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Assessing the impact of the global subsea telecommunications network on sedimentary organic carbon stocks
The sequestration of organic carbon in seafloor sediments plays a key role in regulating global climate. Here, the authors present an assessment of organic carbon disturbance related to the globally-extensive subsea telecommunications cable network.
- M. A. Clare
- , A. Lichtschlag
- & N. L. M. Barlow
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Organic matter degradation causes enrichment of organic pollutants in hadal sediments
Persistent organic pollutants (POPs) are found in hadal trench sediment in the Atacama trench at depths down to 8085 m. High turnover of organic matter in the trench contributes to elevated contaminant concentrations in this extreme and remote place.
- Anna Sobek
- , Sebastian Abel
- & Ronnie N. Glud
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Elevation-dependent intensification of fire danger in the western United States
Elevation-dependent warming trends have been previously identified, but its effect on fire danger is still unclear. Here the authors show that there has been widespread increases in fire danger across the mountainous western US from 1979 to 2020 with most acute trends at high-elevation regions above 3000 m.
- Mohammad Reza Alizadeh
- , John T. Abatzoglou
- & Mojtaba Sadegh
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Impact of small farmers' access to improved seeds and deforestation in DR Congo
Availability of modern seed varieties in developing countries has had positive effects on households’ well-being. Here, the authors show that without support to maintain soil fertility, access to modern seed varieties increases primary forest clearance in DR Congo.
- Tanguy Bernard
- , Sylvie Lambert
- & Margaux Vinez
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Satellites reveal hotspots of global river extent change
Rivers are among the most diverse, dynamic, and productive ecosystems on Earth. Here, using Landsat imagery, the authors provide a global attribution of the recent changes in river regime to morphological dynamics, dam-induced widening, and hydrological signals.
- Qianhan Wu
- , Linghong Ke
- & Chunqiao Song
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Revealing influencing factors on global waste distribution via deep-learning based dumpsite detection from satellite imagery
Dumpsites are hard to locate globally. Here the authors apply deep networks to satellite images to provide an effective and low-cost way to detect dumpsites with the new method saving more than 96.8% of the manual time with a strong sensitivity to dumpsites.
- Xian Sun
- , Dongshuo Yin
- & Kun Fu
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Ozone exposure disrupts insect sexual communication
Insect pheromones can be degraded by the air pollutant ozone. Jiang et al. show that ozone-exposed male flies lose their pheromones and become less attractive to females. Additionally, ozone-exposed males exhibited increased male-male courtship behaviour as a result of reduced sex recognition.
- Nan-Ji Jiang
- , Hetan Chang
- & Markus Knaden
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Effects of acidification on nitrification and associated nitrous oxide emission in estuarine and coastal waters
Acidification of estuarine and coastal water due to synergistic effects of human induced eutrophication and elevated atmospheric CO2 could inhibit nitrification, a vital link of nitrogen cycle, but increase the release of powerful greenhouse gas N2O.
- Jie Zhou
- , Yanling Zheng
- & Min Liu
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Natural resources modulate the nexus between environmental shocks and human mobility
Remote sensed information and population data for continental Africa are used to assess how migration acts as an adaptation response after drought event. The effect on mobility is amplified with drought frequency and poverty.
- Michael Brottrager
- , Jesus Crespo Cuaresma
- & Saleem H. Ali
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Global Protected Areas as refuges for amphibians and reptiles under climate change
The effectiveness of protected areas under climate change is debated. Here, the authors analyse the potential effectiveness of protected areas for conserving over 70% of extant amphibian and reptile species under present and future climate scenarios.
- Chunrong Mi
- , Liang Ma
- & Weiguo Du
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High-efficiency gold recovery by additive-induced supramolecular polymerization of β-cyclodextrin
Eco-friendly, efficient, and selective gold recovery technologies are urgently desired to satisfy the increasing demand for gold. Here, the authors report one such technology based on the supramolecular polymerization of second-sphere coordinated adducts formed between β-cyclodextrin and tetrabromoaurate anions.
- Huang Wu
- , Yu Wang
- & J. Fraser Stoddart
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China’s electric vehicle and climate ambitions jeopardized by surging critical material prices
Under a high-cost scenario for battery critical materials, the uptake of electric vehicles in China may be greatly reduced, leading to increased cumulative carbon emissions. This may jeopardize both China’s electric vehicle and climate targets.
- Hetong Wang
- , Kuishuang Feng
- & Jiashuo Li
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Comment
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Untitled public forestlands threaten Amazon conservation
A large proportion of recent Brazilian Amazon deforestation is occurring on untitled public forestlands through land grabbing. This emerging risk demands long-term conservation strategies. Here we propose prioritizing land tenure security, technological improvement, and law enforcement.
- Paulo Moutinho
- & Claudia Azevedo-Ramos
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Unintended consequences of combating desertification in China
This paper shows that desertification combating practices decline incomes of farmers and herders, and China needs to adapt its ecological programmes to address the impacts of climate change and create positive synergies to combat desertification.
- Xunming Wang
- , Quansheng Ge
- & Fahu Chen
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Recent decrease of the impact of tropical temperature on the carbon cycle linked to increased precipitation
The authors show a recent decoupling of the tropical temperature variations and the carbon cycle that is driven by wetter conditions in the tropics.
- Wenmin Zhang
- , Guy Schurgers
- & Martin Brandt
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Variation of lightning-ignited wildfire patterns under climate change
This study shows that climate change is expected to result in a 41% increase in the frequency of lightning worldwide. This increase has the potential to amplify the risk of lightning-induced wildfires.
- Francisco J. Pérez-Invernón
- , Francisco J. Gordillo-Vázquez
- & Patrick Jöckel
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Biophysical impacts of earth greening can substantially mitigate regional land surface temperature warming
Using satellite observations over the recent two decades, the authors quantify the biophysical impact of earth greening on land surface temperature and show a considerable cooling effect in India and China, important for climate mitigation.
- Yitao Li
- , Zhao-Liang Li
- & Lingling Ma
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Stratospheric impacts on dust transport and air pollution in West Africa and the Eastern Mediterranean
Today, most operational dust forecasts extend only 2-5 days. New research finds that the stratosphere exerts long-lasting influence on Saharan dust emission and transport, contributing to subseasonal predictability for dust and air pollution over West Africa and the Eastern Mediterranean.
- Ying Dai
- , Peter Hitchcock
- & Adwoa Aboagye-Okyere
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The burden of heatwave-related preterm births and associated human capital losses in China
Frequent heatwaves caused by global warming can lead to an increased risk of preterm birth, however, what remains unknown is the extent to which anthropogenic climate change has contributed to such burdens. Here, the authors combine health impact and economic assessment methods to comprehensively evaluate the entire preterm birth burden of heatwave exposure.
- Yali Zhang
- , Shakoor Hajat
- & Cunrui Huang
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Risk of the hydrogen economy for atmospheric methane
H2 has the potential to become the green, low-carbon fuel of the future. However, hydrogen emissions impact atmospheric methane (CH4). Bertagni et al. investigate the fate of atmospheric CH4 in scenarios of H2 economy.
- Matteo B. Bertagni
- , Stephen W. Pacala
- & Amilcare Porporato
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Matters Arising
| Open AccessReply to: Re-examining extreme carbon isotope fractionation in the coccolithophore Ochrosphaera neapolitana
- Yi-Wei Liu
- , Robert A. Eagle
- & Justin B. Ries
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Short-term exposure to wildfire-related PM2.5 increases mortality risks and burdens in Brazil
To assess mortality risks and burdens associated with short-term exposure to wildfire-related PM2.5, the authors collect daily mortality data from 2000 to 2016 for 510 immediate regions in Brazil, the most wildfire-prone area.
- Tingting Ye
- , Rongbin Xu
- & Shanshan Li
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Multi-angular polarimetric remote sensing to pinpoint global aerosol absorption and direct radiative forcing
Chen et al. demonstrate the use of multi-angular polarimetric remote sensing to pinpoint global aerosol absorption and direct radiative forcing.
- Cheng Chen
- , Oleg Dubovik
- & Ying Zhang
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South Asian black carbon is threatening the water sustainability of the Asian Water Tower
South Asian black carbon’s pairing activities (direct and indirect effects) are driving glacial mass decline of the so-called “Water Tower of Asia” with the potential to threaten future water resources for the countries that rely upon its source.
- Junhua Yang
- , Shichang Kang
- & Robert R. Gillies
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Deficiency and excess of groundwater iodine and their health associations
Both iodine deficiency and excess could cause thyroid disorders. By creating a national map of groundwater iodine throughout China, the authors reveal the spatial responses of diverse health risks to iodine in continental groundwater.
- Ruoqi Ma
- , Mingquan Yan
- & Jinren Ni
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U.S. winter wheat yield loss attributed to compound hot-dry-windy events
The authors show that in recent decades compound climate extremes (i.e., hot, dry, and windy events) have increased and have reduced winter wheat yields in the U.S. Great Plains. The area most affected is the same area as that in 1930s Dust Bowl.
- Haidong Zhao
- , Lina Zhang
- & Xiaomao Lin
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Forest fire threatens global carbon sinks and population centres under rising atmospheric water demand
Rising forest flammability could become a major public health issue and amplify climate change via feedbacks on the carbon cycle. Here the authors identify daily fuel moisture thresholds associated with increased fire risk in earth’s forests.
- Hamish Clarke
- , Rachael H. Nolan
- & Matthias M. Boer
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Understanding soil selenium accumulation and bioavailability through size resolved and elemental characterization of soil extracts
Selenium is essential for human health and mainly delivered via terrestrial foodstuffs. An advanced characterization of selenium chemical forms shows that organic matter increases its accumulation in soils but could limit its supply to plants
- Julie Tolu
- , Sylvain Bouchet
- & Lenny H. E. Winkel
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Air quality impacts of crop residue burning in India and mitigation alternatives
We quantify the air quality and health impacts of Indian crop residue burning and trace these impacts back to individual burning events by hour and district. We find that small interventions, such as burning one hour earlier in the day, may provide broad public health benefits
- Ruoyu Lan
- , Sebastian D. Eastham
- & Steven R. H. Barrett
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Energy requirements and carbon emissions for a low-carbon energy transition
A low-carbon energy transition consistent with 1.5 °C of warming may result in substantial carbon emissions. Moreover, the initial push to substitute fossil fuels with low-carbon alternatives will reduce the net energy available to society.
- Aljoša Slameršak
- , Giorgos Kallis
- & Daniel W. O’Neill
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Beaver dams overshadow climate extremes in controlling riparian hydrology and water quality
Beaver dams increase water flow gradients and nitrate removal far more than seasonal climate extremes. An expanding beaver range is an ecosystem feedback to climate change which could improve water quality.
- Christian Dewey
- , Patricia M. Fox
- & Scott Fendorf
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Three-dimensional open architecture enabling salt-rejection solar evaporators with boosted water production efficiency
Conventional salt-rejection evaporators typically exhibit low evaporation rate due to large heat loss. Here, authors demonstrate a solar evaporator featuring vertically aligned mass transfer bridges that takes advantage of the conductive heat to enable optimized water transport and salt backflow.
- Kaijie Yang
- , Tingting Pan
- & Yu Han
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Unequal airborne exposure to toxic metals associated with race, ethnicity, and segregation in the USA
A new study assesses differences in exposure to particulate air pollution between racially segregated and racially integrated communities in the U.S, and finds that segregated communities are exposed to higher proportions of toxic and carcinogenic metals.
- John K. Kodros
- , Michelle L. Bell
- & John Volckens
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The impact of phosphorus on projected Sub-Saharan Africa food security futures
New research finds future rock fertiliser use as a contributor towards food security in Sub-Saharan Africa can be achieved with both sustainability-driven and fossil-fuel-driven economic growth.
- Daniel Magnone
- , Vahid J. Niasar
- & Sheida Z. Sattari
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Impacts of shared mobility on vehicle lifetimes and on the carbon footprint of electric vehicles
Shared cars are driven more, which could shorten their lifetimes. This could influence carbon dioxide emissions in car manufacturing. Sharing nonetheless reduces carbon footprints. Designing cars for durability can further enhance the benefits
- Johannes Morfeldt
- & Daniel J. A. Johansson
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Intercomparison of regional loss estimates from global synthetic tropical cyclone models
Various synthetic tropical cyclone datasets exist for risk assessment purposes. Here, the authors conduct a global dataset comparison to assess their suitability and applicability in answering different impact-related questions.
- Simona Meiler
- , Thomas Vogt
- & David N. Bresch
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Deforestation intensifies daily temperature variability in the northern extratropics
A new study finds that deforestation in the northern extratropics can enhance horizontal temperature advection through biogeophysical processes, leading to higher local daily temperature variability, particularly in winter.
- Jun Ge
- , Qi Liu
- & Weidong Guo
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Land tenure drives Brazil’s deforestation rates across socio-environmental contexts
How land-tenure regimes affect deforestation remains ambiguous. This study shows how deforestation in Brazil is land-tenure dependent, and how strategies to effectively reduce deforestation can range from strengthening poorly defined rights to strengthening conservation-focused regimes.
- Andrea Pacheco
- & Carsten Meyer
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Cement substitution with secondary materials can reduce annual global CO2 emissions by up to 1.3 gigatons
In this paper we report the maximum potential for cement substitution with secondary materials to reduce CO2 emissions globally (1.3 Gt CO2-eq. in 2018) and on a country-by-country basis.
- Izhar Hussain Shah
- , Sabbie A. Miller
- & Rupert J. Myers
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Eolian chronology reveals causal links between tectonics, climate, and erg generation
Modeling cosmogenic nuclides concentrations from Kalahari Desert Sand reveals the time of sand introduction into the landscape. This coincides with morphotectonic and climatic changes that could have triggered sand production and its impact on the environment.
- Shlomy Vainer
- , Ari Matmon
- & Karim Keddadouche
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Biodegradation of poly(butylene succinate) in soil laboratory incubations assessed by stable carbon isotope labelling
This study applies stable carbon isotope labelling to study polymer biodegradation in soils. This labelling enables accurate and precise tracking of polymer carbon during biodegradation and, thereby, provides a holistic picture of this process.
- Taylor F. Nelson
- , Rebekka Baumgartner
- & Michael Sander
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Rapid vertical exchange at fronts in the Northern Gulf of Mexico
Vertical exchange in the ocean is an important conduit connecting the surface to the deep and influences the distributions of gases, nutrients, pollutants, and other tracers. Here the authors using high-resolution observations and numerical simulations of the ocean fronts in the Northern Gulf of Mexico reveal that the interaction between the fronts and land-sea breeze creates slantwise pathways for water parcels and induces significant subduction of surface water and upwelling of bottom water.
- Lixin Qu
- , Leif N. Thomas
- & Jonathan D. Nash
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Tropical modulation of East Asia air pollution
In this study, it is suggested that the daily PM10 level in East Asia is remotely controlled by the convection over the equatorial Indian Ocean and western Pacific. This tropical modulation explains up to 15% of daily PM10 variability in the region.
- Myung-Il Jung
- , Seok-Woo Son
- & Deliang Chen
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The effect of carbon fertilization on naturally regenerated and planted US forests
The CO2 fertilisation effect in forests remains controversial. Here, the authors disentangle the effect of CO2 on forest wood volume from other environmental factors, showing that elevated CO2 had a positive effect on wood volume in planted and natural US temperate forests.
- Eric C. Davis
- , Brent Sohngen
- & David J. Lewis
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Diesel soot photooxidation enhances the heterogeneous formation of H2SO4
Potential source of H2SO4 remains unclear in the atmosphere. This work first demonstrates that the formation of photoinduced •OH radical can directly promote the heterogeneous conversion of SO2 to H2SO4 on real diesel soot under light irradiation, extending the known sources of atmospheric H2SO4.
- Peng Zhang
- , Tianzeng Chen
- & Hong He
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The emerging role of drought as a regulator of dissolved organic carbon in boreal landscapes
Long-term records from boreal streams indicate strong seasonal redistributions of dissolved organic carbon concentrations and quality linked to the severity of summer drought conditions
- Tejshree Tiwari
- , Ryan A. Sponseller
- & Hjalmar Laudon
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Co-benefits of CO2 emission reduction from China’s clean air actions between 2013-2020
China’s clean air action stimulated a net accumulative reduction of 2.43 Gt CO2 emission from 2013-2020. Phase-out and upgrades of outdated, polluting, and inefficient combustion facilities have promoted the transition of the country’s energy system.
- Qinren Shi
- , Bo Zheng
- & Qiang Zhang
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Towards critical white ice conditions in lakes under global warming
Under continued global warming, lakes will increasingly be covered by white ice, in particular towards the end of the ice cover season when fatal winter drownings occur most often and light limits the growth and reproduction of primary producers.
- Gesa A. Weyhenmeyer
- , Ulrike Obertegger
- & Roman Zdorovennov
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Destabilisation of the Subpolar North Atlantic prior to the Little Ice Age
Bivalves reveal that the subpolar North Atlantic destabilised and shows signs of having crossed a tipping point during the transition into the Little Ice Age.
- Beatriz Arellano-Nava
- , Paul R. Halloran
- & Timothy M. Lenton
Health disparities among older adults following tropical cyclone exposure in Florida