livescience--2020-12-16--Stunningly preserved ‘Cretaceous Pompeii’ fossils may not be what they seem

Did a `` Cretaceous `` doom a pair of dinosaurs , burying them in a deadly ash flow and preserving them in 3D like the human victims of Mount Vesuvius in A.D. 79 ?
Not quite , scientists revealed at the annual meeting of the American Geophysical Union ( AGU ) .
The 3D preservation of two psittacosaurs — beaked dinosaurs with heads that resembled those of modern parrots , earning them the name `` parrot lizards '' — likely happened because the dinosaurs were huddled inside a burrow that filled with mud , fully covering the animals before they @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Dec. 14 at AGU , which was held virtually this year due to the COVID-19 pandemic .
Paleontologists examined two Psittacosaurus lujiatunensis skeletons that came from northeast China 's Yixian Formation in Liaoning Province .
The Lujiatun outcropping within that formation is known for its rich deposits of Cretaceous fossils , many of which are preserved in 3D and even retain soft tissue , feathers or coloration , the scientists said at AGU .
Past studies proposed that the psittacosaurs and other 3D fossils at the site had been engulfed by either a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ river of ash , lava and volcanic gases ) or a lahar , which is another type of powerful volcanic debris flow that adds mud to the deadly mix .
Those flows rapidly encase any living thing in their path , which is exactly what happened at Pompeii , where an estimated 2,000 people perished and were frozen in time , their bodies preserved in gruesomely lifelike poses as layers of ash hardened around them .
For the research presented at AGU , the authors sampled two locations in each P. lujiatunensis fossil @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the rocky matrix surrounding the skeleton and the matrix within the skeleton , and analyzed a type of mineral known as a zircon to determine how old those grains were .
They found that many particles in the matrix outside the skeletons were very old , dating from 250 million to 2.5 billion years ago .
However , the rocks in the Lujiatun deposits were much younger , only about 125 million years old .
The proportion of older grains was much higher than it would have been if the dinosaurs had been @ @ @ @ @ @ @ lahar that created the surrounding rocks , suggesting that earlier hypotheses of how the dinosaurs died `` are implausible , '' lead researcher Elaine Chen , an undergraduate student at Columbia University in New York City , told Live Science in an email .
Chen conducted her research during an internship at Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory in Columbia 's Earth Institute .
However , flowing rivers would be more likely to carry a range of older sediments .
And if the dinosaurs were in a burrow that suddenly collapsed around them after flooding , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in exquisite 3D , Chen said .
In September , another team of scientists described a new dinosaur species that they named Changmiania liaoningensis , or `` eternal sleeper from Liaoning , '' that was also identified as a burrowing dinosaur .
It was so named because the two individuals of that species found were preserved in 3D in what appeared to be sleeping poses , likely because they peacefully dozed off in an underground den just before they died , .
If the two psittacosaurs were also burrow-dwellers — which they were @ @ @ @ @ @ @ could offer scientists intriguing new clues about the dinosaurs ' behavior and social habits .
But as these findings are preliminary , more research will be necessary to test this hypothesis , Chen said in the email .

Did a "Cretaceous Pompeii " doom a pair of dinosaurs, burying them in a deadly ash flow and preserving them in 3D like the human victims of Mount Vesuvius in A.D. 79?
Not quite, scientists revealed at the annual meeting of the American Geophysical Union (AGU).
The 3D preservation of two psittacosaurs — beaked dinosaurs with heads that resembled those of modern parrots, earning them the name "parrot lizards" — likely happened because the dinosaurs were huddled inside a burrow that filled with mud, fully covering the animals before they fossilized. Researchers presented their findings on Dec. 14 at AGU, which was held virtually this year due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Related: Preserved Pompeii: Photos of a city in ash
Paleontologists examined two Psittacosaurus lujiatunensis skeletons that came from northeast China's Yixian Formation in Liaoning Province. The Lujiatun outcropping within that formation is known for its rich deposits of Cretaceous fossils, many of which are preserved in 3D and even retain soft tissue, feathers or coloration, the scientists said at AGU.
Past studies proposed that the psittacosaurs and other 3D fossils at the site had been engulfed by either a pyroclastic flow (a dense and fast-moving river of ash, lava and volcanic gases) or a lahar, which is another type of powerful volcanic debris flow that adds mud to the deadly mix. Those flows rapidly encase any living thing in their path, which is exactly what happened at Pompeii, where an estimated 2,000 people perished and were frozen in time, their bodies preserved in gruesomely lifelike poses as layers of ash hardened around them.
Matrix samples from this P. lujiatunensis fossil (IVPP-18344) offered clues about how the dinosaur may have died. (Image credit: Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology/Photo courtesy of Elaine Chen)
Ancient grains
For the research presented at AGU, the authors sampled two locations in each P. lujiatunensis fossil: They extracted sediment grains from both the rocky matrix surrounding the skeleton and the matrix within the skeleton, and analyzed a type of mineral known as a zircon to determine how old those grains were. They found that many particles in the matrix outside the skeletons were very old, dating from 250 million to 2.5 billion years ago. However, the rocks in the Lujiatun deposits were much younger, only about 125 million years old.
The proportion of older grains was much higher than it would have been if the dinosaurs had been buried by the same pyroclastic flow or lahar that created the surrounding rocks, suggesting that earlier hypotheses of how the dinosaurs died "are implausible," lead researcher Elaine Chen, an undergraduate student at Columbia University in New York City, told Live Science in an email. Chen conducted her research during an internship at Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory in Columbia's Earth Institute.
However, flowing rivers would be more likely to carry a range of older sediments. And if the dinosaurs were in a burrow that suddenly collapsed around them after flooding, that would have preserved the articulated skeletons in exquisite 3D, Chen said.
In September, another team of scientists described a new dinosaur species that they named Changmiania liaoningensis, or "eternal sleeper from Liaoning," that was also identified as a burrowing dinosaur. It was so named because the two individuals of that species found were preserved in 3D in what appeared to be sleeping poses, likely because they peacefully dozed off in an underground den just before they died, Live Science previously reported .
If the two psittacosaurs were also burrow-dwellers — which they were not previously thought to be — that could offer scientists intriguing new clues about the dinosaurs' behavior and social habits. But as these findings are preliminary, more research will be necessary to test this hypothesis, Chen said in the email.
Originally published on Live Science.


livescience--2020-12-16--Nor'easter could drop a foot of snow on New England

A gusty winter storm will hit the East Coast on Thursday ( Dec. 17 ) and drop more snow than much of New England saw all last year .
`` This is going to be a significant snowstorm — the biggest snowstorm that we 've had in the Northeast for a couple of years , '' meteorologist Ari Sarsalari said Dec. 16 on .
The storm is currently pelting freezing rain in parts of North Carolina and Virginia , and has begun to fall in the Ohio Valley , Appalachians and mid-Atlantic , .
The storm is expected to intensify @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Wednesday ( Dec. 16 ) night ; overall , it could drop more than 1 foot of snow ( 0.3 meters ) over western Maryland and southern New England .
Related : 10 signs that Earth 's climate Is off the rails Last winter , New York City saw its second-smallest snow total on record , ; Central Park only got 4.8 inches ( 12.2 centimeters ) of snow in the months of December , January and February , combined .
By comparison , during the second-snowiest winter of the past decade , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ) of snow fell in Central Park ; that was between December 2010 and February 2011 .
These drastic variations in weather can be chalked up to , Mark Wysocki , the New York State climatologist , told The Times .
`` In the 2000s , we ’ re seeing these extremes , between the driest and the wettest .
Because of the climate changing , this is what we would expect , this volatility , '' Wysocki said .

A gusty winter storm will hit the East Coast on Thursday (Dec. 17) and drop more snow than much of New England saw all last year.
"This is going to be a significant snowstorm — the biggest snowstorm that we've had in the Northeast for a couple of years," meteorologist Ari Sarsalari said Dec. 16 on The Weather Channel . The storm is currently pelting freezing rain in parts of North Carolina and Virginia, and snow has begun to fall in the Ohio Valley, Appalachians and mid-Atlantic, according to current weather reports .
The storm is expected to intensify as it approaches the Eastern Seaboard on Wednesday (Dec. 16) night; overall, it could drop more than 1 foot of snow (0.3 meters) over western Maryland and southern New England.
Related: 10 signs that Earth's climate Is off the rails
Last winter, New York City saw its second-smallest snow total on record, The New York Times reported ; Central Park only got 4.8 inches (12.2 centimeters) of snow in the months of December, January and February, combined. By comparison, during the second-snowiest winter of the past decade, more than 5 ft (1.6 m) of snow fell in Central Park; that was between December 2010 and February 2011.
These drastic variations in weather can be chalked up to climate change , Mark Wysocki, the New York State climatologist, told The Times.
"In the 2000s, we’re seeing these extremes, between the driest and the wettest. Because of the climate changing, this is what we would expect, this volatility," Wysocki said.
Originally published on Live Science.


livescience--2020-12-16--1st wild animal in US infected with SARS-CoV-2 found in Utah

A wild mink in Utah tested positive for SARS-CoV-2 , the virus that causes COVID-19 , and it may be the first `` free-ranging , native wild animal '' with a confirmed coronavirus infection , according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture ( USDA ) .
There 's no evidence that the spread further than this one infected , but if SARS-CoV-2 begins circulating among wild animals , that could place humanity at risk for future , .
Viruses often pick up mutations as they hop between animal species , and if this virus were to mutate significantly , COVID-19 @ @ @ @ @ @ @ new version , should it spread back to humans .
The infected critter was found near a mink farm in Utah , which has reported infections among its animals , according to a Dec. 13 from the USDA National Veterinary Services Laboratories .
Veterinarians collected a sample of the virus using a nasal swab and found the virus to be `` indistinguishable '' from samples collected from infected mink on the farm .
This suggests that the wild mink picked up the infection from the farmed mink , potentially through wastewater runoff , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the wild and could spread the infection in that way , Live Science previously reported .
Related : 20 of the worst epidemics and pandemics in history The USDA Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service has screened other animal species for the virus near mink farms in Utah , Michigan and Wisconsin , but so far those tests have come back negative , according to the statement .
Just the one infected wild mink has been spotted so far , but it 's possible that more may be out there , Stephanie Seifert @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 's School for Global Animal Health , told Vox .
It ’ s `` very unlikely they swabbed the only wild mink with SARS-CoV-2 , '' Seifert said .
If allowed to spread unchecked in wild animals , the coronavirus could evolve to infect a wider range of species than it currently can , Live Science previously reported .
In addition , wild animals could potentially serve as a reservoir for the virus — a population in which the pathogen could continue to spread and mutate .
The virus could potentially jump from @ @ @ @ @ @ @ new waves of infection .
`` If it does [ establish a reservoir ] , then we 've got a long-term issue here , where this virus has the potential to be with us for millennia , '' Sarah Olson , associate director of the health program at the Wildlife Conservation Society , told Vox .

A wild mink in Utah tested positive for SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19, and it may be the first "free-ranging, native wild animal" with a confirmed coronavirus infection, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA).
There's no evidence that the virus spread further than this one infected mink , but if SARS-CoV-2 begins circulating among wild animals, that could place humanity at risk for future pandemics , Live Science previously reported . Viruses often pick up mutations as they hop between animal species, and if this virus were to mutate significantly, COVID-19 vaccines may not protect well against the new version, should it spread back to humans.
The infected critter was found near a mink farm in Utah, which has reported coronavirus infections among its animals, according to a Dec. 13 statement from the USDA National Veterinary Services Laboratories. Veterinarians collected a sample of the virus using a nasal swab and found the virus to be "indistinguishable" from samples collected from infected mink on the farm. This suggests that the wild mink picked up the infection from the farmed mink, potentially through wastewater runoff, Vox reported . Farmed mink can sometimes escape into the wild and could spread the infection in that way, Live Science previously reported.
Related: 20 of the worst epidemics and pandemics in history
The USDA Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service has screened other animal species for the virus near mink farms in Utah, Michigan and Wisconsin, but so far those tests have come back negative, according to the statement. Just the one infected wild mink has been spotted so far, but it's possible that more may be out there, Stephanie Seifert, a researcher at Washington State University's School for Global Animal Health, told Vox.
It’s "very unlikely they swabbed the only wild mink with SARS-CoV-2," Seifert said.
If allowed to spread unchecked in wild animals, the coronavirus could evolve to infect a wider range of species than it currently can, Live Science previously reported. In addition, wild animals could potentially serve as a reservoir for the virus — a population in which the pathogen could continue to spread and mutate. The virus could potentially jump from this reservoir back into humans, sparking new waves of infection.
"If it does [establish a reservoir], then we've got a long-term issue here, where this virus has the potential to be with us for millennia," Sarah Olson, associate director of the health program at the Wildlife Conservation Society, told Vox.
Originally published on Live Science.


livescience--2020-12-16--Red Sea oil tanker 4 times as big as Exxon Valdez could spill any day now

A mammoth tanker is decaying into the Red Sea , threatening the water supply of millions of people and the world 's most resilient .
Known as the Safer , the vessel is 1,188 feet ( 362 meters ) long and holds 1 million barrels ( 42 million gallons or 159 million liters ) of oil in its 34 storage tanks .
A Yemeni oil company owns the ship , which requires constant upkeep under normal circumstances to stay safe .
With Yemen at war since 2014 , the company has failed to maintain the ship at all .
The @ @ @ @ @ @ @ port Hudaydah in Yemen , where it once served as a floating storage unit .
There 's now oil seeping into the water around the vessel , risking a major leak , according to a new paper .
`` The time is now to prevent a potential devastation to the region 's waters and the livelihoods and health of millions of people living in half a dozen countries along the Red Sea 's coast , '' Dr. Karine Kleinhaus , a marine biologist and physician at the Stony Brook University in New York @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of the Safer ruptured , the spill would dump four times more oil into the Red Sea — a long , narrow inlet of the Indian Ocean separating the Arabian Peninsula from north Africa — than the Exxon Valdez released along the Alaskan coastline in 1989 .
Djibouti , Eritrea , Israel-Palestine , Jordan , Saudi Arabia , Sudan and Yemen all border the Red Sea or one of its inlets .
Each of these countries would face environmental consequences from a major spill .
The Red Sea is also home to coral @ @ @ @ @ @ @ rising temperatures of climate change than the dying reefs elsewhere in the world .
A computer model used for the new paper , published today ( Dec. 15 ) in the journal Frontiers in Marine Science , showed the oil would disperse widely in the event of a spill .
The worst-case scenario would be a winter spill , they wrote .
During winter , the currents are set up to disperse oil more widely .
`` If a spill from the Safer is allowed to occur , the oil would spread via @ @ @ @ @ @ @ resource , as the coral reefs of the northern Red Sea and Gulf of Aqaba [ located at the northern tip of the Red Sea ] are projected to be among the last reef ecosystems in the world to survive the coming decades , '' Kleinhaus said .
The Houthis , a Yemeni armed group that controls territory near the vessel , said Nov. 24 they would allow the United Nations to work on the vessel , according to The New York Times .
But it may be too late , the authors @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , and no one from the U.N. has reached the vessel yet .
Even if a disaster is averted here , the researchers wrote , going forward there needs to be stricter rules governing ships used in the Red Sea , where millions of barrels of oil move every day .

A mammoth oil tanker is decaying into the Red Sea, threatening the water supply of millions of people and the world's most resilient coral reef .
Known as the Safer, the vessel is 1,188 feet (362 meters) long and holds 1 million barrels (42 million gallons or 159 million liters) of oil in its 34 storage tanks. A Yemeni oil company owns the ship, which requires constant upkeep under normal circumstances to stay safe. With Yemen at war since 2014, the company has failed to maintain the ship at all. The Safer lies abandoned and rusting near the port Hudaydah in Yemen, where it once served as a floating storage unit. There's now oil seeping into the water around the vessel, risking a major leak, according to a new paper.
"The time is now to prevent a potential devastation to the region's waters and the livelihoods and health of millions of people living in half a dozen countries along the Red Sea's coast," Dr. Karine Kleinhaus, a marine biologist and physician at the Stony Brook University in New York, said in a statement .
Related: Top 10 worst oil spills
If all 34 storage tanks of the Safer ruptured, the spill would dump four times more oil into the Red Sea — a long, narrow inlet of the Indian Ocean separating the Arabian Peninsula from north Africa — than the Exxon Valdez released along the Alaskan coastline in 1989.
Djibouti, Eritrea, Israel-Palestine, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, Sudan and Yemen all border the Red Sea or one of its inlets. Each of these countries would face environmental consequences from a major spill.
The Red Sea is also home to coral reefs that are more resilient to the rising temperatures of climate change than the dying reefs elsewhere in the world. A computer model used for the new paper, published today (Dec. 15) in the journal Frontiers in Marine Science, showed the oil would disperse widely in the event of a spill. The worst-case scenario would be a winter spill, they wrote. During winter, the currents are set up to disperse oil more widely.
"If a spill from the Safer is allowed to occur, the oil would spread via ocean currents to devastate a global ocean resource, as the coral reefs of the northern Red Sea and Gulf of Aqaba [located at the northern tip of the Red Sea] are projected to be among the last reef ecosystems in the world to survive the coming decades," Kleinhaus said.
The Houthis, a Yemeni armed group that controls territory near the vessel, said Nov. 24 they would allow the United Nations to work on the vessel, according to The New York Times . But it may be too late, the authors wrote. The tanker is actively decaying, and no one from the U.N. has reached the vessel yet.
Even if a disaster is averted here, the researchers wrote, going forward there needs to be stricter rules governing ships used in the Red Sea, where millions of barrels of oil move every day.
Originally published on Live Science.


livescience--2020-12-16--World's oldest python fossil unearthed

World's oldest python fossil unearthed

Scientists have discovered fossils of the oldest on record , a slithery beast that lived 48 million years ago in what is now Germany .
Found near an ancient lake , the snake remains are helping researchers learn where pythons originated .
Previously , it was n't clear whether pythons came from continents in the Southern Hemisphere , where they live today , or the Northern Hemisphere , where their closest living relatives ( the sunbeam snakes of Southeast Asia and the Mexican burrowing python ) are found .
But this newfound species — dubbed Messelopython freyi — suggests that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ far , there have been no early that would help decide between a Northern and Southern Hemisphere origin , '' study co-researcher Krister Smith , vertebrate paleontologist at the Senckenberg Research Institute in Frankfurt , Germany , told Live Science in an email .
`` Our new fossils are by far the oldest records of pythons , and ( being in Europe ) they support an origin in the Northern Hemisphere . ''
The M. freyi fossils were found at Messel Fossil Pit , near Frankfurt , Germany .
Formerly an oil shale @ @ @ @ @ @ @ garbage dump in the 1970s .
( `` A big hole in the ground is a valuable commodity , '' Smith said . )
But by then , the site was already known for its remarkable fossils dating to the ( between 57 million and 36 million years ago ) .
So , in 1995 it became a ( United Nations Educational , Scientific and Cultural Organization ) site .
Fossils unearthed there include a , and .
M. freyi would have been about the same size as today 's small pythons , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ) in length and sporting about 275 vertebrae , the researchers said .
The ancient python also sheds light on its relationship with .
In effect , the discovery shows that this early European python lived alongside boa constrictors , a startling find given that boas do n't live anywhere near modern-day pythons .
In general , boas live in South and Central America , Madagascar and northern Oceania , whereas pythons inhabit Africa , Southeast Asia and Australia .
`` This is one of the most exciting and intriguing aspects of the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ co-researcher Hussam Zaher , professor and curator of vertebrates at the Museum of Zoology at the University of São Paulo , in Brazil .
Researchers already knew that boas lived in Europe during the early Paleogene period , which lasted from 66 million to 23 million years ago .
Now that it 's clear pythons lived there too , it raises questions about how these `` direct ecological competitors , '' which both squeeze prey to death , coexisted , Zaher told Live Science in an email .
This question may be answered @ @ @ @ @ @ @ fossils , especially those with preserved stomach contents , he said .
In addition , researchers can look to southern Florida , where python ( Python molurus bivittatus and P. sebae ) and boa ( Boa constrictor ) species coexist as invasive species .
It 's not yet clear whether the P. molurus bivittatus and B. constrictor living in the Sunshine State `` are competing over resources or may be using slightly different microhabitat and preys , '' Zaher said .
`` A similar situation may have happened in Europe during the Eocene @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Wednesday ( Dec. 16 ) in the journal .

Scientists have discovered fossils of the oldest python on record, a slithery beast that lived 48 million years ago in what is now Germany.
Found near an ancient lake, the snake remains are helping researchers learn where pythons originated. Previously, it wasn't clear whether pythons came from continents in the Southern Hemisphere, where they live today, or the Northern Hemisphere, where their closest living relatives (the sunbeam snakes of Southeast Asia and the Mexican burrowing python) are found. But this newfound species — dubbed Messelopython freyi — suggests that pythons evolved in Europe.
"So far, there have been no early fossils that would help decide between a Northern and Southern Hemisphere origin," study co-researcher Krister Smith, vertebrate paleontologist at the Senckenberg Research Institute in Frankfurt, Germany, told Live Science in an email. "Our new fossils are by far the oldest records of pythons, and (being in Europe) they support an origin in the Northern Hemisphere."
Related: Image gallery: Snakes of the world
The M. freyi fossils were found at Messel Fossil Pit, near Frankfurt, Germany. Formerly an oil shale mine, this site almost became a garbage dump in the 1970s. ("A big hole in the ground is a valuable commodity," Smith said.) But by then, the site was already known for its remarkable fossils dating to the Eocene epoch (between 57 million and 36 million years ago). So, in 1995 it became a UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization) site. Fossils unearthed there include a pregnant mare , mating turtles and shimmering beetles .
Image 1 of 2 The first discovered fossil belonging to the newfound species Messelopython freyi. (Image credit: Copyright Senckenberg Gesellschaft für Naturforschung) A sketch (left) and photo of a skull (right) of one of the newly analyzed python fossils. (Image credit: Copyright Senckenberg Gesellschaft für Naturforschung)
M. freyi would have been about the same size as today's small pythons, reaching nearly 3.2 feet (1 meter) in length and sporting about 275 vertebrae, the researchers said. The ancient python also sheds light on its relationship with boa constrictors .
In effect, the discovery shows that this early European python lived alongside boa constrictors, a startling find given that boas don't live anywhere near modern-day pythons. In general, boas live in South and Central America, Madagascar and northern Oceania, whereas pythons inhabit Africa, Southeast Asia and Australia. "This is one of the most exciting and intriguing aspects of the discovery of Messelopython," said study co-researcher Hussam Zaher, professor and curator of vertebrates at the Museum of Zoology at the University of São Paulo, in Brazil.
Researchers already knew that boas lived in Europe during the early Paleogene period, which lasted from 66 million to 23 million years ago. Now that it's clear pythons lived there too, it raises questions about how these "direct ecological competitors," which both squeeze prey to death, coexisted, Zaher told Live Science in an email.
This question may be answered by finding more early python and boa fossils, especially those with preserved stomach contents, he said. In addition, researchers can look to southern Florida, where python (Python molurus bivittatus and P. sebae) and boa (Boa constrictor) species coexist as invasive species. It's not yet clear whether the P. molurus bivittatus and B. constrictor living in the Sunshine State "are competing over resources or may be using slightly different microhabitat and preys," Zaher said. "A similar situation may have happened in Europe during the Eocene."
The study was published online Wednesday (Dec. 16) in the journal Biology Letters .
Originally published on Live Science.


livescience--2020-12-16--US could reach 'net-zero' carbon by 2050. Here's how.

The U.S. can cut its carbon output to zero by the middle of the 21st century , according to a sweeping new Princeton University study .
In such a `` net-zero '' scenario , the American carbon output would be equal to or lesser to the carbon pulled out of the atmosphere on U.S. soil .
But to get there , the country must start now .
American per-capita carbon emissions are the highest in the world , according to the , with the country emitting 17.6 tons ( 16 metric tons ) of carbon for ever person in 2016 @ @ @ @ @ @ @ China in its total contributions to .
President-elect Joe Biden campaigned on achieving net-zero emissions by 2050 .
And according to the Princeton study , that goal is achievable and would even be cheaper than remaining on the economy 's current course .
But urgent action is needed in the next decade to make it happen .
`` We find that each net-zero pathway results in a net increase in energy-sector employment and delivers significant reductions in air pollution , leading to public health benefits that begin immediately in the first decade of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in the , published Dec. 15 on the Princeton website .
`` The study also concludes that a successful net-zero transition could be accomplished with annual spending on energy that is comparable or lower as a percentage of GDP to what the nation spends annually on energy today . ''
There is n't one way to achieve the goal , the authors found .
In their model , they tested approaches using only renewable energy and others that relied more heavily on next-generation nuclear technologies ( including ones that still produce nuclear waste @ @ @ @ @ @ @ — landing on five possible routes the U.S. might take to a net-zero 2050 .
But regardless of the route taken , certain steps must be taken before 2030 , the authors wrote .
Those include putting 50 million electric cars on the road and 3 million public charging ports , increasing the use of electric heating systems in homes from today 's 10 % to 23 % , tripling the use of electric heating on commercial property , quadrupling wind and solar capacity from today 's 150 gigawatts to 600 gigawatts , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ renewable energy over long distances and reducing non-carbon dioxide ( CO2 ) output , nitrous oxide ( N20 ) and methane ( CH4 ) , by 10 % .
The researchers also called for changing forest and agricultural management practices to increase the amount of carbon permanently removed from the atmosphere by plants each year , developing a pipeline network for moving carbon pulled out of the air to underground storage facilities , and investing in developing power technologies like hydrogen combustion power plants .

The U.S. can cut its carbon output to zero by the middle of the 21st century, according to a sweeping new Princeton University study. In such a "net-zero" scenario, the American carbon output would be equal to or lesser to the carbon pulled out of the atmosphere on U.S. soil.
But to get there, the country must start now.
American per-capita carbon emissions are the highest in the world, according to the World Bank , with the country emitting 17.6 tons (16 metric tons) of carbon for ever person in 2016. The U.S. is second only to China in its total contributions to climate change . President-elect Joe Biden campaigned on achieving net-zero emissions by 2050. And according to the Princeton study, that goal is achievable and would even be cheaper than remaining on the economy's current course. But urgent action is needed in the next decade to make it happen.
"We find that each net-zero pathway results in a net increase in energy-sector employment and delivers significant reductions in air pollution, leading to public health benefits that begin immediately in the first decade of the transition," the authors wrote in the report , published Dec. 15 on the Princeton website. "The study also concludes that a successful net-zero transition could be accomplished with annual spending on energy that is comparable or lower as a percentage of GDP to what the nation spends annually on energy today."
Related: 10 climate myths busted
There isn't one way to achieve the goal, the authors found. In their model, they tested approaches using only renewable energy and others that relied more heavily on next-generation nuclear technologies (including ones that still produce nuclear waste), carbon capture and natural gas — landing on five possible routes the U.S. might take to a net-zero 2050. But regardless of the route taken, certain steps must be taken before 2030, the authors wrote.
Those include putting 50 million electric cars on the road and 3 million public charging ports, increasing the use of electric heating systems in homes from today's 10% to 23%, tripling the use of electric heating on commercial property, quadrupling wind and solar capacity from today's 150 gigawatts to 600 gigawatts, building high voltage transmission infrastructure to carry renewable energy over long distances and reducing non-carbon dioxide (CO2) greenhouse gas output, nitrous oxide (N20) and methane (CH4), by 10%.
The researchers also called for changing forest and agricultural management practices to increase the amount of carbon permanently removed from the atmosphere by plants each year, developing a pipeline network for moving carbon pulled out of the air to underground storage facilities, and investing in developing power technologies like hydrogen combustion power plants.
Originally published on Live Science.


livescience--2020-12-16--How a girl's 'death mask' from the 1800s became the face of CPR dolls

For 60 years , medical students have practiced CPR on a dummy doll — dubbed Resusci Annie — compressing her chest and breathing air into her plastic mouth .
The face of that dummy , it turns out , is n't made up .
It 's based on the face of a teenage girl found dead in the Seine river in Paris in the late 19th century whose body was never identified but whose visage was captured in a mold , or `` death mask . ''
A new paper in the Christmas issue of — a special edition of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ or outside-of-the-box research — tells how the nameless corpse became a CPR manikin and earned the title of `` the most kissed girl in the world . ''
`` Every year we have to carry out mandatory CPR training which utilizes these mannequins , '' Dr. Stephanie Loke , co-author of the feature and a dental trainee at Liverpool University Dental Hospital , in Liverpool , U.K. , told Live Science in an email .
She and her co-author Dr. Sarah McKernon , also of the university 's School of Dentistry , `` @ @ @ @ @ @ @ '' she added .
Related : Lifesaving Beats : Songs Can Help with CPR Training The story of Resusci Annie begins more than a century ago , when the dead body of a girl who looked about 16 was pulled from the Seine , the authors wrote .
Because her body showed no signs of violence , some people speculated that she had drowned herself intentionally .
The body was put on public display in a mortuary in hopes that someone could identify the deceased — a common practice at the time — @ @ @ @ @ @ @ became known as `` L'Inconnue de la Seine ( the Unknown Woman of the Seine ) . ''
Though anonymous , she was by no means forgotten .
The pathologist who performed her autopsy was so taken with her serene expression that he had a model maker create a plaster `` `` of her face .
The mask was replicated and sold .
In fact , the Lorenzi model makers , who , according to the paper authors made the original death mask , still sell copies of it today under the title @ @ @ @ @ @ @ la Seine . ''
In the late 1950s , when medical students were just starting to learn and practice CPR , Archer Gordon , a member of the American Heart Association '' s CPR Committee , realized that a CPR dummy could save medical students from the unnecessary pain and potential rib damage of practicing CPR on each other .
To manufacture such a thing , he and a Norwegian colleague sought the help of Norwegian toymaker Åsmund Laerdal .
It turned out , Laerdal had seen a reproduction of `` L'Inconnue de @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a relative 's house , and he decided to give the CPR manikin the same face .
Thus , in 1960 , when the Laerdal company built the first CPR manikins , `` L'Inconnue de la Seine '' became `` Resusci Annie , '' the CPR dummy , or Resusci Anne , as Laerdal refers to the doll on its website .
Before making CPR manikins , Laerdal had manufactured a doll named Anne .
`` Perhaps , this is the name that stuck , '' Loke said .
The doll , made @ @ @ @ @ @ @ chest so that students could practice chest compressions and open lips so that they could practice mouth-to-mouth resuscitation .
Making the CPR manikin changed the course of the Laerdal company from toys to medical devices , as it describes on its , where Resusci Anne is still available for purchase .
The company estimates that 300 million people around the world have been trained in CPR , most of them with the help of Resusci Anne .
One of those people , it seems , was Michael Jackson , who included the refrain @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in the song `` Smooth Criminal '' after he was inspired by his own CPR training , according to the BMJ paper .
( This line is also used in CPR training when trainees check for a response in the patient . )
But what about the ethics of making reproductions of a deceased person 's face and selling them without consent ?
In an published in the same issue of BMJ , writer and ethicist Julian Sheather notes that although putting bodies on display and passing around death masks were common practices @ @ @ @ @ @ @ de la Seine '' died , those practices would be `` ethically troubling '' today .
`` Few people would want an image of a dead loved one widely circulated without consent , '' Sheather wrote .
In the editorial , Sheather seeks a middle ground between judging the past by present-day standards and suspending judgment of history altogether .
`` While I probably wouldn '' t seek to remove the manikins in circulation , if making them now I might be tempted , out of respect , to anonymize her face , @ @ @ @

A drowned woman became "the most kissed girl in the world" after a model of her face was used to design a CPR dummy.
For 60 years, medical students have practiced CPR on a dummy doll — dubbed Resusci Annie — compressing her chest and breathing air into her plastic mouth. The face of that dummy, it turns out, isn't made up. It's based on the face of a teenage girl found dead in the Seine river in Paris in the late 19th century whose body was never identified but whose visage was captured in a mold, or "death mask."
A new paper in the Christmas issue of The BMJ — a special edition of the medical journal that can include lighthearted or outside-of-the-box research — tells how the nameless corpse became a CPR manikin and earned the title of "the most kissed girl in the world."
"Every year we have to carry out mandatory CPR training which utilizes these mannequins," Dr. Stephanie Loke, co-author of the feature and a dental trainee at Liverpool University Dental Hospital, in Liverpool, U.K., told Live Science in an email. She and her co-author Dr. Sarah McKernon, also of the university's School of Dentistry, "simply wondered who the face was!" she added.
Related: Lifesaving Beats: Songs Can Help with CPR Training
The story of Resusci Annie begins more than a century ago, when the dead body of a girl who looked about 16 was pulled from the Seine, the authors wrote. Because her body showed no signs of violence, some people speculated that she had drowned herself intentionally. The body was put on public display in a mortuary in hopes that someone could identify the deceased — a common practice at the time — but nobody identified the teen. She became known as "L'Inconnue de la Seine (the Unknown Woman of the Seine)."
Though anonymous, she was by no means forgotten. The pathologist who performed her autopsy was so taken with her serene expression that he had a model maker create a plaster " death mask " of her face. The mask was replicated and sold. In fact, the Lorenzi model makers, who, according to the paper authors made the original death mask, still sell copies of it today under the title "Noyée [Drowned Woman] de la Seine."
The death mask of "L'Inconnue de la Seine (the Unknown Woman of the Seine)." (Image credit: The BMJ)
In the late 1950s, when medical students were just starting to learn and practice CPR, Archer Gordon, a member of the American Heart Association"s CPR Committee, realized that a CPR dummy could save medical students from the unnecessary pain and potential rib damage of practicing CPR on each other. To manufacture such a thing, he and a Norwegian colleague sought the help of Norwegian toymaker Åsmund Laerdal.
It turned out, Laerdal had seen a reproduction of "L'Inconnue de la Seine" on the wall of a relative's house, and he decided to give the CPR manikin the same face. Thus, in 1960, when the Laerdal company built the first CPR manikins, "L'Inconnue de la Seine" became "Resusci Annie," the CPR dummy, or Resusci Anne, as Laerdal refers to the doll on its website. Before making CPR manikins, Laerdal had manufactured a doll named Anne. "Perhaps, this is the name that stuck," Loke said.
The doll, made of soft plastic, had a collapsible chest so that students could practice chest compressions and open lips so that they could practice mouth-to-mouth resuscitation.
Making the CPR manikin changed the course of the Laerdal company from toys to medical devices, as it describes on its website , where Resusci Anne is still available for purchase. The company estimates that 300 million people around the world have been trained in CPR, most of them with the help of Resusci Anne. One of those people, it seems, was Michael Jackson, who included the refrain "Annie are you okay?" in the song "Smooth Criminal" after he was inspired by his own CPR training, according to the BMJ paper. (This line is also used in CPR training when trainees check for a response in the patient.)
But what about the ethics of making reproductions of a deceased person's face and selling them without consent? In an editorial published in the same issue of BMJ, writer and ethicist Julian Sheather notes that although putting bodies on display and passing around death masks were common practices in the 19th century when "L'Inconnue de la Seine" died, those practices would be "ethically troubling" today.
"Few people would want an image of a dead loved one widely circulated without consent," Sheather wrote. In the editorial, Sheather seeks a middle ground between judging the past by present-day standards and suspending judgment of history altogether. "While I probably wouldn"t seek to remove the manikins in circulation, if making them now I might be tempted, out of respect, to anonymize her face," he wrote.
Originally published on Live Science.


livescience--2020-12-17--2 calves of one of world's most endangered large whales spotted

Two rare newborn North Atlantic right whale calves were recently spotted in U.S. waters , according to news reports .
This is hopeful news , as the North Atlantic right whales ( Eubalaena glacialis ) are critically endangered with only about 400 of them left in the wild , according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration ( NOAA ) Fisheries .
Biologists from the Clearwater Marine Aquarium in Florida spotted the first of the calves on Dec. 4 near Cumberland Island , Georgia .
The young whale was born to 13-year-old Chiminea , who is believed to be a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ second calf , found off Vilano Beach in Florida on Dec. 7 , was born to 16-year-old Millipede and was seen swimming alongside bottlenose dolphins .
The North Atlantic right whale breeding season , which runs from mid-November to mid-April , is an important time of year for researchers to monitor the number of calves that are born .
Historic whaling left the species on the brink of extinction by the early 1890s , according to NOAA .
Though whaling is no longer a serious issue for right whales — thanks to an @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the International Whaling Commission ( IWC ) — other human impacts have kept their numbers low .
Entanglement in fishing gear , vessel strikes and increasing ocean noise pollution from human activities all pose a serious threat to their survival , according to NOAA .
The last three years in particular have been very challenging for North Atlantic right whales .
Since 2017 , the North Atlantic right whales have been experiencing what NOAA calls an `` unusual mortality event . ''
They report that during this time , 32 of these whales @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to entanglement and vessel strikes .
This year 's breeding season also got off to a poor start after a calf was discovered dead on the shore of a barrier island off North Carolina at the end of November , according to a statement from NOAA Fisheries .
`` With a population at such low levels , every individual counts , and it is great to see these two new calves at essentially the beginning of the calving season , '' Jamison Smith , the executive director of the Blue World Research Institute @ @ @ @ @ @ @ whales via drones , told CNN .
However , there is still a long way to go .
To maintain their population , at least 20 calves a year need to be born , according to NOAA , USA Today reported .
But in the last four seasons , North Atlantic right whales have failed to achieve this target , only birthing a combined total of 22 calves .

Two rare newborn North Atlantic right whale calves were recently spotted in U.S. waters, according to news reports.
This is hopeful news, as the North Atlantic right whales (Eubalaena glacialis) are critically endangered with only about 400 of them left in the wild, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Fisheries .
Biologists from the Clearwater Marine Aquarium in Florida spotted the first of the calves on Dec. 4 near Cumberland Island, Georgia. The young whale was born to 13-year-old Chiminea, who is believed to be a first-time mom, according to CNN . The second calf, found off Vilano Beach in Florida on Dec. 7, was born to 16-year-old Millipede and was seen swimming alongside bottlenose dolphins.
Related: In photos: tracking humpback whales
The North Atlantic right whale breeding season, which runs from mid-November to mid-April, is an important time of year for researchers to monitor the number of calves that are born.
Historic whaling left the species on the brink of extinction by the early 1890s, according to NOAA. Though whaling is no longer a serious issue for right whales — thanks to an international moratorium on whaling set up by the International Whaling Commission (IWC) — other human impacts have kept their numbers low. Entanglement in fishing gear, vessel strikes and increasing ocean noise pollution from human activities all pose a serious threat to their survival, according to NOAA.
The last three years in particular have been very challenging for North Atlantic right whales. Since 2017, the North Atlantic right whales have been experiencing what NOAA calls an "unusual mortality event." They report that during this time, 32 of these whales died and 13 were seriously injured due to entanglement and vessel strikes.
This year's breeding season also got off to a poor start after a calf was discovered dead on the shore of a barrier island off North Carolina at the end of November, according to a statement from NOAA Fisheries .
"With a population at such low levels, every individual counts, and it is great to see these two new calves at essentially the beginning of the calving season," Jamison Smith, the executive director of the Blue World Research Institute, who took photos of the newborn whales via drones, told CNN.
However, there is still a long way to go. To maintain their population, at least 20 calves a year need to be born, according to NOAA, USA Today reported. But in the last four seasons, North Atlantic right whales have failed to achieve this target, only birthing a combined total of 22 calves.
Originally published on Live Science.


livescience--2020-12-17--See the moon's shadow on Earth from the 2020 total solar eclipse in these stunning satellite views

Skywatchers in southern South America were treated to a on Monday ( Dec. 14 ) , and a weather satellite captured stunning views of the event from space .
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration 's ( NOAA ) watched as the moon 's shadow danced across the Pacific Ocean , parts of Chile and Argentina and the Atlantic Ocean during 2020 's only total solar eclipse .
NOAA shared an amazing video of the satellite imagery shortly after the eclipse .
The moon began blotting out the sun in some locations around 9:15 a.m. EST ( 1415 GMT ) @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in areas such as Lima , Peru .
Meanwhile , viewers in the path of totality — a thin strip of Chile and Argentina — saw the skies darken around 11 a.m. EST ( 1600 GMT ) for a little over two minutes .
Related : Total solar eclipse 2020 : See the moment of totality over Chile Views from GOES-16 provide an opportunity for skywatchers around the world to enjoy the total solar eclipse , since catching the event in person was difficult due to the narrow path of totality and limited @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
The captures a detailed view of Earth 's deep-blue oceans , brown and green land and swirling white clouds from space .
It shows the sun rising in the southern hemisphere and the dark shadow of the moon rolling across the Pacific Ocean and darkening skies over South America before continuing across the Atlantic Ocean .
`` Although it was mainly visible from Earth in parts of South America , GOES East had a perfect view of the moon 's shadow moving across the Earth , '' NOAA said in another tweet @ @ @ @ @ @ @ position that GOES-16 has occupied since late 2017 . )
The of Dec. 14 was this year 's last eclipse as well as its only total solar eclipse .
NASA and other sources offered live broadcasts of the event , which you can .
The next total solar eclipse will happen over the Antarctic peninsula on Dec. 4 , 2021 .
Follow Samantha Mathewson @ Sam_Ashley13 .
Follow us on Twitter @ Spacedotcom and on Facebook .

Skywatchers in southern South America were treated to a total solar eclipse on Monday (Dec. 14), and a weather satellite captured stunning views of the event from space.
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's (NOAA) GOES-16 satellite watched as the moon's shadow danced across the Pacific Ocean, parts of Chile and Argentina and the Atlantic Ocean during 2020's only total solar eclipse. NOAA shared an amazing video of the satellite imagery on Twitter shortly after the eclipse.
The moon began blotting out the sun in some locations around 9:15 a.m. EST (1415 GMT), creating a partial eclipse for viewers in areas such as Lima, Peru. Meanwhile, viewers in the path of totality — a thin strip of Chile and Argentina — saw the skies darken around 11 a.m. EST (1600 GMT) for a little over two minutes.
Related: Total solar eclipse 2020: See the moment of totality over Chile
#SATELLITE SPOTLIGHT: Here's a closer look at today's total #SolarEclipse from @NOAA's #GOES16🛰. The moon's shadow tracked over the southern Pacific Ocean, as well as across #Chile and #Argentina, before moving into the southern Atlantic Ocean just before sunset. pic.twitter.com/YoO9N36s7cDecember 14, 2020 See more
Views from GOES-16 provide an opportunity for skywatchers around the world to enjoy the total solar eclipse, since catching the event in person was difficult due to the narrow path of totality and limited travel opportunities with the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.
The NOAA video captures a detailed view of Earth's deep-blue oceans, brown and green land and swirling white clouds from space. It shows the sun rising in the southern hemisphere and the dark shadow of the moon rolling across the Pacific Ocean and darkening skies over South America before continuing across the Atlantic Ocean.
"Although it was mainly visible from Earth in parts of South America, GOES East had a perfect view of the moon's shadow moving across the Earth," NOAA said in another tweet . (GOES East is the orbital position that GOES-16 has occupied since late 2017.)
The total solar eclipse of Dec. 14 was this year's last eclipse as well as its only total solar eclipse. NASA and other sources offered live broadcasts of the event, which you can watch online . The next total solar eclipse will happen over the Antarctic peninsula on Dec. 4, 2021.
Follow Samantha Mathewson @Sam_Ashley13. Follow us on Twitter @Spacedotcom and on Facebook.


livescience--2020-12-17--China's Chang'e 5 capsule lands on Earth with the 1st new moon samples in 44 years

For the first time in more than four decades , humanity has brought moon rocks down to Earth .
A capsule loaded with lunar dirt and gravel landed in Inner Mongolia Wednesday ( Dec. 16 ) at 12:59 p.m. EST ( 1759 GMT ) , capping China 's historic and whirlwind .
The last such moon delivery came courtesy of the Soviet Union 's Luna 24 mission , which returned about 6 ounces ( 170 grams ) of material in 1976 .
Chang ' e 5 's haul should be much larger — about 4.4 lbs .
( 2 kilograms @ @ @ @ @ @ @ plan on the lunar surface .
China on the moon !
A history of Chinese lunar missions in pictures The four-module , 18,100-lb .
( 8,200 kg ) Chang ' e 5 mission — China 's first-ever sample-return effort — and arrived in lunar orbit five days later .
Two of the four modules , a lander and an attached ascent vehicle , touched down near Mons Rümker , a volcanic mountain in the moon 's huge Oceanus Procellarum ( `` Ocean of Storms '' ) region , on Dec. 1 .
The @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ground-penetrating radar and an imaging spectrometer to take the measure of its surroundings .
But the lander 's main job was to collect samples , which it busily did for the next two days , snagging stuff from the surface and from up to 6.5 feet ( 2 meters ) underground .
On Dec. 3 , this moon material launched aboard the ascent vehicle , which met up with the other two Chang ' e 5 modules — an orbiter and a return capsule — in lunar orbit on Dec. 5 .
( @ @ @ @ @ @ @ which .
But this was no great loss ; the lander would have died on Dec. 11 anyway , when darkness descended on Mons Rümker . )
The Chang ' e 5 team deorbited the ascent vehicle on Dec. 7 , sending the craft back to the moon with a crash .
Five days later , the orbiter and return capsule began the journey back to Earth , which culminated today with the capsule 's landing in Inner Mongolia .
Related : We may be in a 'golden age ' of sample-return space @ @ @ @ @ @ @ latest mission in the of robotic lunar exploration , which is named after a moon goddess in Chinese mythology .
Chang ' e 1 and Chang ' e 2 lofted moon orbiters in 2007 and 2010 , respectively , and Chang ' e 3 put a lander-rover duo down on the lunar nearside in December 2013 .
Next up was Chang ' e 5 T1 , which launched a prototype return capsule around the moon in October 2014 to help prepare for the touchdown that occurred today .
Then came , which in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ landing on the moon 's mysterious farside .
That touchdown involved a lander-rover pair , as with Chang ' e 3 .
The Chang ' e 4 lander and rover are still going strong , as is .
( The Chang ' e 3 rover died after 31 months of work on the lunar surface . )
With Chang ' e 5 's apparent success — mission teams still need to inspect and assess the returned sample — China has become just the third nation to bring moon material to Earth .
The @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the United States , which hauled home about 842 lbs .
( 382 kg ) of lunar rocks and dirt during the between 1969 and 1972 .
The Chang ' e 5 samples should provide a new window into lunar history and evolution , scientists say , given that rocks in the Mons Rümker region are thought to have formed just 1.2 billion years ago or so .
`` All of the volcanic rocks collected by Apollo were older than 3 billion years .
And all of the young impact craters whose ages @ @ @ @ @ @ @ samples are younger than 1 billion years , '' Bradley Jolliff , a planetary scientist at Washington University in St. Louis , .
`` So the Chang ' e 5 samples will fill a critical gap , '' Jolliff said .
`` These samples will be a treasure trove ! ''
Today 's landing was the second such Earth return in just 11 days .
On Dec. 5 , the return capsule of Japan 's Hayabusa2 mission touched down in the Australian Outback with precious pieces of the near-Earth asteroid Ryugu .
And @ @ @ @ @ @ @ : NASA 's OSIRIS-REx mission is scheduled to return samples of the near-Earth asteroid Bennu in September 2023 .
Mike Wall is the author of `` `` ( Grand Central Publishing , 2018 ; illustrated by Karl Tate ) , a book about the search for alien life .
Follow him on Twitter @ michaeldwall .
Follow us on Twitter @ Spacedotcom or Facebook .

For the first time in more than four decades, humanity has brought moon rocks down to Earth.
A capsule loaded with lunar dirt and gravel landed in Inner Mongolia Wednesday (Dec. 16) at 12:59 p.m. EST (1759 GMT), capping China's historic and whirlwind Chang'e 5 mission .
The last such moon delivery came courtesy of the Soviet Union's Luna 24 mission, which returned about 6 ounces (170 grams) of material in 1976. Chang'e 5's haul should be much larger — about 4.4 lbs. (2 kilograms), if all went according to plan on the lunar surface.
China on the moon! A history of Chinese lunar missions in pictures
The four-module, 18,100-lb. (8,200 kg) Chang'e 5 mission — China's first-ever sample-return effort — launched on Nov. 23 and arrived in lunar orbit five days later. Two of the four modules, a lander and an attached ascent vehicle, touched down near Mons Rümker, a volcanic mountain in the moon's huge Oceanus Procellarum ("Ocean of Storms") region, on Dec. 1.
The solar-powered lander was equipped with cameras, ground-penetrating radar and an imaging spectrometer to take the measure of its surroundings. But the lander's main job was to collect samples, which it busily did for the next two days, snagging stuff from the surface and from up to 6.5 feet (2 meters) underground.
On Dec. 3, this moon material launched aboard the ascent vehicle, which met up with the other two Chang'e 5 modules — an orbiter and a return capsule — in lunar orbit on Dec. 5. (The liftoff apparently damaged the lander, which stopped working on Dec. 3 . But this was no great loss; the lander would have died on Dec. 11 anyway, when darkness descended on Mons Rümker.)
The Chang'e 5 team deorbited the ascent vehicle on Dec. 7, sending the craft back to the moon with a crash. Five days later, the orbiter and return capsule began the journey back to Earth, which culminated today with the capsule's landing in Inner Mongolia .
Whirlwind indeed.
Related: We may be in a 'golden age' of sample-return space missions
China's Chang'e 5 sample-return capsule is seen back on Earth after delivering the first new samples of moon rocks in 44 year. The landing occurred at1:59 a.m. Dec. 17 Beijing time in the Siziwang Banner of Inner Mongolia. It was 12:59 p.m. EST (1759 GMT) and landing. (Image credit: China Lunar Exploration Project)
Chang'e 5 was the latest mission in the Chang'e program of robotic lunar exploration, which is named after a moon goddess in Chinese mythology. Chang'e 1 and Chang'e 2 lofted moon orbiters in 2007 and 2010, respectively, and Chang'e 3 put a lander-rover duo down on the lunar nearside in December 2013.
Next up was Chang'e 5 T1, which launched a prototype return capsule around the moon in October 2014 to help prepare for the touchdown that occurred today. Then came Chang'e 4 , which in January 2019 pulled off the first-ever soft landing on the moon's mysterious farside. That touchdown involved a lander-rover pair, as with Chang'e 3.
The Chang'e 4 lander and rover are still going strong, as is Chang'e 3's lander . (The Chang'e 3 rover died after 31 months of work on the lunar surface.)
With Chang'e 5's apparent success — mission teams still need to inspect and assess the returned sample — China has become just the third nation to bring moon material to Earth. The other two are the Soviet Union and the United States, which hauled home about 842 lbs. (382 kg) of lunar rocks and dirt during the six Apollo surface missions between 1969 and 1972.
Video: Watch China's Chang'e 5 mission land on the moon
The Chang'e 5 samples should provide a new window into lunar history and evolution, scientists say, given that rocks in the Mons Rümker region are thought to have formed just 1.2 billion years ago or so.
"All of the volcanic rocks collected by Apollo were older than 3 billion years. And all of the young impact craters whose ages have been determined from the analysis of samples are younger than 1 billion years," Bradley Jolliff, a planetary scientist at Washington University in St. Louis, said in a statement .
"So the Chang'e 5 samples will fill a critical gap," Jolliff said. "These samples will be a treasure trove!"
Today's landing was the second such Earth return in just 11 days. On Dec. 5, the return capsule of Japan's Hayabusa2 mission touched down in the Australian Outback with precious pieces of the near-Earth asteroid Ryugu. And there are more such cosmic deliveries coming: NASA's OSIRIS-REx mission is scheduled to return samples of the near-Earth asteroid Bennu in September 2023.


livescience--2020-12-17--Meet Au-Spot, the AI robot dog that's training to explore caves on Mars

Mars exploration is going to the dogs .
The robot dogs , that is .
Scientists are equipping four-legged , animal-mimicking robots with artificial intelligence ( AI ) and an array of sensing equipment to help the bots autonomously navigate treacherous terrain and subsurface caves on the Red Planet .
In a presentation on Dec. 14 at the annual meeting of the American Geophysical Union ( AGU ) , held online this year , researchers with NASA/JPL-Caltech introduced their `` Mars Dogs , '' which can maneuver in ways the iconic wheeled rovers such as Spirit , Opportunity , Curiosity @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
The new robots ' agility and resilience are coupled with sensors that allow them to avoid obstacles , choose between multiple paths and build virtual maps of buried tunnels and caverns for operators at home base , scientists said at AGU .
Traditional Mars rovers are limited mostly to flat surfaces , but many scientifically interesting Martian regions are only reachable by crossing very rough terrain or descending below ground .
Walking robot `` dogs '' are well-suited for such challenges — even if they fall down , they can get back @ @ @ @ @ @ @ mean mission failure , '' the scientists said during the presentation .
`` Using recovery algorithms , the robot can self-right from a multitude of falls . ''
A Mars Dog would also be roughly 12 times lighter than current rovers and would be capable of traveling much faster , reaching normal walking speeds of 3 mph ( 5 km/h ) during tests .
To put that into perspective , the Curiosity rover rolls along the Martian surface at about 0.09 mph ( 0.14 km/h ) , the researchers reported .
On Mars @ @ @ @ @ @ @ human colonies , providing natural protection against deadly UV radiation , extreme cold and intense dust storms that can last for weeks and are sometimes big enough to be spotted by telescopes on Earth , .
Caves may also harbor evidence of life from Mars ' distant past , or even provide a current home for organisms living deep underground , the researchers said at AGU .
Legged robots that can walk around rocks , lower themselves into caves and select a path — while also gathering measurements and building a map of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ offer scientists new opportunities to detect signs of life beyond Earth .
The autonomous Mars canine , dubbed `` Au-Spot , '' is a modified version of `` , '' a four-legged mechanical explorer created by the robotics company Boston Dynamics .
More than 60 scientists and engineers on the team of Collaborative SubTerranean Autonomous Resilient Robots , or CoSTAR , equipped Au-Spot with networked sensors and software to help it safely and autonomously scan , navigate and map its environment .
Au-Spot processes input from Lidar ( remote sensing using laser pulses @ @ @ @ @ @ @ sensors to create 3D maps .
The Mars Dog also uses AI to learn which structures to avoid , and to identify objects that may be of scientific interest , while a communications module allows the robot to transfer data to the surface while it 's exploring underground .
CoSTAR team members are testing Au-Spot in a range of obstacle courses , putting it through its paces in tunnels and hallways ; up stairs and ramps ; and in outdoor locations that mimic Martian landscapes , such as lava tubes in Northern California @ @ @ @ @ @ @ can navigate around boulders and map deep caves .
`` These behaviors could one day enable revolutionary scientific missions to take place on the Martian surface and subsurface , thereby pushing the boundaries of NASA 's capability in exploring traditionally inaccessible sites , '' the scientists said at AGU .

Mars exploration is going to the dogs. The robot dogs, that is.
Scientists are equipping four-legged, animal-mimicking robots with artificial intelligence (AI) and an array of sensing equipment to help the bots autonomously navigate treacherous terrain and subsurface caves on the Red Planet.
In a presentation on Dec. 14 at the annual meeting of the American Geophysical Union (AGU), held online this year, researchers with NASA/JPL-Caltech introduced their "Mars Dogs," which can maneuver in ways the iconic wheeled rovers such as Spirit, Opportunity, Curiosity and the recently launched Perseverance never could. The new robots' agility and resilience are coupled with sensors that allow them to avoid obstacles, choose between multiple paths and build virtual maps of buried tunnels and caverns for operators at home base, scientists said at AGU.
Related: Super-Intelligent Machines: 7 Robotic Futures
Traditional Mars rovers are limited mostly to flat surfaces, but many scientifically interesting Martian regions are only reachable by crossing very rough terrain or descending below ground. Walking robot "dogs" are well-suited for such challenges — even if they fall down, they can get back up again.
"Toppling does not mean mission failure," the scientists said during the presentation. "Using recovery algorithms, the robot can self-right from a multitude of falls."
A Mars Dog would also be roughly 12 times lighter than current rovers and would be capable of traveling much faster, reaching normal walking speeds of 3 mph (5 km/h) during terrestrial tests. To put that into perspective, the Curiosity rover rolls along the Martian surface at about 0.09 mph (0.14 km/h), the researchers reported.
Au-Spot scans its surroundings with an array of sensors that are processed by an onboard computer, enabling the "Mars Dog" to map what's around it in 3D. (Image credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech)
On Mars, caves may offer shelter for future human colonies, providing natural protection against deadly UV radiation, extreme cold and intense dust storms that can last for weeks and are sometimes big enough to be spotted by telescopes on Earth, according to NASA . Caves may also harbor evidence of life from Mars' distant past, or even provide a current home for organisms living deep underground, the researchers said at AGU. Legged robots that can walk around rocks, lower themselves into caves and select a path — while also gathering measurements and building a map of what they "see" — could offer scientists new opportunities to detect signs of life beyond Earth.
The autonomous Mars canine, dubbed "Au-Spot," is a modified version of " Spot ," a four-legged mechanical explorer created by the robotics company Boston Dynamics. More than 60 scientists and engineers on the team of Collaborative SubTerranean Autonomous Resilient Robots, or CoSTAR, equipped Au-Spot with networked sensors and software to help it safely and autonomously scan, navigate and map its environment.
Au-Spot processes input from Lidar (remote sensing using laser pulses), visual, thermal and motion sensors to create 3D maps. The Mars Dog also uses AI to learn which structures to avoid, and to identify objects that may be of scientific interest, while a communications module allows the robot to transfer data to the surface while it's exploring underground.
CoSTAR team members are testing Au-Spot in a range of obstacle courses, putting it through its paces in tunnels and hallways; up stairs and ramps; and in outdoor locations that mimic Martian landscapes, such as lava tubes in Northern California. Those demonstrations show that untethered robots can navigate around boulders and map deep caves.
"These behaviors could one day enable revolutionary scientific missions to take place on the Martian surface and subsurface, thereby pushing the boundaries of NASA's capability in exploring traditionally inaccessible sites," the scientists said at AGU.
Originally published on Live Science.


livescience--2020-12-17--Top 10 deadliest natural disasters in history

Every year , nearly 100,000 people perish in natural disasters — earthquakes , volcanic eruptions , hurricanes , tsunamis , floods , wildfires and droughts — while over 150 million are impacted by them , worldwide , according to the World Health Organization .
Violent natural disasters have been a fact of human life since the beginning of mankind , but the death counts of the most ancient of these disasters are lost to history .
The ancient Mediterranean island of Thera ( now Santorini , Greece ) , for example , experienced a catastrophic volcanic eruption that eradicated the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ according to a 2020 study published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academies of Sciences .
But exactly how many lives were lost ?
We 'll never know .
However , thanks to historical records and journals , historians can at least estimate the number of fatalities linked to disasters that occured in the common era .
According to such records , the following natural disasters are the deadliest of all time , ranked from lowest to highest estimated death toll .
( For those disasters for which a death toll range @ @ @ @ @ @ @ by the highest end of the estimate . )
On Oct. 11 , 1138 , the ground under the Syrian city of Aleppo began to shake .
The city sits on the confluence of the Arabian and African plates , making it prone to temblors , but this one was particularly violent .
The magnitude of the quake is lost to time , but contemporary chroniclers reported that the city 's citadel collapsed and houses crumbled across Aleppo .
The resulting death toll is estimated at around 230,000 , but that figure comes @ @ @ @ @ @ @ historian who reported it may have conflated the Aleppo quake with one that occurred in what is now the modern-day Eurasian country of Georgia , according to a 2004 paper in the journal Annals of Geophysics .
Still , this supposed death toll ties this event as the 10th most deadly natural disaster of all time .
Tied for 10th place is a catastrophic magnitude 9.1 earthquake that struck undersea off the west coast of Sumatra , Indonesia , on Dec. 26 , 2004 .
The quake created a massive tsunami that killed @ @ @ @ @ @ @ million people in 14 South Asian and East African countries .
Traveling as fast as 500 mph ( 804 kph ) , the tsunami reached land in as little as 15 to 20 minutes after the quake hit , giving residents little time to flee to higher ground .
In some places , especially hardest-hit Indonesia , the tsunami wave reached over 100 feet ( 30 meters ) high , according to World Vision , a humanitarian aid organization .
Damages from the earthquake and tsunami are estimated at $ 10 billion dollars @ @ @ @ @ @ @ largest earthquake in the world since 1900 , and its tsunami has killed more people than any other tsunami in recorded history , according to NOAA 's National Centers for Environmental Information .
At 3:42 a.m. on July 28 , 1976 , the Chinese city of Tangshan was razed to the ground by a magnitude 7.8 earthquake , according to a report by the U.S. Geological Survey ( USGS ) .
Tangshan , an industrial city with a population of about 1 million at the time of the disaster , suffered staggering casualties @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the official death toll , some experts suggest this number is grossly underestimated and that the loss of life was likely closer to 700,000 .
Reportedly , 85 % of Tangshan 's buildings collapsed , and trembles were felt in Beijing , China , more than 100 miles ( 180 km ) away .
It took several years before the city of Tangshan was rebuilt to its prior glory .
As with all disasters occurring millenia ago , a precise death toll for the Antioch earthquake is hard to come by .
Contemporary @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that about 250,000 people died when the temblor hit the Byzantine Empire city ( now Turkey and Syria ) in May , 526 .
Malalas attributed the disaster to the wrath of God and reported that fires destroyed everything in Antioch that the earthquake did not .
According to a 2007 paper in The Medieval History Journal , the death toll was higher than it would have been at other times of the year because the city was full of tourists celebrating Ascension Day — the Christian feast that commemorates Jesus ' ascension @ @ @ @ @ @ @ was the largest quake recorded in China in the 20th century with the highest magnitude and intensity , '' Deng Qidong , a geologist with the Chinese Academy of Sciences , said during a seminar in 2010 .
The earthquake , which struck north central China 's Haiyuan County on Dec. 16 , 1920 , also rocked the neighboring Gansu and Shaanxi Provinces .
It was reportedly a 7.8 on the Richter scale , however , China today claims it was of magnitude 8.5 .
There are also discrepancies in the number of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ casualties of 200,000 , but according to a 2010 study by Chinese seismologists , the death toll could have been as high as 273,400 .
The region 's high deposits of loess soils ( porous , silty sediment that 's very unstable ) triggered massive landslides which were responsible for over 30,000 of these deaths , according to a 2020 study published in the journal Landslides .
The Coringa cyclone made landfall at the port city of Coringa on India 's Bay of Bengal on Nov. 25 , 1839 , whipping up a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ m ) , according to NOAA 's Atlantic Oceanographic and Meteorological Laboratory Hurricane Research Division .
The hurricane 's wind speeds and category are not known , as is the case for many storms that took place before the 20th century .
About 20,000 ships and vessels were destroyed , along with the lives of an estimated 300,000 people .
Tying the Coringa cyclone as the sixth deadliest natural disaster is the 1881 typhoon that hit the port city of Haiphong in northeastern Vietnam on October 8 .
This storm is also believed @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
The catastrophic magnitude 7.0 earthquake that struck Haiti just northwest of Port-au-Prince on Jan. 12 , 2010 , ranks as one of the three deadliest quakes of all time .
Related : Haiti could be in new earthquake cycle , scientists say Haiti 's standing as one of the poorest countries in the Western Hemisphere and its limited history of large earthquakes left it extremely vulnerable to damages and loss of life .
As many as 3 million people were affected by the quake .
Death toll estimates were all over the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Haiti estimated fatalities stood at 230,000 people , but in January 2011 , officials revised that figure to 316,000 .
A 2010 study published in the journal Medicine , Conflict and Survival put the number at around 160,000 deaths , while the USGS claimed even lower numbers — around 100,000 .
These disparities reflect the difficulty of counting deaths even in the modern era , not to mention the political wrangling that goes on over `` official '' numbers .
This tropical cyclone hit what is now Bangladesh ( then East Pakistan ) @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to NOAA 's Hurricane Research Division , the storm 's strongest wind speeds measured 130 mph ( 205 kph ) , making it the equivalent of a Category 4 major hurricane on the Saffir-Simpson Hurricane scale .
Ahead of its landfall , a 35-foot ( 10.6 m ) storm surge washed over the low-lying islands bordering the Bay of Bengal , causing widespread flooding .
Related : Monster cyclone in India prompts the biggest evacuation in the country 's history The storm surge , combined with a lack of evacuation , resulted in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to 500,000 people .
A 1971 report from the National Hurricane Center and the Pakistan Meteorological Department acknowledged the challenge of accurately estimating the death toll , especially due to the influx of seasonal workers who were in the area for the rice harvest .
As of the writing of this article , the Bhola cyclone is considered the deadliest tropical cyclone on record , according to the World Meteorological Organization .
And it caused an estimated $ 86 billion in damages .
The deadliest earthquake in history hit China 's Shaanxi province @ @ @ @ @ @ @ as the `` Jiajing Great Earthquake '' after the emperor whose reign it occurred in , the temblor reduced a 621-square-mile ( 1,000 square kilometers ) swath of the country to rubble , according to the Science Museums of China .
An estimated 830,000 people died as their yaodong — cave homes carved into the region 's loess plateaus — collapsed .
The exact magnitude of the quake is lost to history , but modern-day geophysicists estimate it at around magnitude 8 .
The Yellow River ( Huang He ) in China was @ @ @ @ @ @ @ land around it in the late 1880s , thanks to a series of dikes built to contain the river as it flowed through the farmland of central China .
Over time , these dikes had silted up , gradually lifting the river in elevation .
When heavy rains swelled the river in September 1887 , it spilled over these dikes into the surrounding low-lying land , inundating 5,000 square miles ( 12,949 square km ) , according to `` Encyclopedia of Disasters : Environmental Catastrophes and Human Tragedies '' ( Greenwood Publishing Group @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of this flood , an estimated 900,000 to 2 million people lost their lives .
Excessive rainfall over central China in July and August of 1931 triggered the most deadly natural disaster in world history — the Central China floods of 1931 .
The Yangtze River overtopped its banks as spring snowmelt mingled with the over 24 inches ( 600 millimeters ) of rain that fell during the month of July alone .
( The Yellow River and other large waterways also reached high levels . )
According to `` The Nature of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ River Flood '' ( Cambridge University Press , 2018 ) , the flood inundated almost 70,000 square miles ( 180,000 square km ) and turned the Yangtze into what looked like a giant lake or ocean .
Contemporary government numbers put the number of dead at around 2 million , but other agencies , including NOAA , say it may have been as many as 3.7 million people .
This article was originally published on April 2 , 2018 and was updated on Dec. 17 , 2020 by Live Science Contributor Tiffany Means @

Humankind is no match for the wrath of Mother Nature when it comes to these deadly natural disasters.
Every year, some of the deadliest natural disasters — earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, hurricanes, tsunamis, floods, wildfires and droughts, on average kill nearly 60,000 people, according to Global Change Data Lab .
Violent natural disasters have been a fact of human life since the beginning of mankind, but the death counts of the most ancient of these disasters are lost to history. The ancient Mediterranean island of Thera (now Santorini, Greece), for example, experienced a catastrophic volcanic eruption that eradicated the entire Minoan civilization around 1600 B.C., according to a 2020 study published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academies of Sciences. But exactly how many lives were lost? We'll never know.
However, thanks to historical records and journals, historians can at least estimate the number of fatalities linked to disasters that occured in the common era. According to such records, the following natural disasters are the deadliest of all time, ranked from lowest to highest estimated death toll. (For those disasters for which a death toll range is given, the disaster is ranked by the highest end of the estimate.)
10. (TIE) The A.D. 1138 Aleppo earthquake
The view across the amphitheater of The Citadel in Aleppo, Syria. (Image credit: Nicholas Prins/Getty Images)
On Oct. 11, 1138, the ground under the Syrian city of Aleppo began to shake. The city sits on the confluence of the Arabian and African plates, making it prone to temblors, but this one was particularly violent. The magnitude of the quake is lost to time, but contemporary chroniclers reported that the city's citadel collapsed and houses crumbled across Aleppo. The resulting death toll is estimated at around 230,000, but that figure comes from the 15th century, and the historian who reported it may have conflated the Aleppo quake with one that occurred in what is now the modern-day Eurasian country of Georgia, according to a 2004 paper in the journal Annals of Geophysics. Still, this supposed death toll ties this event as the 10th most deadly natural disaster of all time.
10. (TIE) The 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake and tsunami
Aerial view of destruction caused by the 2004 tsunami that hit Indonesia. (Image credit: CHOO YOUN-KONG/Getty Images)
Tied for 10th place is a catastrophic magnitude 9.1 earthquake that struck undersea off the west coast of Sumatra, Indonesia, on Dec. 26, 2004. The quake created a massive tsunami that killed approximately 230,000, and displaced nearly 2 million people in 14 South Asian and East African countries. Traveling as fast as 500 mph (804 kph), the tsunami reached land in as little as 15 to 20 minutes after the quake hit, giving residents little time to flee to higher ground.
In some places, especially hardest-hit Indonesia, the tsunami wave reached over 100 feet (30 meters) high, according to World Vision, a humanitarian aid organization.
Damages from the earthquake and tsunami are estimated at $10 billion dollars. This event is considered the third largest earthquake in the world since 1900, and its tsunami has killed more people than any other tsunami in recorded history, according to NOAA's National Centers for Environmental Information.
9. The 1976 Tangshan earthquake
View of the damage in Tangshan, China after the magnitude 7.8 earthquake in 1976. (Image credit: Bettmann/Getty Images)
At 3:42 a.m. on July 28, 1976, the Chinese city of Tangshan was razed to the ground by a magnitude 7.8 earthquake, according to a report by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS). Tangshan, an industrial city with a population of about 1 million at the time of the disaster, suffered staggering casualties of over 240,000. While this was the official death toll, some experts suggest this number is grossly underestimated and that the loss of life was likely closer to 700,000. Reportedly, 85% of Tangshan's buildings collapsed, and trembles were felt in Beijing, China, more than 100 miles (180 km) away. It took several years before the city of Tangshan was rebuilt to its prior glory.
8. The A.D. 526 Antioch earthquake
1890 drawing of the "Approach to Antioch," a center of early Christianity. Artist unknown. (Image credit: Hulton Archive/Getty Images)
As with all disasters occurring millenia ago, a precise death toll for the Antioch earthquake is hard to come by. Contemporary chronicler John Malalas wrote at the time that about 250,000 people died when the temblor hit the Byzantine Empire city (now Turkey and Syria) in May, 526. Malalas attributed the disaster to the wrath of God and reported that fires destroyed everything in Antioch that the earthquake did not.
According to a 2007 paper in The Medieval History Journal, the death toll was higher than it would have been at other times of the year because the city was full of tourists celebrating Ascension Day — the Christian feast that commemorates Jesus' ascension into heaven.
7. The 1920 Haiyuan earthquake
"The Haiyuan earthquake was the largest quake recorded in China in the 20th century with the highest magnitude and intensity," Deng Qidong, a geologist with the Chinese Academy of Sciences, said during a seminar in 2010.
Related: How are earthquakes measured?
The earthquake, which struck north central China's Haiyuan County on Dec. 16, 1920, also rocked the neighboring Gansu and Shaanxi Provinces. It was reportedly a 7.8 on the Richter scale, however, China today claims it was of magnitude 8.5. There are also discrepancies in the number of lives lost. The USGS reported total casualties of 200,000, but according to a 2010 study by Chinese seismologists, the death toll could have been as high as 273,400. The region's high deposits of loess soils (porous, silty sediment that's very unstable) triggered massive landslides which were responsible for over 30,000 of these deaths, according to a 2020 study published in the journal Landslides.
6. (TIE) The 1839 Coringa cyclone
People living on the Bay of Bengal are no stranger to natural disaster. Here, village people try to repair the broken dam after the landfall of cyclone Amphan in Satkhira, a town on the Bay of Bengal, in spring 2020. (Image credit: K M Asad /Getty Images)
The Coringa cyclone made landfall at the port city of Coringa on India's Bay of Bengal on Nov. 25, 1839, whipping up a storm surge of 40 feet (12 m), according to NOAA's Atlantic Oceanographic and Meteorological Laboratory Hurricane Research Division. The hurricane's wind speeds and category are not known, as is the case for many storms that took place before the 20th century. About 20,000 ships and vessels were destroyed, along with the lives of an estimated 300,000 people.
6. (TIE) The 1881 Haiphong typhoon
Tying the Coringa cyclone as the sixth deadliest natural disaster is the 1881 typhoon that hit the port city of Haiphong in northeastern Vietnam on October 8. This storm is also believed to have killed an estimated 300,000 people.
5. The 2010 Haiti earthquake
Rescuers carry a corpse just dug out from the rubble in Port-au-Prince, Jan. 14, 2010, after the devastating 7.0 earthquake that hit the country two days earlier. (Image credit: ERIKA SANTELICES/Getty Images)
The catastrophic magnitude 7.0 earthquake that struck Haiti just northwest of Port-au-Prince on Jan. 12, 2010, ranks as one of the three deadliest quakes of all time.
Haiti's standing as one of the poorest countries in the Western Hemisphere and its limited history of large earthquakes left it extremely vulnerable to damages and loss of life. As many as 3 million people were affected by the quake. Death toll estimates were all over the place; initially, the government of Haiti estimated fatalities stood at 230,000 people, but in January 2011, officials revised that figure to 316,000. A 2010 study published in the journal Medicine, Conflict and Survival put the number at around 160,000 deaths, while the USGS claimed even lower numbers — around 100,000. These disparities reflect the difficulty of counting deaths even in the modern era, not to mention the political wrangling that goes on over "official" numbers.
4. The 1970 Bhola cyclone
Villagers walk through a field of dead cattle and search for rice and other grains to salvage, near Sonapur, East Pakistan (later Bangladesh), in the aftermath of the massive cyclone and accompanying tidal wave that slammed the area in November 1970. (Image credit: Larry Burrows/Getty Images)
This tropical cyclone hit what is now Bangladesh (then East Pakistan) on Nov. 12-13, 1970. According to NOAA's Hurricane Research Division, the storm's strongest wind speeds measured 130 mph (205 kph), making it the equivalent of a Category 4 major hurricane on the Saffir-Simpson Hurricane scale. Ahead of its landfall, a 35-foot (10.6 m) storm surge washed over the low-lying islands bordering the Bay of Bengal, causing widespread flooding.
The storm surge, combined with a lack of evacuation, resulted in a massive death toll estimated at 300,000 to 500,000 people. A 1971 report from the National Hurricane Center and the Pakistan Meteorological Department acknowledged the challenge of accurately estimating the death toll, especially due to the influx of seasonal workers who were in the area for the rice harvest. As of the writing of this article, the Bhola cyclone is considered the deadliest tropical cyclone on record, according to the World Meteorological Organization. And it caused an estimated $86 billion in damages.
3. The 1556 Shaanxi earthquake
The deadliest earthquake in history hit China's Shaanxi province on Jan. 23, 1556. Known as the "Jiajing Great Earthquake" after the emperor whose reign it occurred in, the temblor reduced a 621-square-mile (1,000 square kilometers) swath of the country to rubble, according to the Science Museums of China. An estimated 830,000 people died as their yaodong — cave homes carved into the region's loess plateaus — collapsed. The exact magnitude of the quake is lost to history, but modern-day geophysicists estimate it at around magnitude 8.
2. The 1887 Yellow River flood
The flow of China's Yellow River is now closely monitored and controlled to help prevent flooding. This aerial photo taken on July 19, 2020 shows water released from the Xiaolangdi Reservoir Dam in Luoyang in China's central Henan province, in preparation of the upcoming annual flood season at the Yellow River basin. (Image credit: STR/Getty Images)
The Yellow River (Huang He) in China was precariously situated far above most of the land around it in the late 1880s, thanks to a series of dikes built to contain the river as it flowed through the farmland of central China. Over time, these dikes had silted up, gradually lifting the river in elevation. When heavy rains swelled the river in September 1887, it spilled over these dikes into the surrounding low-lying land, inundating 5,000 square miles (12,949 square km), according to "Encyclopedia of Disasters: Environmental Catastrophes and Human Tragedies" (Greenwood Publishing Group, 2008). As a result of this flood, an estimated 900,000 to 2 million people lost their lives.
1. The 1931 Yangtze River floods
This aerial photo taken on July 28, 2020 shows a flooded sports ground along the Yangtze River in Wuhan in China's central Hubei province. In 1931, the Yangtze River flooded almost 70,000 square miles (180,000 square km) and killed at least 2 million people. (Image credit: STR/Getty Images)
Excessive rainfall over central China in July and August of 1931 triggered the most deadly natural disaster in world history — the Central China floods of 1931. The Yangtze River overtopped its banks as spring snowmelt mingled with the over 24 inches (600 millimeters) of rain that fell during the month of July alone. (The Yellow River and other large waterways also reached high levels.) According to "The Nature of Disaster in China: The 1931 Yangzi River Flood" (Cambridge University Press, 2018), the flood inundated almost 70,000 square miles (180,000 square km) and turned the Yangtze into what looked like a giant lake or ocean. Contemporary government numbers put the number of dead at around 2 million, but other agencies, including NOAA, say it may have been as many as 3.7 million people.
Additional resources
For more on natural disasters check out DK's Eyewitness Books "Natural Disasters: Confront the Awesome Power of Nature from Earthquakes and Tsunamis to Hurricanes" and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention page "Natural Disasters and Severe Weather".
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