Record-wet and record-dry months increased in regions worldwide. More and more rainfall extremes are observed in regions around the globe -- triggering both wet and dry records, a new study shows. Yet there are big differences between regions: The central and Eastern US, northern Europe and northern Asia have experienced heavy rainfall events that have led to severe floods in recent past. In contrast, most African regions have seen an increased frequency of months with a lack of rain. Source 9l.
Water, not temperature, limits global forest growth as climate warms. The growth of forest trees all over the world is becoming more water-limited as the climate warms. The effect is most evident in northern climates and at high altitudes where the primary limitation on tree growth had been cold temperatures. The research details the first time that changes in tree growth in response to current climate changes have been mapped at a near-global scale. Source 1w.
I agree it's insane to talk about terraforming other planets to make them livable when we have a pre-terraformed planet. It will be less work to fix our problems than try to create a whole new biosphere. We don't understand all the processes that take place in 1 cubic foot of forest soil. We will never replicate Earth on a currently barren planet.
So to that end, restoring forests and grasslands may be our best hope to bring down atmospheric carbon to comfortable levels.
Climate change conversations can be difficult for both skeptics, environmentalists. Having productive conversations about climate change isn't only challenging when dealing with skeptics, it can also be difficult for environmentalists, according to two new studies. Source 9h.
Engineers develop a new way to remove carbon dioxide from air. A new way of removing carbon dioxide from a stream of air could provide a significant tool in the battle against climate change. The new system can work on the gas at virtually any concentration level, even down to the roughly 400 parts per million currently found in the atmosphere. Source 1z.
Coronavirus lockdowns have caused an 'extreme' 17% drop in global carbon emissions. The analysis by an international team of scientists is the first to measure the pandemic-driven global decrease in carbon dioxide emissions between January and April of this year. Ref. USAToday.