Earthweek: a diary of the planet

For the week ending Friday, July 19.

Entanglement

At least 1,000 sharks and rays have been observed trapped in plastic material in the world’s oceans, but experts say the actual number of entanglements and species affected is probably much higher. a team from britain’s university of exeter says most of the creatures were trapped in lost or abandoned fishing equipment. but some were trapped in plastic bags, packaging, packing strips and rubber tires. “there’s a real animal welfare issue because entanglements can cause pain, suffering and even death,” a researcher said.

Sargassum belt

A huge belt of sargassum seaweed stretching nearly 5,500 miles from africa to the yucatan peninsula is now the largest such algae bloom ever observed. “the ocean’s chemistry must have changed in order for the blooms to get so out of hand,” an oceanographer said. the bloom is related to climate change and human activities such as agricultural runoff, he said, and it is probably here to stay. sargassum seaweed is normally part of a healthy marine environment, providing habitat for fish, turtles, crabs and some birds.

Global heating

A report lists how much hotter 520 major cities around the world would be during their warmest months in 2050 as a result of 2.0 degrees celsius of global warming. it says london could then have the same climate that barcelona now experiences. new york and mexico city are predicted to be about 7 degrees hotter during summer by 2050, while madrid and seattle will bake with a summertime climate at least 11 degrees hotter.

Flu season

At least 300 people have died from the flu in australia, more than double the number in all of 2018. the most virulent flu strains in years have already infected 136,000 people, compared with about 17,350 at the same point in past years. health officials say this year’s vaccine appears to be “strongly effective” against most of the strains. they add that careful monitoring is needed to see if the early spike has implications for the next flu season.

Atomic legacy

Levels of radiation from nuclear tests in the marshall islands during the 1940s and 1950s are still 10 times greater in some areas than at the chernobyl and fukushima nuclear disaster zones, a study says. researchers found levels 1,000 times higher in some soil samples on one island than those in the ground around chernobyl. they are concerned about what food is being collected and eaten around naen.