|
|
| New clue to how last ice age ended | | In addition to Antarctica, New Zealand was warming at the end of the last ice age, indicating that the deep freeze up north, called the Younger Dryas for the white flower that grows near glaciers, bypassed much of the southern hemisphere, according to new research. |
| Irrigation's cooling effects may mask warming in some regions -- for now | | Expanded irrigation has made it possible to feed the world's growing billions -- and it may also temporarily be counteracting the effects of climate change in some regions, say scientists. But some sources of irrigation water are projected to dry up in coming decades and when they do, people may face the double whammy of food shortages and higher temperatures. A new study pinpoints where the trouble spots may be. |
| Scots Pine shows its continental roots | | By studying similarities in the genes of Scots Pine trees, scientists have shown that the iconic pine forests of Highland Scotland still carry the traces of the ancestors that colonized Britain after the end of the last ice age, harboring genetic variation that could help regenerate future populations, according to new research. |
| Risk of beetle outbreaks rise, along with temperature, in the warming West | | The potential for outbreaks of spruce and mountain pine beetles in western North America's forests is likely to increase significantly in the coming decades, according to a study conducted by USDA Forest Service researchers and their colleagues. Their findings represent the first comprehensive synthesis of the effects of climate change on bark beetles. |
| Land-use expert brings satellite data down to Earth | | By integrating remote satellite imagery with revelations from door-to-door interviews, geographers are exploring the complex conditions that give rise to a broad range of land-use challenges -- from the reforestation of Vietnam to the spread of Lyme disease in Belgium. |
|
|
WEATHER 