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Categories: Geoscience: Severe Weather, Offbeat: Earth and Climate
Published Death tolls from climate disasters will 'balloon' without investment in Africa's weather stations



Investment in 'hydromet systems' using technologies from AI to SMS would provide a nine-to-one ROI in saved lives and assets across African nations.
Published Dry lightning can spark wildfires even under wetter conditions



Dry lightning can still be disastrous even when conditions aren't so dry, a study has found. These cloud-to-ground strikes during little to no rainfall were previously thought to pose wildfire danger only if occurring with less than 2.5 mm of rain in a day (about 0.10 inches). A new study of lightning-ignited wildfires in the U.S. West found the strikes caused wildfires despite up to 7.7 mm (about 0.3 inches) of precipitation. While still a low amount of rain, the more accurate estimation could help responders detect fires earlier, especially those known as 'holdovers,' which can smolder for many days before exploding into full-blown wildfires.
Published Tattoo technique transfers gold nanopatterns onto live cells


For now, cyborgs exist only in fiction, but the concept is becoming more plausible as science progresses. And now, researchers are reporting that they have developed a proof-of-concept technique to 'tattoo' living cells and tissues with flexible arrays of gold nanodots and nanowires. With further refinement, this method could eventually be used to integrate smart devices with living tissue for biomedical applications, such as bionics and biosensing.
Published Drops of seawater contain traces of an ancient world



New research links chemical changes in seawater to volcanic activity and changes.
Published Measuring the extent of global droughts in unprecedented detail



While some parts of the world suffer extreme heat and persistent drought, others are being flooded. Overall, continental water volumes vary so much over time that global sea levels fluctuate significantly too. By combining the hydrological model WaterGAP with GRACE satellite data, a team of geodesists have come up with a new set of data that shows how the total distribution of water over the Earth's land surfaces has changed over the past 20 years more accurately than ever before.
Published Then vs. now: Did the Horn of Africa reach a drought tipping point 11,700 years ago?



If climate models predict that much of tropical Africa will become wetter with a warming climate, then why does it keep getting drier in the Horn of Africa?
Published Telecommunications cable used to track sea ice extent in the Arctic



A telecommunications fiber optic cable deployed offshore of Oliktok Point, Alaska recorded ambient seismic noise that can be used to finely track the formation and retreat of sea ice in the area, researchers report.
Published An early warning system for joint heat and ozone extremes in China



Scientists have identified large-scale climate patterns that could be used to predict the co-occurrence of extreme heat and ozone days in China months before they occur. Like predictions for hurricane and wildfire seasons, the forecasts could help the government prepare resources and implement policies to mitigate the severity of the season.
Published New Antarctic extremes 'virtually certain' as world warms



Extreme events in Antarctica such as ocean heatwaves and ice loss will almost certainly become more common and more severe, researchers say.
Published Current estimates of Lake Erie algae toxicity may miss the mark



A new study analyzing toxins produced by Microcystis, the main type of cyanobacteria that compose the annual harmful algal bloom (HAB) in Lake Erie, suggests that the toxicity of the bloom may be overestimated in earlier warm months and underestimated later in the summer.
Published Butterflies can remember where things are over sizeable spaces



Heliconius butterflies are capable of spatial learning, scientists have discovered. The results provide the first experimental evidence of spatial learning in any butterfly or moth species.
Published Study examines Earth and Mars to determine how climate change affects the paths of rivers



The study investigated why the paths of meandering rivers change over time and is a step toward understanding what the hydroclimate on Mars was like when there was still surface water.
Published The history and future of ancient einkorn wheat Is written in its genes



Researchers have sequenced the complete genome for einkorn wheat, the world's first domesticated crop and traced its evolutionary history. The information will help researchers identify genetic traits like tolerance to diseases, drought and heat, and re-introduce those traits to modern bread wheat.
Published Sea level rise shifts habitat for endangered Florida Keys species



A newly published study describes the response to sea level rise by the silver rice rat, an endangered species only found in the Florida Keys.
Published North Atlantic Oscillation contributes to 'cold blob' in Atlantic Ocean



A patch of ocean in the North Atlantic is stubbornly cooling while much of the planet warms. This anomaly -- dubbed the 'cold blob' -- has been linked to changes in ocean circulation, but a new study found changes in large-scale atmospheric patterns may play an equally important role, according to an international research team.
Published California's winter waves may be increasing under climate change



A new study uses nearly a century of data to show that the average heights of winter waves along the California coast have increased as climate change has heated up the planet.
Published Energy-storing supercapacitor from cement, water, black carbon


Engineers have created a 'supercapacitor' made of ancient, abundant materials, that can store large amounts of energy. Made of just cement, water, and carbon black (which resembles powdered charcoal), the device could form the basis for inexpensive systems that store intermittently renewable energy, such as solar or wind energy.
Published Sun 'umbrella' tethered to asteroid might help mitigate climate change



Earth is rapidly warming and scientists are developing a variety of approaches to reduce the effects of climate change. An astronomer has proposed a novel approach -- a solar shield to reduce the amount of sunlight hitting Earth, combined with a tethered, captured asteroid as a counterweight. Engineering studies using this approach could start now to create a workable design that could mitigate climate change within decades.
Published Secondary forests more sensitive to drought than primary forests



The dry summer of 2018 hit Swedish forests hard -- and hardest affected were the managed secondary forests.
Published 'Time-traveling' pathogens in melting permafrost pose likely risk to environment



Ancient pathogens that escape from melting permafrost have real potential to damage microbial communities and might potentially threaten human health, according to a new study.