North Atlantic right whale Pediddle (#1012) and calf. This species was hunted nearly to extinction by commercial whalers in the 1800s, and continues to face threats from vessel strikes and entanglement in fishing gear. Credit: NOAA Fisheries

Whales and Carbon Sequestration: Can Whales Store Carbon?

3/18/2024 - By fisheries.noaa.gov. The ocean captures about 31 percent of all carbon dioxide emissions, removing carbon from the atmosphere that would otherwise continue to trap heat and increase temperatures. Blue carbon, or carbon captured by ocean ecosystems includes: Carbon absorbed by aquatic plants, algae, and phytoplankton Carbon stored in the bodies of living animals… SEE MORE
shutterstock.com

Unprecedented Shipping Disruptions Reshaping Global Trade, UN Report Warns

3/2/2024 - By Mike Schuler. The recent attacks on Red Sea shipping coupled with existing geopolitical and climate-related challenges are reshaping global trade routes with the potential for major economic and environmental implications. This is according to a new report from the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), titled “Navigating… SEE MORE
NASA/ Goddard Space Flight Center | Credit: NASA

NASA Climate Satellite Blasts off to Survey Oceans and Atmosphere of a Warming Earth

2/26/2024 - By Jonathan Watts. CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) — NASA’s newest climate satellite rocketed into orbit Thursday to survey the world’s oceans and atmosphere in never-before-seen detail. SpaceX launched the Pace satellite on its $948 million mission before dawn, with the Falcon rocket heading south over the Atlantic to achieve a… SEE MORE
Straddling the equator, the Amazon River Basin occupies more than a third of South America. Rainfall is seasonal, shifting north of the equator in Northern Hemisphere summer and south of the equator in Northern Hemisphere winter. NOAA Climate.gov image, based on NASA Blue Marble collection.

Preliminary Analysis Says Global Warming More to Blame than El Niño for Amazon’s Ongoing Record Drought

2/18/2024 - By REBECCA LINDSEY. The devastating drought in the Amazon River Basin that we wrote about in October has continued into Northern Hemisphere winter, which is the heart of the wet season in the southern part of the basin. The drought is cutting off rural and riverside communities from food supplies, markets for… SEE MORE