Human activities such as commercial fishing, pollution and climate change have had a large impact on more than 40% of the world's oceans. That's according to the first study to map the effect of human influence on marine ecosystems on a global scale. More...
Do cosmic rays cause climate change?
In 2007 the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) released a major report saying that most of the Earth’s warming over the last 50 years has been manmade. However some researchers believe that the observed temperature changes could instead be caused primarily by variations in natural phenomena – including changes to the flux of galactic cosmic rays striking the Earth’s atmosphere. Now, two particle physicists in the UK claim to have shown that there is little evidence that variations in the cosmic ray flux affect Earth’s climate – although a group in the Ukraine believes that such a link can explain long-term temperature trends.
Carbon dioxide increase causes air pollution deaths
Each degree Celsius rise in temperature caused by increased carbon dioxide levels could cause about 1,000 deaths from air pollution each year in the US, says Mark Jacobson of Stanford University, US. The gas boosts concentrations of surface ozone, particles and carcinogens, all of which are detrimental to human health. More...
Sea level could rise three times more than IPCC prediction
Sea level has been within about 20 cm of present values for the last 2000 years but will rise 0.8-1.5 m by 2100. That's according to analysis that uses advanced statistical techniques to calculate sea level values from reconstructed past temperatures and projected temperatures. More...
Hockey stick curve stays in shape
The "hockey stick" curve showing reconstructed temperature data over the last 1000 years – with recent temperatures rising sharply – attracted considerable controversy when it was published in 1999 and included in the IPCC 2001 report. A 2006 study by the US National Research Council largely supported the findings while recommending some additional analysis. More...