Trends in treatment need and receipt for substance use disorders in the US

JAMA Network

About The Study: 

This cross-sectional study’s analysis underscores a public health crisis of substance use disorder. The prevalence of substance use disorder surged during the COVID-19 pandemic, yet the receipt of treatment declined initially as health care services were disrupted. Treatment rates began to recover in 2022, likely due to reopened treatment programs and increased telehealth use.

Corresponding Author: To contact the corresponding author, Milap C. Nahata, PharmD, MS, email nahata.1@osu.edu.

To access the embargoed study: Visit our For The Media website at this link https://media.jamanetwork.com/

(doi:10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2024.53317)

Editor’s Note: Please see the article for additional information, including other authors, author contributions and affiliations, conflict of interest and financial disclosures, and funding and support.

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About JAMA Network Open: JAMA Network Open is an online-only open access general medical journal from the JAMA Network. On weekdays, the journal publishes peer-reviewed clinical research and commentary in more than 40 medical and health subject areas. Every article is free online from the day of publication. 

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Journal

JAMA Network Open

Non-opioid pain relievers beat opioids after dental surgery

Rutgers University

A combination of acetaminophen (Tylenol) and ibuprofen (Advil, Motrin) controls pain after wisdom tooth removal better than opioids, according to a Rutgers Health study that could change how dentists treat post-surgical pain.

The trial in more than 1,800 patients found that those given a combination of ibuprofen and acetaminophen experienced less pain, better sleep and higher satisfaction compared with those receiving the opioid hydrocodone with acetaminophen.

“We think this is a landmark study,” said Cecile Feldman, dean of Rutgers School of Dental Medicine and lead author of the study. “The results actually came in even stronger than we thought they would.”

Dentists, who rank among the nation’s leading prescribers of opioids, wrote more than 8.9 million opioid prescriptions in 2022. For many young adults, dental procedures such as wisdom tooth extraction are their first exposure to opioid medications.

“There are studies out there to show that when young people get introduced to opioids, there's an increased likelihood that they're going to eventually use them again, and then it can lead to addiction,” said study co-investigator Janine Fredericks-Younger, adding that opioid overdoses kill more than 80,000 Americans each year.

To compare opioid and non-opioid pain relief, the researchers conducted a randomized trial on patients undergoing surgical removal of impacted wisdom teeth, a common procedure that typically causes moderate to severe pain.

Half the patients received hydrocodone with acetaminophen. The other half got a combination of acetaminophen and ibuprofen. Patients rated their pain levels and other outcomes, such as sleep quality, over the week following surgery.

Results in The Journal of American Dental Association showed the non-opioid combination provided superior pain relief during the peak-pain period in the two days after surgery. Patients taking the non-opioid medications also reported better sleep quality on the first night and less interference with daily activities throughout recovery.

Patients who received the over-the-counter combo were only half as likely as the opioid patients to require additional "rescue" pain medication. They also reported higher overall satisfaction with their pain treatment.

“We feel pretty confident in saying that opioids should not be prescribed routinely and that if dentists prescribe the non-opioid combination, their patients are going to be a lot better off,” Feldman said.

The study's size and design make it particularly notable. With more than 1,800 participants across five clinical sites, it's one of the largest studies of its kind. It also aimed to reflect real-world medication use rather than the tightly controlled conditions of many smaller pain studies.

“We were looking at the effectiveness – so how does it work in real life, taking into account what people really care about,” said Feldman, referring to the study’s focus on sleep quality and the ability to return to work.

The findings align with recent recommendations from the American Dental Association to avoid opioids as first-line pain treatment. Feldman said she hopes they will change prescribing practices.

“For a while, we've been talking about not needing to prescribe opioids,” Feldman said. “This study’s results are such that there is no reason to be prescribing opioids unless you've got those special situations, like medical conditions preventing the use of ibuprofen or acetaminophen.”

Members of the research team said they hope to expand their work to other dental procedures and pain scenarios. Other researchers at the school are testing cannabinoids for managing dental pain.

“These studies not only guide us on how to improve current dental care,” said Feldman, “but also on how we can better train future dentists here at Rutgers, where we constantly refine our curriculum the light of science."

The Opioid Analgesic Reduction Study was funded by the National Institutes of Health’s National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research.

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Journal

The Journal of the American Dental Association

DOI

10.1016/j.adaj.2024.10.014 

Method of Research

Randomized controlled/clinical trial

Subject of Research

People

Article Title

Nonopioid vs opioid analgesics after impacted third-molar extractions: The Opioid Analgesic Reduction Study randomized clinical trial

Article Publication Date

4-Jan-2025

COI Statement

Dr. Desjardins is the chief executive officer, Desjardins & Associates, and a clinincal consultant for Haleon, Antibe Therapeutics, Senju USA, Bayer Consumer Health, and Taiwan Liposome Corp. None of the other authors reported any disclosures.

 

Risk of domestic abuse increases over time for those exposed to childhood maltreatment

University College London

For the study, published in Molecular Psychiatry, researchers analysed data from 12,794 participants born in England and Wales from the Twins Early Development Study (TEDS).

TEDS began in 1994 and has followed twins born in England and Wales throughout their childhood, adolescence and into early adulthood. The twins and their families complete questionnaires and take part in interviews about different environmental and individual factors that might have been influencing them throughout their lives.

By studying the differences between identical and non-identical pairs of twins, researchers use the data to understand how genes and environments affect abilities, behaviours and mental health.

In the new study, the researchers found that participants who reported childhood maltreatment (such as emotional, physical or sexual abuse, and emotional or physical neglect) were three times more likely to experience intimate partner violence at the age of 21 compared to their peers.

However, the risk of domestic abuse continued to grow over time. And by the time the participants reached the age of 26, they were four times more likely to have encountered intimate partner violence if they had experienced childhood maltreatment earlier in life compared to peers of the same age.

Lead author Dr Patrizia Pezzoli (UCL Psychology & Language Sciences) said: “Our findings are in line with past research, which generally reports a three to six times higher risk for intimate partner violence victimisation among those with a history of childhood maltreatment.

“However, our finding that this risk may accumulate over time is novel. We interpreted this escalation in light of previous evidence that individuals exposed to maltreatment often face gradual restrictions in social networks – for example as a result of having less opportunities to socialise when growing up - potentially heightening their vulnerability to unsafe relationships over time.”

As part of their study, the researchers also looked at the reasons why people who experience childhood maltreatment often face a greater risk of abuse in their adult relationships.

They found that childhood maltreatment specifically increases the risk of intimate partner violence over and above both environmental and genetic risk factors.

Meanwhile, environmental influences shared by siblings, such as family dynamics and socioeconomic status, still accounted for a large proportion (42-43%) of the link between childhood maltreatment and intimate partner violence, as did genetic factors (30-33%) that influence behaviour, personality traits and susceptibility to certain conditions, including the likelihood of experiencing or perpetrating violence.

External factors unique to each individual, such as peer groups, life events or personal experiences also accounted for around a quarter (25-27%) of the association between childhood maltreatment and future intimate partner violence.

Dr Pezzoli said: “These distinctions can help us to understand the different pathways through which childhood experiences can impact later life outcomes and inform targeted interventions.”

The researchers now hope that their findings can be used to help potentially vulnerable people.

Dr Pezzoli explained: “We hope that our research will allow us to tackle the complex factors that increase risk for certain individuals, creating opportunities for effective prevention and support.

“This research highlights the need for evidence-based support strategies for people affected by childhood maltreatment, ideally before they begin intimate relationships, to help them build a safe and healthy future.”

The research was funded by a British Academy/Leverhulme grant awarded to Dr Pezzoli.

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Journal

Molecular Psychiatry

Article Title

Causal and common risk pathways linking childhood maltreatment to later intimate partner violence victimization

 

Media coverage of civilian casualties in allied countries boosts support for U.S. involvement

Annenberg Public Policy Center of the University of Pennsylvania

From photographs of decimated buildings to military and civilian casualty counts to narratives of suffering, news media bring information about foreign conflicts to American audiences. But does this coverage actually affect public opinion about whether and how the United States should be involved in a conflict? Does it influence what Americans think about the U.S. providing military, diplomatic, and economic aid to foreign nations?

A new paper from researchers at the Annenberg Public Policy Center (APPC) of the University of Pennsylvania examines these questions and finds that media coverage of civilian casualties increases public support for U.S. involvement in conflicts by evoking empathy for the victims – but only when those victims are from allied countries. The paper, “How civilian casualty information shapes support for US involvement in an ally country’s war effort,” by Alon P. Kraitzman, a postdoctoral fellow at APPC, Tom W. Etienne, a doctoral student at the University of Pennsylvania, and Dolores Albarracín, the Amy Gutmann Penn Integrates Knowledge University Professor and director of APPC’s Communication Science division, was published in Humanities and Social Sciences Communications, a Nature journal.

The researchers conducted a longitudinal analysis of a large national survey and four experiments to analyze the influence of media coverage of civilian casualties on public opinion about the ongoing Ukraine-Russia war, as well as hypothetical international conflicts. The survey “showed that the salience of civilian casualties in the Ukraine war was positively associated with a democratic justification for the war,” the authors write. The experiments manipulated information to explore different possible aspects of how information shapes public support, including the role of empathy, the different effects of information about civilian and military casualties, and how these dynamics apply to hypothetical conflicts beyond Ukraine-Russia.

The studies showed that empathy for civilian suffering is a key factor in support for U.S. involvement in a conflict. However, information about civilian casualties does not influence support when the suffering affects a nation that is not a U.S. ally.

Previous research has shown that coverage of U.S. military casualties can turn the American public against a military undertaking, and coverage of foreign civilian casualties can lead to calls for ending a U.S. military venture. This paper, says Kraitzman, “shows that coverage of casualties does not necessarily lower support for U.S. involvement. There is a more nuanced dynamic at play. Portrayals of civilian casualties can rally public support for U.S. action to protect civilians abroad.”

“These findings,” says Albarracín, “are important for media outlets and policymakers as they navigate the complex choices in how to portray and engage with international conflicts. They also teach us about the psychological forces that shape policy support in the context of war.”

“How civilian casualty information shapes support for US involvement in an ally country’s war effort” was published in the journal Humanities and Social Sciences Communications on Jan. 6, 2025.

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Journal

Humanities and Social Sciences Communications

DOI

10.1057/s41599-024-04191-y 

Article Title

How civilian casualty information shapes support for US involvement in an ally country’s war effort

Article Publication Date

6-Jan-2025

 

Acoustic sensors find frequent gunfire on school walking routes

Study documents toll on kids in one Chicago community

Ohio State University

COLUMBUS, Ohio – A new study used acoustic sensors that detect the sound of gunfire to show how often children in one Chicago neighborhood are exposed to gunshots while walking to and from school.

 

Results showed that nearly two-thirds of schools in the Englewood neighborhood of Chicago had at least one gun incident within 400 meters (about one-quarter mile) of where children were walking home during the 2021-22 school year.

 

These findings suggest a need to redefine federal definitions of school gun violence to include indirect forms of violence that take place near schools, not only on school grounds, in order to more appropriately capture the burden on communities of color, said Gia Barboza-Salerno, lead author of the study and assistant professor of public health and social work at The Ohio State University.

 

“Not all the violence children are exposed to is direct violence or happens on school grounds,” Barboza-Salerno said.

 

“But that doesn’t mean it doesn’t have an impact. Hearing gunshots on the way to and from school is terrifying and will affect how kids perform in school.”

 

The study was published recently in the journal SSM-Population Health.

 

The findings are important because research shows that exposure to gun violence in schools is linked to poor outcomes for students, including diminished performance on standardized assessments in mathematics and English, elevated rates of absenteeism, decreased student enrollment, and lower graduation rates.

 

In this new study, the researchers found that 4.5 times more gunshots were detected using the acoustic sensors compared to what police recorded in investigative reports.

 

This sensor data shows how staggering the amount of indirect violence is for children in Englewood, and potentially other areas, said study co-author Sharefa Duhaney, a graduate student in public health at Ohio State.

 

“You can’t just put metal detectors in schools to deal with violence,” Duhaney said. “Children are exposed to violence on the way to and from school, and we need to recognize that.”

 

Englewood, a community on the south side of Chicago, is one of the most violent in the United States. In 2022, the Englewood area accounted for about 10% of all gun violence that occurred in Chicago. The community is 94% Black and one of the most socioeconomically vulnerable neighborhoods in the city.

 

The researchers used computational spatial network methods to analyze data on gunshots detected by acoustic sensors operated along Safe Passage Routes for each school in the Englewood School District. These routes are designated routes created to ensure safer travel for students walking to and from school.

 

The study analyzed gunshots detected during the morning (6-9 a.m.) and afternoon (3-6 p.m.) commutes of children during the 2021-22 school year.

 

Acoustic detectors showed 610 gunshots fired in Englewood on days when schools were in session during the school year.  Of, those 52% occurred during afternoon commutes and 12% during the morning commutes.

 

Results showed that 40% of Englewood schools had at least one gunshot fired within 400 meters of the routes to school during the morning commute, and 62% had at least one during the afternoon commute.

 

“Hearing gunshots during school has not typically been considered ‘school gun violence,’ but it should be,” Barboza-Salerno said. “Imagine what that is like for children to hear gunshots while walking to school and how scared they must be.”

 

Analysis of the data showed that shooting incidents cluster along city streets, including safe passage routes, near schools. The configurations of streets that support walking for students also attract other types of foot traffic, and increase the likelihood of violent incidents, Duhaney said.

 

“Youth in violence-prone areas are not safe along Safe Passage Program Routes,” she said.

 

One issue in Englewood is that almost half of residents live in households without access to vehicles, meaning that residents are heavily dependent on public transit and walking.  Other studies have shown that students feel safer going to school via car rather than walking, but that is not an option for many in the community.

 

The researchers noted that the U.S. Department of Education is directed to collect and report on data on school safety, including violence. But they said the definition of gun violence doesn’t currently include witnessing and hearing gun violence.

 

In addition, the focus on student safety should go beyond what happens on school grounds and beyond direct violence: Hardening schools and using metal detectors and police officers there won’t solve the problem, the researchers said. They emphasized the need for policymakers to focus on violence prevention in the communities at large.

 

“We are failing to address the underlying issues in the community that lead to violence,” Barboza-Salerno said. “We need to focus on the root causes.”

 

Hexin Yang, a graduate student in social work and public health at Ohio State, was also a co-author of the study.

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Journal

SSM - Population Health

DOI

10.1016/j.ssmph.2024.101730 

Method of Research

Data/statistical analysis

Subject of Research

Not applicable

Article Title

Spatial accessibility to gun violence exposure on walkable routes to and from school

 

Nanofluids and turbulators have potential to boost renewable energy and slash dependence on fossil fuels, say scientists

University of Sharjah

 

image: 

Hybrid nanofluid turbulent transportation through a tube with an innovative twisted tape combined with helical fins heat sink.

view more 

Credit: Sustainable Energy Technologies and Assessments 53 (2022). doi.org/10.1016/j.seta.2022.102702

Nanofluids and turbulators have enormous potential to boost thermal conductivity, increase heat transfer efficiency, cut energy costs, and reduce reliance on fossil fuels, scientists say.

Nanofluids, also called nanoparticles, are fluids containing nanometer-sized particles, while turbulators, which are typically made of stainless steel, consist of small metal baffles or coiled wire.

Nanofluids and turbulators have recently emerged as new techniques to boost cooling systems, maximize heat transfer rates and enhance renewable energy.

The scientists’ most outstanding finding reveals that substantial benefits in terms of energy transfer, cooling, and heating can be obtained when nanofluids and turbulators are combined to develop techniques that will maximize their functions.

Heating and cooling consume nearly half of the global energy and are responsible for more than 40% of carbon dioxide emissions related to energy. Conditions are expected to aggravate with the demand for air-conditioning slated to surge by 45% in 2050.

For the scientists, it is an urgent matter for the world “to turn to the broader utilization of renewable energies instead of fossil fuels to effectively tackle this widely recognized challenge of transition to sustainable energy.”

They furnish their study “with the design of a roadmap that integrates advanced (nanofluid and turbulator-based) technologies into sustainable energy systems. The authors identify “huge potential in these technologies to make considerable contributions towards the global transition towards renewable energy sources.”

The details and findings of the research are published in the journal Applied Thermal Engineering, and the scientists maintain that there is growing interest in their work and similar types of research from industries like automotive, aerospace, and renewable energy.

The research is the product of collaboration and partnership among five universities in different parts of the world. The authors originate from the University of Sharjah in the United Arab Emirates, U.K.’s Lancaster University, Saudi Arabia’s King Fahd University of Petroleum and Minerals, Greece’s National Technical University of Athens, and Malaysia’s Sunway University.

The research attends to the need for sustainable energy solutions, helping point the way towards better performance of energy systems with reduced environmental impacts, according to lead author Dr. Zafar Said, an associate professor at University of Sharjah’s College of Engineering.

“This can notably improve the efficiency of renewable energy technologies, besides contributing to a shift away from fossil fuel economies,” Dr. Said goes on. “New materials, such as phase-change materials and hybrid nanofluids, were introduced, holding much promise for more efficient energy storage and transportation.”

Dr. Said, whose research centers on nanofluids, heat transfer and sustainable energy, says he and his colleagues develop new technologies which, if utilized, would “enhance the heat transfer processes, which are crucial in energy applications, focusing on nanofluids, turbulators, and new working fluids to investigate their potential and efficiency improvement in solar collectors and heat exchangers.

“Our research emphasizes environmental sustainability, answering the modern goals for clean energy and low carbon emissions. It looks at how these advanced technologies would be incorporated into large-scale applications and points toward a roadmap for transition toward renewable energy systems.”

In the meantime, the authors admit that the technique, as presented in their study, still “requires careful consideration of potential drawbacks, such as increased nanoparticle deposition, which may reduce system efficiency. This holistic approach considers economic, environmental, and social factors, ensuring compliance with global sustainability benchmarks and contributing to energy system sustainability research.”

However, Dr. Said is upbeat as he endows turbulators and nanofluids with higher thermal conductivity and efficiency, as well as significant potential in cooling systems and renewable energy devices.

“Our research highlights the transformative potential of nanofluids and turbulators in shaping the future of energy systems. Integrating these advanced materials into everyday applications can bridge the gap between energy efficiency and environmental sustainability," he notes.

While the scientists demonstrate how the integration of nanofluids and turbulators can achieve maximum efficiency of cooling and heating devices in terms of environment, volume, and cost, they at the same time underscore certain challenges ahead, particularly in relation to stability and scalability. “These practical techniques thus illustrate that modern heat transfer systems can be feasible and usable in reality. Translating theory into practice becomes easier in this respect,” they write.

Dr. Said points out that the research’s findings “directly apply to efficient systems design in HVAC, transportation, and renewable energy industries, further showing the scalability and systems economics at larger sizes.”

HVAC, an acronym for Heating Ventilation and Air Conditioning, is a system operating various technologies that can comfortably and sustainably control humidity, temperature, and purity of the air in enclosed spaces.

The authors note, “The future energy systems are going to be designed based on the principles of efficiency and the usage of new materials. Some of the major challenges in research involve developing new materials and combinations to achieve cost reductions and enhancement of heat transfer using turbulators and special fluids.

“This paper has highlighted the importance of efficient energy consumption by combining different new methods with renewable and alternative energy sources. It is urgent to turn to the broader utilization of renewable energies instead of fossil fuels to effectively tackle this widely recognized challenge of transition to sustainable energy.”

The authors describe their research as “visionary” as it outlines “key hurdles to be conquered if such technologies significantly impact future sustainable energy systems.” They provide a guideline on how to address the remaining technological obstacles.

“These are inclusively outlined as novel material development, performance enhancement, long-term stability, life cycle methodology, and cost reduction in implementing innovative technologies into large-scale industrial applications.”

Other obstacles for future research to tackle, according to the authors, include attaining industrial-scale technologies, reducing costs further and reaching a sustainable level of scalability and material compatibility.

“The realization of the technology, cost, scalability, and material compatibility are key factors to consider. These technologies can also be applied to many disciplines, like those concerned with automotive and aerospace engineering, where the control of heat is very much an issue.”

Despite obstacles, the authors assert that the future holds bright prospects for “nanofluids, turbulators, and new working fluids [which] are expected to become the keys to revolutionizing heat transfer. Advancements in these fields will have an impact on automotive and aerospace engineering, which would greatly benefit from improved thermal management.

“Moreover, applying heat transfer enhancement techniques can lead to a higher pressure drop in the flow, which increases the unit's operational cost, especially in the cases with turbulators. However, the proper design of the enhanced units can minimize the increase in the pumping work demand, and finally, the overall designs can effectively enhance the global system performance.”

They stress that additional research is necessary to bridge the chasm between theory and practice in the use cases involving nanofluids, turbulators, and new working fluids, and also to improve aeronautical and automotive cooling systems.

“Nanofluids can be used to enhance the heat transfer inside car cooling systems. This will provide improved performance and better fuel economy for automobiles. Specific case studies can be done on this,” the authors highlight in their study.

They also urge scientists to introduce machine learning in their research to optimize their technologies and devices using nanofluids and turbulators. This approach “leverages AI and machine learning to tune a system to the most optimal configuration for business. It greatly reduces experimentation and accelerates the dissemination of technologies.”

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Journal

Applied Thermal Engineering

DOI

10.1016/j.applthermaleng.2024.124478 

Method of Research

Literature review

Subject of Research

Not applicable

Article Title

Nanofluids, turbulators, and novel working fluids for heat transfer processes and energy applications: Current status and prospective

Article Publication Date

6-Jan-2025

 

Unravelling how meteorological conditions cause changes in atmospheric fine-particle concentration

Institute of Atmospheric Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences

 

image: 

Flow chart of the joint data assimilation system that simultaneously optimizes the initial chemical fields and emissions

view more 

Credit: ZHANG Shan

New research published in the journal Atmospheric and Oceanic Science Letters reports significant progress in studying the relationship between meteorological conditions and atmospheric fine-particle (PM2.5) concentrations.

 

Air pollution is a major global challenge, in which PM2.5 is a critical pollutant. The variation in PM2.5 concentrations not only affects the quality of the atmospheric environment, but also has a direct impact on human health. Thus, exploring the causes of PM2.5 concentration changes, especially the influence of meteorological conditions, has emerged as a hot topic in scientific research.

 

In this new study, meteorological fields were obtained using two sets of data to analyze the differences in the simulated PM2.5 concentration. Results showed that the meteorological field had a strong influence on the concentration levels and spatial distribution of the simulated pollution. Also, one of the data sources resulted in relatively smaller simulation errors, allowing more accurate modeling of PM2.5 concentrations.

 

Based on a constructed joint data assimilation system (see figure), the research team quantitatively assessed the impact of different meteorological fields on the simulated PM2.5 concentrations and revealed the key roles of specific meteorological factors such as wind speed, temperature, relative humidity, and boundary layer height in the accumulation, maintenance, and dissipation of pollutants. Notably, the temperature at a height of 2 m showed a positive correlation with the PM2.5 concentration in the northern part of China and a negative correlation in the southern part of the country.

 

The joint assimilation system demonstrated its ability to absorb multi-moment observations effectively and easily. Experimental results with the assimilation system showed that it can effectively reduce the uncertainty in PM2.5 predictions during pollution episodes by simultaneously optimizing initial mass concentrations and emissions.

 

According to Prof. Tian, the corresponding author of the study, this discovery provides new ideas and methods for improving the accuracy of PM2.5 predictions. Moreover, it carries significant importance for formulating more effective air pollution prevention and control strategies.

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Journal

Atmospheric and Oceanic Science Letters

DOI

10.1016/j.aosl.2024.100586 

 

Feeling the heat across the Middle East 

King Abdullah University of Science & Technology (KAUST)

A new international climate modeling study led by researchers at King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST) highlights different potential scenarios for the future climate of the Arabian Peninsula, depending on which climate policies are implemented.[1]

The Arabian Peninsula has long been known for its high temperatures and water scarcity that challenge living and working there. However, these problems will only exasperate with the temperature increases predicted by all climate models, affecting a population that is expected to double between now and the end of the century. 

KAUST Emeritus Professor Georgiy Stenchikov, who this month was part of the team of KAUST and international researchers that won the “Nobel” prize for high-performance computing, the ACM Gordon Bell Prize for Climate Modelling, led the Arabian Peninsula study using a sophisticated tool known as “statistical downscaling” that was applied to climate models to analyze the Middle East region. 

“We applied statistical downscaling to 26 global climate models under different greenhouse gas emissions scenarios, giving us a spatial resolution of 9 km” said Stenchikov. “This fine resolution enhances our ability to detect and analyze regional warming and hotspots more effectively, presenting the most accurate regional-scale prediction of temperature change over the Middle East and North Africa.”  

After applying this technique, Stenchikov, along with his colleagues and lead author Abdul Malik, found that some regions in the Middle East are heating at rates three times faster than global averages.  

In the best-case scenario, if greenhouse gas emissions reach net zero by 2050, which reflects the goals of the Paris Agreement, animations from the modeling reveal that temperatures of the Arabian Peninsula will still rise by more than 2.5 degrees before the year 2100, with some parts warming 3.5 times faster than global averages.  

In the more alarming scenario, if greenhouse gas emissions reach what climate scientists call the “high emission scenario,” several provinces in Saudi Arabia, including Riyadh, may see average temperatures rise by more than 9 degrees this century. These temperature rises are expected to put severe stress on both the habitability and economic productivity of the region, reiterating the importance of good climate policy. 

This research highlights KAUST’s focus on tackling regional climate issues, aligning with its efforts highlighted at COP16 to combat desertification and promote sustainability.

Reference

1. Malik, A., Stenchikov, G., Mostamandi, S., Parajuli, S., Lelieveld, J., Zittis, G., Sheraz Ahsan, M., Atique, L., Usman, M. Accelerated Historical and Future Warming in the Middle East and North Africa. Journal of Geophysical Research: Atmospheres 129, 22 (2024).| article

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Journal

Journal of Geophysical Research Atmospheres

DOI

10.1029/2024JD041625 

Article Title

Accelerated Historical and Future Warming in the Middle East and North Africa

 

Marked decrease in Arctic pressure ridges

Analysis of three decades of aerial survey data reveals major changes

Alfred Wegener Institute, Helmholtz Centre for Polar and Marine Research

 

image: 

Close-up of a newly formed pressure ridge in the Arctic Ocean. 

view more 

Credit: Alfred-Wegener-Institut / Andreas Preusser

In the Arctic, the old, multiyear ice is increasingly melting, dramatically reducing the frequency and size of pressure ridges. These ridges are created when ice floes press against each other and become stacked, and are a characteristic feature of Arctic sea ice, an obstacle for shipping, but also an essential component of the ecosystem. In a recently released study in the journal Nature Climate Change, experts from the Alfred Wegener Institute report on this trend and analyse observational data from three decades of aerial surveys.

Satellite data from the last three decades documents the dramatic changes in Arctic sea ice due to climate change: the area covered in ice in summer is declining steadily, the floes are becoming thinner and moving faster. Until recently, it was unclear how the characteristic pressure ridges had been affected, since it’s only been possible to reliably monitor them from space for the past few years.

Pressure ridges are produced by lateral pressures on sea ice. Wind or ocean currents can stack floes up, forming metre-thick ridges. The part of the ridges – which break up the otherwise smooth surface of the ice every few hundred metres – extending above the water is called the sail and measures between one and two metres. Even more impressive is the keel below the water line, which can extend down to 30 metres and create an impassable obstacle for shipping. Pressure ridges affect not only the energy and mass balance of the sea ice, but also the biogeochemical cycle and the ecosystem: when their sails catch the wind, floes can be driven all across the Arctic. Polar bears use pressure ridges as a source of protection for overwintering or birthing their young. In addition, the structures offer ice-associated organisms at various trophic levels protection and promote the turbulent mixing of water, which increases nutrient availability.

A team of researchers from the Alfred Wegener Institute, Helmholtz Centre for Polar and Marine Research (AWI), has now reprocessed and analysed laser-based readings gathered in 30 years of research flights over the Arctic ice. The survey flights, which cover a total distance of roughly 76,000 kilometres, show for the first time that the frequency of pressure ridges north of Greenland and in Fram Strait is decreasing by 12.2%, and their height by 5%, per decade. Data from the Lincoln Sea, an area where particularly old ice is known to accumulate, paints a similar picture: here, the frequency is declining by 14.9% and the height by 10.4% per decade.

“Until now, it’s remained unclear how pressure ridges were changing,” says Dr Thomas Krumpen, a sea-ice expert at the AWI and the study’s main author. “More and more of the Arctic consists of ice that melts in the summer and is no more than a year old. This young, thin ice can more readily be deformed and more rapidly forms new pressure ridges. So you might expect their frequency to increase. The fact that pressure ridges are nonetheless in decline is due to the dramatic melting of older floes. Ice that has survived several summers is characterised by a particularly high number of pressure ridges, since it has been subjected to high pressures over a longer timeframe. The loss of this multiyear ice is so severe that we’re observing an overall decline in pressure-ridge frequency, even though the thin young ice is easier to deform.”

In order to draw conclusions regarding Arctic-wide changes, the researchers combined all observational data to develop a metric. Then, with the aid of satellite data, they applied it to the Arctic as a whole: “We tend to see the greatest decline in pressure ridges in those places where the ice’s age has decreased most,” summarises Prof Christian Haas, Head of Sea-ice Physics at the AWI. “Major changes can be seen in the Beaufort Sea, but also in the Central Arctic. Both regions are now partly ice-free in summer, though they were once dominated by ice that was at least five years old.”

For the study, individual pressure ridges and their heights were precisely measured and analysed during survey flights. This was possible thanks to the low-level flights (less than 100 metres above the surface) and the laser sensors’ high scanning rate, which allowed terrain models to be created. The AWI began scientific flights over the sea ice in the early 1990s, launching from Svalbard. Back then, the institute relied on two Dornier DO228s, Polar 2 and Polar 4; they have since been succeeded by two Basler BT-67s, Polar 5 and Polar 6. Specially equipped for flights under the extreme conditions found in the polar regions, they can be fitted with a range of sensors. Using these aircraft, researchers survey the ice north of Greenland, Svalbard and Canada twice a year. But the icebreaker Polarstern’s onboard helicopters are also part of the monitoring programme.

In order to estimate the direct effects of the observed changes on the Arctic ecosystem, models need to be developed that can reflect both physical and biological processes in sea ice of various ages. Although we know that pressure ridges are home to a range of organisms, we still lack a deeper understanding of the role of pressure-ridge age. Yet this aspect is especially important, as the percentage of ridges that don’t survive their first summer is on the rise. Another riddle: although the size and frequency of ridge sails have decreased, the drift speed of Arctic ice has generally increased. As AWI sea-ice physicist Dr Luisa von Albedyll, who contributed to the study, explains: “Actually, the ice should drift more slowly when the sails shrink, since there’s less area for the transfer of momentum. This indicates that there are other changes producing just the opposite effect. Stronger ocean currents or a smoother ice underside due to more intensive melting could be contributing factors. To answer these open questions and gain a better grasp of the complex interrelationships, we have made the entire dataset available in a public archive, (Link zu PANGAEA), ensuring that other researchers can use it and integrate it into their studies.”

An expedition with the research vessel Polarstern is planned for next summer, with a focus on investigating the biological and biogeochemical differences between floes and pressure ridges of different ages and provenances. At the same time, there will be extensive aerial survey flights with the research aircraft. According to Thomas Krumpen: “By combining ship-based and aerial observations, we hope to gain better insights into the complex interactions between the sea ice, climate and ecosystem – since we’ll only be able to devise effective strategies for the preservation and sustainable use of the Arctic once we better understand the region’s environmental system.”

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Journal

Nature Climate Change

DOI

10.1038/s41558-024-02199-5 

Method of Research

Experimental study

Subject of Research

Not applicable

Article Title

Smoother ice with fewer pressure ridges in a more dynamic Arctic

Article Publication Date

6-Jan-2025