The USC-developed tool combines free aerial imagery with AI to create detailed tree canopy maps without costly lidar surveys, which use lasers to produce highly detailed 3D landscape maps, or commercial satellite imagery that many existing systems require. The technology could help communities make smarter, targeted investments in urban forests as extreme heat becomes more common.

New research found that extreme heat is already influencing how people with cancer manage daily life, access care, and make treatment-related decisions. The study highlights the need to integrate environmental risk into cancer care planning, from clinical conversations and appointment planning to caregiver guidance and community support.

A new study published in Science Advances reveals that cyanobacteria may survive prolonged heat stress not by protecting photosynthesis, as previously thought, but by increasing respiration to compensate for heat-induced damage. The findings provide new insight into how harmful bloom-forming Microcystis populations may persist under rising temperatures, with implications for predicting the impacts of climate change on freshwater ecosystems.