James Webb Telescope Detects Signs of Oceans and Organics on Dwarf Planets

Dwarf planets Eris and Makemake (out by Pluto) have surfaces bearing methane ice of unknown origin. This ice can provide important insights into the origin and evolution of volatiles in the outer solar system. We probably need to send new probes to the Dwarf planets to conclusively determine if liquid oceans have microbial life. Because …

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NASA Finds Evidence Enceladus is More Habitable and More Likely to Have Microbial Life

Analysis of the Cassini probe data shows evidence for Enceladus habitability a step further. They’ve found strong confirmation of hydrogen cyanide, a molecule that is key to the origin of life. The ocean below the ice of Saturn’s moon holds a powerful source of chemical energy. Unidentified until now, the energy source is in the …

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James Cameron Talks About Preventable OceanGate Submarine Tragedy

James Cameron knew that the submarine was lost on Monday. He said communications and location transponder was lost at the same time on descent. James Cameron went three times deeper than the Titanic wreck in his own submarine that went to the bottom of the Marianas trench. The submarine community wrote to the company to …

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Stanford Researchers Recognize Lack of Whales Wrecks the Oceans

Stanford research on whale feeding highlights how the precipitous decline of large marine mammals has negatively impacted the health and productivity of ocean ecosystems. Nextbigfuture had a video highlighting the problem of lack of whales and whale poop. Nextbigfuture also identified how iron fertilization of the ocean by humans could take the place of whales …

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Ocean Plastic Removal is Working

On December 12, 2019, the non-profit Ocean Cleanup succeeded in pulling out its first main load of plastic from the ocean. Mission One took their first plastic catch onshore, in Vancouver Canada. The plastic trash will be transformed into sustainable products that will be sold to help fund the continuation of the cleanup operations. To …

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China Makes Innovation Alliance to Accelerate Extracting Uranium from Seawater

China has formed an innovation alliance to foster the research and application of extracting uranium from seawater, according to China National Nuclear Corporation (CNNC). The alliance involves around 20 research institutions and universities. Uranium has been extracted in small quantities from the ocean. However, the cost is about $400-600 per kilogram. This is about 7 …

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Understanding Northern Pacific Ocean Iron and Phosphorous Shortages

The vast subtropical “gyres” – large systems of rotating currents in the middle of the oceans – cover 40 percent of the Earth’s surface and have long been considered biological deserts with stratified waters that contain very little nutrients to sustain life. These regions also are thought to be remarkably stable, yet scientists have documented …

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Climate Doomers Demand We Change Everything Instead of Guilt-Free Actual Fixes

There is another doomer scenario that civilization will collapse because of climate change. This new doomer report is from the Australian National Centre for Climate Restoration. All of the climate change doomer scenarios assume that the only way to adjust the atmosphere over the next several decades is to reduce emissions from vehicles, energy generation …

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Ocean Acidity is 30% Higher and On Track to 150% Higher by 2100

Ocean acidification is the ongoing decrease in the pH of the Earth’s oceans, caused by the uptake of carbon dioxide (CO2) from the atmosphere. Seawater is slightly basic (meaning pH is over 7), and ocean acidification involves a shift towards pH-neutral conditions rather than a transition to acidic conditions (pH less than 7). An estimated …

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