Environment : Nature World News

Direct Method to Etch-embed Ce onto Cu-based Oxide

In a paper to be published in the forthcoming issue in NANO, a team of researchers from Nanchang University have attempted to directly engineer the surface structure of Cu-based substrate to get a series of Ce-O-Cu catalysts for NH3-SCR of NO. The obtained catalysts were structured as CuO matrix with interactive surface composed by Cu(I)-Cu(II) and Ce(III)-Ce(IV) co-present species, exhibiting the distinct synergistic effect and leading to attractive catalytic performance even with SO2present in reactant mixture.

Scientists Challenge Notion of Binary Sexuality with Naming of New Plant Species

A collaborative team of scientists from the US and Australia has named a new plant species from the remote Outback. Bucknell University biology postdoctoral fellow Angela McDonnell and professor Chris Martine led the description of the plant that had confounded field biologists for decades because of the unusual fluidity of its flower form. The discovery, published in the open access journal PhytoKeys, offers a powerful example of the diversity of sexual forms found among plants.

Sea Ice in Antarctica Showing a Brown Layer of Ice Algae (IMAGE)

Leaving Microbes Out of Climate Change Conversation Has Major Consequences, Experts Warn

More than 30 microbiologists from 9 countries have issued a warning to humanity - they are calling for the world to stop ignoring an 'unseen majority' in Earth's biodiversity and ecosystem when addressing climate change.

Jun 18, 2019 10:51 AM EDT

Looming Insect Invasion Threatens California Wine and Avocados

UC Riverside is testing whether a sesame seed-sized wasp can control a pest that could seriously damage California crops including wine, walnuts, and avocados.

Jun 18, 2019 10:17 AM EDT

Boaty McBoatface Mission Gives New Insight Into Warming Ocean Abyss

The first mission involving the autonomous submarine vehicle Autosub Long Range (better known as "Boaty McBoatface") has for the first time shed light on a key process linking increasing Antarctic winds to rising sea temperatures. Data collected from the expedition, published today in the scientific journal PNAS, will help climate scientists build more accurate predictions of the effects of climate change on rising sea levels.

Jun 18, 2019 09:41 AM EDT

Climate Change Threatens Commercial Fishers from Maine to North Carolina

Most fishing communities from North Carolina to Maine are projected to face declining fishing options unless they adapt to climate change by catching different species or fishing in different areas, according to a study in the journal Nature Climate Change.

Jun 17, 2019 02:18 PM EDT

U-M Researchers Testing Ways to Make Aspen-Dominated Forests Resilient to Climate Change

PELLSTON--In an aspen-dominated hardwood forest at the northern tip of the state's Lower Peninsula, University of Michigan scientists are testing ways to make the region's forests more resilient to climate change.

John Spicer, University of Plymouth (IMAGE)

Jun 17, 2019 11:57 AM EDT

The Complex Fate of Antarctic Species in the Face of a Changing Climate

Oxygen concentrations in both the open ocean and coastal waters have declined by 2-5% since at least the middle of the 20th century.

Incubating Red Knot in Greenland (IMAGE)

Jun 15, 2019 03:15 PM EDT

No Evidence for Increased Egg Predation in the Arctic

Climate and ecosystems are changing, but predation on shorebird nests has changed little across the globe over the past 60 years, finds an international team of 60 researchers. The study published in Scienceon 14 June 2019 challenges a recent claim that shorebird eggs are more often eaten by predators due to climate change, and more so in the Arctic compared to the tropics. The research shows that these claims are a methodological artefact.

Jun 15, 2019 11:37 AM EDT

Flickering Sky Islands Generate Andean Biodiversity

A new video shows how climate change connected and disconnected Andean "sky islands" during the past million years. The innovative mathematical model used to make the video was based on fossil pollen records and shows how the entire páramo habitat shifted. The model can predict climate change effects in mountainous regions around the world, according to an international team of scientists including authors from the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute in Panama (STRI).

Jun 14, 2019 08:07 AM EDT

Warming Waters in Western Tropical Pacific May Effect West Antarctic Ice Sheet

Warming waters in the western tropical Pacific Ocean have significantly increased thunderstorms and rainfall, which may affect the stability of the West Antarctic Ice Sheet and global sea-level rise, according to a Rutgers University-New Brunswick study.

Jun 14, 2019 08:01 AM EDT

Carbon-neutral Fuel Made from Sunlight and Air

Carbon-neutral fuels are crucial for making aviation and maritime transport sustainable. ETH researchers have developed a solar plant to produce synthetic liquid fuels that release as much CO2 during their combustion as previously extracted from the air for their production.

A Sifaka Lemur Munching on a Leaf (IMAGE)

Jun 14, 2019 07:57 AM EDT

The Surprising Reason Why Some Lemurs May be More Sensitive to Forest Loss

DURHAM, N.C. -- Duke University scientists have given us another way to tell which endangered lemur species are most at risk from deforestation -- based on the trillions of bacteria that inhabit their guts.

Jun 13, 2019 10:42 AM EDT

Old Ice and Snow Yields Tracer of Preindustrial Ozone

HOUSTON -- (June 12, 2019) -- Using rare oxygen molecules trapped in air bubbles in old ice and snow, U.S. and French scientists have answered a long-standing question: How much have "bad" ozone levels increased since the start of the Industrial Revolution?

Jun 11, 2019 10:40 AM EDT

Light-powered Nano-organisms Consume CO2, Create Eco-friendly Plastics and Fuels

University of Colorado Boulder researchers have developed nano bio-hybrid organisms capable of using airborne carbon dioxide and nitrogen to produce a variety of plastics and fuels, a promising first step toward low-cost carbon sequestration and eco-friendly manufacturing for chemicals.