disaster news Archives - Page 4 of 7

Oct12024 by Editor DeskNo Comments

Virtual Training for Firefighters: iFire System Revolutionizes Preparedness for Extreme Wildfires

Breaking News, Climate Actions, Disasters

As summer draws near, the growing threat of bushfires in regions like Australia and the U.S. has intensified, with climate change making these fires larger, hotter, and faster than ever before. Notable events like Australia's 2019/2020 "Black Summer" megafires and the recent August 2023 Maui wildfires highlight the increasing frequency of these devastating disasters. Despite the crucial role firefighters play in battling these blazes, many are not fully prepared for the unpredictable and extreme nature of modern wildfires, putting their safety and decision-making at risk. In response to this, the University of New South Wales' (UNSW) iCinema Research Centre has developed a groundbreaking solution: iFire, an immersive virtual training system designed to prepare emergency responders for r...

Sep292024 by Editor DeskNo Comments

Breaking Discovery Earth’s Inner Core May Have an Even Deeper Hidden Layer

Breaking News, Environment

Scientists have uncovered new evidence that suggests Earth's inner core long believed to be a solid iron sphere may actually consist of two distinct layers. This revelation could potentially reshape our understanding of Earth's formation and the events that shaped its early history. "Traditionally, we've been taught that Earth has four main layers: the crust, the mantle, the outer core, and the inner core," said Joanne Stephenson, a geophysicist from the Australian National University, in 2021. However, new research led by Stephenson and her colleagues indicates that Earth's inner core is more complex, featuring an additional, even deeper "inner-inner" core. For years, scientists have inferred what lies beneath Earth's surface by studying seismic waves from earthquakes. These waves t...

Sep282024 by Editor DeskNo Comments

Extreme Weather Events in South America Triple in Frequency Since 1970

Breaking News, Climate Actions, Environment

The frequency of days with extreme heat, dryness, and high fire risk has tripled in certain parts of South America since 1970, according to recent research. The study highlights that while the continent is warming at the same rate as the global average, specific regions are increasingly vulnerable to the co-occurrence of these climate extremes, which pose significant threats to ecosystems, economies, and public health. The most affected areas include the Venezuela-Colombia border, the northern Amazon, and parts of central South America near the Río de la Plata basin. In these regions, the number of days with compounded climate extremes has skyrocketed from fewer than 20 to as many as 70 per year. The variability of these extreme events has also increased from year to year. Impact of ...

Sep272024 by Editor DeskNo Comments

Astronomers Discover Earth-like Exoplanet Orbiting White Dwarf Offering Glimpse into Solar System’s Future

Breaking News, Space

In a remarkable discovery, astronomers have identified an Earth-like exoplanet orbiting a white dwarf star, potentially providing insight into the distant future of our own solar system. The exoplanet, with a mass approximately 1.9 times that of Earth, survived the violent phase when its host star expanded into a red giant before shrinking into a white dwarf. The finding offers new understanding of how planets might endure the tumultuous stages of stellar evolution. Led by Keming Zhang from the University of California, the study utilized microlensing, a technique that magnifies distant celestial objects when the gravity of a foreground star bends the light from a background star. The white dwarf was nearly perfectly aligned with the background star, amplifying the event more than 1,000...

Sep252024 by Editor DeskNo Comments

Research Uncovers Heat Tolerance Variability in Corals Offering Hope for Reef Survival

Breaking News, Climate Actions, Environment

A new study has revealed surprising variations in heat tolerance among coral colonies, offering new insights into their potential survival as global ocean temperatures rise. Even corals of the same species, living side by side, exhibit significantly different responses to heat stress, highlighting the complexity of coral resilience. The findings, published today, come as the world grapples with the impact of climate change on coral reefs. With the fourth global mass bleaching event recently declared and the Great Barrier Reef suffering five mass bleachings since 2016, these discoveries are crucial for future conservation efforts. Variable Heat Tolerance in Coral colonies The research focused on the tabular coral Acropora hyacinthus, a species highly vulnerable to heat waves but es...

Sep242024 by Editor DeskNo Comments

Nuclear Detonation Above Asteroids Could Be Earth’s Best Defense Against Space Rocks

Breaking News, Disasters, Space

A new laboratory experiment conducted by an international team of researchers has reinforced the idea that a nuclear detonation above an incoming asteroid could effectively prevent a catastrophic impact on Earth. The study confirmed that X-rays emitted by a suitably-sized nuclear blast could deflect asteroids as large as 3 to 5 kilometers (around 2 to 3 miles) wide, potentially steering them off a collision course with our planet. While there is no immediate threat from hazardous near-Earth asteroids, the catastrophic potential of an unexpected impact makes it crucial to develop reliable strategies for planetary defense. Nuclear Option: Our Best Bet for Large Asteroids Recent success in asteroid deflection was demonstrated by NASA’s DART mission, which successfully altered the orb...

Sep232024 by Editor DeskNo Comments

Wildfire Activity in Siberia Has Doubled Driven by Climate Change and Feedback Loops

Breaking News, Disasters

Wildfire activity in central Siberia has doubled over the past two decades, with vast areas of forest scorched and massive amounts of carbon released from rich soils and permafrost. While Arctic warming is known to exacerbate wildfires, the specific factors driving these events have been difficult to pinpoint, complicating future predictions. New research by Huang et al. sheds light on the key mechanisms behind this surge in wildfire activity. The team found that the increase in Siberian fires is strongly linked to drought, drying soils, and decreased rainfall all symptoms of Arctic climate change. More worryingly, they identified a feedback loop in which wildfires further suppress precipitation, worsening drought conditions and making the region even more fire-prone. How Wildfires S...

Sep232024 by Editor DeskNo Comments

Researchers Develop Advanced Imaging Method to Probe Volcanoes

Breaking News, Disasters

A team of researchers from the CNRS and the Paris Institute of Planetary Physics has developed an innovative method for creating high-resolution, deep imaging of volcanoes' internal structures. This breakthrough technique leverages a network of geophones devices that detect seismic waves to capture not only the strong movements caused by earthquakes but also the subtle seismic noise from wind, ocean waves, and human activities. The researchers applied this method to La Soufrière volcano in Guadeloupe, providing an unprecedented 3D view of the volcano’s internal structure to a depth of 10 kilometers with a resolution of around 100 meters. This new imaging technique confirmed the existence of a large magma storage zone, organized as a network of interconnected magma pockets beneath the vo...

Sep222024 by Editor DeskNo Comments

Study Finds Droughts Could Last 10 Days Longer by Century’s End

Breaking News, Disasters

A new study published in Nature reveals that the average duration of the longest annual drought periods could be 10 days longer by the end of this century than previously predicted. This new estimate, based on improved climate modeling techniques, indicates that the risks posed by droughts to societies and ecosystems may be more severe than previously thought. Researchers led by Irina Petrova and Diego Miralles examined drought projections from multiple climate models under moderate and high-emissions scenarios (IPCC's SSP2-4.5 and SSP5-8.5). They calibrated these projections using historical data from 1998 to 2018, focusing on the longest annual dry spells the number of consecutive dry days each year. Key Findings The study suggests that drought periods could extend by 42–44% on ...

Sep192024 by Editor DeskNo Comments

UNFCCC Report: Developing Nations Require Up to $6.85 Trillion for Climate Goals by 2030

Breaking News, Climate Actions

In a groundbreaking revelation, the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) has announced that developing countries will need between $5.012 trillion and $6.852 trillion to meet their climate commitments by 2030. This estimate, detailed in the second Needs Determination Report (NDR) released on September 10, 2024, significantly raises the stakes in global climate finance negotiations. The report, which updates figures from the initial 2021 NDR, represents a vital resource for informing decisions at the upcoming COP29 summit in Azerbaijan, where the contentious issue of the New Collective Quantified Goal (NCQG) on climate finance will be debated. With developed nations already lagging behind in delivering the $100 billion annual climate finance goal, the updated fi...