Climate Change is Reshaping Communities of Ocean Organisms

Warm-water species are rapidly increasing and cold-water species are decreasing Climate change is reshaping communities of fish and other sea life, according to a pioneering study on how ocean warming is affecting the mix of species. The study, published in the journal Nature Climate Change, covers species that are important for fisheries and that serve as food for fish, such as copepods …

Meet new EOAS Faculty Member, Andrea Marston, Ph.D.

Andrea Marston joins the faculty of the Institute of Earth, Ocean, and Atmospheric Sciences (EOAS) and Rutgers Geography as an Assistant Professor following the completion of her Ph.D. from the University of California, Berkeley. She has a BA from Duke University and an MA in Geography from the University of British Columbia. Marston’s research focuses on the material politics of resource …

Warming Waters in Western Tropical Pacific May Affect West Antarctic Ice Sheet

Rutgers study finds weather patterns that may influence global sea-level rise Warming waters in the western tropical Pacific Ocean have significantly increased thunderstorms and rainfall, which may affect the stability of the West Antarctic Ice Sheet and global sea-level rise, according to a Rutgers University–New Brunswick study. Since the mid-1990s, West Antarctica – a massive ice sheet that sits on land – …

How is Climate Change Affecting New Jersey?

EOAS Director Dr. Robert Kopp recently contributed to a special piece on NJTV about New Jersey’s climate change threats. The full article can be found here.

Striped Maple Trees Often Change Sexes, With Females More Likely to Die

Rutgers study shows how switching sexes could threaten populations Although pollen has covered cars for weeks and allergy sufferers have been sneezing, we think of sex as being the realm of animals. But plant sex can be quite interesting, especially in species that can have male or female flowers. More than 90 percent of flowering plant species combine both sexes …

Iceland Volcano Eruption in 1783-84 Did Not Spawn Extreme Heat Wave

Massive Laki volcano eruption led to unusually cold winter in Europe, Rutgers-led study says An enormous volcanic eruption on Iceland in 1783-84 did not cause an extreme summer heat wave in Europe. But, as Benjamin Franklin speculated, the eruption triggered an unusually cold winter, according to a Rutgers-led study. The study, in the Journal of Geophysical Research: Atmospheres, will help improve predictions …

From Ocean Currents to Theoretical Particles: Three Rutgers Students Receive Goldwater Scholarships

Rutgers marks its 14th consecutive year of Goldwater scholarship recipients Mariya Galochkina wants to study the ancient roots of climate change. She is fascinated by how the Earth’s systems are so interconnected and wants to know more about how each has impacted the global climate. “I want to study how ancient ocean currents and continent configurations impacted Earth’s climate throughout …

With Flower Preferences, Bees Have a Big Gap Between the Sexes

Female and male bees of the same species frequent different flowers, Rutgers-led study finds For scores of wild bee species, females and males visit very different flowers for food – a discovery that could be important for conservation efforts, according to Rutgers-led research. Indeed, the diets of female and male bees of the same species could be as different as …

Major Deep Carbon Sink Linked to Microbes Found Near Volcano Chains

Rutgers and other scientists show how microbes help store millions of tons of carbon dioxide Up to about 19 percent more carbon dioxide than previously believed is removed naturally and stored underground between coastal trenches and inland chains of volcanoes, keeping the greenhouse gas from entering the atmosphere, according to a study in the journal Nature. Surprisingly, subsurface microbes play a role in storing …

Global Warming Hits Sea Creatures Hardest

Marine life more sensitive to warming, less able to escape from heat, Rutgers-led study finds Global warming has caused twice as many ocean-dwelling species as land-dwelling species to disappear from their habitats, a unique Rutgers-led study found. The greater vulnerability of sea creatures may significantly impact human communities that rely on fish and shellfish for food and economic activity, according to the …