Salinity is a fundamental topic in aquatic and soil sciences describing the total concentration of dissolved inorganic salts, typically dominated by ions such as Na⁺, K⁺, Ca²⁺, Mg²⁺, Cl⁻, SO₄²⁻, and HCO₃⁻, in water or porous media. It governs key physicochemical properties including osmotic potential, electrical conductivity, density, and buffering capacity, thereby influencing biogeochemical cycles, organismal osmoregulation, and ecosystem productivity. In research, salinity is quantified using practical salinity units, electrical conductivity, or mass-based measures, and serves as a critical variable in hydrology, oceanography, agroecology, and climate studies, where spatial and temporal gradients in salinity structure circulation, stratification, and stress tolerance thresholds.
Millions of eared grebes visit Great Salt Lake to rest and refuel en route to their winter homes on the Pacific Coast each fall, along with 250 other bird species throughout the year. That's about 10 million individual birds ...
Ecology
Jul 3, 2025
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The ocean around Antarctica is rapidly getting saltier at the same time as sea ice is retreating at a record pace. Since 2015, the frozen continent has lost sea ice similar to the size of Greenland. That ice hasn't returned, ...
Environment
Jul 1, 2025
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Much of the world's lithium occurs in salty waters with fundamentally different chemistry than other naturally saline waters like the ocean, according to a study published on May 23 in Science Advances. The finding has implications ...
Earth Sciences
May 23, 2025
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140
The near-bottom water in the U.S. Northeast continental shelf provides a critical cold-water habitat for the rich regional marine ecosystem. This "cold pool" preserves winter temperatures, even when waters become too warm ...
Earth Sciences
May 19, 2025
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26
In estuaries—the transitional zones between rivers and the sea—fresh and salt water are constantly battling for dominance. But due to climate change, the saltwater is gaining ground. New research by Utrecht University's Institute ...
Earth Sciences
Apr 15, 2025
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150
The suburban reservoirs that supply 10% of New York City's vaunted drinking water are getting saltier due to decades of road salt being spread near the system—and they will eventually have to be abandoned if nothing is done ...
Environment
Mar 21, 2025
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108
The ability to better steer particles suspended in liquids could lead to better water purification processes, new drug delivery systems, and other applications. The key ingredient, say Yale researchers, is a pinch of salt.
Soft Matter
Mar 6, 2025
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77
Soil salt concentrations above the optimal threshold for plant growth can threaten global food security by compromising agricultural productivity and crop quality. An analysis published in Physiologia Plantarum has examined ...
Bio & Medicine
Aug 7, 2024
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108
Devising renewable sources of energy is a key concern for scientists, political leaders and communities as the world comes to terms with the realities of climate change and the limits of the Earth's natural resources. In ...
Nanophysics
Oct 12, 2022
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