Tags: Climate change

Study Shows Volcanoes May Be Causing Global Cooling

ENVIRONMENT & CLIMATE We have known for a while that massive volcanic eruptions, which eject massive amounts of gases into the atmosphere, can block enough solar radiation to have an effect on the climate. For example, scientists believe the explosion of the Indonesian volcano Mt. Tambora in 1815 caused the severe cold spell in 1816. But while scientists may have arrived at a consensus that our planet is warming, according to a new study published this week, some of the warming effects have been offset by small volcanic eruptions over the last decade. The vast quantities of ash and gases ejected from the volcanoes have had a remarkable cooling effect on the climate, by blocking solar radiation.

Polar Bears May Be Solving Their Own Problems—But Not For Long

While researchers and diplomats all over the world are attempting to deal with the issues of climate change, the United Nations in particular who are trying to unite all nations in a collective effort, it’s the animal species at the Earth’s poles that are facing this change on the front line. And though the valiant efforts made in recent summits have yet to amount to much change, it appears that animals in the Arctic are finding a solution of their own— well, a temporary one at least.

Investors Torn on Fossil Fuels and Climate Change

There is a rift forming among energy investors in some of the world's largest energy companies over a global campaign aiming to make fossil fuels as unpopular as tobacco, to better combat climate change. Over the past seven months, investors including the likes of the heirs to the Rockefeller Standard Oil fortune and the board of trustees at California's Stanford University have decided not to invest in coal companies. And the ramifications are significant.

NASA and NOAA Support the Development of Two New Climate Tracking Apps

With development support from national organizations, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and NASA, researchers at the Space Science and Engineering Center (SSEC) at the University of Wisconsin-Madison have developed two new mobile apps that will bring the power of satellite data right to your fingertips.

Polar Bears May Be Solving Their Own Problems—But Not For Long

While researchers and diplomats all over the world are attempting to deal with the issues of climate change, the United Nations in particular who are trying to unite all nations in a collective effort, it's the animal species at the Earth's poles that are facing this change on the front line. And though the valiant efforts made in recent summits have yet to amount to much change, it appears that animals in the Arctic are finding a solution of their own- well, a temporary one at least.

NASA—How Tropical Rainforests May Help End the Climate Change Issue

If 2014 made anything evident on the global stage, it’s that climate change is a serious issue and one that must be dealt with urgently. Many hope that the United Nations Summit in 2015 will bring some sort of international change, but with new research from the US space agency NASA, researchers are now saying that we may have some added help on our side—tropical rainforests.

Passing Stars May Send Comets Smashing Into Earth – Eventually

Stars passing close to our solar system could send comets hurdling toward Earth increasing the risk of impact altering life as we know it. Scientists still say there is not much for us to worry about as these collisions won't happen for hundreds of thousands of years.

NASA Says Tropical Rainforests May Hold a Key To the Climate Change Issue

While tropical rainforests may be vanishing, a new study led by NASA researchers reveals yet another reason why trees in the tropical rainforest may in fact be man’s best friend. With greenhouse gas emissions on a constant rise since the dawning of the industrial revolution and the subsequent population growth that followed, researchers in recent years have tried to estimate exactly how much carbon dioxide is actually absorbed by plants to better assess a serious global issue. And in a new NASA-led study, researchers from the Jet Propulsion Laboratory were able to combine three different divisions of science to reveal that tropical rainforests may be absorbing far more CO2 than many researchers previously thought, in response to rising atmospheric levels of the greenhouse gas.

Monarch Butterflies Could Soon Be Deemed “Endangered”

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service announced earlier this week that it is considering placing the monarch butterfly under the federal protection of the Endangered Species Act. And now, for the next sixty days, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service will hear comments from the public on the idea of listing the butterfly.

Great Lakes' Water Levels Cause Erosion Concern

The Great Lakes have been rising over the last two years, putting an end to a decade of lower than average water levels, and creating favorable conditions for both boating and commercial shipping. In fact, scientists at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers say water levels in lakes Superior, Huron, Michigan, Erie, and Ontario are all above seasonal averages for the first time in 16 years.

What Manganese and the Trade Winds Tell Researchers about the Coral Bleaching Epidemic of the Pacific

Researchers from the National Oceanic & Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), tasked with monitoring the overall health of Pacific coral reefs are sounding an alarm of international proportions to notify the public and government agencies that the Pacific Ocean coral reefs are facing a massive die-off known commonly as “coral bleaching”. Publishing their recent study in the journal Nature Geoscience, the researchers are pointing towards warming oceans and dying trade winds for the massive coral bleaching soon to hit these coral reefs, and are naming global climate change as a contributing factor.

Making Sense of Hydrogen Fuel Cell Vehicles (FCVs)

As stated by the California Fuel Cell Partnership, the primary benefits of operating an FCV are that they provide, "provide customers with a no-compromise electric-drive vehicle with longer range, quick refill, high performance and comfort along with zero emissions and a low-carbon and potentially renewable fuel."

Warblers Flee, As Warnings from Mother Nature Reveal Coming Storms

In the study of ecology, it’s long been known that animals have a sort of sixth sense above and beyond what humans can perceive. Perhaps through the aid of their keen senses of smell or their abnormally acute sense of hearing, animals such as dogs are able to sense the presence of cancers, the onset of seizures, and even changes in the climate. But in a new study led by UC Berkeley ecologist Henry Streby, it’s birds that are sensing a change. Golden-winged warblers to be exact.

Plans from Peru—United Nations 196 Delegates Propose a Policy to Combat Climate Change

To say that 2014 was a year for change would be quite an understatement, but when it comes to climate change this year has perhaps been the most dynamic. From the UN Summit in New York held earlier this summer, to the nomination of a new Messenger of Peace (actor Leonardo DiCaprio), members of the United Nations (UN) have sought out an effective way to best approach the changing climate looming over future forecasts. This past Saturday, Dec. 13, these discussions came to a climax as negotiators from the world’s 196 countries who have been staying in Lima, Peru for the past two weeks haggled over the final elements to be implemented in a draft of a climate change deal that will potentially, for the first time in history, commit all nations in the world to limit emissions greatly impacting global warming.

How Small Farmers May Make a Mark on the Climate Issues Facing Earth

As a small farm owner, many may feel that their impact as an individual dwarfs in comparison to corporate America, where large conglomerates rule. But in the view of nature, all individuals are equal when it comes to changing the face of our Earth, and small farmers are finding that together their unified voices and actions may help create a better climate for tomorrow.

Dwindling Ice in Antarctica Spurs Questions Over Climate Change and The Point of No Return

As impending threats of “climate change” and “ecological disaster” have loomed over international affairs this year, to the point that even the United Nations spearheaded a campaign and led a summit to discuss future changes that may amend for some of humanity’s grave mistakes, new research published this week in the journal Geophysical Research Letters looks to a place much colder than our metropolises for evidence of a rapidly shifting climate.

Earth’s Warm Streak Could Peak in a Decade, If Policymakers Don’t Change

Speed up the models and cut down on your carbon footprints, because a bit of change today could spell better weather and a better Earth only a decade away. While climatologists and researchers across all of science have in recent years discussed the long-term goals of climate change and the effects of carbon emissions, a new study published today, Dec. 2, in the journal Environmental Research Letters reveals that reductions in carbon emissions today will help shape the planet’s atmosphere in as little as 10 years, versus the 30 to 50 year models used by researchers and policymakers until now.
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