Hundreds of species of fungi in deep coral ecosystems discovered by University of Hawaii at Manoa botanists

Researchers from the University of Hawai?i at M?noa Department of Botany have discovered hundreds of potentially new species of fungi in the deep coral ecosystem in the ?Au?au channel off Maui, Hawai?i. Mesophotic coral ecosystems (MCE) are generally found at depths between 130–500 feet and possess abundant plant (algal) life as well as new fish species. The mysteries of these reefs are only recently being revealed through technological advances in closed circuit rebreather diving. Previously overlooked—being too precarious for conventional SCUBA and too shallow to justify the cost of frequent submersible dives—mesophotic reefs continuously disclose breathtaking levels of biodiversity with each dive, yielding species and behavioral interactions new to science.

Dartmouth Study: Highway Salt Is Polluting Our Lakes

Salt can be good, and it can also be bad. Sprinkled on food, it makes things tastier, but it may also raise your blood pressure. Spread on winter roads, it can make driving safer, but the melting runoff contaminates nearby lakes and ponds.

In a study that gathered data from hundreds of lakes in the Northeast and the Midwest, a Dartmouth researcher and colleagues have found dramatic evidence of highway salt’s impact.

Slow Earthquakes Occur Continuously in the Alaska-Aleutian Subduction Zone

Seismologists at the University of California, Riverside studying earthquakes in the seismically and volcanically active Alaska-Aleutian subduction zone have found that “slow earthquakes” are occurring continuously, and could encourage damaging earthquakes.

NASA Sees Formation of Tropical Storm Fernanda in Eastern Pacific Ocean

The sixth tropical depression of the Eastern Pacific Ocean hurricane season formed near southwestern Mexico and quickly strengthened into Tropical Storm Fernanda. NASA’s Aqua satellite provided infrared imagery of the strengthening storm.

Climate change to deplete some US water basins, reduce irrigated crop yields

A new study by MIT climate scientists, economists, and agriculture experts finds that certain hotspots in the country will experience severe reductions in crop yields by 2050, due to climate change’s impact on irrigation.

The most adversely affected region, according to the researchers, will be the Southwest. Already a water-stressed part of the country, this region is projected to experience reduced precipitation by midcentury. Less rainfall to the area will mean reduced runoff into water basins that feed irrigated fields.

Why you might trust a quantum computer with secrets – even over the internet

Here's the scenario: you have sensitive data and a problem that only a quantum computer can solve. You have no quantum devices yourself. You could buy time on a quantum computer, but you don't want to give away your secrets. What can you do?

Most comprehensive database on past global changes is online

Climate scientists will now be able to more accurately study the pattern and causes of global surface temperature changes than was previously possible, thanks to a large international team of scientists contributing to PAGES (Past Global Changes), one of the University of Bern’s affiliated climate organizations.

France Will Ditch Gas and Diesel Cars by 2040

Parisian streets will be a little quieter in 2040, the year France has set as a target for getting gas and diesel cars off the road. French officials are speaking out on the need to commit to environmental health, and this initiative accompanies other programs aimed at reducing the country’s carbon emissions.

Huge Antarctic iceberg finally breaks free

After months of ‘hanging by a thread’ a vast iceberg the size of Norfolk has finally broken off Antarctica’s Larsen C Ice Shelf.  Around 30 metres of this 190m thick block of ice sits above the sea surface.

New research points to treatment breakthrough for viruses

RMIT scientists in Melbourne have led an international collaboration that potentially unlocks better treatment of viral diseases, including the flu and common cold.