Earlier spring snowmelt in Alps threatens microbes in soil

A new study suggests that spring snowmelt in the Alps is occurring earlier in the year, and the earlier warming – due to climate change – threatens vitally important microbial communities in Alpine soils. Source: https://earthsky.org/earth/alps-climate-change-driven-snowmelt-abrupt-seasonal-change…

Eastern Alps may have been ice-free in the time of Ötzi the Iceman

Ice cores from a glacier just 12 kilometres from the place the mummified Ötzi the Iceman was found in 1991 suggest that it formed just before or even within his lifetime Source: https://www.newscientist.com/article/2263399-eastern-alps-may-have-been-ice-free-in-the-time-of-otzi-the-iceman/?utm_campaign=RSS%7CNSNS&utm_source=NSNS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_content=home…

BMW Demos a Powered Wingsuit That Can Fly 186 MPH

Wingsuits normally create a wide surface area of fabric between a skydiver’s legs and from their legs to their arms, substantially slowing their fall. But to create a buzz for the unveiling of BMW’s new iX3 electric SUV, the company’s creative consultancy Designworks “has partnered up with Austrian stuntman Peter Salzmann to unveil a wicked-cool new electric powered wingsuit that can…

Pluto’s snowcapped mountains are unlike any on Earth

A new study shows how methane snow accumulates on Pluto’s mountain peaks. These snowcaps – first seen by New Horizons in 2015 – look a lot like ones on Earth, but form in a very alien environment. Source: https://earthsky.org/space/methane-snowcapped-mountains-on-pluto-new-horizons…