Open access notables Observed Multi-Decadal Acceleration of Globally Averaged Abyssal Ocean Warming , Johnson, Geophysical Research Letters Given sparse historical data in the deep and abyssal ocean, previously only multi-decadal temperature trends have been estimated from observations there on a global scale. Full-depth CTD sampling started circa 1970, with the first decadal global ship-based survey occupied in the 1990s, and the first regional pilot array of Deep Argo floats started circa 2016. Here we fit second-order polynomial functions versus time to all available full-depth CTD profile temperature data in local spatial bins to estimate changes in the rates of these multi-decadal temperature trends. We find a statistically significant increase of the heating rate of the abyssal (4,000–6,000 dbar) ocean, from 5.4 (±4.9) TW in 1988 to 20.2 (±3.9) TW in 2018. In contrast, we find no statistically significant change in the heating rate of the deep ocean, estimated at 29.4 (±22.1) TW in 1988 and 25.0 (±17.5) TW in 2018. High-resolution simulations reveal positive global warming feedback from Pacific low clouds , Chammas et al., Science Advances Uncertainty in marine low-level cloud feedbacks limits accurate climate projections. Using 7083 high-resolution simulations of tropical Pacific low clouds, we separated the impacts of sea surface warming from direct carbon dioxide (CO2) effects. Surface warming alone drives a positive low-cloud feedback of 0.14Wm -2 K -1 . While this changes little with doubled CO2, the total cloud radiative response strengthens markedly to 0.43Wm -2 K -1 under quadrupled CO2, revealing a strong nonlinear interaction. Surface warming alone modifies the boundary layer through increased inversion strength and weakened subsidence, which buffers clouds by promoting higher liquid water content while cloud fraction decreases. Rapid adjustments to high CO2 concentrations counteract this protective cloud thickening. Consequently, a pronounced reduction in cloud fraction is no longer offset by an increase in cloud brightness, markedly strengthening the total radiative response under quadrupled CO2. Ultimately, our results suggest that climate sensitivity is more state-dependent than often assumed. Canopy-mediated climate feedbacks in the boreal continuous permafrost zone , Stuenzi et al., Nature Climate Change Boreal forests, covering approximately a quarter of the continuous permafrost zone, store relatively modest aboveground carbon, but thermally protect vast soil organic carbon (SOC) pools. Here, using a process-based model to compare seasonal thaw depths under forested and bare-ground scenarios, we quantify distinct canopy thermal insulation capacities of deciduous needleleaf, evergreen needleleaf and deciduous broadleaf canopies on permafrost thermal dynamics. Canopy buffering maintains approximately 59 Pg of carbon in a frozen state, which equals 32% of the total forested permafrost carbon pool and far exceeds boreal biomass stocks (7–19 Pg). Canopy changes could mobilize this frozen SOC through gradual thaw (40 Pg) and rapid thermokarst collapse (19 Pg). While forest loss sacrifices biomass carbon stocks, resulting thaw would expose orders of magnitude more SOC from previously frozen reservoirs, revealing a critical asymmetry. Forest conservation strategies in continuous permafrost zones must account for canopy-mediated thermal protection of frozen SOC, which far exceeds its biomass carbon sequestration capacity. The 2026 western US snow drought was about four times more likely due to climate change , Marshall et al., Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences In the spring of 2026, anomalously low snow conditions in the western United States threatened winter recreation and water supplies. Here, we investigate: to what extent was this snow drought attributable to the climate change that has occurred since the pre-industrial period? We find that a snow drought this severe across the western United States was approximately 4.4 [95% CI: 2.6, 9.4] times more likely in the current climate than in the preindustrial period. In the Upper Colorado River Basin, the snow drought was approximately 14 times more likely [0.09, 4,300]. Given a projected increase in the frequency of snow droughts at least this severe in a moderately high emissions warming scenario, the lived experience of this event may help scientists, resource managers, and the public consider what western US snow might look like if greenhouse gas emissions are not aggressively reduced. Feasibility of CO2 pipeline construction to enable gigaton-scale carbon dioxide removals: evidence from historical precedent , Roberts et al., Frontiers in Climate In this analysis, we use the history of fossil fuel pipeline networks to assess the feasibility of rapidly building enough CO 2 pipelines to enable gigaton-scale removals of CO 2 from the Earth's atmosphere. We collect data on scenarios of CO 2 pipeline construction, historical fossil fuel pipeline construction, and the historical context of this construction to answer four questions: (1) What length of pipeline network will be required to achieve the benchmarks of 1 Gt or 100 Mt of CO 2 in 2050? (2) What have been the largest national and international fossil fuel pipeline buildouts achieved in a 25-year period? (3) Is it feasible to build enough CO 2 pipelines to enable gigaton-scale carbon dioxide removals given these historical precedents? (4) Under what political, economic, and social circumstances have rapid pipeline build-outs occurred? We find that a pipeline network of roughly 8,000 km will be necessary to enable 100 Mt of carbon dioxide removal, and that roughly 100,000 km will be necessary for 1 Gt. There are 15 cases in the historical record of a country building 8,000 km of fossil fuel pipelines in 25 years, and only three cases of a country building 100,000km or more of pipelines in the same timescale. Rapid construction of fossil fuel pipelines has benefited from strong economic and institutional drivers, which may not apply to CO 2 pipelines in the same way. Our findings are reason for caution about the likelihood of CO 2 pipeline build outs keeping pace with CO 2 removal targets. From this week's government/NGO section : Pay, Baby, Pay. Why Trump's Energy & AI Dominance Agenda Means Higher Bills For Everyone , Lorne Stockman, Oil Change International U.S. wholesale fossil gas prices will likely double by the late 2030s relative to the 2020 to 2025 average if the Trump administration’s energy and AI policies succeed in pushing gas demand to levels that can only be met by more expensive gas production. Significant energy price volatility from 2020 to 2025 caused hardship in the U.S. and in LNG-importing countries, particularly in Asia and Europe. Costlier U.S. gas risks exacerbating the energy affordability crisis for U.S. and international consumers alike. The surge in gas demand – and gas prices – is being driven primarily by the Trump administration’s support for massive increases in liquefied natural gas (LNG) exports. Trump’s hostility toward renewables and support for the poorly regulated AI data center boom aggravate the impending crunch. Lower-cost gas from the two biggest U.S. gas-producing regions, the Permian and Appalachian basins, will not be able to meet rising demand alone. To fill the gap between demand and production, gas producers will have to increase drilling in the significantly more expensive Haynesville shale play in Louisiana and Texas. Interfacing science and policy: Exploring the role of scientific knowledge in the design of Voluntary Sustainability Standards , Loconto et al., Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations Through the concept of scientific cherry-picking, the authors analyze how Voluntary Sustainability Standards selectively incorporate particular strands of scientific knowledge that align with operational models and governance structures. This selective integration often leads to the promotion of interpretations of sustainability that are compatible with weak sustainability paradigms –emphasizing incremental improvements within existing systems – rather than fostering more systemic and transformative approaches. 181 articles in 66 journals by 1509 contributing authors Physical science of climate change, effects Climate Coupling in the Western Hemisphere and 2023 El Niño Onset , Jury, ATMOSPHERE-OCEAN 10.1080/07055900.2026.2698635 Fast expansion and slow contraction of the ITCZ in response to CO2 forcing , Zhang, Zenodo (CERN European Organization for Nuclear Research) Open Access 10.5281/zenodo.18164506 High-resolution simulations reveal positive global warming feedback from Pacific low clouds , Chammas et al., Science Advances Open Access 10.1126/sciadv.aec8488 Key role of continental inorganic halogens in the evolution of global air quality , Li et al., Nature Communications Open Access pdf 10.1038/s41467-026-75932-7 Multi-century cooling after net-zero greenhouse gas emissions , Tarshish et al., Nature Climate Change 10.1038/s41558-026-02700-2 Subtropical gyre expansion causes Southern Ocean salinification contrary to freshening predictions , Yu & Toole, Nature Communications Open Access 10.1038/s41467-026-75775-2 Most cited from this section, published 2 years ago: A more quiescent deep ocean under global warming , Nature Climate Change , 10.1038/s41558-024-02075-2 20 cites. buffer/PWSE Observations of climate change, effects Accelerating and Intensifying Dry-to-Wet Hydroclimate Whiplash Across the Contiguous United States , Yang & Li, Earth s Future Open Access 10.1029/2026ef008646 Anthropogenic Warming Increases Extreme Precipitation in Huaihe River Basin, China in 1961–2020 , Guo et al., International Journal of Climatology 10.1002/joc.70525 Asymmetric Warming and Climate Regime Shift in Bhubaneswar: Evidence from a Rapidly Growing Tropical City (1950-2025) , Beuria et al., Journal of Atmospheric and Solar-Terrestrial Physics 10.1016/j.jastp.2026.106922 Attribution of the Record-Breaking June 2024 Eastern Mediterranean Heatwave: Contrasting Roles of Soil Moisture in Anthropogenic Forcing and Natural Variability , Ma et al., Geophysical Research Letters Open Access 10.1029/2025gl121002 Escalating heat waves and human thermal stress over semi-arid Bundelkhand region, India , Singh et al., Urban Climate 10.1016/j.uclim.2026.103035 Lengthening Summer in the Northern Hemisphere with the Declining Arctic Sea Ice , Cui et al., ATMOSPHERE-OCEAN 10.1080/07055900.2026.2695602 Observed Multi-Decadal Acceleration of Globally Averaged Abyssal Ocean Warming , Johnson, Geophysical Research Letters Open Access 10.1029/2026gl124104 Opposite changes in comfortable days over tropical and mid-latitude lands due to anthropogenic warming, 1980-2020 and 2060-2100 , Wang et al., Advances in Climate Change Research Open Access 10.1016/j.accre.2026.07.010 The 2026 western US snow drought was about four times more likely due to climate change , Marshall et al., Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences Open Access 10.1073/pnas.2612961123 Warming-Induced Increase in Flooding in the Taklimakan Desert , Su et al., Journal of Earth Science Open Access pdf 10.1007/s12583-025-2033-0 Most cited from this section, published 2 years ago: Anthropogenic amplification of precipitation variability over the past century , Science , 10.1126/science.adp0212 218 cites. buffer/OBME Instrumentation & observational methods of climate change, effects A multi-method Antarctic atmospheric blocking dataset (1979–2024) , Bozkurt et al., Earth system science data Open Access 10.5194/essd-18-5399-2026 A simplified method to calculate atmospheric CO 2 equivalency for changing surface albedo , Akbari, Urban Climate 10.1016/j.uclim.2026.102795 Climate scientists sharpen tools for linking global warming to extreme weather , Vaz, Science 10.1126/science.aek8030 Most cited from this section, published 2 years ago: Causes of extreme events revealed by Rényi information transfer , Science Advances , 10.1126/sciadv.adn1721 9 cites. buffer/WINS Modeling, simulation & projection of climate change, effects European summer drying largely driven by atmospheric circulation changes since the 1980s , Dunkl et al., Nature Geoscience Open Access pdf 10.1038/s41561-026-02050-w Future tropical cyclone rainfall constrained by increased atmospheric dryness , Chen et al., Nature Geoscience Open Access 10.1038/s41561-026-02047-5 Identifying the Timing of Regional Summertime Minimum Temperature Threshold Crossings and the Potential Subsequent Climate Evolutions , Arcodia & Barnes, Earth s Future Open Access 10.1029/2026ef008520 Imbalances in climate outcomes in net-zero pathways with fossil fuel CO 2 emissions and reforestation-based CO 2 removals , MacIsaac et al., Communications Earth & Environment Open Access pdf 10.1038/s43247-026-03329-x Most cited from this section, published 2 years ago: The Indian Ocean Dipole in a warming world , Nature Reviews Earth & Environment , 10.1038/s43017-024-00573-7 52 cites. buffer/MSWE Advancement of climate & climate effects modeling, simulation & projection Added value of a priori bias correction for dynamical downscaling - A case study of Coastal British Columbia , Hingmire et al., PLOS Climate Open Access 10.1371/journal.pclm.0000717 Added value of a priori bias correction for dynamical downscaling - A case study of Coastal British Columbia , Hingmire et al., PLOS Climate Open Access 10.1371/journal.pclm.0000717 The Big Data paradox: how climate model authority becomes institutional mandates for climate extremes in the Anthropocene , Vijayakumar, Current Opinion in Environmental Sustainability 10.1016/j.cosust.2026.101698 The TIPMIP Earth system model experiment protocol: phase 1 , C. et al., Publication Database PIK (Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research (PIK)) Open Access pmh:oai:publications.pik-potsdam.de:item_32889 Most cited from this section, published 2 years ago: On the suitability of a convolutional neural network based RCM-emulator for fine spatio-temporal precipitation , Climate Dynamics , 10.1007/s00382-024-07350-8 16 cites. buffer/GCMA Cryosphere & climate change Century-long data reveals complex trends in ice cover in the Laurentian Great Lakes , Cannon et al., Communications Earth & Environment Open Access 10.1038/s43247-026-03866-5 Climate-driven tree failures: how extreme rainfall threatens the survival of monumental Araucaria angustifolia trees , Scipioni et al., Agricultural and Forest Meteorology Open Access 10.1016/j.agrformet.2026.111168 Glacier loss in Central Caucasus from ICESat-2, using the SRTM baseline and crossover analysis , Mehrishi et al., Advances in Climate Change Research Open Access 10.1016/j.accre.2026.07.012 Mass Loss From Thwaites Glacier Continues Even Without Ocean Melting , Williams et al., Geophysical Research Letters Open Access 10.1029/2026gl122843 Observed responses of sea ice formation and decay in a mid-latitude marginal sea under dual-mode global warming , Qiu et al., Global and Planetary Change 10.1016/j.gloplacha.2026.105631 Rapid acceleration of ice-cover loss from Northern Hemisphere lakes above critical air temperature thresholds , Zhou et al., Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences Open Access 10.1073/pnas.2610752123 The 2026 western US snow drought was about four times more likely due to climate change , Marshall et al., Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences Open Access 10.1073/pnas.2612961123 The dynamic response of Pine Island Glacier to two decades of intermittent ice shelf regrounding , Stepney et al., White Rose Research Online (University of Leeds, The University of Sheffield, University of York) pmh:oai:eprints.whiterose.ac.uk:243583 Most cited from this section, published 2 years ago: Ships are projected to navigate whole year-round along the North Sea route by 2100 , Communications Earth & Environment , 10.1038/s43247-024-01557-7 24 cites. buffer/CRYO Sea level & climate change Observed thresholds in sea-level rise driving global tidal wetland loss , Luo et al., Nature Communications Open Access 10.1038/s41467-026-76031-3 Most cited from this section, published 2 years ago: Probabilistic reconstruction of sea-level changes and their causes since 1900 , Earth system science data , 10.5194/essd-16-3471-2024 31 cites. buffer/SLCC Paleoclimate & paleogeochemistry Broadly stable atmospheric CO 2 and CH 4 levels over the past 3 million years , Marks-Peterson et al., Nature 10.1038/s41586-025-10032-y Interplay of North Atlantic freshening and deep convection during the last deglaciation constrained by Iberian speleothems , Endres et al., Climate of the past Open Access pdf 10.5194/cp-22-797-2026 Wildfires rampaged across Europe in the dying days of the Triassic , [authors did not process], Nature 10.1038/d41586-026-02333-7 Most cited from this section, published 2 years ago: Response of coastal California hydroclimate to the Paleocene–Eocene Thermal Maximum , Climate of the past , 10.5194/cp-20-1615-2024 2 cites. buffer/PCIM Biology & climate change, related geochemistry Larix gmelinii growth limitation shifts from nitrogen availability to drought under warming and permafrost degradation , Chen et al., Global and Planetary Change 10.1016/j.gloplacha.2026.105395 Aftermath of marine heatwaves on the growth and physiological performance of Sargassum fusiforme and Sargassum thunbergii , Chu et al., Marine Environmental Research 10.1016/j.marenvres.2026.107945 An integrated assessment of climate change on landscape adaptive capacity, vulnerability, and divergence in Avicennia species , Sheidai et al., Scientific Reports Open Access pdf 10.1038/s41598-026-42720-8 Analysis of the mechanism of MKK4 participating in heat stress response in Mytilus coruscus , Wei et al., Marine Environmental Research 10.1016/j.marenvres.2026.107956 Aragonite Saturation Horizon Variability Along North Pacific Seamounts and Implications for Deep-Sea Coral Reefs , Kassem et al., Journal of Geophysical Research Oceans Open Access 10.1029/2025jc023926 Assessing impacts of extreme climate and weather events on endangered pearl oysters Pinctada maxima , He et al., Marine Environmental Research 10.1016/j.marenvres.2025.107821 Biogeochemical signal from marine heatwaves, cold spells, and transient warming events in a coastal upwelling system , Valdés et al., Scientific Reports Open Access pdf 10.1038/s41598-026-62941-1 Climate change alters biogeochemical cycles in oxygen-depleted and dead zones , Bourbonnais et al., Communications Earth & Environment Open Access pdf 10.1038/s43247-026-03756-w Climate Change Enhances the Success of Marine Invasive Species , Smith & Cheung, Global Change Biology Open Access 10.1111/gcb.71020 Climate-Driven Population Dynamics, Growth, and Phenology of the Moon Jellyfish Aurelia coerulea in the Mediterranean Thau Lagoon , Pigeon et al., Marine Environmental Research Open Access 10.1016/j.marenvres.2026.107977 Climate-Driven Restructuring of Phytoplankton Productivity and Community Composition in the South-eastern Black Sea: Insights from Seasonal CO 2 -Temperature Manipulation Experiments , A??rba? et al., Marine Environmental Research 10.1016/j.marenvres.2026.108029 Disentangling the effects of FPAR, CO 2 , and climate on terrestrial vegetation productivity trends over two decades (2001–2023) , Pu et al., Agricultural and Forest Meteorology 10.1016/j.agrformet.2026.111122 Ecological novelty induced by climate change , Wright et al., Nature Climate Change 10.1038/s41558-026-02697-8 Ecosystem services can persist in drowning macrotidal salt marshes , Mason et al., Marine Environmental Research Open Access pdf 10.1016/j.marenvres.2026.108260 Establishing ring width and cell chronologies for predicting future growth of Thuja koraiensis under climate change , Park et al., Dendrochronologia 10.1016/j.dendro.2025.126423 First evidence of climate-driven modulation of octi