Amazon Rainforest Under Threat

by Savitha on  May 10, 2008 at 4:01 PM Environmental Health
  •   Print
  •   Share
  •   Comments
  •  Text 
British Climate scientists along with their counterparts from Brazil have sounded an alert of an impending threat to the Amazon Rainforest, thought as an unhealthy prgnosis for the Earth's climate system.

The study, which led scientists to come up with the new theory, identifies a link between reducing sulphur dioxide emissions from burning coal and increasing sea surface temperatures in the tropical north Atlantic, resulting in a heightened risk of drought in the Amazon rainforest.

The Amazon rainforest contains about one tenth of the total carbon stored in land ecosystems and recycles a large fraction of the rainfall that falls upon it. So any major change to its vegetation, brought about by events like deforestation or drought, has an impact on the global climate system.

A team from the University of Exeter, Centre for Ecology and Hydrology, Met Office Hadley Centre and Brazilian National Institute for Space Studies used the Met Office Hadley Centre climate-carbon model to simulate the impacts of twenty-first century climate change on the Amazon rainforest.

They compared the model to data from the 2005 drought, which caused widespread devastation across the Amazon basin.

The researchers estimate that by 2025, a drought on this scale could happen every other year and by 2060, a drought could occur in nine out of every ten years.

Sulphate aerosol particles arising from the burning of coal in power stations in the 1970s and 1980s have partially reduced global warming by reflecting sunlight and making clouds brighter.

Page 1 Page 1 | 2  Next
 Email Email   RSS Feeds RSS Feeds   Print this page Print   Save this page Save   Link Link   Syndicate Syndicate   Comments Comments   Bookmark and Share
 
Comment & Contribute
Comments should be on the topic and should not be abusive. Comments are normally moderated and are reviewed after they are posted.
* Your comment can be maximum of 2500 characters

Notify me when reply is posted
I agree to the terms and conditions
  
If you have a question about health related issues, you can now post it in our Ask An Expert section on our community website Medwonders.com and get answers from our panel of experts.
X

Medwonders Health Network

  • Health News Index
A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z
News Archive
Date :
Category :
Keyword :
  • News Quick Links
News Central Health Watch
Latest Health News Health In Focus
News Category (500+) Breaking Health News
Popular News Celebrating Life
Health News and Press Release Medindia - Exclusive
News Photo Gallery India Special
News Video Gallery Lifestyle and Wellness
News From Other Resources
News Categories:  
Men's Health Center

Environmental Health Related News

» Nuclear Disasters Likely to Occur Once in 20 Years » Cut Down Seagrass Ecosystems to Liberate Carbon
» Research Shows Global Warming Intensifying Water Cycle » Future of Renewable Energy: Space-Based Solar Power?
» Earth Will Not be Able to Sustain Human Activity by 2030 » Fungus That Can Consume Discarded Plastic Discovered
» Prudent Intake Can Induce Dip in Carbon Footprint: Study » Study Links Air Pollution Level Changes in Beijing With Cardiovascular Disease Biomarkers
Read More >>