EurekAlert! Chinese Academy of Sciences - News Releases from CAS Institutes

News from CAS Institutes

Updates every hour. Last Updated: 26-Oct-2026 02:17 ET (26-Oct-2026 06:17 GMT/UTC)

Weather prediction hits a 129-day ceiling

Advances in Atmospheric Sciences & Partner Journals
Peer-Reviewed Publication

Prediction is the goal and test of all science, one might argue. Meteorologists have been curious about the inherent limits of weather forecasting ever since the dawn of numerical weather prediction in the late 1950s. Now, a new study published in Advances in Atmospheric Sciences offers a bold answer: even under perfect conditions, there is a fundamental limit—and it is about 129 days.

Journal: Advances in Atmospheric Sciences

Collections for walnut family: scientists propose "evolution-guided" databases (WalDB) for walnut family (Juglandaceae)

Institute of Botany, Chinese Academy of Sciences
Peer-Reviewed Publication

As genomic technologies advance, the walnut family (Juglandaceae)—encompassing ecologically and economically vital woody plants like walnuts, pecans, and wingnuts—has emerged as a premier model for studying plant evolution. However, fragmented genomic resources and inconsistent analytical standards have long hindered researchers from piecing together the complete evolutionary puzzle of this critical lineage.

Journal: Journal of Systematics and Evolution

Adhere to a biological perspective: scientists propose a framework to highlight the importance of internal constraints on prokaryotic genome evolution

Institute of Botany, Chinese Academy of Sciences
Peer-Reviewed Publication

Understanding how prokaryotic genomes coordinate nucleotide composition and gene distribution is a central yet unresolved question in genome evolution. Across different genomes, GC-content, nucleotide asymmetries, and biased gene distribution between replication strands are tightly associated, but existing explanations typically address only individual components and lack a unified causal framework.

Journal: Journal of Systematics and Evolution

Genomic insights unlocked: adaptive divergence of Capsella bursa-pastoris across altitudinal gradients

South China Botanical Garden, Chinese Academy of Sciences
Peer-Reviewed Publication

This study reveals pronounced genomic divergence between high- and low-altitude lineages of shepherd’s purse and identifies candidate genes underlying local adaptation to heterogeneous environments in China.

Journal: Biological Diversity
Funder: Postdoctoral Fellowship Program of CPSF, Guangdong Basic and Applied Basic Research Foundation, National Natural Science Foundation of China, Guangdong Science and Technology Plan Project

China updates National Grass Inventory: 2,304 species recorded, more than half of native species are endemic

Institute of Botany, Chinese Academy of Sciences
Peer-Reviewed Publication

Rice, wheat, bamboo, and the grasses growing along roadsides all belong to the Poaceae family—a plant family that underpins global food security, terrestrial ecosystems, and biodiversity. A new study published in the 2026 Issue 4 of Biodiversity Science presents the most comprehensive and up-to-date checklist of grasses in China, documenting 2,304 grass species in 283 genera, 37 tribes, 7 supertribes, and 10 subfamilies. Together, these account for approximately one-sixth of the world's grass species, reinforcing China's position as one of the world's most important centers of grass diversity.

Journal: Biodiversity Science

New radiative transfer model CARE-RTM enhances atmosphere-ocean simulation with improved accuracy and efficiency

Advances in Atmospheric Sciences & Partner Journals
Peer-Reviewed Publication

Researchers from the Aerospace Information Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Sciences, have developed a new radiative transfer model named CARE-RTM that simulates the propagation of sunlight through the atmosphere and ocean with improved precision and computational speed. The model provides a physical tool for extracting climate and environmental information from satellite data.

Journal: Advances in Atmospheric Sciences

Unlocking the ocean’s final frontier: JSE announces open call for “Deep Sea Biodiversity” Special Issue

Institute of Botany, Chinese Academy of Sciences
Business Announcement

The Journal of Systematics and Evolution (JSE) has announced a forthcoming special issue, “Deep Sea Biodiversity,” scheduled for publication in July 2027. This thematic collection aims to unravel the origins, maintenance, and ecological functions of life in the ocean’s most extreme frontiers – from the twilight zone (200 m) to the hadal trenches (>6,000 m) and polar deep seas.

Journal: Journal of Systematics and Evolution

Satellite data comparison reveals critical impacts of spatial & spectral resolution on sandy grassland plant biodiversity monitoring

South China Botanical Garden, Chinese Academy of Sciences
Peer-Reviewed Publication

A new study contrasts Landsat-8, SPOT-7 and field hyperspectral datasets in Hunshandak Sandland, proving high-resolution imagery and red-edge spectral metrics outperform traditional vegetation indices for tracking grassland plant alpha and beta diversity.

Journal: Biological Diversity
Funder: National Natural Science Foundation of China, Undergraduate Innovation Training Program of Minzu University of China

Plant functional traits hold the key to restoring wetlands in a changing world

Institute of Botany, Chinese Academy of Sciences
Peer-Reviewed Publication

A new review led by Fudan University highlights plant functional traits as key predictors of wetland ecosystem functioning. It proposes a trait-based restoration framework prioritizing local conditions, specific ecosystem goals, and hydrological recovery over mere species diversity.

Journal: Journal of Plant Ecology

Novel CRISPR transposase system enables precise genome editing of gut bacteria within complex microbial communities

Shenzhen Institute of Advanced Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences
Peer-Reviewed Publication

In a study published in Cell Systems, a team led by Prof. DAI Lei and Prof. ZHAO Wei from the Shenzhen Institutes of Advanced Technology of the Chinese Academy of Sciences developed ShCAST-based transient insertion system for Bacteroides (STIB), a CRISPR-associated transposase tool which enables efficient, site-specific insertion of large DNA fragments into Bacteroides genomes.

Journal: Cell Systems

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