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Greenland Ice Sheet Cracking More Rapidly Than Previously Detected: Study (Maria)
The author writes, “The Greenland ice sheet — the second-largest body of ice in the world — is cracking more rapidly than ever before as a response to climate breakdown, a study has found. Researchers used 8,000 three-dimensional surface maps from high-resolution commercial satellite imagery to assess the evolution of cracks in the surface of the ice sheet between 2016 and 2021. They found that the crevasses — wedge-shaped tears that open in glaciers — had significantly increased in size and depth over the five years and at a faster rate than previously detected.”
The Trump White House Wants a Court Challenge Over Frozen Funds (Dana)
From HuffPost: “The Trump administration’s federal government funding freeze instituted Monday and apparently rescinded Wednesday appears to be a part of the White House’s official policy to get courts to hand President Donald Trump the power to pick and choose which congressionally authorized funding he will spend, according to a confidential document obtained by HuffPost. The confidential Office of Management and Budget document outlining ‘regulatory misalignment’ calls on Trump to issue executive orders blocking the release of appropriated funds in order to provoke a court challenge over the president’s power to impound such funds.”
A List of Government Web Pages That Have Gone Dark to Comply With Trump Orders (Reader Steve)
The author writes, “A number of U.S. government web pages changed or went dark Friday as agencies scrambled to comply with President Donald Trump’s executive orders declaring his administration would recognize only two genders and ordering an end to diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives. … Here is a list of changes and missing pages seen so far. A number of pages have popped up since being taken down, some with changes.”
Years of Warnings Came Before DC’s Air Tragedy (Sean)
From Politico: “The United States’ worst aviation tragedy in more than two decades followed years of alarms about the nation’s hallowed air-safety system — and a series of close calls before luck finally ran out over the Potomac. The Covid pandemic worsened a nationwide shortage of air traffic controllers, only for demand for air travel to soar once passengers returned. Politically motivated government funding showdowns made it harder to train new workers and replace outmoded safety equipment. And the agency at the center of it all, the Federal Aviation Administration, spent extended stretches without a permanent leader — while investigators expressed warnings about a spike in near-collisions at airports.”
Conservation Won Big Under Biden. Environmentalists and Tribal Leaders Fear Trump Will Undo Those Gains (Laura)
From Inside Climate News: “While public lands protections are widely popular with the American public, the Trump administration has signaled it will again look to reduce the size of national monuments and roll back conservation measures.”
Scientists Recreate the Conditions That Sparked Complex Life (Reader Jim)
The author writes, “Evolution was fueled by endosymbiosis, cellular alliances in which one microbe makes a permanent home inside another. For the first time, biologists made it happen in the lab.”
