Phys.org: Earth science

UK winters are becoming significantly wetter mainly due to warming driven by human burning of fossil fuels releasing greenhouse gases into the atmosphere, a Newcastle University study reveals. The research shows that for every degree of global or regional warming, winter rainfall increases by a compounding 7%, increasing the risk of flooding. And the scientists warn it is happening much faster than most global climate models predict.

Geologic reservoirs that trapped petroleum for millions of years are now being repurposed to store the greenhouse gas carbon dioxide. New research is improving how we monitor this storage and verify how much CO2 these reservoirs have stored.

Scientists have long known that Earth's core is mostly made of iron, but the density is not high enough for it to be pure iron, meaning lighter elements exist in the core, as well. In particular, it's suspected to be a major reservoir of hydrogen. A new study, published in Nature Communications, supports this idea with results suggesting the core contains up to 45 oceans' worth of hydrogen. These results also challenge the idea that most of Earth's water was delivered by comets early on.

Scientists say that multiple Earth system components appear closer to destabilization than previously believed, putting the planet in increased danger of following a "hothouse" path driven by feedback loops that can amplify the consequences of global warming.

The Murray-Darling Basin Authority (MDBA)—the statutory agency responsible for planning the Basin's water resources—has just shared the starkest news yet about the Basin's future: the Basin is almost certainly going to get hotter, drier, and more volatile in the future, with reduced river flows.

Water is made of hydrogen and oxygen, and sometimes these atoms are slightly heavier than usual. These heavier forms are called isotopes. As water evaporates or moves through the atmosphere, the amount of these isotopes changes in predictable ways. This can act as a fingerprint, allowing researchers to trace the movement of water at global scales.

Commercial shipping not only affects the Baltic Sea on the surface, but also has a significant impact on the water column and the seabed. A study by the Leibniz Institute for Baltic Sea Research Warnemünde (IOW) and Kiel University (CAU) now shows for the first time that wake turbulence from large ships in heavily trafficked areas of the western Baltic Sea significantly alters water stratification and leads to marked sea floor erosion. The research team has therefore documented a previously underestimated human impact on shallow marine areas. The results are published in the journal Nature Communications.