[Mar 10-16'25] THE BRIEF
🛰️ From Space to Soil: Climate Whiplash Hits Everything in Orbit
Welcome to this week’s edition of The Weekly Climate 🎉
References: [1], [2], [3], [4], [5], [6]
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‼️News you can’t miss
Here’s one important scary/bad (🙀), good (😻), interesting (😼) and fossil (💩) news item.
🙀 [#Climate Language]: Trump's administration is systematically erasing climate-related language from federal websites and limiting scientific discussions, forcing researchers to find creative workarounds to continue their work.
😻 [#Renewable Growth]: Despite political headwinds, solar and wind energy have generated more electricity than coal for the first time in US history, marking a watershed moment in the energy transition.
😼 [#Satellite Impacts]: Climate change is surprisingly affecting space infrastructure by shrinking the upper atmosphere, potentially reducing satellite capacity in low Earth orbit by 50-66% by 2100.
💩 [#Fossil Fuel Industry]: Trump's "drill, baby, drill" agenda promotes increased fossil fuel extraction globally while undermining renewable energy efforts, threatening to lock in decades of additional carbon emissions.
This week’s highlights
Climate change continues to reshape our world in unexpected ways—from the upper atmosphere to the depths of policy decisions. This week brings historic energy milestones alongside concerning revelations about industry knowledge and government actions. Here are five stories that caught our attention:
Solar and wind beat coal in the US for the first time
For the first time in American history, solar and wind energy have generated more electricity than coal, marking a watershed moment in the energy transition. Despite significant political headwinds, renewable energy continues to gain momentum across the country. Solar energy has emerged as the fastest-growing source, and the trend shows no signs of slowing even as overall electricity demand rises. This shift represents a fundamental change in America's energy landscape that could accelerate regardless of policy obstacles. Read more...
The American beef industry understood its climate impact decades ago
New investigations reveal the American beef industry was aware of its significant climate impact as early as 1989 but actively worked to discredit efforts to reduce beef consumption. Internal documents show the industry funded studies specifically designed to challenge climate findings while launching coordinated campaigns to counter advocacy for reduced meat consumption. This mirrors tactics used by fossil fuel companies, as research indicates that cutting beef intake could have substantially reduced greenhouse gas emissions over the past three decades. Read more...
Finland opening world's first permanent nuclear waste repository
Finland is poised to make history as the first country to open a permanent underground storage facility for spent nuclear fuel, addressing one of nuclear energy's most persistent challenges. The Posiva Oy site will soon begin operations, storing radioactive waste 400 meters below ground in specially designed copper canisters embedded in bentonite clay within bedrock. This milestone comes after decades of planning and represents a potential model for other nations like France, Sweden, and the United States that have struggled with the long-term storage of nuclear waste. The development could remove a significant obstacle to nuclear energy's role in clean power generation. Read more...
Climate change threatens satellite operations
Scientists have discovered a surprising new climate impact: greenhouse gases are causing the upper atmosphere to contract, potentially reducing the satellite-carrying capacity of low Earth orbit by 50-66% by 2100. This unexpected consequence of climate change could significantly disrupt global communications, weather monitoring, and research capabilities. Experts are calling for proactive measures to manage satellite launches and mitigate these effects, highlighting how climate change impacts extend beyond Earth's surface to our orbital infrastructure. Read more...
Trump administration erasing climate language from federal websites
The Trump administration has launched a systematic effort to erase climate-related language from federal websites, limiting scientific discussions about climate change across government agencies. Even terms like "resilience" are being scrutinized and removed. This linguistic purge is affecting scientific research and forcing employees to develop creative workarounds to continue climate-related work. The crackdown reflects a broader trend of redefining acceptable language to align with conservative ideologies, creating significant obstacles for climate science communication and policy development. Read more...
That’s it for this week folks!
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See you all next week 👋