Every year, international authoritative magazines such as Science and Nature will review the scientific practices, scientific breakthroughs and scientific figures of the past year, and look forward to the hot trends of the New Year. In the 2018 Global Hot Science list, we found that there are many achievements related to atmospheric science that we can share with our readers, which may inspire and lead the way of scientific research.

1、A massive ice age collision could explain the Younger Dryas event

Listed in Science's top 10 scientific breakthroughs of the year

Massive meteorite collision during the Ice Age.

 A major ice age collision is among the top 10 scientific breakthroughs of 2018, according to Science magazine.

An asteroid struck northwestern Greenland like a chain of nuclear bombs during the Ice age, evaporating instantly and sending shockwaves across the Arctic, leaving behind a 31-kilometer-wide crater larger than the Washington area of the United States, according to new research by scientists.

In November 2018, scientists used aircraft radar to discover the crater hidden under kilometers of ice. While not as catastrophic as the meteorite event that wiped out the dinosaurs in Mexico 66 million years ago, the Ciyawasa crater, one of the 25 largest on Earth, had a significant impact on the global climate. The meltwater that followed the collision poured into the North Atlantic, possibly stopping the conveyor belt of warm ocean currents from northwest Europe that caused the post-ice age climate crash.

The research could help explain the Younger Dryas event, a thousand-year cooling event that followed the Ice age.

2、Extreme weather and climate warming

Selected as Nature's Science Event of the Year

Science's Negative Event of the year

Thousands of Californians have been evacuated as wildfires rage through the Sierra Nevada Mountains.

"Extremely hot, dry weather" is one of the science events of the year named by Nature. 2018 has been a

very hot year for fires around the world: in July, Sweden saw more than 50 fires; In August, the Canadian province of British Columbia was in the midst of its worst fire season on record; In November, wildfires in California have killed 85 people and left more than 200 missing...

The Earth is facing a century of extreme heat and dry weather, and the future could get worse. The October 2018 report by the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) said the pace of global warming was accelerating and governments were not taking strong action.

Environmentalists are fighting government inaction with groundbreaking lawsuits. In November 2018, for example, the US Supreme Court ruled that a lawsuit brought by 21 young people against the US government for allegedly violating their rights to life, liberty and property by failing to stop climate change could go forward.

In addition, "Climate warming leads to frequent catastrophic climate events, but the global policy response is not good" is one of the three annual negative events named by Science. The other two were the burning of the Brazilian Natural History Museum and the creation of twin girls by He Jiankui using gene-editing technology.

3、The boundary where the Earth's atmosphere disappears is closer than we thought

One of Science's most popular science stories of the year

The boundary at which the Earth's atmosphere disappears has long been a point of debate.

In addition to valuable scientific breakthroughs, there are many scientific articles that arouse the interest and resonance of editors and readers. This is the most popular science news, which reflects the knowledge that people are most willing to accept.

An article exploring the boundaries of the Earth's atmosphere is on the list. The boundary at which the Earth's atmosphere disappears, the beginning of outer space, has long been a point of contention. Until now, most scientists thought outer space was 100 kilometers away. But a new study has changed our understanding of the boundary between Earth's atmosphere and outer space. The boundary between Earth's atmosphere and outer space (the Karman line) is about 20 kilometers shorter than scientists previously thought.

While the new definition won't affect rocket and spacecraft launches, it could help clarify a legal debate that could help set the rules for space policy and commercial spaceflight for years to come.

4、Plumes of carbon dioxide were used by ancient Rome to kill livestock

One of Science's most popular science stories of the year

The ancient city of Hierapolis in Turkey.

The ancient Romans held great sacrifices at what they thought was the entrance to hell in the whole of the ancient Mediterranean. The stout bulls brought to the "gates of Hell" to be sacrificed died quickly without human intervention, but the priests with them were unharmed. Now, new research at an ancient site suggests that there is a simple geological explanation for such "wonders."

In 2011, the Gates of Hell were discovered in the ruins of the ancient city of Hierapolis in Turkey. The city itself is located in one of the most geologically active parts of the region. 2,200 years ago, a deep fissure in the ground beneath Hierapolis spewed out volcanic carbon dioxide in the form of visible fog. The "Gates of Hell" were built right above the crack.

A research team led by Hadi Pphans, a volcanic biologist at the University of Essen in Duisburg, Germany, studied the temple's killing potential in detail.

During the day, the sun's heat dissipates carbon dioxide gas. But at night, the gas, which is slightly heavier than air, gushes out and forms a "lake" of carbon dioxide that covers the ground. At dawn, carbon dioxide levels of up to 35 per cent 40 centimetres above the ground are high enough to suffocate and kill an animal within minutes. However, the concentration decreased rapidly with increasing height.

The priest may sacrifice only in the morning or evening when the CO2 concentration is highest. The animals were not tall enough, and the priests were tall enough to avoid breathing the gas.

5、Valerie Masson-Delmott

Yang, the surplus

Named to Nature's Top ten People of the Year

Each year Nature selects ten people who have made a significant impact on science. This year, climate expert Valerie Masson-Delmott and Malaysian Minister of Energy, Science, Technology, Environment and Climate Change Yeo Mei Ying made the list. Both of their contributions are related to combating climate change and protecting the environment.

Valerie Masson-Delmott played a key role in the IPCC's important report. The 1.5C report warns that there are only a dozen years left before the planet reaches temperatures that transform ecosystems and destroy large numbers of coral reefs.

She has done much to improve the diversity of the IPCC membership. While women made up just 22 percent of the entire team of authors in the 2014 review, this report has an unprecedented 40 percent female representation. She is also working to get young scientists from countries in the southern hemisphere more involved.

Ms. Yeo has spearheaded an effort to reduce the use of single-use plastic. After five years of attacking flaws in national policy, she has been able to change them. Since taking office on July 2, 2018, Yeo has reformed Malaysia's environmental governance, announcing the goal of increasing the share of renewable energy in total energy production from 2% to 20% by 2030.

She has also campaigned against plastic pollution, criticising the importation of plastic waste into Malaysia and helping to enact a national ban to stop plastic imports. On October 31, 2018, Yeo launched a 12-year roadmap and legal framework to eliminate single-use plastic products in Malaysia by 2030.

6、The polar project explores the oldest atmospheric conditions

Among the major events of 2019 predicted by Nature

In January 2019, researchers from the United States and the United Kingdom will travel to Antarctica to begin their largest joint expedition to the continent in more than 70 years.

The five-year project aims to understand whether the remote and seemingly unstable Thwaites Glacier will begin to collapse within the next few decades. It involves studying ocean conditions near glaciers using autonomous underwater vehicles and sensors attached to seals.

Later in 2019, European scientists plan to begin drilling into Antarctica's small Dome C ice sheet in search of 1.5 million-year-old ice cores. If they succeed, they will have restored the most ancient conditions in the atmosphere.

7、Geoengineering against solar radiation

Selected by Nature to predict the major events of 2019

As carbon emissions continue to rise, 2019 could see the first geoengineering projects to see if it is possible to use geoengineering to artificially cool the Earth. Scientists from the Stratospheric Controlled Perturbation Experiment (SCoPEx) wanted to squirt 100g of chalky particles into the stratosphere to see how they dispersed. Such particles could eventually reflect some of the sun's light back into space, thereby cooling the Earth.

Skeptics of geoengineering worry that the practice could have unintended consequences and slow efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. The US-led SCoPEx panel is awaiting approval from an independent advisory committee.

(Source: China Meteorological News, January 10, 2019. Photo source: EPA, Science and Nature website reporter Sun Nan)