Forests are breaking up in the tropics but coming together elsewhere – here’s what it means for wildlife and the climate: Maksim Safaniuk/Shutterstock In 2015, research on global forest cover revealed a concerning fact: 70% of the world’s remaining forest now lies within 1km of the forest’s edge. This process, called fragmentation, is causing the …
Why 40°C is bearable in a desert but lethal in the tropics: Phew: heat plus humidity can make Bangkok an uncomfortable place in a heatwave. Pavel V.Khon/SHutterstock This year, even before the northern hemisphere hot season began, temperature records were being shattered. Spain for instance saw temperatures in April (38.8°C) that would be out of …
Rainforests pump water round the tropics – but the pulse of this heart is weakening: Jack-Sooksan/Shutterstock Tropical forests are often referred to as the “lungs of the world”, describing the way their trees exchange gases with the atmosphere. By “breathing in” carbon dioxide and “breathing out” oxygen during photosynthesis, tropical forests remove about 15% of …
Forests in the tropics are critical for tackling climate change – yet the people showing how are being exploited: Tanes Ngamsom/Shutterstock Nowhere is nature more vibrant than in Earth’s tropical forests. Thought to contain more than half of all plant and animal species, the forests around Earth’s equator have sustained foragers and farmers since the …
Indigenous lands have less deforestation than state-managed protected areas in most of tropics: The world lost more than 12 million hectares of tropical forest in 2020, an area about half the size of the UK. Tropical forests contain much of the world’s animal and plant species and store more than half of its terrestrial carbon. …
What would happen to the climate if we reforested the entire tropics?: pio3/shutterstock What would happen if every single patch of farmland in the tropics, from Brazil through Congo, India and Indonesia, was abandoned overnight and left to turn back into forests? That’s the question we investigated in our new research. Trees and forests have …
Severe storms from tropics reach Europe once every five years on average – new research: Ex-hurricane Ophelia striking the British Isles on October 16, 2017. NOAA National Environmental Satellite, Data, and Information Service (NESDIS) An unusual and devastating storm struck Ireland in the early hours of October 16, 2017. Record-breaking gusts of up to 119mph …
Deep Tropics | Music, Art & Style Festival 2021 – a Culture interest event taking place on 2021-08-27 15:00:00 in United States Save The 2021 Dates: Friday, Aug 27th – Saturday, Aug 28th Deep Tropics' mission is to create an event experience that reconnects Nashville and travelers with Deep Culture. In the face of unprecedented …
Marine life typically thrives in the tropics – so why do whales prefer the poles?: Alexey Suloev / shutterstock Life in the sea isn’t easy. Talk to most people about the ocean and they are likely to imagine a tropical scene with a stretch of golden sand and warm, clear water. The reality is often …
Africa should be worried about the expanding tropics: The Tropic of Capricorn sign in Namibia. Expansion of the tropics will have huge implications for people and nature. Shutterstock In school, we learnt that the tropical zone is defined as the hot region of our planet – between the tropics of Cancer and Capricorn. But the …