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Industrial Revolution, Global Warming Impact Centuries of Ocean Cooling

The high frequency and magnitude of volcanic eruptions could have been the cause of the progressive cooling of ocean surfaces over a period of 1,800 years. This is made apparent in an international study published recently in the journal Nature Geoscience, involving researcher P. Graham Mortyn of the Institute for Environmental Science and Technology (ICTA-UAB) and the UAB Department of Geography.

10 Sep 2015

Climate Change Predicted to Have Major Impact on Southern California Wildfires

Wildfires have ravaged both populated and unpopulated regions of Southern California at an increasing rate over the past few decades, and scientists from three University of California campuses and partner institutions are predicting that by midcentury, as a consequence of climate change causing hotter and drier summers, a lot more will go up in flames.

9 Sep 2015

Study Shows Which Countries are Responsible for Cost of Environmental Damages from Global Warming

Tropical forests are home to more of the world's terrestrial biodiversity than any other habitat, but are increasingly threatened by the impact of human activities. Illegal logging, in particular, poses a severe and increasing threat to tropical forests worldwide. But, until now, its impact on tropical wildlife has not been quantified.

9 Sep 2015

Study Shows Which Countries are Responsible for Cost of Environmental Damages from Global Warming

All countries have contributed to recent climate change, but some much more so than others. Those that have contributed more than their fair share have accumulated a climate debt, owed to countries that have contributed less to historical warming.

9 Sep 2015

Hydroelectric Energy May Put More Methylmercury into Ecosystems than Climate Change, Finds Harvard Research

Methylmercury, a potent neurotoxin, is especially high in Arctic marine life but until recently, scientists haven't been able to explain why. Now, research from the Harvard John A. Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Science (SEAS) and Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health suggests that high levels of methylmercury in Arctic life are a byproduct of global warming and the melting of sea-ice in Arctic and sub-Arctic regions.

8 Sep 2015

Study Shows Molting Elephant Seals Shed Large Amounts of Mercury in Coastal Seawater

As fish-eating predators at the top of the marine food chain, elephant seals accumulate high concentrations of mercury in their bodies. A new study by scientists at UC Santa Cruz shows that elephant seals shed significant amounts of mercury during molting, resulting in elevated concentrations of the toxic metal in coastal waters near the elephant seal rookery at Año Nuevo State Reserve.

8 Sep 2015

New Survey Suggests 50% Bird Species to Lose Geographic Range Across Three Climate Change Scenarios

Over 50% of nearly 600 surveyed bird species may lose more than half of their current geographic range across three climate change scenarios through the end of the century in North America, according to a study published September 2, 2015 in the open-access journal PLOS ONE by Gary Langham and colleagues from the National Audubon Society.

4 Sep 2015

Study Suggests Solid Bacteria and Animal Species Below Ground Play Key Role in Regulating Ecosystem Functions

Although most of the world's biodiversity is below ground, surprisingly little is known about how it affects ecosystems or how it will be affected by climate change. A new study demonstrates that soil bacteria and the richness of animal species belowground play a key role in regulating a whole suite of ecosystem functions on Earth. The authors call for far more attention to this overlooked world of worms, bugs and bacteria in the soil.

4 Sep 2015

Study on Ancient Cooling Period, Younger Dyras Could Throw Light on Future Climate Change

Researchers at The University of Texas at Austin have found that a well-known period of abrupt climate change 12,000 years ago occurred rapidly in northern latitudes but much more gradually in equatorial regions, a discovery that could prove important for understanding and responding to future climate change.

4 Sep 2015

Land-Use Needs Must Be Considered When Formulating Climate Policies

A new study by the University of Maryland’s Department of Geographical Sciences assessed the potential impact of future land-use scenarios, including climate change mitigation, on the loss of habitable areas in “biodiversity hotspots”—distinct biogeographic regions with extremely high numbers of endemic species.

3 Sep 2015