Running on empty
Is the American West about to run dry? A study by Balaji Rajagopalan of the University of Colorado, Boulder, has shown there is a 50 per cent chance that the giant reservoirs on the Colorado river, which supply water from California to Colorado, will be empty by mid-century (Water Resources Research, ).
Re-engineering Earth
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Manipulating the Earth鈥檚 climate to stop global warming has been given a stamp of scientific approval. In a carefully worded position paper seen by New 杏吧原创, the American Meteorological Society endorses research into this approach. It is the first major scientific body to do so.
HIV breakthrough
A strain of SIV, the simian version of HIV, that causes symptoms of AIDS in wild Tanzanian chimpanzees could improve research into drugs and vaccines for people. It is the first of 40 known SIV strains to cause AIDS symptoms in non-human primates, and so may provide a better animal model of HIV than those now used (Nature, ).
Jupiter impact
Something has smashed into Jupiter, leaving behind a black spot in the planet鈥檚 atmosphere. Amateur astronomer Anthony Wesley saw the spot in Jupiter鈥檚 south polar region on 19 July. Only one such impact has been observed before, when fragments of the comet Shoemaker-Levy 9 collided with the gas giant 15 years ago.
Operation Pollinator
Finally some good news for key pollinators such as bumblebees. Launched last week, Operation Pollinator aims to enrich the margins of agricultural fields in the UK, Spain, Germany, Italy, Portugal, Hungary and France with plants such as clovers that have been shown to boost pollinator numbers.