From ABC Science – Australia.
| What can this sea sponge in the Caribbean tell us about global warming and how it connects with Mt Tambora so very far away? So many pictures of this sea sponge in the article. |
| Log In |
| Hi there! Newsletterer and science reporter Belinda Smith with your weekly dose of science news from the ABC. ‘Just yesterday, my environment reporter colleague Peter de Kruijff reported on a study of sea sponge skeletons that suggest, at least in the Caribbean, Earth has already blown past the Paris Agreement’s target of preferably keeping global warming to 1.5C. There are a couple of aspects to unpack here. First up: sea sponges have a skeleton. To be honest, I don’t think about sea sponges much, but I’ve generally assumed they’re all a bit like the sponge in my kitchen sink — soft and squishy, maybe with a yellowish tinge. But no, some grow a hard, calcified skeleton, onto which they add layers each year. Locked in the layers are elements from the seawater around them, which vary in concentration depending on the ocean’s temperature. So as the sponges grow, faithfully adding layers to their skeleton, they also build an archive of temperature over the years — even centuries. Sea sponge “records” going back around 300 years suggest Earth is already 1.7C warmer than the pre-industrial era. But — there’s always a but — some climate scientists warn we should be careful in assuming temperature records from one part of the Atlantic reflect the global average.’ Comment – ABC Science does its best to educate the nation about the evidence regarding global warming and so many other aspects of the sciences and their connections with all of us, Did you know, however, that in Australia there are politicians that call those aware of climate change a ‘cult’? And one who speaks of ‘climate change’ as ‘cultish’. Remember, calling it ‘climate change’ instead of the more concerning direct description of global warming was a tactic in the late 1990s by ‘The Carbon Club’ to reduce awareness and action. In USA today, since 2020, the Federal executive is taking action. Australia put in place a national climate change policy in 2023, only after we voted out the market-driven climate denying Coalition that had been in power since 2013. |
Sciences and Humanities 