastic To Reach the Sea According to a new study by the University of California, Davis, microplastics are a…
Exploring Earth From Space: Earth Day [Video]
Every year on April 22, people all over the world come together to raise awareness about the decreasing quality of the environment, the unmistakable effects…
Humans Disrupting 66 Million-Year-Old Fundamental Feature of Ecosystems – “This Hasn’t Happened Before”
Diet-size relationship found across deep time, multiple vertebrate groups. According to a new study, the U-shaped association between diet and size in modern land mammals…
Earth Has Too Much Nitrogen – and Too Little Nitrogen – at the Same Time
Multi-institutional research team finds declining nitrogen availability in a nitrogen-rich world. Since the mid-20th century, research and discussion have focused on the negative effects of…
New Research Shows Estimates of the Carbon Cycle – Vital to Predicting Climate Change – Are Incorrect
The findings do not counter the established science of climate change but highlight how the accounting of the amount of carbon withdrawn by plants and…
Methane Plumes Detected Over Poland’s Coal Mines
Data from the Tropomi instrument onboard the Copernicus Sentinel-5P satellite has been used to detect methane plumes over some of Europe’s largest methane-emitting coal mines….
NASA Makes First-of-Its-Kind Detection of Reduced Human CO2 Emissions
For the first time, researchers have spotted short-term, regional fluctuations in atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO2) across the globe due to emissions from human activities. Using…
Wildfire Smoke Exposure in Early Pregnancy Adversely Affects Infant Monkey Behavior
Infant monkeys conceived while their mothers were naturally exposed to wildfire smoke show behavioral changes compared to animals conceived days later, according to a new…
Methane-Eating Bacteria Convert Potent Greenhouse Gas Into Usable Fuel
State-of-the-art method reveals never-before-seen atomic structures controlling the process. Methanotrophic bacteria consume 30 million metric tons of methane per year and have captivated researchers for…
Relocating Farmland Could Increase Biodiversity and Turn Back Clock 20 Years on Carbon Emissions
Scientists have produced a map showing where the world’s major food crops should be grown to maximize yield and minimize environmental impact. This would capture…
Scientists Warn of Imminent “Anthropulse” As COVID-19 Travel Restrictions Ease
A leading ecologist from the University of St Andrews calls for coordinated action to investigate the environmental impacts of humanity’s emergence from the Covid-19 pandemic….
Thawing Permafrost Could Leach Microbes, Greenhouse Gases, and Chemicals Into Environment
Scientists are turning to a combination of data collected from the air, land, and space to get a more complete picture of how climate change…
Record Number of Grounded Flights: New Maps Show Airplane Contrails Over the U.S. Dropped Steeply in 2020
The computer-vision technique behind these maps could help avoid contrail production, reducing aviation’s climate impact. As Covid-19’s initial wave crested around the world, travel restrictions…
California Fire Led To Spike in Fecal Bacteria in Coastal Waters
Scientists analyzed coastal water quality in the months following a major Southern California wildfire. Their results were eye-opening. The November 2018 Woolsey Fire in Southern…
New Global Atlas: Bathed in a Sea of Artificial Light
A new global atlas extends measurements of nighttime lights to the sea, revealing marine ecosystems affected by light pollution. Ecologists and biologists have long recognized…
