Arctic area, oceans lock up fourth of world's carbon dioxideOctober 15th, 2009 WASHINGTON - Arctic land and seas lock up as much as a fourth of the world's carbon dioxide, so the melting of Arctic ice can potentially alter climate, says a new study. Current levels of global warming could diminish or reverse this vast Arctic sink -- one of the world's biggest -- possibly upsetting expected rates of climate change.
Arctic could be ice-free in as little as ten years' timeOctober 15th, 2009 LONDON - A top Polar specialist has warned that the Arctic Ocean could be largely ice-free and open to shipping during the summer in as little as ten years' time. "It's like man is taking the lid off the northern part of the planet," Professor Peter Wadhams, from the University of Cambridge, told BBC News.
Scientists discover new mammal that lived 123 million years ago in ChinaOctober 9th, 2009 WASHINGTON - An international team of paleontologists has discovered a new species of mammal that lived 123 million years ago in what is now the Liaoning Province in northeastern China. The newly discovered animal, Maotherium asiaticus, comes from famous fossil-rich beds of the Yixian Formation.
One in five species of Australian mammals at risk of extinctionSeptember 29th, 2009 SYDNEY - A report has found that one in five species of Australian mammals are at risk of extinction. According to www.news.co.au, of the 388 species of mammals found naturally in Australia, 78 are listed as vulnerable, endangered or extinct in the wild.
Arctic ice to last until 2030 to 2040September 22nd, 2009 WASHINGTON - New findings by scientists indicate that that Arctic ice would last decades longer than thought, and the region won't experience ice-free summers until 2030 or 2040. Some models had previously predicted that the Arctic could be ice free in summer by as soon as 2013, due to rising temperatures from global warming.
Sea ice melting in Arctic remains far worse than normal, but only ranks No. 3 in record booksSeptember 17th, 2009 Arctic sea ice melt still heavy, but no recordWASHINGTON — The summer melt of Arctic sea ice wasn't quite as bad this year as the last two years. But it still ranked as the third biggest melt on record.
Male sex chromosome on way to extinctionJuly 17th, 2009 WASHINGTON - The sex chromosome that only males carry is deteriorating and could disappear within a few million years. A pair of Penn State University (PSU) scientists discovered that the male Y chromosome evolved at a much more rapid pace than X chromosome, which both males and females carry.
Sea ice formed in the Arctic before it did in AntarcticaJuly 16th, 2009 WASHINGTON - A new study has concluded that significant sea ice formation occurred in the Arctic earlier than previously thought, which suggests that sea ice formed in the Arctic before it did in Antarctica. "The results are also especially exciting because they suggest that sea ice formed in the Arctic before it did in Antarctica, which goes against scientific expectation," said scientific team member Dr Richard Pearce of the University of Southampton's School of Ocean and Earth Science based at the National Oceanography Centre, Southampton (NOCS).
Scientists see dramatic increase in amount of fresh water in Arctic OceanJuly 5th, 2009 WASHINGTON - A new study by scientists has shown a dramatic increase in the amount of fresh water in the Arctic Ocean. Fresh water flowing into or out of the Arctic Ocean plays an important role in ocean circulation and may be a factor in the response of the world ocean to climate change.
The Arctic was an enclosed freshwater lake until about 38 million years agoJuly 5th, 2009 WASHINGTON - An analysis by scientists has suggested that the Arctic was an enclosed freshwater lake until about 38 million years ago, when tectonic activity caused it to undergo a transition to an ocean. Recent studies have suggested that beginning about 44 million years ago the Arctic underwent a transition from lake to ocean conditions.
60-mln yr old rabbit-sized elephant ancestor found in MoroccoJune 24th, 2009 WASHINGTON - Scientists have found the fossil of a 60-million-year-old creature in Morocco, which is the rabbit sized ancestor of the modern day elephant. According to a report in National Geographic News, Paleontologist Emmanuel Gheerbrant discovered the rabbit-size proto-elephant's skull fragments in a basin 60 miles (100 kilometers) east of Casablanca, Morocco.
Ancient mammals shifted diets as climate changedJune 3rd, 2009 WASHINGTON - A new study has shown that mammals change their dietary niches based on climate-driven environmental changes, contradicting a common assumption that species maintain their niches despite global warming. Led by Florida Museum of Natural History vertebrate paleontologist Larisa DeSantis, researchers examined fossil teeth from mammals at two sites representing different climates in Florida: a glacial period about 1.9 million years ago and a warmer, interglacial period about 1.3 million years ago.
Arctic literally on thin ice, points out new evidenceApril 7th, 2009 WASHINGTON - New evidence from NASA and satellite observations has shown that the decade-long trend of shrinking sea ice cover in the Arctic is continuing, with the ice cap thinning as well. In recent years, Arctic sea ice has been declining at a surprising rate.
Summers in Arctic may be ice-free in as few as 30 yearsApril 3rd, 2009 WASHINGTON - A new analysis of computer models has forecasted that summers in the Arctic may be ice-free in as few as 30 years. "The Arctic is changing faster than anticipated," said James Overland, an oceanographer at NOAA's Pacific Marine Environmental Laboratory and co-author of the study.
Sea level rises help explain puzzling biological divideMarch 9th, 2009 WASHINGTON - Ecologists have come up with a new explanation for an apparently abrupt switch in the kinds of mammals found along the Malay Peninsula in southeast Asia - from mainland species to island species - in the absence of any geographical barrier. An ancient seaway between the Gulf of Thailand and the Andaman Sea was once thought to have split the peninsula in two, allowing separated populations of animals to diverge.
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