The results of a new high-resolution climate model indicate that global warming made the 2018 Cape Town “Day Zero” drought five to six times more likely than it would have been in the 19th century. Models project that, without significant reductions in greenhouse gas emissions, such extreme droughts in the Cape Town region will become more frequent, occurring every few years or almost every year by the end of the 21st century.
Lockdowns intended to curb the spread of COVID-19 reduced human-made aerosol emissions in 2020, but the impact on Earth’s energy balance has been less clear. A new study finds that, over the East Asian Marginal Seas (between the coasts of China, Korea, and Japan) in March 2020, aerosol reductions contributed to a drastic drop in clear-sky reflection. Roughly a third of the drop can be attributed to reduced aerosols, and the rest can be attributed to weather variability and long-term emission trends.
The excess carbon dioxide responsible for global warming also increases the acidity of seawater, challenging the growth and survival of oysters and other shellfish. A team led by researchers at the Virginia Institute of Marine Science (VIMS) is helping oyster growers and restoration specialists better manage their future responses to acidification in the Chesapeake Bay.
When an uncrewed, instrumented robot circumnavigated Antarctica during the winter of 2019, it marked a technological triumph over some of the fiercest marine conditions on Earth. Now, analysis of direct measurements collected during this epic voyage are highlighting questions about the vast circumpolar ocean’s role in storing carbon dioxide.