Breaking Waves: Ocean News

Australia news live: Crisafulli says he may keep Queensland coal power plant open longer; ABS data shows small rise in retail spending

admin — Tue, 01 Oct 2024 01:27:41 +0000

The LNP leader says he would prolong the operation of a coal-fired power station beyond its planned closure date, if it couldn’t be replaced with renewables. Follow today’s news live

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Amid Australia’s chaotic climate politics, the rooftop solar boom is an unlikely triumph | Adam Morton

admin — Mon, 30 Sep 2024 22:39:06 +0000

It’s difficult to overstate how rapidly Australians have embraced solar power – there’s now more rooftop solar than coal-fired power. The key question is what policymakers can learn from its success

Firefly species may blink out as US seeks to list it as endangered for first time

admin — Mon, 30 Sep 2024 21:14:24 +0000

Bethany Beach firefly, found in Delaware, Maryland and Virginia, faces dangers to habitat because of climate change

The US government is seeking to consider a firefly species as endangered for the first time, according to a proposal from the US Fish and Wildlife Service.

Parrots overwhelm Argentinian town with screeching, poo and power outages

admin — Mon, 30 Sep 2024 17:53:43 +0000

Birds outnumber residents in Hilario Ascasubi, after deforestation leads them to seek food, shelter and water

The town of Hilario Ascasubi near Argentina’s eastern Atlantic coast has a parrot problem.

Thousands of the green, yellow and red birds have invaded, driven by deforestation in the surrounding hills, according to biologists. They bite on the town’s electric cables, causing outages, and are driving residents around the bend with their incessant screeching and deposits everywhere of parrot poo.

Megadiverse flowering plant family on isolated islands

admin — Mon, 30 Sep 2024 16:29:41 +0000

Asteraceae, a family of flowering plants which includes daisies, sunflowers and asters, are the most diverse group of flowering plants in the world. This plant family comprises around 34,000 species, some of which are well-known, such as artichokes, chamomile, dahlias and lettuce. An international research team has now compiled and analyzed a new global database on the distribution and evolutionary history of all Asteraceae species.

A butterfly: ‘elbowing each other with the joints on their legs, pushing and shoving to get at the liquid’

admin — Mon, 30 Sep 2024 15:00:09 +0000

We learn about butterflies when we are small because it is foreshadowing: you too will change. But they are an imperfect metaphor for what it feels like to live

The very funny naturalist and writer Redmond O’Hanlon was on a sandbank on the edge of a river in Borneo when hundreds of butterflies started to fly towards him and his travel companion and landed on their boots, trousers, and shirts, and “sucked the sweat from our arms.”

Australia’s ‘immoral’ coalmine decision akin to drowning Pacific neighbours, Tuvalu climate minister declares

admin — Mon, 30 Sep 2024 15:00:08 +0000

Labor government has undermined case to co-host 2026 UN climate summit with island nations, Dr Maina Talia declares

Mount Everest is having a growth spurt, say researchers

admin — Mon, 30 Sep 2024 15:00:04 +0000

River erosion has pushed the mountain upwards and added an extra 15 to 50 metres over the past 89,000 years

Climbing Mount Everest has always been a feat, but it seems the task might be getting harder: researchers say Everest is having something of a growth spurt.

Senior Tories may push for party to become pro-fracking

admin — Mon, 30 Sep 2024 13:08:50 +0000

Calls grow for lifting of moratorium on onshore drilling in England to become policy under new leader

UK politics live – latest updates

Senior Conservatives are considering pushing for a lifting of the moratorium on fracking in England to become party policy.

Atlanta issues warnings about chemical plant fire with smoke visible miles away

admin — Mon, 30 Sep 2024 12:11:29 +0000

Interstate highway shut down in both directions in the area, as residents urged to evacuate or shelter in place

Some residents east of Atlanta were evacuated while others were told to shelter in place on Sunday to avoid contaminants from a chemical plant fire that sent a huge tower of dark smoke into the air that could be seen from miles away.

Interstate 20 was shut down in both directions in the area, the Georgia department of transportation said in a post on X. Reports said traffic was snarled as vehicles backed up.