About 18 months ago, climate scientists began to notice something strange.
Climate Change can Alter Methane Emission and Uptake in the Amazon
Extreme temperatures and humidity levels (excessive rain or drought) projected for the Amazon in the context of climate change may increase the volume of methane-producing microorganisms in flooded areas and reduce potential uptake of this greenhouse gas in upland forests by 70%, with global impacts, according to a study conducted...
Increasing Plant Diversity in Agriculture can Promote Soil Carbon Sequestration
The study investigated whether increasing plant diversity through use of undersown species in field ecosystems can affect the structure and functioning of microbial communities to promote soil health and carbon sequestration.
Study Finds Mercury Pollution From Human Activities Is Declining
MIT researchers have some good environmental news: Mercury emissions from human activity have been declining over the past two decades, despite global emissions inventories that indicate otherwise.
Arctic Sea Ice Near Historic Low; Antarctic Ice Continues Decline
Arctic sea ice retreated to near-historic lows in the Northern Hemisphere this summer, likely melting to its minimum extent for the year on Sept.11, 2024, according to researchers at NASA and the National Snow and Ice Data Center (NSIDC).
Via NASA Plane, Scientists Find New Gamma-ray Emission in Storm Clouds
There’s more to thunderclouds than rain and lightning. Along with visible light emissions, thunderclouds can produce intense bursts of gamma rays, the most energetic form of light, that last for millionths of a second.
Researchers Examine the Persistence of Invisible Plastic Pollution
Plastic pollution – tiny bits of plastic, smaller than a grain of sand – is everywhere, a fact of life that applies even to newborn rodents, according to a Rutgers Health study published in the journal Science of the Total Environment.
Fuel for Hurricane Milton
As Florida and other southeastern states were reeling from Hurricane Helene’s effects in early October 2024, another tropical threat brewed over the Gulf of Mexico.
Wastewater Bacteria can Break Down Plastic for Food
Researchers have long observed that a common family of environmental bacteria, Comamonadacae, grow on plastics littered throughout urban rivers and wastewater systems.
Hurricane Milton Rapidly Intensifies into Category 5 Hurricane, Becoming the Gulf’s Strongest Late-Season Storm on Record
Hurricane Milton, the ninth hurricane of the 2024 Atlantic hurricane season, rapidly intensified into a Category 5 storm in the Gulf of Mexico on Monday, October 7, 2024. The storm exploded in strength and intensity at near record pace becoming one of the most intense hurricanes on record in the...