Even as temperatures rise on Earth’s surface and in the lower atmosphere, the planet’s upper atmosphere has cooled dramatically. This paradoxical pattern is a well-known sign of humanity’s climate impacts—but until now, the underlying physics has remained a mystery.

In a new study, researchers from Columbia University describe the phenomenon’s mechanics, illuminating how it is largely determined by the way carbon dioxide (CO2) interacts with different wavelengths of light.

For decades, the frozen Antarctic wilderness at the bottom of the world defied global warming trends, with ice levels actually growing – until 2015 when it suddenly reversed. Now scientists say they have discovered why.

Gentoo penguins, scattered throughout the Antarctic and sub-Antarctic, have long puzzled biologists, with six subspecies having been described. A consensus paper by experts concludes, based on whole-genome sequencing, that there are four distinct species, one of them cryptic and not previously recognized. The researchers identified adaptations that accompanied these speciation events and estimated how populations will be impacted by global warming. Three of the four will see their preferred habitats shrink.

A UC Davis study in Science found that 7% to 16% of global plant species studied face high risk of extinction by 2100 under current climate change projections.

The appointment recognises his expertise at the intersection of AI, weather and climate science, and strengthens Singapore’s contribution to international efforts in this space.