Featured
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| Open AccessThe kaolinite shuttle links the Great Oxidation and Lomagundi events
Expanded phosphorus availability possibly triggered a marine bioproduction boom after 2.3 billion years ago, but its delivery mechanisms remain unclear. Here we propose a kaolinite shuttle which efficiently adsorbs phosphorus in continental weathering settings and releases it under marine conditions.
- Weiduo Hao
- , Kaarel Mänd
- & Kurt O. Konhauser
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Article
| Open AccessElectron donation of non-oxide supports boosts O2 activation on nano-platinum catalysts
Activation of O2 is a critical step in heterogeneous catalytic oxidation. Here, the authors adopt the concept of increased electron donors induced by nitrogen vacancy to develop an efficient strategy for preparing highly active and stable catalysts for molecular O2 activation.
- Tao Gan
- , Jingxiu Yang
- & Gang Liu
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Article
| Open AccessMarine ice-cliff instability modeling shows mixed-mode ice-cliff failure and yields calving rate parameterization
Ice-cliff failure that leads to marine ice-cliff instability could accelerate Antarctic Ice Sheet retreat. Here, the authors use 3D glacier models to investigate ice-cliff failure, derive a retreat rate relationship, and quantify mélange back force necessary to suppress ice-cliff failure.
- Anna J. Crawford
- , Douglas I. Benn
- & Thomas Zwinger
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Article
| Open AccessDeforestation reduces rainfall and agricultural revenues in the Brazilian Amazon
Deforestation in the Amazon region has suggested to influence precipitation in a non-linear way. Here, the authors show that forest loss is associated with decreasing precipitation after a scale-dependent threshold is crossed, which can cause stress on agriculture if deforestation is expanded.
- Argemiro Teixeira Leite-Filho
- , Britaldo Silveira Soares-Filho
- & Jan Börner
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Article
| Open AccessOn the optimality of 2°C targets and a decomposition of uncertainty
Determining attractive response strategies for international climate policy is a complex task. Here, the authors develop a meta-model that disentangles the main uncertainties using full literature ranges and use it to directly compare the insights of the cost-minimising and cost-benefit modelling communities.
- Kaj-Ivar van der Wijst
- , Andries F. Hof
- & Detlef P. van Vuuren
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Comment
| Open AccessPhotocatalytic air purification mimicking the self-cleaning process of the atmosphere
Photocatalytic air purification is a promising technology that mimics nature’s photochemical process, but its practical applications are still limited despite considerable research efforts in recent decades. Here, we briefly discuss the progress and challenges associated with this technology.
- Fei He
- , Woojung Jeon
- & Wonyong Choi
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Article
| Open AccessCosmogenic in situ 14C-10Be reveals abrupt Late Holocene soil loss in the Andean Altiplano
The assessment of soil sustainability in prehistoric times requires comparing millennium-scale erosion rates with geological background rates. Here, the authors apply in situ cosmogenic 14C, 10Be, and 26Al to reveal rapid soil erosion on the Andean Altiplano in response to Late Holocene climate change and the onset of agropastoralism.
- Kristina Hippe
- , John D. Jansen
- & David Lundbek Egholm
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Article
| Open AccessWildfires increasingly impact western US fluvial networks
The authors investigate the impacts of wildfires on fluvial networks in the western US. They find that wildfires directly impacted ~6% of the total stream length between 1984 and 2014. When longitudinal propagation was included, they estimate that wildfires affected ~11% of the total stream length.
- Grady Ball
- , Peter Regier
- & David Van Horn
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Article
| Open AccessTracking the global reduction of marine traffic during the COVID-19 pandemic
The COVID-19 response has led to unparalleled changes in the functioning of human society, from travel restrictions to changes in consumption. Here the authors use high resolution satellite data to track the global reduction in marine traffic during the pandemic, and more recent hints of recovery to pre-lockdown levels.
- David March
- , Kristian Metcalfe
- & Brendan J. Godley
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Article
| Open AccessZooplankton grazing of microplastic can accelerate global loss of ocean oxygen
Microplastic pollution is a major threat to marine food webs, but the wider ranging impacts on global ocean biogeochemistry are poorly understood. Here the authors use an Earth system model to determine that zooplankton grazing on microplastics could exacerbate trends in ocean oxygen loss.
- K. Kvale
- , A. E. F. Prowe
- & A. Oschlies
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Article
| Open AccessEnergy implications of the 21st century agrarian transition
The global agrarian transition is characterized by a rise in large-scale land acquisitions (LSLAs), whose energy impacts are unknown. Here, the authors assess how LSLAs change land use, finding that they necessitate greater investment in energy to meet demands, and greater greenhouse gas emissions.
- Lorenzo Rosa
- , Maria Cristina Rulli
- & Paolo D’Odorico
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Article
| Open AccessGlobal connections between El Nino and landslide impacts
This study investigates the relation between El Nino and landslide impacts. The authors show how El Nino and La Nina can cause swings in exposure of population to landslides that are as large as those due to rainy-season/dry-season variability in key locations, particularly South America.
- Robert Emberson
- , Dalia Kirschbaum
- & Thomas Stanley
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Article
| Open AccessAlternative carbon price trajectories can avoid excessive carbon removal
Many trajectories for reaching climate change mitigation targets exaggerate the long-term need for CO2 removal (CDR) because they assume an exponentially increasing carbon price. Here the authors analyse alternative carbon price pathways that halt warming while limiting CDR, and may be easier to implement.
- Jessica Strefler
- , Elmar Kriegler
- & Ottmar Edenhofer
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Article
| Open AccessOrganic matter mineralization in modern and ancient ferruginous sediments
The conditions that shaped Earth’s evolution during the Archaean and Proterozoic Eons remain unknown. Using Lake Towuti in Indonesia as an analog of early oceans the authors find that microbial methanogenesis exerts a strong influence with important implications for the composition of Earth’s early atmosphere.
- André Friese
- , Kohen Bauer
- & Jens Kallmeyer
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| Open AccessThe presence of Superfund sites as a determinant of life expectancy in the United States
Superfund sites have hazardous wastes that could affect the health of those who live near them, but this has not been assessed across the USA. Here the authors find that proximity to superfund sites decreases life expectancy and is further exacerbated by sociodemographic and climate change factors.
- Amin Kiaghadi
- , Hanadi S. Rifai
- & Clint N. Dawson
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| Open AccessIncreased respiratory morbidity associated with exposure to a mature volcanic plume from a large Icelandic fissure eruption
Large fissure eruptions can cause air pollution events when the volcanic plume returns to the same area after the initial advisory has been lifted. Here, the authors show that these events had a significant impact on health care usage in Iceland, and the impact was exacerbated when advisories were not issued successfully.
- Hanne Krage Carlsen
- , Evgenia Ilyinskaya
- & Thorolfur Gudnason
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| Open AccessEfficiency stagnation in global steel production urges joint supply- and demand-side mitigation efforts
The effectiveness of large historical efforts for decarbonizing steel production is unclear. Here, the authors show that such efficiency gains were offset by a booming steel demand increase. This has led to a stagnating decarbonization progress over past decades, which jeopardizes realization of future climate targets.
- Peng Wang
- , Morten Ryberg
- & Wei-Qiang Chen
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Article
| Open AccessSulfate formation is dominated by manganese-catalyzed oxidation of SO2 on aerosol surfaces during haze events
Sulfate aerosols are an important component of wintertime haze events in China, but their production mechanisms are not well known. Here, the authors show that transition metal-catalyzed oxidation of SO2 on aerosol surfaces could be the dominant sulfate formation pathway in Northern China.
- Weigang Wang
- , Mingyuan Liu
- & Maofa Ge
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| Open AccessBomb 137Cs in modern honey reveals a regional soil control on pollutant cycling by plants
Radioactive 137Cs is a fission product remaining in the environment from mid-20th century nuclear testing. Here the authors show that vegetation thousands of kilometers from testing sites continues to cycle 137Cs, and consequently, bees magnify this contaminant in honey in regions with low soil potassium.
- J. M. Kaste
- , P. Volante
- & A. J. Elmore
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| Open AccessVegetation feedback causes delayed ecosystem response to East Asian Summer Monsoon Rainfall during the Holocene
How the East Asian Summer Monsoon has changed over the Holocene has been debated, as some proxy records disagree with each other. Here, the authors suggest that monsoonal rainfall peaked in the early Holocene, while ecosystem responses peaked in the mid-Holocene, explaining the differences between records.
- Jun Cheng
- , Haibin Wu
- & Yaoming Song
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Article
| Open AccessLocal and global trace plutonium contributions in fast breeder legacy soils
This study proposes a method to differentiate between local plutonium-based contamination in soils versus trace plutonium stemming from global dispersion in the past, such as fallout from detonation and atmospheric testing of nuclear weapons.
- Chris Tighe
- , Maxi Castrillejo
- & Malcolm J. Joyce
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Article
| Open AccessENSO modulates wildfire activity in China
Fire activity in China and its associations with climate are not well quantified at a local scale. Here, the authors present a detailed fire occurrence dataset for China and find a dipole fire pattern between southwestern and southeastern China that is modulated by the El Niño-Southern Oscillation (ENSO).
- Keyan Fang
- , Qichao Yao
- & Valerie Trouet
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Article
| Open AccessPhotolytic radical persistence due to anoxia in viscous aerosol particles
Sunlight can change the composition of atmospheric aerosol particles, but the mechanisms through which this happens are not well known. Here, the authors show that fast radical reaction and slow diffusion near viscous organic particle surfaces can cause oxygen depletion, radical trapping and humidity dependent oxidation.
- Peter A. Alpert
- , Jing Dou
- & Markus Ammann
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Article
| Open AccessSeasonal overturn and stratification changes drive deep-water warming in one of Earth’s largest lakes
This study presents hourly data from a thermistor string in Lake Michigan, inspecting its response at depth to surface warming. Based on the data, the study suggests bottom lake temperatures respond to changes in turnover and re-stratification, with the ultimate possibility of the lake shifting from dimictic to monomictic.
- Eric J. Anderson
- , Craig A. Stow
- & Nathan Hawley
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| Open AccessProspective contributions of biomass pyrolysis to China’s 2050 carbon reduction and renewable energy goals
BIPP with biochar sequestration is a ready-to-implement negative emission technology in China. Here, the authors show that its national deployment could contribute to a 61% reduction of carbon emissions per GDP in 2030 compared to 2005, and contribute 13–31% of the global biomass-based negative emission goal by 2050.
- Qing Yang
- , Hewen Zhou
- & Michael B. McElroy
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| Open AccessMalaria trends in Ethiopian highlands track the 2000 ‘slowdown’ in global warming
The effect of climate change on highland malaria transmission remains unclear because of increasing and decreasing trends. Here, Rodó et al. analyze malaria case data and climate data for the Ethiopian highlands from 1968 to 2008 and find that changes in temperature and associated climate variability facilitated the effect of interventions at the beginning of the 21st century.
- Xavier Rodó
- , Pamela P. Martinez
- & Mercedes Pascual
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Article
| Open AccessMean sea surface temperature changes influence ENSO-related precipitation changes in the mid-latitudes
El Niño-driven precipitation profoundly affects the mid-latitudes, but how this impact changes in the future is uncertain. Here, the authors show that changes in the tropical Pacific sea surface temperatures causes an increase in rainfall linked to El Niño events of about 20% over East Asia and North America.
- Young-Min Yang
- , Jae-Heung Park
- & Xiao Luo
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Article
| Open AccessPotentially bioavailable iron produced through benthic cycling in glaciated Arctic fjords of Svalbard
The impacts of a melting Arctic on the biogeochemistry of marine ecosystems are unknown. Here, the authors investigate glacial input of iron to Svalbard fjords finding that reworking of glacial iron in fjord sediment is important to make iron bioavailable, but could be susceptible to glacial retreat.
- Katja Laufer-Meiser
- , Alexander B. Michaud
- & Bo Barker Jørgensen
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Article
| Open AccessGlobal irrigation contribution to wheat and maize yield
There are big uncertainties in the contribution of irrigation to crop yields. Here, the authors use Bayesian model averaging to combine statistical and process-based models and quantify the contribution of irrigation for wheat and maize yields, finding that irrigation alone cannot close yield gaps for a large fraction of global rainfed agriculture.
- Xuhui Wang
- , Christoph Müller
- & Shilong Piao
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Matters Arising
| Open AccessOxic methanogenesis is only a minor source of lake-wide diffusive CH4 emissions from lakes
- F. Peeters
- & H. Hofmann
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Article
| Open AccessCoupled nitrification and N2 gas production as a cryptic process in oxic riverbeds
The N cycle involves complex, microbially-mediated shuttling between ammonium, nitrite and nitrate, with climatically important greenhouse gas byproducts. Here the authors use isotope labeling experiments in river sediments and find a cryptic new step in the N cycle between nitrification and the removal of fixed N through N2 gas production.
- Liao Ouyang
- , Bo Thamdrup
- & Mark Trimmer
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Matters Arising
| Open AccessCorrelation between paddy rice growth and satellite-observed methane column abundance does not imply causation
- Zhao-Cheng Zeng
- , Brendan Byrne
- & Liping Lei
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Article
| Open AccessProjecting heat-related excess mortality under climate change scenarios in China
Global warming is expected to increase mortality due to heat stress in many regions. Here, the authors asses how mortality due to high temperatures changes in China changes for different demographic groups and show that heat-related excess mortality is increasing under climate change, a process that is strongly amplified by population ageing.
- Jun Yang
- , Maigeng Zhou
- & Qiyong Liu
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Article
| Open AccessParticle number-based trophic transfer of gold nanomaterials in an aquatic food chain
Biological fate of nanomaterials in organisms is an important topic, however, limitations of analytical techniques has hampered understanding. Here, the authors report on a study into the fate of model, gold nanoparticles in an aquatic food chain using an analytical workflow and range of analytical methods.
- Fazel Abdolahpur Monikh
- , Latifeh Chupani
- & Willie J.G.M. Peijnenburg
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Article
| Open AccessCarbon dioxide utilization in concrete curing or mixing might not produce a net climate benefit
Carbon curing or mixing in concrete is promising for carbon dioxide sequestration. Here, the authors show that the increased use of binder material to compensate the loss in compressive strength and electricity for carbon dioxide curing is more likely to increase carbon dioxide emissions on a life cycle basis for carbon cured or mixed concrete.
- Dwarakanath Ravikumar
- , Duo Zhang
- & Victor Li
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| Open AccessAn unknown source of reactor radionuclides in the Baltic Sea revealed by multi-isotope fingerprints
Anthropogenic activities lead to the accumulation of radioactive substances in the environment. Here the authors use multi-isotopic fingerprints of uranium and iodine to discover a previously unknown source of reactor uranium in the Baltic Sea, likely sourced from a Swedish nuclear facility.
- Jixin Qiao
- , Haitao Zhang
- & Robin Golser
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Article
| Open AccessC-STABILITY an innovative modeling framework to leverage the continuous representation of organic matter
Soil organic matter (SOM) is a huge sink of carbon, but the varied flux dynamics are challenging to predict. Here, the authors present a new model with the complexities of SOM cycling, including parameters for substrate accessibility, microbe diversity, and enzymatic substrate depolymerization.
- Julien Sainte-Marie
- , Matthieu Barrandon
- & Delphine Derrien
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Article
| Open AccessWaveguide photoreactor enhances solar fuels photon utilization towards maximal optoelectronic – photocatalytic synergy
Concentrating photo-intensities on photocatalyst has diminishing returns. Here the authors show the catalyst on glass rod waveguide at optimal low intensity results in high efficiency in the gas phase reverse water gas shift reaction in an annular glass cylindrical rod photoreactor.
- Joel Y. Y. Loh
- , Abhinav Mohan
- & Nazir P. Kherani
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Article
| Open AccessDiabatic heating governs the seasonality of the Atlantic Niño
The relative roles of the ocean and atmosphere for the Atlantic Niño is poorly understood. Here, we show that its seasonality is governed by atmospheric diabatic heating that is associated with the seasonal migration of the inter-tropical convergence zone.
- Hyacinth C. Nnamchi
- , Mojib Latif
- & Ingo Richter
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Article
| Open AccessStructures and reactivity of peroxy radicals and dimeric products revealed by online tandem mass spectrometry
Organic peroxy radicals play a pivotal role in producing highly oxygenated organic molecules but the formation mechanisms remain elusive. Here, the authors show in-situ characterization of peroxy radicals and dimer structures in the gas-phase, using online tandem mass spectrometry analyses.
- Sophie Tomaz
- , Dongyu Wang
- & Matthieu Riva
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Article
| Open AccessPervasive distribution of polyester fibres in the Arctic Ocean is driven by Atlantic inputs
Microplastics have spread across the globe and reached even the most remote locations, but an understanding of their origins remains largely elusive. Here the authors quantify and characterise microplastics across the North Pole, finding that synthetic fibers like polyester are dominant and likely sourced from the Atlantic Ocean.
- Peter S. Ross
- , Stephen Chastain
- & Bill Williams
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Article
| Open AccessMillennial scale persistence of organic carbon bound to iron in Arctic marine sediments
Burial of organic material in marine sediments can sequester massive amounts of carbon, but the dynamics of this carbon sink are poorly understood. Here the authors investigate the so-called rusty carbon sink in Arctic shelf sediments, finding that organic carbon-iron associations are stable for 1000 s of years.
- Johan C. Faust
- , Allyson Tessin
- & Christian März
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Article
| Open AccessIntegrating single-cobalt-site and electric field of boron nitride in dechlorination electrocatalysts by bioinspired design
Bridging the biocatalytic repertoire and the effective environmental remediation remains a great challenge. Here, inspired by the dehalogenases, the authors designed a single atom Co catalyst on carbon doped boron nitride that exhibits high stability and selectivity in dechlorination.
- Yuan Min
- , Xiao Zhou
- & Yuen Wu
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Article
| Open AccessImportant contributions of non-fossil fuel nitrogen oxides emissions
This study investigates in the importance of non-fossil fuel NOx emissions in the surface-earth-nitrogen cycle. The study shows how changes of regional human activities directly influence δ15N signatures of deposited NOx to terrestrial environments and that emissions have largely been underestimated.
- Wei Song
- , Xue-Yan Liu
- & Cong-Qiang Liu
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Article
| Open AccessGroundwater discharge impacts marine isotope budgets of Li, Mg, Ca, Sr, and Ba
Groundwater discharge is a mechanism that transports chemicals from inland systems to the ocean, but it has been considered of secondary influence compared to rivers. Here the authors assess the global significance of groundwater discharge, finding that it has a unique and important contribution to ocean chemistry and Earth-system models.
- Kimberley K. Mayfield
- , Anton Eisenhauer
- & Adina Paytan
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Article
| Open AccessThermocatalytic hydrogen peroxide generation and environmental disinfection by Bi2Te3 nanoplates
Temperature difference induced H2O2 generation by thermoelectric materials is an attractive strategy for environmental remediation purposes. Here the authors demonstrate Bi2Te3 nanoplates based antibacterial filter as an effective candidate for indoor disinfection applications.
- Yu-Jiung Lin
- , Imran Khan
- & Zong-Hong Lin
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Article
| Open AccessExposure to pesticides in utero impacts the fetal immune system and response to vaccination in infancy
Control of mosquito populations using pesticides is important for malaria elimination, but effects of pesticides on humans aren’t well understood. Here, Prahl et al. show in a cohort of pregnant Ugandan women and their infants that household spraying with bendiocarb affects the fetal immune system and response to vaccination in infancy.
- Mary Prahl
- , Pamela Odorizzi
- & Margaret E. Feeney
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Article
| Open AccessA new hypothesis for the origin of Amazonian Dark Earths
Amazonian Dark Earth is soil that has had mysteriously high fertility since ancient times, despite the fact that surrounding soils have very low nutrients. Here the authors’ use of isotope reconstructions indicate that these soils predate human settlement and could have alluvial and burning origins.
- Lucas C. R. Silva
- , Rodrigo Studart Corrêa
- & Roberto Ventura Santos
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Matters Arising
| Open AccessReply to: “Variables in the effect of land use on soil extrapore enzymatic activity and carbon stabilization” by Glenn (2020)
- A. N. Kravchenko
- , A. K. Guber
- & Y. Kuzyakov