To slow the speed at which high temperatures and warm waters bleach the corals of the Great Barrier Reef, Australian scientists are spraying droplets of ocean water into the sky to form clouds to protect the environmental treasure.
Researchers working on the so-called Cloud Brightening project said they use a turbine to spray microscopic sea particles to thicken existing clouds and reduce sunlight on the world's largest coral reef ecosystem located off Australia's northeast coast.
The water droplets evaporate leaving only tiny salt crystals which float up into the atmosphere allowing water vapor to condense around them, forming clouds, said Daniel Harrison, a senior lecturer at Southern Cross University, who runs the project.
"If we do it over an extended period of time for a few weeks to a couple of months when the corals are experiencing a marine heatwave we can actually start to lower the water temperature over the Reef," said Harrison.
The project had its second trial in March, the end of the Southern Hemisphere summer when the Reef off Australia's northeast is at its hottest, gathering valuable data on the atmosphere when corals are at most risk of bleaching.
A combination of light and warm water causes coral bleaching. By cutting light over the reef by six per cent in summer, "bleaching stress" would be cut by 50 per cent to 60 per cent on the undersea ecosystem, Harrison said.
But the benefits of cloud brightening would lessen over time unless other measures slowed the march of climate change.
"If we do have really strong action on climate change then the modeling shows that the cloud brightening is enough to stop the reef declining and to actually see it through this period while we reduce our carbon emissions," he said.
One of Australia's best-known natural attractions, the Reef came close to being listed as an endangered World Heritage Site by the United Nations, although it avoided the designation following lobbying by Australia.
(Reporting by Stefica Nicol Bikes writing by Byron Kaye; editing by Christian Schmollinger)
Without having seen it, former Bank of Canada governor David Dodge believes that Tuesday's 2024 federal budget from Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland is 'likely to be the worst budget' in decades.
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A controversial former school trustee from B.C.'s Fraser Valley who described a political rival as a "strip-tease artist" during an election campaign has been ordered to pay her $45,000 for defamation.
Michael Gordon Jackson, the man on trial after being charged with contravention of a custody order for allegedly abducting his daughter in late 2021 to prevent her from getting a COVID-19 vaccine, called himself to the stand Monday.
After four years at the University of Connecticut, Edwards was selected sixth overall by the Washington Mystics in the WNBA draft Monday night.
NASA confirmed Monday that a mystery object that crashed through the roof of a Florida home last month was a chunk of space junk from equipment discarded at the International Space Station.
Horrified worshippers watched online and in person as a bishop was stabbed at the altar during a church service in Sydney on Sunday evening.
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A movie weapons supervisor was sentenced to 18 months in prison in the fatal shooting of a cinematographer by Alec Baldwin on the set of 'Rust.'
Ontario Provincial Police are investigating after human remains were found in the Ottawa River in Clarence-Rockland on Monday.
A mass exodus of elected officials from a rural Manitoba municipality has put the community in limbo and may force the province to dissolve what's left of the crumbling council.
Saskatchewan and the RCMP have inked a deal that would see the province fund hundreds more officers if Mounties can recruit to fill those positions.
An agreement between the provincial and federal governments will see Premier Doug Ford’s flagship Highway 413 move forward with a joint working group dedicated to minimizing environmental impacts.
A controversial former school trustee from B.C.'s Fraser Valley who described a political rival as a "strip-tease artist" during an election campaign has been ordered to pay her $45,000 for defamation.
Michael Gordon Jackson, the man on trial after being charged with contravention of a custody order for allegedly abducting his daughter in late 2021 to prevent her from getting a COVID-19 vaccine, called himself to the stand Monday.
Following the Iranian missile and drone strikes against Israel over the weekend, Canada should take the threat of Iran and potential escalation of the conflict seriously, one global affairs analyst says.
A couple who owned a Colorado funeral home where authorities last year discovered 190 decaying bodies were indicted on federal charges that they misspent nearly US$900,000 in pandemic relief funds on vacations, cosmetic surgery, jewelry and other personal expenses, according to court documents unsealed Monday.
The ship crash that destroyed Baltimore’s Francis Scott Key Bridge and left several people dead is now under federal criminal investigation, according to a U.S. official familiar with the matter.
The historic hush-money trial of Donald Trump got underway Monday with the arduous process of selecting a jury to hear the case charging the former U.S. president with falsifying business records in order to stifle stories about his sex life.
The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday let a Republican-backed law in Idaho that criminalizes gender-affirming care for transgender minors broadly take effect after a federal judge blocked it as unconstitutional.
All of Donald Trump's trials and the characters involved make for a complicated legal mess, particularly when the four criminal cases are added to Trump's civil liability for defamation and sexual misconduct and for business fraud. Here's what to know to get up to speed on this first criminal trial, starting April 15, 2024.
Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland will be presenting the 2024 federal budget on Tuesday, revealing how the federal Liberal government intends to balance the nearly $40 billion in pre-announced new spending with her vow to remain fiscally prudent.
Foreign Affairs Minister Mélanie Joly says she's urging Israel to de-escalate rising conflicts in the Middle East and not bomb Iran in retaliation for this past weekend's thwarted airstrikes.
Without having seen it, former Bank of Canada governor David Dodge believes that Tuesday's 2024 federal budget from Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland is 'likely to be the worst budget' in decades.
It’s common knowledge that exercise is good for your mental health and your heart health — and now a new study suggests that all three are working together.
The cybersecurity firm BrandShield has taken down more than 250 websites selling fake versions of popular weight-loss and diabetes drugs in the GLP-1 class, the company’s CEO Yoav Keren told Reuters.
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NASA confirmed Monday that a mystery object that crashed through the roof of a Florida home last month was a chunk of space junk from equipment discarded at the International Space Station.
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Dyson Knight may look like an average college student, but since 2004, he’s actually been a member of the internationally acclaimed Baha Men.
Canadian singer Grimes apologized to fans on Saturday after her Coachella set earlier that evening was beset by technical issues that caused her to scream into the microphone in frustration.
A movie weapons supervisor was sentenced to 18 months in prison in the fatal shooting of a cinematographer by Alec Baldwin on the set of 'Rust.'
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The U.S. Department of Justice is preparing to file an antitrust lawsuit against Live Nation as soon as next month, the Wall Street Journal reported on Monday, citing people familiar with the matter.
Apple's smartphone sales tumbled 10 per cent last quarter, according to market research firm IDC, as sales in China fell sharply.
A high score on a Foo Fighters pinball machine has Edmonton player Dave Formenti on a high.
Celebrity food critic Keith Lee said he was blown away by Toronto, handing a rich ranking to its culinary creators, as the first international stop of his latest food tour.
Even as the cost of living goes up, there are still ways to save some cash when out shopping or using credit cards.
After four years at the University of Connecticut, Edwards was selected sixth overall by the Washington Mystics in the WNBA draft Monday night.
The Indiana Fever selected sharpshooter Caitlin Clark with the first pick of the WNBA Draft on Monday.
The NBA broke all-time regular-season records for total attendance, average attendance and sellouts for the second straight year in 2023-24.
Tesla will lay off more than 10 per cent of its global workforce, an internal memo seen by Reuters on Monday shows, as it grapples with falling sales amid an intensifying price war for electric vehicles.
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While many people choose to keep their medical appointments private, four longtime friends decided to undergo vasectomies as a group in B.C.'s Lower Mainland.
A popular highway in Alberta's Banff National Park now has a 'no stopping zone' to help protect two bears.
B.C. resident Robert Conrad spent thousands of hours on Crown land developing an unusual bond with deer.
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A school teacher who took part in the Quebec version of the Survivor reality TV show took time off work to be a contestant is now out of a job.
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Lucas Raymond scored 4:35 into overtime after he scored a game-tying goal with 1:17 left in regulation, lifting the Detroit Red Wings to a 5-4 comeback win over the Montreal Canadiens on Monday night that keeps their playoff hopes alive.
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A mass exodus of elected officials from a rural Manitoba municipality has put the community in limbo and may force the province to dissolve what's left of the crumbling council.
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If you’ve ever felt the allure of Hollywood and wanted to be in a big-budget movie your time to shine is now.
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Michael Gordon Jackson, the man on trial after being charged with contravention of a custody order for allegedly abducting his daughter in late 2021 to prevent her from getting a COVID-19 vaccine, called himself to the stand Monday.
Regina's Jon Ryan is set to sign a one-day contract with the Seattle Seahawks tomorrow officially bringing to an end his pro-football career.
Cambridge resident Samantha Falkiner explains why something felt "off" about the men who approached her and her neighbours on Friday.
Police are searching a residence just east of downtown Guelph after a man went to hospital with injuries from a homemade explosive device.
Wellington County OPP is currently investigating a double fatal collision near Drayton.
Friends are raising money for the grieving family of a 16-year-old Saskatoon boy who was killed in a high-speed crash that injured two other teens on Sunday morning.
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A northern Ontario family is devastated after a jury found a Moose Factory man not guilty of a 2021 murder.
A digital forensics analyst testified Monday in Sudbury at the trial of Liam Stinson, who is charged with three counts of first-degree murder in connection to an April 2021 firebombing.
The Thunder Bay police chief is acknowledging some residents' eroding trust in the service as his predecessor and other high-ranking members of the force face criminal charges.
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When Westdell Development acquired White Oaks Mall last year, President Iyman Meddoui said they always had the vision of adding additional commercial and residential components.
It's been more than two years since Jim Lynne died in a crash along Mosley Street in Wasaga Beach.
A street sign in Barrie, renamed to honour 11-year-old Chase McEachern's legacy after he died in 2006, has gone missing again from an alleyway at the heart of the city's waterfront.
The residents of Kashechewan First Nation are in a race against time, preparing for a mass evacuation as the relentless threat of flooding from the Albany River looms closer.
Windsor police are looking for a woman after a parcel was taken from a home in the 400 block of Chilver Road.
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A new ranking by food delivery platform Uber Eats puts Windsor among the top cities in the province for ordering cannabis.
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A Vancouver woman whose company duped investors by promising big returns on real-estate deals that would house the homeless has been ordered to pay nearly $626,000 after the British Columbia Securities Commission deemed the operation a Ponzi scheme.
The HMCS Max Bernays made its way into its new home at CFB Esquimalt on Monday after a long journey from Halifax.
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Lethbridge West MLA Shannon Phillips is calling on the province to reinstate funding for the Lethbridge Elder Abuse Response Network.
If you’re planning to head to the coulees this weekend to enjoy the nice weather, don’t forget to look down.
With the weather starting to feel like spring is really here, more kids will likely be outside enjoying the sunshine and warm temperatures, which organizers of the Slow Your Roll campaign say is a perfect time to re-launch the campaign.
The City of Sault Ste. Marie is expecting a busy summer at the Downtown Plaza. City officials say the plaza is coming off a successful first winter season, which saw large crowds gathering at the outdoor rink.
The Soo Greyhounds are the talk of the town, as their second-round matchup in the OHL playoffs touches down in the Sault.
Thunder Bay Police Service held a news conference Monday afternoon to discuss the misconduct investigation that led to criminal charges being laid against the city's former police chief.
A pricing agreement has been reached between crab fishers and seafood processors that will allow for Newfoundland and Labrador's annual crab fishery to get started.
Longliners across Newfoundland and Labrador are tied up once again, as a new protest by the province's fish harvesters threatens to derail the crab fishery for a second straight year.
A unique photo exhibit is putting cameras into the hands of survivors of domestic and sexual violence in Newfoundland and Labrador.
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