In Beijing the sky is "raining worms"!

As they went about their daily business, residents carried umbrellas to avoid infection with falling worms.

While the Chinese authorities have not yet revealed the cause of this strange phenomenon, theories have begun to appear on the Internet. Where some considered that it might actually be poplar flowers, which is a very widespread tree in Beijing, and when its flowers fall, they are often confused with caterpillars, while another theory said that the worms fell after being swept away by strong winds, a theory supported by the scientific journal Mother Nature. Network, which explained that this kind of incident with insects happens after a storm. Source: Daily Star

The horrific scale of the plastics crisis: 4.9 million tons of waste floats in our oceans

A study has shed new light on the horrific extent of the global plastics crisis, revealing that as many as 4.9 million tonnes of plastic waste is floating in our oceans, with an "unprecedented increase" since 2005.

Without immediate action, the rate at which plastics enter our water is expected to increase 2.6 times by 2040.

“This is a stark warning that we must act now on a global scale,” said Marcus Eriksen, co-founder and researcher from the 5 Gyres Institute, a non-profit organization focused on reducing plastic pollution. “We need a strong, legally binding global treaty from the UN on pollution.” plastic surgery will stop the problem from the root.

In the study, researchers analyzed a global data set of ocean plastic pollution spanning from 1979 to 2019.

The data was taken from 11,777 stations across six major marine regions in the North Atlantic, South Atlantic, North Pacific, South Pacific, Indian and Mediterranean oceans.

Data analysis revealed a significant and rapid increase in both the abundance and distribution of plastic since 2005.

They estimate that 82-358 trillion plastic particles (171 trillion plastic particles on average), weighing between 1.1-4.9 million tons (2.3 million tons on average) were floating around in our oceans in 2019.

"We found an alarming trend of exponential growth of microplastics in the global oceans since the millennium, reaching over 170 trillion plastic particles," Eriksen noted.

While the reason for the increase from 2005 is still not clear, researchers have several theories. "These observations may have been influenced by policy interventions, plastic production, fragmentation of existing floating plastics, and/or waste management and trade," they wrote in a study published in PLOS ONE.

Worryingly, they warn that things could get worse if drastic action is not taken immediately.

The team concluded that "the accelerating abundance of plastics in the ocean surface layer (OSL) requires urgent international policy intervention to minimize environmental, social and economic damage."

Without major large-scale policy changes, the rate at which plastic enters aquatic environments will increase about 2.6-fold from 2016 to 2040.”

Last year, nearly 200 countries, including the United States and China, agreed to a new United Nations agreement that requires cuts in plastic production by 2024.

The historic agreement was put in place to avoid the "collapse of the planet's ecosystem" from the spread of plastic and microplastic particles in every corner of the Earth. Source: Daily Mail

Scientists: Pesticides affect the taste of strawberries

Scientists have found that common fungicides and insecticides alter the cellular machinery of strawberries, making the berries less sweet and nutritious.

The sweetness in berries and fruits usually comes from dissolved glucose or fructose molecules. The aromas come from volatile compounds such as esters and terpenes. Turbines have anti-cancer, anti-microbial, anti-fungal, anti-viral, anti-inflammatory and parasitic properties. Many fruits also contain vitamin C, fiber, folic acid and antioxidants.

Pesticides are meant to disrupt cellular processes in harmful fungi, but they can also accidentally damage crops, and that can prevent the production of beneficial compounds that help give fruits their flavor and nutritional value.

Chinese researchers studied how buscalide and difenoconazole, two common fungicides used to treat strawberries, affect specific molecular pathways in the fruit.

The scientists compared strawberries grown without fungicides to strawberries that had been treated. The "pesticide" berries were the same size and color, compared to the untreated berries. However, some chemical changes occurred in the treated berries in response to the action of the fungicides. Source: TASS

Detection of super emissions of carbon dioxide on Earth!

Earth's super carbon dioxide emitters have been revealed in a new NASA map showing how much of the greenhouse gas is being pumped out by more than 100 countries.

Topping the list are China and the United States, followed by India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Brazil, Mexico, Iran, Japan and Germany. The UK is not far behind some of these countries, along with the rest of Western Europe, Australia, Kazakhstan, most of North Africa, South Africa, Chile, Thailand and the Philippines.

Satellite measurements from NASA's Orbiting Carbon Observatory 2 (OCO-2) mission helped establish the pilot project.

It estimates both the amount of carbon dioxide that is emitted in each country, as well as the amount that is removed from the atmosphere by forests or other carbon "sinks" within their borders.

The research provides a new perspective for scientists because it tracks both fossil fuel emissions and overall changes in carbon "stocks" in ecosystems, such as trees, shrubs and soils.

Detection of super emissions of carbon dioxide on Earth!

© NASA “NASA is focused on providing Earth science data that addresses real-world climate challenges — such as helping governments around the world measure the impact of carbon mitigation efforts,” said Karen St. Germain, director of NASA's Earth Sciences Division. NASA and advancing efforts to measure carbon emissions in a way that meets user needs."

The international study used both data from the OCO-2 mission and a network of surface observations to estimate increases and decreases in atmospheric carbon dioxide concentrations between 2015 and 2020.

This allowed the researchers to balance how much carbon dioxide the world's countries emit and remove over the five-year period using what is known as a "top-down" method.

Traditionally, scientists have taken a "bottom-up" approach to estimating the amount of CO2 that countries emit into the Earth's atmosphere.

But this requires significant resources, expertise and knowledge because it involves calculating the amount of carbon dioxide emitted across all sectors of the economy, such as transportation and agriculture.

Bottom-up methods can also lack the full effects of certain activities, such as recording, because they are not fully known.

That's why the researchers think their top-down approach may be particularly beneficial.

For example, the study includes data for more than 50 countries that have not reported emissions for at least the past 10 years.

The information also helps track carbon dioxide fluctuations related to land cover change.

Emissions from deforestation alone account for a significant amount of total carbon output in Latin America, Asia, Africa and Oceania, while data shows that reforestation in other parts of the world has helped reduce atmospheric carbon.

Study author Philippe Cialis, from the Laboratory for Climate and Environmental Sciences in France, said: “Our top-down estimates provide an independent estimate of these emissions and removals, so although they cannot replace a detailed understanding of the process for traditional bottom-up methods, we can verify Both approaches for consistency' sake.

The new research reveals a complex picture of how carbon moves through the land, oceans and atmosphere.

It also accounts not only for direct human impact on greenhouse gases in some countries but also for regions where people have a minimal footprint and can therefore reduce global warming.

"National inventories aim to track how management policies affect carbon dioxide emissions and removals," said study author Noel Cressey, a professor at the University of Wollongong in Australia.

However, the atmosphere does not care whether the carbon dioxide is emitted by deforestation in the Amazon or wildfires in the Canadian Arctic.

Both processes will increase the concentration of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere and lead to climate change.

Therefore, it is critical to monitor the carbon balance in unmanaged ecosystems and to identify any changes in carbon uptake.

The researchers hope to further refine the data they collected to understand how emissions from individual countries change. Source: Daily Mail