U.S. National Science Foundation-supported research shows that caribou will optimize their migration path based on their collective memories. Caribou are the most abundant large mammal species on land in the Arctic. They are not only an important part of the ecology but are also a primary source of food for hundreds of communities. The antlered deer migrate […]
Most news reports about wildfires include the number of acres a given fire has burned, but according to a new study by U.S. National Science Foundation-supported researchers, they should also note how fast the fire is moving. The research found that fast-growing fires caused 88% of the fire-related home destruction between 2001 and 2020, even […]
Findings raise new questions about climate dynamics During the last ice age, massive icebergs periodically broke off from an ice sheet covering a large swath of North America and discharged rapidly melting ice into the North Atlantic Ocean around Greenland, triggering abrupt climate change impacts across the globe. These sudden episodes, called Heinrich events, occurred […]
Algae that commonly grow on snow in the Pacific Northwest have been ignored in melt models, but their presence significantly increases snowmelt compared with clean, white snow, according to a study conducted on Mount Baker in the North Cascades, Washington. Scientist Alia Khan at Western Washington University and the National Snow and Ice Data Center at […]