An anonymous reader quotes a report from the BBC: An enormous coral reef has been found at the northern tip of Australia’s Great Barrier Reef, the first such discovery in 120 years, scientists say. At 500m (1,640ft) high, the reef is taller than New York’s Empire State Building and the Petronas Twin Towers in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Scientists on a 12-month…
Tag: Reefs
Ancient microbial life used arsenic to thrive in a world without oxygen
Today, most life on Earth is supported by oxygen. But ancient microbial mats existed for a billion years before oxygen was present in the atmosphere. So what did life use instead? Source: https://earthsky.org/earth/ancient-microbial-life-arsenic…
Did this mass extinction event trigger dawn of the dinosaurs?
New research suggests that a series of huge volcanic eruptions, 233 million years ago, led to a mass extinction event that heralded the dawn of the dinosaurs. Source: https://earthsky.org/earth/mass-extinction-event-trigger-dawn-of-dinosaurs…
Commonwealth Nations To Protect Coral Reefs With Satellite Technology
Commonwealth countries are to gain free access to satellite technology that will help them monitor and protect their endangered coral reefs from threats such as climate breakdown, overfishing and pollution. The Guardian reports: Commonwealth countries hold nearly half of the world’s remaining tropical coral reefs, with 47 out of the 54 member countries having a coastline. Nearly half of them are…
Algae transplant could protect coral reefs threatened by warming seas
Heat-resistant algae made in a lab seems to protect coral from bleaching. It could help to save reefs if we fail to tackle global warming fast enough Source: https://www.newscientist.com/article/2243348-algae-transplant-could-protect-coral-reefs-threatened-by-warming-seas/?utm_campaign=RSS%7CNSNS&utm_source=NSNS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_content=home…
Intel’s Project Corail Monitors Coral Reef Health With AI
To commemorate Earth Day, Intel — in partnership with Accenture and Sulubaai Environmental Foundation, a Philippine-based nonprofit dedicated to protecting Palawan’s natural resources — detailed Project Corail, an AI-powered platform that monitors and analyzes the resiliency of coral reefs. From a report: Since its launch in May 2019, it’s collected 40,000 images of the reef surrounding Pangatalan Island, which researchers have…
Great Barrier Reef Suffers Its Most Widespread Mass Bleaching Event On Record
An anonymous reader quotes a report from The Washington Post: Surveys conducted by scientists at Australia’s James Cook University and the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority show that a summer of extreme heat has caused the reef, which is a World Heritage Site, to suffer a mass bleaching of unprecedented scale. Corals from the far north to the southern tip…
Melting Glaciers: Effects on the Environment, Humans, and Biodiversity
Recently, the temperature in the Arctic appears to have hit a new continental high, close to 70 degrees. That’s leading to continued melting of glaciers in the Arctic and around the world. But how will that impact the world’s ecosystems? Dr. David Hik is an Associate Dean of the Faculty of Science as well as […]
The post Melting Glaciers: Effects on…
By 2050, the US Will Lose $83 Billion a Year Because of All the Nature We’ve Destroyed
An anonymous reader quotes a report from Fast Company: The world economy depends on nature, from coral reefs that protect coastal cities from flooding to insects that pollinate crops. But by the middle of the century, the loss of key “ecosystem services” could cost the world $479 billion each year. The U.S. will lose more than any other country, with an…
Chance fossil discovery reveals ancient marine reptile
Scientists raced against a rising tide to recover a tantalizing fossil on an island in southeast Alaska. It turned out to be a species new to science. Source: https://earthsky.org/earth/alaskan-fossil-reveals-new-marine-reptile-species…