Losing old sequoias, elephant's mysterious journey, cyclical dead zones in the ocean, carbon free air travel...

[View in your browser]( [ecowatch]( Top Posts [ ​In Today's Eco Update - Losing ancient sequoias. - Elephant journey. - Cyclical dead zones. And a look at a decarbonized future for air travel. – summaries below written by [Angely Mercado]( [post_image]( [Earth Lost 10% of All Monarch Sequoias in 2020]( Between 7,500 and 10,000 monarch sequoias — 10% to 14% of the world's mature sequoia population — perished in California's 2020 Castle Fire. Many of these trees have lived for up to thousands of years and have survived previous wild fires. But as fire season lasts longer and fires burn hotter, naturally resistant wildlife and plants are starting to succumb to the flames. The loss is devastating. Redwood forests are efficient in removing carbon from the atmosphere and provide [wildlife]( habitat and watershed protection for farmers and communities in California. The loss numbers, derived from satellite data, will be confirmed visually when scientists are able to hike the high-elevation groves still covered in snow. [Read More Button]( [9630b8e6-45a3-4648-9335-a47935d7d092.png](  [twitter](  [linkedin](  [email](mailto:?subject=Earth Lost 10% of All Monarch Sequoias in 2020&body= [post_image]( [Epic Elephant Journey Across China]( Fifteen Asian [elephants]( are on a journey across a Chinese province, and no one knows why. The herd left their home in Xishuangbanna National Nature Reserve last spring and have since travelled more than 300 miles in what experts say is the longest-ever trek made by elephants in China. Throughout their journey, the herd has captured the attention of Chinese social media users while also getting into some trouble. The elephants have eaten more than $1 million worth of crops and one was even drunk off fermented grain. [Read More Button]( [9630b8e6-45a3-4648-9335-a47935d7d092.png](  [twitter](  [linkedin](  [email](mailto:?subject=Epic Elephant Journey Across China&body= [post_image]( [Dead Zones Have Recurred in the North Pacific for Over a Million Years]( Dead zones in the ocean occur when oxygen levels in the fall so low that [animals]( can no longer survive in the area. The zones have [quadrupled in size]( around the world since the 1950s, but according to a study [published in Science Advances Wednesday]( the abundance of dead zones is not new. At least in the North Pacific, dead zones have occurred periodically over the past 1.2 million years, and this knowledge might help scientists understand when they will be likely to return. Before the study, the most known dead zone in eologic history of the North Pacific was the one that occurred after the last Ice Age, when melting glaciers flooded the ocean with fresh water. New research shows evidence of earlier dead zones. [Read More Button]( [9630b8e6-45a3-4648-9335-a47935d7d092.png](  [twitter](  [linkedin](  [email](mailto:?subject=Dead Zones Have Recurred in the North Pacific for Over a Million Years&body= [post_image]( [​The Future of Flying? Airships Could Cut Carbon Emissions by 90%]( Love [flying]( but feel guilty about the [air pollution]( and carbon emissions that airplanes produce? Sometimes, simple solutions to big problems float right above our heads — literally. A UK blimp company has developed a new environmentally friendly airship for commercial flights. If it replaces airplanes on short, inter-city routes, the updated technology will reduce [carbon emissions]( from air travel by 90 percent. A [company statement]( from the airship's developer, [Hybrid Air Vehicles (HAV)]( quoted United Nations Secretary António Guterres' warning: "The latest analysis shows that if we act now, we can reduce carbon emissions within 12 years and limit global warming to 1.5C. But if we continue along our current path, the consequences are impossible to predict." HAV created the new airships to "rethink the skies," as the company motto goes. [BBC]( estimated that the aviation industry is responsible for around 2.4 percent of global carbon emissions and around 5 percent of global warming. There is an element of [climate justice]( involved as well, because [only a small portion of the world flies]( frequently, and often, those populations are not the ones who will [suffer the most from the climate crisis](. HAV developed their latest prototype, the Airlander 10, to combat the [environmental cost of air travel](. "For many decades flying from A to B has meant sitting in a metal tube with tiny windows – a necessity but not always a pleasure," said HAV commercial business development director George Land in a [company press release](. "On Airlander, the whole experience is pleasant, even enjoyable. And in the hybrid-electric and future all-electric configurations, Airlander is fit for our decarbonised future." [Read More Button]( [9630b8e6-45a3-4648-9335-a47935d7d092.png](  [twitter](  [linkedin](  [email](mailto:?subject=​The Future of Flying? Airships Could Cut Carbon Emissions by 90%&body= All rights reserved. [facebook](  [twitter](  [instagram]( [Unsubscribe]( {EMAIL} [Update Profile]( [about our service provider]( Sent by contact@ecowatch.com