Scientists' Annual Physical of Planet—'Earth's Fever Rises' by 1kiki

REAL WORLD EVENT DISCUSSIONS

Scientists' Annual Physical of Planet—'Earth's Fever Rises'

POSTED BY: 1KIKI
UPDATED: Saturday, August 6, 2016 17:41
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Wednesday, August 3, 2016 6:19 PM

Goodbye, kind world (George Monbiot) - In common with all those generations which have contemplated catastrophe, we appear to be incapable of understanding what confronts us.

http://www.rdmag.com/news/2016/08/scientists-annual-physical-planet%E2
%80%94earths-fever-rises

"I think the time to call the doctor was years ago," NOAA climate monitoring chief Deke Arndt, co-editor of the report, said in an email. "We are awash in multiple symptoms."

Scientists' Annual Physical of Planet—'Earth's Fever Rises'
Tue, 08/02/2016 - 12:00pm

Earth's fever got worse last year, breaking dozens of climate records, scientists said in a massive report nicknamed the annual physical for the planet.

Soon after 2015 ended, it was proclaimed the hottest on record. The new report shows the broad extent of other records and near-records on the planet's climatic health. Those include record heat energy absorbed by the oceans and lowest groundwater storage levels globally, according to Tuesday's report from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

"I think the time to call the doctor was years ago," NOAA climate monitoring chief Deke Arndt, co-editor of the report, said in an email. "We are awash in multiple symptoms."

The 2015 State of the Climate report examined 50 different aspects of climate , including dramatic melting of Arctic sea ice and glaciers worldwide. A dozen different nations set hottest year records, including Russia and China. South Africa had the hottest temperature ever recorded in the month of October: 119.1 degrees Fahrenheit (48.4 degrees Celsius).

"There is really only one word for this parade of shattered climate records: grim," said Georgia Tech climate scientist Kim Cobb, who wasn't part of the report, but called it "exhaustive and thorough."

But it's more than just numbers on a graph. Scientists said the turbo-charged climate affected walrus and penguin populations and played a role in dangerous algae blooms, such as one off the Pacific Northwest coast. And there were brutal heat waves all over the world, with ones in Indian and Pakistan killing thousands of people.

Much of the intense record-breaking and record-flirting weather was because of a combination of a natural El Nino - the periodic warming of parts of the Pacific that changes weather globally - and ever increasing man-made global warming.

"This impacts people. This is real life," said NOAA climate scientist Jessica Blunden, co-editor of the report published Tuesday in the Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society.

Oklahoma University meteorology professor Jason Furtado said in an email that the report, which he wasn't part of, illustrates the combined power of nature and humans on Earth's climate: "It was like injecting an already amped-up climate system with a dose of (natural) steroids."

About 450 scientists from around the world helped write the report and in it NOAA highlighted one of the lesser-known measurements, ocean heat content. About 93 percent of the heat energy trapped by greenhouse gases - such as carbon dioxide from the burning of coal, oil and gas - goes directly into the ocean, the report said. And ocean heat content hit record levels both near the surface and deep.

NOAA oceanographer Gregory C. Johnson, a study co-author, said the oceans are storing more heat energy because of man-made climate change with an extra El Nino spike.

Johnson summed up Earth's climate in a haiku, published deep inside the report:

"El Niño waxes,

warm waters shoal, flow eastward,

Earth's fever rises."

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Thursday, August 4, 2016 5:12 AM

KPO

Sometimes you own the libs. Sometimes, the libs own you.

Trump Blames Scientists For Global Warming ‘Hoax’ - http://www.huffingtonpost.com/jeremy-symons/trump-now-blames-scientis_
b_11228538.html

Russia's and Assad's War Crimes in Syria - http://fireflyfans.net/mthread.aspx?tid=60278
Evidence the Syrian Government sponsors ISIS - http://www.fireflyfans.net/mthread.aspx?tid=60521

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Thursday, August 4, 2016 8:47 AM

SECOND

The Joss Whedon script for Serenity, where Wash lives, is Serenity-190pages.pdf at https://www.mediafire.com/two

Quote:
Originally posted by G:
Fwiw:

Trump? Just search trump+on+global+warming and you'll find some doosies. "It's an expensive hoax created for the Chinese!"

1kiki is not voting for Hillary, maybe not voting for Trump, maybe not voting for President, maybe voting for Jill Stein. But it will be either Trump or Hillary elected President because of the electoral college. There is no third candidate who believes in the greenhouse gas effect and also can be elected President.

www.gocomics.com/drewsheneman/2016/07/27

The Joss Whedon script for Serenity, where Wash lives, is Serenity-190pages.pdf at www.mediafire.com/folder/1uwh75oa407q8/Firefly

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Thursday, August 4, 2016 10:03 AM

REAVERFAN

I have a very hard time imagining a Bernie fan voting for Trump. I think that's just a false characterization.

I'm sure you can find one somewhere, but I doubt they're very informed.

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Thursday, August 4, 2016 10:29 AM

KPO

Sometimes you own the libs. Sometimes, the libs own you.

Quote:
Originally posted by reaverfan:
I have a very hard time imagining a Bernie fan voting for Trump. I think that's just a false characterization.

I'm sure you can find one somewhere, but I doubt they're very informed.

Ouch, Siggy.

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Russia's and Assad's War Crimes in Syria - http://fireflyfans.net/mthread.aspx?tid=60278
Evidence the Syrian regime sponsors ISIS - http://www.fireflyfans.net/mthread.aspx?tid=60521
************************************************

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Thursday, August 4, 2016 10:33 AM

SIGNYM

I believe in solving problems, not sharing them.

So, when the global temperature rise supposedly hit a "pause" (it didn't, but let's say for the sake of argument that it did) climate change-deniers were all over that data like white on rice.

Now that global temperature is skyrocketing upwards, global temperatures aren't being flag-waved by deniers anymore. Their attention to data is very inconsistent.

--------------
I think it's time you disabused yourself of that pleasant little fairy tale about our fearless leaders being some sort of surrogate daddy or mommy, laying awake at night thinking about how to protect the kids. HA! In reality, they're thinking about who to sell them to so that they can get a few more shekels in their pockets.

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Thursday, August 4, 2016 10:34 AM

SIGNYM

I believe in solving problems, not sharing them.

Quote:
Ouch, Siggy.-KRAPO

Do you know that thread about RUSSIAN TROLLS? Have any idea what happened to it, and why?

Be careful, or YOU might wind up in Troll Country along with it. So stop being a ~~dick~~ troll.

--------------
I think it's time you disabused yourself of that pleasant little fairy tale about our fearless leaders being some sort of surrogate daddy or mommy, laying awake at night thinking about how to protect the kids. HA! In reality, they're thinking about who to sell them to so that they can get a few more shekels in their pockets.

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Thursday, August 4, 2016 12:04 PM

JEWELSTAITEFAN

Quote:
Originally posted by 1kiki:
http://www.rdmag.com/news/2016/08/scientists-annual-physical-planet%E2
%80%94earths-fever-rises

"I think the time to call the doctor was years ago," NOAA climate monitoring chief Deke Arndt, co-editor of the report, said in an email. "We are awash in multiple symptoms."

So you are saying that every planetary body in our solar system, including the Sun, is rising in temperature? Right?
And that the reason for the Sun's increase in star temperature is El Nino? Right?

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Thursday, August 4, 2016 12:47 PM

SECOND

The Joss Whedon script for Serenity, where Wash lives, is Serenity-190pages.pdf at https://www.mediafire.com/two

Quote:
Originally posted by JEWELSTAITEFAN:

So you are saying that every planetary body in our solar system, including the Sun, is rising in temperature? Right?

Wrong. Every planet with increasing methane and carbon dioxide in its atmosphere has increasing atmospheric temperatures. Yes, the temperature does go down at night, so you can argue that temperature is not really rising, if you want to go to the place where you missed the point.

The Joss Whedon script for Serenity, where Wash lives, is Serenity-190pages.pdf at www.mediafire.com/folder/1uwh75oa407q8/Firefly

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Friday, August 5, 2016 8:03 AM

KPO

Sometimes you own the libs. Sometimes, the libs own you.

Quote:
Do you know that thread about RUSSIAN TROLLS? Have any idea what happened to it, and why?

No. Sent to Troll Country because you and kiki complained to Haken is my best guess. How this pertains to this thread I have no idea.

************************************************

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Friday, August 5, 2016 12:23 PM

SHINYGOODGUY

If that is true, wow, I did not know one could do that.

SGG

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Friday, August 5, 2016 12:37 PM

SHINYGOODGUY

I watched a segment on 60 Minutes that reported on scientists conducting
studies in Greenland about the melting glaciers and how it will affect rising
sea levels.

Sorry, was unable to get the full 60 Minutes segment touching upon the ice sheet in Greenland (need to subscribe to CBS Full Access for that). It was pretty interesting, and kind of scary. Not for me so much, but for my son,
his wife and children.

SGG

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Friday, August 5, 2016 1:59 PM

1KIKI

Goodbye, kind world (George Monbiot) - In common with all those generations which have contemplated catastrophe, we appear to be incapable of understanding what confronts us.

"Sent to Troll Country"

Yes. Apparently the only trolls Haken sees here are you, THUGGR and Gwhiz.

What does that have to do with this thread? Off-topic posts consisting entirely of personal attacks - that's trolling. Now, maybe you're just an inborn troll - yanno, "New research out of Canada finds trolls are sadistic." - and you don't even notice it. But other, not so twisted people, do see it.

Let me just point out that the author left out vital relevant facts in the opinion piece. Doing that is known as cherry-picking. And whether you do that in the news, in discussion, in debate or in opinion, when you distort the facts, you've changed the nature of your communication into propaganda. But WE don't have any of THAT in the US, do we?!

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Friday, August 5, 2016 3:47 PM

1KIKI

Goodbye, kind world (George Monbiot) - In common with all those generations which have contemplated catastrophe, we appear to be incapable of understanding what confronts us.

DOOD.

Did you know you can post DIRECTLY into troll country the same way you can post into any other thread? That you can use it as a test bed when you're trying out fonts and what not? And that many people do that as well as me?

I wasn't sent there. You were.

DEAL WITH IT.

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Friday, August 5, 2016 4:04 PM

1KIKI

Goodbye, kind world (George Monbiot) - In common with all those generations which have contemplated catastrophe, we appear to be incapable of understanding what confronts us.

Sigh. Another depressing thing about global warming ...

http://phys.org/news/2016-08-global-dead-zone-bacteria.html

Global warming, a dead zone and surprising bacteria

A carousel of collecting tubes about four feet in length slide below the surface of the Pacific off the Mexican coast, on its way down 300 meters to the world's largest oxygen minimum zone. Credit: Dr. Heather Olins

In ocean expanses where oxygen has vanished, newly discovered bacteria are diminishing additional life molecules. They help make virtual dead zones even deader.

Bacteria depleting nitrogen is a natural process in oxygen minimum zones (OMZs), ocean regions that have no detectable O2. But as climate change progresses, OMZs are ballooning, drawing researchers to study their biochemical processes and possible ramifications for the global environment.

Now, a team led by the Georgia Institute of Technology has discovered members of a highly prolific bacteria group known as SAR11 living in the world's largest oxygen minimum zone. The team has produced unambiguous evidence that the bacteria play a major role in denitrification.

Questions and answers

The newly discovered bacteria impact global nutrient supplies and greenhouse gas cycles. Below are some questions and answers that illuminate the discovery and its significance.

The researchers publish their findings in the journal Nature on August 3, 2016. They produced genomic and enzyme analyses that pave the way for further study of carbon and nitrogen cycles in oxygen minimum zones.

The research has been funded by the National Science Foundation, the NASA Exobiology Program, the Sloan Foundation and the U.S. Department of Energy.

Why does denitrification matter?

While melting ice caps and dying polar bears splash across headlines, climate change is stressing oceans in other ways, too - such as warming and acidifying waters. Loss of ocean oxygen and nitrogen are pieces of that bigger puzzle.

As to nitrogen: Anyone who has picked up a bag of fertilizer knows it as a building block of life.

"It's an essential nutrient," said Frank Stewart, an assistant professor at Georgia Tech's School of Biological Sciences, who headed the team. "Nitrogen is used by all cells for proteins and DNA."

Taking it away makes it harder for algae and other organisms to grow. But it doesn't stop there. Algae absorb carbon dioxide, so, when algae is diminished, that leaves more of that greenhouse gas in the atmosphere.

It's not yet clear how heavily this particular loss of CO2 absorption weighs in the global balance.

How do these newly discovered bacteria deplete nitrogen?

In OMZs, with O2 gone, the newly discovered strains of SAR11 bacteria (and some other bacteria) respire NO3 (nitrate) instead, the Georgia Tech researchers found. They kick off a chemical chain that leads to nitrogen disappearing out of the ocean.

"They take nitrate, convert it into nitrite (NO2), and that can ultimately be used to produce gaseous nitrogen," Stewart said. Plain nitrogen, N2, and nitrous oxide, N2O, would result. "Both of those gases have the potential to bubble out of the system and leave the ocean."

That makes the oxygen-barren waters even less hospitable to life, while putting more nitrogen into the air, as well as nitrous oxide, a key greenhouse gas.

The newly discovered members of the SAR11 bacteria clade - clade means a branch of living species—appear to be the single largest contingent of bacteria in OMZs. That makes them a significant player in nitrogen loss.

Ocean zones with no oxygen? Sounds wild. Did climate change do that?

No. Oxygen minimum zones are natural. The issue is that global warming is making them grow, just like it's making ice caps shrink.

OMZs form mostly in the tropics, off coastlines where wind pushes surface waters out to sea, allowing deeper waters to rise up. These are full of nutrients and boost the growth of simple aquatic life like algae.

"Eventually, the algae die and sink slowly," Stewart said. "Bacteria munch on it, and in the process, they breath oxygen." There's so much algae that the bacteria consume oxygen at a dizzying rate, depleting the water of it.

Scientists Liz Robertson with the University of Southern Denmark and Josh Manger from the University of California San Diego ready a sample collector for its descent to the world's largest oxygen minimum zone. Credit: Dr. Heather Olins

Global warming is causing OMZs to spread because it makes seawater less able to hold oxygen. As OMZs expand, so does the potential for denitrification, tipping global balances of nitrogen, greenhouse gases and nutrients.

I've heard of the disease SARS, but what is SAR11?

The two are unrelated.

SARS is caused by a virus and is potentially deadly. SAR11 bacteria are not only harmless to humans; hypothetically, we might starve without them. They're at the base of an oceanic food chain, which is very important to the global food supply.

"After they eat dissolved organic carbon (dead stuff), then the bacteria are eaten by bigger cells, which are eaten by larger plankton, and so on up the food chain," Stewart said.

Previously known SAR11 are so incredibly widespread in the ocean, it's surprising they're not a household name. They may even comprise the largest number of living organisms on Earth.

Under the microscope, SAR11 bacteria pretty much look the same. "They're usually short little slightly bent rods," Stewart said. Until now, SAR11 have been known to require oxygen to live, so finding SAR11 that respire nitrate is new and surprising.

Where did the team get these new nitrate breathing SAR11 strains?

Stewart and his team sailed for four days aboard a research vessel from San Diego, California, to an area off the Pacific coast of Mexico's Calimo state. There, they dropped a carousel of tube-like bottles about four feet long down to the center of the world's largest OMZ 1,000 feet below.

"The bottoms and tops of the bottles are open," Stewart said. "When you get to the depth you want, you close them to get your sample."

The new bacteria don't have species names yet, but their genomes, which were sequenced in the study, indicate they're members of the SAR11 bacteria clade.

Why is this discovery scientifically significant?

It upends quite justified scientific doubts.

Scientists thought SAR11 wouldn't have strains that flourish in the harsh OMZ environment, because the SAR11 clade doesn't have a reputation for being very adaptable. "When their genomes do change, they're usually very subtle changes," Stewart said.

Many other bacteria, by contrast, plunk in and out big chunks of their DNA, making them widely adaptable. Also, though researchers had already detected genetic signatures of SAR11 bacteria in OMZs, they didn't think the bacteria were actually at home there.

These facts put Stewart and his team under a heavy burden of proof.

How did the scientists answer the doubts?

They flushed out the genomes of 15 individual new bacteria strains they had captured as intact single cells. Surprisingly, the researchers found the blueprints for an enzyme, nitrate reductase, which could allow the bacteria to breathe nitrate in place of oxygen.

Since the novel bacteria have not yet been grown in the lab, the researchers inserted their nitrate reduction gene sequences into E. coli bacteria to see if they would use the DNA to produce the enzyme, and if the enzyme would then work.

It did.

"Not all studies that do this kind of genome-based analysis take that extra step," Stewart said with a long exhale. But it nailed nagging doubts.

The thorough analyses produced a critical dataset for science to build upon. More study will be needed to find out what adaptations allow SAR11 bacteria to exist under such harsh conditions.

More information: Despina Tsementzi et al, SAR11 bacteria linked to ocean anoxia and nitrogen loss, Nature (2016). DOI: 10.1038/nature19068

Provided by Georgia Institute of Technology

"Global warming, a dead zone and surprising bacteria" August 3, 2016 http://phys.org/news/2016-08-global-dead-zone-bacteria.html

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Friday, August 5, 2016 4:05 PM

SHINYGOODGUY

Ha! Funny but true.

SGG

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Saturday, August 6, 2016 5:33 PM

JEWELSTAITEFAN

Quote:
Originally posted by reaverfan:
I have a very hard time imagining a Bernie fan voting for Trump. I think that's just a false characterization.

I'm sure you can find one somewhere, but I doubt they're very informed.

It is hilarious to consider how difficult it must be for you to venture into the Real World, when you cannot even imagine what the Earth is really like.

http://insider.foxnews.com/2016/07/31/never-hillary-many-bernie-sander
s-supporters-are-backing-trump

Are you of the Flat Earth Society?
Have you heard Kennedy was killed with The Magic Bullet?

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Saturday, August 6, 2016 5:41 PM

JEWELSTAITEFAN

Quote:
Originally posted by SIGNYM:
Quote:
Ouch, Siggy.-KRAPO
Do you know that thread about RUSSIAN TROLLS? Have any idea what happened to it, and why?

Be careful, or YOU might wind up in Troll Country along with it. So stop being a ~~dick~~ troll.

http://www.fireflyfans.net/mthread.aspx?tid=60719

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