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The ancient volcanoes may have triggered a period in the Earth's history when temperatures dropped and the planet became a "giant snowball," according to scientists.
The remains of lava flows discovered in Mexico have revealed previously unknown volcanic activity, which seems to have played a role in the massive fluctuations in global temperature.
The discovery of these 600-million-year-old rocks helps to explain a period in the planet's history when its surface froze and covered with glaciers.
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Volcanoes are an essential element of systems that maintain the Earth's temperature between periods of heat and cold for millions of years.
Mass eruptions cause huge amounts of CO2 in the atmosphere, causing short-term global warming by the same mechanism as human-induced greenhouse gas emissions.
1/8 Davos 2019: David Attenborough warns against the future of civilization as he calls for "practical solutions" to fight climate change
Sir David Attenborough issued a stern warning about climate change to the companies gathered in Davos, telling them that "what we are doing now … will affect profoundly the few thousand years to come".
On the eve of this year's World Economic Forum, the renowned naturalist told the public that business and politics should "find the practical solutions" needed to prevent environmental damage.
"As a species, we are experts in problem solving. But we have not yet applied to this problem with the attention it deserves.
"We can create a world with pure air and water, unlimited energy and fish stocks that will allow us to maintain ourselves for a long time." But for that we need a plan, "he said.
The broadcaster delivered his speech after receiving a Crystal Award, awarded by the forum to "outstanding cultural leaders".
AFP / Getty
2/8 At least 60% of wild coffee species are threatened with extinction by climate change and diseases
Two decades of research has revealed that 60% of the world's coffee species are endangered due to the combined threats of deforestation, disease and climate change.
The wild strain of arabica, the most widely consumed coffee on the planet, is among those now recognized as endangered, raising concerns about its long-term survival.
These results worry the millions of farmers around the world who depend on coffee survival to survive.
As the conditions of coffee growing harden, scientists predict that the industry will have to rely on wild varieties to develop more resilient strains.
Alan Schaller
3/8 Warming Antarctic waters accelerates melting glaciers
The Antarctic Ice Sheet loses six times more ice every year than it did in the 1980s and the pace accelerates, as one of the studies has shown the most comprehensive on the effects of climate change on the continent.
A NASA-funded study found that more than half an inch had been added to sea level since 1979, but if current trends continue, the number of meters will increase in the future.
The international effort used aerial photos, satellite data and climate models dating back to the 1970s in 18 Antarctic regions to obtain the most comprehensive picture to date on the effects of climate change.
He found that between 1979 and 1990, Antarctica lost an average of 40 gigatonnes (40 billion tonnes) of mass each year.
Between 2009 and 2017, he lost an average of 252 gigatonnes a year. This has added 3.6 mm per decade to sea level, or about 14 mm since 1979, the study reveals.
Nasa / Getty
4/8 Greater Manchester will ban hydraulic fracturing, paving the way for a confrontation with the government over a controversial industry
Greater Manchester must effectively ban fracking, opening the prospect of a new confrontation with the government over the controversial sector.
Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham announced that the region's ten councils were to implement planning policies that create a "presumption" against shale gas drilling in their area.
Activists said the move was the latest sign that the trend was turning against fracking, which has been the subject of numerous legal battles across the country.
Critics of fracking say that this poses risks to the environment and health. Drilling at the UK's only operational fracking site, managed by Cuadrilla in Lancashire, has been interrupted several times due to earthquakes.
But ministers support the industry and unveiled plans last year to accelerate the development of new drilling sites.
Ross Wills
5/8 Japan confirms its intention to resume commercial whaling in its waters from next year
Japan will resume commercial whaling next year for the first time in more than three decades, an initiative that has provoked strong criticism from activists and the international community.
Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga said his country would leave the International Whaling Commission to resume marine mammal hunting in Japanese waters.
However, he stated that the activity would be limited to the territory of Japan and the 200-mile exclusive economic zone along its coasts.
This means that controversial "scientific" voyages to Antarctica, in which Japanese ships have killed hundreds of whales, as well as activity in the Pacific Northwest, will be halted in 2019.
AP
6/8 COP24: Environment groups criticize "morally unacceptable" climate deal reached after summit in Poland
Diplomats from around the world reached a major climate deal after two weeks of UN talks in Poland.
But climate activists have warned against the deal – a set of rules on how to govern the 2015 Paris climate agreement – agreed between nearly 200 missing countries. ambition or a clear promise of strengthening climate action.
Activists cautiously welcomed the elements of the plan, saying that "significant progress" had been made to ensure that each country's climate change efforts could be measured and compared.
But environmental groups were also very critical of the deal, warning that it lacked ambition and clarity on key issues, including funding climate projects for countries in development.
The agreement on COP24, which aims to provide firm guidance to countries on how to transparently report their greenhouse gas emissions and efforts to reduce them, was confirmed on December 15, after the end of talks.
Reuters
7/8 "Unprecedented changes" are needed to end global warming while a UN report reveals that islands are starting to disappear and coral reefs are dying
Greenhouse gas emissions must be halved by 2030 to avert a global environmental disaster, including the total loss of each coral reef, the disappearance of Arctic ice and the destruction of island communities, concluded a historic report from the UN.
Drawing on more than 6,000 scientific studies and compiled over two years, the findings of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), released this morning, warn of changes Huge and fast in the way everyone eats, travels and produces energy. at once.
The scientists behind the report said that there was something to be optimistic about, but they acknowledged the sad reality that countries are currently not on track to avert a disaster.
AFP / Getty
8/8 The three largest poaching cartels of African elephants exposed using DNA from illegal ivory shipments
DNA from massive ivory shipments was used to identify the three largest wildlife trafficking gangs operating at the height of the African elephant poaching epidemic.
Ivory tends to be shipped in bulk from around the world from African ports. Scientists used genetic evidence from intercepted batches to reveal their origins.
Led by Dr. Samuel Wasser of the University of Washington, they traced a number of these shipments in three cartels operating in Kenya, Uganda, and Togo.
The evidence gathered by Dr. Wasser has already helped to condemn King Ivory Feisal Mohamed Ali's team leader, and as his team mixes at the critical points between two dispatches, she plans to step up the prosecution of other smugglers among the most prolific of the continent.
Art Wolfe
1/8 Davos 2019: David Attenborough warns against the future of civilization as he calls for "practical solutions" to fight climate change
Sir David Attenborough issued a stern warning about climate change to the companies gathered in Davos, telling them that "what we are doing now … will affect profoundly the few thousand years to come".
On the eve of this year's World Economic Forum, the renowned naturalist told the public that business and politics should "find the practical solutions" needed to prevent environmental damage.
"As a species, we are experts in problem solving. But we have not yet applied to this problem with the attention it deserves.
"We can create a world with pure air and water, unlimited energy and fish stocks that will allow us to maintain ourselves for a long time." But for that we need a plan, "he said.
The broadcaster delivered his speech after receiving a Crystal Award, awarded by the forum to "outstanding cultural leaders".
AFP / Getty
2/8 At least 60% of wild coffee species are threatened with extinction by climate change and diseases
Two decades of research has revealed that 60% of the world's coffee species are endangered due to the combined threats of deforestation, disease and climate change.
The wild strain of arabica, the most widely consumed coffee on the planet, is among those now recognized as endangered, raising concerns about its long-term survival.
These results worry the millions of farmers around the world who depend on coffee survival to survive.
As the conditions of coffee growing harden, scientists predict that the industry will have to rely on wild varieties to develop more resilient strains.
Alan Schaller
3/8 Warming Antarctic waters accelerates melting glaciers
The Antarctic Ice Sheet loses six times more ice every year than it did in the 1980s and the pace accelerates, as one of the studies has shown the most comprehensive on the effects of climate change on the continent.
A NASA-funded study found that more than half an inch had been added to sea level since 1979, but if current trends continue, the number of meters will increase in the future.
The international effort used aerial photos, satellite data and climate models dating back to the 1970s in 18 Antarctic regions to obtain the most comprehensive picture to date on the effects of climate change.
He found that between 1979 and 1990, Antarctica lost an average of 40 gigatonnes (40 billion tonnes) of mass each year.
Between 2009 and 2017, he lost an average of 252 gigatonnes a year. This has added 3.6 mm per decade to sea level, or about 14 mm since 1979, the study reveals.
Nasa / Getty
4/8 Greater Manchester will ban hydraulic fracturing, paving the way for a confrontation with the government over a controversial industry
Greater Manchester must effectively ban fracking, opening the prospect of a new confrontation with the government over the controversial sector.
Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham announced that the region's ten councils were to implement planning policies that create a "presumption" against shale gas drilling in their area.
Activists said the move was the latest sign that the trend was turning against fracking, which has been the subject of numerous legal battles across the country.
Critics of fracking say that this poses risks to the environment and health. Drilling at the UK's only operational fracking site, managed by Cuadrilla in Lancashire, has been interrupted several times due to earthquakes.
But ministers support the industry and unveiled plans last year to accelerate the development of new drilling sites.
Ross Wills
5/8 Japan confirms its intention to resume commercial whaling in its waters from next year
Japan will resume commercial whaling next year for the first time in more than three decades, an initiative that has provoked strong criticism from activists and the international community.
Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga said his country would leave the International Whaling Commission to resume marine mammal hunting in Japanese waters.
However, he stated that the activity would be limited to the territory of Japan and the 200-mile exclusive economic zone along its coasts.
This means that controversial "scientific" voyages to Antarctica, in which Japanese ships have killed hundreds of whales, as well as activity in the Pacific Northwest, will be halted in 2019.
AP
6/8 COP24: Environment groups criticize "morally unacceptable" climate deal reached after summit in Poland
Diplomats from around the world reached a major climate deal after two weeks of UN talks in Poland.
But climate activists have warned against the deal – a set of rules on how to govern the 2015 Paris climate agreement – agreed between nearly 200 missing countries. ambition or a clear promise of strengthening climate action.
Activists cautiously welcomed the elements of the plan, saying that "significant progress" had been made to ensure that each country's climate change efforts could be measured and compared.
But environmental groups were also very critical of the deal, warning that it lacked ambition and clarity on key issues, including funding climate projects for countries in development.
The agreement on COP24, which aims to provide firm guidance to countries on how to transparently report their greenhouse gas emissions and efforts to reduce them, was confirmed on December 15, after the end of talks.
Reuters
7/8 "Unprecedented changes" are needed to end global warming while a UN report reveals that islands are starting to disappear and coral reefs are dying
Greenhouse gas emissions must be halved by 2030 to avert a global environmental disaster, including the total loss of each coral reef, the disappearance of Arctic ice and the destruction of island communities, concluded a historic report from the UN.
Drawing on more than 6,000 scientific studies and compiled over two years, the findings of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), released this morning, warn of changes Huge and fast in the way everyone eats, travels and produces energy. at once.
The scientists behind the report said that there was something to be optimistic about, but they acknowledged the sad reality that countries are currently not on track to avert a disaster.
AFP / Getty
8/8 The three largest poaching cartels of African elephants exposed using DNA from illegal ivory shipments
DNA from massive ivory shipments was used to identify the three largest wildlife trafficking gangs operating at the height of the African elephant poaching epidemic.
Ivory tends to be shipped in bulk from around the world from African ports. Scientists used genetic evidence from intercepted batches to reveal their origins.
Led by Dr. Samuel Wasser of the University of Washington, they traced a number of these shipments in three cartels operating in Kenya, Uganda, and Togo.
The evidence gathered by Dr. Wasser has already helped to condemn King Ivory Feisal Mohamed Ali's team leader, and as his team mixes at the critical points between two dispatches, she plans to step up the prosecution of other smugglers among the most prolific of the continent.
Art Wolfe
However, this effect is then compensated for by the decomposition of the rocks resulting from the cooled lava and by the reaction of the minerals that compose them with the CO2.
Although rock alteration lasts millions of years, it effectively removes greenhouse gases from the atmosphere and lowers temperatures.
"This ensures the long-term stability of the Earth's temperate surface conditions compared to the hostile environment of its cosmic neighbors, warm Venus and cold Mars," said Professor Axel Schmitt of the University of Heidelberg.
Professor Schmitt said that a disturbance of the balance between the two processes had occurred at different times in the history of the Earth, making it look like a "snowball" from the space.
"On time scales of millions to tens of millions of years, weathered rocks can sequester enough CO2 to plunge the Earth's climate into an extreme ice age," he said.
After studying layers of Mexican rock that are the only remnants of long-eroded lava flows in the area, Professor Schmitt and his colleagues found that they were identical to other rocks found in Canada and Canada. in Norway.
The dating of rare minerals found in the rock revealed that the leaves were the same age as those found on whole continents.
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The discovery of such an expanse of ancient lava flow suggests that this could have triggered temperatures that were falling about 40 million years later, during an event known as the glaciation of Gaskiers.
The new results were published in the journal Geophysical Research Letters.
Although the ability of some minerals to absorb CO2 and cool global temperatures is well established, its exploitation to combat climate change has limited potential due to the long duration of its operation.
However, scientists have tried to speed up the process to suck up some of the gas from the atmosphere that warms the climate.
We will tell you what is true. You can form your own view.
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