Earthweek: a diary of the planet
Warming mismatch
The seasonal clock that guides migratory songbirds across North America is being disrupted by climate change, leaving some species unable to reach their summer homes by the key dates necessary for breeding success. In addition, global warming is prompting some plants and insects that the birds rely on to appear earlier or later than in the past, according to a new report published in the journal Scientific Reports. “We’re seeing springlike conditions well before birds arrive,” said Stephen Mayor of the University of Florida. “The growing mismatch means fewer birds are likely to survive, reproduce and return the following year.”
Earthquakes
A strong magnitude 5.7 temblor in northeastern Iran left three people dead and 200 others injured. The shaking
caused widespread damage near the Turkmenistan border. Earth movements also were felt in northwestern Kyrgyzstan and northern Oklahoma.
New Ebola outbreak
Ebola has killed three of the 18 people infected by a fresh outbreak of the hemorrhagic fever in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, health officials warn. The disease has re-emerged only a year after the worst-ever
Ebola outbreak killed more than 11,300 people, mostly in Liberia, Guinea and Sierra Leone. About 300,000 doses of a new Ebola vaccine are available in case the outbreak becomes more widespread.
Volcano power
An energy project in Iceland has drilled nearly 3 miles into a volcanic field in an effort to generate electricity from the heat stored inside the Earth. Engineers are attempting to reach hot liquids under extreme pressure at temperatures of nearly 800 degrees Fahrenheit to create steam that will drive turbine generators. The project is expected to produce five to 10 times more electricity than traditional geothermal wells.
Warming failure
Efforts by the international community to limit global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius (2.2 F) by curbing greenhouse emissions could fail within the decade. A report by the University of Melbourne says that a natural climate driver known as the Interdecadal Pacific Oscillation has entered a positive phase that likely will soon bring about a sharp increase in global warming. “If the world is to have any hope of meeting the Paris target, governments will need to pursue policies that not only reduce emissions but remove carbon from the atmosphere,” said lead researcher Ben Henley.
Chimp extinction Tanzanian experts fear that chimpanzees could join elephants and rhinos as the most threatened wildlife species in the country due to their dwindling populations. “A hundred years ago, there were probably 2 million, but now only 150,000 to 200,000,” said Anthony Collins, a baboon researcher at Gombe Stream National Park. He told Tanzania’s The Citizen daily that destruction of habitat, illegal hunting and capture for medical research are the greatest threats to the chimps’ survival.