In the future, the Antarctic could become a greener place and be colonised by new species. At the same time, some species will likely disappear. 25 researchers recently presented these and many other findings in a major international project, in which they analysed hundreds of articles on the Antarctic published in the past ten years. By doing so, the team have provided an exceptionally comprehensive assessment of the status quo and future of Antarctica and the Southern Ocean that surrounds…
Research conducted in the Light-Matter Interactions for Quantum Technologies Unit at the Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology Graduate University (OIST) has revealed the presence of small microplastics in the ocean surrounding Okinawa. The study was published in Science of the Total Environment. “There’s been a considerable amount of research on larger plastic pieces in the ocean,” said Christina Ripken, PhD student in the Unit and lead author of the paper. “But the smaller pieces, those that are less than…
The world is getting warmer and warmer – and many organisms native to lower latitudes or elevations are moving higher. However, novel organisms moving into a new habitat could disturb the ecological balance which has been established over a long period. Plants and herbivores are characterised by long-term co-evolution, shaping both their geographic distribution and the characteristics that they display in their occupied sites. At higher elevations, this is seen in insect herbivores being generally less abundant and plants in…
WSU researchers have developed a sustainable wastewater treatment system that relies on electron-producing microbial communities to clean the water. The work could someday lead to reduced reliance on the energy-intensive processes that are used to move and treat wastewater, which accounts for as much as two percent of the total electrical energy consumption in the United States. Led by Abdelrhman Mohamed, postdoctoral research associate, and Haluk Beyenal, Paul Hohenschuh Distinguished Professor in the Gene and Linda Voiland School of Chemical…
IOW develops new method and successfully applies it to Baltic Sea samples. Glyphosate is one of the world’s most widely used weed killers. The disputed herbicide, which is suspected to be carcinogenic among other things, gets transported from the on-land application areas into rivers, which wash it into the sea. So far it was unclear, however, how much can be found in marine environments, because glyphosate and its metabolite aminomethylphosphonic acid could not be measured in saltwater due to methodological…
Researchers significantly increase fuel efficiency in the real world of road transport. Four research institutes have investigated on behalf of the Research Association for Internal Combustion Engines (FVV) how close we can come to the ultimate system efficiency of combustion engines in hybrid powertrains. Their conclusion: if available prime mover SI engine technologies are optimally matched to each other, more than 40 percent of the energy bound in the fuel can be used in real road transport. Synthetic fuels (e-fuels)…
Looking for clues with the Prompt Gamma Activation Analysis method. Portuguese scientists have analyzed lichens from areas with traditional charcoal production for the first time with the help of the Research Neutron Source Heinz Maier-Leibnitz (FRM II) of the Technical University of Munich (TUM). Lichens located near areas of charcoal production contained more than twice the concentration of phosphorus, which is generated during the combustion process. In the region around Ponte de Sor (Portalegre County, Portugal), coal has been produced…
A team of researchers from Empa and Imperial College London developed drones that can attach sensors to trees to monitor environmental and ecological changes in forests. Sensors for forest monitoring are already used to track changes in temperature, humidity and light, as well as the movements of animals and insects through their habitats. They also help to detect and monitor forest fires and can provide valuable data on how climate change and other human activities are affecting the natural world….
Coral reefs under high levels of human influence react unpredictably to environmental stress. This was discovered by an international team of reef researchers led by the Leibniz Centre for Tropical Marine Research (ZMT) using a comprehensive data set of over 60 reef sites in the South Pacific. This finding is of fundamental importance for the conservation and management of coral reefs. Physical stress factors associated with climate change, such as frequent and violent storms or warming of the oceans, can…
A research team from Vetmeduni Vienna proved for the first time that the fitness costs of insecticide resistance mutations of the ACE locus is significantly influenced by ambient temperature: at higher temperature the fitness costs of the resistance mutations are substantially lower than in cold environments. Such temperature-dependent fitness effects are important for insecticide resistance management strategies-in particular in the light of the current climate change. Many insects, especially mosquitoes, are a widespread plague and therefore insecticides are widely used…
Climate change is leaving its mark on the bog complexes of the German Black Forest. Due to rising temperatures and longer dry periods, two plant species have already gone extinct over the last 40 years. The populations of many others have decreased by one third. In the next couple of decades ten more species could become extinct, researchers from Martin Luther University Halle-Wittenberg (MLU) and the German Centre for Integrative Biodiversity Research (iDiv) write in “Diversity and Distributions”. There are…
Use of nitrogen fertilizers in agriculture causes an increase in nitrous oxide concentration in the atmosphere – Comprehensive study with KIT participation in Nature. Concentration of dinitrogen oxide – also referred to as nitrous oxide – in the atmosphere increases strongly and speeds up climate change. In addition to CO2 and methane, it is the third important greenhouse gas emitted due to anthropogenic activities. Human-made nitrous oxide emissions are mainly caused by the use of fertilizers in agriculture. Growing demand…
Despite being championed by a host of celebrity chefs, crayfish ‘trapping’ is not helping to control invasive American signal crayfish, according to new research by UCL and King’s College London. There have been grave concerns within the science community and amongst conservationists that American signal crayfish are wiping out other species of crayfish across Europe – including Britain’s only native crayfish, the endangered white-clawed crayfish. In their new study, published in the Journal of Applied Ecology, the researchers find that…
Deep-seabed mining is considered a way to address the increasing need of rare metals. However, the environmental impacts are considered to be substantial but remain largely unknown and clear regulatory standards are lacking. Researchers at the Max Planck Institute for Marine Microbiology in Bremen, Germany, together with colleagues from The Netherlands, Belgium, Portugal, Germany and the UK, now describe that mining-related disturbances have a long-term impact on carbon flow and the microbial loop at the deep seafloor. They present their…
Modern hydroelectric power plants do not always protect fish better than conventional ones. In addition to the technologies employed, the specific location of the plant and the fish species being present at that location also play a role in fish protection. A research team at the Technical University of Munich (TUM) has systematically studied how different types of power plants affect various fish species and their habitats. Detailed findings can improve future planning as well as retrofitting of existing plants….
Bayreuth research: Tropical nature reserves to be particularly affected. The Earth’s nature reserves are the basis for the preservation of global biodiversity. They are set to be affected by future climate change in very different ways. Detailed local knowledge of climate change impacts can therefore make a significant contribution to the management of protected areas and the preservation of their ecological function. A biogeographic study by the University of Bayreuth in the journal “Diversity and Distributions” draws attention to this…
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