Search results for radiative forcing

Environment Apr 25, 2024

Solar geoengineering to cool the planet: Is it worth the risks?

When I first wrote about geoengineering in 2012 , it was considered far-fetched at best, and crazy by most. But 12 years later, while there is still controversy and considerable resistance to deploying it, respectable scientists ...

Earth Sciences Apr 19, 2024

Researchers reveal sources of black carbon in southeastern Qinghai-Tibet plateau

Black carbon (BC) is the result of incomplete combustion of fossil fuels and biomass, with strong light absorption. It is second only to carbon dioxide as a climate-forcing factor for atmospheric warming. Deposition of BC ...

Earth Sciences Apr 8, 2024

Arctic precipitation rates to double as temperatures rise, finds new study

The Arctic is often cited for a plethora of impacts resulting from anthropogenic climate change, including glacier retreat and reductions in floating sea ice, meltwater incursions changing ocean salinity, as well as sea level ...

Space Exploration Mar 12, 2024

Zero-boil-off tank experiments to enable long-duration space exploration

Do we have enough fuel to get to our destination? This is probably one of the first questions that comes to mind whenever your family gets ready to embark on a road trip. If the trip is long, you will need to visit gas stations ...

Optics & Photonics Mar 7, 2024

Optically trapped quantum droplets of light can bind together to form macroscopic complexes

Condensed matter systems and photonic technologies are regularly used by researchers to create microscale platforms that can simulate the complex dynamics of many interacting quantum particles in a more accessible setting. ...

Astronomy Feb 28, 2024

A black hole discovery could force us to rethink how galaxies came to be

Peering deep into the infancy of the universe, the European Southern Observatory's Very Large Telescope (VLT) recently confirmed the discovery of the brightest and fastest growing quasar. Quasars are luminous objects in the ...

Astronomy Feb 16, 2024

Even if we can't see the first stars, we could detect their impact on the first galaxies

For a long time, our understanding of the universe's first galaxies leaned heavily on theory. The light from that age only reached us after traveling for billions of years, and on the way, it was obscured and stretched into ...

Space Exploration Feb 5, 2024

How could laser-driven lightsails remain stable?

It's a long way to the nearest star, which means conventional rockets won't get us there. The fuel requirements would make our ship prohibitively heavy. So an alternative is to travel light. Literally. Rather than carrying ...

Earth Sciences Jan 31, 2024

Scientists reveal how tar particles from wildfire smoke absorb and refract solar radiation, light in atmosphere

Days after a wildfire, a type of smoke can linger in the atmosphere that contains tiny, brown, light-absorbing particles known as tar balls. These particles are believed to have a significant impact on Earth's radiative balance, ...

Environment Jan 12, 2024

2023 was the hottest year in history—and Canada is warming faster than anywhere else on earth

In 2015, most countries, including Canada, signed on to the Paris Climate Agreement which set the objective of "holding the increase in global average temperature to well below 2 C above pre-industrial levels and pursuing ...

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