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Water quality of the Asian Water Tower is far less studied than water quantity, but expected increases in upstream riverine chemical fluxes and lowland pollutant release could exacerbate water quality deterioration downstream. Data sharing, integrated modelling, and joint actions are needed to mitigate this problem.
Lucas Silva describes how the centrifugal ice microtrome can liberate air bubbles in ice cores to understand past atmospheric greenhouse gas concentrations.
Megadroughts can be defined as persistent, multi-year droughts that are exceptional compared with other regional events during the Common Era. This Review discusses palaeo reconstructions of megadroughts over the past 2,000 years, and outlines the impact of anthropogenic forcing on the severity and frequency of observed and projected events.
The Tibetan Plateau plays a central role in global atmospheric circulation, acts as a key biodiversity hotspot, and delivers fresh water for more than 20% of the global population. Projecting its future uplift and erosion trajectory over geological time can offer potential testable hypotheses into interactions between tectonic and surface processes.
Warming and human activities are affecting biogeochemical cycling on the Qinghai–Tibetan Plateau. This Review examines the impacts on carbon and nitrogen cycling, detailing current stocks and changing fluxes.
Entrepreneurs are important actors in effectively managing marine plastic pollution, but they face unique challenges in developing sustainable business models within an unsustainable system. However, marine plastic entrepreneurs can engage with these tensions to create far-reaching social change beyond their business models.
Asian Monsoon initiation is thought to be related to Tibetan Plateau uplift, but the timings and mechanisms are debated. This Review discusses a two-stage development of the Asian Monsoon: northward expansion ~41 million years ago (Ma), and attainment of a modern-like pattern at ~26 Ma.
Iron oxide–apatite ore deposits are a key source of iron and contain a number of critical technology metals needed for the sustainable energy transition. This Review explores the hydrothermal, magmatic and tectonic conditions required to efficiently enrich iron-rich minerals in the upper crust.
Ileana Callejas discusses how remote sensing can be used to monitor water quality in coastal regions,including tracking sewage plumes, algal blooms and oil spills.
Climate change and anthropogenic activities are altering grasslands on the Qinghai–Tibetan Plateau. This Review examines vegetation and soil changes, and the role of various drivers in affecting them.
Bumsoo Kim explains how lipid biomarkers in the sedimentary record can be used to trace gas hydrate destabilization and methane-release events in the geological past.
The scale and tragedy of the giant tsunamis in 2004, 2010 and 2011 led to a revolution in tsunami monitoring. This Review assesses the advances in tsunami observation, monitoring and hazard assessment, which have allowed near-real-time early warning systems to be developed.
