News & Views

The erosion of melting permafrost in the coastal Arctic Ocean is projected to lower the ocean’s capacity to absorb carbon dioxide, triggering unexpected carbon–climate feedbacks in the Arctic region.

Technological feasibility and project-level economic costs are only two important considerations in previous estimations of climate mitigation costs. Now a study shows how political and institutional constraints matter too.

Climate change threatens the role of forests as long-term carbon sinks. Tree planting programmes that incorporate assisted migration of tree species and seed sources can help to mitigate this impact.

Governments are increasingly using industrial policy to develop low-carbon economic sectors and catalyse the energy transition. A recent study provides a framework to explain why governments adopt different types of green industrial policy, depending on industry position in the global supply chain and types of uncertainty.

Effective climate action requires understanding of the contribution of individual actions, firms and industries to greenhouse gas emissions. Now a study illustrates widespread misestimations of emission impacts and reveals underlying psychological processes.

Maternal exposure to ambient heat during pregnancy has been shown to increase the risk for several adverse birth outcomes. Now research reveals that variations of ambient temperature during pregnancy and childhood could have a long-term impact on a child’s brain development.

Long-term monitoring is required to determine whether climate change is having an impact on shallow geohazard frequency and magnitude; however, these records rarely exist. An innovative approach, using tree damage as evidence, suggests climate change has shifted the seasonality of alpine rockfalls as well as increasing their frequency and volume.

Residents of informal settlements suffer from extreme weather due to their precarious living environment. Now, findings show that extreme weather event thresholds do not fully capture the negative impacts experienced by women in Nairobi, Kenya.

Global projections of the economic impacts of climate change have usually focused on rising average temperatures. Now, two studies depict more complex and gloomier scenarios by incorporating variability in temperature and precipitation.

International cooperation is essential to mitigate climate change, yet it comes with challenges that often hinder countries from achieving their climate targets. Now, a study shows that timely monitoring and review of national climate mitigation efforts are essential for the Paris Agreement to accomplish its targets.

As climate change redirects migration patterns of marine species towards the extremes of their geographic range, sharks find themselves stunned by rising cold upwelling currents.

Meteorites recovered from Antarctica provide a bounty of materials from asteroids and planets and revolutionized the field of meteoritics. Warming temperatures in Antarctica may lead to the loss of a significant fraction of meteorites exposed at the surface and thus threaten the impact Antarctic meteorites have on planetary science.

The ocean stores about 30% of the carbon emitted by human activities, regulating atmospheric CO₂ levels and the Earth’s climate. Research suggests that this uptake of CO₂ has strengthened much faster in coastal ocean waters than in the open ocean due to enhanced biological activity.

Local governments need extensive funding to realize transformative climate ambitions and this raises the spectre of privileging outside interests over just transitions. Now, research unearths how such private financial interests shape city climate actions in ways both broader, and potentially more brittle, than previously understood.

Methane concentrations are rising faster than ever in the atmosphere. Now, a compilation of observations points towards increased methane emissions from Arctic wetlands as being partly responsible.

Oceans, covering more than 70% of Earth’s surface, play a vital role in regulating the climate by absorbing heat and carbon dioxide. Now research shows oceans have warmed by more than 1.5 °C since the beginning of the industrial era, challenging previous estimates and emphasizing the urgency of global action.

Climate warming can impact predators directly as well as indirectly by affecting their prey and habitat. How predators respond to such changes is largely unknown. Now, experimental work shows the ability of spiders to adjust their webs in response to warming-induced changes in plant communities that alter prey size distributions.

A warming climate can alter the food sources that support animals in Arctic ecosystems. Now, research provides empirical evidence of such a shift, with widespread implications for global carbon cycling.

Both warming and precipitation changes are affecting the global carbon cycle, although the impact of the frequency and intensity of climate extremes on carbon cycling is unclear. Now, research suggests that most extreme events enhance soil organic carbon losses under warming globally.

The shale gas revolution has provided a cheap and relatively clean alternative for coal, but it also threatens the future market for renewables. Recent projections indicate that without tightening climate policy, shale gas will indefinitely delay the transition to net zero.