To find alien life in our universe, scientists have considered searches for optical lasers or even giant energy-harvesting structures known as Dyson spheres. Now they’re suggesting a more mundane sort of search, a hunt for air pollution in exoplanet atmospheres. Source: https://earthsky.org/space/can-pollution-help-us-find-alien-life…
Tag: Human Activities
Another terrible year for wildfires and smoke in the US in 2020
Wildfires burned more than 10 million acres in the United States during the 2020 season. It was the worst season on record. Source: https://earthsky.org/earth/us-2020-wildfire-season-record-bad…
2020 tied for warmest year on record
2020 was Earth’s hottest year in the 140-year record, effectively tying 2016, the previous record-holder. Source: https://earthsky.org/earth/2020-tied-for-warmest-global-year-on-record…
Phew! Record-smashing 2020 Atlantic hurricane season is officially over
November 30 marked the official end of the record-breaking 2020 Atlantic hurricane season, although more storms are still possible. Why did 2020 have so many storms? And what does climate change have to do with it? Source: https://earthsky.org/earth/record-smashing-2020-atlantic-hurricane-season-official-end…
The Arctic hasn’t been this warm for 3 million years
The last time CO2 concentrations reached today’s level was 3 million years ago, during the Pliocene Epoch. Hear from geoscientists who see evolving conditions in the Arctic as an indicator of how climate change could transform the planet. Source: https://earthsky.org/earth/arctic-warmest-3-million-years…
Cory Doctorow: ‘Self-Driving Cars are Bullshit’
“Self-driving cars are bullshit,” writes Cory Doctorow:
I’m a science fiction writer, so I quite enjoy thinking about self-driving cars. They make for really interesting analogies about data, liability, self-determination, information security and openness… But I’m a science fiction writer and that means I can tell the difference between “thought experiments” and “real things.” Alas, the same cannot be said of corporate…
Disease-carrying animals thrive on our farmed land and in our cities
Farming and other human activities are changing the world in a way that favours animals carrying more diseases, including bats – the source of the new coronavirus Source: https://www.newscientist.com/article/2250927-disease-carrying-animals-thrive-on-our-farmed-land-and-in-our-cities/?utm_campaign=RSS%7CNSNS&utm_source=NSNS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_content=home…
Theoretical Physicists Say 90% Chance of Societal Collapse Within Several Decades
An anonymous reader quotes a report from Motherboard: Two theoretical physicists specializing in complex systems conclude that global deforestation due to human activities is on track to trigger the “irreversible collapse” of human civilization within the next two to four decades. If we continue destroying and degrading the world’s forests, Earth will no longer be able to sustain a large human…
Gulf of Mexico dead zone: Summer 2020 forecast
NOAA scientists forecast that this summer’s dead zone would measure roughly 6,700 square miles – bigger than the long-term average recorded since 1985, but lower than 2017’s record-high extent. Source: https://earthsky.org/earth/gulf-mexico-dead-zone-summer-2020-forecast…
Human-linked Earth vibrations dropped 50% during Covid-19 lockdown
Between March and May 2020, many people across Earth went into lockdown. During those months, seismographs recorded a drop in human-linked vibrations in the solid Earth, by an average of 50%. Source: https://earthsky.org/earth/covid19-lockdown-2020-caused-50-percent-global-reduction-human-linked-earth-vibrations…