#scienceadvances

[futuretechnerd]

🌍 BREAKING DISCOVERY: Scientists have found a mysterious 'donut' structure inside Earth's core! 🕵️‍♂️ Using advanced seismic wave technology, we've uncovered a region where waves travel 2% slower. Could this change how we understand our planet's magnetic field? 🚀 Dive into this groundbreaking research in Science Advances! 📚

"Wait, there's a 'donut' inside Earth's core? Scientists reveal a hidden structure that's changing everything we know about our planet!"

Earth's core, seismic waves, donut structure, geophysics, magnetic field, lighter elements, silicon, oxygen, Science Advances, groundbreaking discovery, hidden inside Earth, seismic study, slow seismic waves, Earth science, planetary research, scientific breakthrough, mystery inside Earth, science innovation, core structure.

👀 Watch till the end to learn more about what lies beneath our feet! #EarthScience

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[scienza-magia]

Certificare le risorse computazionali della quantistica

Fisica quantistica, ora è possibile certificare le proprietà dei dispositivi ottici integrati. Un team di ricerca internazionale ha identificato nuove tecniche per quantificare le risorse computazionali fornite dalla meccanica quantistica nei dispositivi ottici. Gli esperimenti, condotti presso il gruppo Quantum Lab del Dipartimento della Sapienza di Roma, hanno coinvolto anche l’Istituto di fotonica e nanotecnologie del Cnr. I risultati, pubblicati sulla rivista Science Advances, serviranno a implementare le future applicazioni nei campi della metrologia, crittografia e della computazione. Man mano che i nuovi dispositivi quantistici crescono in dimensioni e complessità, risulta fondamentale sviluppare metodi affidabili per certificare e individuare le risorse quantistiche che forniscono un effettivo vantaggio computazionale, al fine di delineare il modo migliore di utilizzarle. In un nuovo studio, pubblicato sulla rivista Science Advances è stato mostrato proprio come certificare le varie proprietà quantistiche di dispositivi fotonici integrati di crescente complessità.Il risultato è frutto di una collaborazione scientifica di lunga data nel campo della certificazione quantistica tra la Sapienza di Roma, l’Istituto di fotonica e nanotecnologie del Consiglio nazionale delle ricerche di Milano (Cnr-Ifn) il Politecnico di Milano e il Laboratorio Internazionale di Nanotecnologia iberica (INL).

Rappresentazione del chip fotonico integrato programmabile utilizzato utilizzato nel lavoro. Le guide d'onda vengono create mediante la scrittura laser a femtosecondo sul vetro. Le operazioni del circuito sono controllate applicando correnti su vari resistori disposti sulla superficie del chip I circuiti ottici integrati programmabili sono tra le principali piattaforme candidate per l'elaborazione dell’informazione quantistica basata sui qubits. Essi, infatti, consentono da un lato di effettuare esperimenti finalizzati a verificare le proprietà fondamentali della meccanica quantistica, dall’altro di implementare i dispositivi per future applicazioni nel campo della metrologia, crittografia e della computazione. Gli esperimenti, guidati da Fabio Sciarrino della Sapienza e condotti presso il gruppo Quantum Lab dell’Ateneo, hanno certificato la presenza di caratteristiche quantistiche autentiche come la contestualità e la coerenza in un circuito ottico integrato programmabile. La metodologia seguita è stata quella sviluppata dal team teorico guidato da Ernesto Galvão dell'INL in Portogallo. “L’utilizzo di un chip fotonico completamente integrato e programmabile migliora la precisione e la coerenza del processo di caratterizzazione, offrendo il potenziale per l’implementazione di questi dispositivi in ​​applicazioni pratiche”, commenta Roberto Osellame, direttore di ricerca presso Cnr-Ifn. “Il nostro lavoro – aggiunge Taira Giordani, ricercatrice presso la Sapienza e membro del team Quantum Lab – è la prima applicazione sperimentale di tale tecnica per quantificare le risorse computazionali fornite dalla meccanica quantistica nei dispositivi ottici”. Le tecniche sviluppate hanno permesso però di verificare anche il vantaggio quantistico in applicazioni pratiche come il quantum imaging. I sistemi di imaging, grazie a determinate correlazioni quantistiche, permettono di ottenere una risoluzione che supera i limiti dell'ottica classica, trovando applicazione in diversi campi della metrologia e dei sensori. “I nostri risultati – conclude Fabio Sciarrino, capogruppo del Quantum Lab della Sapienza – motivano la ricerca per nuove tecniche per lo studio delle risorse non classiche. Ci aspettiamo che questo lavoro stimolerà la ricerca sulla futura certificazione di dispositivi ottici che sfruttano stati quantistici della luce sempre più complessi”. Questa linea di ricerca è supportata dal National Quantum Science and Technology Institute (NQSTI), il finanziamento italiano per la ricerca fondamentale sulle tecnologie quantistiche, dall’ERC Advanced Grant QU-BOSS, dal progetto Horizon Europe FoQaCiA e dalla FCT - Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia del Portogallo.  (La redazione non è responsabile del testo di questo comunicato stampa, che è stato pubblicato integralmente e senza variazioni) Read the full article

[nishp]

📚🔬 Happy National Research Administrator Day! 🔬📚

Today, we recognize and celebrate the unsung heroes behind the scenes of groundbreaking discoveries and innovation. Research administrators are the glue that holds the world of academia, science, and research together.

They are the wizards who navigate the labyrinth of grants, budgets, and compliance regulations, ensuring that researchers can focus on what they do best—pushing the boundaries of knowledge and advancing our understanding of the world.

On this special day, let's give a standing ovation to the diligent individuals who make sure the gears of research keep turning smoothly. Share your stories of collaboration with research administrators, tag your favorite research institutions, and honor the dedication that drives progress.

Research administrators are the catalysts for innovation, the protectors of ethical standards, and the advocates for knowledge dissemination. They transform ideas into reality, making a significant impact on society's well-being.

To all the research administrators out there, thank you for your tireless dedication, your attention to detail, and your commitment to the pursuit of knowledge. You are the unsung heroes of research, and today, we celebrate YOU! 🌟🔍💼

[offthewhiteboard]

"LOOK IN THESE EYES AND TELL ME THERE'S A SINGLE SCIENTIFIC THOUGH."

"??? THERE IS."

[insurgentepress]

Descubren un agujero de 40,000 km2 en el hielo marino antártico

Un equipo de investigadores ha publicado en @ScienceAdvances un descubrimiento sobre la pieza que falta del rompecabezas detrás de una rara abertura en el hielo marino alrededor de la Antártida, que era casi el doble del tamaño de Gales y se produjo durante los inviernos de 2016 y 2017.

Agencias, Ciudad de México.- Científicos han encontrado explicación a una rara abertura en el hielo marino alrededor de la Antártida, que era casi el doble del tamaño de Gales y se produjo durante los inviernos de 2016 y 2017. Un estudio publicado en Science Advances revela un proceso clave que había eludido a los científicos en cuanto a cómo esta abertura de unos 40,000 kilómetros cuadrados,…

[teragames]

Fabrican vidrio biodegradable y biorreciclable

Un artículo publicado en @ScienceAdvances revela que un grupo de investigación chino ha desarrollado una familia de vidrio ecológico de origen biológico fabricado a partir de aminoácidos o péptidos de origen biológico.

Científicos chinos han desarrollado una familia de vidrios ecológicos de origen biológico fabricados a partir de aminoácidos o péptidos de origen biológico, que es biodegradable y biorreciclable. El uso generalizado de vidrio persistente, no biodegradable y que no puede eliminarse de forma natural provoca peligros medioambientales y cargas sociales a largo plazo. Para resolver este problema, un…

[worldnewsapp]

#NASA is on its way to figuring out whether #Mars contains #fossilized evidence of #extraterrestrial #life, but a new study suggests the #RedPlanet had water billions of years earlier than previously believed.⁣ ⁣ The research, published in #ScienceAdvances, notes there was water on Mars' surface 4.4 billion years ago. The experts looked at #meteorite #NWA 7533, believed to have originated on Mars, and found levels of #oxidation inside the space rock that suggests there was water on Mars long before there was life on #Earth.⁣ ⁣ Go to the link in our bio for more on this story. ------------------------------------------------------------- Follow us to stay informed with the latest BreakingNews & Updates from around the world @world_news_app Must visit our World News website for daily news & updates from around the world at https://worldnewsapp.online Get all the latest news & updates on American Politics, Election 2020 and other trending topics on our US-specific News app: bit.ly/USNewsPro Get all the latest news & updates about United Kingdom, UK Politics, Royals and other trending topics on our UK-specific News app: bit.ly/UKNewsPro Stay informed with all the latest technology news, AI, ML, IoT, Science & more from around the world. Get our Tech News app from: bit.ly/techfind Get our World News Pro App (AD-FREE) for all the latest news & more from all around the world at: bit.ly/WNProFB Get our free World News App for all the latest news & more from all around the world at: bit.ly/WorldNewsFB or link in bio ------------------------------------------------------------- Reposted from @foxnews #WorldNewsApp #WorldNews #localnews #internationalnews #Marsmission #marsplanet #marslife #lifeonmars #wateronmars #astrology #astronomy #spacefacts #sciencenews #science #space #universe #galaxy #solarsystem https://www.instagram.com/p/CHhGnLMBWpw/?igshid=t6zyb5332q68

[novasciencepublishers-blog]

Computer Science Advances: Research and Applications Sandip A. Kale (Editor)

This book is comprised of eleven chapters about computer application and research areas to discuss the latest issues and technologies. Interesting and important topics like fuzzy and cognitive applications, fuzzy classifiers, neural network, data analytics, clustering and classification models, artificial intelligence, controller area network, digital technology industry 4.0, etc. are included in this book.

The first chapter presents neuro-fuzzy and cognitive researches for the development of objects on the basis of location and territory. The second chapter is about the method of parametric identification using a neuro-fuzzy classifier. The third chapter describes the research on the internet of things enabled smart campus for effectual data transit from one entity to another for classroom notes.

[hpenvs3000]

Nature and its healing abilities

I think that the most amazing thing I know about nature is its vast healing abilities. Nature and its products can positively influence people's mental health, physical health, and it always seems to find a way to heal itself. Nature serves so many purposes!

We as humans are spiritual beings. We can walk into a forest and look around and magically feel at ease. The songs that birds chirp and the sound of leaves ruffling evoke feelings of serenity and peace. Not only does nature positively influence our emotions, it can also heal us. Due to our spiritual nature, I believe that connecting with nature is something that we need daily to feel good. When I am having a really bad day I often have an intense urge to go outside. When I am outside I walk, sit, run, or write. It does not matter what I am doing though, as long as I am outside, simply being there makes me feel at peace. Many people can resonate with this because as a species, we have a tendency to be closely associated or interact with other forms of life in nature. This tendency is called biophilia! Recently it seems as though we have begun to integrate nature in different mental and physical healing treatments. Some examples include naturopathic medicine, therapeutic horticulture, restorative environments, therapeutic landscapes, and healing gardens. Although nature has always been an integral part of many cultural healing techniques, it seems as though it is becoming more popular now!

Here is a video I found of a walk through a forest with the sound of rain. As you can see it is very relaxing to watch, and there are hundreds of videos just like this!

I believe that my generation in particular is seeing a big shift in our lives. Most of us went from living a very fun childhood, spending most of our time outside playing in the sun, in the forest, or at a cottage by the water, and now we spend a large portion of our life inside with a cell phone glued to our hands. We now use nature to escape the lives that we are living, and I think we can all agree that the older we get the more we realize the importance of nature and what effect it actually has on our mental health. There is actually evidence to support the role of nature experiences in an increased psychological wellbeing (Bratman et al., 2019). Not only does technology pull us away from nature, different living situations can as well. Often people are encouraged to move to urbanized areas due to different opportunities such as a higher education or a well paying job in the area. These opportunities themselves may promote mental health, but the necessary contact with nature in urbanized areas is often lost or at least greatly reduced.

Here is a photo I took of my dog when we were on a walk in a forest!

Not only does nature positively influence our mental wellbeing, it is also very important in our physical health. In nature and healthy ecosystems, healthy plants are grown. Plants are very important sources of food and medicine! One example of a medicine that can be found in nature is Chamomile (Matricaria recutita L.) This plant is actually considered a weed! It has a long stem (about 20-30 cm) with white flowers at the end. When the flowers of this plant are dried, they are consumed as a herbal tea (chamomile tea) (McKay & Blumberg, 2006). According to McKay and Blumberg (2006), in vitro studies, chamomile has been found to have antimicrobial activity against some species of bacteria, fungi, and viruses and has shown to be particularly effective against molds and yeasts. Antioxidant activity and antiplatelet activity have also been found in vitro studies of chamomile (McKay & Blumberg, 2006). In animal model studies anti-inflammatory, anti-tumorigenesis, antigenotoxic, hypocholesterolemic, positive cardiac and gastrointestinal effects have been found. Chamomile has also been found to have positive effects on the liver and central nervous system (McKay & Blumberg, 2006). According to (McKay & Blumberg, 2006), chamomile in oil form has been found to have positive effects on the gastrointestinal tract in combination with other components. Chamomile oil has also been found to reduce pain of women giving birth and positively influence mood. One of chamomile's most well known effects is its mediation of anxiety and insomnia, as chamomile acts as relaxant.

Here is a photo I took of Chamomile tea!

Not only can nature heal us, it seems as though nature always finds a way to heal itself! A great example of this is invasive plant species. Oftentimes when invasive plant species come in, they have the potential to take over an entire ecosystem. Despite this, every species has a natural enemy. A great example of this is the gypsy moth, which is an invasive species to North America. Gypsy moths eat foliage on trees, and they can do so very quickly. Even though they are rapidly spreading and causing a lot of damage to trees, they have many natural enemies which can help to keep their population numbers in check. These predators include wasps, flies, beetles, ants, spiders, birds, chipmunks, squirrels, and racoons (City of London, 2021).

Here is a photo I took of some gypsy moth webs in some trees in my backyard.

In conclusion, I find it very fascinating that nature has the ability to heal so many things and people. Even when things get out of check, nature seems to find a way to bring things back to equilibrium. As long as we protect nature, nature will protect us. We live in a symbiotic relationship with nature and that is why it is so important that we protect it!

QUESTIONS:

Have you ever treated an illness or wound (or any other medical problem) with something from nature?

How do biocontrol methods relate to natures ability to heal itself? How can we take advantage of this?

References

Bratman, G. N., Anderson, C. B., Berman, M. G., Cochran, B. Vries, S. D., Flanders, J., Folke, C., Frumkin, H., Gross, J. J., Hartig, T., Kahn Jr. P. H., Kuo, M., Lawler, J. J., Levin, P. S., Lindahl, T., Meyer-Lindberg, A., Mithcell, R., Ouyang, Z., Roe, J… Daily, G. C. (2006).  Nature and mental health: An ecosystem service perspective. ScienceAdvances, 6. DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.aax0903

City of London. (2021). Gypsy moth. City of London. https://london.ca/living-london/water-environment/trees/invasive-species/gypsy-moth

McKay, D. L., Blumberg, J. B. (2006). A review of the bioactivity and potential health benefits of chamomile tea (Matricaria recutita L.). Phytotherapy research, (519-530). DOI: 10.1002/ptr.1900

[scienza-magia]

Uno scatto fotografico dell’entanglement quantistico

Prima foto in assoluto dell’entanglement quantistico. È la “prima foto in assoluto dell’entanglement quantistico”, quella che appare oggi in un nuovo articolo su Science Alert che riprende uno studio condotto da un team di fisici dell’Università di Glasgow, Scozia. Si tratta di un’immagine molto sfocata che rappresenta un’interazione tra particelle, un’interazione che tra l’altro è alla base dei cosiddetti “computer quantistici”. L’entanglement quantistico è un fenomeno stranissimo e non ben compreso: vede due particelle legarsi in maniera indissolubile, a qualunque distanza si trovino. Definita da Einstein come una “azione spettrale a distanza”, questo fenomeno vede una sorta di “botta e risposta” tra una particella e l’altra una volta che sono state legate insieme. Anche poste ad una distanza di miliardi di anni luce, se qualcosa accade ad una particella, quel qualcosa influirà direttamente ed in maniera immediata sull’altra, tanto che si potrà sapere cosa è successo alla prima particella anche se è impossibile, data la distanza, entrare in contatto con essa. Di solito l’entanglement viene osservato su due fotoni, ossia sulle particelle elementari alla base della luce. Per catturare in foto questo fenomeno Paul-Antoine Moreau, primo autore dello studio, ha creato, insieme ai colleghi, un sistema per far esplodere dei flussi di fotoni entangled in “oggetti non convenzionali”. Read the full article

[fumpkins]

Even in the Bronze Age, Humans Altered Soil Chemistry

Ancient bones from Ireland expose that farming has actually altered nitrogen structure in land for the last 3,000 years.

ISTOCK, GRAFXART8888 L ike their modern equivalents, farmers in Bronze Age Ireland added to lasting modifications in the soil. A research study of numerous bones whose ages cover countless years discovers their nitrogen structures moved around 3,000 years ago to show the growth of farming, logging, and animal husbandry, researchers report today (June13) in ScienceAdvances

“This is a tipping point for an entire ecological system,”Sarah McClure, a zooarchaeologist at Penn State University who wasn’t included in the research study, informs Gizmodo “In the Bronze Age, you get these prolonged, deep shifts in the nitrogen composition of the soils due to human activity that never really go away.”

The scientists examined the abundance of a nitrogen isotope, 15 N, a marker of human activity, in numerous hundred bones from animals that passed away throughout the previous 6,000 years. The isotope’s relative abundance stayed steady amongst herbivores till the middle-late Bronze Age, when its levels increased by about 2 percent. The levels stayed high, for the many part, over the coming centuries.

The pattern was the exact same amongst a subset of wild herbivores, although to a lower degree, “recommending that this standard shift in herbivore bone collagen [15N] shows a broad modification in the nitrogen isotopic structures of plants and soil nutrients in Ireland’s terrestrial community,” the authors compose in their report.

According to Gizmodo, the results might move the start of the anthropocene–the period of humans’ impact on the world– earlier.

New post published on: https://livescience.tech/2018/06/14/even-in-the-bronze-age-humans-altered-soil-chemistry/

[offthewhiteboard]

"It wasn't a mile and it wasn't ten minutes."

[insurgentepress]

Preserva agua de múltiples fuentes suelo lunar

Un artículo publicado en @ScienceAdvances Un equipo de científicos chinos ha descubierto que los materiales vítreos dentro de las muestras de suelo lunar contienen hidroxilo y agua molecular generada a partir de una variedad de fuentes.

Agencias/Ciudad de México.- El agua preservada en el suelo lunar puede tener su origen en múltiples fuentes, especialmente el viento solar, así como meteoritos o micrometeoritos ricos en agua y agua nativa de la Luna. Investigadores del Instituto de Geoquímica de la Academia de Ciencias de China analizaron con ese resultado casi 100 muestras de vidrio de impacto recolectadas durante la misión…

[joseamares]

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#repost @nincraftbeauty ・・・ Oh planet earth! Why don’t we think of you? We MUST take care of the Earth —our only home. @unitednations @nasa @unicef @sciencechannel @insiderscience @sciencemuseum @unenvironment @enviroment @scienceinsport @iaeaorg @unesco @unesco_es @unescogiovani @discovery @natgeo #doyouknowwhat? #worldscienceday #worldsciencedayforpeaceanddevelopment #world #worldfacepainting #glitterworld #savetheearth#unitednations #iaeg #unicef #nasa #science #peaceonearth #scienceadvances #killingtheearth #savetheplanet #nincraftbeauty #nincraft #earthislife #earthishome #earthiseverything #facepainting #earthfacepainting #pictureodtheday (at Bronx, New York) https://www.instagram.com/p/BqF78b8Hi8b/?utm_source=ig_tumblr_share&igshid=xp3p2m3yjdku

[marindesign]

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A post shared by Marin (@_ultramarinka)

Our brains' sensory reactivity turns on and off every 25 seconds during sleep, via #ScienceAdvances / Illustrated with #TayasuiSketches and animated in AppleMotion / #sketch4science #animation / http://advances.sciencemag.org/content/3/2/e1602026/tab-figures-data

[scifigeneration]

Climate change and wildfires – how do we know if there is a link?

by Kevin Trenberth

A firefighter runs after trying to save a home in California. AP Photo/Noah Berger

Once again, the summer and fall of 2018 in the Northern Hemisphere has brought us an epidemic of major wildfires.

These burn forests, houses and other structures, displace thousands of people and animals, and cause major disruptions in people’s lives. The huge burden of simply firefighting has become a year-round task costing billions of dollars, let alone the cost of the destruction. The smoke veil can extend hundreds or even thousands of miles, affecting air quality and visibility. To many people, it has become very clear that human-induced climate change plays a major role by greatly increasing the risk of wildfire.

Yet it seems the role of climate change is seldom mentioned in many or even most news stories about the multitude of fires and heat waves. In part this is because the issue of attribution is not usually clear. The argument is that there have always been wildfires, and how can we attribute any particular wildfire to climate change?

As a climate scientist, I can say this is the wrong framing of the problem. Global warming does not cause wildfires. The proximate cause is often human carelessness (cigarette butts, camp fires not extinguished properly, etc.), or natural, from “dry lightning” whereby a thunderstorm produces lightning but little rain. Rather, global warming exacerbates the conditions and raises the risk of wildfire.

Even so, there is huge complexity and variability from one fire to the next, and hence the attribution can become complex. Instead, the way to think about this is from the standpoint of basic science – in this case, physics.

Global warming is happening

To understand the interplay between global warming and wildfires, consider what’s happening to our planet.

The composition of the atmosphere is changing from human activities: There has been over a 40 percent increase in carbon dioxide, mainly from fossil fuel burning since the 1800s, and over half of the increase is since 1985. Other heat-trapping gases (methane, nitrous oxide, etc.) are also increasing in concentration in the atmosphere from human activities. The rates are accelerating, not declining (as hoped for with the Paris Agreement).

This leads to an energy imbalance for the planet.

The flows of energy through the climate system are schematically illustrated with numbers on the top-of-atmosphere values and net energy imbalance at the surface. Trenberth et al 2009

Heat-trapping gases in the atmosphere act as a blanket and inhibit the infrared radiation – that is, heat from the Earth – from escaping back into space to offset the continual radiation coming from the sun. As these gases build up, more of this energy, mostly in the form of heat, remains in our atmosphere. The energy raises the temperature of the land, oceans and atmosphere, melts ice, thaws permafrost and fuels the water cycle through evaporation.

Moreover, we can estimate Earth’s energy imbalance quite well: It amounts to about 1 watt per square meter, or about 500 terawatts globally.

While this factor is small compared with the natural flow of energy through the system, which is 240 watts per square meter, it is large compared with all other direct effects of human activities. For instance, the electrical power generation in the U.S. last year averaged 0.46 terawatts.

The extra heat is always the same sign and it is spread across the globe. Accordingly, where this energy accumulates matters.

Tracking the Earth’s energy imbalance

The heat mostly accumulates ultimately in the ocean – over 90 percent. This added heat means the ocean expands and sea level rises.

Heat also accumulates in melting ice, causing melting Arctic sea ice and glacier losses in Greenland and Antarctica. This adds water to the ocean, and so the sea level rises from this as well, rising at a rate of over 3 milimeters year, or over a foot per century.

Global ocean heat content for the top 2000 meters of the ocean, with uncertainty estimates by the pink region. ScienceAdvances, CC BY-NC

On land, the effects of the energy imbalance are complicated by water. If water is present, the heat mainly goes into evaporation and drying, and that feeds moisture into storms, which produce heavier rain. But the effects do not accumulate provided that it rains on and off.

However, in a dry spell or drought, the heat accumulates. Firstly, it dries things out, and then secondly it raises temperatures. Of course, “it never rains in Southern California” according to the 1970s pop song, at least in the summer half year.

So water acts as the air conditioner of the planet. In the absence of water, the excess heat effects accumulate on land both by drying everything out and wilting plants, and by raising temperatures. In turn, this leads to heat waves and increased risk of wildfire. These factors apply in regions in the western U.S. and in regions with Mediterranean climates. Indeed many of the recent wildfires have occurred not only in the West in the United States but also in Portugal, Spain, Greece and other parts of the Mediterranean.

A satellite image of the Carr fire in California. Drought conditions, in addition to a lot of dead trees and vegetation, are contributing to another year of severe wildfires. NASA

The conditions can also develop in other parts of the world when strong high pressure weather domes (anticyclones) stagnate, as can happen in part by chance, or with increased odds in some weather patterns such as those established by either La Niña or El Niño events (in different places). It is expected that these dry spots move around from year to year, but that their abundance increases over time, as is clearly happening.

How big is the energy imbalance effect over land? Well, 1 watt per square meter over a month, if accumulated, is equivalent to 720 watts per square meter over one hour; 720 watts is equivalent to full power in a small microwave oven. One square meter is about 10 square feet. Hence, after one month this is equivalent to one microwave oven at full power every square foot for six minutes. No wonder things catch on fire!

Attribution science

Coming back to the original question of wildfires and global warming, this explains the argument: There is extra heat available from climate change, and the above indicates just how large it is.

In reality there is moisture in the soil, and plants have root systems that tap soil moisture and delay the effects before they begin to wilt, so that it typically takes over two months for the effects to be large enough to fully set the stage for wildfires. On a day-to-day basis, the effect is small enough to be lost in the normal weather variability. But after a dry spell of over a month, the risk is noticeably higher. And of course the global mean surface temperature is also going up.

“We can’t attribute a single event to climate change” has been a mantra of climate scientists for a long time. It has recently changed, however.

As in the wildfires example, there has been a realization that climate scientists may be able to make useful statements by assuming that the weather events themselves are relatively unaffected by climate change. This is a good assumption.

Also, climate scientists cannot say that extreme events are due to global warming, because that is a poorly posed question. However, we can say it is highly likely that they would not have had such extreme impacts without global warming. Indeed, all weather events are affected by climate change because the environment in which they occur is warmer and moister than it used to be.

In particular, by focusing on Earth’s energy imbalance, new research is expected to advance the understanding of what is happening and why, and what it implies for the future.

This article was updated on November 10, 2018 to indicate the article is addressing the fire season in the summer and fall.

About The Author:

Kevin Trenberth is a Distinguished Senior Scientist at the National Center for Atmospheric Research.

This article is republished from our content partners at The Conversation under a Creative Commons license.