BBC Environmental Science – Gosat (Global Greenhouse Observation by Satellite) is a two-metric-tonne Earth-orbiting satellite which will map the abundance of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere, and where they are. The probe will lift off from the Tanegashima launch site in southern Japan early on Thursday. It will orbit the planet at an altitude of 666km during its five-year mission.

Japan’s Space Agency Jaxa says Gosat will “contribute to the international effort toward prevention of (global) warming”. They say that monitoring greenhouse gases is vital to promote and support measures designed to mitigate against climate change.

The Kyoto Protocol came into force in February 2005 is a comprehensive set of rules for reducing and restricting greenhouse gas emissions. The Gosat mission is designed to identify and monitor sources of CO2, to support compliance with international treaties and agreements such as Kyoto. But it could also shed light on a key problem in climate science.

Only about 50% of carbon emitted into the atmosphere, for example from fossil fuel combustion and land use, stays there. Most of the remainder is mopped up by the forests and oceans, which act as “sinks”. However, there appears to be a large carbon sink missing. …

Gosat (also known by its Japanese name Ibuki) will take measurements of two key greenhouse gases - carbon dioxide (CO2) and methane (CH4) - over nearly the entire surface of the planet. It will carry two sensors, a Fourier Transform Spectrometer (FTS) and a Cloud and Aerosol Imager (CAI). …

Gosat is set to blast off between 0354 and 0416 GMT on Thursday from Tanageshima. (01/21/09)
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Environmental Science – Scientists say data from satellites and weather stations indicate a warming of about 0.6C over the last 50 years. Writing in the journal Nature, they say the trend is “difficult to explain” without the effect of rising greenhouse gas levels in the atmosphere.

Meanwhile, scientists in Antarctica say a major ice shelf is about to break away from the continent. The Wilkins Ice Shelf is said to be “hanging by a thread” from the Antarctic Peninsula, the strip of land pointing from the white continent towards the southern tip of South America.

Most of Antarctica’s scientific stations are located along the peninsula, and scientists have known for many years that this portion of the continent is getting warmer. But trends across the bulk of the continent have been much harder to discern, mainly because data from land stations is scarce. It is somewhat insulated from the rest of the world’s weather systems by winds and ocean currents that circulate around the perimeter.

In the new analysis, a team of US scientists combined data from land stations with satellite readings “We have at least 25 years of data from satellites, and satellites have the huge advantage that they can see the whole continent,” said Eric Steig from the University of Washington in Seattle. But the [land] stations have the advantage that they go back much further in time. So we combined the two; and what we found, in a nutshell, is that there is warming across the whole continent, it’s stronger in winter and spring but it is there in all seasons.” (01/21/09)
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BBC Environmental Science – The number of birds in Wales continues to decline with two species, curlews and golden plovers, seeing an 80% drop in population. The charity RSPB Cymru is also concerned for birds which breed on four estuaries, including the Severn and the Dee.

But its annual survey found some good news, with the near-threatened Dartford warbler having 72 pairs in Wales. And the seabirds kittiwakes, fulmars and guillemots are doing better in Wales than in other parts of the UK.

A study suggests populations of some breeding birds on farmed habitats, such as curlews, starlings and yellowhammers, are continuing to decline unabated. It found curlews had declined by 81% throughout their range in Wales, down to some 1,099 breeding pairs, between 1993 and 2006 and golden plovers by 88% between 1982 and 2007.

The survey put the Welsh breeding population of golden plover at 36 pairs, compared to an estimated high of 214 pairs in the mid 1970s, although different survey methods mean the figures might not be directly comparable. …

Katie-Jo Luxton, Head of Conservation Policy at RSPB Cymru, said: “Some of Wales’ important bird species are now so scarce they cannot be monitored by annual schemes.

“This dramatically shows that we don’t have much time left to act if we are to save these special birds in Wales.” (01/21/09)
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