The catastrophic 2017 hurricane season – which included such monsters as Harvey, Irma and Maria – was fueled in part by unusually warm ocean water, a new study suggests. And because of human-caused global warming, the study said similar favorable conditions for fierce hurricanes will be present in the years and decades to come. “We…

Some groups have taken a stab at calculating what climate change will cost the world, or conversely, how much humanity would save by becoming more sustainable. Earlier this month, the Global Commission on the Economy and Climate tallied the number at a truly massive $26 trillion in savings by 2030. Getting a slice of those…

“Visiting Antarctica, you expect to see icy, white landscapes,” said lead scientist Prof Sharon Robinson from the University of Wollongong, in Australia. “But in some areas there are lush, green moss beds that emerge from under the snow for a growing period of maybe six weeks.” While West Antarctica and the Antarctic Peninsula are some…

For centuries human societies have viewed wetlands as wastelands to be “reclaimed” for higher uses. China began large-scale alteration of rivers and wetlands in 486 B.C. when it started constructing the Grand Canal, still the longest canal in the world. The Dutch drained wetlands on a large scale beginning about 1,000 years ago, but more…

In 1979, top climate scientists led by Jule Charney published a report estimating that if we double the amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere from pre-industrial levels of 280 ppm to 560 ppm, temperatures will warm by 3 ± 1.5°C. Four decades later, ‘climate sensitivity’ estimates remain virtually unchanged, but some climate contrarians have…

According to the new report, titled New Strategies For Smart Integrated Decentralised Energy Systems, by 2050 almost half of all EU households will produce renewable energy. Of these, more than a third will participate in a local energy community. In this context, the microgrid opportunity could be a game changer. The report describes microgrids as…

Over long, geologic time scales, carbonic acid weathering is an important control on atmospheric CO2 levels and climate, but under the right conditions, weathering by sulfuric acid can release substantial CO2. Ph.D. candidate Scott Zolkos and his supervisor, U of A biologist Suzanne Tank, found that these conditions are prevalent in the western Canadian Arctic….

Contrary to stereotypes of young generations of Australians being narcissistic or complacent, researchers say both cohorts are united in concerns about the future of our environment. Generation X worries what climate change will mean for their own children, while Generation Y is concerned about the impact on future generations, the study by Dr. Jenny Chesters,…

The sudden cold snap in the northern hemisphere between 12,700 and 11,600 years ago has been found in climate records from Greenland ice cores and Central European lake sediments. It was named after the mountain avens (Latin: Dryas octopetala) – an Arctic plant species that predominantly spreads during cold conditions. The discovery of fossil pines…

The L.A. Times reports that the state will be developing the satellite alongside Planet Labs based out of San Francisco. The Earth-imaging company was founded in 2010 by a team of former NASA employees. The objective of the satellite is to monitor the buildup of pollutants. Robbie Schingler, one of the company’s founders, says that…