Science Daily

A new study has found worrying signs that climate change may be undermining the capacity of Arctic fjords to serve as effective carbon sinks. The findings suggest that the capacity of polar oceans to remove carbon from the atmosphere may be reduced as the world continues to heat up.

A new study finds that presenting the same continuous climate data, such as incremental changes in temperature, in binary form -- such as whether a lake did or did not freeze in the winter -- significantly increases people's ability to see the impact of climate change.

Multiple climate 'tipping points' are likely to be triggered if global policies stay on their current course, new research shows.

Over the past two decades, satellite-based planetary observations have recorded rapid mass loss of Patagonian glaciers, contributing approximately 0.07 mm per year to global sea-level rise. A study links this mass loss to a poleward shift of subtropical high-pressure systems. This large-scale atmospheric circulation change brings more warm air to Patagonia, thereby accelerating glacier melt.

Scientists believe that the motion of Earth's continents through plate tectonics has been largely steady over millions of years. New research, however, suggests this drift can speed up or slow down over relatively short time periods.

A new study has shed unprecedented light on the highly variable and climate-sensitive routes that substances from Siberian rivers use to travel across the Arctic Ocean. The findings raise fresh concerns about the increasing spread of pollutants and the potential consequences for fragile polar ecosystems as climate change accelerates.

Whether for cooking, heating, as a light source or for making tools -- it is assumed that fire was essential for the survival of people in the Ice Age. However, it is puzzling that hardly any well-preserved evidence of fireplaces from the coldest period of the Ice Age in Europe has been found so far. A group of scientists has now been able to shed some light on the mystery of Ice Age fire. Their analysis of three hearths at a prehistoric site in Ukraine shows that people of the last Ice Age built different types of hearths and used mainly wood, but possibly also bones and fat, to fuel their fires.

A new study reveals the modern arid desert between Africa and Saudi Arabia was once regularly lush and green with rivers and lakes over a period of 8 million years, allowing for the occupation and movements of both animals and hominins.

An archaeological study of human settlement during the Final Palaeolithic revealed that populations in Europe did not decrease homogenously during the last cold phase of the Ice Age. Significant variation in regional population sizes indicate differentiated reactions nested in an overall shift of settlement areas towards the east.

People living in Bronze Age-era Denmark may have been able to travel to Norway directly over the open sea, according to a new study. To complete this study, the research team developed a new computer modeling tool that could help other scientists better understand how ancient peoples traversed the sea.

One of the ocean currents in the Arctic Ocean is at risk of disappearing this century because of climate change, according to a new study. As a result, the North Atlantic could be flooded with freshwater which would weaken the global ocean circulation.

A new study measured water vapor in Greenland's air, collecting data crucial for improving climate models and forecasting Arctic changes.

Why do some plants thrive in specific regions but not in others? A study explores the factors shaping plant distributions and how these patterns have changed over millions of years. Analyzing nearly 270,000 seed plant species worldwide, the research highlights the roles of environmental conditions and dispersal barriers in influencing global plant diversity.

Researchers found increased meltwater and rain explain 60% of a decades-long mismatch between predicted and observed temperatures in the ocean around Antarctica.

A storm, even once it has passed, can leave traces in the ocean that last for thousands of years. These consist of sediment layers composed of coarse particles, which are different from the finer sediments associated with good weather. In the Caribbean, an international research team has now examined such sediments using a 30 m long core from a 'blue hole' offshore Belize. The analysis shows that over the past 5,700 years, the frequency of tropical storms and hurricanes in the region has steadily increased. For the 21st century, the research team predicts a significant rise in regional storm frequency as a result of climate change.

Scientists will warn policymakers that the shrinking glaciers of the Andes threaten the water supply of 90 million people on the South American continent at the first-ever World Day for Glaciers hosted by UNESCO in Paris.

Southern elephant seals are the 'canary in the coal mine' for the Southern Ocean, offering insight into how the ecosystem may react to future climate change and human impact, new research shows.

A team of scientists have elucidated an ancient mechanism of cellular respiration. To that end, they studied bacteria that feed on the gases carbon dioxide and hydrogen, and turn them into acetic acid -- a metabolic pathway that emerged very early in evolution. The international team has now been able to resolve the mystery of how the microbes use this process to generate energy. Their findings are also interesting for another reason: Since the microorganisms remove CO2 from their environment, they are seen as a beacon of hope in the fight against climate change.

On decadal timescales, the loss of Arctic ice favors the climate of the south-west of the United States -- and California in particular -- becoming drier on average, especially in winter. This phenomenon would also affect the climate of Spain and Portugal, favoring conditions of higher humidity in winter, although in this case the observed effect is weaker.

Researchers have combined satellite collar data with specialized cameras to shed light on one of the most mysterious and important stages in polar bears' lives -- maternal denning, when bears give birth then emerge with their cubs.