Most recent 40 articles: Miragenews
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UN Assembly Tackles Triple Planetary Crisis Globally - Miragenews (Feb 28) |
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Feb 28 · The latest meeting of the "world's parliament on the environment" opened in Nairobi, Kenya, on Monday with a clear call for stronger global action to address the "triple planetary crisis" of climate change, nature loss and pollution.
More than 7,000 delegates from 182 countries are scheduled to take part in the sixth session of the United Nations Environment Assembly (UNEA-6) which runs through Friday.
Delegates are convening in the Kenyan capital as climate change intensifies, a million species face the risk of extinction, and pollution remains among the world's leading causes of premature death.
"We've all felt and seen the impacts - baking heat, ... Read more ...
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Framework for Urban Climate Action Plans Developed by Scientists - Miragenews (Nov 30) |
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Nov 30 · Due to a high concentration of people and activities in cities, they are at the forefront of battle against climate change (Ayyoob Sharifi/Hiroshima University).
With the world projected to be highly urbanized by 2050, cities are encouraged to take urgent climate actions to mitigate and adapt to the threats of climate change. As climate change intensifies and urbanization increases rapidly, local governments are expected now more than ever to lead climate action planning. However, studies show the limitations of the existing climate action plans (CAPs). So scientists from Hiroshima University have created an Urban Climate Action Planning (UCAP) framework to guide the ... Read more ...
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Third of Kids Face Severe Water Scarcity, UNICEF Warns - Miragenews (Nov 13) |
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Nov 13 · 1 in 3 children - or 739 million worldwide - already live in areas exposed to high or very high water scarcity, with climate change threatening to make this worse, according to a new UNICEF report.
Further, the double burden of dwindling water availability and inadequate drinking water and sanitation services is compounding the challenge, putting children at even greater risk.
The Climate Changed Child - released ahead of the COP28 climate change summit - throws a spotlight on the threat to children as a result of water vulnerability, one of the ways in which the impacts of climate change are being felt. It provides an analysis of the impacts of three tiers of water ... Read more ...
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Global GP Bodies Urge Leaders for Urgent Climate Action - Miragenews (Oct 29, 2023) |
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Oct 29, 2023 · The world's leading GP and health bodies representing three million health professionals worldwide are urging international leaders to safeguard the health of global populations from the climate crisis in an open letter, to be launched on day three of the WONCA World Conference in Sydney.
WONCA 2023, from 26 to 29 October, is being hosted by the Royal Australian College of General Practitioners (RACGP) – bringing one of the largest global conferences for GPs to Australia for the first time in over 20 years.
On day two of the conference, Green Day, the focus is on the environment and sustainability, with keynote presentations by Prof Enrique Falceto One minute for ... Read more ...
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Latin America Climate Week 2023 Spurs Sustainable Action - Miragenews (Oct 27, 2023) |
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Oct 27, 2023 · UN Climate Change News, 25 October 2023 - The Latin America and the Caribbean Climate Week (LACCW) takes centre stage today as it convenes regional stakeholders to showcase climate action, encourage heightened ambition, and build regional momentum towards impactful outcomes at the UN Climate Change Conference (COP28) in Dubai.
Taking place in Panama City from 23 to 27 October and hosted by the government of Panama, LACCW brings together representatives from local and national governments, Indigenous Peoples, civil society and the private sector to discuss challenges and opportunities for climate action in one of the most diverse regions in the world.
LACCW will ... Read more ...
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Demystifying COP: What is it, and why should I care? - Miragenews (Oct 25, 2023) |
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Oct 25, 2023 · COP, or the Conference of the Parties, represents an annual global gathering dedicated to addressing the dire existential threat posed by the climate crisis.
Director, Monash Innovation Guarantee, Associate Dean International and Graduate Education, Monash University
Associate Professor, Faculty of Law
Senior Project Manager, ClimateWorks Centre
Associate Professor, Department of Architecture
This intergovernmental event, however, is a source of considerable controversy, primarily due to the perceived lack of substantial progress in combating the climate catastrophe.
Since its inception in 1995, each COP has yielded only incremental reductions in ... Read more ...
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Comfort with smaller carbon footprint - Miragenews (Oct 16, 2023) |
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Oct 16, 2023 · As organizations work to reduce their energy consumption and associated carbon emissions, one area that remains to be optimized is indoor heating and cooling. In fact, HVAC - which stands for Heating, Ventilation, and Air Conditioning - represents, on average, about 40% of a building's total energy use. Methods that conserve electricity while still providing a comfortable indoor environment for workers could make a significant difference in the fight against climate change.
During cold weather, it is sometimes challenging for conventional sensor-based systems to determine when the heating should be shut off. This is due to thermal interference from lighting, equipment, or even ... Read more ...
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Irreversible Climate Change Threat Looms Over Great Barrier Reef - Miragenews (Aug 03, 2023) |
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Aug 03, 2023 · The Great Barrier Reef is likely to face impacts from climate change that could become irreversible around mid-century regardless of whether global emissions stabilise, according to a new report by the Australian Academy of Science.
The report explores possible futures for the Great Barrier Reef (GBR) under different emissions scenarios. It also identifies evidence-based strategies and areas of opportunity to manage the Reef ecosystem in the face of unrelenting climate change.
It found flow-on effects from climate impacts to cultures and customs are rapidly changing and mostly unknown, making it difficult to prioritise where to intervene to protect areas of high cultural ... Read more ...
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$3 billion investment for cleaner energy future - Miragenews (May 11, 2023) |
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May 11, 2023 · The McGowan Government’s 2023-24 State Budget will deliver a major boost in efforts to tackle climate change, with a $3 billion investment to help achieve net zero emissions by 2050.
The 2023-24 Budget will feature $2.8 billion for energy storage, wind power generation and transmission network upgrades on the State’s main electricity grid, to deliver cleaner, reliable and affordable energy to Western Australians into the future.
The massive funding injection will help to replace the generation capacity of State-owned coal-fired power stations, which will be retired by 2030, to ensure a stable and secure electricity supply for Western Australia.
As part ... Read more ...
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UC Irvine Scientists: Climate Change Could Cause Disaster in Oceans - Miragenews (Jan 05, 2023) |
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Jan 05, 2023 · Irvine, Calif., Jan. 4, 2023 — Climate-driven heating of seawater is causing a slowdown of deep circulation patterns in the Atlantic and Southern oceans, according to University of California, Irvine Earth system scientists, and if this process continues, the ocean’s ability to remove carbon dioxide from the atmosphere will be severely limited, further exacerbating global warming.
In a recent study published in Nature Climate Change, these researchers analyzed projections from three dozen climate models and found that the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation and the Southern Meridional Overturning Circulation will slow by as much as 42 percent by 2100. The ... Read more ...
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WMO: Europe’s 2023 Warm Start Breaks Records - Miragenews (Jan 05, 2023) |
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Jan 05, 2023 · The unusually warm conditions in Europe that marked the festive season broke records – and likely skiers’ hearts – in several countries on the continent, on New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day, the UN World Meteorological Organization (WMO) has confirmed.
And as a growing number of European ski resorts at lower altitudes struggle to provide adequate snow cover for their early-season visitors, the WMO pointed to widely accepted peer-reviewed scientific data from the UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) indicating that the frequency of cold spells and frost days “will decrease”.
2023 is off to a warm start. We had ... Read more ...
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50% of Earth’s coral reefs face climate change threat by 2035 - Miragenews (Oct 11, 2022) |
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Oct 11, 2022 · Under a worst-case scenario, half of coral reef ecosystems worldwide will permanently face unsuitable conditions in just over a dozen years, if climate change continues unabated. That is one of the findings from new research published on October 11, in PLOS Biology by University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa researchers. Unsuitable conditions will likely lead to the corals dying off and other marine life will struggle to survive due to disruptions in the food chain.
“While the negative impacts of climate change on coral reefs are well known, this research shows that they are actually worse than anticipated due to a broad combination of climate change-induced ... Read more ...
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Turning carbon dioxide into valuable products - Miragenews (Sep 07, 2022) |
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Sep 07, 2022 · Carbon dioxide (CO2) is a major contributor to climate change and a significant product of many human activities, notably industrial manufacturing. A major goal in the energy field has been to chemically convert emitted CO2 into valuable chemicals or fuels. But while CO2 is available in abundance, it has not yet been widely used to generate value-added products. Why not?
The reason is that CO2 molecules are highly stable and therefore not prone to being chemically converted to a different form. Researchers have sought materials and device designs that could help spur that conversion, but nothing has worked well enough to yield an efficient, cost-effective system.
Two ... Read more ...
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Scientists Assess Risk of Thaw Settlement in Permafrost Regions of Qinghai-Tibet Plateau - Miragenews (Apr 26, 2021) |
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Apr 26, 2021 · As a member of the cryosphere elements, permafrost has been confirmed by more and more studies for its indicative role in global climate change. The permafrost in the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau (QTP) is characterized by high temperature, high ice content, and sensitivity to the environment.
In recent years, with the climate warming, the permafrost in the QTP is showing different forms of degradation, and the induced thaw settlement disaster seriously affects the engineering construction and the environment of the permafrost areas.
Recently, Prof. WU Tonghua and his team from the Northwest Institute of Eco-Environment and Resources (NIEER) of the Chinese Academy of Sciences ... Read more ...
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Scientists made a film about disappearing lakes in permafrost Mirage News - Miragenews (Apr 22, 2021) |
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Apr 22, 2021 · The staff of the TSU Bio-Geo-Clim Laboratory is studying khasyrey – drained thermokarst lakes formed by the thawing of permafrost. This natural phenomenon is widespread in the Arctic zone of the Russian Federation. Filming done during an expedition to the Yamalo-Nenets Autonomous Okrug formed the basis of the film, in which researchers tell how khasyrey were born and die and whether the melting of permafrost always has negative consequences for nature.
Permafrost attracts the attention of scientists all over the world because the state of soils in the Arctic and subarctic has recently been changing rapidly. The main reason for this is the global transformation of the ... Read more ...
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Scientists Reveal Responses of Various Permafrost Ecosystems to Climate Warming - Miragenews (Apr 20, 2021) |
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Apr 20, 2021 · Carbon cycle of terrestrial ecosystem is an important link of global carbon cycle. Permafrost region is the largest soil carbon pool of terrestrial ecosystem. Its decomposition and carbon release under the background of climate warming may form positive feedback with climate change, thus accelerating global warming.
However, the ecosystem carbon budgets in the permafrost regions remain uncertain. Therefore, accurately predicting the response of permafrost ecosystem to global change depends on in-depth analysis of the regulation mechanism of terrestrial carbon cycle.
Using the dynamic vegetation model, combined with the data of soil water, heat and carbon flux at ... Read more ...
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Thawing permafrost cools Arctic currents: This might affect fish stocks Mirage News - Miragenews (Apr 12, 2021) |
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Apr 12, 2021 · A new study by a University of Copenhagen researcher finds that thawing permafrost in Alaska causes colder water in smaller rivers and streams. This surprising consequence of climate change could affect the survival of fish species in the Arctic’s offshore waters.
Rising global temperatures are causing frozen Arctic soil – permafrost – to thaw. In a new study, researchers have discovered something surprising: small rivers, creeks and streams that flow into larger lakes and coastal waters seem be to getting colder as permafrost melts. The phenomenon was previously documented in Russian rivers in the Arctic. But until now, no one had studied why the water was ... Read more ...
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Measuring Climate Change in Hands of Residents of Northwestern Canada Mirage News - Miragenews (Apr 10, 2021) |
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Apr 10, 2021 · “It’s unbelievable the amount of time and energy we spend maintaining our instruments in the Far North,” exclaims Professor Oliver Sonnentag of the Department of Geography at Université de Montréal. “We come from the south to do our research and then we leave, while local communities are directly affected by the climate change we’re witnessing. With the project funded by the Future Skills Centre, we have the opportunity to change the way we do research in these regions. “
Professor Sonnentag is studying the consequences of global warming and thawing permafrost in the Taiga Plains Ecozone, located in the Northwest Territories. ... Read more ...
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What will happen when permafrost melts? Mirage News - Miragenews (Apr 09, 2021) |
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Apr 09, 2021 · Greenland’s first highway—between Kangerlussuaq and Sisimiut—is being built to monitor the impact of climate change.
Greenland’s Arctic Circle Road has begun to wind its way through the landscape. On the flat terrain in West Greenland, near Kangerlussuaq airport, a new gravel road and a track for ATVs (all-terrain vehicles) are being built. The road will run from the ice sheet to the coastal city of Sisimiut, and will pave the way for the establishment of a number of new climate change measuring stations along the 150-kilometre stretch.
Kangerlussuaq (formerly known in Denmark as Søndre Strømfjord) is an international centre for ... Read more ...
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Russia's Far East in Race to Net Zero Emissions Mirage News - Miragenews (Mar 29, 2021) |
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Mar 29, 2021 · UN Climate Change News, 29 March 2021 – As the world gears up for the UN Climate Change Conference COP26 in Glasgow in November – the most important since the signing of the Paris Climate Change Agreement – an encouraging signal in global efforts to tackle the climate crisis has come from the remote far east of Russia.
In January, a pilot carbon emissions trading scheme was given the go-ahead on the country’s largest island of Sakhalin as part of a roadmap to achieve net zero carbon emissions by 2025.
Russia is considering scaling up the results of this initiative to cover all its territory, a boost for global efforts to achieve net zero ... Read more ...
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Scientists have published data on Siberian greenhouse gas emissions - Miragenews (Feb 25, 2021) |
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Feb 25, 2021 · The journal Nature Communications has published research by scientists from TSU (Russia), Umeå University (Sweden), and Midi-Pyrenees Observatory (France). For the first time, the article provides a comprehensive assessment of carbon emissions from the surface of rivers and lakes in Siberia – one of the least studied, but largest, northern ecosystems in the world, experiencing rapid permafrost thawing. The total transport of dissolved organic carbon by all Siberian rivers to the Arctic Ocean was also analyzed, and it was found that nine times less carbon enters there than the water bodies of Siberia emit.
– From 2016 to 2018, we collected data on ... Read more ...
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Himalayan flood highlights high mountain hazards - Miragenews (Feb 09, 2021) |
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Feb 09, 2021 · A relief and rescue operation is underway in Uttarakhand in the Indian Himalayas, after a part of the Nanda Devi glacier broke off and collapsed causing a massive massive flood in the Rishi Ganga /Dhauliganga river, reportedly causing loss of life and the destruction of two hydropower plants, bursting open existing dams, and other infrastructure . Many casualties were feared, alongside widespread environmental damage in an ecologically fragile area of Uttarakhand.
The exact cause of the disaster is yet to be ascertained. Early assessments indicate that the event involved a large avalanche of ice and rock. The role of climate-related drivers, and climate change, was not ... Read more ...
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Carbon-Loaded Peatlands Can't Be Ignored, scientists agree - Miragenews (Dec 08, 2020) |
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Dec 08, 2020 · Scientists from over 50 institutions agree: peatland carbon stocks are more vulnerable than previously thought, and preserving peatlands is essential to limiting climate warming. Finnish researchers contributed to the joint article with chapters of permafrost thaw, nitrogen deposition and peatland management.
Peatlands occupy 3% of the global land area, but contain about 25% of the global soil carbon stock – equivalent to twice the amount in the world’s forests. And, that huge amount of carbon is not as secure as scientists once thought.
A multidisciplinary team of 69 scientists from around the globe published a paper on 7 December 2020 with a clear message: ... Read more ...
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Scientists: permafrost in Arctic melted 30% faster in 2020 - Miragenews (Oct 20, 2020) |
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Oct 20, 2020 · The TSU Laboratory of Physics of High-Strength Crystals was the first in the world to obtain an alloy structure that gives them a special ability to deform and restore the original shape by up to 15%. The researchers were able to achieve the maximum values that scientific teams specializing in the development of shape memory alloys are striving for. Materials with a gigantic reversible deformation value are intended for the space industry, robotics, and microsystem technologies.
– Unlike conventional alloys, high-entropy alloys consist of five or more elements taken in equiatomic or equimolar concentrations. This arrangement helps to obtain materials with ... Read more ...
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Global warming will lift agriculture weed threat - Miragenews (Jun 03, 2020) |
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Jun 03, 2020 · Invasive weeds pose a significant threat to global agriculture productivity – and their threat will become more pronounced if the earth’s climate is affected by increased greenhouse gas concentration, according a Flinders University climate researcher.
Working with computer models to predict the likely impact of climate change on invasive weed propagation, Dr Farzin Shabani from Flinders University’s Global Ecology Lab found a likely increase in areas of habitat suitability for the majority of invasive weed species in European countries, parts of the US and Australia, posing a great potential danger to global biodiversity.
In predicting the impact of ... Read more ...
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Update: British Antarctic Survey response to COVID-19 and planning for next season | Mirage News - Miragenews (May 01, 2020) |
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May 01, 2020 · CAMBRIDGE: British Antarctic Survey (BAS) continues to plan its operational support to the UK and international polar research community during global challenges posed by COVID-19.
Halley and Signy Research Stations closed for the Antarctic winter in April. The last of the BAS aircraft has left Antarctica. Winter operation has begun at Rothera, Bird Island and King Edward Point Research Stations. These stations are currently clear of COVID-19.
Around 100 research, support and construction staff are onboard the RRS James Clark Ross and a charter ship. They expect to arrive in the UK towards the end of May 2020, weather permitting.
Planning for the 2020/21 Antarctic ... Read more ...
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New Antarctic Wharf Ready for RRS Sir David Attenborough | Mirage News - Miragenews (Apr 16, 2020) |
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Apr 16, 2020 · A new £40 million wharf to moor the RRS Sir David Attenborough has been used by polar ships for the first time at British Antarctic Survey's Rothera Research Station in Antarctica to transport staff and materials back to the UK.
A specialist team of engineers, divers, builders and project managers built the 74 metre wharf over 18 months through during the Antarctic summers (November to May). The 50-strong team from construction partners and designers of the wharf, BAM, with the support of Sweco and technical advisors, Ramboll, completed a second, six-month construction season. Turner & Townsend also provided cost management for the project.
The first ships to make ... Read more ...
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Baker Institute-led group to develop nationwide protocol for storing carbon | Mirage News - Miragenews (Dec 03, 2019) |
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Dec 03, 2019 · Rice University's Baker Institute for Public Policy has initiated a working group to develop a United States protocol for paying ranchers and farmers to store carbon in their soil. The current system for voluntary carbon transactions is broken and needs to be fixed, group founders said.
The group is co-led by attorney Jim Blackburn, a professor in the practice of environmental law at Rice, Baker Institute Rice Faculty Scholar and co-director of the university's Severe Storm Prediction, Education and Evacuation from Disasters Center (SSPEED), and Kenneth Medlock, the James A. Baker III and Susan G. Baker Fellow in Energy and Resource Economics and senior director of the Center ... Read more ...
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