Environment news

• Technique spots warning signs of extreme events

  22-09-2017 23:59 via feedproxy.google.com
  Many extreme events — from a rogue wave that rises up from calm waters, to an  instability inside a gas turbine, to the sudden extinction of a previously hardy wildlife species — seem to occur without warning. It’s often impossible to predict when such bursts of instability will strike, particularly in systems with a complex and ever-changing mix of players and pieces.
  
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• USDA-funded study finds no-tillage alone not sufficient to prevent water pollution from nitrate

  22-09-2017 23:50 via feedproxy.google.com
  A new IUPUI study funded by the U.S. Department of Agriculture answers a long-debated agricultural question: whether no-tillage alone is sufficient to prevent water pollution from nitrate. The answer is no.
  
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• The country is paying for the Coalition's 'adhockery' on energy policy | Chris Bowen

  22-09-2017 23:00 via theguardian.com
  Political systems decide what and what not to contest on a partisan basis. Surely Australia can be mature enough to agree on climate change The word “adhockery”, I am told, was first used around 1890. But this term, which denotes an over-reliance on temporary solutions rather than on consistent, long-term plans deserves a renaissance when it comes to energy policies of the Turnbull government. Has it really come to this? We are seriously being told that what we need to do is keep ope
  
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• Great Barrier Reef: Queensland Labor may break election vow and allow ​coal ship loading

  22-09-2017 22:00 via theguardian.com
  Labor vowed to ban ‘trans-shipping’ in reef waters after UN’s scientific body raised concerns about proposal in 2014The Queensland Labor government has flagged breaking a 2015 election promise by allowing the loading of coal ships at sea in the Great Barrier Reef marine park.Labor vowed to ban so-called “trans-shipping” in reef waters after the United Nations’ peak scientific body raised concerns about a proposal off Hay Point near Mackay in 2014. Continue rea
  
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• NASA's Terra Satellite Sees a Very Stubborn Post-Tropical Cyclone Jose

  22-09-2017 21:32 via feedproxy.google.com
  Jose continues to bring tropical storm conditions to southern New England although the storm has become post-tropical. NASA's Terra satellite caught a view of the storm sitting almost stationary about 100 miles from Nantucket Island, Massachusetts.
  
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• New study: Corn's environmental impact varies greatly across the U.S.

  22-09-2017 20:54 via feedproxy.google.com
  New research from the University of Minnesota drills down to the county-level impact of corn production.
  
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• Winter cold extremes linked to high-altitude polar vortex weakening

  22-09-2017 20:50 via feedproxy.google.com
  When the strong winds that circle the Arctic slacken, cold polar air can escape and cause extreme winter chills in parts of the Northern hemisphere.
  
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• UMN researchers find recipe for forest restoration

  22-09-2017 20:47 via feedproxy.google.com
  To find out what works best for reestablishing tropical dry forests, the researchers planted seedlings of 32 native tree species in degraded soil or degraded soil amended with sand, rice hulls, rice hull ash or hydrogel.
  
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• We must accelerate transitions for sustainability and climate change, experts say

  22-09-2017 20:39 via feedproxy.google.com
  We must move faster towards a low-carbon world if we are to limit global warming to 2 degrees C this century, experts have warned.
  
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• NASA Tracking Hurricane Maria on Bahamas Approach

  22-09-2017 20:39 via feedproxy.google.com
  NASA-NOAA's Suomi NPP satellite provided a look at Maria's temperatures to find the strongest sides of the storm, while NOAA's GOES satellite revealed the extent of the storm in a visible image as it moved toward the Bahamas.
  
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• Fires in Australia Pop Up in Places Already Burned

  22-09-2017 20:36 via feedproxy.google.com
  Fires that span across the Northern Territory and Western Australia appear to have broken out in areas that have already been burned in previous fires.  Areas that sport "burn scars", those areas that are a darker, almost red-brown color, are surrounded by fires that are anywhere from a few hours old to 7 days old.  The areas that are seven days old can be attributed to fires that spread but areas that are just a few hours old may be fires that have presumably been put out only to have
  
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• Big Antarctic iceberg edges out to sea

  22-09-2017 18:04 via bbc.co.uk
  The near-6,000 sq km block of ice known as A-68 looks finally to be on the move.
  
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• NASA Measures Hurricane Maria's Torrential Rainfall, Sees Eye Re-open

  22-09-2017 16:30 via feedproxy.google.com
  Hurricane Maria has caused catastrophic flooding in Puerto Rico and left a wake of heavy rainfall that NASA measured using a fleet of satellites in space. NASA satellite imagery also saw Maria's eye close up as it tracked across Puerto Rico and re-open after its exit.
  
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• A Sustainable Future Powered by Sea

  22-09-2017 16:30 via feedproxy.google.com
  Professor Tsumoru Shintake at the Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology Graduate University (OIST) yearns for a clean future, one that is affordable and powered by sustainable energy. Originally from the high-energy accelerator field, in 2012 he decided to seek new energy resources—wind and solar were being explored in depth, but he moved toward the sea instead.
  
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• Breathing dirty air may harm kidneys

  22-09-2017 16:12 via feedproxy.google.com
  Outdoor air pollution has long been linked to major health conditions such as heart disease, stroke, cancer, asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. A new study now adds kidney disease to the list, according to researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis and the Veterans Affairs (VA) St. Louis Health Care System.
  
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• Arctic ice cap, pollution and poverty, and deafness in frogs – green news roundup

  22-09-2017 15:00 via theguardian.com
  The week’s top environment news stories and green events. If you are not already receiving this roundup, sign up here to get the briefing delivered to your inbox Continue reading...
  
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• Milan fashion and the autumn equinox – Friday's fantastic photographs

  22-09-2017 14:09 via theguardian.com
  A selection of the best photographs from around the word including Milan fashion week, the autumn equinox and herdsmen in lederhosenContinue reading...
  
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• Milan fashion and the autumn equinox - Friday's fantastic photographs

  22-09-2017 13:36 via theguardian.com
  A selection of the best photographs from around the word including Milan fashion, the autumn equinox and some herdsmen in lederhosenContinue reading...
  
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• Assumed safety of pesticide use is false, says top government scientist

  22-09-2017 13:23 via theguardian.com
  Damning assessment by one of the UK’s chief scientific advisers says global regulations have ignored the impacts of ‘dosing whole landscapes’ and must changeThe assumption by regulators around the world that it is safe to use pesticides at industrial scales across landscapes is false, according to a chief scientific adviser to the UK government.
  The lack of any limit on the total amount of pesticides used and the virtual absence of monitoring of their effects in the environment
  
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• Scientists discover unique Brazilian frogs deaf to their own mating calls

  22-09-2017 13:15 via theguardian.com
  Pumpkin toadlet frogs are only known case of an animal that continues to make a communication signal even after the target audience has lost the ability to hear itHumans trying to chat each other up in a noisy nightclub may find verbal communication futile. But it appears even more pointless for pumpkin toadlets after scientists discovered that females have lost the ability to hear the sound of male mating calls.Continue reading...
  
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• Long-lost Congo notebooks may shed light on how trees react to climate change

  22-09-2017 13:05 via theguardian.com
  Decaying notebooks discovered in an abandoned research station contain a treasure trove of tree growth data dating from 1930sA cache of decaying notebooks found in a crumbling Congo research station has provided unexpected evidence with which to help solve a crucial puzzle – predicting how vegetation will respond to climate change. Continue reading...
  
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• Carcass of 12-metre whale to be dug up from beach after outcry

  22-09-2017 08:41 via theguardian.com
  Authorities in Australian coastal town will exhume the body of the 20-tonne humpback over fears it is attracting sharksAuthorities in the Australian coastal town of Port Macquarie will dig up the carcass of a 12-metre, 20-tonne humpback whale from a local beach and dump it in landfill because of fears the animal is attracting sharks.On Friday, officials at the Port Macquarie Hastings Council announced that the body of the whale, which was buried as an “option of last resort” after it
  
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• Climate deniers want to protect the status quo that made them rich

  22-09-2017 07:30 via theguardian.com
  Sceptics prefer to reject regulations to combat global warming and remain indifferent to the havoc it will wreak on future generationsFrom my vantage point outside the glass doors, the sea of grey hair and balding pates had the appearance of a golf society event or an active retirement group. Instead, it was the inaugural meeting of Ireland’s first climate denial group, the self-styled Irish Climate Science Forum (ICSF) in Dublin in May. All media were barred from attending.Its guest speak
  
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• We all need to think more like cassowaries. Here are some rules to live by | First Dog on the Moon

  22-09-2017 07:26 via theguardian.com
  The world faces so many terrible problems, so much avoidable cruelty. Perhaps we could take the balanced approach of the humble cassowarySign up here to get an email whenever First Dog cartoons are publishedGet all your needs met at the First Dog shop if what you need is First Dog merchandise and printsContinue reading...
  
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• What happens if you turn off the traffic lights?

  22-09-2017 07:00 via theguardian.com
  When Amsterdam removed signals from a busy junction, it made journeys faster and interactions more pleasant. Now the approach is being copied across the cityOn a foggy Monday morning in May 2016, 14 Amsterdam officials, engineers and civil servants gathered nervously at Alexanderplein – a busy intersection near the city centre with three tramlines – where many people were walking, driving, and, as in any Dutch city, riding bicycles. With a flip of a switch, the traffic controls were
  
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• Death of Queensland's largest crocodile in 30 years could spark violent power grab

  22-09-2017 06:38 via theguardian.com
  Killing of the 5.2-metre male reptile, one of the biggest ever seen in the state, could spark a dangerous battle for dominance between remaining crocodilesA massive saltwater crocodile – said to be one of the biggest ever seen in Queensland – has been found shot dead and experts fear its demise could lead to other crocodiles becoming more aggressive as young males fight for supremacy.Police and state environmental officers are investigating after the 5.2-metre male reptile was found
  
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• Country diary: ancient survivors and wild dune edges

  22-09-2017 06:30 via theguardian.com
  Magilligan Point, County Derry The botany of the spit was once so rich that it was known as the ‘medicine garden of Europe’The view from the top of the basalt outcrop of Windy Hill is sublime. Below, the flat expanse of Magilligan Point, County Derry, narrows into the distance as it almost reaches across the mouth of Lough Foyle to the heather-topped green hills and little white cottages of Donegal, six miles away. Most of the sandy spit has been converted into grazed farmland, the f
  
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• Burn horns, save rhinos

  22-09-2017 05:00 via theguardian.com
  Paula Kahumbu: Enlightened conservation efforts are needed to save the world’s rhinos, combined with a total ban on trade in rhino hornToday, September 22, is World Rhino Day. Rhinos were once widespread across Asia and Africa and even in Europe, where they are depicted on cave paintings. Today their situation is precarious. The world population of the northern white rhino now consists of 5 individuals. Sudan, the last surviving male, is now beyond breeding age. He and two female companion
  
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• Crocodile over five metres long found shot dead in Queensland

  22-09-2017 03:57 via theguardian.com
  The death of the 5.2m male reptile, one of the biggest ever seen in the state, could spark a dangerous battle for dominance between remaining crocodilesA massive saltwater crocodile – said to be one of the biggest ever seen in Queensland – has been shot dead in Rockhampton.Police and state environmental officers were investigating after the 5.2m male reptile was found with a bullet in its head in the Fitzroy river on Thursday. Continue reading...
  
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• New antibody attacks 99% of HIV strains

  22-09-2017 01:45 via bbc.co.uk
  It will enter clinical trials to prevent and treat the infection next year.
  
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• Neanderthal brains 'grew more slowly'

  22-09-2017 01:44 via bbc.co.uk
  A new study shows that Neanderthal brains developed more slowly than ours.
  
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• Birds 'churring' is a sign isles' shipwreck rats dying out

  22-09-2017 01:17 via bbc.co.uk
  The call of storm petrels are recorded for the first time on islands where rats came ashore from shipwrecks.
  
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• How business is driving the new space race

  22-09-2017 01:04 via bbc.co.uk
  Why firms are spending millions to beat each other into orbit
  
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