A team of scientists and engineers from NASA and the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) joined forces to determine if a small piloted drone, outfitted with a specialized payload, could assist in generating detailed maps of water flow rates.

Rivers supply fresh water to our communities and farms, provide habitats for various creatures, transport people and goods, and generate electricity. However, river flows can also carry pollutants downstream or surge suddenly, posing risks to people, wildlife, and property. “To better understand our home planet, NASA is committed to researching these changes in river flows,” according to a statement issued by the US space agency.

NASA and USGS scientists have developed an instrument package called the River Observing System (RiOS), which is about the size of a gallon of milk. RiOS includes thermal and visible cameras for tracking water surface motion, a laser for measuring altitude, navigation sensors, an onboard computer, and a wireless communications system. In 2023, researchers tested RiOS along a section of the Sacramento River in Northern California and plan to conduct a third and final field test in the fall of 2024.

To tackle the challenges and effects of climate change in Southern Africa, the University of the Free State (UFS), in collaboration with the Agricultural Research Council (ARC) and the Department of Agriculture, Land Reform and Rural Development (DALRRD), has established four new research chairs within the Faculty of Natural and Agricultural Sciences (NAS).

The ARC-DALRRD-UFS research chairs—Climate Change and Agriculture, Innovative Agro-processing for Climate-smart Food Systems, Agriculture Risk Financing, and Sustainable Livestock Production—are dedicated to addressing climate change. These chairs are part of the ARC and DALRRD’s established Centre of Excellence on Climate Smart Agriculture.

The framework for these Agricultural Research Centres of Excellence includes several key components designed to promote innovation, collaboration, and impactful research in agriculture. Focused on Climate Smart Agriculture, these centres play a crucial role in advancing the agricultural sector, enhancing productivity, sustainability, and resilience amidst global challenges posed by climate change.

Prof. Johan van Niekerk, Vice-Dean for Agriculture at NAS, and Prof. Sonja Venter from the ARC are the coordinators for the ARC-UFS consortium. Mr. Joel Mamabolo from the DALRRD serves as the department’s representative and manager in the consortium.

According to Prof. Johan, the research chairs aim to conduct high-level research with a focus on community impact, aligning with the university’s Vision 130. This initiative marks the first step by UFS and NAS towards establishing industry chairs. Currently, negotiations are ongoing between UFS, ARC, and DALRRD to further expand these research chairs.

 “These chairs mark an exciting opportunity to deepen our understanding of climate change aligned to our expertise in agriculture,” says Prof Vasu Reddy, Deputy Vice-Chancellor, Research and Internationalisation.

The University of Leeds’ second annual Indicators of Global Climate Change report reveals that human-induced warming has escalated to 1.19°C over the past decade (2014-2023), up from 1.14°C documented in the previous decade (2013-2022, as reported last year). In 2023 alone, human activity contributed to a warming of 1.3°C. However, the overall warming experienced in 2023 reached 1.43°C, indicating that natural climate variability, notably influenced by El Niño, also contributed to the record temperatures observed that year.

The analysis indicates that the remaining carbon budget, the amount of carbon dioxide that can still be emitted before reaching 1.5°C of global warming, is approximately 200 gigatonnes (billion tonnes), equivalent to roughly five years of current emissions. In 2020, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) estimated the remaining carbon budget for 1.5°C to be between 300 and 900 gigatonnes of carbon dioxide, with a central estimate of 500 gigatonnes. Since then, CO2 emissions and global warming have continued to rise. As of early 2024, the remaining carbon budget for 1.5°C ranges from 100 to 450 gigatonnes, with a central estimate around 200 gigatonnes.

Professor Piers Forster, who leads the Indicators of Global Climate Change Project as Professor of Climate Physics at the University of Leeds, highlighted that despite efforts to curb greenhouse gas emissions, human-induced global warming has continued to intensify over the past year. He expressed concern that global temperatures are rising at an accelerated pace, contrary to desired outcomes. The project’s analysis aims to monitor the enduring impacts of human activities on climate patterns. Forster noted that observed temperature fluctuations reflect both long-term trends and short-term natural variations. Notably, during recent record-breaking temperature periods, these natural influences temporarily augmented the overall warming trend by approximately 10%.

Climate experts are convening in Bonn to lay the groundwork for the upcoming COP29 climate conference scheduled for November in Baku, Azerbaijan. This gathering comes at a crucial time, with the UN’s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) not due to release its next major assessment until around 2027, creating a notable “information gap” amidst rapidly changing climate indicators.

Accompanying this development is the launch of the Climate Change Tracker’s Indicators of Global Climate Change dashboard, an open data and science platform. This tool aims to provide accessible, up-to-date information on critical climate metrics.

Published in the journal Earth System Science Data by over 50 scientists, the latest Indicator report also offers fresh insights into the impact of reduced sulphur emissions from the global shipping industry. Sulphur emissions traditionally have a cooling effect on climate by reflecting sunlight and aiding in cloud formation. However, ongoing reductions in these emissions have diminished this cooling effect.