Climate &amp; Environment /today/ en Honeybees are dying in record numbers. This scientist is racing to save them /today/2025/06/06/honeybees-are-dying-record-numbers-scientist-racing-save-them <span>Honeybees are dying in record numbers. This scientist is racing to save them</span> <span><span>Yvaine Ye</span></span> <span><time datetime="2025-06-06T09:35:34-06:00" title="Friday, June 6, 2025 - 09:35">Fri, 06/06/2025 - 09:35</time> </span> <div> <div class="imageMediaStyle focal_image_wide"> <img loading="lazy" src="/today/sites/default/files/styles/focal_image_wide/public/2025-06/kai-wenzel-dyGWrmJ_i4E-unsplash.jpg?h=0715b787&amp;itok=KlQR6YkD" width="1200" height="800" alt="Honeybees on a wooden box"> </div> </div> <div role="contentinfo" class="container ucb-article-categories" itemprop="about"> <span class="visually-hidden">Categories:</span> <div class="ucb-article-category-icon" aria-hidden="true"> <i class="fa-solid fa-folder-open"></i> </div> <a href="/today/taxonomy/term/16"> Climate &amp; Environment </a> </div> <a href="/today/yvaine-ye">Yvaine Ye</a> <div class="ucb-article-content ucb-striped-content"> <div class="container"> <div class="paragraph paragraph--type--article-content paragraph--view-mode--default"> <div class="ucb-article-text" itemprop="articleBody"> <div><p><span>The first sign something was wrong came from the silent beehives.</span><br><br><span>When </span><a href="/biofrontiers/samuel-ramsey" rel="nofollow"><span>Samuel Ramsey</span></a><span> visited his family in Maryland this March, he and his father, an avid beekeeper, approached the 10 bee boxes in his grandmother's yard, they were expecting to hear the familiar hum of insects awakening from their winter rest. They pictured the smell of warm, sweet beeswax.</span></p><p><span>Instead, the Ramseys found thousands of lifeless bees piling up at the bottom of the hives.</span></p><p><span>As an entomologist in the Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology and the&nbsp;</span><a href="/biofrontiers/" rel="nofollow"><span>BioFrontiers Institute</span></a><span>, Ramsey studies honeybees and why they haven’t been doing so well lately.</span></p><div class="ucb-box ucb-box-title-hidden ucb-box-alignment-right ucb-box-style-fill ucb-box-theme-white"><div class="ucb-box-inner"><div class="ucb-box-title">&nbsp;</div><div class="ucb-box-content"> <div class="align-center image_style-large_image_style"> <div class="imageMediaStyle large_image_style"> <img loading="lazy" src="/today/sites/default/files/styles/large_image_style/public/2025-06/IMG_1780.jpg?itok=vuTsCT2t" width="1500" height="1500" alt="Samuel Ramsey standing in front of the beehive"> </div> <span class="media-image-caption"> <p>Samual Ramsey co-designed an observation beehive so the team can monitor how the honeybees without opening the box. (Credit: Yvaine Ye)</p> </span> </div> </div></div></div><p><span>“When you open the top of the box, and there's a silence of the bees that you're greeted with, it’s a very upsetting scene for beekeepers and bee researchers to see,” said&nbsp;</span>Ramsey<span>.</span></p><p><span>Ramsey is not alone. Across the United States, beekeepers are reporting the same grim discovery as unprecedented honeybee losses sweep through the nation’s colonies. Researchers predict&nbsp;that beekeepers in the country have lost more than 62% of their colonies over the winter. In some places, the number could reach 70%.</span></p><p><span>“Since we've started measuring honeybee losses, this is the worst that we have ever seen,” Ramsey said. “We now have net losses of honeybees that will impact everything from honey production to foods that we consume on a regular basis.”</span></p><p><span>Losing over half of the colonies passes a critical threshold where beekeepers can no longer divide the surviving colonies and wait for each new group to repopulate, a strategy that has worked when losses hovered below 50%.&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp;</span></p><p><span>Scientists say that a range of factors, including climate change, pesticides and, particularly, parasites are likely contributing to the massive die-off. Ramsey is racing to identify the causes and find solutions. He thinks bees on the other side of the world might hold clues to prevent the tragic decline from happening again next year.</span></p><h2><span>Collapsed colonies</span></h2><p><span>Honeybees are among the most efficient pollinators in nature, contributing to about $18 billion worth of crops in the United States. A decline in honeybee populations could threaten the yields of crops like apples, peaches and almonds. It would also affect livestock production, because the plants that make animal feed also rely on pollination.&nbsp;</span></p><p><span>Normally, about 10% of bees die as they brave the winter months due to natural causes like cold weather.</span></p><p><span>In 2006, U.S. beekeepers began noticing their bees dying off or vanishing in much larger numbers, resulting in colony losses of about 30% to 50% in a phenomenon known as&nbsp;</span><a href="https://www.epa.gov/pollinator-protection/colony-collapse-disorder" rel="nofollow">colony collapse disorder</a><span>. But around 2011, the disorder mysteriously disappeared, so quickly that scientists never identified a cause.</span></p><p><span>Strangely, U.S. honeybee colonies continue to suffer even after the disorder disappeared.</span></p><div class="ucb-box ucb-box-title-hidden ucb-box-alignment-right ucb-box-style-fill ucb-box-theme-white"><div class="ucb-box-inner"><div class="ucb-box-title">&nbsp;</div><div class="ucb-box-content"> <div class="align-center image_style-original_image_size"> <div class="imageMediaStyle original_image_size"> <img loading="lazy" src="/today/sites/default/files/styles/original_image_size/public/2025-06/IMG_1783%203.jpg?itok=PpUTX4wS" width="3826" height="3826" alt="Honeybees in an observation hive"> </div> <span class="media-image-caption"> <p>A bee colony in an observation beehive in Samuel Ramsey's lab. (Credit: Yvaine Ye)</p> </span> </div> </div></div></div><p><span>“The bees never bounced back, and it’s incumbent on us as scientists to figure out what’s holding them back from returning to their healthiest state,” Ramsey said. He added that many factors are stressing out honeybees, but at the center of the crisis is&nbsp;a parasitic mite,&nbsp;Varroa destructor.</span></p><p><span>These tiny mites attack a honeybee’s fat body, an important organ that manages the insect’s metabolism, immune system, body temperature and its ability to break down pesticides.</span></p><p><span>Scientists have found that more than 98% of colonies in the United States already have varroa mites.&nbsp;</span></p><p><span>The parasite also makes all the other problems bees are dealing with worse. For example, the mites damage the honeybee’s ability to handle extreme temperatures. They also weaken the bee’s ability to fend off other bacterial or viral infections.&nbsp;</span></p><p><span>At the same time, a changing climate is causing wildflowers to bloom earlier than usual, often before bees emerge from winter to collect food. Infected bees are even less likely to survive when resources are scarce.</span></p><p><span>“These mites were already present last year and the year before and the year before and the year before, going all the way back to 1987. The reason why mites may be a greater issue now is because they compound everything else happening around them,” Ramsey said.</span></p><h2>Natural immunity</h2><p><span>Traditional methods of mite control often involve pesticides, but varroa mites have developed resistances to these chemicals and are becoming more virulent over time.</span></p><p><span>Ramsey and his team are searching for a solution. In recent years, they have traveled around the world to collect genetic data from every existing species of honeybee and to observe how they interact with their native parasites.&nbsp;</span></p><p><span>He has previously discovered that some honeybees in Southeast Asia, where&nbsp;varroa</span><em><span>&nbsp;</span></em><span>originated, are resistant to mites. The secret could lie in genes.</span></p><p><span>“Nature has done a spectacular job of solving problems that we are still trying to figure out how to solve. So instead of reinventing the wheel, it would be a much better idea for us to better conserve the organisms that have already figured out how to solve life's problems and study them,” Ramsey said.</span></p><p><span>He added that if scientists could transfer these genes to honeybees in the United States, it might help them develop immunity against&nbsp;varroa.</span></p><p><span>This summer, Ramsey had planned to travel to Vietnam, Borneo and Thailand where he hasn’t yet collected DNA from honeybees. But because of funding issues, he had to postpone the trips.</span></p><p><span>“In order for us to do what we can to make sure that this level of die-off never happens again, we need better funding for research. This is the worst possible time for us to be reducing funding for agricultural and bee research,” Ramsey said. &nbsp;</span></p><p><span>There are also some actions people can take, he said. For example, planting native wildflowers around homes could provide much-needed food for bees.</span></p><p><span>“It’s endearing to think that these little insects have increased the carrying capacity of our country so we can thrive. I’m determined to figure out how to make them thrive too,” Ramsey said.</span></p></div> </div> </div> </div> </div> <div>American honeybee colonies have declined by more than 60% this year. A Boulder entomologist is racing to find a solution. </div> <h2> <div class="paragraph paragraph--type--ucb-related-articles-block paragraph--view-mode--default"> <div>Related Articles</div> </div> </h2> <div>Traditional</div> <div>0</div> <div> <div class="imageMediaStyle large_image_style"> <img loading="lazy" src="/today/sites/default/files/styles/large_image_style/public/2025-06/kai-wenzel-dyGWrmJ_i4E-unsplash.jpg?itok=a4wcqkwL" width="1500" height="1125" alt="Honeybees on a wooden box"> </div> <span class="media-image-caption"> <p><span>Honeybees fly into beehive. (Credit: </span><a href="https://unsplash.com/photos/yellow-and-black-wasp-dyGWrmJ_i4E" rel="nofollow"><span>Kai Wenzel/Unsplash</span></a><span>)</span></p> </span> </div> <div>On</div> <div>White</div> <div>Honeybees fly into beehive. (Credit: Kai Wenzel/Unsplash)</div> Fri, 06 Jun 2025 15:35:34 +0000 Yvaine Ye 54805 at /today Why Brazil’s quilombola communities are still fighting for the land they’re owed /today/2025/06/03/why-brazils-quilombola-communities-are-still-fighting-land-theyre-owed <span>Why Brazil’s quilombola communities are still fighting for the land they’re owed</span> <span><span>Yvaine Ye</span></span> <span><time datetime="2025-06-03T10:40:00-06:00" title="Tuesday, June 3, 2025 - 10:40">Tue, 06/03/2025 - 10:40</time> </span> <div> <div class="imageMediaStyle focal_image_wide"> <img loading="lazy" src="/today/sites/default/files/styles/focal_image_wide/public/2025-06/FE028522-D548-4AA0-BDA6-242C42EBE5C6%5B18%5D.heic_.jpeg?h=4521fff0&amp;itok=ZKhQrbxC" width="1200" height="800" alt="A man in reforestation nursery"> </div> </div> <div role="contentinfo" class="container ucb-article-categories" itemprop="about"> <span class="visually-hidden">Categories:</span> <div class="ucb-article-category-icon" aria-hidden="true"> <i class="fa-solid fa-folder-open"></i> </div> <a href="/today/taxonomy/term/16"> Climate &amp; Environment </a> </div> <a href="/today/yvaine-ye">Yvaine Ye</a> <div class="ucb-article-content ucb-striped-content"> <div class="container"> <div class="paragraph paragraph--type--article-content paragraph--view-mode--default"> <div class="ucb-article-text" itemprop="articleBody"> <div><p dir="ltr"><span>Brazil’s quilombola people, the descendants of Africans who escaped slavery, have lived in the nation’s vast Amazon and Atlantic rainforests for centuries. Today, the quilombolas number about </span><a href="https://agenciadenoticias.ibge.gov.br/en/agencia-news/2184-news-agency/news/37488-brazil-has-1-3-million-quilombolas-in-1-696-municipalities" rel="nofollow"><span>1.3 million people </span></a><span>in the country and have cultivated deep ties to their ancestral territories, where they raise their families and steward the land.</span></p><p dir="ltr"><span>But these communities remain largely unseen in the eyes of the government and neglected in scientific research, especially when it comes to their legal rights to the land they call home.</span></p><p dir="ltr"><span>A&nbsp;</span><a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2772655X25000199" rel="nofollow"><span>new study</span></a><span> published in&nbsp;World Development Sustainability&nbsp;sheds light on this critical gap. Previous research has shown that Indigenous peoples who have secured formal land rights in Brazil have reduced deforestation in their territories. But, according to research from Boulder and the Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul in Brazil, the team didn’t see the same pattern in quilombola communities.</span></p><div class="ucb-box ucb-box-title-hidden ucb-box-alignment-right ucb-box-style-fill ucb-box-theme-white"><div class="ucb-box-inner"><div class="ucb-box-title">&nbsp;</div><div class="ucb-box-content"> <div class="align-center image_style-large_image_style"> <div class="imageMediaStyle large_image_style"> <img loading="lazy" src="/today/sites/default/files/styles/large_image_style/public/2025-06/image001.jpg?itok=Ou7L-7kt" width="1500" height="1125" alt="Women conducting a participatory mapping research activity from quilombola community"> </div> <span class="media-image-caption"> <div>Women from<em> </em>Volta Míuda, a quilombola<em> </em>community in Brazil, are conducting a participatory mapping research activity. Read the book "Honoring Ancestry" by community leader Célio Leocádio to learn more about this&nbsp;community's struggles. (Credit: Rayna Benzeev)</div> </span> </div> </div></div></div><p dir="ltr"><span>While the team was surprised by the result, they&nbsp;said it could point to deeper systemic issues, including a lack of research on the quilombolas and Brazil’s convoluted process for obtaining land rights.</span></p><p dir="ltr"><span>“Our research reveals a significant data gap that has rendered quilombolas less visible in research and reporting,” said&nbsp;</span><a href="/envs/peter-newton" rel="nofollow"><span>Peter Newton</span></a><span>, the paper’s senior author and associate professor in the Department of Environmental Studies. “These communities have been significantly less studied than some others, and without data, the plight of these residents often goes undiscussed and unrecognized.”&nbsp;</span></p><p dir="ltr"><span><strong>Traditional peoples and lands</strong></span></p><p dir="ltr"><span>Brazil’s 1988 Constitution recognized that traditional peoples, including quilombola and Indigenous communities, have rights to receive&nbsp;formal recognition of their ancestral lands, known as land tenure.&nbsp;</span></p><p dir="ltr"><a href="/today/2023/01/26/when-indigenous-communities-have-legal-land-rights-brazilian-forest-benefits" rel="nofollow"><span>Prior research</span></a><span> from Newton and his colleagues found that&nbsp;Indigenous communities in Brazil’s Atlantic Forest who attained full land tenure reduced deforestation and increased forest cover in their communities&nbsp;between 1985 and 2019.&nbsp; The researchers wondered if the same would hold true for quilombola territories.&nbsp;</span></p><p dir="ltr"><span>“Legally-enforced land rights provide communities the ability to prevent invaders from encroaching and land grabbing,” said&nbsp;</span><a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/rayna-benzeev-98641b79/" rel="nofollow"><span>Rayna Benzeev</span></a><span>, the first author of both papers who earned her doctorate from Boulder in 2022. “At the same time,&nbsp;when a community knows they'll be able to access the land for many generations into the future, they have more incentive to care for this land.” For example, quilombola farmers have ancestral traditions involving agro-ecology and crop rotation which allows forests to regenerate.&nbsp;</span></p><p dir="ltr"><span>After analyzing more than three decades of satellite imagery and land tenure data, the researchers found no clear difference in deforestation or reforestation rates between territories that had secured formal tenure and those still awaiting it.</span></p><p dir="ltr"><span><strong>A broken process&nbsp;</strong></span></p><p dir="ltr"><span>The arduous land tenure process for quilombola communities might be one reason for the result.&nbsp;</span></p><p dir="ltr"><span>When Benzeev&nbsp;began collecting data on forest coverage change in quilombola territories, she noticed a shockingly low rate of land tenure more than three decades after the constitution first guaranteed the rights. Out of 5,900 quilombola territories, only&nbsp;176—or fewer than 3%—have been able to complete the process to obtain formal land rights.&nbsp;</span></p><p dir="ltr"><span>The contrast is striking. 69% of Indigenous territories in Brazil have secured formal tenure.</span></p><p dir="ltr"><span>Brazil’s National Institute for Colonization and Agrarian Reform (INCRA) oversees quilombola land tenure applications. It requires communities to navigate a complex six-step process to prove their territories are traditional lands.&nbsp;&nbsp;</span></p><p dir="ltr"><span>“For a lot of these communities, it’s been really hard to reach the end of the six-stage process. This could be due to huge recent decreases in the government budget, or because of strong political opposition to recognizing these territories,”&nbsp;Benzeev&nbsp;said.&nbsp;</span></p><div class="ucb-box ucb-box-title-hidden ucb-box-alignment-right ucb-box-style-fill ucb-box-theme-white"><div class="ucb-box-inner"><div class="ucb-box-title">&nbsp;</div><div class="ucb-box-content"> <div class="align-center image_style-large_image_style"> <div class="imageMediaStyle large_image_style"> <img loading="lazy" src="/today/sites/default/files/styles/large_image_style/public/2025-06/screen_shot_2022-09-12_at_6.26.36_pm.png?itok=Pd3-Sify" width="1500" height="1457" alt="Rayna Benzeev"> </div> <span class="media-image-caption"> <p>Rayna Benzeev</p> </span> </div> </div></div></div><p dir="ltr"><span>Between 2014 and 2019, Brazil cut INCRA’s budget for formalizing land tenure by 89%, effectively paralyzing the process.&nbsp;</span></p><p dir="ltr"><span>In addition, reliable data on land use within these areas is sparse. As a result, the team could only include a total of 313 quilombola territories in their analysis of the 5,900 territories that exist across Brazil, including 98 with full tenure and 215 still in process.&nbsp;</span></p><p dir="ltr"><span>“We could only analyze a very small proportion of all quilombola territories, and that sample might not be representative of the whole picture,”&nbsp;Benzeev said.&nbsp;</span></p><p dir="ltr"><span><strong>More than trees</strong></span></p><p dir="ltr"><span>Even though this study didn’t detect an immediate forest benefit from land tenure among quilombolas, the researchers note that securing land rights for these communities may still be crucial.</span></p><p dir="ltr"><span>Forests in Brazil remain under persistent threats, including from legal and illegal logging, ranching, gold mining and large-scale plantations.</span></p><p dir="ltr"><span>“It’s not that those activities were necessarily legal before a territory gets its land tenure, but once tenure is granted, it becomes clear who owns and manages the land. When those boundaries are fuzzy or can be contested, it’s much easier for others to move in,” Newton said.&nbsp;</span></p><p dir="ltr"><span>Some quilombola community leaders Benzeev has collaborated with said they had been fighting against encroachment from eucalyptus companies for decades. People died in these conflicts, but without land rights, the quilombolas were not able to stop the violence.&nbsp;</span></p><p dir="ltr"><span>“Quilombolas are some of the most marginalized communities in Brazil,” Benzeev said. “The fact that they are entitled to land by law but they’re not receiving this recognition is a violation of rights, and shows there is still a big gap to address.”</span></p></div> </div> </div> </div> </div> <div class="ucb-article-content ucb-striped-content"> <div class="container"> <div class="paragraph paragraph--type--article-content paragraph--view-mode--default"> <div class="ucb-article-content-media ucb-article-content-media-above"> <div> <div class="paragraph paragraph--type--from-library paragraph--view-mode--default"> <div> <div class="ucb-article-secondary-text"> <div><div class="ucb-box ucb-box-title-hidden ucb-box-alignment-none ucb-box-style-fill ucb-box-theme-darkgray"><div class="ucb-box-inner"><div class="ucb-box-title">&nbsp;</div><div class="ucb-box-content"><p class="hero"><i class="fa-solid fa-building">&nbsp;</i>&nbsp;<strong>Beyond the story</strong></p><p>Our research impact by the numbers:</p><ul><li>45 U.S. patents issued for inventions through Venture Partners in 2023–24</li><li><span>35 startups launched based on university innovations in 2023–24</span></li><li><span>$1.2 billion raised by companies built on Boulder innovations in 2022–24</span></li></ul><p><a class="ucb-link-button ucb-link-button-gold ucb-link-button-default ucb-link-button-regular" href="https://www.linkedin.com/school/cuboulder/posts/?feedView=all" rel="nofollow"><span class="ucb-link-button-contents">Follow Boulder on LinkedIn</span></a></p></div></div></div></div> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> <div class="ucb-article-text d-flex align-items-center" itemprop="articleBody"> </div> </div> </div> </div> <div> Boulder research sheds light on communities in Brazil facing ongoing marginalization despite legal land rights.<br> </div> <h2> <div class="paragraph paragraph--type--ucb-related-articles-block paragraph--view-mode--default"> <div>Related Articles</div> </div> </h2> <div>Traditional</div> <div>0</div> <div> <div class="imageMediaStyle large_image_style"> <img loading="lazy" src="/today/sites/default/files/styles/large_image_style/public/2025-06/FE028522-D548-4AA0-BDA6-242C42EBE5C6%5B18%5D.heic_.jpeg?itok=RrYx47HZ" width="1500" height="1125" alt="A man in reforestation nursery"> </div> <span class="media-image-caption"> <p class="small-text"><span>Andre Luiz, a member of </span>Ribeirão<span>, a </span>quilombola<span>&nbsp;community, looking at the community's reforestation nursery in Bahia, Brazil. (Credit: Rayna Benzeev)</span></p> </span> </div> <div>On</div> <div>White</div> <div>Andre Luiz, a member of Ribeirão, a quilombola community, looking at the community's reforestation nursery in Bahia, Brazil. (Credit: Rayna Benzeev)</div> Tue, 03 Jun 2025 16:40:00 +0000 Yvaine Ye 54781 at /today What makes some homes, neighborhoods more likely to survive wildfire? New research offers insight /today/2025/06/03/what-makes-some-homes-neighborhoods-more-likely-survive-wildfire-new-research-offers <span>What makes some homes, neighborhoods more likely to survive wildfire? New research offers insight</span> <span><span>Amber Elise Carlson</span></span> <span><time datetime="2025-06-03T09:33:30-06:00" title="Tuesday, June 3, 2025 - 09:33">Tue, 06/03/2025 - 09:33</time> </span> <div> <div class="imageMediaStyle focal_image_wide"> <img loading="lazy" src="/today/sites/default/files/styles/focal_image_wide/public/2025-05/abbie%20liel%203_0.jpg?h=c22ffdeb&amp;itok=TmfEUIkI" width="1200" height="800" alt="Three people in neon vests kneeling amid rubble from the Marshall Fire"> </div> </div> <div role="contentinfo" class="container ucb-article-categories" itemprop="about"> <span class="visually-hidden">Categories:</span> <div class="ucb-article-category-icon" aria-hidden="true"> <i class="fa-solid fa-folder-open"></i> </div> <a href="/today/taxonomy/term/16"> Climate &amp; Environment </a> </div> <a href="/today/amber-carlson">Amber Carlson</a> <div class="ucb-article-content ucb-striped-content"> <div class="container"> <div class="paragraph paragraph--type--article-content paragraph--view-mode--default"> <div class="ucb-article-text" itemprop="articleBody"> <div><p><em><strong>Editor’s note:</strong> This article has been updated to reflect that Erica Fischer and Amy Metz of Oregon State University led this study.</em></p><p>When a wildfire ravages a community, the loss of homes can be one of the most devastating impacts. The destruction displaces residents and can drive businesses and services away from those who still live there.</p><p>But fires don’t affect all homes and neighborhoods equally. Some burn to the ground, while others are left untouched.&nbsp;</p> <div class="align-right image_style-default"> <div class="field_media_oembed_video"><iframe src="/today/media/oembed?url=https%3A//youtu.be/cwZL2XrshyI&amp;max_width=516&amp;max_height=350&amp;hash=9d9PuLwvKuF8V3123Wpw47PYXidlvX9VtqcsunRyI4s" width="516" height="290" class="media-oembed-content" loading="eager" title="Could wildfires change how we build homes and communities?"></iframe> </div> </div> <p>In a recent study, engineers from Oregon State University and Boulder aimed to find out why.</p><p>“There's no such thing as fireproof,” said <a href="/ceae/abbie-b-liel" rel="nofollow">Abbie Liel</a>, a co-author of the study and professor of civil, environmental and architectural engineering at Boulder. “But I really believe we can protect our communities better.”</p><p>In the study, which was <a href="https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10694-024-01616-7" rel="nofollow">published in <em>Fire Technology</em></a>, the research team, led by Erica Fischer and Amy Metz of Oregon State University, examined the patterns of destruction left by the December 2021 Marshall Fire, which killed two people and destroyed more than 1,000 homes in Boulder County.&nbsp;</p><p>The researchers used machine learning models to predict whether 1,055 homes in the Marshall Fire burn area would have survived based on 23 different factors, such as the homes’ construction year and type, the presence of wooden fencing, nearby vegetation, how isolated the neighborhood was and what jurisdiction it was located in.</p><p>When the researchers entered the true data from the fire, the models accurately predicted 99% of the houses that would be destroyed and 54% of the homes left standing. When they removed certain factors, they discovered that some factors, such as where a house is located, mattered more than others.</p><p>The characteristics of the homes themselves made a difference — for example, the materials a home is made from or the landscaping nearby — especially in more densely populated wildland-urban interface, or WUI, areas like Louisville and Superior.</p><p>In these areas, homes are closer together, and fire spreads more easily from one home to the next. Because the houses themselves act as fuel for a fire, and the most common way fires spread in WUI areas is through embers that can be carried miles away, it’s even more crucial for homes in these areas to be built in ways that reduce risk, the researchers said.</p><p>Fischer of Oregon State University said there are a few simple and low-cost ways homeowners can safeguard their homes: They can clean gutters, keep rooftops free of debris that could catch fire and remove easily combustible material, such as bark mulch, from within 5 feet of a home. They can also add screens over attic and crawlspace vents to block embers from getting inside the house and sparking a fire.</p><p>Residents can also learn about their risk level for fires. Colorado has a <a href="https://co-pub.coloradoforestatlas.org/#/" rel="nofollow">Wildfire Risk Viewer</a> that can help residents learn whether they are in a WUI area.</p> <div class="align-right image_style-medium_750px_50_display_size_"> <div class="imageMediaStyle medium_750px_50_display_size_"> <img loading="lazy" src="/today/sites/default/files/styles/medium_750px_50_display_size_/public/2025-05/abbie%20liel%202.jpg?itok=65Muw6LT" width="750" height="563" alt="A person in a hard hat and neon vest poses for a photo with rubble from the Marshall Fire in the background."> </div> <span class="media-image-caption"> <p>Abbie Liel is pictured doing field work in areas affected by the Marshall Fire in January 2022. (Credit: Abbie Liel)</p> </span> </div> <p>Other methods, like upgrading to fire-resistant siding and roofing or removing flammable landscaping, can be more expensive but can also help protect homes. Liel of Boulder calls wooden fences a “conduit” for fire spread and recommends changing them out for fire-resistant fencing if possible. The researcher’s study indicated that newer houses were somewhat more likely to survive, indicating the benefit of more modern construction.</p><p>Another major takeaway of the study, which was chosen as one of the best studies of 2024 in <em>Fire Technology</em>: Community-level actions and policies can play an even bigger role than individual homeowners’ actions.&nbsp;</p><p>The researchers found that during the Marshall Fire, the layout of communities and the spatial arrangement of houses determined which homes survived, especially in Louisville and Superior, which are more densely populated WUI areas.</p><p>Houses’ proximity to open space mattered, but so did the distance between houses: Areas like Louisville and Superior with more dense housing and smaller distances between houses were more susceptible to wildfire spread. In unincorporated Boulder County, where lot sizes are larger and homes are farther apart, the fire did not spread in the same way.</p><p>But Liel said she doesn’t see reducing housing density as the best lever for mitigating fire risk. Denser housing can create livable, walkable communities and also be more affordable, especially for lower-income people and families.</p><p>Homes in denser areas can be built to be more fire-resistant, and these communities can be protected from fires through other means, including vegetation and open space management as well as keeping roads and water sources accessible for firefighters.</p><p>Colorado, a home-rule state, has no statewide building code, and local jurisdictions are allowed to set their own standards, although efforts to create a statewide wildfire code are underway. Those standards could include wildfire hardening policies implemented at a city or county level. Numerous cities, including Boulder, are currently weighing such policies.</p><p>Broader legislation can also influence which regulations homeowners’ associations can impose on residents. For instance, a <a href="https://leg.colorado.gov/bills/hb24-1091" rel="nofollow">new Colorado law passed</a> last year blocks HOAs from prohibiting building with fire-resistant materials, so they can’t require higher-risk features like wooden fencing.</p><div class="ucb-box ucb-box-title-hidden ucb-box-alignment-right ucb-box-style-outline ucb-box-theme-black"><div class="ucb-box-inner"><div class="ucb-box-title">&nbsp;</div><div class="ucb-box-content"><p class="hero"><i class="fa-solid fa-arrow-up-right-from-square">&nbsp;</i>&nbsp;<strong>Rebuilding tips</strong></p><p> engineers have compiled a <a href="/ceae/la-fire-rebuilding-recommendations-homeowners" rel="nofollow">list of rebuilding recommendations</a> informed by the Marshall Fire for homeowners affected by wildfire.</p></div></div></div><p>Additionally, Fischer said, jurisdictions can find ways to shore up their water capacity for fighting fires, and neighborhoods can be designed in a way that makes them easy for firefighters to access.</p><p>Even when there’s not a shortage of water in nearby reservoirs, a sudden surge in demand for water can overwhelm municipal water systems and lead to a drop in water pressure, causing fire hydrants to run dry. The Los Angeles wildfires in January offered a painful illustration of this lesson.</p><p>“Typical public works departments are built such that they're fighting one house fire at a time. They're not fighting an entire city block or an entire cul-de-sac at the same time,” Fischer said. “The water system is just not made for it.”</p><p>Regardless of the means, the researchers agreed that people and communities need to take action to make themselves safer from fires.</p><p>“People really do want a safe home, and they really do want their community to be safe,” Liel said. “We need to take individual and collective actions, starting with the things that are most achievable and moving up to things that are harder.”</p></div> </div> </div> </div> </div> <div class="ucb-article-content ucb-striped-content"> <div class="container"> <div class="paragraph paragraph--type--article-content paragraph--view-mode--default"> <div class="ucb-article-content-media ucb-article-content-media-above"> <div> <div class="paragraph paragraph--type--from-library paragraph--view-mode--default"> <div> <div class="ucb-article-secondary-text"> <div><div class="ucb-box ucb-box-title-hidden ucb-box-alignment-none ucb-box-style-fill ucb-box-theme-darkgray"><div class="ucb-box-inner"><div class="ucb-box-title">&nbsp;</div><div class="ucb-box-content"><p class="hero"><i class="fa-solid fa-earth-americas">&nbsp;</i><strong>&nbsp;Beyond the story</strong></p><p>Our sustainability impact by the numbers:</p><ul><li>First student-run campus environmental center in the U.S.</li><li>No. 11 university for environmental and social impact in the U.S.</li><li>First zero-waste major sports stadium in the U.S.</li></ul><p><a class="ucb-link-button ucb-link-button-gold ucb-link-button-default ucb-link-button-regular" href="https://www.linkedin.com/school/cuboulder/posts/?feedView=all" rel="nofollow"><span class="ucb-link-button-contents">Follow Boulder on LinkedIn</span></a></p></div></div></div></div> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> <div class="ucb-article-text d-flex align-items-center" itemprop="articleBody"> </div> </div> </div> </div> <div>A study of the 2021 Marshall Fire in Boulder County shows that community policies are as important, if not more so, than homeowner actions.</div> <h2> <div class="paragraph paragraph--type--ucb-related-articles-block paragraph--view-mode--default"> <div>Related Articles</div> </div> </h2> <div>Traditional</div> <div>0</div> <div> <div class="imageMediaStyle large_image_style"> <img loading="lazy" src="/today/sites/default/files/styles/large_image_style/public/2025-05/abbie%20liel%203_0.jpg?itok=23YY7N8c" width="1500" height="1125" alt="Three people in neon vests kneeling amid rubble from the Marshall Fire"> </div> <span class="media-image-caption"> <p>Abbie Liel and others do field work amid Marshall Fire debris in January 2022. (Credit: Abbie Liel)</p> </span> </div> <div>On</div> <div>White</div> Tue, 03 Jun 2025 15:33:30 +0000 Amber Elise Carlson 54767 at /today Researchers model a dangerous glacial lake in the Himalayas /today/2025/05/30/researchers-model-dangerous-glacial-lake-himalayas <span>Researchers model a dangerous glacial lake in the Himalayas</span> <span><span>Megan Maneval</span></span> <span><time datetime="2025-05-30T09:06:58-06:00" title="Friday, May 30, 2025 - 09:06">Fri, 05/30/2025 - 09:06</time> </span> <div> <div class="imageMediaStyle focal_image_wide"> <img loading="lazy" src="/today/sites/default/files/styles/focal_image_wide/public/2025-05/20250527%20Byers%20everest%20lake.jpeg?h=738f9027&amp;itok=mZdI0E7R" width="1200" height="800" alt="Everest Lake"> </div> </div> <div role="contentinfo" class="container ucb-article-categories" itemprop="about"> <span class="visually-hidden">Categories:</span> <div class="ucb-article-category-icon" aria-hidden="true"> <i class="fa-solid fa-folder-open"></i> </div> <a href="/today/taxonomy/term/16"> Climate &amp; Environment </a> </div> <span>INSTAAR</span> <div class="ucb-article-content ucb-striped-content"> <div class="container"> <div class="paragraph paragraph--type--article-content paragraph--view-mode--default"> <div class="ucb-article-text" itemprop="articleBody"> <div><p>In a new paper, Alton Byers and his coauthors identified a rapidly forming glacial lake in the Kanchenjunga Conservation Area. The researchers model potential flood scenarios and suggest mitigation measures.</p></div> </div> </div> </div> </div> <div>In a new paper, Alton Byers and his coauthors identified a rapidly forming glacial lake in the Kanchenjunga Conservation Area. The researchers model potential flood scenarios and suggest mitigation measures.</div> <script> window.location.href = `/instaar/2025/05/27/researchers-model-dangerous-glacial-lake-himalayas-and-propose-solutions`; </script> <h2> <div class="paragraph paragraph--type--ucb-related-articles-block paragraph--view-mode--default"> <div>Related Articles</div> </div> </h2> <div>Traditional</div> <div>0</div> <div>On</div> <div>White</div> Fri, 30 May 2025 15:06:58 +0000 Megan Maneval 54772 at /today CIRES researchers find elevated levels of mercury in Colorado mountain wetlands /today/2025/05/22/cires-researchers-find-elevated-levels-mercury-colorado-mountain-wetlands <span>CIRES researchers find elevated levels of mercury in Colorado mountain wetlands</span> <span><span>Megan Maneval</span></span> <span><time datetime="2025-05-22T11:26:22-06:00" title="Thursday, May 22, 2025 - 11:26">Thu, 05/22/2025 - 11:26</time> </span> <div> <div class="imageMediaStyle focal_image_wide"> <img loading="lazy" src="/today/sites/default/files/styles/focal_image_wide/public/2025-05/IMG_8617.jpeg?h=435fe650&amp;itok=YggDSnQS" width="1200" height="800" alt="Colorado mountain wetlands"> </div> </div> <div role="contentinfo" class="container ucb-article-categories" itemprop="about"> <span class="visually-hidden">Categories:</span> <div class="ucb-article-category-icon" aria-hidden="true"> <i class="fa-solid fa-folder-open"></i> </div> <a href="/today/taxonomy/term/16"> Climate &amp; Environment </a> </div> <span>CIRES</span> <div class="ucb-article-content ucb-striped-content"> <div class="container"> <div class="paragraph paragraph--type--article-content paragraph--view-mode--default"> <div class="ucb-article-text" itemprop="articleBody"> <div><p>Climate change is increasing sulfate runoff, likely causing soil microbes to produce the most toxic form of mercury.&nbsp;</p></div> </div> </div> </div> </div> <div>Climate change is increasing sulfate runoff, likely causing soil microbes to produce the most toxic form of mercury. </div> <script> window.location.href = `https://cires.colorado.edu/news/cires-researchers-find-elevated-levels-mercury-colorado-mountain-wetlands`; </script> <h2> <div class="paragraph paragraph--type--ucb-related-articles-block paragraph--view-mode--default"> <div>Related Articles</div> </div> </h2> <div>Traditional</div> <div>0</div> <div>On</div> <div>White</div> Thu, 22 May 2025 17:26:22 +0000 Megan Maneval 54744 at /today Data from ship captures landslide-generated tsunami for 1st time /today/2025/05/21/data-ship-captures-landslide-generated-tsunami-1st-time <span>Data from ship captures landslide-generated tsunami for 1st time</span> <span><span>Megan Maneval</span></span> <span><time datetime="2025-05-21T12:02:02-06:00" title="Wednesday, May 21, 2025 - 12:02">Wed, 05/21/2025 - 12:02</time> </span> <div> <div class="imageMediaStyle focal_image_wide"> <img loading="lazy" src="/today/sites/default/files/styles/focal_image_wide/public/2025-05/RV%20Sikuliaq%20in%20port%20in%20Seward_Alaska_May%202022_Anne%20Sheehan.jpg?h=2ebf3f0c&amp;itok=ApAhQsVx" width="1200" height="800" alt="RV Sikuliaq in port in Seward, Alaska"> </div> </div> <div role="contentinfo" class="container ucb-article-categories" itemprop="about"> <span class="visually-hidden">Categories:</span> <div class="ucb-article-category-icon" aria-hidden="true"> <i class="fa-solid fa-folder-open"></i> </div> <a href="/today/taxonomy/term/16"> Climate &amp; Environment </a> </div> <span>CIRES</span> <div class="ucb-article-content ucb-striped-content"> <div class="container"> <div class="paragraph paragraph--type--article-content paragraph--view-mode--default"> <div class="ucb-article-text" itemprop="articleBody"> <div><p>A CIRES and Boulder-led team detected tsunami waves caused by a landslide using satellite data from a ship for the first time, demonstrating the potential for the approach to improve tsunami detection and warning in coastal communities.</p></div> </div> </div> </div> </div> <div>A CIRES and Boulder-led team detected tsunami waves caused by a landslide using satellite data from a ship for the first time, demonstrating the potential for the approach to improve tsunami detection and warning in coastal communities.</div> <script> window.location.href = `https://cires.colorado.edu/news/satellite-data-ship-captures-landslide-generated-tsunami-first-time`; </script> <h2> <div class="paragraph paragraph--type--ucb-related-articles-block paragraph--view-mode--default"> <div>Related Articles</div> </div> </h2> <div>Traditional</div> <div>0</div> <div>On</div> <div>White</div> Wed, 21 May 2025 18:02:02 +0000 Megan Maneval 54739 at /today Sediment records provide a glimpse into Iceland’s past, and hope for its future /today/2025/05/19/sediment-records-provide-glimpse-icelands-past-and-hope-its-future <span>Sediment records provide a glimpse into Iceland’s past, and hope for its future</span> <span><span>Megan Maneval</span></span> <span><time datetime="2025-05-19T09:37:40-06:00" title="Monday, May 19, 2025 - 09:37">Mon, 05/19/2025 - 09:37</time> </span> <div> <div class="imageMediaStyle focal_image_wide"> <img loading="lazy" src="/today/sites/default/files/styles/focal_image_wide/public/2025-05/20250513%20Harning%20Miller%20snowy%20lake.jpg?h=a7c625d9&amp;itok=AmHjNZhF" width="1200" height="800" alt="researchers at Harning Miller snowy lake"> </div> </div> <div role="contentinfo" class="container ucb-article-categories" itemprop="about"> <span class="visually-hidden">Categories:</span> <div class="ucb-article-category-icon" aria-hidden="true"> <i class="fa-solid fa-folder-open"></i> </div> <a href="/today/taxonomy/term/16"> Climate &amp; Environment </a> </div> <span>INSTAAR</span> <div class="ucb-article-content ucb-striped-content"> <div class="container"> <div class="paragraph paragraph--type--article-content paragraph--view-mode--default"> <div class="ucb-article-text" itemprop="articleBody"> <div><p>A new investigation, led by INSTAAR affiliate David Harning, uncovers a story of ecosystem resilience at a lake in coastal Iceland. The analysis could aid future conservation and climate modeling efforts.</p></div> </div> </div> </div> </div> <div>A new investigation, led by INSTAAR affiliate David Harning, uncovers a story of ecosystem resilience at a lake in coastal Iceland. The analysis could aid future conservation and climate modeling efforts.</div> <script> window.location.href = `/instaar/2025/05/13/sediment-records-provide-glimpse-icelands-past-and-hope-its-future`; </script> <h2> <div class="paragraph paragraph--type--ucb-related-articles-block paragraph--view-mode--default"> <div>Related Articles</div> </div> </h2> <div>Traditional</div> <div>0</div> <div>On</div> <div>White</div> Mon, 19 May 2025 15:37:40 +0000 Megan Maneval 54725 at /today Ocean microbes offer clues to environmental resilience /today/2025/05/19/ocean-microbes-offer-clues-environmental-resilience <span>Ocean microbes offer clues to environmental resilience</span> <span><span>Megan Maneval</span></span> <span><time datetime="2025-05-19T09:30:44-06:00" title="Monday, May 19, 2025 - 09:30">Mon, 05/19/2025 - 09:30</time> </span> <div> <div class="imageMediaStyle focal_image_wide"> <img loading="lazy" src="/today/sites/default/files/styles/focal_image_wide/public/2025-05/RNA%20CRISPR%20DNA%20Lehman%20image8.png?h=d1cb525d&amp;itok=B8hhzqry" width="1200" height="800" alt="a guide RNA strand, in purple, guides CRISPR to a DNA strand"> </div> </div> <div role="contentinfo" class="container ucb-article-categories" itemprop="about"> <span class="visually-hidden">Categories:</span> <div class="ucb-article-category-icon" aria-hidden="true"> <i class="fa-solid fa-folder-open"></i> </div> <a href="/today/taxonomy/term/16"> Climate &amp; Environment </a> </div> <span>College of Engineering and Applied Science</span> <div class="ucb-article-content ucb-striped-content"> <div class="container"> <div class="paragraph paragraph--type--article-content paragraph--view-mode--default"> <div class="ucb-article-text" itemprop="articleBody"> <div><p>Researchers at Boulder and Oak Ridge National Laboratory have developed a new method to identify genetic changes that help oxygen-producing microbes survive in extreme environments.</p></div> </div> </div> </div> </div> <div>Researchers at Boulder and Oak Ridge National Laboratory have developed a new method to identify genetic changes that help oxygen-producing microbes survive in extreme environments.</div> <script> window.location.href = `/chbe/ocean-microbes-offer-clues-environmental-resilience`; </script> <h2> <div class="paragraph paragraph--type--ucb-related-articles-block paragraph--view-mode--default"> <div>Related Articles</div> </div> </h2> <div>Traditional</div> <div>0</div> <div>On</div> <div>White</div> Mon, 19 May 2025 15:30:44 +0000 Megan Maneval 54724 at /today A vicious cycle: How methane emissions from warming wetlands could exacerbate climate change /today/2025/05/15/vicious-cycle-how-methane-emissions-warming-wetlands-could-exacerbate-climate-change <span>A vicious cycle: How methane emissions from warming wetlands could exacerbate climate change</span> <span><span>Yvaine Ye</span></span> <span><time datetime="2025-05-15T11:34:29-06:00" title="Thursday, May 15, 2025 - 11:34">Thu, 05/15/2025 - 11:34</time> </span> <div> <div class="imageMediaStyle focal_image_wide"> <img loading="lazy" src="/today/sites/default/files/styles/focal_image_wide/public/2025-05/Arctic_landscape_%2848752868026%29.jpg?h=ae742fdc&amp;itok=psgQNQxn" width="1200" height="800" alt="wetlands and snowy mountains of Arctic National Wildlife Refuge"> </div> </div> <div role="contentinfo" class="container ucb-article-categories" itemprop="about"> <span class="visually-hidden">Categories:</span> <div class="ucb-article-category-icon" aria-hidden="true"> <i class="fa-solid fa-folder-open"></i> </div> <a href="/today/taxonomy/term/16"> Climate &amp; Environment </a> </div> <a href="/today/yvaine-ye">Yvaine Ye</a> <div class="ucb-article-content ucb-striped-content"> <div class="container"> <div class="paragraph paragraph--type--article-content paragraph--view-mode--default"> <div class="ucb-article-text" itemprop="articleBody"> <div><p>Warming in the Arctic is intensifying methane emissions, contributing to a vicious feedback loop that could accelerate climate change even more, according to a <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-025-08900-8" rel="nofollow">new study</a> published May 7 in Nature.</p><p>“Methane is a very potent greenhouse gas that we need to address urgently,” said co-author <a href="https://cires.colorado.edu/people/xin-lan" rel="nofollow">Xin (Lindsay) Lan</a>, a climate scientist at Boulder’s <a href="https://cires.colorado.edu" rel="nofollow">Cooperative Institute for Research in Environmental Sciences (CIRES)</a>. “Our study suggests that a significant <span>portion of the recent rise in atmospheric methane originates from natural sources driven by climate change.</span> <span>Our emission reduction&nbsp;efforts need to be more aggressive.”</span></p><div class="ucb-box ucb-box-title-hidden ucb-box-alignment-right ucb-box-style-fill ucb-box-theme-white"><div class="ucb-box-inner"><div class="ucb-box-title">&nbsp;</div><div class="ucb-box-content"> <div class="align-center image_style-large_image_style"> <div class="imageMediaStyle large_image_style"> <img loading="lazy" src="/today/sites/default/files/styles/large_image_style/public/2025-05/lab_photo_Lan2.jpg?itok=DkAwyt3s" width="1500" height="1174" alt="Xin Lan"> </div> <span class="media-image-caption"> <p>Xin (Lindsay) Lan</p> </span> </div> </div></div></div><p><span>Methane is the second most abundant human-produced greenhouse gas after carbon dioxide. But an equal amount of methane traps about 30 times more heat than CO₂ over a 100-year time frame. Methane has been responsible for roughly a quarter of the planet’s warming since the Industrial Revolution.</span></p><p>Lan has spent the past decade tracking methane concentrations in the atmosphere at Boulder’s <a href="https://gml.noaa.gov/" rel="nofollow">Global Monitoring Laboratory</a> at the <span>National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).</span></p><p><span>Lan and her colleagues at NOAA have observed a rapid increase in atmospheric methane levels in recent years. While previous studies have shown fossil fuel production accounts for 30% of global methane emissions, Lan and colleagues have noticed a&nbsp;</span><a href="/today/2024/10/21/microbes-not-fossil-fuels-drove-methane-growth-between-2020-22" rel="nofollow"><span>steady increase in emissions from microbial</span></a><span> sources since 2007.</span></p><p><span>These microbes, specifically a group known as archaea, produce methane as a byproduct of their metabolism in environments like wetlands, landfills and livestock’s digestive systems.</span></p><p><span>Together, microbial emissions contribute to nearly half of global methane emissions, but it remains unclear which specific sources are driving this increase. &nbsp;</span></p><p><span>“While long-term methane trends are important to investigate, we also need to look at seasonal variations to understand how individual sources are changing and how the natural mechanisms that remove methane from the atmosphere are evolving,” Lan said.</span></p><h2><span>A vicious cycle</span></h2><p><span>To get a clearer picture, Lan and her team analyzed seasonal fluctuations in&nbsp;atmospheric&nbsp;methane levels&nbsp;over the past four decades.</span></p><p><span>They found that methane’s seasonal amplitude — the difference between peak and lowest methane levels within a year— has been decreasing in northern high-latitude regions, including the Arctic.</span></p><p><span>Using computer models, the team showed that this trend since the 1980s is largely a result of increased methane emissions from wetlands. Increased precipitation in the Arctic has expanded the region’s wetlands by 25% during the warmer months. Rising temperatures have also been melting some of the perpetually frozen soil layer deep underground, known as permafrost, in summer.</span></p><div class="ucb-box ucb-box-title-hidden ucb-box-alignment-right ucb-box-style-outline ucb-box-theme-white"><div class="ucb-box-inner"><div class="ucb-box-title">&nbsp;</div><div class="ucb-box-content"><h6><i class="fa-solid fa-quote-left fa-2x ucb-icon-color-gray">&nbsp;</i>&nbsp;<span>Our hope is that by rapidly reducing emissions, we can avoid triggering more severe and abrupt climate feedback that could lead to catastrophic events.&nbsp;</span><i class="fa-solid fa-quote-right fa-2x ucb-icon-color-gray">&nbsp;</i></h6></div></div></div><p><span>The melted, waterlogged soils have provided ideal conditions for archaea to thrive, leading to higher methane emissions which in turn could accelerate warming further.</span></p><p><span>Scientists have long warned about such climate feedback loops, but the precise scale and speed of these effects remain uncertain. Lan said this new study added another piece of evidence that natural methane emissions have already been responding to a warming climate.</span></p><p><span>“This study, along with a few previous studies, has provided indirect evidence on potential climate feedback on methane emissions, which&nbsp;would be beyond our ability to control directly,” Lan said.</span></p><p><span>The sharp increase in atmospheric methane and its climate feedback effects since 2007 resemble the planet’s most dramatic warming events that brought past ice ages to an end, according to Lan’s&nbsp;</span><a href="https://agupubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1029/2023GB007875" rel="nofollow">previous research</a><span>.</span></p><p><span>“Our hope is that by rapidly reducing emissions, we can avoid triggering more severe and abrupt climate feedback that could lead to catastrophic events,” she said.</span></p><h2><span>Methane sponges</span></h2><p><span>The team’s simulations also found a 10% increase in the levels of hydroxyl (OH) radical since 1984. These radicals are highly reactive molecules that can soak up and remove methane and other air pollutants.</span></p><p><span>Because these molecules stay in the air for less than a second before they react with other compounds, scientists cannot directly measure them globally. In the past, researchers had assumed the OH levels remained constant over the years when calculating atmospheric methane emissions, but this study suggested that assumption might be wrong.</span></p><p><span>“Our result showed that we’ve been underestimating how much methane the atmosphere has been removing, which means that there’s actually more methane being emitted than we previously estimated,” Lan said.</span></p><p><span>Understanding the specific source of emission is vital in designing climate mitigation policies. While microbial emissions are responsible for most of the methane growth, human-produced methane from burning fossil fuels remains an important contributor.</span></p><p><span>“We need to aggressively cut all greenhouse gas emissions from the sources we can control,” Lan said. She added that the world’s permafrost currently holds at least twice as much carbon as is currently in the atmosphere. If future warming causes widespread permafrost thaw and releases that carbon, it could trigger irreversible changes to the planet’s climate. “We need to address the feedback loop before reaching that tipping point.”</span></p></div> </div> </div> </div> </div> <div class="ucb-article-content ucb-striped-content"> <div class="container"> <div class="paragraph paragraph--type--article-content paragraph--view-mode--default"> <div class="ucb-article-content-media ucb-article-content-media-above"> <div> <div class="paragraph paragraph--type--from-library paragraph--view-mode--default"> <div> <div class="ucb-article-secondary-text"> <div><div class="ucb-box ucb-box-title-hidden ucb-box-alignment-none ucb-box-style-fill ucb-box-theme-darkgray"><div class="ucb-box-inner"><div class="ucb-box-title">&nbsp;</div><div class="ucb-box-content"><p class="hero"><i class="fa-solid fa-earth-americas">&nbsp;</i><strong>&nbsp;Beyond the story</strong></p><p>Our sustainability impact by the numbers:</p><ul><li>First student-run campus environmental center in the U.S.</li><li>No. 11 university for environmental and social impact in the U.S.</li><li>First zero-waste major sports stadium in the U.S.</li></ul><p><a class="ucb-link-button ucb-link-button-gold ucb-link-button-default ucb-link-button-regular" href="https://www.linkedin.com/school/cuboulder/posts/?feedView=all" rel="nofollow"><span class="ucb-link-button-contents">Follow Boulder on LinkedIn</span></a></p></div></div></div></div> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> <div class="ucb-article-text d-flex align-items-center" itemprop="articleBody"> </div> </div> </div> </div> <div>The latest study finds that emissions of the potent greenhouse gas might be higher than previously estimated. </div> <h2> <div class="paragraph paragraph--type--ucb-related-articles-block paragraph--view-mode--default"> <div>Related Articles</div> </div> </h2> <div>Traditional</div> <div>0</div> <div> <div class="imageMediaStyle large_image_style"> <img loading="lazy" src="/today/sites/default/files/styles/large_image_style/public/2025-05/Arctic_landscape_%2848752868026%29.jpg?itok=y-hNiSwD" width="1500" height="1000" alt="wetlands and snowy mountains of Arctic National Wildlife Refuge"> </div> <span class="media-image-caption"> <p><span>Landscape of wetlands and snowy mountains of Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. (Credit: Lisa Hupp/USFWS)</span></p> </span> </div> <div>On</div> <div>White</div> <div>Landscape of wetlands and snowy mountains of Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. (Credit: Lisa Hupp/USFWS)</div> Thu, 15 May 2025 17:34:29 +0000 Yvaine Ye 54716 at /today Pacific upwelling much faster at the equator than scientists thought /today/2025/05/09/pacific-upwelling-much-faster-equator-scientists-thought <span>Pacific upwelling much faster at the equator than scientists thought</span> <span><span>Megan Maneval</span></span> <span><time datetime="2025-05-09T09:32:29-06:00" title="Friday, May 9, 2025 - 09:32">Fri, 05/09/2025 - 09:32</time> </span> <div> <div class="imageMediaStyle focal_image_wide"> <img loading="lazy" src="/today/sites/default/files/styles/focal_image_wide/public/2025-05/image.png?h=8358abd3&amp;itok=XQh9XMX_" width="1200" height="800" alt="heat map"> </div> </div> <div role="contentinfo" class="container ucb-article-categories" itemprop="about"> <span class="visually-hidden">Categories:</span> <div class="ucb-article-category-icon" aria-hidden="true"> <i class="fa-solid fa-folder-open"></i> </div> <a href="/today/taxonomy/term/16"> Climate &amp; Environment </a> </div> <span>CIRES</span> <div class="ucb-article-content ucb-striped-content"> <div class="container"> <div class="paragraph paragraph--type--article-content paragraph--view-mode--default"> <div class="ucb-article-text" itemprop="articleBody"> <div><p>A new discovery by a Boulder researcher shows why global climate models overestimate warming in the tropical Pacific Ocean.</p></div> </div> </div> </div> </div> <div>A new discovery by a Boulder researcher shows why global climate models overestimate warming in the tropical Pacific Ocean.</div> <script> window.location.href = `https://cires.colorado.edu/news/pacific-upwelling-much-faster-equator-scientists-thought`; </script> <h2> <div class="paragraph paragraph--type--ucb-related-articles-block paragraph--view-mode--default"> <div>Related Articles</div> </div> </h2> <div>Traditional</div> <div>0</div> <div>On</div> <div>White</div> Fri, 09 May 2025 15:32:29 +0000 Megan Maneval 54696 at /today