The Carbfix facility in Iceland Oksana Baliukeviciene/Alamy We desperately need clean hydrogen for processes that cannot be powered by renewable electricity – and it might be possible to generate vast quantities from rocks deep underground while locking away carbon dioxide at the same time. Researchers at the University of Texas at Austin have shown that…
Large parts of the Amazon rainforest have been cleared for cattle ranching Paralaxis/Alamy Destruction of rainforest for cattle ranching is making the Amazon biome more vulnerable to irreversible collapse, which could occur within decades if deforestation continues. A landmark 2022 study on tipping points found the Amazon would likely suffer widespread dieback at global warming…
2026 has already seen extensive wildfires in Patagonia, Argentina, linked to extreme weather TOMAS CUESTA / AFP via Getty Images A prominent scientist has predicted 2026 will be the hottest year on record, thanks to both climate change and a powerful El Niño effect that will raise temperatures further. The record is held by 2024,…
For millions of years, the Mississippi River flowed unchecked, carrying roughly 400 million metric tons of sediment down to Louisiana, where it spilled into the Gulf of Mexico to create new land. But in the early 20th century, a series of dams and river-training structures were built to prevent flooding — leaving the river tamed…
The Drax Power Station in the north of England Ian Lamond/Alamy You’ve probably seen those nice graphs showing carbon dioxide levels and temperatures falling towards the end of the century. How is this miracle meant to be achieved? The idea is that we harvest plants, burn them for energy and then capture and store the…
New Webb observations of two exoplanets TRAPPIST-1b and TRAPPIST-1c show blistering days and frozen nights, offering the first detailed climate maps of rocky exoplanets and dimming hopes for habitability. This artist’s impression shows an imagined view from the surface one of the three exoplanets orbiting the ultracool dwarf star TRAPPIST-1 38.8 light-years from Earth. These…
A team of researchers from the United States and Germany has identified fungal proteins that can freeze water at relatively warm subzero temperatures, raising the prospect of safer cloud seeding, improved climate models and new advances in food preservation and medicine. Mortierellomycetes and Umbelopsidomycetes fungi from freshwater ecosystems in Korea. Image credit: Goh et al.,…
For years, scientists have been keeping a wary eye on the massive system of currents that carry water and nutrients across the ocean from Greenland to Antarctica. The Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation plays a large part in stabilizing the global climate, but it appears to have been weakening in recent years as the Earth warms….
