Climate Science

NASA’s PACE (Plankton, Aerosol, Cloud, ocean Ecosystem) spacecraft launched on a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station’s Space Launch Complex 40 at 1:33 a.m. EST Thursday, February 8. Credit: NASA Television3, 2, 1 … LIFTOFF! A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket carrying NASA’s PACE (Plankton, Aerosol, Cloud, ocean Ecosystem) spacecraft launched from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station’s Space Launch Complex 40 at 1:33 a.m. EST Thursday, February 8.A few paths in life are short and direct; more of them are…

Scientists have discovered how forest emissions affect cloud formation and climate, emphasizing the need for better climate models and the role of forests in combating global warming. Credit: SciTechDaily.comForests, which cover a third of Earth’s land surface, are pivotal in carbon storage and the water cycle, though the full scope of their impact remains to be fully understood. In a new study published in Nature Communications, researchers from Stockholm University and international colleagues provide new insights into…

Pictured in this artist’s concept, NISAR, short for NASA-ISRO Synthetic Aperture Radar, marks the first time the U.S. and Indian space agencies have cooperated on hardware development for an Earth-observing mission. Its two radar systems will monitor changes in nearly all of Earth’s land and ice surfaces twice every 12 days. Credit: NASA/JPL-CaltechNISAR will study changes to ice sheets, glaciers, and sea ice in fine detail, as climate change warms the air and ocean.NISAR, the soon-to-launch radar satellite from NASA and…

Global temperature anomaly 2023.What caused the year to be so hot? Here is a breakdown of the primary factors that scientists considered.NASA announced that 2023 was the hottest year on record, according to an analysis of annual global average temperatures by the Goddard Institute for Space Studies. Scientists who maintain the temperature record, which began in 1880, calculate a global temperature anomaly each year to determine how much temperatures have changed compared to temperatures from 1951–1980.Every month from…

This illustration by Benjamin Storer shows oceanic weather systems (mesoscale eddies) from data overlaid with atmospherically driven climate-scale currents (black lines), which can be extracted with a coarse-graining technique developed in the lab of Hussein Aluie. The image reveals how these ocean weather systems are energized (red) or weakened (blue) when interacting with climate-scales, which follows a pattern mirroring the global atmospheric circulation. Credit: University of Rochester / Benjamin StorerThe team…

Jakobshavn Isbrae, a glacier on Greenland’s western coast, is shown in imagery taken on September 4, 2022, by Landsat 8, breaking at its edge. A recent study found that from 1985 to 2022 the Greenland Ice Sheet shed about 1,140 billion tons (1,034 billion metric tons) – one-fifth more mass than previously estimated. Credit: NASA/USGSA new, comprehensive analysis of satellite data finds more Greenland ice lost than previously estimated and that the majority of glaciers on the landmass have retreated significantly.The…

A commentary in Nature Climate Change raises concerns about how science funding affects Earth System Models, particularly in modeling permafrost emissions for climate predictions. The article emphasizes the need for longer-term funding and advanced resources to improve model accuracy and address the challenges of complex climate modeling. Credit: SciTechDaily.comFunding challenges and complexity have kept permafrost processes out of models that inform global climate targets.The way science is funded is hampering Earth…

This map of Earth in 2023 shows global surface temperature anomalies, or how much warmer or cooler each region of the planet was compared to the average from 1951 to 1980. Normal temperatures are shown in white, higher-than-normal temperatures in red and orange, and lower-than-normal temperatures in blue. An animated version of this map shows global temperature anomalies changing over time, dating back to 1880. Credit: Visualization Studio2023 set a new record for Earth’s highest average surface temperature, driven…

A groundbreaking study spanning 66 million years reveals a sobering view of Earth’s climatic trajectory, showing that current CO2 levels last appeared 14 million years ago, far earlier than previous estimates. This international research effort, taking seven years to complete, highlights the profound sensitivity of our climate to greenhouse gases and the lasting impact these have over millennia. The study’s findings underscore the urgency for informed climate policy, providing a detailed past-to-present analysis that…

Climate tipping points are critical junctures in Earth’s environmental systems, where minor yet pivotal changes can lead to irreversible and dramatic shifts. These changes, ranging from melting ice caps to the demise of coral reefs, are direct consequences of global warming. The use of satellite technology is crucial in monitoring these tipping points, providing essential data for understanding and responding to these critical shifts in Earth’s climate systems. Credit: SciTechDaily.comClimate tipping points mark pivotal…