https://phys.org/earth-news/ en-us Earth science research, climate change, and global warming. The latest news and updates from Phys.org Sania sits in front of her home in Indonesia, less than a kilometer from Southeast Asia's biggest coal complex, where chimneys pump dark gray smoke and a chemical smell into the air. https://phys.org/news/2023-12-indonesia-coal-affair-aflame-pledges.html Environment Mon, 04 Dec 2023 04:00:01 EST news620884567 The bodies of 11 climbers were recovered Monday a day after a furious eruption of the Mount Marapi volcano as Indonesian rescuers searched for 12 apparently still missing. https://phys.org/news/2023-12-bodies-recovered-volcanic-eruption-indonesia.html Environment Mon, 04 Dec 2023 03:50:10 EST news620884203 With Planet Earth running a fever, U.N. climate talks focused Sunday on the contagious effects on human health. https://phys.org/news/2023-12-earth-fever-climate-focusing-contagious.html Environment Sun, 03 Dec 2023 13:29:35 EST news620832562 This year, a record-hot Atlantic Ocean went toe-to-toe with a strong El Niño for which weather phenomena would steer the hurricane season. The winner? https://phys.org/news/2023-12-el-nio-storms-hurricane-season.html Environment Sun, 03 Dec 2023 10:30:01 EST news620648995 Nearly 120 nations pledged to triple the world's renewable energy within seven years at UN climate talks Saturday as the United States pushed to crank up nuclear capacity and slash methane emissions. https://phys.org/news/2023-12-nations-rally-renewables-cop28-climate.html Environment Sun, 03 Dec 2023 06:30:01 EST news620804864 They call the giant climate business expo running outside the COP28 United Nations talks in Dubai the "green zone". https://phys.org/news/2023-12-greenwash-corporate-dilemmas-cop28.html Environment Sun, 03 Dec 2023 05:50:02 EST news620804836 Dubai's glitzy skyline was obscured by a blanket of smog rated as "unhealthy" on Sunday as thousands of delegates attended a COP28 conference dedicated to the harmful effects of air pollution. https://phys.org/news/2023-12-dubai-hosts-climate-air-pollution.html Environment Sun, 03 Dec 2023 05:46:33 EST news620804788 Fifty oil and gas companies representing 40 percent of global production pledged to decarbonize their operations by 2050 at the UN's COP28 climate talks in Dubai on Saturday. https://phys.org/news/2023-12-oil-gas-companies-pledge-emissions.html Environment Sun, 03 Dec 2023 05:46:09 EST news620804766 A powerful earthquake that shook the southern Philippines killed at least one villager and injured several others as thousands scrambled out of their homes in panic and jammed roads to higher grounds after a tsunami warning was issued, officials said Sunday. https://phys.org/news/2023-12-strong-earthquake-tsunami-dead-widespread.html Environment Sun, 03 Dec 2023 05:43:05 EST news620804580 The president of French Polynesia has questioned whether 2024 Olympic surfing can go ahead at the planned site in Tahiti, saying he was concerned about safety and damage to coral from a planned judging tower. https://phys.org/news/2023-12-coral-safety-olympic-surf-venue.html Environment Sun, 03 Dec 2023 05:42:29 EST news620804542 Earth's surface is the living skin of our planet—it connects the physical, chemical and biological systems. https://phys.org/news/2023-11-theory-landscapes-drove-evolution-earth.html Earth Sciences Environment Sat, 02 Dec 2023 13:40:01 EST news620562887 Almost half of marine mammals around the UK are being poisoned by banned chemicals. https://phys.org/news/2023-11-toxic-chemicals-uk-whales-dolphins.html Environment Sat, 02 Dec 2023 10:30:01 EST news620450729 More than 20 nations including the United States called for a tripling of nuclear energy to drive down emissions on Saturday as world leaders assembled for a second day at UN climate talks in Dubai. https://phys.org/news/2023-12-triple-nuclear-power-cop28.html Environment Sat, 02 Dec 2023 03:41:32 EST news620710888 More than 110 countries want the COP28 climate negotiations to adopt a goal of tripling renewable energy and doubling energy efficiency by 2030, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said Friday. https://phys.org/news/2023-12-countries-tripling-renewables-eu-chief.html Environment Fri, 01 Dec 2023 15:31:54 EST news620667112 A recent study published in the Journal of Geophysical Research: Solid Earth sheds new light on the formation of the East Coast of the United States—a "passive margin," in geologic terms—during the breakup of the supercontinent Pangea and the opening of the Atlantic Ocean around 230 million years ago. https://phys.org/news/2023-12-illuminates-formation-east-coast-supercontinent.html Earth Sciences Environment Fri, 01 Dec 2023 12:09:07 EST news620654941 Arianne Teherani has a loud, clear message for the negotiators at COP28: "Climate change is undermining human health, fundamentally, all over the world, right now." https://phys.org/news/2023-12-health-priority-cop28-spur-faster.html Earth Sciences Fri, 01 Dec 2023 11:40:06 EST news620653202 Recent drought-related data compiled by the UN point to "an unprecedented emergency on a planetary scale, where the massive impacts of human-induced droughts are only starting to unfold." https://phys.org/news/2023-12-silent-devastation-drought-globally-climate.html Earth Sciences Environment Fri, 01 Dec 2023 11:19:05 EST news620651941 Climate change is overwhelmingly a problem of wealthy people. The wealthiest 1% of humanity produce over 1,000 times the emissions of the poorest 1%. In fact, these 77 million people are responsible for more climate-changing emissions than the poorest 66% (5 billion people) of humanity. https://phys.org/news/2023-12-emissions-inequality-worsehere-ultra-polluters.html Environment Fri, 01 Dec 2023 11:17:04 EST news620651821 The relationship between the US and China is the most important in the world, and it has been unstable and sometimes under extreme stress in recent years. But a recent meeting between presidents Joe Biden and Xi Jinping in California may bring new momentum for global climate action. https://phys.org/news/2023-12-renewed-china-us-cooperation-bodes-climate.html Environment Fri, 01 Dec 2023 10:11:04 EST news620647862 Climate change has many effects, but one of the most significant will feature for the first time at COP28—its impact on human health. https://phys.org/news/2023-12-cop28-climate-summit-health-day.html Earth Sciences Environment Fri, 01 Dec 2023 10:10:10 EST news620647802 Water, as one of the essential natural resources, is vital for the growth of any region. How much water a city has access to and how water is distributed is a crucial part of sustainable development. https://phys.org/news/2023-12-methods-sustainable-cities.html Earth Sciences Environment Fri, 01 Dec 2023 09:02:04 EST news620643722 A new report by CSIRO, Australia's national science agency, shows existing technologies will enable Australia to halve emissions by 2030 from 2020 levels, under a rapid decarbonization scenario led by a renewable electricity sector. https://phys.org/news/2023-12-rapid-decarbonization-australia-net.html Environment Fri, 01 Dec 2023 09:00:04 EST news620643601 As the demand for rare earth elements increases world-wide, so too do the mining activities associated with rare earth element extraction. Rare earth elements are listed as 15 elements on the periodic table constituting what is known as the lanthanide series, ranging in atomic number from 57 (lanthanum) to 71 (lutetium), as well as scandium (Sc) and yttrium (Y), which serve as essential inputs for information and energy technologies, especially renewable energy technologies. https://phys.org/news/2023-12-unexpected-expansion-rare-earth-element.html Earth Sciences Environment Fri, 01 Dec 2023 08:28:04 EST news620641681 Jacqueline "Jackie" Gerson knows very well how "artisanal gold mining" sounds to people who haven't heard the phrase before. https://phys.org/news/2023-12-detoxifying-gold.html Earth Sciences Environment Fri, 01 Dec 2023 08:14:24 EST news620640859 Simultaneous episodes of extreme heat and drought—typical of a moderate warming scenario predicted for the end of the 21st century—could occur earlier and repeatedly in Europe, reports a study published in Communications Earth & Environment. https://phys.org/news/2023-12-century-extreme-drought-conditions-europe.html Earth Sciences Environment Fri, 01 Dec 2023 08:04:02 EST news620640240 Headlines across the world this year focused on fires, including both wildfires and the use of military firepower, in various places. https://phys.org/news/2023-12-cop28-addiction-combustion.html Environment Fri, 01 Dec 2023 08:04:00 EST news620640237 Writing in the journal Nature ahead of COP28, a team of Met Office scientists has emphasized that—surprisingly—there is currently no formally agreed way of defining the current level of global warming relevant to the Paris Agreement. https://phys.org/news/2023-12-consensus-global-15c-scientists.html Earth Sciences Environment Fri, 01 Dec 2023 07:02:26 EST news620636541 COP28 is officially the largest ever UN climate summit, with 80,000 participants registered on a list that—for the first time—shows who they work for. https://phys.org/news/2023-12-attendees-cop28-largest-climate-summit.html Environment Fri, 01 Dec 2023 06:39:27 EST news620635163 Even brief exposure to highway pollution could cause significant increases in blood pressure, a new study from the University of Washington has found, adding to a growing body of work correlating vehicle exhaust with negative health outcomes. https://phys.org/news/2023-12-traffic-exhaust-blood-pressure.html Environment Fri, 01 Dec 2023 03:11:35 EST news620622691 The scorching heat waves of 2023's summer and autumn shook the world, raising a pertinent question: Will this lead to the warmest winter the globe has ever witnessed? https://phys.org/news/2023-11-brace-potentially-record-breaking-winter-sweltering.html Earth Sciences Environment Fri, 01 Dec 2023 03:00:02 EST news620582574