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Highest-ever ocean temperature recorded as super El Nino forms

Highest-ever ocean temperature recorded as super El Nino forms

Scientists have recorded the highest temperature ever measured in the world's oceans, as climate change combines with a powerful El Nino in the tropical Pacific. The global average sea-surface temperature hit a record 21.1 degrees Celsius on Aug. 22, according to Europe’s Earth observation agency Copernicus, which has been tracking the metric daily since 1979. The previous single-day record of 21.09 C was measured in March 2024.

Brief written by urgent.news from Japan Times's own syndicated text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.

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Beyond Haber-Bosch: New solar-powered technique for ammonia production

Research Matters Staff Writer(s) Kolkata 25 Aug 2026 A team of scientists has succeeded in creating green ammonia, a breakthrough that could change how we produce fertiliser and store renewable…

  • New solar-powered method produces ammonia using sunlight, water, and air.
  • Bismuth molybdate mineral tweaked to reduce nitrogen gas into ammonia at room temperature.
  • Tin-doped catalyst 10.9 times more efficient than undoped material, optimal at 10% content.

Process doubles the size of PFAS molecules, making them easy to destroy

Ask a chemist to name the strongest single bond in organic chemistry, and they'll likely say carbon-fluorine. It's that bond, repeated dozens of times over, that gives per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) their nickname: forever chemicals. Manufacturers prize PFAS for the same reason regulators dread them.

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