Earth has a mysterious triple symmetry that may influence its climate

 

Image courtesy of Planetary Visions Ltd/Science Photo Library

Joel Kontinen

The Earth is more special than we thought.

A line that runs through Africa, Europe, Alaska and both poles divides Earth into two halves that reflect the same amount of light – and this newly discovered symmetry may play a critical role in the planet’s climate.

It was previously known that the northern and southern hemispheres have almost equal reflectivity, or albedo, but Jianhao Zhang at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration in the US and his colleagues have now uncovered a second line of symmetry along the 27° east and 153° west meridians.

At first, Zhang thought it must be a coincidence. “What convinced me that the east-west symmetry is not trivial are three features: its uniqueness, its persistence and what we call the triple symmetry feature,” he says. “Finding one division with equal total reflection might be expected. But finding a persistent, unique east-west division that also balances land-ocean distribution, clear-sky reflection and cloudy-sky reflection is much less trivial – especially given how variable and dynamic clouds are.”

Øivind Hodnebrog  says “I was a bit sceptical of an east-west symmetry separated at around 27 degrees east, which intuitively seems much less obvious than a separation at the equator,

However, Hodnebrog says he now agrees it is likely a “robust feature, and potentially another fascinating property of the Earth”.

The connection to ENSO may also be significant, says Hodnebrog. Unlike the north-south symmetry, which appears to be weakening due to the effects of climate change on sea ice and clouds, the east-west symmetry is currently stable, though models suggest it could weaken in future. “A potential future asymmetry could be an indication of changes in the atmospheric circulation,” he says.

Martin Jucker at the University of New South Wales, Sydney, says there is a high potential that the east-west symmetry is a coincidence.

“Earth’s weather and climate communicate easily across longitudes,” says Jucker. “This is due to Earth’s rotation, which creates bands of circum-global easterly and westerly winds, and atmospheric perturbations preferentially propagating in the east-west direction as well.”

Source:

James Woodford 2026 Earth has a mysterious triple symmetry that may influence its climate | New Scientist 3 June 

Biofluorescence seen in colourful fire salamanders for the first time

 

Image courtesy of  Ant?nez Glez,  (CC BY-NC); Royal Society Open Science,

Joel Kontinen

Some salamanders have spectacular features, They have biofluorescence feature. It is an intelligent design device that  can warn  the salamanders of predators.   

For the first time, fire salamanders (Salamandra salamandra) have been shown to bio fluoresce, absorbing and re-emitting light at different wavelengths.

In this instance, 10 fire salamanders in Catalonia, Spain, gave off a blue-green glow after being exposed to ultraviolet light.

This ability had never been recorded in fire salamanders before, despite being a very well-studied species.

The fluorescence, which was produced by secretions from the salamanders’ skin glands, appeared primarily on the side and undersihe fluorescence, which was produced by secretions from the salamanders’ skin glands, appeared primarily on the side and underside of their bodies.

The researchers behind the work believe that this biofluorescence may help the animals to attract mates, or perhaps even protect themselves from predators.

Source: 

Michael Dalton 2026 Biofluorescence seen in colourful fire salamanders for the first time | New Scientist 3 June 

Hidden store of manganese may have helped Earth get its oxygen

 

Image courtesy of Claus Lunau/Science Photo Library.

Joel Kontinen

Computer simulations have uncovered a new manganese compound that could exist deep in Earth’s mantle and may be connected to the process that gave our atmosphere oxygen.

When did the Earth get its oxygen? According to a new study, it may have got it from manganese that may have been present deep before in the Earth’s mantle.  Some evolutionists believe that manganese was present in the early stages of the Earth’s history.

Deep below our feet, manganese may exist in a form we have never seen before, and this underground source of the metal could have played a role in the story of how Earth got its oxygen.

Until about 2 billion years ago, Earth’s atmosphere barely contained any oxygen. Then came the Great Oxygenation Event (GOE) when oxygen produced by photosynthesizing microbes started to accumulate, spurring development of more diverse forms of life and changing the planet.

Manganese is thought to have been a crucial component in an early version of photosynthesis, before the evolution of the oxygen-producing pathway that is widespread today. In Earth’s crust, manganese is commonly found in oxygen-containing ores, which started to accumulate at around the same time as the GOE.

Source:

 Karmela Padavic-Callaghan 2026 Hidden store of manganese may have helped Earth get its oxygen | New Scientist 2 June 

Carbon credits are flawed, but they can still help save forest

 

Image courtesy of Heikki Valve, CC BY-SA 3.0

Joel Kontinen

Carbon credits are wrong, but they can save forests that is good for the environment.

In 1986, an energy CEO heard a briefing about climate change and felt guilty that his company was building a coal-fired power plant in Connecticut. The company eventually paid to plant trees for timber in Guatemala so farmers would stop cutting down intact forest, in theory compensating for the coal plant’s carbon emissions.

The idea would develop into markets that allow companies to offset their emissions by buying “voluntary” carbon credits that help avoid deforestation, among other measures. Advocates say land users should be paid to leave a forest standing. Critics say maybe the land users weren’t going to cut down the forest anyway.

Source:

 Alec Luhn 2026 Carbon credits are flawed, but they can still help save forests | New Scientist12 May 

Space storms could switch train signals and cause serious accidents

 

Joel Kontinen

Critical safety equipment in many train systems is vulnerable to disruption by space weather, which could lead to fatal accidents. Space storms can  wreak havoc in some UK train stations.

A number of electrical systems in the railways of many countries, including the UK, are vulnerable to space weather. In the worst case, a red signal could be turned green, potentially causing a deadly train crash, says Cameron Patterson at Lancaster University in the UK.

“You could have disruptions to signalling systems, which are crucial to railway safety,” he says. “We have to prepare for these things now, and getting that message across, I think, is really important.”

A number of electrical systems in the railways of many countries, including the UK, are vulnerable to space weather. In the worst case, a red signal could be turned green, potentially causing a deadly train crash, says Cameron Patterson at Lancaster University in the UK.

“You could have disruptions to signalling systems, which are crucial to railway safety,” he says. “We have to prepare for these things now, and getting that message across, I think, is really important.”

Source:

 Michael Le Page 2026 Space storms could switch train signals and cause serious accidents | New Scientist 26 May 

Millions of planets might form around supermassive black holes

 

Massive amounts of dust swirl around active nuclei at the centres of galaxies, and these discs could give rise to vast numbers of rocky planets, some even the size of stars. Image courtesy of NASA and M. Weiss/Chandra X-ray Center

Joel Kontinen

What does black holes done for planets? According to a recently published study, they form planets around supermassive black holes.

The active centres of galaxies might be regions of extraordinary planet formation, where millions of worlds are born.

Most galaxies in the universe, such as our own Milky Way, host a supermassive black hole at their centre. Most of the time, these black holes are quiescent, as there is no matter falling into them. But occasionally they become active and consume huge amounts of dust and gas, perhaps from a merger with another according to evolution, becoming an active galactic nucleus for millions of years.

Source:

By Jonathan O’Callaghan 2026 Millions of planets might form around supermassive black holes | New Scientist 28 May

Weird and wonderful sea pen found on Mystery Ridge

 

Image courtesy of Paul Satchell/The Nippon Foundation/Nekton Ocean Census/Schmidt Ocean Institute.

Joel Kontinen

An ongoing census of sea life in the South Atlantic has identified over 1000 new creatures, including a new species of sea pen.

Odd creatures are found in the depths of the sea.  If you think this picture looks a bit like a feather pen, then you’d be correct. Except it’s not the type that you can write with. It is a type of coral that is found  805  metres below the sea level.

Sea pens are a type of coral that live on the sea floor and are made up of several specialised polyps. This particular sea pen is new to science, and was discovered at a depth of 805 metres on Mystery Ridge off the South Sandwich Islands, a chain of islands in the South Atlantic Ocean. It was found thanks to the Nippon Foundation-Nekton Ocean Census, a global programme aiming to discover 100,000 new marine species over the seas.

Source:

Michael Dalton 2026 Weird and wonderful sea pen found on Mystery Ridge | New Scientist 26 May