As you watch the Aurora this evening, it’s worth reflecting that you’re getting a rare direct glimpse of the power of Nature. Those charged particles causing the atmosphere to glow came from a sunspot complex 17 times the diameter of Earth and traveled across 90 million miles at a million miles an hour. Without our magnetic field to protect us, our atmosphere would have been lost to space long ago. Those colours in the sky are Nature reminding us that we’re very lucky to be here amidst the violence. And perhaps therefore also reminding us not to shite it all up :-)
Dubai International Airport 🇦🇪 has recorded nearly 160 mm (6.3 inches) of rain in the last 24 hours. For context, most of the Dubaï metro typically averages 3.5 inches per year.
This is truly a historic event for the area.
Delighted to host @kathrynmoore for a meeting on her exciting vision for a West Midlands National Park💚
It’s about more than trees & open space - it’s about addressing deep-rooted issues like health & environmental inequalities🌳
Follow @WMNP_Lab for more info💚
This is highly disturbing news. While we obsess about war, politics, the details of our daily lives, the planet beneath our feet seems to be getting ready to shrug us off.
“Someone with a 1-hr car commute needs to earn 40% more to be as happy as someone with a short walk to work. On the other hand, if someone shifts from a long commute to a walk, their happiness increases as much as if they’d fallen in love.” #CityMakingMath
https://t.co/L9qdJ22ngc
Mary Robinson reacts to the release of the draft text at #COP28:
“It is not good enough to say you recognise and respect the science but then fail to take heed of its dire warnings in the collective action you commit to.
It is not good enough to note with ‘alarm and serious concern’ the findings of the IPCC Sixth Assessment Report and the damage being caused by climate change but then fail to put in place the steps the science recommends.
It is not good enough to say you reaffirm the Paris Agreement but to then fail to commit to a full fossil fuel phase out.
It is not good enough to use weak language or to permit loopholes for the fossil fuel industry to continue to contribute to the very problem countries are meant to be committed to tackling here in Dubai.
Adequate time and opportunity still lie ahead, provided that nations promptly return to the negotiating table, equipped with the resolve required for a crisis of this magnitude and a readiness to undertake the necessary measures. This current version of the COP28 text is grossly insufficient.”
Mary Robinson, Chair of The Elders
#DraftText #COP28UAE
I'm of the view that this piece from James Hansen and 17 others last week is one of the most important published on the state of the climate crisis in years. A 🧵
Sobering for all as we all consume what these ships are moving "for us".
This is the recent position in the world of ships that run diesel or heavy fuel oil - the most polluting grade of oil.
It only takes 15 big commercial ships to consume more than all the cars in the world.
The carnage left behind by the rain this week, not just in the East Midlands but the country as a whole. is going to take some time to fully appreciate. Crops already drilled will suffer and fields not yet planted will now have to wait until the Spring
What does #spain do when the water runs out? The Puente Nuevo reservoir in Andalucía is currently only at 10.8% of its total capacity. TEN PERCENT! Those levels of drought are incredible.
@ThrimbyFarms This was part of my very first job, as a teenager. 35 years later that early morning scrape is still one of the most satisfying tasks of my life. Difficult to explain, but if you know, you know.