In mountainous regions precipitation – be that in the form of rain, hail or snow, for example – drives erosion, which means it plays an important part in shaping the way the landscape looks. Precipitation can directly wear away at hillsides and creates streams and rivers, which leave their mark on the scenery by cutting and calving their way through it. Take for instance the hills in the arid coas ...[Read More]
Geosciences Column: Africa’s vulnerability to climate change
Ravaged by armed conflicts, a deep struggle with poverty, poor governance and horizontal inequality, some parts of Africa and other Global South regions are arguably the most vulnerable to the impacts of climate change. Largely reliant on natural resources for sustenance, current and future changes in temperatures, precipitation and the intensity of some natural hazards threaten the food security, ...[Read More]
Imaggeo on Mondays: Life on bare lava
There are plenty of hostile habitats across the globe but some flora and fauna species are resourceful enough to adapt and make extreme environments their home. From heat-loving ants of the Sahara to microbes living in the light-deprived ocean depths, through to beatles who brave the bitterly cold Alaskan winter, there are numerous examples of plants, animals and bugs who strive in environments of ...[Read More]
Imaggeo on Mondays: littoral rainforests
Making room for growing populations, and the resources they demand, comes at the cost of precious natural environments. Rainforests, globally, are under threat from farming, logging and ever expanding cities. It is reported that if current rates of exploitation continue, the world’s rainforests could be lost within the next century. Like almost anything else, rainforests come in all shapes a ...[Read More]