Ocean sediment is a "mudtropolis"—meet the carbon-cycling creatures thriving beneath the seabed
Sitting in darkness, deep below the sunlit surface, an iridescent nightmare awaits its prey. With precision and speed, it strikes and slices a passing fish clean in half with a set of jaws twice the width of its head. The armor-plated creature retrea.....»»
Recycling human and animal excreta could help meet nutrient supply for global crops
It might not be a pleasant image, but recycling all the human and livestock feces and urine on the planet would contribute substantially to meeting the nutrient supply for all crops worldwide, thereby reducing the need to mine fertilizers such as pho.....»»
The Arctic is on fire: Report details how tundra has become a carbon emitter
Increasingly frequent and severe wildfires have become a yearly concern for many Arctic communities, and a chapter of a new U.S. report involving one Canadian university—Université de Montréal—suggests that they are also having a significant im.....»»
Meet Hyperlight, Ars Technica’s new, even brighter “Light” mode
You asked, so we built it! Like many sites, apps, and operating systems, Ars Technica has both "Light" and "Dark" visual styles. They look great! But even the "Light" mode has dar.....»»
Meet the next level MacBook battery protection – Chargie for Laptops
Technological advancements have meant that devices are lasting longer than ever. But one of the first parts to go is often the battery. Laptop batteries can especially be a problem, since many of us keep our laptops plugged in much of the time. But t.....»»
A new global carbon trading market could be held hostage by speculators
Our planet's future hangs in the balance due to the unabated greenhouse gas emissions from burning fossil fuels. Treating these emissions as something that can be owned and exchanged in a market has been touted as a solution since the early 1990s, wh.....»»
Plans to stabilize Earth"s climate rely on emerging carbon removal technology—we need to get moving, say researchers
Global carbon emissions from fossil fuels continue to rise and 2024 is likely to be the world's hottest year on record......»»
Meet the next level Macbook battery protection – Chargie for Laptops
Technological advancements have meant that devices are lasting longer than ever. But one of the first parts to go is often the battery. Laptop batteries can especially be a problem, since many of us keep our laptops plugged in much of the time. But t.....»»
Lizards and snakes are 35 million years older than we thought
Reanalysis of a fossil finds that reptiles' traits go back earlier than we thought. Lizards are ancient creatures. They were around before the dinosaurs and persisted long after d.....»»
Plankton study investigates how marine food webs respond to increasing alkalinity
The ocean naturally absorbs a quarter to a third of man-made CO2 emissions, but this process also leads to the acidification of seawater. By increasing the alkalinity of seawater through the addition of certain minerals (e.g., carbonates and silicate.....»»
Record-low Antarctic sea ice can be explained and forecast months out by patterns in winds
Amid all the changes in Earth's climate, sea ice in the stormy Southern Ocean surrounding Antarctica was, for a long time, an odd exception. The maximum winter sea ice cover remained steady or even increased slightly from the late 1970s through 2015,.....»»
NASA says Orion’s heat shield is good to go for Artemis II—but does it matter?
The Artemis II mission, as NASA currently envisions it, won't launch until April 2026. Two years ago next week, NASA's Orion spacecraft splashed down in the Pacific Ocean to wrap.....»»
3D models help researchers understand the climate impact of eddies
Mesoscale eddies are ocean vortices less than 100 kilometers in diameter that are responsible for the localized "weather" of the oceans. Because of the large amount of mass and energy movement associated with these currents, mesoscale eddies play an.....»»
Experiments show coating rice seedling with nanoscale carbon dots from durian helps rice plants thrive in salty soil
Extreme weather and pollution have increased the salt content in some soil, making growing conditions harsh for salt-sensitive crops like rice. Now, researchers reporting in ACS Nano detail a possible solution that doesn't require genetic modificatio.....»»
Quick climate dictionary: What actually is a carbon footprint?
A carbon footprint is the total amount of greenhouse gases emitted by something. That might be a person's lifestyle, a product's supply chain, an organization, or an activity. Everything from a banana to a ship has a carbon footprint......»»
"Exceptional" wildfires across Americas in 2024: EU monitor
Severe drought stoked rampant wildfires across North and South America this year and churned up record carbon pollution in Bolivia, Nicaragua and the Pantanal wetlands, according to new data from Europe's climate monitor......»»
Government needs to be clearer on food waste rules, says new UK report
English councils could struggle to meet new food waste recycling regulations, known as "Simpler Recycling" which are due to come into force next year, says a Newcastle University report......»»
After decades of plantation agriculture, coconut palms dominate over half of Pacific atoll forests
Coconut palms are king throughout the tropics, serving as the foundation for human lives and cultures across the Pacific Ocean for centuries. However, 200 years of planting by colonial interests transformed the palm from the revered "Tree of Life" to.....»»
Unique microbial communities discovered beneath frozen surface of Antarctica"s Lake Enigma
An international team of polar researchers has found several types of microbiota living in the water below the frozen surface of Antarctica's Lake Enigma. In their study, published in the journal Communications Earth & Environment, group members vent.....»»
Seagrass is fantastic at carbon capture—and it’s at risk of extinction
An underwater gardening experiment along the East Coast aims at restoration. In late September, seagrass ecologist Alyssa Novak pulled on her neoprene wetsuit, pressed her snorkel.....»»
Deep seabed mining: Bad for biodiversity and terrible for the economy
The debate around deep seabed mining has been gaining attention as concerns mount about its potential impacts on ocean ecosystems. The ocean is host to countless species yet to be discovered, some of which could hold the key to breakthroughs in medic.....»»