Environmental Science News

October 14, 2016

Nano-Spike Catalysts Convert CO2 Into Ethanol

Megadrought Risks in Southwest Soar

Coral Shows Us How Major Ice Sheets Retreated

How Did Early Earth Stay Warm?

Latest Headlines

updated 8:29am EDT

Wave Energy Researchers Dive Deep to Advance Clean Energy Source

Oct. 13, 2016 — One of the biggest untapped clean energy sources on the planet — wave energy — could one day power millions of homes across the U.S. But more than a century after the ... read more

Calcium Deficient Fauna and Brown Water Awaiting

Oct. 10, 2016 — Calcium deficient fauna, poor conditions for freshwater fish and mercury in the drinking water is the long-term consequences of acid rain in the 70's ... read more

Charting Riches in the Ocean's Depths

Oct. 13, 2016 — Researchers have previously estimated that the Norwegian continental shelf may contain a great wealth of minerals and metals. Now they suggest Norway take steps to clarify ... read more

Salty Snow Could Affect Air Pollution in the Arctic

Oct. 12, 2016 — In pictures, the Arctic appears pristine and timeless with its barren lands and icy landscape. In reality, the area is rapidly changing. Scientists are working to understand the chemistry behind ... read more

Climate Change May Help Ethiopia, Increase the Country's Access to Water

Oct. 12, 2016 — Despite the many disastrous impacts of climate change, there are some regions of the globe that might benefit from hotter temperatures. A team of researchers have predicted that water availability in ... read more

China's Emission of Toxic Fluorinated Chemicals Highest in the World

Oct. 12, 2016 — China is today the largest emitter of certain toxic fluorinated chemicals in the world, researchers show after measuring the levels of 12 fluorinated substances at the mouths of 19 Chinese ... read more

Temporary Extinction Reprieve for Some Frogs

Oct. 12, 2016 — Australian scientists have good news for frog conservation: there may be longer than expected time to intervene before climate change causes extinction of some ... read more

Scientists Discover 'Supramolecule' That Could Help Reduce Nuclear, Agricultural Waste

Oct. 11, 2016 — The first definitive evidence has been reported for a chemical bond between two negatively charged molecules of bisulfate, ... read more

Rainforest: Roads for Species Conservation?

Oct. 11, 2016 — The impact of old forest roads on the species diversity in the rainforest of Central Guyana has been the focus of recent research. Investigators reached the conclusion that ... read more

Assessing the Effects of Human-Caused Activities on Marine Mammals

Oct. 7, 2016 — Rising levels of noise in the ocean have been identified as a growing concern for the well-being of marine mammals, but other threats such as pollution, climate change, and prey depletion by ... read more

Climate Change Could Drive 1 In 6 Species To Extinction By 2100

Climate Change Could Put New York City Underwater More Often

South Africa Basks in Continent's First Solar-Powered Airport

Matthew Downgraded to Post-Tropical Cyclone

Future of Antarctic Marine Protected Areas at Risk

Oct. 13, 2016 — Antarctica's surrounding waters are home to some of the healthiest marine ecosystems on Earth and support thriving populations of krill, seabirds, fish and whales. But efforts to establish a ... read more

Hydrogen-Powered Passenger Ferry in San Francisco Bay Is Possible, Says Study

Oct. 10, 2016 — Researchers set out to answer one not-so-simple question: Is it feasible to build and operate a high-speed passenger ferry solely powered by hydrogen fuel cells? The answer is ... read more

Optimizing Sludge Treatment

Oct. 10, 2016 — Wine harvesting season is a challenge for wastewater treatment plants. When the grapes are being processed, the effluent load rises steeply – by a factor of 17 in the Palatinate town of Edenkoben. ... read more

Polyamides from a Waste Stream of the Wood Industry

Oct. 10, 2016 — A process has been created for the manufacturing of high-quality plastics from terpenes, a waste stream of the cellulose production, report ... read more

Shale Gas, Not EPA Rules, Has Pushed Decline in Coal-Generated Electricity, Study Confirms

Oct. 7, 2016 — Cheap shale gas produced by fracking has driven the decline in coal production in the United States during the last decade, researchers have ... read more

Innovative Molten Silicon-Based Energy Storage System

Oct. 7, 2016 — A novel system has been created that allows the storage energy in molten silicon which is the most abundant element in Earth's crust. The system has patent pending status in the United States, ... read more

Palm Oil Plantations Devastating to Tropical Peat Swamp Forests

Oct. 6, 2016 — Any notion that current palm oil production practices in southeast Asian peat swamp forests are environmentally responsible or sustainable in practice is ludicrous, say ... read more

Harnessing Algae for the Creation of Clean Energy

Oct. 6, 2016 — Researchers have revealed how microalgae produce hydrogen, a clean fuel of the future, and suggest a possible mechanism to jumpstart mass production of this environmentally-friendly energy ... read more

Organic Semiconducting Polymers Can Harvest Sunlight to Split CO2 Into Alcohol Fuels

Oct. 6, 2016 — Chemists have been the first to demonstrate that an organic semiconductor polymer called polyaniline is a promising photocathode material for the conversion of carbon dioxide into alcohol fuels ... read more

As the Climate Warms, We Are 'Primed' for Worse Storms Than Sandy

Oct. 6, 2016 — With the climate warming and the sea level rising, conditions are ripe for storms deadlier and more devastating than Sandy that put more people at risk, warns a geography professor who has served as ... read more

Fast Energy Transport Between Unlike Partners

Oct. 6, 2016 — Chemists have combined different dye molecules in aggregates and thereby observed surprising properties. Their discovery may help to use sunlight more efficiently for the generation of ... read more

Efficient Organic Solar Cells With Very Low Driving Force

Oct. 6, 2016 — Organic solar cells have now been developed with a significantly lower driving force and faster charge separation than previous cells, report ... read more

Climate Change to Have 'Little Effect' on Common Landslides

Oct. 6, 2016 — The frequency of common landslides is not likely to increase as a result of more rainstorms brought about by future climate change, new research has ... read more

Exhaling Earth: Scientists Closer to Forecasting Volcanic Eruptions

Oct. 6, 2016 — On average, 40 volcanoes on land erupt into the atmosphere each month, while scores of others on the seafloor erupt into the ocean. A new time-lapse animation uniting volcanoes, earthquakes, and ... read more

Carbon Dioxide Levels Race Past Troubling Milestone

Oct. 5, 2016 — Carbon dioxide levels in Earth's atmosphere passed a troubling milestone for good this summer and locked in levels of the heat-trapping gas not seen for millions of ... read more

Even If the Paris Agreement Is Implemented, Food and Water Supplies Remain at Risk

Oct. 5, 2016 — If all pledges made in last December's Paris climate agreement (COP21) to curb greenhouse gases are carried out to the end of the century, then risks still remain for staple crops in major ... read more

Enormous Biodiversity in Amazonia: Unexpected Biogeographical Boundaries

Oct. 5, 2016 — New information necessitates revising the scenarios on how the enormous species richness in Amazonia has evolved and which factors define species ... read more

Non-Toxic Solvent Removes Barrier to Commercialization of Perovskite Solar Cells

Oct. 5, 2016 — Scientists have developed a solvent system with reduced toxicity that can be used in the manufacture of perovskite solar cells, clearing one of the barriers to the commercialization of a technology ... read more

Urban Warming Slows Tree Growth, Photosynthesis

Oct. 5, 2016 — New research finds that urban warming reduces growth and photosynthesis in city trees. The researchers found that insect pests are part of the problem, but that heat itself plays a more significant ... read more

New Advances in Solar Cell Technology

Oct. 5, 2016 — With the high environmental cost of conventional energy sources and the finite supply of fossil fuels, the importance of renewable energy sources has become much more apparent in recent years. ... read more

Thursday, October 13, 2016