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Artificial light at night (ALAN) marks the global impact of humanity1,2. Yet, our understanding of its true ebb and flow has been limited, often based on temporally aggregated satellite data that obscure finer dynamics.
Satellite imagery reveals increasing volatility in human night-time activity
Global night lights are highly dynamic, with frequent brightening and dimming. Volatility is rising, shaping urban, energy, and ecological conditions.
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Methane’s outsized but short-lived contributions to atmospheric warming have positioned methane mitigation as a cornerstone of actionable, near-term global climate strategy.
A global methane observation system to track climate feedbacks for verifiable climate impact
Methane cuts must include natural sources like wetlands; authors propose a global monitoring system to better track and manage emissions.
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Future climate will not save high-elevation white pines
Malone, S.L., Schoettle, A.W., Burns, K.S. et al. Commun Earth Environ (2026).
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Climate change affects everyone, but not equally. Communities facing the most exposure to climate impacts are often called frontline communities (FLCs), due to their presence at the metaphorical frontlines of climate change.
Vulnerability outpaces climate worry in US frontline communities
Frontline communities face higher climate risks and recovery gaps, yet aren’t more worried overall and show lower awareness of climate science.
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Global spatiotemporal analysis of interactions between urban heat islands and extreme heat waves
Guo, J., Lee, X. & Zhang, K. Sci Rep.
Keywords: Heat wave, Urban heat island, Surface evaporation, Surface energy balance, Surface biophysical driver
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Spatial and racial/ethnic disparities in cardiovascular mortality attributable to PM2.5 components in the contiguous United States
Ying Hu et al. Sci. Adv.12,eadx2075(2026).
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Imagining land-use reforms: Can mixing reduce long distance travel?
Charles QC Li, Arianna Salazar-Miranda, Cities.
Keywords: Land use; Urban form; Travel distance; Sustainability; Machine learning
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Uncovering the importance of spatiotemporal resolution in satellite-based rice yield estimation using a simple but effective proxy
High-spatiotemporal-resolution, frequent satellite data improve crop yield estimates, while coarse data underestimate yields in smallholder farms.
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Fires enhanced productivity in fire-adapted subtropical pinelands of the Florida Everglades
Grace McLeod, Mayavati Tupaj, Daniel Gann, Michael Ross, Sparkle L. Malone.
Keywords: Post-fire recovery, Ecosystem resilience, NDVI, Landsat
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Agroforestry and enhanced rock weathering: A dual strategy for sustainable cacao
Steeley, I. L., França, E. S., Epihov, D. Z., Planavsky, N. J., & Beerling, D. J. (2025). Plants, People, Planet, 1–18.
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Gender, Development, and Recognition of Anthropogenic Climate Change
Gender shapes climate views: in poorer, less democratic nations, women less often link climate change to humans due to limited education and access.
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Farmland parcel extraction and area calculation from UAV images based on semantic segmentation
This study used UAV imagery and semantic segmentation to accurately calculate farmland area for smart irrigation management.
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An approach to prioritize urban tree planting to mitigate heat and advance equity in New Haven
Shijuan Chen, Erin Shives, Katie Lund, Colleen Murphy-Dunning, Karen C. Seto.
Keywords: Urban tree planting; Heat mitigation; Remote Sensing; GIS
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Exploring the social life of urban spaces through AI
In major U.S. cities over 30 years, people are walking faster, staying in public spaces for shorter periods, and having fewer group interactions.
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A simplified urban-extent algorithm to characterize surface urban heat islands on a global scale and examine vegetation control on their spatiotemporal variability
T. Chakraborty, X. Lee.
Keywords: Urban heat island; Urban climate; Global study; Remote sensing; MODIS; Algorithm development
