Physical sciences, Earth sciences

It is one thing to know that Earth has already faced abrupt climate changes — also known as Dansgaard–Oeschger (DO) events — in the past. But finding out the reasons for these dramatic and rather short term changes is another story, one that Dr Rachael Rhodes from the University of Cambridge is reconstructing using chemistry records from ice cores taken from Greenland.

Ice-albedo feedback as a result of sea-ice melting, notably in the Arctic, is known to reinforce global warming. What is less known, however, is the impact of a no-summer ice scenario on the world’s ambition to maintain global warming below 2°C by 2100. A study conducted under the TRANSRISK project paints a rather dark picture, highlighting the need to better understand the impact of rapid climate change in the region.

Coping with climate change will already be difficult enough without worrying about Dansgaard-Oescheger (DO) events that could come on top of it. However, their possible occurrence cannot be dismissed: We need to know more about these events, how they impacted our planet in the past, and how they could continue to do so in the future. The world’s most well-preserved ice cores could provide all this information while allowing for improved climate models.

Organic photovoltaics (OPV) may cost less than their silicon counterparts, but their performance remains off-putting to this day. A consortium of European research groups and industries recently demonstrated free-form organic solar modules for three specific, indoor and outdoor applications that should help put such concerns to bed.

Supported through the EU-funded T-FORCES project, scientists have found that biodiverse forests did not boost carbon storage beyond a certain point.

Recently paleoclimatologist William Ruddiman suggested that humans may have had a significant impact on the Earth’s climate already thousands of years ago — through carbon and methane emissions originating from biomass burning and deforestation associated with early agriculture. The EARLYHUMANIMPACT project set out to verify this hypothesis.

By integrating energy management systems the EU funded BESOS project contributes to the efficiency and sustainability of ‘smart cities’, while further empowering citizens to make informed choices.

In the last Trending Science of 2016 (your writer will be ho ho home for the holidays by the time you read this), we’re reporting on three science-related Christmas stories that have hit the headlines this festive season.

Marmok-5, a new device using wave-powered turbines to generate up to 30kW of electricity, has recently been deployed at the BiMEP site, on the northern coast of Spain. The device produces enough energy to run a medium-sized business.

A dinosaur fragment trapped in amber for over 99 million years and complete with fossilised feathers has been found and, for the first time, linked to a non-avian dinosaur.

Astronomers have compiled 3 000 years of celestial records and discovered that with each passing century, the length of the Earth’s day lengthens by two whole milliseconds. This is because the planet’s rotation is gradually winding down.

An EU-funded Scottish-led team is using virtual coral larvae to test how well marine reserves can withstand climate change.

Researchers have discovered a strong association between El Niño-Southern Oscillation conditions in the Pacific to observed weather and dengue epidemics in Sri Lanka.

New research published by the EU-funded HURRICANE project has highlighted how the north eastern coast of the USA could be struck by more frequent and more powerful hurricanes in the future due to shifting weather patterns.

New research has shown that the West Antarctic Glacier, one of the largest potential sources of water that will contribute to rising sea levels, began thinning and retreat as long ago as the 1940s.

In 2009, a UK SME going by the name of Scubacraft introduced the world to their convertible speedboat/submarine. Seven years later, the project has been granted support under the SME Instrument, and the company is now contemplating new markets including offshore wind farm maintenance.

In 2010, world leading companies in offshore wind came together to form ‘The Friends of the Supergrid’ — an association that advocates for an efficient, interconnected and resilient electricity grid to complement existing national transmission infrastructure. The MEDOW project is playing its part by advancing research on multi-terminal DC grids, which are considered as the key technology to connect offshore wind farms to this supergrid.

Following the granting of a young British girl’s instructions to be cryogenically preserved so she can be revived in the future when a cure for cancer exists, there has been intense debate inside and outside the scientific community on both the viability of cryogenic freezing but also on the ethical issues thrown up by the procedure. Once again, it raises the centuries-old question that defines the conflict between modern science and ethics: Even if we could do something, should we?

Floating wind turbines for offshore use are seen by many as embodying the future of the sector: they circumvent the problem of unsuitable seabeds and may even cost less than grounded alternatives. A consortium working under the FLOATGEN banner is looking for a share of the pie with the first-ever floating wind turbine to be set-up in the Atlantic close to the French coast.

By developing several innovative experimental systems, EU-funded researchers now have a better indication of how much cosmic dust enters the Earth’s atmosphere and what impact it has.

The timing of the first crust formation events are important in understanding the early Earth and how our planet was formed. New ERC-funded results from the EARLY EARTH project, coordinated by the University of Bonn, have provided further evidence that this occurred 4.36 billion years ago using isotopic dating of sub 20 micrometre mineral particles.

EU-funded researchers have used a new process called comminution dating to better understand Antarctica’s geological and climatic history.

Using ice-cores and a new isotopic method that can provide more precise temperature information, Marie Curie Fellow, Takuro Kobashi, has gained an insight into Greenland’s climate history. His data suggests Greenland’s temperatures and global-sea-levels may increase faster than current climate projections.

An EU-funded project has been helping cities face the future with confidence by tackling climate change, putting the green back into cities, and preventing urban sprawl in new and exciting ways.

During its final conference held in Brussels on 18 October 2016, the EU-funded USE-IT-WISELY project outlined its innovative frameworks and tools that will equip European manufacturers to effectively compete in an increasingly globalised world economy.