Pub Date : 2026-01-06DOI: 10.1038/s43017-025-00754-y
Saffron O’Neill, Clare Davis
Nature Reviews Earth & Environment interviewed Professor Saffron O’Neill about their project investigating the visual communication of heatwaves in the news media.
{"title":"Changing the heatwave visual discourse in the news media","authors":"Saffron O’Neill, Clare Davis","doi":"10.1038/s43017-025-00754-y","DOIUrl":"10.1038/s43017-025-00754-y","url":null,"abstract":"Nature Reviews Earth & Environment interviewed Professor Saffron O’Neill about their project investigating the visual communication of heatwaves in the news media.","PeriodicalId":18921,"journal":{"name":"Nature Reviews Earth & Environment","volume":"7 1","pages":"4-4"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2026-01-06","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145958193","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2025-12-18DOI: 10.1038/s43017-025-00742-2
Belén Rodríguez-Fonseca, Elena Calvo-Miguélez, Lucia Montoya-Carramolino, Regina R. Rodrigues, Irene Polo, Marta Martín-Rey, Teresa Losada, Jorge López-Parages, Iñigo Gómara, David Rivas, Filippa Fransner, Eleftheria Exarchou, Noel Keenlyside, Arnaud Bertrand, Lynne Shannon, Louise Gammage, Francisco Ramírez, Camila Artana, Jose Carlos Sánchez-Garrido, Emilia Sánchez-Gómez, Marie Pierre Moine, Raffaele Bernardello, Jeroen Steenbeek, Marta Coll, Verónica Martín-Gómez, Joke Lübbecke, Moacyr Araujo, Peter Brandt, Jörn O. Schmidt, Hans Sloterdijk, Ronaldo Angelini, Rodrigue Anicet Imbol Koungue, Khady Diouf, Shunya Koseki, Elaine McDonagh, Elsa Mohino, Jose Muelbert, Siny Ndoye, Hyacinth Nnamchi, Juliano Ramanantsoa, Mathieu Rouault, Ralf Schwamborn, Heino Fock, Marek Ostrowski, Amadou Thierno Gaye, Carlos R. Mechoso, Michael J. McPhaden, Wenju Cai
Tropical and South Atlantic marine ecosystems support fisheries that have vital environmental and socioeconomic importance. In this Review, we outline how the El Niño–Southern Oscillation — a Pacific mode of sea surface temperature variability — influences Atlantic fisheries via teleconnections and cascading linkages between physical, biogeochemical and ecological systems. Connections are driven by tropical pathways (involving changes in atmospheric stability associated with the Walker circulation and tropospheric warming) and extratropical pathways (involving the Pacific–South American and Pacific–North American teleconnection patterns). Depending on the location, these pathways modify rainfall and river discharge, winds and upwelling, or a combination of both, impacting salinity, nutrient availability, primary production and, thus, fish recruitment, biomass and catch. Fishery responses are strongly species dependent, reflecting variations in behaviour between species to environmental factors (such as temperature, oxygen, salinity, habitat and food availability). This regional variability and species dependency, coupled with strong non-stationarity, highlights the complexity of El Niño–Southern Oscillation impacts on Atlantic marine ecosystems. This historical signal is projected to weaken in the future. Enhanced observational systems and refined ecosystem models are urgently needed to enhance predictive capabilities, reduce societal impacts and improve sustainable management in these regions. The influence of the El Niño–Southern Oscillation on Atlantic marine systems and fisheries is complex. This Review outlines the mechanisms by which El Niño–Southern Oscillation impacts the tropical and South Atlantic, connecting physical climate perturbations to biogeochemical and ecological responses.
{"title":"ENSO impacts on marine ecosystems and fisheries in the tropical and South Atlantic","authors":"Belén Rodríguez-Fonseca, Elena Calvo-Miguélez, Lucia Montoya-Carramolino, Regina R. Rodrigues, Irene Polo, Marta Martín-Rey, Teresa Losada, Jorge López-Parages, Iñigo Gómara, David Rivas, Filippa Fransner, Eleftheria Exarchou, Noel Keenlyside, Arnaud Bertrand, Lynne Shannon, Louise Gammage, Francisco Ramírez, Camila Artana, Jose Carlos Sánchez-Garrido, Emilia Sánchez-Gómez, Marie Pierre Moine, Raffaele Bernardello, Jeroen Steenbeek, Marta Coll, Verónica Martín-Gómez, Joke Lübbecke, Moacyr Araujo, Peter Brandt, Jörn O. Schmidt, Hans Sloterdijk, Ronaldo Angelini, Rodrigue Anicet Imbol Koungue, Khady Diouf, Shunya Koseki, Elaine McDonagh, Elsa Mohino, Jose Muelbert, Siny Ndoye, Hyacinth Nnamchi, Juliano Ramanantsoa, Mathieu Rouault, Ralf Schwamborn, Heino Fock, Marek Ostrowski, Amadou Thierno Gaye, Carlos R. Mechoso, Michael J. McPhaden, Wenju Cai","doi":"10.1038/s43017-025-00742-2","DOIUrl":"10.1038/s43017-025-00742-2","url":null,"abstract":"Tropical and South Atlantic marine ecosystems support fisheries that have vital environmental and socioeconomic importance. In this Review, we outline how the El Niño–Southern Oscillation — a Pacific mode of sea surface temperature variability — influences Atlantic fisheries via teleconnections and cascading linkages between physical, biogeochemical and ecological systems. Connections are driven by tropical pathways (involving changes in atmospheric stability associated with the Walker circulation and tropospheric warming) and extratropical pathways (involving the Pacific–South American and Pacific–North American teleconnection patterns). Depending on the location, these pathways modify rainfall and river discharge, winds and upwelling, or a combination of both, impacting salinity, nutrient availability, primary production and, thus, fish recruitment, biomass and catch. Fishery responses are strongly species dependent, reflecting variations in behaviour between species to environmental factors (such as temperature, oxygen, salinity, habitat and food availability). This regional variability and species dependency, coupled with strong non-stationarity, highlights the complexity of El Niño–Southern Oscillation impacts on Atlantic marine ecosystems. This historical signal is projected to weaken in the future. Enhanced observational systems and refined ecosystem models are urgently needed to enhance predictive capabilities, reduce societal impacts and improve sustainable management in these regions. The influence of the El Niño–Southern Oscillation on Atlantic marine systems and fisheries is complex. This Review outlines the mechanisms by which El Niño–Southern Oscillation impacts the tropical and South Atlantic, connecting physical climate perturbations to biogeochemical and ecological responses.","PeriodicalId":18921,"journal":{"name":"Nature Reviews Earth & Environment","volume":"7 1","pages":"43-59"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2025-12-18","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145958188","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2025-12-16DOI: 10.1038/s43017-025-00745-z
Lukas Gudmundsson, Manuela I. Brunner, Petra Döll, Etienne Fluet-Chouinard, Natalia Frolova, Simon N. Gosling, Yukiko Hirabayashi, Maria B. Kireeva, Xiaomang Liu, Hannes Müller Schmied, Dmitriy Magritskiy, Louise J. Slater, Lina Stein, Yves Tramblay, Kaiwen Wang, Conrad Wasko, Dai Yamazaki, Xudong Zhou
Rivers are a vital component of the global water cycle. However, human influence on climate and terrestrial systems is increasingly shaping river flow regimes. In this Review, we summarize the current understanding of past and projected changes in global river flow, focusing on annual volumes, seasonal dynamics and sudden changes. River flow observations reveal distinct regional trends, including increased flows in high-latitude regions and decreased flows in parts of the mid-latitudes and subtropics. Snow-dominated regions in particular show shifts in their seasonal cycle towards earlier flows. These patterns align broadly with historical climate model simulations, suggesting an anthropogenic climate change signal. However, attribution is complicated by the interplay of greenhouse gas emissions, CO2-driven vegetation response, land-use change and water management. Future projections indicate continued change, with certain regions experiencing wetter conditions and others intensified drying. Seasonal changes, particularly those due to altered snow dynamics, are also expected to intensify. Despite modelling and observational advances, uncertainties remain regarding the combined effects of anthropogenic climate change and direct human interventions in terrestrial systems. Closing these gaps requires improved monitoring, advances in modelling and robust attribution frameworks, in support of efficiently managing water resources, sustaining ecosystems and adapting to a changing climate. Human influence on the climate and terrestrial systems is increasingly altering global river flow. This Review discusses past and projected changes in global river flow, with an emphasis on annual volumes, seasonal dynamics and sudden changes in flow dynamics.
{"title":"Past and future change in global river flows","authors":"Lukas Gudmundsson, Manuela I. Brunner, Petra Döll, Etienne Fluet-Chouinard, Natalia Frolova, Simon N. Gosling, Yukiko Hirabayashi, Maria B. Kireeva, Xiaomang Liu, Hannes Müller Schmied, Dmitriy Magritskiy, Louise J. Slater, Lina Stein, Yves Tramblay, Kaiwen Wang, Conrad Wasko, Dai Yamazaki, Xudong Zhou","doi":"10.1038/s43017-025-00745-z","DOIUrl":"10.1038/s43017-025-00745-z","url":null,"abstract":"Rivers are a vital component of the global water cycle. However, human influence on climate and terrestrial systems is increasingly shaping river flow regimes. In this Review, we summarize the current understanding of past and projected changes in global river flow, focusing on annual volumes, seasonal dynamics and sudden changes. River flow observations reveal distinct regional trends, including increased flows in high-latitude regions and decreased flows in parts of the mid-latitudes and subtropics. Snow-dominated regions in particular show shifts in their seasonal cycle towards earlier flows. These patterns align broadly with historical climate model simulations, suggesting an anthropogenic climate change signal. However, attribution is complicated by the interplay of greenhouse gas emissions, CO2-driven vegetation response, land-use change and water management. Future projections indicate continued change, with certain regions experiencing wetter conditions and others intensified drying. Seasonal changes, particularly those due to altered snow dynamics, are also expected to intensify. Despite modelling and observational advances, uncertainties remain regarding the combined effects of anthropogenic climate change and direct human interventions in terrestrial systems. Closing these gaps requires improved monitoring, advances in modelling and robust attribution frameworks, in support of efficiently managing water resources, sustaining ecosystems and adapting to a changing climate. Human influence on the climate and terrestrial systems is increasingly altering global river flow. This Review discusses past and projected changes in global river flow, with an emphasis on annual volumes, seasonal dynamics and sudden changes in flow dynamics.","PeriodicalId":18921,"journal":{"name":"Nature Reviews Earth & Environment","volume":"7 1","pages":"7-23"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2025-12-16","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145958190","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2025-12-15DOI: 10.1038/s43017-025-00753-z
Qian Zhang, Robert M. Hirsch, Laura A. DeCicco, Jennifer C. Murphy
As water-quality challenges intensify, the widely used Weighted Regressions on Time, Discharge, and Season (WRTDS) method offers an adaptable and practical framework for global water-quality science and management.
{"title":"Advancing an adaptable and practical framework to address water quality challenges in a changing world","authors":"Qian Zhang, Robert M. Hirsch, Laura A. DeCicco, Jennifer C. Murphy","doi":"10.1038/s43017-025-00753-z","DOIUrl":"10.1038/s43017-025-00753-z","url":null,"abstract":"As water-quality challenges intensify, the widely used Weighted Regressions on Time, Discharge, and Season (WRTDS) method offers an adaptable and practical framework for global water-quality science and management.","PeriodicalId":18921,"journal":{"name":"Nature Reviews Earth & Environment","volume":"7 1","pages":"1-3"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2025-12-15","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145958191","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2025-12-02DOI: 10.1038/s43017-025-00746-y
Ariaan Purich, Julie M. Arblaster, Ghyslaine Boschat, Zoe E. Gillett, Will Hobbs, Martin Jucker, Eun-Pa Lim, Danielle Udy, Nerilie Abram, Elio Campitelli, Edward Doddridge, Matthew H. England, Andrew King, Laurie Menviel, Amelie Meyer, Valentina Ortiz Guzmán, Raina Roy, Irina Rudeva, Paul Spence, Peter G. Strutton, Tilo Ziehn
The Southern Annular Mode (SAM) influences Southern Hemisphere temperature and precipitation, ocean circulation, carbon cycling and the Antarctic cryosphere. In this Review, we examine the dynamics, projections and effects of the SAM, focusing on future implications for the Southern Ocean and Antarctica. The SAM is the leading mode of atmospheric variability in the Southern Hemisphere extratropics, associated with variations in the mid-latitude westerly jet strength and position. The SAM is primarily an internally driven atmospheric process, for which anomalies dissipate in 1–2 weeks; however, sustained SAM anomalies can also be forced by stratospheric processes and tropical Pacific variability. Ozone depletion during the 1970s–1990s contributed to large positive trends in austral summer. The SAM is now in its most positive mean state in over 1,000 years, and a year-round positive trend in the SAM is projected to continue throughout the twenty-first century in response to increasing greenhouse gases. Given the importance of SAM effects on Southern Ocean circulation, carbon cycling, and Antarctic ice mass balance for future climate and sea level rise projections, it is crucial that the effects of SAM are better modelled and understood, including accounting for the influence of the shifting seasonality of positive SAM trends and its increasing asymmetry. The Southern Annular Mode (SAM) has shifted towards its positive phase owing to ozone depletion and increasing greenhouse gas concentrations. This Review discusses the dynamics, trends and projections of the SAM and how these will affect southern high-latitude climate, including Southern Ocean circulation, carbon cycling and the Antarctic cryosphere.
{"title":"Southern Annular Mode dynamics, projections and impacts in a changing climate","authors":"Ariaan Purich, Julie M. Arblaster, Ghyslaine Boschat, Zoe E. Gillett, Will Hobbs, Martin Jucker, Eun-Pa Lim, Danielle Udy, Nerilie Abram, Elio Campitelli, Edward Doddridge, Matthew H. England, Andrew King, Laurie Menviel, Amelie Meyer, Valentina Ortiz Guzmán, Raina Roy, Irina Rudeva, Paul Spence, Peter G. Strutton, Tilo Ziehn","doi":"10.1038/s43017-025-00746-y","DOIUrl":"10.1038/s43017-025-00746-y","url":null,"abstract":"The Southern Annular Mode (SAM) influences Southern Hemisphere temperature and precipitation, ocean circulation, carbon cycling and the Antarctic cryosphere. In this Review, we examine the dynamics, projections and effects of the SAM, focusing on future implications for the Southern Ocean and Antarctica. The SAM is the leading mode of atmospheric variability in the Southern Hemisphere extratropics, associated with variations in the mid-latitude westerly jet strength and position. The SAM is primarily an internally driven atmospheric process, for which anomalies dissipate in 1–2 weeks; however, sustained SAM anomalies can also be forced by stratospheric processes and tropical Pacific variability. Ozone depletion during the 1970s–1990s contributed to large positive trends in austral summer. The SAM is now in its most positive mean state in over 1,000 years, and a year-round positive trend in the SAM is projected to continue throughout the twenty-first century in response to increasing greenhouse gases. Given the importance of SAM effects on Southern Ocean circulation, carbon cycling, and Antarctic ice mass balance for future climate and sea level rise projections, it is crucial that the effects of SAM are better modelled and understood, including accounting for the influence of the shifting seasonality of positive SAM trends and its increasing asymmetry. The Southern Annular Mode (SAM) has shifted towards its positive phase owing to ozone depletion and increasing greenhouse gas concentrations. This Review discusses the dynamics, trends and projections of the SAM and how these will affect southern high-latitude climate, including Southern Ocean circulation, carbon cycling and the Antarctic cryosphere.","PeriodicalId":18921,"journal":{"name":"Nature Reviews Earth & Environment","volume":"7 1","pages":"24-42"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2025-12-02","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145958194","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2025-11-27DOI: 10.1038/s43017-025-00749-9
Philipp Breul, Paulo Ceppi, Isla R. Simpson, Tim Woollings
The eddy-driven jet streams, which are regions of strong westerly wind in the mid-latitudes of both hemispheres, exert a leading influence on regional climate. In this Review, we outline the seasonally and regionally varying drivers, characteristics and changes in the jet streams. State-of-the-art models commonly predict a future polewards shift of the zonal-mean and annual-mean jet streams, typically ranging between 0° and 2° latitude by the end of the century under a high-emissions scenario, but with large model-to-model uncertainty. Furthermore, regional and seasonal projections can deviate substantially from the annual-mean and zonal-mean picture, and the drivers of these projected changes are not fully understood. Jet trends have emerged in the reanalysis record since 1979, of which a polewards shift of the summertime austral jet of ~0.3° per decade is the trend most clearly attributable to anthropogenic forcing. Although other trends have been observed, potentially large internal variability and incomplete understanding of the drivers of these trends precludes clear anthropogenic attribution at this point. Research is unevenly distributed across regions and seasons, with winter receiving the most attention, particularly in the North Atlantic. To support physical understanding and impact assessments, future research should provide a more complete picture of the seasonally and regionally varying jet stream drivers, and their changes, especially in spring and autumn. Eddy-driven jet streams have a strong influence on regional climate. This Review explores the seasonality and regional characteristics of mid-latitude eddy-driven jets, as well as the drivers influencing jet climatology and projected jet stream changes under continued anthropogenic climate change.
{"title":"Seasonal and regional jet stream changes and drivers","authors":"Philipp Breul, Paulo Ceppi, Isla R. Simpson, Tim Woollings","doi":"10.1038/s43017-025-00749-9","DOIUrl":"10.1038/s43017-025-00749-9","url":null,"abstract":"The eddy-driven jet streams, which are regions of strong westerly wind in the mid-latitudes of both hemispheres, exert a leading influence on regional climate. In this Review, we outline the seasonally and regionally varying drivers, characteristics and changes in the jet streams. State-of-the-art models commonly predict a future polewards shift of the zonal-mean and annual-mean jet streams, typically ranging between 0° and 2° latitude by the end of the century under a high-emissions scenario, but with large model-to-model uncertainty. Furthermore, regional and seasonal projections can deviate substantially from the annual-mean and zonal-mean picture, and the drivers of these projected changes are not fully understood. Jet trends have emerged in the reanalysis record since 1979, of which a polewards shift of the summertime austral jet of ~0.3° per decade is the trend most clearly attributable to anthropogenic forcing. Although other trends have been observed, potentially large internal variability and incomplete understanding of the drivers of these trends precludes clear anthropogenic attribution at this point. Research is unevenly distributed across regions and seasons, with winter receiving the most attention, particularly in the North Atlantic. To support physical understanding and impact assessments, future research should provide a more complete picture of the seasonally and regionally varying jet stream drivers, and their changes, especially in spring and autumn. Eddy-driven jet streams have a strong influence on regional climate. This Review explores the seasonality and regional characteristics of mid-latitude eddy-driven jets, as well as the drivers influencing jet climatology and projected jet stream changes under continued anthropogenic climate change.","PeriodicalId":18921,"journal":{"name":"Nature Reviews Earth & Environment","volume":"6 12","pages":"824-842"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2025-11-27","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145695658","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2025-11-25DOI: 10.1038/s43017-025-00740-4
Nick Pepin, Martha Apple, John Knowles, Silvia Terzago, Enrico Arnone, Lorenz Hänchen, Anna Napoli, Emily Potter, Jakob Steiner, Scott N. Williamson, Bodo Ahrens, Tanmay Dhar, A. P. Dimri, Elisa Palazzi, Arathi Rameshan, Nadine Salzmann, Maria Shahgedanova, João de Deus Vidal Jr, Dino Zardi
Mountain regions show rapid environmental changes under anthropogenic warming. The rates of these changes are often stratified by elevation, leading to elevation-dependent climate change (EDCC). In this Review, we examine evidence of systematic change in the elevation profiles of air temperature and precipitation (including snow). On a global scale, differences between mountain and lowland trends for temperature, precipitation and snowfall are 0.21 °C century–1 (enhanced mountain warming), –11.5 mm century–1 (enhanced mountain drying) and –25.6 mm century–1 (enhanced mountain snow loss), respectively, for 1980–2020, based on averaging available gridded datasets. Regional analyses sometimes show opposite trend patterns. This EDCC is primarily driven by changes in surface albedo, specific humidity and atmospheric aerosol concentrations. Throughout the twenty-first century, most models predict that enhanced warming in mountain regions will continue (at 0.13 °C century–1), but precipitation changes are less certain. Superimposed upon these global trends, EDCC patterns can vary substantially between mountain regions. Patterns in the Rockies and the Tibetan Plateau are more consistent with the global mean than other regions. In situ mountain observations are skewed towards low elevations, and understanding of EDCC is biased towards mid-latitudes. Efforts to address this uneven data distribution and to increase the spatial and temporal resolution of models of mountain processes are urgently needed to understand the impacts of EDCC on ecological and hydrological systems. Environmental changes in mountains often depend on elevation. This Review outlines how past and future temperature, precipitation and snowfall trends vary between mountains and lowlands across various mountain regions and discusses the drivers responsible.
{"title":"Elevation-dependent climate change in mountain environments","authors":"Nick Pepin, Martha Apple, John Knowles, Silvia Terzago, Enrico Arnone, Lorenz Hänchen, Anna Napoli, Emily Potter, Jakob Steiner, Scott N. Williamson, Bodo Ahrens, Tanmay Dhar, A. P. Dimri, Elisa Palazzi, Arathi Rameshan, Nadine Salzmann, Maria Shahgedanova, João de Deus Vidal Jr, Dino Zardi","doi":"10.1038/s43017-025-00740-4","DOIUrl":"10.1038/s43017-025-00740-4","url":null,"abstract":"Mountain regions show rapid environmental changes under anthropogenic warming. The rates of these changes are often stratified by elevation, leading to elevation-dependent climate change (EDCC). In this Review, we examine evidence of systematic change in the elevation profiles of air temperature and precipitation (including snow). On a global scale, differences between mountain and lowland trends for temperature, precipitation and snowfall are 0.21 °C century–1 (enhanced mountain warming), –11.5 mm century–1 (enhanced mountain drying) and –25.6 mm century–1 (enhanced mountain snow loss), respectively, for 1980–2020, based on averaging available gridded datasets. Regional analyses sometimes show opposite trend patterns. This EDCC is primarily driven by changes in surface albedo, specific humidity and atmospheric aerosol concentrations. Throughout the twenty-first century, most models predict that enhanced warming in mountain regions will continue (at 0.13 °C century–1), but precipitation changes are less certain. Superimposed upon these global trends, EDCC patterns can vary substantially between mountain regions. Patterns in the Rockies and the Tibetan Plateau are more consistent with the global mean than other regions. In situ mountain observations are skewed towards low elevations, and understanding of EDCC is biased towards mid-latitudes. Efforts to address this uneven data distribution and to increase the spatial and temporal resolution of models of mountain processes are urgently needed to understand the impacts of EDCC on ecological and hydrological systems. Environmental changes in mountains often depend on elevation. This Review outlines how past and future temperature, precipitation and snowfall trends vary between mountains and lowlands across various mountain regions and discusses the drivers responsible.","PeriodicalId":18921,"journal":{"name":"Nature Reviews Earth & Environment","volume":"6 12","pages":"772-788"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2025-11-25","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145695654","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2025-11-20DOI: 10.1038/s43017-025-00743-1
Jingfeng Xiao, Dennis Baldocchi, Kazuhito Ichii, Fei Li, Dario Papale
Ecosystem–atmosphere exchanges of carbon dioxide (CO2) and water vapour respond to global environmental changes, such as climate change, elevated atmospheric CO2, disturbances, and land use change and management. Understanding these exchanges requires globally distributed and continuous, long-term ecosystem-scale measurements spanning diverse climates and ecosystems, as supported by the development of the eddy covariance (EC) technique. In this Review, we discuss how the global network of EC sites, led by FLUXNET, has advanced understanding of terrestrial carbon and water cycling. Since the early 1990s, EC measurements have provided insights into variations in carbon and water fluxes across different timescales (half-hourly to decadal), vegetation types and environmental gradients, and their responses to global change. Upscaling EC measurements and the resulting datasets have also enhanced understanding of the magnitude, spatial patterns, seasonal changes, interannual variability, and trends in carbon sinks and sources, evapotranspiration, and water-use efficiency in response to global change at regional to global scales. EC measurements and upscaled data also help interpret and evaluate satellite-derived products, as well as benchmark and improve terrestrial biosphere models and Earth system models. Future efforts should improve network representativeness, foster open data sharing, provide near real-time measurements, enhance accuracy of upscaled products and better support climate mitigation efforts. Long-term monitoring is essential to characterizing the responses of carbon and water fluxes to global environmental change drivers. This Review synthesizes the insights gained into these changes from a global flux tower network.
{"title":"Insights into terrestrial carbon and water cycling from the global eddy covariance network","authors":"Jingfeng Xiao, Dennis Baldocchi, Kazuhito Ichii, Fei Li, Dario Papale","doi":"10.1038/s43017-025-00743-1","DOIUrl":"10.1038/s43017-025-00743-1","url":null,"abstract":"Ecosystem–atmosphere exchanges of carbon dioxide (CO2) and water vapour respond to global environmental changes, such as climate change, elevated atmospheric CO2, disturbances, and land use change and management. Understanding these exchanges requires globally distributed and continuous, long-term ecosystem-scale measurements spanning diverse climates and ecosystems, as supported by the development of the eddy covariance (EC) technique. In this Review, we discuss how the global network of EC sites, led by FLUXNET, has advanced understanding of terrestrial carbon and water cycling. Since the early 1990s, EC measurements have provided insights into variations in carbon and water fluxes across different timescales (half-hourly to decadal), vegetation types and environmental gradients, and their responses to global change. Upscaling EC measurements and the resulting datasets have also enhanced understanding of the magnitude, spatial patterns, seasonal changes, interannual variability, and trends in carbon sinks and sources, evapotranspiration, and water-use efficiency in response to global change at regional to global scales. EC measurements and upscaled data also help interpret and evaluate satellite-derived products, as well as benchmark and improve terrestrial biosphere models and Earth system models. Future efforts should improve network representativeness, foster open data sharing, provide near real-time measurements, enhance accuracy of upscaled products and better support climate mitigation efforts. Long-term monitoring is essential to characterizing the responses of carbon and water fluxes to global environmental change drivers. This Review synthesizes the insights gained into these changes from a global flux tower network.","PeriodicalId":18921,"journal":{"name":"Nature Reviews Earth & Environment","volume":"7 1","pages":"60-79"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2025-11-20","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145958189","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2025-11-18DOI: 10.1038/s43017-025-00736-0
Kathrin Menberg, Hannes Hemmerle, Peter Bayer, Christoph Bott, Asal Bidarmaghz, Grant Ferguson, Martin Bloemendal, Philipp Blum
Heat pumps, which transfer heat from one environment to another to provide heating and cooling, are considered a key technology for decarbonizing the building sector. However, geothermal heat pumps have been adopted slowly, owing to high investment costs and public distrust. In this Review, we discuss opportunities for sustainable and risk-conscious application of shallow geothermal energy (SGE) and identify suitable areas and outline the benefits and impacts of different SGE technologies. Globally, many regions have wide areas suitable for SGE, yet uptake rates remain low. For example, a third of Germany is hydrogeologically suitable for aquifer thermal energy storage systems, but only two systems were in operation in 2021. The environmental benefits of SGE are substantial, as greenhouse gas emissions can be reduced by up to 88% in European Union countries compared with conventional thermal energy systems. Environmental impacts on groundwater quality and ecosystem functions are minor as SGE-induced temperature increases are typically in the range of 5–10 K. However, owing to the limited number of assessments, benefits and impacts of subsurface cooling remain largely unknown. Widespread and sustainable operation of SGE will require subsurface management with particular focus on infrastructure, drinking water quality and thermal alterations. Shallow geothermal energy can contribute to decarbonizing residential buildings. This Review explores which regions globally have high geothermal potential, outlining the benefits and impacts of different types of shallow geothermal energy systems.
{"title":"Opportunities, benefits and impacts of shallow geothermal energy","authors":"Kathrin Menberg, Hannes Hemmerle, Peter Bayer, Christoph Bott, Asal Bidarmaghz, Grant Ferguson, Martin Bloemendal, Philipp Blum","doi":"10.1038/s43017-025-00736-0","DOIUrl":"10.1038/s43017-025-00736-0","url":null,"abstract":"Heat pumps, which transfer heat from one environment to another to provide heating and cooling, are considered a key technology for decarbonizing the building sector. However, geothermal heat pumps have been adopted slowly, owing to high investment costs and public distrust. In this Review, we discuss opportunities for sustainable and risk-conscious application of shallow geothermal energy (SGE) and identify suitable areas and outline the benefits and impacts of different SGE technologies. Globally, many regions have wide areas suitable for SGE, yet uptake rates remain low. For example, a third of Germany is hydrogeologically suitable for aquifer thermal energy storage systems, but only two systems were in operation in 2021. The environmental benefits of SGE are substantial, as greenhouse gas emissions can be reduced by up to 88% in European Union countries compared with conventional thermal energy systems. Environmental impacts on groundwater quality and ecosystem functions are minor as SGE-induced temperature increases are typically in the range of 5–10 K. However, owing to the limited number of assessments, benefits and impacts of subsurface cooling remain largely unknown. Widespread and sustainable operation of SGE will require subsurface management with particular focus on infrastructure, drinking water quality and thermal alterations. Shallow geothermal energy can contribute to decarbonizing residential buildings. This Review explores which regions globally have high geothermal potential, outlining the benefits and impacts of different types of shallow geothermal energy systems.","PeriodicalId":18921,"journal":{"name":"Nature Reviews Earth & Environment","volume":"6 12","pages":"808-823"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2025-11-18","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145695655","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2025-11-11DOI: 10.1038/s43017-025-00734-2
Jinbo Zan, Barbara A. Maher, Xiaomin Fang, Thomas Stevens, Wenxiao Ning, Fuli Wu, Yibo Yang, Jian Kang, Zhe Hu
Windblown mineral dust is a nutrient source to the ocean, influencing global ocean productivity, ocean carbon uptake and climate. In this Review, we examine how dust emission fluxes, sources and compositions have changed over the past 7 Myr and consider the implications for ocean productivity. Since the Late Cenozoic, global cooling and orogenic uplift have enhanced dust emissions from major source regions and fluxes to downwind ocean basins, with the associated nutrient supply varying with dust origin. Glacially derived Asian dust contains higher concentrations of ferrous iron (typically exceeding 30% of the total iron) and phosphorus than the aged, highly oxidized mineral dust from North Africa, which has negligible ferrous iron content. Indeed, Asian dust has a notable influence on Pacific Ocean productivity and, potentially, climate. For example, Middle Pleistocene increases in the content of Asian dust Fe2+ (~45%) and P (~55%) coincided with a threefold to fivefold rise in glacial productivity in the South China Sea and a concurrent shift in phytoplankton ecology in the lower-latitude North Pacific. Therefore, decreasing glaciogenic dust–nutrient supply under continued global warming could notably impact ocean productivity, especially in the Pacific Ocean. Future research should focus on constraining the composition and bioavailability of dust-derived nutrients across a wide range of globally important dust sources so that dust composition and related feedbacks can be better parameterized in Earth system models. Aeolian dust deposition can deliver nutrients that fuel primary production in remote ocean regions. This Review considers how dust sources and nutrient composition, in addition to dust flux, have potentially impacted ocean productivity, carbon burial and climate over the past 7 Myr.
{"title":"Global dust impacts on biogeochemical cycles and climate","authors":"Jinbo Zan, Barbara A. Maher, Xiaomin Fang, Thomas Stevens, Wenxiao Ning, Fuli Wu, Yibo Yang, Jian Kang, Zhe Hu","doi":"10.1038/s43017-025-00734-2","DOIUrl":"10.1038/s43017-025-00734-2","url":null,"abstract":"Windblown mineral dust is a nutrient source to the ocean, influencing global ocean productivity, ocean carbon uptake and climate. In this Review, we examine how dust emission fluxes, sources and compositions have changed over the past 7 Myr and consider the implications for ocean productivity. Since the Late Cenozoic, global cooling and orogenic uplift have enhanced dust emissions from major source regions and fluxes to downwind ocean basins, with the associated nutrient supply varying with dust origin. Glacially derived Asian dust contains higher concentrations of ferrous iron (typically exceeding 30% of the total iron) and phosphorus than the aged, highly oxidized mineral dust from North Africa, which has negligible ferrous iron content. Indeed, Asian dust has a notable influence on Pacific Ocean productivity and, potentially, climate. For example, Middle Pleistocene increases in the content of Asian dust Fe2+ (~45%) and P (~55%) coincided with a threefold to fivefold rise in glacial productivity in the South China Sea and a concurrent shift in phytoplankton ecology in the lower-latitude North Pacific. Therefore, decreasing glaciogenic dust–nutrient supply under continued global warming could notably impact ocean productivity, especially in the Pacific Ocean. Future research should focus on constraining the composition and bioavailability of dust-derived nutrients across a wide range of globally important dust sources so that dust composition and related feedbacks can be better parameterized in Earth system models. Aeolian dust deposition can deliver nutrients that fuel primary production in remote ocean regions. This Review considers how dust sources and nutrient composition, in addition to dust flux, have potentially impacted ocean productivity, carbon burial and climate over the past 7 Myr.","PeriodicalId":18921,"journal":{"name":"Nature Reviews Earth & Environment","volume":"6 12","pages":"789-807"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2025-11-11","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145695653","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
京公网安备 11010802042870号
京ICP备2023020795号-1
扫码关注我们
求助内容：
应助结果提醒方式：