Extreme droughts in LMICs are associated with increased sexual violence against girls and young women, emphasizing how climate change can indirectly exacerbate social vulnerabilities.

A Dartmouth study uses machine learning to reexamine whether climate change is causing large waves in the polar jet stream that have brought Arctic-like temperatures and storms to temperate regions of the United States in recent years. The researchers constructed a timeline of the jet stream's wintertime variability since 1901 and found it's in the latest of several “wavy” periods from the past 125 years, most of which predate significant effects of climate change. The authors report that climate change is likely not amplifying extreme winter weather by making the jet stream wavier, but through more direct links such as a warmer atmosphere that retains more moisture.

An international collaboration of conservation, environment, and human development experts and practitioners led by the United Nations Development Program’s Human Development Report Office (UNDP-HDRO) proposes a new way for countries to measure and improve their relationships with nature and each other.

How can we accelerate the energy transition in a socially responsible way? Empa researchers propose a publicly funded basic service in solar energy that would increase energy autonomy, create social justice and promote further investment in renewable energies. This requires – among other things – a third of all roofs in Switzerland and a total investment every 30 years that is roughly equivalent to the average gross monthly salary per Swiss citizen.

How meerkats cope with heat and drought, the process turning dryland ecosystems from methane sinks into methane sources and more from ESA’s journals.

A recent study by The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST) reveals a looming climate crisis: the world could face heightened risks of “precipitation whiplashes” – violent swings between extreme droughts and floods – as early as 2028. This research, led by Prof. LU Mengqian and Dr. CHENG Tat-Fan of HKUST’s Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, attributes the escalating risk to climate-driven intensification of Madden-Julian Oscillation (MJO) events. This large-scale pattern of tropical intraseasonal climate variability is now propagating faster due to global warming.

Earth is hotter than it has been in 125,000 years, scientists say, and Las Vegas continues to break temperature records. The extreme heat claimed more than 500 lives in southern Nevada last year alone, and scientists and city officials are clamoring for solutions. Planting and preserving the city’s street trees is one method that brings many benefits, from the cool air of their shade to their ability to store carbon. Now, a new study takes a deeper look at just how much trees can offer Sin City, as well as the water tradeoffs inherent in growing trees in a desert.  

An international team of scientists has developed a biodegradable material that could slash global energy consumption without using any electricity, according to a new study published today.

An experiment carried out by researchers from São Paulo State University on zucchini crops indicated that a 30% drop in rainfall would reduce the availability of calories in the sweet liquid that serves as food for pollinators, such as bees, by 34%, while extreme drought practically wipes out the resource. These results are particularly concerning for plants that depend on cross-pollination.