NASA tracks changes to the planet with satellites and other scientific...

NASA Climate Change 2 years ago

NASA tracks changes to the planet with satellites and other scientific instruments. These include monitoring sea surface heights, sea surface temperatures, precipitation, and more. With these measurements, we can see the global impact of climate phenomena including El Niño and La Niña. What’s up with El Niño and climate change? Swipe through ➡️ #NASA #ENSO #ClimateChange #Earthdata Image Description (1/2): Slide 1: In the background, a data map of sea surface temperature anomalies superimposed on a globe. Text on slide reads: What’s up with El Niño & climate change? Red arrows guide the reader to the next slide. Slide 2: Black slide with a global temperature map. Text on slide reads: NASA reported that 2023 was the hottest year on record. That was fueled primarily by a long-term rise in human emissions of greenhouse gases. But warmer ocean temperatures from El Niño also added to the global temperature. We know because NASA satellites help us keep an eye on our changing planet. Red arrows guide the reader to the next slide. Slide 3: Black background. A map of ocean temperature has a white border around it. Text on slide reads: The Breakdown: El Niño. Normally the winds blow from east to west across the tropical Pacific Ocean, which pushes warm water to the west. During El Niño, these winds weaken and the warm water moves back to the east. This results in warmer tropical waters in the central and eastern Pacific Ocean. Red arrows guide the reader to the next slide. Slide 4: Black background. A map of ocean temperature has a white border around it. Text on slide reads: The Breakdown: La Niña. Sometimes the winds that normally blow from east to west in the tropical Pacific strengthen, pushing warm water to the west. Colder, deeper water then rises to the surface along South America’s Pacific coast. This results in cooler ocean waters known as La Niña. A red arrow guides the reader to the next slide. [Image Description continued in the first comment]

layersDaily Sustainability Digest

Published about 14 hours ago



A recent survey shows that most large businesses are failing to incorporate climate risks into new construction projects. This exposes developments to flood and extreme weather damage while undermining efforts to reach net zero Whole Life Carbon. Insurers are increasingly pressing for resilience planning, and the lack of a Whole Life Carbon Assessment in early project stages leaves significant risks unaddressed. Developers treating Embodied Carbon as a marginal issue face higher long-term costs rather than true Life Cycle Cost control.

Institutional capital is rapidly shifting towards sustainable construction, moving beyond climate risk debates to fund resilience and low carbon design. This trend is unlocking investment in sustainable building design and net zero carbon buildings, aligning financial flows with environmental sustainability in construction. For developers, demonstrating life cycle thinking in construction and proving reduced Embodied Carbon in materials is becoming critical to accessing large-scale finance.

The University of Derby has launched the Institute of Carbonomics to advance research in reducing emissions across industries. While broader in scope, the initiative is set to influence eco-design for buildings and sustainable architecture, embedding lifecycle assessment and sustainable building practices into commercial decision-making. Its outputs are expected to shape climate-smart construction by linking resource efficiency in construction to Whole Life Carbon reduction strategies.

Private investment momentum is also growing. Gresham House’s acquisition of clean energy investor SUSI Partners increases its capacity to fund green infrastructure, net zero carbon projects, and Circular Economy in construction approaches. This creates deeper capital pools for low carbon building technologies and renewable building materials, enabling more developers to pursue carbon neutral construction without prohibitive upfront costs.

Consumer demand reinforces this momentum. Rising energy costs are driving homeowners towards energy-efficient buildings and eco-friendly construction upgrades, accelerating adoption of green building products and smart retrofitting. For construction firms, this highlights a profitable pathway where sustainable building practices align with direct financial savings, embedding sustainable material specification as a market-driven necessity.

The “Nature in Contracts” initiative, supported by the UK Green Building Council, signals growing attention to biodiversity and the environmental impact of construction within procurement frameworks. By embedding nature-positive clauses, developers are being pushed towards circular construction strategies, sustainable urban development, and environmental product declarations (EPDs). This integration signals a future where green construction becomes inseparable from legal and financial compliance, sharpening the focus on Embodied Carbon in materials and building lifecycle performance.

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