August 29, 2023: A controversial deep-sea mining project, much-needed advances in air conditioning technology and Hurricane Idalia is intensifying. —Andrea Gawrylewski, Chief Newsletter Editor | | | The Clarion-Clipperton Zone is a vast abyssal plain slightly larger than the European Union, situated about five kilometers deep in the Pacific Ocean. It is one of the most pristine and least explored parts of our planet–and trillions of black, potato-size rocks known as polymetallic nodules dot the seafloor of this region. They contain valuable metals like cobalt, copper and nickel used for electric vehicles and lithium for batteries–all of which are in short supply and are mined with steep environmental and ethical costs. A Vancouver-based mining company is pushing to start extracting the nodules from the CCZ as soon as 2024.
Why this matters: These nodules host an as-yet unexplored ecosystem of hundreds, maybe thousands, of species that we know little about; microbes and sponges cling to the rocks and in turn support other sea creatures like octopuses, sea cucumbers, sea stars and sea lilies. The International Seabed Authority requires mining contractors to conduct a "baseline" survey of the environment they propose to mine. But the type and amount of data is left up to the contractors, with little to no oversight.
What the experts say: Environmentalists, governments and corporations want a full assessment of the impact of deep-sea mining in this region. Many experts support a moratorium on mining until sufficient data can be collected. As for the species that live on and near the modules, "whether they would provide food on a plate or stop climate change or become the next cure for cancer, we can't say yet," says Adrian Glover, a biologist at London's Natural History Museum, "though we could do the research to find out." | | | At the start of every summer, I grumble to whoever will listen that air conditioning technology hasn't advanced in decades–AND it's contributing to climate change by guzzling electricity (ugh, my summer bills). Happily I have some promising developments in air conditioning innovation to report. One new design pulls moisture from the air with desiccant materials (yielding 35 percent energy savings). Another is pairing dehumidification with evaporative cooling, which takes the energy-intensive process called vapor compression out of the traditional AC equation. Yet another device in the works uses a hydrophobic barrier to perform evaporative cooling while holding back humidity–skipping the need for any refrigerants (75 percent more efficient).
Why this matters: Last month was the hottest recorded in human history. Severe heat is the deadliest of all weather events; in the U.S. alone, it kills more people each year than floods, tornadoes and hurricanes combined. As climate change worsens, extreme heat events will become more common. Access to artificially cooled spaces is rapidly becoming a health necessity—and an issue of basic human rights. Cooling worldwide will require 50 percent more energy in the next 25 years than it does now because of rising demand.
What the experts say: "Cooling is a multi-faceted challenge," says Sneha Sachar, an energy efficiency expert at the nonprofit organization ClimateWorks. We need a combination of better buildings and cities, better technology and a better understanding that the true cost of air-conditioning extends beyond electric bills. | | | • An expedition has discovered the Pacific Islands' largest bat cave. Inside they found thousands of moth-size microbats previously thought to be nearly extinct. | 3 min read | | | • After atomic bombs were dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, nuclear physicist Katharine Way (who worked at several Manhattan Project sites) persuaded the world's greatest physicists to contribute essays to a book opposing nuclear weapons. Learn more in this podcast. | 22 min listen | | | • Avian influenza has killed 21 out of 561 endangered California Condors this year. Government officials are testing a vaccine that could protect the animals from bird flu. | 7 min read | | | • This year has been the worst recorded for mass-shooting incidents in the U.S., according to Northeastern University's database, with 33 by mid-August. Incidents of mass shootings are growing exponentially and demand unprecedented action, writes Theodore Modis, a physicist, strategist, futurist and international consultant. Each mass shooting event sets off a chain reaction causing more violence in the future and so they "possess the capacity to multiply like a species, with the rate of new incidents being proportional to the existing tally—this is the very essence of exponential growth," he says. | 6 min read | | | Credit: Theodore Modis, styled by Amanda Montañez; Source: The Violence Project | | | What pushes a tropical storm into becoming a behemoth hurricane? Earlier this summer we spoke to a storm expert for this fascinating podcast about the ever-changing variables that birth a hurricane. | This newsletter is for you. Reach out anytime with suggestions or feedback! Email me: newsletters@sciam.com. Until tomorrow! | —Andrea Gawrylewski, Chief Newsletter Editor | | Subscribe to this and all of our newsletters . | | | | Scientific American
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