Skeptical Science New Research for Week #2 2022

Posted on 13 January 2022 by Doug Bostrom, Marc Kodack

Geoengineering five minute university 

Not long ago we added a new section to New Research for select reports and reviews from governmental agencies and NGOs, material not within our original remit of peer reviewed research articles published in academic journals. Thanks to their typical target audience of nonspecialists, these publications are often an excellent way to quickly come up to speed on major salient features of a given knowledge domain. 

This week's New Research includes just such a feature. For readers bumping into the term "geoengineering" and wanting to get a quick basic grip, Climate Control: International Legal Mechanisms for Managing the Geopolitical Risks of Geoengineering from RAND will help. The report concisely synoposizes the nuts and bolts technicalities of geoengineering for the lay reader.

A few minutes spent on RAND's quickly informative "executive summary" of geoengineering science and technology will immediately lead any thinking person to realize that we're looking at a veritable Pandora's box in terms of "secondary effects," or how RAND delicately expresses "blowback."

At this juncture we may not want to foreclose reaching into this box of tools but we'd best be forearmed in imagining ways doing so could go wrong. The report goes on to describe potential scenarios of unilateral engineering efforts and how those might be checked or at least managed. We don't have to invent governance from whole cloth, fortunately. RAND illustrates several tried and more or less true frameworks for creating legal or at least normative mechanisms to help make geoengineering less risky, if or when it should become a less abstract matter. RAND concludes by suggesting we may best be making policy before the geoengineering horse escapes the barn. 

Other notables

Complex and yet predictable: The message of the 2021 Nobel Prize in Physics, a perspective looking at the unusual significance of the 2021 prize.

Responsibility of major emitters for country-level warming and extreme hot years views CO2 emissions through  an unusual and possibly uncomfortable lens of attribution.

Perspectives on tipping points in integrated models of the natural and human Earth system: cascading effects and telecoupling suggests research priorities commensurate with the state of high risk and high unknowns concerning tipping points.

Sea-ice retreat suggests re-organization of water mass transformation in the Nordic and Barents Seas, a modest title for a paper describing what unpacks as big implications. 

All of the above open access.

150 articles in 55 journals by 808 contributing authors

Observations of climate change, effects

Another Record: Ocean Warming Continues through 2021 despite La Niña Conditions
Cheng et al. Advances in Atmospheric Sciences
Open Access pdf 10.1007/s00376-022-1461-3

Sea-ice retreat suggests re-organization of water mass transformation in the Nordic and Barents Seas
Moore et al. Nature Communications
Open Access pdf 10.1038/s41467-021-27641-6

Increased Fire Activity in Alaska since the 1980s: Evidence from an Ice Core-derived Black Carbon Record
Sierra?Hernández et al. Journal of Geophysical Research: Atmospheres
10.1029/2021jd035668

Impact of freshwater runoff from the southwest Greenland Ice Sheet on fjord productivity since the late 19th century
Oksman et al.
Open Access pdf 10.5194/tc-2021-373

Long-term variability of cloud cover in Poland (1971–2020)
Matuszko et al. Atmospheric Research
10.1016/j.atmosres.2022.106028

Retreat of Northern Hemisphere marine-terminating glaciers, 2000-2020
Kochtitzky & Copland Geophysical Research Letters
10.1029/2021gl096501

Intense ocean freshening from melting glacier around the Antarctica during early twenty-first century
Pan et al. Scientific Reports
Open Access pdf 10.1038/s41598-021-04231-6

Climatology of the soil surface diurnal temperature range in a warming world: annual cycles, regional patterns, and trends in China
Liu et al. Earth's Future
Open Access pdf 10.1029/2021ef002220

The most extreme heat waves in Amazonia happened under extreme dryness
Costa et al. Climate Dynamics
10.1007/s00382-021-06134-8

Fractional contribution of global warming and regional urbanization to intensifying regional heatwaves across Eurasia
Wang et al. Climate Dynamics
10.1007/s00382-021-06054-7

Spatial and temporal variability and risk assessment of regional climate change in northern China: a case study in Shandong Province
Li et al. Natural Hazards
10.1007/s11069-021-05156-z

Accelerated change in the glaciated environments of western Canada revealed through trend analysis of optical satellite imagery
Bevington & Menounos Remote Sensing of Environment
Open Access 10.1016/j.rse.2021.112862

(provisional link) Assessing the role of compound drought and heatwave events on unprecedented 2020 wildfires in the Pantanal
10.1088/1748-9326/ac462e

Global divergent trends of algal blooms detected by satellite during 1982-2018
Fang et al. Global Change Biology
10.1111/gcb.16077

Historical changes and projected trends of extreme climate events in Xinjiang, China
Guan et al. Climate Dynamics
10.1007/s00382-021-06067-2

Appraisal of seasonal drought characteristics in Turkey during 1925–2016 with the standardized precipitation index and copula approach
Topçu Natural Hazards
10.1007/s11069-021-05201-x

Assessing the trends of streamflow and its linkages with climate variables in the Dez river basin, Iran
Mahmoodi et al. International Journal of Environmental Science and Technology
10.1007/s13762-021-03432-w

Instrumentation & observational methods of climate change, contributors, effects

Prospects for Detecting Accelerated Global Warming
Richardson Geophysical Research Letters
10.1029/2021gl095782

Extending instrumental sea-level records using coral microatolls, an example from Southeast Asia
Majewski et al. Geophysical Research Letters
10.1029/2021gl095710

Trends in auto-correlated temperature series
Chen et al. Theoretical and Applied Climatology
10.1007/s00704-021-03893-6

Addressing the difficulties in quantifying the Twomey effect for marine warm clouds from multi-sensor satellite observations and reanalysis
Jia et al.
Open Access pdf 10.5194/acp-2021-999

Modeling, simulation & projection of climate change, effects

Distinct Surface Warming Response over the Western and Eastern Equatorial Pacific to Radiative Forcing
Park et al. Geophysical Research Letters
10.1029/2021gl095829

Observations and Simulated Mechanisms of Elevation-Dependent Warming over the Tropical Andes
Chimborazo et al. Journal of Climate
10.1175/jcli-d-21-0379.1

Climate classification by Thornthwaite (1948) humidity index in future scenarios for Maranhão State, Brazil
de Oliveira Aparecido et al. Environment, Development and Sustainability
10.1007/s10668-021-02082-9

ENSO explains the link between Indian Ocean Dipole and meridional ocean heat transport
McMonigal & Larson Geophysical Research Letters
10.1029/2021gl095796

Advancement of climate & climate effects modeling, simulation & projection GCMA

Evaluation of the capability of regional climate models in reproducing the temporal clustering in heavy precipitation over Europe
Yang et al. Atmospheric Research
10.1016/j.atmosres.2022.106027

Network-Based Approach and Climate Change Benefits for Forecasting the Amount of Indian Monsoon Rainfall
Fan et al.
Open Access 10.5194/egusphere-egu2020-2374

Evaluating climate models’ cloud feedbacks against expert judgement
Zelinka et al.
Open Access 10.1002/essoar.10506979.1

Evaluating and Improving Scale-Awareness of a Convective Parameterization Closure Using Cloud-Resolving Model Simulations of Convection
Wang et al. Journal of Geophysical Research: Atmospheres
10.1029/2021jd035729

A high resolution coupled ocean-atmosphere simulation of the regional climate over Central America
Misra & Jayasankar Jayasankar Climate Dynamics
Open Access 10.1007/s00382-021-06083-2

(provisional link) Reanalysis-driven simulations may overestimate persistent contrail formation by 100%–250%

Climate Change Impacts on Tropical Cyclones of the Arabian Sea: Projections and Uncertainty Investigations
Ranji et al. International Journal of Climatology
10.1002/joc.7523

Cryosphere & climate change

A regime shift in seasonal total Antarctic sea ice extent in the twentieth century
Fogt et al. Nature Climate Change
10.1038/s41558-021-01254-9

Predicting ocean-induced ice-shelf melt rates using a machine learning image segmentation approach
Rosier et al.
Open Access pdf 10.5194/tc-2021-396

Retreat of Northern Hemisphere marine-terminating glaciers, 2000-2020
Kochtitzky & Copland Geophysical Research Letters
10.1029/2021gl096501

Filling and drainage of a subglacial lake beneath the Flade Isblink ice cap, northeast Greenland
Liang et al.
Open Access pdf 10.5194/tc-2021-374

Different mechanisms of Arctic and Antarctic sea ice response to ocean heat transport
Aylmer et al. Climate Dynamics
Open Access pdf 10.1007/s00382-021-06131-x

Sea-ice retreat suggests re-organization of water mass transformation in the Nordic and Barents Seas
Moore et al. Nature Communications
Open Access pdf 10.1038/s41467-021-27641-6

Accelerated change in the glaciated environments of western Canada revealed through trend analysis of optical satellite imagery
Bevington & Menounos Remote Sensing of Environment
Open Access 10.1016/j.rse.2021.112862

Sea level & climate change

Coastal inundation under concurrent mean and extreme sea-level rise in Coral Gables, Florida, USA
Alarcon et al. Natural Hazards
10.1007/s11069-021-05163-0

Brief communication: Increased glacier mass loss in the Russian High Arctic (2010–2017)
Sommer et al. The Cryosphere
Open Access pdf 10.5194/tc-16-35-2022

Paleoclimate

(provisional link) The first 250 years of the Heinrich 11 iceberg discharge: Last Interglacial HadGEM3-GC3.1 simulations for CMIP6-PMIP4

The rise of grasslands is linked to atmospheric CO2 decline in the late Palaeogene
Palazzesi et al. Nature Communications
Open Access pdf 10.1038/s41467-021-27897-y

Changes in atmospheric CO2 concentration over the past two millennia: contribution of climate variability, land-use and Southern Ocean dynamics
Goosse et al. Climate Dynamics
10.1007/s00382-021-06078-z

Biology & climate change

Increasing instability of a rocky intertidal meta-ecosystem
Menge et al. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences
Open Access 10.1073/pnas.2114257119

Animal mortality during fire
Jolly et al. Global Change Biology
Open Access 10.1111/gcb.16044

Jointly modeling marine species to inform the effects of environmental change on an ecological community in the Northwest Atlantic
Roberts et al. Scientific Reports
Open Access pdf 10.1038/s41598-021-04110-0

Intraspecific trait variation, growth, and altered soil conditions at tree species distribution limits: From the alpine treeline to the rear edge
Gazol et al. Agricultural and Forest Meteorology
Open Access 10.1016/j.agrformet.2022.108811

Climatic stability, not average habitat temperature, determines thermal tolerance of subterranean beetles
Colado et al. Ecology
10.1002/ecy.3629

(provisional link) Climate legacies determine grassland responses to future rainfall regimes
10.1111/gcb.16084

Smaller fish species in a warm and oxygen-poor Humboldt Current system
Salvatteci et al. Science
10.1126/science.abj0270

Vulnerability of European ecosystems to two compound dry and hot summers in 2018 and 2019
Bastos et al. Earth System Dynamics
Open Access pdf 10.5194/esd-12-1015-2021

(provisional link) How do we best synergize climate mitigation actions to co-benefit biodiversity?
10.1111/gcb.16056

Local adaptation in a marine foundation species: implications for resilience to future global change
DuBois et al. Global Change Biology
10.1111/gcb.16080

Contrasting drivers of belowground nitrogen cycling in a montane grassland exposed to a multifactorial global change experiment with elevated CO2, warming, and drought
Maxwell et al. Global Change Biology
10.1111/gcb.16035

Toward Better Characterization of Global Warming Impacts in the Environment through Climate Classifications with Improved Global Models
Navarro et al. International Journal of Climatology
10.1002/joc.7527

How migratory birds might have tracked past climate change
Van Doren Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences
Open Access 10.1073/pnas.2121738119

Climate warming may increase the frequency of cold-adapted haplotypes in alpine plants
Wessely et al. Nature Climate Change
Open Access pdf 10.1038/s41558-021-01255-8

Biocrusts mediate a new mechanism for land degradation under a changing climate
Phillips et al. Nature Climate Change
10.1038/s41558-021-01249-6

The 2018 European heatwave led to stem dehydration but not to consistent growth reductions in forests
Salomón et al. Nature Communications
Open Access pdf 10.1038/s41467-021-27579-9

Global Simulation of Snow Algal Blooming by Coupling a Land Surface and Newly Developed Snow Algae Models
Onuma et al. Journal of Geophysical Research: Biogeosciences
10.1029/2021jg006339

Short-lived species move uphill faster under climate change
Couet et al. Oecologia
Open Access pdf 10.1007/s00442-021-05094-4

Temperature contributes more than precipitation to the greening of the Tibetan Plateau during 1982–2019
Bafitlhile & Liu Theoretical and Applied Climatology
10.1007/s00704-021-03882-9

Annual Tropical-Rainforest Productivity Through Two Decades: Complex Responses to Climatic Factors, [CO2] and Storm Damage
Clark et al. Journal of Geophysical Research: Biogeosciences
Open Access pdf 10.1029/2021jg006557

GHG sources & sinks, flux, related geochemistry

Multi-Season Evaluation of CO2 Weather in OCO-2 MIP Models
Zhang et al. Journal of Geophysical Research: Atmospheres
10.1029/2021jd035457

Addressing uncertainty and bias in land use, land use change, and forestry greenhouse gas inventories
McGlynn et al. Climatic Change
Open Access pdf 10.1007/s10584-021-03254-2

Methane emissions in the United States, Canada, and Mexico: evaluation of national methane emission inventories and 2010–2017 sectoral trends by inverse analysis of in situ (GLOBALVIEWplus CH4 ObsPack) and satellite (GOSAT) atmospheric observations
Lu et al. Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics
Open Access pdf 10.5194/acp-22-395-2022

OCO-2 satellite-imposed constraints on terrestrial biospheric CO2 fluxes over South Asia
Philip et al. Journal of Geophysical Research: Atmospheres
10.1029/2021jd035035

(provisional link) Sector-based top-down estimates of NOx, SO2, and CO emissions in East Asia

Biota-mediated carbon cycling—A synthesis of biotic-interaction controls on blue carbon
Ren et al. Ecology Letters
Open Access pdf 10.1111/ele.13940

High peatland methane emissions following permafrost thaw: enhanced acetoclastic methanogenesis during early successional stages
Heffernan et al.
Open Access pdf 10.5194/bg-2021-337

Addressing uncertainty and bias in land use, land use change, and forestry greenhouse gas inventories
McGlynn et al. Climatic Change
Open Access pdf 10.1007/s10584-021-03254-2

Phenology is the dominant control of methane emissions in a tropical non-forested wetland
Helfter et al. Nature Communications
Open Access pdf 10.1038/s41467-021-27786-4

Storms drive outgassing of CO2 in the subpolar Southern Ocean
Nicholson et al. Nature Communications
Open Access pdf 10.1038/s41467-021-27780-w

Vertically divergent responses of SOC decomposition to soil moisture in a changing climate
Pallandt et al. Journal of Geophysical Research: Biogeosciences
10.1029/2021jg006684

Projections of hydrofluorocarbon (HFC) emissions and the resulting global warming based on recent trends in observed abundances and current policies
Velders et al.
Open Access pdf 10.5194/acp-2021-1070

(provisional link) Space borne tropospheric nitrogen dioxide (NO2) observations from 2005–2020 over the Yangtze River Delta (YRD), China: variabilities, implications, and drivers

Depthwise Soil CO2 Production is Controlled by Freeze–Thaw Processes in a Tibetan Alpine Steppe
Zhang et al. Journal of Geophysical Research: Biogeosciences
10.1029/2021jg006678

Carbon dioxide fluxes of a mountain grassland: Drivers, anomalies and annual budgets
Rogger et al. Agricultural and Forest Meteorology
Open Access 10.1016/j.agrformet.2021.108801

Drivers of global nitrogen emissions
Malik et al. Environmental Research Letters
Open Access 10.1088/1748-9326/ac413c

(provisional link) Spatial-temporal variation of CO 2 emissions from private vehicle use in Japan

Partitioning carbon sources between wetland and well-drained ecosystems to a tropical first-order stream – implications for carbon cycling at the watershed scale (Nyong, Cameroon)
Moustapha et al. Biogeosciences
Open Access pdf 10.5194/bg-19-137-2022

(provisional link) Permafrost carbon emissions in a changing Arctic
10.1038/s43017-021-00230-3

(provisional link) Long-term trends in urban NO2 concentrations and associated paediatric asthma incidence: estimates from global datasets
10.1016/S2542-5196(21)00255-2

Decarbonization

The role of place attachment and environmental attitudes in adoption of rooftop solar
Corbett et al. Energy Policy
10.1016/j.enpol.2021.112764

Net-zero CO2 Germany - A retrospect from the year 2050
Mengis et al. Earth's Future
Open Access pdf 10.1029/2021ef002324

Reduced health burden and economic benefits of cleaner fuel usage from household energy consumption across rural and urban China
Lu et al. Environmental Research Letters
Open Access 10.1088/1748-9326/ac4535

A quantitative sustainable comparative study of two biogas systems based on energy, emergy and entropy methods in China
Zhang et al. Environment, Development and Sustainability
10.1007/s10668-021-02002-x

The impact of electric vehicles on the future European electricity system – A scenario analysis
Blumberg et al. Energy Policy
10.1016/j.enpol.2021.112751

Comparative life cycle GHG emission analysis of conventional and electric vehicles in India
Das Environment, Development and Sustainability
10.1007/s10668-021-01990-0

Heterogeneous Domestic Intermediate Input-Related Carbon Emissions in China’s Exports
Zhen et al. Environmental and Resource Economics
10.1007/s10640-021-00635-0

Multicriteria optimization for electric vehicles in an arid oil state based on a triple bottom line approach
Alramadhan et al. The International Journal of Life Cycle Assessment
10.1007/s11367-021-02009-6

Super polluters and carbon emissions: Spotlighting how higher-income and wealthier households disproportionately despoil our atmospheric commons
Adua Energy Policy
10.1016/j.enpol.2021.112768

Black carbon

(provisional link) Black carbon aerosol reductions during COVID-19 confinement quantified by aircraft measurements over Europe

Climate change communications & cognition

Political Legitimacy, Authoritarianism, and Climate Change
MITTIGA American Political Science Review
10.1017/s0003055421001301

Do Local Perceptions of Climate Variability and Changes Correspond to Observed Climate Changes? A Comparative Study from Nepal as One of the Most Climate-Vulnerable Countries
Weather, Climate, and Society
10.1175/wcas-d-21-0081.1

The power of impact framing and experience for determining acceptable levels of climate change-induced flood risk: a lab experiment
Markanday et al. Mitigation and Adaptation Strategies for Global Change
10.1007/s11027-021-09989-8

“It’s in Our DNA”: Climate Change and Perceived Resilience and Adaptive Capacity in Nature-Based Tourism in Lofoten, Norway
Weather, Climate, and Society
10.1175/wcas-d-21-0026.1

Love for the globe but also the country matter for the environment: Links between nationalistic, patriotic, global identification and pro-environmentalism
Aydin et al. Journal of Environmental Psychology
10.1016/j.jenvp.2021.101755

The Power of Nudging: Using Feedback, Competition, and Responsibility Assignment to Save Electricity in a Non-residential Setting
Klege et al. Environmental and Resource Economics
10.1007/s10640-021-00639-w

State actions and the environment: examining the concept of ecological security in China
Joseph & Karackattu Environment, Development and Sustainability
10.1007/s10668-021-01982-0

Behavioral adaptation to climate change: new insights on psychosocial frameworks from the context of managed forests
Fischer et al. Sustainability Science
10.1007/s11625-021-01085-9

Agronomy, animal husbundry, food production & climate change

Global impact of climate change on soil erosion and potential for adaptation through soil conservation
Eekhout & de Vente Earth
Open Access 10.1016/j.earscirev.2022.103921

Global disparities in agricultural climate index-based insurance research
Adeyinka et al. Climate Risk Management
Open Access 10.1016/j.crm.2022.100394

Sustainable maize production and climatic change in Nepal: robust role of climatic and non-climatic factors in the long-run and short-run
Chandio et al. Environment, Development and Sustainability
10.1007/s10668-022-02111-1

Options for reforming agricultural subsidies from health, climate, and economic perspectives
Springmann & Freund Nature Communications
Open Access pdf 10.1038/s41467-021-27645-2

Farmers’ behaviors and attitudes toward climate change adaptation: evidence from Vietnamese smallholder farmers
Tiet et al. Environment, Development and Sustainability
10.1007/s10668-021-02030-7

Climate change and its influence on planting of cassava in the Midwest region of Brazil
de Olanda Souza et al. Environment, Development and Sustainability
10.1007/s10668-021-02088-3

Carbon and water dynamics of a perennial versus an annual grain crop in temperate agroecosystems
Kim et al. Agricultural and Forest Meteorology
10.1016/j.agrformet.2021.108805

Understanding vulnerability of agricultural production system to climatic stressors in North Indian Plains: a meso-analysis
Choudhary & Sirohi Environment, Development and Sustainability
Open Access pdf 10.1007/s10668-021-01997-7

Crop simulation mediated assessment of climate change impact on rice grown under temperate high-altitude valley of Kashmir
Shakoor et al.
Open Access pdf 10.21203/rs.3.rs-584565/v1

Assessment of climate change impact and potential adaptation measures on wheat yield using the DSSAT model in the semi-arid environment
Gunawat et al. Natural Hazards
10.1007/s11069-021-05130-9

Hydrology & climate change

Climate change and the hydropower sector: A global review
Wasti et al. WIREs Climate Change
10.1002/wcc.757

Contribution of ecological conservation programs and climate change to hydrological regime change in the source region of the Yangtze River in China
Luo Regional Environmental Change
10.1007/s10113-021-01874-z

Projections of extreme precipitation in the middle and upper Yangtze River at 1.5 °C and 2 °C warming thresholds based on bias correction
Yang et al. Theoretical and Applied Climatology
10.1007/s00704-021-03899-0

To assess the impacts of climate change on runoff in Golestan Province, Iran
Silakhori et al. Natural Hazards
10.1007/s11069-021-05181-y

(provisional link) Contrasting biophysical and societal impacts of hydro-meteorological extremes

Climate change economics

Assessing the Likelihood for Transformational Change at the Green Climate Fund: An Analysis Using Self-Reported Project Data
Puri et al. Climate Risk Management
Open Access 10.1016/j.crm.2022.100398

Measuring comprehensive carbon prices of national climate policies
Carhart et al. Climate Policy
Open Access pdf 10.1080/14693062.2021.2014298

Greening monetary policy: evidence from the People’s Bank of China
Macaire & Naef Macaire Climate Policy
10.1080/14693062.2021.2013153

Climate change mitigation public policy research

The contribution of energy law to the energy transition and energy research
Huhta Global Environmental Change
Open Access 10.1016/j.gloenvcha.2021.102454

Local residents' policy preferences in an energy contested region – The Upper Hunter, Australia
Colvin & Przybyszewski Energy Policy
10.1016/j.enpol.2022.112776

Effects of demand-side restrictions on high-deforestation palm oil in Europe on deforestation and emissions in Indonesia
Busch et al. Environmental Research Letters
Open Access 10.1088/1748-9326/ac435e

Potential for future reductions of global GHG and air pollutants from circular waste management systems
Gómez-Sanabria et al. Nature Communications
Open Access pdf 10.1038/s41467-021-27624-7

Deliberative democracy and the climate crisis
Willis et al. WIREs Climate Change
Open Access pdf 10.1002/wcc.759

Biofuels policy and innovation impacts: Evidence from biofuels and agricultural patent indicators
Nelson et al. Energy Policy
Open Access pdf 10.1016/j.enpol.2021.112767

Mitigation or adaptation, the determination of which strategy should be given priority for urban spatial development: the case study of central cities in Turkey
Gustin Disaster & Recovery Planning:
Open Access 10.1201/9781003151777-16

The Role of Non-Binding Pledges in Social Dilemmas with Mitigation and Adaptation
McEvoy et al. Environmental and Resource Economics
Open Access pdf 10.1007/s10640-021-00645-y

(provisional link) How do we best synergize climate mitigation actions to co-benefit biodiversity?
10.1111/gcb.16056

The role of knowledge maps in sub-national climate change policymaking and governance
Rodríguez-García et al. Climate Policy
10.1080/14693062.2021.2022450

What influences the implementation of natural climate solutions? A systematic map and review of the evidence
Schulte et al. Environmental Research Letters
Open Access 10.1088/1748-9326/ac4071

What is green infrastructure? A study of definitions in US city planning
Grabowski et al. Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment
Open Access pdf 10.1002/fee.2445

Climate change adaptation & adaptation public policy research

A role for municipal governments in leveraging transformative change for urban disaster risk management: the experience of Santa Fe, Argentina, with urban flood risk
Filippi Climate Risk Management
Open Access 10.1016/j.crm.2022.100397

(provisional link) Lessons from COVID-19 for managing transboundary climate risks and building resilience

Mitigation or adaptation, the determination of which strategy should be given priority for urban spatial development: the case study of central cities in Turkey
Gustin Disaster & Recovery Planning:
Open Access 10.1201/9781003151777-16

The Role of Non-Binding Pledges in Social Dilemmas with Mitigation and Adaptation
McEvoy et al. Environmental and Resource Economics
Open Access pdf 10.1007/s10640-021-00645-y

Building community resilience in a context of climate change: The role of social capital
Carmen et al. Ambio
Open Access pdf 10.1007/s13280-021-01678-9

Does funds-based adaptation finance reach the most vulnerable countries?
Garschagen & Doshi Global Environmental Change
Open Access 10.1016/j.gloenvcha.2021.102450

The Goldilocks Zone in Cooling Demand: What can we do better?
Kumar et al.
Open Access 10.1002/essoar.10506654.1

Strengthening climate-resilient development and transformation in Viet Nam
Rana et al. Climatic Change
Open Access pdf 10.1007/s10584-021-03290-y

Cross-border strategies to respond the impact of climate change in the upstream Brantas Watershed, Indonesia
Surjono et al. Environment, Development and Sustainability
10.1007/s10668-021-02000-z

Best intentions and local realities: unseating assumptions about implementing planned community-based adaptation in Bangladesh
Masud-All-Kamal & Nursey-Bray Climate and Development
10.1080/17565529.2021.2003177

Disentangling justice as recognition through public support for local climate adaptation policies: Insights from the Southwest US
Yazar & York Urban Climate
Open Access 10.1016/j.uclim.2021.101079

Multi-topographical landscape: comparative vulnerability of climate-induced disaster-prone rural area of Pakistan
Memon & Ahmed Natural Hazards
10.1007/s11069-021-05107-8

Climate change impacts on human health

The impact of heat on kidney stone presentations in South Carolina under two climate change scenarios
Kaufman et al. Scientific Reports
Open Access pdf 10.1038/s41598-021-04251-2

Soil drought can mitigate deadly heat stress thanks to a reduction of air humidity
Wouters et al. Science Advances
Open Access pdf 10.1126/sciadv.abe6653

Climate change impacts on human culture

Climate Change Challenges for Flexible Pavement in Canada: An Overview
Maadani et al. Journal of Cold Regions Engineering
Open Access pdf 10.1061/(asce)cr.1943-5495.0000262

Other

Meteotsunamis in Orography-Free, Flat Bathymetry and Warming Climate Conditions
Denamiel et al. Journal of Geophysical Research: Oceans
Open Access 10.1029/2021jc017386

(provisional link) Changing air pollution and CO2 emissions during the COVID-19 pandemic: Lesson learned and future equity concerns of post-COVID recovery
10.1002/essoar.10503983.1

Clean technology investment considering synergistic effects: a case from the steel sintering process
Guo et al. Environment, Development and Sustainability
10.1007/s10668-021-02009-4

Informed opinion, nudges & major initiatives

Perspectives on tipping points in integrated models of the natural and human Earth system: cascading effects and telecoupling
Franzke et al. Environmental Research Letters
Open Access 10.1088/1748-9326/ac42fd

Prospects for Detecting Accelerated Global Warming
Richardson Geophysical Research Letters
10.1029/2021gl095782

A suggestion for the quantification of precise and bounded probability to quantify epistemic uncertainty in scientific assessments
Raices Cruz et al. Risk Analysis
Open Access pdf 10.1111/risa.13871

Making action the norm
Nature Climate Change
Open Access pdf 10.1038/s41558-021-01274-5

Loss and damage in the global stocktake
Puig Climate Policy
Open Access pdf 10.1080/14693062.2021.2023452

Complex and yet predictable: The message of the 2021 Nobel Prize in Physics
Ravishankara et al. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences
Open Access pdf 10.1073/pnas.2120669119

Responsibility of major emitters for country-level warming and extreme hot years
Beusch et al. Communications Earth & Environment
Open Access pdf 10.1038/s43247-021-00320-6

Articles/Reports from Agencies and Non-Governmental Organizations Addressing Aspects of Climate Change

Global Risks Report 2022 (pdf), World Economic Forum

The Global Risks Report 2022 presents the results of the latest Global Risks Perception Survey (GRPS), followed by an analysis of key risks emanating from current economic, societal, environmental and technological tensions. Respondents to the GRPS rank “climate action failure” as the number one long-term threat to the world and the risk with potentially the most severe impacts over the next decade. Climate change is already manifesting rapidly in the form of droughts, fires, floods, resource scarcity and species loss, among other impacts.

PROTECTING THE INTEGRITY OF GOVERNMENT SCIENCE (pdf), National Science and Technology Council, Executive Office of the President 

The authors of the report assess the scientific integrity policies of Federal departments and agencies and instances in which they have not been followed or enforced, and it identifies effective practices for strengthening scientific integrity in specific areas, including training and transparency in scientific integrity, handling scientific disagreements, supporting professional development of Federal scientists, addressing emerging challenges to scientific integrity, and effective communication of the results of Federal scientific activities. The report is intended to assist Federal departments and agencies in creating or updating scientific integrity policies and implementing effective practices. This report identifies approaches to bolster the ability of Federal agencies to protect government science.

FEMA Resources for Climate Resilience (pdf), Federal Emergency Management Agency

As climate change increases disaster risks across the country, emergency managers and government officials are beginning to implement strategies to build community resilience. FEMA Resources for Climate Resilience provides a roadmap of Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) programs and initiatives that advance community climate resilience. FEMA Resources for Climate Resilience assists FEMA’s state, local, tribal, and territorial (SLTT) partners in navigating the FEMA resources that are available to support communities in mitigating impacts of climate change.

 Challenges and Opportunities for Airborne Wind Energy in the United States (pdf), Department of Energy

In response to language set forth in The Energy Act of 2020, the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE’s) Wind Energy Technologies Office (WETO), working with the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), explored the potential for, and technical viability of, airborne wind energy (AWE) technologies, which convert wind energy into electricity using tethered flying devices. As part of its inquiry, WETO drew on findings and insights gained from a synthesis of existing literature, NREL internal analysis, and outreach through interviews of AWE industry leaders. Supported by WETO, NREL hosted a technical workshop on U.S. Airborne Wind Energy in March 2021, attended by more than 100 experts and interested parties. Based on these activities, WETO completed an assessment of the potential for, and technical viability of, airborne wind energy systems as means to provide a significant source of energy in the United States.

SNOWTOGRAPHY. Snowpack & Soil Moisture Monitoring Handbook (pdf), Payton et al., Agricultural Research Service-U.S. Department of Agriculture/University of Colorado/Natural Conservancy

The snowtography handbook supports resource managers, researchers, and practitioners seeking to understand how the arrangement and density of trees, or the size and severity of disturbances, affect snowpack persistence and soil moisture availability in forested headwater settings. The snowtography handbook guides readers through the process of establishing their own snowtography and soil moisture monitoring stations. It offers guidance on site selection, snowtography options, equipment requirements, and installation. The instructions are based on snow-forest research and hands-on experience at multiple sites in Arizona, and in the San Juan National Forest in southwestern Colorado.

Climate Control. International Legal Mechanisms for Managing the Geopolitical Risks of Geoengineering (pdf), Grisé et al., RAND 

The prospect of using geoengineering to address the accelerating effects of climate change is becoming more likely, and many of the potential technologies have negative externalities on the global to regional scale. In this report, the authors review the state of different geoengineering technologies, highlighting differences in technological development stage, price, time scales, and potential secondary effects. They discuss the geopolitical risks that may be introduced by geoengineering implementation. Given the many serious risks that geoengineering poses, they conclude by examining whether existing international governance mechanisms manage the geopolitical risks associated with geoengineering.

Regional Report for the San Joaquin Valley Region on Impacts of Climate Change (pdf), Fernandez-Bou et al., California Natural Resources Agency

The report presents an overview of climate science, specific strategies to adapt to climate impacts, and key research gaps needed to spur additional progress on safeguarding the San Joaquin Valley Region from climate change. The San Joaquin Valley is the southern portion of the Central Valley of California. It is surrounded by the Sierra Nevada on the East, the Southern Coastal Range on the West, and the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta on the Northwest, spanning eight counties with 4.3 million inhabitants. Climate change is already affecting the San Joaquin Valley’s communities and agriculture. Climate change may accelerate deterioration of private property, canals, dams, roads, railways, and levees due to increasing land subsidence, droughts and associated overpumping, wildfires, and floods. The impacts of climate change are more pronounced in rural disadvantaged communities of the San Joaquin Valley than in the rest of California. Human health and well-being of the general population will be impacted by climate change, including more heatrelated deaths and illnesses, illnesses caused by poor water quality, and other issues caused by droughts, wildfire, and some agricultural activities. The intensive agricultural and urban footprints on the San Joaquin Valley are exacerbating the negative impacts of climate change, which may lead to ecological collapse because of the extensive habitat loss for native species and the establishment of invasive species.

 Atlantic Provinces; Chapter 1 in Canada in a Changing Climate: Regional Perspectives Report (pdf), Sabine Dietz and S Stephanie Arnold, Government of Canada 

The Atlantic Provinces chapter of the Canada in a Changing Climate: Regional Perspectives Report highlights that infrastructure in the Atlantic Provinces is being threatened by increased flooding and erosion; climate change is exacerbating health risks in the region; critical natural resource sectors are vulnerable to climate change; and partnerships with local Indigenous Peoples are vital to informing adaptation in the region. As impacts will persist and intensify over time, urgent action is needed to increase resilience to climate change through adaptation. The report is a part of Canada in a Changing Climate: Advancing our Knowledge for Action, the national science-based assessment of how and why Canada’s climate is changing, the impacts of these changes and how we are adapting. The assessment reports raise awareness and understanding of the key issues facing Canada and provide information to support sound adaptation decisions and actions. 

2021 Local Solar Developer Survey (pdf), Katie Kienbaum and John Farrell, Institute for Local Self-Reliance 

As the price to install solar continues to fall, the opportunity expands each year to more and more Americans. However, many state and local governments and electric utilities have hampered solar growth by failing to remove roadblocks to local solar, or even by adding new ones. These barriers created by policy decisions and utility actions are particularly problematic because customers (and their chosen solar developers) cannot choose which electric utility they connect to or which state and local solar policies they get to follow. The report shares data from ILSR’s first ever Barriers to Distributed Energy Survey and stories from interviews with solar developers to identify the most common and most impactful issues facing local solar projects as a result of both policymaker and utility choices. 

DEFORESTATION DIVIDENDS. How global banks profit from rainforest destruction and human rights abuses (pdf), Global Witness

The report puts a figure on how much banks and asset managers in the UK, EU, US and China could have made from deals with some of the world’s most notorious agribusinesses linked with forest destruction. Financial institutions made an estimated $1.74 billion in deforestation-adjusted proceeds from deals with some of the world’s most harmful deforesters in the five years following the Paris Climate Agreement’s adoption in December 2015, our analysis suggests. The total value of the deals with these deforesters is estimated to be $157 billion.

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Obtaining articles without journal subscriptions

We know it's frustrating that many articles we cite here are not free to read. One-off paid access fees are generally astronomically priced, suitable for such as "On a Heuristic Point of View Concerning the Production and Transformation of Light"  but not as a gamble on unknowns. With a median world income of US$ 9,373, for most of us US$ 42 is significant money to wager on an article's relevance and importance. 

• Here's an excellent collection of tips and techniques for obtaining articles, legally.

• Unpaywall offers a browser extension for Chrome and Firefox that automatically indicates when an article is freely accessible and provides immediate access without further trouble. Unpaywall is also unscammy, works well, is itself offered free to use. The organizers (a legitimate nonprofit) report about a 50% success rate

• The weekly New Research catch is checked against the Unpaywall database with accessible items being flagged. Especially for just-published articles this mechansim may fail. If you're interested in an article title and it is not listed here as "open access," be sure to check the link anyway. 

How is New Research assembled?

Most articles appearing here are found via  RSS feeds from journal publishers, filtered by search terms to produce raw output for assessment of relevance. 

Relevant articles are then queried against the Unpaywall database, to identify open access articles and expose useful metadata for articles appearing in the database. 

The objective of New Research isn't to cast a tinge on scientific results, to color readers' impressions. Hence candidate articles are assessed via two metrics only:

• Was an article deemed of sufficient merit by a team of journal editors and peer reviewers? The fact of journal RSS output assigns a "yes" to this automatically. 
• Is an article relevant to the topic of anthropogenic climate change? Due to filter overlap with other publication topics of inquiry, of a typical week's 550 or so input articles about 1/4 of RSS output makes the cut.

A few journals offer public access to "preprint" versions of articles for which the review process is not yet complete. For some key journals this all the mention we'll see in RSS feeds, so we include such items in New Research. These are flagged as "preprint."

The section "Informed opinion, nudges & major initiatives" includes some items that are not scientific research per se but fall instead into the category of "perspectives," observations of implications of research findings, areas needing attention, etc.

What does "(provisional link)" mean?

When the input list for New Research is processed, some articles do not produce a result from the journal databases we employ. Usually this is because the publisher has not yet supplied information to doi.org for the given article. In these cases and in order to still include timely listing of articles, we employ an alternate search tactic. While this method is usually correct, sometimes the link shown will lead to an incorrect destination (available time does not always permit manual checking of these). We invite readers to submit corrections in comments below.

Each edition of New Research is reprocessed some two weeks after intitial publication to catch stragglers into the DOI ecosystem. Many "provisional links" will end up being corrected as part of this process. 

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