atmospheric

But the project switched locations several times. Most recently, the team hoped to launch a balloon to test out the aircraft’s hardware from the Esrange Space Center in Kiruna, Sweden in the summer of 2021. But those plans were canceled on the recommendation of the project’s advisory committee, which determined the researchers should hold discussions with the public ahead of any flights. The effort was also heavily criticized by the Saami Council, which represents the indigenous Saami peoples’ groups in Sweden and…

Photograph of Antarctic ice bubbles, retrieved from deep within the Antarctic Ice Sheet, which contain the Earth's history of atmospheric greenhouse gases. Credit: Thomas Bauska Changes in human activity may have led to atmospheric CO2 levels declining in the 16th century, due to large-scale land use changes in the Americas during New World-Old World contact between 1450 and 1700 CE, suggests a Nature Communications paper. The…

(a) Annual mean global mean surface temperature above pre-industrial reference temperature (b) Change in annual mean total depth ocean heat content (OHC) relative to 2020–2030 conditions in Control. (c) Difference in vertical OHC between end-of-simulation (2090–2100) conditions and present-day conditions in Control. Credit: Geophysical Research Letters (2024). DOI: 10.1029/2023GL106132 Climate change is heating the oceans,…

Atmospheric rivers, filaments of intense moisture transport in the atmosphere, can now be automatically detected in satellite observations. Credit: NOAA Atmospheric rivers (ARs) are filaments of intense moisture transport in the atmosphere. These weather systems drive a large fraction of the extreme precipitation events over coastal regions. Detecting ARs in satellite observations has long been a challenging task due to the…

The Cluster mission comprises four satellites flying in a tetrahedral formation and collecting the most detailed data yet on small-scale changes in near-Earth space, and on the interaction between the charged particles of the solar wind and Earth’s magnetosphere. Credit: ESAAfter over two decades of pioneering research into Earth’s magnetosphere and space weather, ESA’s Cluster mission is ending, with the first satellite, ‘Salsa’, scheduled for reentry in September 2024.ESA’s Cluster mission, which has spent 24 years…

Last week, a long, narrow section of the Earth’s atmosphere funneled trillions of gallons of water eastward from the Pacific tropics and unleashed it on California. This weather event, known as an atmospheric river, broke rainfall records, dumped more than a foot of rain on parts of the state, and knocked out power for 800,000 residents. At least nine people died in car crashes or were killed by falling trees. But the full brunt of the storm’s health impacts may not be felt for months.The flooding caused by intensifying…

In many regions, atmospheric rivers, like the one shown here in green, are expected to increase in frequency with climate change. Credit: NASA Ribbons of water vapor called atmospheric rivers wind through the troposphere, moving the planet's moisture from near the equator toward the poles. These aerial waterways are responsible for about 20%–30% of the annual rain and snow in parts of Europe and the United States and more than…

Reds and yellows show where Pacific waters were warmer in 2024 than in 2022. The abnormally warmer region along the equator is what we call El Niño. Weak El Niño events occur every few years, with strong events like this averaging once every 10 to 20 years. Credit: NOAA Wild weather has been roiling North America for the past few months, thanks in part to a strong El Niño that sent temperatures surging in 2023. The climate…

Matt Terry has debuted atmospheric new single ‘Ghost Of Me’, his first release of 2024. The follow-up to 2023’s ‘You Don’t Know Nothing‘, ‘Ghost Of Me’ showcases Terry’s powerful vocals over an R&B and hip-hop fusion. Terry co-wrote the song with producer James Lewis (Rudimental). You can listen to the song at the top of this article. Matt Terry says, “‘Ghost of Me’ tells the story of how I fell in love with somebody that gave up on me at my lowest when I needed them most. But years later, after working…

California National Guard Soldiers support local first responders in rescue operations due to flooding in Monterey County, California, March 11, 2023. Credit: 1-184 Infantry Regiment, California National Guard In December 1861, intense rainfall began pounding central California, thrashing the state for the next 43 days. The rain, which scientists now think was caused by atmospheric rivers, killed thousands of people and…