Paola Rosa-Aquino

EartherEnvironmental Justice

Puerto Rico’s Farmers Face a Long Road to Recovery

On the morning of September 21, 2017, Carlos Lago and Justina Díaz Bisbal emerged from their household into a post-apocalyptic world. Their once-lush five-acre fruit farm in southern Puerto Rico was entirely stripped of its foliage. Tree limbs were broken or twisted; pieces of metal from nearby homes, trash, and even a mattress were strewn … Continued

Earther

Meet The Communities Fighting to Bring Back Their Stars

Those who live in urban areas inhabit a radically different night-time reality than those living far from city lights. Gaze up at the night sky from a metropolis like New York City and you’re greeted with a dusty glow punctured by a few bright pin-prick stars. Do the same from a spot only 100 miles … Continued

Earther

The First Marine Wilderness Map Shows There’s Not Much of It Left

For the first time, scientists have mapped how much oceanic wilderness remains. Only 13.2 percent of the oceans are unspoiled, a shocking finding that shows the extent to which humans have reshaped the planet above and below the waves. “We expected to find more wilderness,” Kendall Jones, PhD candidate in the School of Earth and … Continued

Earther

Scientists Think These Rare Clouds Inspired ‘The Scream’

When Edvard Munch painted the first version of his magnum opus “The Scream,” he penned an accompanying diary entry where he describes walking along the road with two friends before the sky filled with “blood-red clouds and tongues of fire.” Many think the painting is a representation of the artist’s inner psychological turmoil. But according … Continued

EartherConservation

It’s Always Shark Week At The New York Aquarium

When you first step inside the New York Aquarium’s new shark exhibit, Ocean Wonders: Sharks!, the only thing separating you from the toothy predators is about six inches of acrylic. The exhibit walls arch overhead, fully immersing you in an underwater world of zebra sharks and black-tipped reef sharks gliding amongst colorful coral. Situated right … Continued

EartherClimate Change

Humans Are Making These Mysterious Clouds More Common

An otherworldly cloud phenomena found high in Earth’s atmosphere is becoming more visible due to our greenhouse gas emissions, according to a new study published in Geophysical Research Letters this month. Noctilucent, or night-shining, clouds look like wispy shimmering sky webs formed from ice-crystals. Unlike most clouds that appear, at most, approximately four miles (six km) … Continued

EartherClimate Change

Not Even the Internet Is Safe From Rising Sea Levels

If the internet went down, America would devolve into chaos. A new study suggests that’s an increasingly likely possibility as rising sea levels submerge critical infrastructure buried along densely-populated coastlines. Thousands of miles of fiber optic cables buried underground make up what’s known as the “physical internet.” But as sea levels steadily creep up our … Continued

EartherClimate Change

Americans Increasingly Aware of Climate Change, Media Clueless

Climate change—it’s happening. Americans’ awareness of this fact is at an all time high, according to a new survey. Maybe someone should tell mainstream news channels. Despite a recent spate of record-smashing heat waves across the United States, very few major broadcast TV networks used the opportunity to discuss linkages between extreme heat and climate … Continued

EartherConservation

Salamanders May Not Be as Screwed as We Thought

Hidden throughout Southern Appalachia is the world’s most diverse salamander population. But while these small amphibians have long been considered vulnerable as climate change shrinks suitable habitats, new research suggests that in at least some parts of the salamander capital of the world, the creatures may be able to hack their way into surviving a hotter … Continued

EartherEnvironmental Justice

Plastic Straw Bans Leave Out People With Disabilities

On Monday, Starbucks announced it would be joining the bevy of fast food eateries that have pledged to be more environmentally friendly. The global coffee giant is phasing out single-use plastics straws from more than 28,000 of its stores worldwide come 2020, a move Starbucks says will eliminate over a billion plastic straws a year. Proponents … Continued

EartherEarth Science

There’s a Lot More to Clouds Than Meets the Eye

I want to talk about clouds. Intellectually, I know they’re just masses of foggy moisture suspended in the ocean of air above us. But I’m here to say they’re more than that. I’ve lived under clouds for 21 years, and yet I only really started to look up a few years back, when I stumbled … Continued

EartherEnvironmental Justice

This Story About Lions Killing Poachers Is Brutal

I think we can all agree that hunting rhinos is a bad idea, but at least two suspected poachers learned that the hard way earlier this week. In a showcase of nature’s brutality, the BBC reports rangers at the Shibuya game reserve in South Africa stumbled on a pretty gruesome find on Tuesday: the mangled … Continued

EartherEarth Science

Travel Through Time With This New Book About the Mysterious Evolution of Whales

Whales have an unfinished story. The plot so far has been enthralling; they’ve evolved from four-legged dog-like terrestrial animals to up to 200-ton marine behemoths. But when you begin to ponder how these giants came to be and where they’re going, you’re left with more questions than answers. How did whales become so enormous in … Continued

EartherEarth Science

This Summer, Become an Expert Stargazer

Summer’s here. Earthbound as we are, the season’s warm temperatures and lazy nights give us ample opportunity to go outside, stretch out under the summer night sky with a few friends, and glance up towards the cosmos. This summer, I recommend you start getting a little more acquainted with that night sky, if only to … Continued

EartherEnvironmental Justice

Doctor Who Exposed Flint Water Crisis Opens Up About Trust and Trauma

It’s been almost three years since Dr. Mona Hanna-Attisha was tipped by a friend, at a barbecue of all places, that the city of Flint, Michigan’s drinking water could be tainted by lead. For Dr. Mona, a pediatrician at Flint’s Hurley Medical Center, the months that followed were a non-stop search for the missing piece … Continued

EartherEnvironmental Justice

Nearly a Billion South Asians Are Vulnerable to Climate Change, Report Finds

Because it’s a day that ends with y, we’re learning of yet another threat unchecked climate change poses. Inexorable rising temperatures and changing rainfall patterns due to climate change could depress the living standards of nearly half of South Asians by 2050. That’s according to a new first-of-its-kind report by the World Bank that quantified … Continued

EartherConservation

Forest Fires and Dank Weed Are Pushing These Cuties Toward Extinction

The Humboldt marten was once a denizen of vast swaths of old growth forests in Northern California and Southern Oregon. But rampant logging has shrunken its habitat, pushing the objectively adorable little predator into small isolated populations and amplifying other threats, like cannabis growth and wildfires. On Tuesday, conservation groups petitioned Oregon for both state … Continued

EartherEarth Science

The Coldest Temperature Ever Observed on Earth Is Bonkers

As one might expect, the desolate and remote East Antarctic Plateau is home to Earth’s coldest temperatures. What is surprising, however, is that these bitter temps are even colder than previously thought—reaching nearly -148 degrees Fahrenheit (-100 degrees Celsius). That’s according to an updated analysis of satellite data first reported in 2013. At the time, … Continued

EartherEarth Science

New Photo of Kilauea’s Eruption From Space May Be Our Best Yet

There have been a plethora of images from space documenting Kilauea’s dramatic eruption as the volcano’s lava flows create all kinds of havoc on the Big Island. But perhaps none are as awesome as this one. The image, captured by astronaut Rick Arnold aboard the International Space Station as it flew over the Pacific Ocean … Continued

EartherEarth Science

Snapchat’s New Coral Lenses Transport You Under the Sea

Snapchat lenses might be considered “fun”—the collection of augmented reality animations you can add to your real-world snap includes a llama falling over and a head-banging cockatoo—but rarely do we think of them as educational. A team of animators is now trying to change that with a new set of lenses that raise awareness about … Continued