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☆ A Collapse of the Amazon Could Be Coming ‘Faster Than We Thought’
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-14 | by ( Manuela Andreoni | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Up to half of the Amazon rainforest could transform into grasslands or weakened ecosystems in the coming decades, a new study found, as climate change, deforestation and severe droughts like the one the region is currently experiencing damage huge areas beyond their ability to recover. Those stresses in the most vulnerable parts of the rainforest could eventually drive the entire forest ecosystem, home to a tenth of the planet’s land species, into acute water stress and past a tipping point that would trigger a forest-wide collapse, researchers said. While earlier studies have assessed the individual effects of climate change and deforestation on the rainforest, this peer-reviewed study, published on Wednesday in the journal Nature, is the first major research to focus on the cumulative effects of a range of threats. “This study adds it all up to show how this tipping point is closer than other studies estimated,” said Carlos Nobre, an author of the study. Dr. Nobre is a Brazilian Earth systems scientist who studies how deforestation and climate change might permanently change the forest.

Persons: ”, Carlos Nobre, Nobre Locations: Brazilian

Photos You Should See View All 21 Images“It also depends on the rate of climate change we are inducing as humanity,” van Westen said. The Dutch team simulated 2,200 years of its flow, adding in what human-caused climate change does to it. They found after 1,750 years “an abrupt AMOC collapse,” but so far are unable to translate that simulated timeline to Earth's real future. "This value is getting more negative under climate change,” van Westen said. The world should pay attention to potential AMOC collapse, said Joel Hirschi, division leader at the United Kingdom's National Oceanography Centre.

Persons: ”, Rene van Westen, “, ” van Westen, it's, van Westen, Stefan Rahmstorf, ” Rahmstorf, Tim Lenton, ” Lenton, Wei Cheng, Joel Hirschi, ” Hirschi, ” ___ Read, Seth Borenstein Organizations: Southern, Utrecht University, United Nations, Earth Systems, Potsdam Institute, Climate Research, ” University of Exeter, National Oceanic, Atmospheric Administration, NASA, Pacific, U.S ., United, National Oceanography, Associated Press Locations: Europe, Netherlands, Germany, Greenland, Americas, Africa, Florida, U.S, U.S . East Coast, AP.org

☆ Atlantic Ocean currents may be on the verge of collapse, which could plunge Europe into a deep freeze, a new study shows
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-09 | by ( Seth Borenstein | Associated Press | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

“It also depends on the rate of climate change we are inducing as humanity,” van Westen said. AdvertisementThe Dutch team simulated 2,200 years of its flow, adding in what human-caused climate change does to it. They found after 1,750 years “an abrupt AMOC collapse,” but so far are unable to translate that simulated timeline to Earth's real future. "This value is getting more negative under climate change,” van Westen said. The world should pay attention to potential AMOC collapse, said Joel Hirschi, division leader at the United Kingdom's National Oceanography Centre.

Persons: ”, Rene van Westen, “, Bob Edme, ” van Westen, it's, van Westen, Stefan Rahmstorf, ” Rahmstorf, Tim Lenton, Thwaites, ” Lenton, Wei Cheng, Joel Hirschi, ” Hirschi, ” ___ Read Organizations: Service, Southern, Utrecht University, AP, United Nations, Earth Systems, Potsdam Institute, Climate Research, University, Exeter, NASA, National Oceanic, Atmospheric Administration, Pacific, U.S ., United, National Oceanography Locations: Europe, Northwestern, Netherlands, Germany, Greenland, Americas, Africa, Florida, U.S, U.S . East Coast

☆ Election disruption from AI poses the biggest global risk in 2024, Davos survey warns
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-10 | by ( Karen Gilchrist | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

The World Economic Forum's "Global Risks Report 2024," released Wednesday, ranked AI-derived misinformation and disinformation — and its implications for societal polarization — ahead of climate change, war and economic weakness in its top 10 risks over the next two years. "How that is going to play out is going to be quite important for us to watch," she added. watch nowThe WEF report, which was also produced in collaboration with Zurich Insurance Group, surveyed over 1,400 global risk experts, policymakers and industry leaders in September 2023 about their biggest global concerns. Top 10 global risksThe most cited risks for the next two years were, in order: misinformation and disinformation, extreme weather events, societal polarization, cyber insecurity and interstate armed conflict. Also in the top 10 were lack of economic opportunity, inflation, involuntary migration, economic downturn and pollution.

Persons: Alfieri, Carolina Klint, Marsh McLennan, CNBC's Silvia Amaro, Saadia Zahidi Organizations: Zurich Insurance Group Locations: Carolina, Europe

☆ World Economic Forum risks report sees a ‘global catastrophe’ within 10 years
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-10 | by ( Hanna Ziady | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

The gloomy outlook comes from an annual survey by the World Economic Forum (WEF) of people paid to identify and manage global risks. According to the report published Wednesday, nearly two-thirds of respondents expect an “elevated chance of global catastrophes” in the next decade. Sam Yeh/AFP/Getty ImagesExtreme weather events were ranked the number two short-term risk, demonstrating heightened awareness about the environment and climate change in a year plagued by rising temperatures and rampant floods and wildfires. Cyber insecurity also made it into the top five short-term risks, for the first time in a decade. Lack of economic opportunity, persistently high inflation and an economic downturn were ranked sixth, seventh and ninth on the list of short-term risks respectively.

Persons: “, Carolina Klint, Marsh McLennan, ”, Hou Yu, Sam Yeh, “ It’s, Saadia Zahidi, ” Zahidi, ” John Scott Organizations: London CNN, Humanity, World Economic, American Psychological, Marsh, CNN, ih, Getty, Zurich Insurance Group Locations: Davos, Switzerland, Israel, Carolina, Europe, Taoyuan, AFP

[1/2] People watch drones creating a 3-D display outside the United Nations Headquarters calling attention to the Amazon rainforest and climate change in New York U.S., September 15, 2023. The analysis by the nonprofit Amazon Conservation's MAAP forest monitoring program offers a first look at 2023 deforestation across the nine Amazon countries. That estimate is likely low as there are some holes in the data, Finer said. Brazil's Lula has led a push among its Amazonian neighbors and other rainforest countries to get rich nations to pay for woodland conservation. While the country is battling massive wildfires, many of them are not in the Amazon, Finer said.

Persons: Eduardo Munoz, Matt, Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, Jair Bolsonaro, Carlos Nobre, Nobre, Brazil's Lula, Gustavo Petro, Jake Spring, David Gregorio Our Organizations: United Nations Headquarters, New York U.S, REUTERS, SAO PAULO, Reuters, United, University of Sao, Amazon, NASA, Union, Democratic, Watch, Thomson Locations: New York, Brazil, Colombia, Peru, Bolivia, United Nations, Jan, Puerto Rico, University of Sao Paulo, Amazon, Guyana, Suriname, Venezuela, COLOMBIA, PERU Brazil, Democratic Republic of Congo

☆ Anthropocene: Scientists say they’ve found a site that marks a new chapter in Earth’s history
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-11 | by ( Katie Hunt | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +11 min

CNN —Scientists have identified the geological site that they say best reflects a proposed new epoch called the Anthropocene — a major step toward changing the official timeline of Earth’s history. “We’ve moved into this new Earth state and that should be defined by a new geological epoch,” Waters added. On Tuesday, the scientists announced the geological site — Crawford Lake in Ontario, Canada — that best captures the geological impact of the Anthropocene, according to their research. Annual sediment samples from the Crawford Lake site have revealed geochemical traces of nuclear bomb testing, researchers have confirmed. The alpha spectrometry output shown on the screen indicates the presence of plutonium in a Crawford Lake drill core sample.

Persons: ”, Colin Waters, “ We’ve, Waters, eon, James St, Andrew Knoll, “, ” Knoll, Crawford, AWG, Crawford Lake, Francine McCarthy, Andrew Cundy, Stan Finney, it’s, Paul Crutzen —, Finney, It’s, stratigraphers, ” Waters, they’re, Andrew Mathews, We’ve, ’ ” Organizations: CNN —, Environment School, University of Leicester, Geologists, Wales, Harvard University, University, Southampton, Brock University, UK’s University of Southampton, International, International Union of Geological Sciences, Geological Congress, California State University, University of Southampton “, University of California Locations: Crawford Lake, Ontario, Canada, Flinders, South Australia, Jura, Crawford, Southampton Crawford, Sudeten, Lake, California, Baltic, Japan, China, Australia, Gulf of Mexico, Busan, South Korea, Long, Santa Cruz

☆ White House releases report on reflecting sunlight to cool the earth, no formal study planned now
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-30 | by ( Catherine Clifford | In Catclifford | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +5 min

The Biden-Harris administration has no plans underway to launch a comprehensive research program into solar radiation modification, according to a senior administration official. 'Risk vs risk'For decades, solar radiation modification has been relegated to the realm of science fiction. The White House report focuses on two methods of solar geoengineering. But it also has a lot of unknown risks — what the White House report called "known unknowns." Critically, solar radiation modification is not a permanent solution.

Persons: Harris, Chelsea Thompson Organizations: Biden, White, Office of Science, Technology, Consolidated, NOAA, SRM, European Union, European Commission Locations: United States

☆ Humans pump so much groundwater that Earth’s axis has shifted, study finds
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-26 | by ( Mindy Weisberger | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

CNN —Humans’ unquenchable thirst for groundwater has sucked so much liquid from subsurface reserves that it’s affecting Earth’s tilt, according to a new study. That shift is even observable on Earth’s surface, as it contributes to global sea level rise, researchers reported in the study published June 15 in the journal Geophysical Research Letters. Seo and his colleagues had questions about long-term changes to the axis — specifically, how groundwater contributed to that phenomenon. Revealing groundwater extraction’s impactShifts in Earth’s axis are measured indirectly through radio telescope observations of immobile objects in space — quasars — using them as fixed points of reference. The redistribution of groundwater tilted Earth’s rotational axis east by more than 31 inches (78.7 centimeters) in just under two decades, according to the models.

Persons: ”, Ki, Weon Seo, Surendra Adhikari, Adhikari, Seo, ” Adhikari, “, ” Seo Organizations: CNN, Research, Seoul National University, Jet Propulsion Laboratory, NASA Locations: South Korea, North America, India

☆ Why an Abu Dhabi startup wants to send quinoa seeds into space
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-20 | by ( Nell Lewis | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

Abu Dhabi-based startup StarLab Oasis, a spin-off from Texan company Nanoracks, wants to grow seeds in outer space in order to develop plant varieties that can survive on a less hospitable Earth. In 2023, StarLab Oasis expects to send its first seeds into orbit. From soybeans to quinoa, seeds grow differently in space than on land. Sending seeds to space will help “sustainability, climate change, and food security on Earth,” StarLab Oasis’ co-founder Allen Herbert tells CNN Business. It plans to work with companies, space agencies, universities and non-profits, to send seeds to space either for research or commercial purposes.

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