devastating

A version of this story appeared in Science, Vol 377, Issue 6606.Download PDF For decades, eastern Oregon’s scablands—rocky patches of open terrain—were a refuge for people fighting wildfires in the surrounding forests. The thin soil and sparse vegetation offered little fuel for the flames, creating an oasis from which firefighters could operate and a barrier that could help halt a fire’s spread. That all changed in 2015. After lightning sparked a fire near…

Credit: Pixabay/CC0 Public Domain Research published in Global and Planetary Change examines the trends and projected frequency, intensity and duration of marine heatwaves (MHWs). A MHW is a 'discrete, prolonged anomalously warm water event' lasting five or more days, with temperatures warmer than the 90th percentile relative to climatological values. The research focuses on Fiji, Samoa and Palau in the tropical western and…

While Ron Zimmerman occasionally dabbled in acting, and per Deadline, he enjoyed time in the spotlight as a standup comedian, the bulk of his work leaned towards behind-the-scenes activities. As a producer, he leant his skill to the "Friday the 13th" horror film series, as well as Jet Li's 2001 science fiction film "The One." Other credits in this vein include "Shake it Up" and "7th Heaven." He was also a common face on "The Howard Stern" show. Perhaps the career path that Zimmerman will most be…

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Shamony Gibson spent the final months of her life excitedly anticipating the birth of her second child. “Time is flying, four months already,” she says in a home video collage at the beginning of Aftershock, a new documentary about the black maternal health crisis in the US. “Every day is a new process, you wake up like, ‘Oh my god, I’m that much closer to being a mom again.’”Gibson, a 30-year-old resident of Bedford-Stuyvesant, Brooklyn, gave birth to her son, Khari, in September 2019 via c-section. For days afterwards,…

Dubbed a "heat apocalypse" by one French meteorologist, many nations in Europe are sweltering under record temperatures, causing devastating wildfires in some parts of the continent.Spain and Portugal have seen over 1,000 deaths in the last week attributed to the weather, according to Reuters. Firefighters in France and Greece have also been out in force to try to combat huge wildfires in rural areas.Heat records have been broken in many parts of Western Europe, with Britain recording its hottest-ever day Tuesday, with…

News coverage of wildfires tends to focus on the acute events: A blaze erupts, people are evacuated, homes burn down, sometimes lives are lost. And rightfully so—it’s important to know what’s happening as it’s happening. As a result though, there are lots of articles and images out that describe and show flames engulfing forests and communities, and wildlands firefighters battling active burns. But what’s left when the smoke clears?At minimum, it takes years for ecosystems to recover from the worst wildfires. Often, years…

Astronauts lose decades' worth of bone mass in space that many do not recover even after a year back on Earth, researchers said Thursday, warning that it could be a "big concern" for future missions to Mars.  Previous research has shown astronauts lose between 1 to 2 percent of bone density for every month spent in space, as the lack of gravity takes the pressure off their legs when it comes to standing and walking.To find out how astronauts recover once their feet are back on the ground, a new study scanned the wrists…

Photo by Leon Bennett/Getty Images Actor and director Elizabeth Banks is expressing the kind of outrage that has been voiced by many Friday after the Supreme Court of the United States struck down the landmark abortion rights precedent found in Roe v. Wade. According to a post by Reuters Legal on Twitter that Banks shared, SCOTUS overturned the “landmark 1973 Roe v. Wade ruling that recognized a woman’s constitutional right to an abortion and legalized it nationwide.” “This is devastating news for families –…

This week eastern Afghanistan was struck by a middle-of-the night earthquake that became the country’s deadliest in two decades. The epicenter was in the province of Paktika, about 30 miles from the city of Khost. Hundreds of homes and buildings collapsed. Entire villages were knocked to the ground. At least 1,150 people were killed, and at least another were injured, according to official reports. And a subsequent aftershock on Friday added to the toll. But the initial quake had a relatively moderate magnitude of 5.9,…