Methane release from carbonate rock formations in the Siberian permafrost area during and after the 2020 heat wave | PNAS

In the Taymyr Peninsula and surroundings in North Siberia, the area of the worldwide largest positive surface temperature anomaly for 2020, atmospheric methane concentrations have increased considerably during and after the 2020 heat wave. Two elongated areas of increased atmospheric methane concentration that appeared during summer coincide with two stripes of Paleozoic carbonates exposed at the southern and northern borders of the Yenisey-Khatanga Basin, a hydrocarbon-bearing sedimentary basin between the Siberian Craton to the south and the Taymyr Fold Belt to the north. Over the carbonates, soils are thin to nonexistent and wetlands are scarce. The maxima are thus unlikely to be caused by microbial methane from soils or wetlands. We suggest that gas hydrates in fractures and pockets of the carbonate rocks in the permafrost zone became unstable due to warming from the surface. This process may add unknown quantities of methane to the atmosphere in the near future.
— Read on www.pnas.org/content/118/32/e2107632118

Belarus dictator’s terror tactics backfire at Tokyo Olympics – Atlantic Council

Belarus dictator Alyaksandr Lukashenka’s heavy-handed crackdown on all forms of domestic criticism was thrust into the international spotlight during the Tokyo Olympics when one of his country’s star athletes refused orders to fly home early and instead fled to Poland citing concerns for her personal safety.
— Read on www.atlanticcouncil.org/blogs/ukrainealert/belarus-dictators-terror-tactics-backfire-at-tokyo-olympics/

China’s Ban on Taiwan Pineapples Backfires as New Buyers Step In

(Bloomberg) — China’s surprise ban on pineapple imports from Taiwan five months ago was widely viewed as an attempt to undermine President Tsai Ing-wen’s standing with a political constituency. Trade data show the move has produced anything but the desired effect.First-half numbers collected by Taiwan’s Council of Agriculture show growers of the fruit on the island have fared better since China blocked imports starting March 1, as sympathetic Japanese shoppers stepped in to provide support.
— Read on finance.yahoo.com/news/china-ban-taiwan-pineapples-backfires-210000757.html

The Big Money Behind the Big Lie | The New Yorker

Donald Trump’s attacks on democracy are being promoted by rich and powerful conservative groups that are determined to win at all costs.
— Read on www.newyorker.com/magazine/2021/08/09/the-big-money-behind-the-big-lie

Khodorkovsky-Backed Media, Legal Aid Groups Shut Down After Russia Blocks Them

Two online publications and a legal aid group backed by exiled Kremlin critic Mikhail Khodorkovsky announced they were ceasing operations on August 5 after the sites were blocked by Russian authorities.

— Read on www.rferl.org/a/open-media-russia-websites-news-mbkh-foreign-agents-khodorkovsky/31394446.html

Sergei Guriev: “We may already be seeing Russia’s return to the repressive dictatorship of the 20th century” – Institute of Modern Russia

The Institute of Modern Russia is committed to strengthening respect for human rights, the rule of law, and civil society.
— Read on www.imrussia.org/en/opinions/3321-sergei-guriev-“we-may-already-be-seeing-russia’s-return-to-the-repressive-dictatorship-of-the-20th-century”

Mark Meadows Timeline: The Chief of Staff and Schemes to Overturn 2020 Election

Mark Meadows Timeline: The Chief of Staff and Schemes to Overturn 2020 Election
— Read on www.justsecurity.org/77681/mark-meadows-timeline-the-chief-of-staff-and-schemes-to-overturn-2020-election/

Observation-based early-warning signals for a collapse of the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation | Nature Climate Change

The Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation (AMOC), a major ocean current system transporting warm surface waters toward the northern Atlantic, has been suggested to exhibit two distinct modes of operation. A collapse from the currently attained strong to the weak mode would have severe impacts on the global climate system and further multi-stable Earth system components. Observations and recently suggested fingerprints of AMOC variability indicate a gradual weakening during the last decades, but estimates of the critical transition point remain uncertain. Here, a robust and general early-warning indicator for forthcoming critical transitions is introduced. Significant early-warning signals are found in eight independent AMOC indices, based on observational sea-surface temperature and salinity data from across the Atlantic Ocean basin. These results reveal spatially consistent empirical evidence that, in the course of the last century, the AMOC may have evolved from relatively stable conditions to a point close to a critical transition. The Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation (AMOC) is currently strong, but transition to its weak mode could see significant changes in the climate system. This work presents an observation-based early-warning system for such transitions and shows that the AMOC may be approaching a transition.
— Read on www.nature.com/articles/s41558-021-01097-4.epdf

Climate crisis: Scientists spot warning signs of Gulf Stream collapse | Climate change | The Guardian

A shutdown would have devastating global impacts and must not be allowed to happen, researchers say
— Read on www.theguardian.com/environment/2021/aug/05/climate-crisis-scientists-spot-warning-signs-of-gulf-stream-collapse