How did Earth avoid a Mars-like fate? Ancient rocks hold clues: New paleomagnetic research suggests Earth’s solid inner core formed 550 million years ago and restored our planet’s magnetic field
Approximately 1,800 miles beneath our feet, swirling liquid iron in the Earth’s outer core generates our planet’s protective magnetic field. This magnetic field is invisible but is vital for life on Earth’s surface because it shields the planet from solar wind — streams of radiation from the sun. About 565 million years ago, however, the […]
Scientists show that at least 44 percent of Earth’s land requires conservation to safeguard biodiversity and ecosystem services
New research published in the June 3, 2022 journal Science reveals that 44 percent of Earth’s land area — some 64 million square kilometers (24.7 million square miles) requires conservation to safeguard biodiversity. The team, led by Dr James R. Allan from the University of Amsterdam, used advanced geospatial algorithms to map the optimal areas […]
Large-scale ocean sanctuaries could protect coral reefs from climate change: About 75% of all tropical reefs have experienced coral bleaching
Earth’s oceans are home to some of the most diverse ecosystems on the planet, but warming temperatures are causing many marine animals, including coral, to die out. A new study into managing the effect climate change has on these organisms says that more international collaboration is needed to ensure the future of the more than […]
Past eight years: Warmest since modern recordkeeping began: 2021 tied for sixth warmest year in continued trend, analysis shows
Earth’s global average surface temperature in 2021 tied with 2018 as the sixth warmest on record, according to independent analyses done by NASA and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). Continuing the planet’s long-term warming trend, global temperatures in 2021 were 1.5 degrees Fahrenheit (0.85 degrees Celsius) above the average for NASA’s baseline period, […]
Zeroing in on the origins of Earth’s ‘single most important evolutionary innovation’: A new study shows oxygenic photosynthesis likely evolved between 3.4 and 2.9 billion years ago.
Some time in Earth’s early history, the planet took a turn toward habitability when a group of enterprising microbes known as cyanobacteria evolved oxygenic photosynthesis — the ability to turn light and water into energy, releasing oxygen in the process. This evolutionary moment made it possible for oxygen to eventually accumulate in the atmosphere and […]