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More than a tenth of Antarctica's ice projects out over the sea; this ice shelf preserves glacial ice that would otherwise fall into the Southern Ocean and raise global sea levels. But austral summers eat away at the ice, leaving meltwater collected in ponds (visible above in bright blue) and in harder-to-spot slush. (Image credit: Copernicus Sentinel/R. Dell; research credit: R. Dell et al.; via Physics Today) Read the full article
Large-scale ocean circulation is critical to our planet's health and climate. In this process, seawater near the poles cools and sinks into the deep ocean, carrying dissolved carbon and nutrients with it. (Image credit: visualization - NASA, ship - S. Nguyen; research credit: B. Wynne-Cattanach et al.; via Physics World) Read the full article
The Gulf Stream current carries warm, salty water from the Gulf of Mexico northeastward. In the North Atlantic, this water cools and sinks and drifts southwestward, emerging centuries later in the Southern Ocean. Known as the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation (AMOC), this circulation is critical, among other things, to Europe's temperate climate. (Image credit: illustration - Atlantic Oceanographic and Meteorological Laboratory, simulations - R. Gou et al.; research credit: R. Gou et al.; via APS Physics) Read the full article
After multiple high-profile injuries caused by atmospheric turbulence, you might be wondering whether airplane rides are getting rougher. Unfortunately, the answer is yes, at least for clear-air (i.e., non-storm-related) turbulence in the North Atlantic region. (Image credit: G. Ruballo; see also Gizmodo) Read the full article
The swiftly melting permafrost of the Arctic is releasing toxic metals like zinc, cadmium, and iron into Alaskan waterways. The contaminant levels are so high that it's staining many rivers orange -- a feature that can be seen from space. (Image credit: K. Hill/National Park Service; research credit: J. O'Donnell et al.; via LiveScience; submitted by Emily R.) Read the full article
Extreme weather events like floods, hurricanes, atmospheric rivers, heat waves, and droughts are increasingly discussed in terms of the effects of climate change. Because complex systems have complex causes, it's difficult to draw exact lines of causality between human-made climate change and a given weather event. (Image credits: Flooded street - J. Gade, Harvey flooding - M. Wehner; research credit: M. Wehner in Physics Today) Read the full article
Qinghai Lake sits in western China, where a warmer and wetter climate has been raising the lake's water level in recent years. These two satellite images, from 2010 and 2022, show the effects of those changes. (Image credit: A. Nussbaum, modified by N. Sharp; via NASA Earth Observatory) Read the full article
In southeastern Alaska, the Columbia Glacier once stretched as far as Heather Island in Prince William Sound. After a long period of stability, the glacier began retreating in 1980 and currently sits more than 15 miles from its previous extent. (Video and image credit: NASA Earth Observatory) Read the full article
Wildfires are growing ever more frequent and more destructive as the climate crisis worsens. Unfortunately, simulating and predicting the course of these fires is incredibly difficult, requiring a combination of ecology, meteorology, combustion science, and more. (Video and research credit: T. Hädrich et al.; see also) Read the full article
Cerulean blue meltwater glints in this satellite image of the George VI Ice Shelf. Wedged between the Antarctic Peninsula on the right and Alexander Island on the left, the ice shelf itself floats on the ocean. (Image credit: L. Dauphin/NASA Earth Observatory; see also Physics Today) Read the full article
As sea ice disappears in the Arctic Ocean, it leaves behind higher waves on the open water. These large waves help inject sea salt and organic matter into the atmosphere, where they can serve as nucleation sites for ice crystals. (Image credit: A. Antas-Bergkvist; research credit: J. Inoue et al.; via Gizmodo) Read the full article
