Archaeology: General Ecology: Trees Environmental: Ecosystems Geoscience: Environmental Issues Geoscience: Severe Weather
Published

New research suggests drought accelerated empire collapse      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

The collapse of the Hittite Empire in the Late Bronze Age has been blamed on various factors, from war with other territories to internal strife. Now, scientists have used tree ring and isotope records to pinpoint a more likely culprit: three straight years of severe drought.

Geoscience: Environmental Issues Geoscience: Oceanography Geoscience: Severe Weather
Published

Devastating cost of future coastal flooding for many developing nations predicted in new study      (via sciencedaily.com) 

New global modelling predicts the devastating socioeconomic impacts of future extreme coastal flooding for developing nations caused by climate change, with Asia, West Africa and Egypt facing severe costs in the coming decades.

Environmental: Ecosystems Geoscience: Environmental Issues Geoscience: Oceanography Geoscience: Severe Weather
Published

More frequent atmospheric rivers hinder seasonal recovery of Arctic sea ice      (via sciencedaily.com) 

The Arctic is rapidly losing sea ice, even during winter months when temperatures are below freezing and ice should be recovering from the summer melt. A new study found powerful storms called atmospheric rivers are increasingly reaching the Arctic in winter, slowing sea ice recovery and accounting for a third of all winter sea ice decline, according to a team led by Penn State scientists.

Biology: Botany Ecology: Trees Environmental: Biodiversity Environmental: Ecosystems Geoscience: Environmental Issues Geoscience: Severe Weather
Published

Pacific Northwest heat dome tree damage more about temperature than drought, scientists say      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Widespread tree scorch in the Pacific Northwest that became visible shortly after multiple days of record-setting, triple-digit temperatures in June 2021 was more attributable to heat than to drought conditions, researchers say.

Geoscience: Severe Weather
Published

Mapping Mexico's dengue fever hotspots      (via sciencedaily.com) 

Scientists have analyzed data from Mexico's Ministry of Health to identify dengue fever hotspots. Working with epidemiologists at the University of North Texas and Universidad Autónoma de Nuevo León, the team calculated environmental and socioeconomic risk factors and mapped areas where severe outbreaks occur.

Chemistry: Thermodynamics Energy: Technology
Published

A quasiparticle that can transfer heat under electrical control      (via sciencedaily.com) 

Scientists have found the secret behind a property of solid materials known as ferroelectrics, showing that quasiparticles moving in wave-like patterns among vibrating atoms carry enough heat to turn the material into a thermal switch when an electrical field is applied externally.

Chemistry: Thermodynamics Energy: Alternative Fuels Energy: Technology Engineering: Nanotechnology Geoscience: Environmental Issues Physics: Optics
Published

Passive radiative cooling can now be controlled electrically      (via sciencedaily.com) 

Energy-efficient ways of cooling buildings and vehicles will be required in a changing climate. Researchers have now shown that electrical tuning of passive radiative cooling can be used to control temperatures of a material at ambient temperatures and air pressure.

Geoscience: Severe Weather Offbeat: Earth and Climate
Published

Far-off storms fuel sneaker waves along Pacific Northwest coast, new research suggests      (via sciencedaily.com) 

Sneaker waves are likely fueled by a specific type of wave condition generated by far-off storms and paired with just the right conditions closer to shore, a new study has found.

Biology: Botany Ecology: Endangered Species Ecology: Invasive Species Environmental: Wildfires Geoscience: Environmental Issues Geoscience: Severe Weather
Published

Understanding plants can boost wildland-fire modeling in uncertain future      (via sciencedaily.com) 

A new conceptual framework for incorporating the way plants use carbon and water, or plant dynamics, into fine-scale computer models of wildland fire provides a critical first step toward improved global fire forecasting.

Geoscience: Environmental Issues Geoscience: Severe Weather Paleontology: Climate
Published

Monitoring an 'anti-greenhouse' gas: Dimethyl sulfide in Arctic air      (via sciencedaily.com) 

Data stored in ice cores dating back 55 years bring new insight into atmospheric levels of a molecule that can significantly affect weather and climate.

Chemistry: Thermodynamics Engineering: Graphene
Published

Researchers can 'see' crystals perform their dance moves      (via sciencedaily.com) 

Researchers already knew the atoms in perovskites react favorably to light. Now they've seen precisely how the atoms move when the 2D materials are excited with light. Their study details the first direct measurement of structural dynamics under light-induced excitation in 2D perovskites.

Geoscience: Severe Weather
Published

Honey bee colony loss in the U.S. linked to mites, extreme weather, pesticides      (via sciencedaily.com) 

Honey bee colony loss across the United States over the last five years is primarily related to the presence of parasitic mites, nearby pesticides, and extreme weather events as well as challenges with overwintering, according to a new study. The study took advantage of novel statistical methods and is among the first to concurrently consider a variety of potential honey bee stressors at a national scale.

Geoscience: Severe Weather Mathematics: Modeling
Published

Outlook for the blue economy      (via sciencedaily.com) 

A handful of hyper-productive fisheries provide sustenance to a billion people and employ tens of millions. These fisheries occur on the eastern edges of the world's oceans -- off the West Coast of the U.S., the Canary Islands, Peru, Chile, and Benguela. There, a process called upwelling brings cold water and nutrients to the surface, which in turn supports large numbers of larger sea creatures that humans depend on for sustenance. A new project is seeking to understand how changes to the climate and oceans will impact fisheries in the U.S. and around the world.

Chemistry: Thermodynamics Computer Science: Artificial Intelligence (AI) Engineering: Robotics Research Offbeat: Computers and Math
Published

Person-shaped robot can liquify and escape jail, all with the power of magnets      (via sciencedaily.com) 

Inspired by sea cucumbers, engineers have designed miniature robots that rapidly and reversibly shift between liquid and solid states. On top of being able to shape-shift, the robots are magnetic and can conduct electricity. The researchers put the robots through an obstacle course of mobility and shape-morphing tests.

Geoscience: Environmental Issues Geoscience: Geology Geoscience: Severe Weather
Published

Satellite data shows sustained severe drought in Europe      (via sciencedaily.com) 

Europe lacks groundwater -- a lot of groundwater. The continent has already been suffering from a severe drought since 2018. This is confirmed by satellite data.

Chemistry: Thermodynamics Computer Science: Quantum Computers Physics: Quantum Computing
Published

No 'second law of entanglement' after all      (via sciencedaily.com) 

When two microscopic systems are entangled, their properties are linked to each other irrespective of the physical distance between the two. Manipulating this uniquely quantum phenomenon is what allows for quantum cryptography, communication, and computation. While parallels have been drawn between quantum entanglement and the classical physics of heat, new research demonstrates the limits of this comparison. Entanglement is even richer than we have given it credit for.

Geoscience: Severe Weather
Published

The key to weathering rapid sea-level rise may lie in a Massachusetts salt marsh      (via sciencedaily.com) 

Researchers recently announced that salt marshes, critical habitats threatened by rapid sea-level rise, may in fact thrive despite higher water levels. The key factor that determines whether salt marshes collapse or flourish involves not water, but sediment.

Chemistry: Thermodynamics Energy: Technology
Published

Polysulfates could find wide use in high-performance electronics components      (via sciencedaily.com) 

Flexible compounds made with Nobel-winning click chemistry can be used in energy-storing capacitors at high temperatures and electric fields.

Environmental: Ecosystems Geoscience: Landslides Geoscience: Severe Weather
Published

A changing flood recipe for Las Vegas      (via sciencedaily.com) 

Las Vegas, with its rapid urbanization and desert landscape, is highly vulnerable to flooding. For this reason, flood managers have built an extensive system of drainage ditches and detention basins to protect the public. Now, a new study shows how intentional engineering and urban development are interacting with climate change to alter the timing and intensity of flood risk.