Ocean acidification created by continuing anthropogenic climate change will result in a collapsing food web, according to new research from the University of Adelaide. The new findings are the result of analysis focused around determining the effects of climate change on the world’s fisheries, and on overall marine biodiversity. Image via NOAA “Humans rely heavily
The ocean acidification that’s now occurring, as a result of increasing anthropogenic levels of carbon dioxide emissions, will led to cascading losses of biodiversity in many marine habitats and ecosystems, according to new research from the University of British Columbia and its partners. The new work is some of the first to investigate the likely
Specific coral genotypes (“individuals”) can live for more than 5,000 years (at the least) according to new research from the National Marine Fisheries Service, Penn State, and Dial Cordy & Associates. The findings — based on research focused on elkhorn corals (Acropora palmata) living around Florida and in the Caribbean — mean that corals are
Celebrate a sunrise on Earth Day on the open ocean aboard the yachts competing in the Volvo Ocean Racing around the world competition.
Today’s World Animal Day, celebrated across the globe since a 1931 convention of ecologists in Florence, Italy, conceived of it as a way to highlight the plight of endangered species. They chose October 4 because it’s the Catholic Feast Day of St. Francis of Assisi, the patron saint of animals. Since then, people have used the
The White House released a report this morning from the Council of Economic Advisers that shows the consequences of not doing something about climate change NOW. Our sister publication, CleanTechnica, has the full story, along with a word from noted Penn State climatologist Michael E. Mann. One important section of the report discusses a number of
Underwater habitat at Aquarius Reef Base (photo provided to Flickr courtesy of Stephen Frink, www.stephenfrink.com/) On July 2, 2014, ocean scientists who have spent the last 31 days living in an ocean-floor habitat 63 feet underwater will decompress and return to the surface. They’ve been down there on “Mission 31” intensively studying ocean acidification and climate
Fabien Cousteau, ocean explorer and grandson of famed Jacques-Yves Cousteau, began a historic subsea mission on Sunday. He’s studying ocean impacts of climate change (especially acidification, which occurs as the sea absorbs atmospheric carbon dioxide), effects of plastic and other pollution on marine life, and overfishing of marine resources, which diminishes the ocean’s biodiversity. You
(All figures are from the 2014 National Climate Assessment draft.) Later today (Tuesday, May 6), at 8 a.m. EDT, the National Climate Assessment and Development Advisory Committee of experts meets by conference call to approve the final version of the Third National Climate Assessment. The gist of their message, as Suzanne Goldenberg of The Guardian
BREAKING: Late this evening (8 pm EST, or tomorrow, March 31, at 9 am in Tokyo), something large and unpleasant will hit the fan about climate change. At a press conference in Yokohama, the Nobel Prize-winning Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change will release its Fifth Assessment Report on impacts of human activities on current and
Laying a pipeline across agricultural land (photo: eponline.com). Friday afternoon, and officials at the State Department are probably breathing a huge sigh of relief. The official public comment period on the northern extension of the $5.4 billion Keystone XL pipeline expired today. And the unofficial public comment that’s making the news is today’s release of
Up to $60 trillion (just shy of the global GDP for one year) is what climate change impacts will cost the world’s economy if the estimated 50 billion tons of seafloor-trapped methane gas in the East Siberian Arctic Shelf were to be released into the atmosphere. That’s according to new economic modeling research conducted by
A new study has found that Air pollution stunts coral growth, new research from the University of Exeter has found. The fine particulate matter that is released into the air as a result of fossil fuel burning, amongst other things, effectively “shades” the coral and subsequently cools the water that they reside in, both of
The collapse of a commercial oyster hatchery in Oregon has now been linked definitively to an increase in ocean acidification. In a study done by Oregon State University researchers, they found that the increased corrosiveness of ocean water with elevated levels of carbon dioxide in it inhibited the growth and formation of the oyster larvae’s
This is an excellent video on climate change by some folks who really seem to know how to make science videos, the folks at SciShow. Check it out and share it with friends! Want more? Check out more on the effects of global warming and more excellent global warming and climate change videos (a ton of
We’ve known for awhile that ocean acidification (which results from the burning of fossil fuels, just like global warming) is a huge concern for the oceans and many of the living creatures that rely on it (yeah,.. that’s a lot of the Earth’s living creatures). But what we knew was that it was a threat
Top environmental and climate science news of the past week or so.
Some top global warming and environmental news from the last day or so: Global Warming & Environmental Politics Time to Put People Ahead of Polluters Over on ecopolitology, Sierra Club’s Michael Brune had a good piece on why it’s time to put people ahead of polluters. Senate 2012 Race & Tea Partiers The conservative right
In the constant interplay between Humans and Nature, everything is a trade-off. As our scientists begin to consider an intervention approach to climate change and conducting large-scale experiments, this trade-off is coming into sharper resolution. Case in point: iron ocean fertilization (or “seeding”), a geoengineering strategy making the news in recent years. Iron fertilization also
A new research study to be published online in the journal Nature Geoscience have raised the question as to whether undersea methane is contributing to the rising acidification of the planet’s oceans. The research team found methane leaking from “cold seeps” in two areas of the Pacific Ocean was being taken up by oceanic microorganisms
Climate Progress recently put together a piece on the top 10 climate science news stories of 2010 (so far). A lot of news that doesn’t hit the mainstream media. Here’s are a few of the stories: 1. Nature: “Global warming blamed for 40% decline in the ocean’s phytoplankton”: “Microscopic life crucial to the marine food
This post is part of our participation in Blog Action Day 2010, which is on the topic of Water. A recent report out by the Institute of Physics (IOP) finds that weak global climate change targets are likely to result in all coral reefs dying off by 2100. The great importance of this matter is,
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/v/7gouSXt2zE4&hl=en_US&fs=1] . Carl Safina, author of five books and over 100 scientific and popular publications on ecology and the oceans (including featured work in National Geographic and The New York Times), is about as expert as it gets when we talk about the oceans. In an excellent recent TED talk, Safina discusses the BP oil
The latest EPI release is on carbon emissions trends and the potential results. by Amy Heinzerling In 2009, carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions in China—the world’s leading emitter—grew by nearly 9 percent. At the same time, emissions in most industrial countries dropped, bringing global CO2 emissions from fossil fuel use down from a high of 8.5 billion
Next in our coverage of the EPA’s new Climate Change Indicators in the US report, below are key summary findings regarding the oceans. From very concerning increases in ocean acidity to a relatively fast-rising sea level to a heating ocean, all of our concerns are not in the atmosphere or on land.
A group of 30 leading Earth and Environmental scientists is proposing “nine planetary boundaries”, or “safety zones”, that must not be crossed, in order to preserve the planetary and environmental balance that human civilizations (and much of the rest of the biosphere) require. Crossing these boundaries–and three of them may have already been crossed–could “generate unacceptable environmental change for humanity.”
Leading experts at the 2009 Aspen Environment Forum called ocean acidification caused by high levels of CO2 emissions a “planet changer”, and predicted that all coral in the ocean would be in danger of dying off by mid-century if we continued to burn fossil fuel at our current rate. Ken Caldeira of Carnegie Institution, Martin
While coral reefs around the world are increasingly threatened by pollution, climate change and development, scientists in Bonaire are investigating a coral reef success story. Aimed at kicking off the International Year of the Reef, the Bonaire 2008 expedition launched earlier this month and runs through Jan.30. A team of researchers from several universities is
