Phys.org: Earth science

When a marine heat wave strikes, scientists often turn to satellites to see how the ocean is responding. From space, changes in ocean color can reveal shifts in phytoplankton, microscopic organisms that form the foundation of marine food webs and play a crucial role in the global carbon cycle. But satellites have a fundamental limitation: they can only see the ocean's surface.

The University of Bristol–led study, published in Nature Communications, could help millions of people living in earthquake-prone countries make better-informed decisions about seismic risk, particularly during ongoing periods of increased earthquake activity.

A new study led by the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI) provides the most comprehensive observational analysis yet of the towering ice cliffs that fringe Earth's ice sheets, giving scientists new evidence to evaluate a long-debated process that could influence future sea level rise. Improving these projections is increasingly important as rising seas threaten coastal communities and infrastructure worldwide.

By 2025, 143 of 154 developing countries had a National Adaptation Plan process in place, yet implementation has not kept pace. Many countries still lack the institutional capacity, project preparation and finance needed to turn their priorities into strategies, bankable projects and results on the ground.

A new study examining how tropical cyclone activity near Hawai'i could change in a warmer future finds a shift toward stronger storms, even though substantial uncertainty remains about whether the total number of storms near the islands will increase.

The western U.S. is facing parallel and escalating hazards in the form of ongoing drought and increasingly frequent wildfires. Although the region's ecosystems have evolved with wildfires, the intensity and frequency of blazes where people live and recreate remain a persistent challenge for communities.

The Arctic is warming four times faster than the rest of the globe, and scientists are racing to understand how that fact affects the region's landscapes and ecosystems. Permafrost thaw is one of the most visible signs of climate change, with whole hillslopes of previously frozen ground slumping off and coastlines falling into the ocean. It's disrupting ecosystems, releasing carbon, and threatening Indigenous communities in the far north.

Why is there life on Earth? It's one of the oldest questions humans have asked, and as far as we know, our planet is the only one that holds the answer.

A research team at The Hong Kong Polytechnic University (PolyU) has found that the area affected by tropical cyclone (TC) rainfall is extending inland along Northern Hemisphere coasts at an average rate of approximately 3.8 kilometers (2.4 miles) per decade. Driven by rising nearshore sea surface temperature (SST), this shift is increasing disaster risks for inland regions. The work is published in the journal Nature Communications.

Just minutes into a planned research flight from Colorado to Oregon in August to study massive storm clouds fueled by intense wildfires, scientists discovered that a fire in Utah offered a more promising target. The mission support staff on the ground scrambled to draw up a new flight plan, and the pilots of the U.S. National Science Foundation National Center for Atmospheric Research (NSF NCAR) Gulfstream V worked to get the green light from air traffic controllers to fly toward the wildfire-generated thunderstorm.

Mont Blanc's snowy crown has been measured at nearly 2 meters (6 feet) higher than in 2023, French surveyors announced Wednesday after an expedition that involved hauling instruments up Western Europe's highest mountain for an appointment at dawn.

A hurricane does not have to make a direct hit to affect the Chesapeake Bay. Even from out at sea, a hurricane's winds, waves and rising tides can cause major flooding.

Projects involving the mining of seafloor massive sulfide (SMS) deposits around hydrothermal vents already face criticism over their destructive nature, and now these projects may face a new concern: spontaneous combustion. A new study, published in Scientific Reports, describes how certain samples of rock brought up from SMS deposits have unexpectedly caught fire. The study indicates that conditions at the surface, combined with processing activities, may turn some of these rocks into a hazard.

Researchers have conducted the largest-ever controlled test of space-based methane monitoring, finding that dedicated methane sensors correctly detected nearly all methane plumes released on clear days.

The seventh annual report by an international coalition led by Oregon State University scientists says the Earth's climate system is quickly becoming unstable and that while signs of important societal changes are emerging, greater and faster action is necessary.

A new ice sheet model developed by glaciologists at the University of California, Irvine and NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory projects that the melting of Thwaites Glacier in West Antarctica will contribute up to 30 millimeters (1.2 inches) of sea level rise by 2100—twice previous estimates—even without additional climate warming.

Research labs are among the most energy-hungry facilities at universities worldwide. According to both University College London and a Swiss initiative called Green Lab, these labs require anywhere from three to 10 times more power than standard offices of the same size.

The Atlantic meridional overturning circulation (AMOC) is thought to face a potentially existential threat from climate change. But attempts to model what happens to AMOC as the oceans warm show divergent outcomes, leaving its fate unclear. In a paper published in AGU Advances, Shantong Sun and Andrew Thompson use a hierarchy of models to show that the cross-hemispheric overturning could persist for centuries even as North Atlantic Deep Water (NADW) formation shuts down.

Peatlands in the Alps are mostly small, scattered and difficult to access. As a result, up-to-date information on their extent and condition is often lacking. An international research team, including researchers from the University of Göttingen, has now developed a cross-border approach to identifying these particular areas. A comparison with official maps shows that the model identifies many peatlands as smaller than previously mapped—particularly in areas where aerial photographs reveal visible signs of disturbance. The findings were published in the journal Communications Earth & Environment.

Polynyas are patches of open water surrounded by sea ice, where heat and moisture can pass freely between the ocean and atmosphere. In August 2024, a vast polynya opened up in Breid Bay, off the coast of East Antarctica, in the depths of winter. The region had stayed ice-covered at this time of year ever since satellite records began in 1979.