Antarctic sea ice is now nearly 9% below normal. But the dramatic decline is not universal around the continent, which makes it difficult to predict the overall impact of climate change.
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Despite its importance, water management has been largely absent from the election campaign. But using trading markets to improve freshwater quality in smaller catchments deserves wider debate.
As the atmosphere warms, it can hold more moisture. This brings more intense downpours but also accelerates warming – because water vapour is a powerful greenhouse gas.
New Zealand’s kelp forests provide food and shelter for many marine species of commercial and cultural value. But they are at risk from warming oceans, run-off from land and marine invaders.
A new machine learning model can pinpoint anomalies in sports results – whether from match fixing, strategic losses or poor player performance. It could be a useful tool in the fight against cheating.
New or improved flood protection can give a false sense of security – the so-called ‘levee effect’. But climate change is unpredictable, meaning ‘residual risk’ always exists and must be planned for.
Kākāpō are prone to disease and infertility. Only intensive species management has saved the flightless parrots from extinction. Genome data now reveals the genetic reasons behind these problems.
Some New Zealand universities have proposed staff and course cuts in earth sciences. This could leave the country ill prepared to deal with natural hazards and extreme weather.
Both major parties are promising major road projects this election. Meanwhile, the potential for passenger and freight rail to help meet the country’s climate goals seems stuck at the station.
Space exploration is often propelled by competition, driven by national pride and with little thought about consequence. It is time to consider space as a commons, not just a resource to exploit.
The first sign of a new bird flu might be a dead seabird or marine mammal. Better surveillance of migratory birds and wildlife – and better public awareness – is crucial.
Access to fossil fuels allowed humanity to overshoot Earth’s biophysical limits. The crises we now face are all symptoms of this overshoot, and the only fix is to cut our demands on the biosphere.
Humans have been making symbols for numbers for thousands of years. Different cultures developed their own symbols, but all use addition and multiplication, suggesting arithmetic is a universal truth.
A new report sets out the practical ways New Zealand can improve its urban resilience to flooding due to climate change. But time, rather than money, is of the essence.
Not all environmental change is obvious. But incremental and cumulative changes can be just as harmful as more immediate and observable events, meaning risk management practices need to adapt.
The BlackRock climate fund is a start, but New Zealand needs a comprehensive approach to tackling its various environmental and economic vulnerabilities to the climate crisis.
By including five extinct species in its Bird of the Year competition, Forest & Bird provides a way to mourn what we’ve lost – and also strive to save what remains.
New Zealand’s marine policies are scattered across multiple laws and regulatory institutions. A dedicated ministry would overcome this fragmentation and help protect vital ecosystems and resources.
Foulden Maar is one of only two sites in New Zealand that preserve fossils showing ecological interactions and features such as eyes, skin, stomach contents and original colour patterns.
Our new research found up to 20% of bacteria in wild foods were resistant to a common antibiotic drug. Some samples had resistance to last-resort antibiotics, prescribed when other drugs have failed.
Top contributors
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Morgan Foundation Senior Research Fellow in Freshwater Ecology and Environmental Science, Te Herenga Waka — Victoria University of Wellington
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Senior Lecturer in Physical Geography, Te Herenga Waka — Victoria University of Wellington
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Senior Research Fellow, University of Canterbury
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Associate Professor of Ecology, Lincoln University, New Zealand
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Professor of Glaciology, Te Herenga Waka — Victoria University of Wellington
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Professor in Ocean Physics, University of Auckland, Waipapa Taumata Rau
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Distinguished Scholar, NCAR; Affiliate Faculty, University of Auckland, Waipapa Taumata Rau
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Ice Sheet & Climate Modeller, GNS Science
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Associate Professor of Applied Geology, University of Auckland, Waipapa Taumata Rau
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Professor of Environmental Genomics, Curtin University
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Postdoctoral Research Fellow, Te Herenga Waka — Victoria University of Wellington
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Lecturer in Ecology, University of Otago
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Associate Professor in Geophysics, Te Herenga Waka — Victoria University of Wellington
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Senior Lecturer in Child Psychiatry and Paediatrics, University of Auckland, Waipapa Taumata Rau
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Senior Researcher, Manaaki Whenua - Landcare Research
