Asteroid barrage, ancient marine life boom not linked
Science News, January 2017An asteroid bombardment that some say triggered an explosion of marine animal diversity around 471 million years ago actually had nothing to do with it.
Earth’s last major warm period was as hot as today
Science News, January 2017The last time Earth’s thermostat was cranked as high as it is today, sea levels were high enough to completely drown New Orleans (had it existed at the time), new research suggests.
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For three years in a row, Earth breaks heat record
Science News, January 2017For the third year running, Earth’s thermostat broke a new record: 2016 was the warmest year since record-keeping began in 1880.
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Coastal waters were an oxygen oasis 2.3 billion years ago
Science News, January 2017Earth was momentarily ripe for the evolution of animals hundreds of millions of years before they first appeared, researchers propose.
Petrified tree rings tell ancient tale of sun’s behavior
Science News, January 2017The sun has been in the same routine for at least 290 million years, new research suggests.
Many tiny moons came together to form moon, simulations suggest
Science News, January 2017The moon is made of moons, new simulations suggest. Instead of a single colossal collision forming Earth’s cosmic companion, researchers propose that a series of medium to large impacts created mini moons that eventually coalesced to form one giant moon.
Antarctica’s Larsen C ice shelf nears breaking point
Science News, January 2017One of Antarctica’s largest ice shelves is nearing its breaking point, scientists warn. A colossal crack in the Larsen C ice shelf abruptly grew by 18 kilometers during the second half of December 2016, members of the Antarctic research group Project MIDAS reported January 5. The crack is now only about 20 kilometers away from reaching Larsen C’s edge and snapping off a hunk of ice the size of Delaware.
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Warming could disrupt Atlantic Ocean current
Science News, January 2017Spewing too much carbon dioxide into the atmosphere could shut down the major ocean current that ferries warm water to the North Atlantic, new climate simulations suggest. While not as extreme as the doomsday scenario portrayed in the movie The Day After Tomorrow, such a shutdown could cause wintertime temperatures to plummet by an estimated 7 degrees Celsius or more in northwestern Europe and shift rainfall patterns across the globe.
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‘Waterworld’ Earth preceded late rise of continents, scientist proposes
Science News, December 2016Earth may have been a water world for much of its history, a new proposal contends. Just like in the Kevin Costner movie, the continents would have been mostly submerged below sea level. Previous proposals have suggested that Earth’s land area has remained comparatively unchanged throughout much of geologic time.
Data show no sign of methane boost from thawing permafrost
Science News, December 2016One climate doomsday scenario can be downgraded, new research suggests.