Editorial |
Featured
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News & Views |
High clouds and higher sensitivity
Observations, theory, and modelling reduce the uncertainty in high cloud feedbacks, suggesting a higher climate sensitivity than previously thought.
- Aiko Voigt
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Article |
Asymmetric impacts of forest gain and loss on tropical land surface temperature
The impact of forest loss on land surface temperature in the tropics is five times greater than the response to forest gain, according to satellite observations of temperature and land cover.
- Yuxiang Zhang
- , Xuhui Wang
- & Shilong Piao
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Research Briefing |
Evidence of strong aerosol cooling implies great efficacy of marine cloud brightening
Aerosol–cloud interactions are the largest uncertainty in radiative forcing. We combined machine learning and long-term satellite observations to quantify aerosol fingerprints on tropical marine clouds, using degassing volcanic events in Hawaii as natural experiences, and found that cloud cover increased relatively by 50% in humid and stable atmosphere, leading to strong cooling radiative forcing.
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Article |
Weakening of the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation abyssal limb in the North Atlantic
Mooring observations and hydrographic data suggest the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation abyssal limb has weakened over the past two decades in the North Atlantic, most likely due to reduced Antarctic Bottom Water formation rates.
- Tiago Carrilho Biló
- , Renellys C. Perez
- & Torsten Kanzow
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Article |
Greater climate sensitivity implied by anvil cloud thinning
Changes in anvil clouds with warming do not produce a negative feedback on climate sensitivity as previously thought, according to an ensemble of cloud-resolving models.
- Adam B. Sokol
- , Casey J. Wall
- & Dennis L. Hartmann
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Article
| Open Access
Substantial cooling effect from aerosol-induced increase in tropical marine cloud cover
Satellite observations from volcanic eruptions suggest that aerosols induce substantial cooling due to the reflectivity of increased tropical marine cloud cover, implying a high climate sensitivity.
- Ying Chen
- , Jim Haywood
- & Ulrike Lohmann
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Article
| Open Access
Weak anvil cloud area feedback suggested by physical and observational constraints
Tight physical and observational constraints suggest the anvil cloud area feedback is weak, but the anvil cloud albedo feedback remains highly uncertain.
- Brett McKim
- , Sandrine Bony
- & Jean-Louis Dufresne
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Article
| Open Access
Rockfall from an increasingly unstable mountain slope driven by climate warming
Climate warming has driven increased rockfall from an unstable mountain slope in the Swiss Alps, according to a record of rockfall activity spanning the past century based on tree damage.
- Markus Stoffel
- , Daniel G. Trappmann
- & Christophe Corona
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Article
| Open Access
Emergent temperature sensitivity of soil organic carbon driven by mineral associations
Temperature sensitivity of bulk soil carbon stocks is controlled by the compositional distribution between mineral-associated and particulate carbon, according to analyses of global soil carbon pools.
- Katerina Georgiou
- , Charles D. Koven
- & Robert B. Jackson
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Article |
Recent pronounced warming on the Mongolian Plateau boosted by internal climate variability
Relatively strong warming over the Mongolian Plateau in recent decades can be explained, in part, by synchronous internal climate oscillations, according to climate model experiments.
- Qingyu Cai
- , Wen Chen
- & Xiaoqing Lan
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Article
| Open Access
Drought response of the boreal forest carbon sink is driven by understorey–tree composition
Carbon sink in young boreal forests is more vulnerable to drought than in mature forests due to the greater contribution and drought sensitivity of understorey relative to trees, according to carbon flux assessments of managed boreal forests in northern Sweden during the 2018 European summer drought.
- Eduardo Martínez-García
- , Mats B. Nilsson
- & Matthias Peichl
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Editorial |
Melting ice core archives
Urgent efforts are needed to collect and preserve ice cores from mountain glaciers before these archives are lost.
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Article
| Open Access
Regional variations in relative sea-level changes influenced by nonlinear vertical land motion
A probabilistic reconstruction of vertical land motion reveals regional variations in relative sea-level changes and large uncertainties in sea-level projections due to nonlinear effects.
- Julius Oelsmann
- , Marta Marcos
- & Florian Seitz
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Brief Communication
| Open Access
High-altitude glacier archives lost due to climate change-related melting
Information on past environmental conditions stored within high-altitude glaciers is being lost due to accelerated melting associated with climate change, according to ice core analysis from a Swiss glacier.
- C. J. Huber
- , A. Eichler
- & M. Schwikowski
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Article |
Regional rare-earth element supply and demand balanced with circular economy strategies
Mobilization of in-use rare-earth element stocks in regions of high consumption can ease dependence on regions of rare-earth extraction, according to dynamic integrated modelling combining material flow and scenario analysis.
- Peng Wang
- , Yu-Yao Yang
- & Wei-Qiang Chen
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Article |
Relative increases in CH4 and CO2 emissions from wetlands under global warming dependent on soil carbon substrates
Soil carbon substrates affect how methane and CO2 emissions from global wetlands change in response to climate warming, according to global analyses of temperature sensitivity of wetland carbon emissions.
- Han Hu
- , Ji Chen
- & Yuting Liang
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Article |
Recent human-induced atmospheric drying across Europe unprecedented in the last 400 years
The atmosphere has dried across most regions of Europe in recent decades, a trend that can be attributed primarily to human impacts, according to tree ring records spanning 400 years and Earth system model simulations.
- Kerstin Treydte
- , Laibao Liu
- & Neil J. Loader
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Article
| Open Access
Long-distance migration and venting of methane from the base of the hydrate stability zone
Methane dissociated from the base of the hydrate stability zone off Mauritania during warm interglacials travelled up to 40 km landward beyond where methane hydrates are typically found before venting out, according to 3D seismic imagery.
- Richard J. Davies
- , Jinxiu Yang
- & Mads Huuse
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News & Views |
Plankton reveal past climate
Marine microfossil assemblages refine sea surface temperature patterns and yield insights into discrepancies between paleoclimate models of the last ice age and observations.
- Marci M. Robinson
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Article
| Open Access
Local cooling and drying induced by Himalayan glaciers under global warming
High-elevation meteorological observations and reanalysis data indicate local cooling and drying near Himalayan glaciers due to enhanced katabatic winds in response to global warming.
- Franco Salerno
- , Nicolas Guyennon
- & Francesca Pellicciotti
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Article |
Enhanced stability of grassland soil temperature by plant diversity
Plant diversity stabilizes grassland soil temperature by boosting soil organic carbon and increasing plant leaf area, according to an 18-year plant diversity experiment.
- Yuanyuan Huang
- , Gideon Stein
- & Nico Eisenhauer
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Article |
Atmospheric methane variability through the Last Glacial Maximum and deglaciation mainly controlled by tropical sources
Abrupt changes in atmospheric methane through the last deglaciation were largely the result of tropical sources responding to shifting rainfall patterns, according to a comparison of precisely dated ice cores in Greenland and Antarctica.
- Ben Riddell-Young
- , Julia Rosen
- & Thomas Blunier
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Article
| Open Access
Frequent marine heatwaves hidden below the surface of the global ocean
Substantial numbers of marine heatwaves are hidden globally below the sea surface, according to analyses of ocean temperature data.
- Di Sun
- , Furong Li
- & Bohai Zhang
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Article
| Open Access
Radiative forcing from aerosol–cloud interactions enhanced by large-scale circulation adjustments
Convection-permitting simulations suggest that the radiative impact of aerosol–cloud interactions is enhanced by adjustments to large-scale circulation, which increase cloudiness.
- Guy Dagan
- , Netta Yeheskel
- & Andrew I. L. Williams
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Article |
Southeast Asian ecological dependency on Tibetan Plateau streamflow over the last millennium
Reconstructions of Tibetan Plateau streamflow over the last millennia reveal close associations with dry season vegetation and major population shifts in Southeast Asia.
- Feng Chen
- , Wenmin Man
- & Fahu Chen
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Article
| Open Access
Substantial and increasing global losses of timber-producing forest due to wildfires
Wildfires have caused widespread and increasingly severe losses within timber-producing forests in recent decades, according to maps of logging activity and wildfires.
- Christopher G. Bousfield
- , David. B. Lindenmayer
- & David P. Edwards
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Article
| Open Access
Extratropical forests increasingly at risk due to lightning fires
Lightning-induced fires account for 77% of the burned area in extratropical intact forests, and lightning ignitions will probably become more frequent as the global climate warms, according to a global attribution of lightning and anthropogenic fires from 2001 to 2020.
- Thomas A. J. Janssen
- , Matthew W. Jones
- & Sander Veraverbeke
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Article
| Open Access
Early Eocene low orography and high methane enhance Arctic warming via polar stratospheric clouds
Indirect forcing by low regional orography and high atmospheric methane levels contributed to the amplified Arctic temperatures in the early Eocene by enhancing polar stratospheric cloud formation, according to an atmospheric model with interactive chemistry.
- Deepashree Dutta
- , Martin Jucker
- & Jiang Zhu
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Perspective |
Regional but not global temperature variability underestimated by climate models at supradecadal timescales
Discrepancies between model simulations and proxy reconstructions of regional multidecadal to centennial climate variability are primarily due to climate model deficiencies, which might also impact future projections, according to a synthesis of recent work.
- T. Laepple
- , E. Ziegler
- & K. Rehfeld
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Article |
Global increase in biomass carbon stock dominated by growth of northern young forests over past decade
A decade of satellite observations suggests that old, degraded and deforested tropical forests are almost carbon neutral whereas northern young forests are the biggest contributor to the rising amount of carbon stored globally in vegetation.
- Hui Yang
- , Philippe Ciais
- & Jean-Pierre Wigneron
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Article |
Elevated Grand Canyon groundwater recharge during the warm Early Holocene
Early Holocene groundwater recharge rates were higher than modern in the Grand Canyon region, probably due to an expanded North American Monsoon, according to a speleothem record and isotope-enabled palaeoclimate modelling.
- Matthew S. Lachniet
- , Xiaojing Du
- & Benjamin W. Tobin
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Article
| Open Access
Climate extremes likely to drive land mammal extinction during next supercontinent assembly
The Earth may become inhospitable to land mammals in about 250 Myr owing to climate warming and drying associated with the assembly of the next supercontinent, Pangaea-Ultima, according to combined tectonic, climate and mammal habitability modelling.
- Alexander Farnsworth
- , Y. T. Eunice Lo
- & Hannah R. Wakeford
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Research Briefing |
Bubble bursts increase melt rates of tidewater glaciers
Glacier ice contains high-pressure air bubbles, which burst into seawater as ice melts at tidewater glacier termini. Laboratory measurements found that these bubbles double the rate of ice melt. Theoretically, this effect could be even larger in a real glacier. However, bursting bubbles are currently neglected in models projecting sea level rise.
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Editorial |
Heatwave resilience
Climate change together with the recent onset of El Niño this year has led to widespread heatwaves. As these events become increasingly commonplace, cities around the world urgently need to build resilience to heat.
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News & Views |
Cooler forests in clean air
Improving air quality by reducing atmospheric aerosols can bring valuable health benefits, but also generally leads to warming. Now, research suggests that in cleaner air the local cooling effect of planting trees may be stronger in middle and low latitude regions.
- Liang Chen
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Article |
Local surface cooling from afforestation amplified by lower aerosol pollution
Climate model simulations suggest that reducing aerosol pollution enhances the cooling effects of afforestation, which could partially counteract the warming effect of air quality measures.
- Jun Ge
- , Xin Huang
- & Weidong Guo
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Article
| Open Access
Recent global climate feedback controlled by Southern Ocean cooling
The temporal evolution of the net global climate feedback in recent decades has been governed by sea surface temperature patterns in the Southern Ocean, according to climate model simulations.
- Sarah M. Kang
- , Paulo Ceppi
- & In-Sik Kang
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Article |
Recent trends in the chemistry of major northern rivers signal widespread Arctic change
Divergent trends in biogeochemical constituents of the six largest rivers in the Arctic from 2003 to 2019 support multi-faceted changes on the Arctic landscape under global environmental change.
- Suzanne E. Tank
- , James W. McClelland
- & Robert M. Holmes
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Comment |
Communicating the link between climate change and extreme rain events
Extreme rainfall events are often linked to climate change based on simple thermodynamic arguments, but complex dynamic processes also play a role. Scientists have a responsibility to ensure they provide accurate information to the media and public.
- Andrew D. King
- , Kimberley J. Reid
- & Kate R. Saunders
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Article
| Open Access
Widespread shallow mesoscale circulations observed in the trades
Atmospheric observations show the presence of shallow mesoscale circulations in the North Atlantic trades and demonstrate their widespread influence on atmospheric moisture and, consequently, clouds.
- Geet George
- , Bjorn Stevens
- & Ann Kristin Naumann
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Article
| Open Access
Response of stratospheric water vapour to warming constrained by satellite observations
Uncertainty in stratospheric water vapour projections is reduced using an observational constraint based on historical co-variations between atmospheric temperature and water vapour.
- Peer Nowack
- , Paulo Ceppi
- & Manoj Joshi
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Article
| Open Access
Increased tropical South Pacific western boundary current transport over the past century
The low-latitude western boundary current in the South Pacific Ocean strengthened as climate warmed over the past 100 years, according to a coral nitrogen isotope record from the Solomon Sea.
- Wen-Hui Chen
- , Haojia Ren
- & Xingchen Tony Wang
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Article |
Record of pre-industrial atmospheric sulfate in continental interiors
Atmospheric sulfate aerosols—which could cool the atmosphere—were formed in less acidic cloud water in continental interiors in pre-industrial time than today, according to a triple oxygen isotope analysis of sulfate in weathering carbonates.
- Yongbo Peng
- , Shohei Hattori
- & Huiming Bao
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Article
| Open Access
Highly variable friction and slip observed at Antarctic ice stream bed
Passive seismic observations from the Rutford Ice Stream in Antarctica reveal a highly complex bed and substantial variability in friction and slip rates at the ice–bed interface.
- T. S. Hudson
- , S. K. Kufner
- & T. Murray
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Editorial |
Reversing climate overshoot
Temporarily overshooting climate targets is a distinct possibility given our current emissions trajectory. It is crucial that we understand which of the associated impacts are reversible, and to what extent.
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Article |
High natural nitric oxide emissions from lakes on Tibetan Plateau under rapid warming
High-resolution satellite observations reveal that large lakes on the Tibetan Plateau have total nitric oxide emissions comparable to anthropogenic emissions from individual megacities worldwide.
- Hao Kong
- , Jintai Lin
- & Wanyun Xu
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Article
| Open Access
Fossil organic carbon utilization in marine Arctic fjord sediments by subsurface micro-organisms
Ancient, rock-derived organic matter is consumed by micro-organisms in Arctic fjord sediments despite its presumed limited bioavailability, representing a potential source of greenhouse gas emissions, according to compound-specific radiocarbon analyses of lipids from living bacteria.
- Manuel Ruben
- , Jens Hefter
- & Gesine Mollenhauer
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Article
| Open Access
Positive correlation between wet-day frequency and intensity linked to universal precipitation drivers
Precipitation frequency and intensity across different geographic regions are positively correlated in reanalysis data and observations, suggesting universal precipitation-generating processes.
- Cameron McErlich
- , Adrian McDonald
- & Sapna Rana
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Article
| Open Access
Direct observation of Earth’s spectral long-wave feedback parameter
Earth’s spectral long-wave feedback parameter can be directly observed using satellite measurements, revealing the influence of relative humidity on climate feedbacks.
- Florian E. Roemer
- , Stefan A. Buehler
- & Viju O. John
Clouds and climate