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First quantification of a major ecological crisis and recovery A new study paves the way to understanding biotic recovery after an ecological crisis in the Mediterranean Sea about 5.5 million years ago. An international team led by Konstantina Agiadi from the University of Vienna has now been able to quantify how marine biota was impacted by the salinization of the Mediterranean: Only 11 percent of the endemic species survived the crisis, and the biodiversity did not recover for at least another 1.7 million years.

Newly discovered symbiosis between Rhizobia and diatoms could also open new avenues for agriculture In a new study, scientists from the Max Planck Institute for Marine Microbiology, the Alfred Wegener Institute and the University of Vienna shed light on an unexpected partnership: A marine diatom and a bacterium that can account for a large share of nitrogen fixation in vast regions of the ocean.

Many studies on the climate crisis focus on researching temperature extremes on a global scale. Scientists at the University of Vienna have now uncovered an error in an established calculation method, leading to a systematic underestimation in the frequency of heat days. The error is based in the previously unnoticed impact of the seasonal cycle on the extreme threshold due to the incorrect application of so called "moving time windows".

New climate model shows more extreme rainfall in the tropics with increased temperatures Understanding cloud patterns in our changing climate is essential to making accurate predictions about their impact on society and nature. Scientists at the Institute of Science and Technology Austria (ISTA) and the Max Planck Institute for Meteorology published a new study in the journal Science Advances that uses a high-resolution global climate model to understand how the clustering of clouds and storms impacts rainfall extremes in the tropics.

Hawaii: Environmental data from shallow-water corals provide a glimpse 500,000 years into the past During the IODP Expedition 389 "Hawaiian Drowned Reefs" off the coast of Hawaii, scientists recovered a total of 426 meters of cores from the seafloor in water depths ranging from 130 to 1240 meters.

New study: Microplastic fibers are settling substantially slower than spherical particles in the atmosphere and might even reach stratosphere How far microplastics travel in the atmosphere depends crucially on particle shape, according to a recent study by scientists at the University of Vienna and the Max Planck Institute for Dynamics and Self-Organisation in Göttingen: While spherical particles settle quickly, microplastic fibers might travel as far as the stratosphere.

Researchers at TU Graz have developed a new measuring system that can statically and dynamically monitor the condition of buildings using just a few antennas. From the outside, the Kölnbrein water dam, operated by Verbund in Carinthia, which is Austria's highest dam, and the DC Tower in Vienna, Austria's tallest building, do not have much in common, but for a research group around Caroline Schönberger and Werner Lienhart from the Institute of Engineering Geodesy and Measurement Systems at Graz University of Technology (TU Graz), they are equally interesting from a scientific point of view.

It is rare to find glaciers bounded on land by vertical ice cliffs. These ice cliffs respond with particular sensitivity to environmental changes. Research teams from Tyrol and Styria are investigating ice formations at a site in the far north of Greenland. The researchers intend to draw conclusions about the development of the Arctic climate based on the changes in the glacier walls.

As part of an international deep-sea expedition, a team of researchers under the co-leadership of Innsbruck geologist Michael Strasser took the deepest samples ever obtained from the seafloor at a depth of more than 8000 meters in the Japan Trench in 2021. Large amounts of dissolved carbon and enormous methane reservoirs were discovered in the seafloor, the formation of which is favored by the strong earthquake activity there.

During a research cruise, an international research team led by marine biologist Monika Bright of the University of Vienna discovered a new ecosystem in the deep sea. This is located beneath the surface of hydrothermal vents of a well-studied underwater volcano on the East Pacific Ridge off Central America.

By Falko Schoklitsch By changes in the wavelength of light pulses in fibre optic cables, researchers at TU Graz can measure where rockfalls, landslides, fires and earthquakes are taking place. Landslides and rockfalls are increasingly becoming a real threat to people and infrastructure in light of the changing climate and the associated changes in soil and rock structure.

Distribution in the Mesozoic from present-day Antarctica to Greenland Paleobotanist Mario Coiro of the Institute of Paleontology at the University of Vienna and colleagues at the University of Montpellier (France) have made an important breakthrough in understanding the origin and geographic distribution of cycads.

Mycoplankton plays an active role in the degradation of organic matter and the cycling of nutrients Fungi play a vital and previously neglected role in the complex tapestry of marine ecosystems, a study by Eva Breyer and Federico Baltar of the University of Vienna reveals. The results have now been published in the journal Trends in Ecology & Evolution.

A correct representation of turbulence in the atmosphere is crucial for accurate weather forecasts and climate projections. However, the theory behind this is not only very old, but also not very representative, since it only applies to flat terrain. Innsbruck meteorologist Ivana Stiperski has now extended the theory on turbulence that has been in use since the 1950s.

By Susanne Filzwieser The honeycomb patterns which are often found in salt deserts in Death Valley and Bolivia, among other places, look like something from another world. Researchers, including those from TU Graz, explain the origin of the mysterious patterns for the first time. Honeycomb patterns form in salt deserts all over the world, for example in the Badwater Basin of Death Valley in California or in the Salar de Uyuni in Bolivia.

The interference of climate change with the planet's water cycle is a well established fact. New analyses suggest that in many places, runoff responds more sensitively than previously assumed. Climate change alters the global atmospheric circulation, which in turn alters precipitation and evaporation in large parts of the world and, in consequence, the amount of river water that can be used locally.

A team of geologists from the University of Innsbruck examined the sediments of Carinthian lakes for traces of past earthquakes. The results show that the earthquake of 1348 caused the strongest shaking in the Carinthian region since the end of the last cold period. Earthquakes with potential building damage are rare there, but can occur in temporal clusters .

New research method shows that the material likely comes from northern Italy The almost 11 cm high figurine from Willendorf is one of the most important examples of early art in Europe. It is made of a rock called "oolite" which is not found in or around Willendorf.

New evidence for the presence of Homo sapiens in western Europe more than 50,000 years ago An international team of researchers has revealed new evidence for the presence of Homo sapiens in western Europe more than 50,000 years ago. The results of a 30-year programme of research from a cave in the heart of the Rhône Valley of France show that the traditional story of the replacement of Neanderthals by modern humans was much longer and more complex than previously thought.

By Beate Mosing A physicist at TU Graz is developing a new method to make the processes in our atmosphere visible. If we think this through, it opens up new opportunities for environmental research - and perhaps even potential for counteracting climate change. The ozone layer in the Earth's stratosphere "swallows" rays and in this way protects humans and animals from radiation damage.