Lightnews — Scholar-powered news

ClimateBook @climatebook.bsky.social · 2d

(I say perovskite-structure, because these things are not made of the same mineral that geologists call "perovskite," though they do have a related structure.)

ClimateBook @climatebook.bsky.social · 2d

Tip of the hat to Oxford Physics, which has been in the forefront of developing perovskite-structure photovoltaics. Another reminder that cutting edge transformative technology comes from curiosity-driven basic research, not from short-term programmatic funding of research on yesterday's tech.

Jan Rosenow @janrosenow.bsky.social · 2d

Exciting developments in solar.

Just read this fascinating FT article on perovskite solar panels – the next-gen innovation that's lighter, more flexible, and up to 20% more efficient than traditional silicon ones.

Imagine panels turning everyday surfaces into power generators

1 10

ClimateBook @climatebook.bsky.social · 2d

No, I'm not the one panicking you're the one! (Now where can I put that 200GB of exomol line lists I suddenly find I need???)

1

ClimateBook @climatebook.bsky.social · 2d

ocean than K2-18b, in fact probably less likely. A problem with the conventionally defined HZ is that it's too often forgotten that this applies only to a particular form of Earthlike habitability maintainence, which may not even apply to all rocky planets, and certainly not to subNeptunes

2

ClimateBook @climatebook.bsky.social · 2d

through suppression of convection, as shown by work in my group led by then-student Hamish Innes and confirmed by further calculations. This newly characterized planet is an interesting one, in that it's undoubtedly on the cooler end of subNeptunes, but is no more likely to have a habitable

1 1

ClimateBook @climatebook.bsky.social · 2d

generally hydrogen-rich atmospheres of subNeptunes. Hydrogen itself is a powerful greenhouse gas which can render a planet too hot to be habitable, and when present in conjunction with water vapour can further increase the temperature of a hypothetical liquid water ocean,

1 1

ClimateBook @climatebook.bsky.social · 2d

according to my work. However, the usually defined habitable zone should never be applied to subNeptunes. The conventional HZ is defined based on a carbon-dioxide and water vapour system, with CO2 controlled by a silicate weathering thermostat of some form. None of that applies to the

1 1 1

ClimateBook @climatebook.bsky.social · 2d

Now even for rocky planets this would only be in the habitable zone under very optimistic conditions, as its equilibrium temperature is 330K, even assuming a 30% albedo. That's generally enough to trigger a runaway greenhouse, a threshold which is relevant to a water-dominated subNeptune as well,

1 2

ClimateBook @climatebook.bsky.social · 2d

A while back, a Bluesky post highlighted a subNeptune TOI 293 c which is claimed to be in the habitable zone of its star. I didn't comment on the post at the time (and can no longer find it-- Bluesky needs much better search facilities!) but I think this is the article to: arxiv.org/abs/2510.0029

A planetary system with a sub-Neptune planet in the habitable zone of TOI-2093

Aims. We aim to confirm and measure the mass of the transiting planet candidate around the K5V star TOI-2093, previously announced by the Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS) project. Methods....

arxiv.org

2 2

ClimateBook @climatebook.bsky.social · 2d

in that the more obvious abiotic pathways are not available there. Brown dwarfs, like gas giants, are hydrogen rich, and the conundrum for brown dwarfs was more that phosphine is chemically expected, but hasn't been detected until now.

ClimateBook @climatebook.bsky.social · 2d

been known at least since 1975 that there is phosphine on Jupiter, with abiotic pathways made possible by its hydrogen-rich atmosphere. www.science.org/doi/10.1126/... While the detection and interpretation of PH3 on Venus remains dicey, the context on Venus is somewhat more favorable,

Phosphine on Jupiter and Implications for the Great Red Spot

A study of the chemistry and photochemistry of the recently discovered phosphine in the atmosphere of Jupiter suggests that the red colorations on this planet result from photochemical production of r...

www.science.org

1 3

ClimateBook @climatebook.bsky.social · 2d

This is a good reminder, and a great accomplishment, but the message is somewhat off the mark regarding biosignatures. The key point is that nominal biosignatures always depend on context. You don't expect oxygen on a lava planet to be an indication of photosynthesis. Similarly, for PH3,

Keith Smith @drkeithsmith.bsky.social · 2d

The phosphine molecule, PH3, has been proposed as a biosignature in rocky planets. In @science.org, Burgasser et al. report phosphine in a brown dwarf atmosphere. "We therefore caution against the use of phosphine as a biosignature". #stellarastro #exoplanet ☄️
www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...

Observation of undepleted phosphine in the atmosphere of a low-temperature brown dwarf

The atmospheres of low-temperature brown dwarfs and gas giant planets are expected to contain the phosphine molecule, PH3. However, previous observations have shown much lower abundances of this molec...

www.science.org

1 1 8

Reposted by ClimateBook

Aarne Granlund @aarnegranlund.bsky.social · 15d

"Our findings demonstrate a gap between governments’ expected reliance on land and the role that land can realistically play in climate mitigation."

Offsetting failed, climate targets have massive amounts of CDR, and now some want to modify the atmosphere directly.

www.nature.com/articles/s41...

Over-reliance on land for carbon dioxide removal in net-zero climate pledges - Nature Communications

Achieving net-zero climate targets requires substantial land for carbon dioxide removal. This paper quantifies the land area in countries’ climate pledges at approximately 1 billion hectares, often in...

www.nature.com

1 2 7

ClimateBook @climatebook.bsky.social · 2d

disadvantaged for other means. (I myself would say that if conservative scholars have been disadvantages it's because their thinking is flabby and reality itself tends to have a liberal bias -- not that there is a shortage of flabby thinking among some progressive academics.)

ClimateBook @climatebook.bsky.social · 2d

citizens -- this aspect was not mentioned in the article), and restricting numbers of foreign students. And strangest of all, it in essence imposes affirmative action for conservative scholars and students, while at the same time barring any attempt to rectify effects of past injustices to groups

1

ClimateBook @climatebook.bsky.social · 2d

time imposing "institutional neutrality" (a dangerously vague term) and muzzling faculty when speaking out as members of the University. It also undercuts the abiity of Universities to finance their mission, by imposing sweeping tuition cuts (in some cases requiring zero tuition for US

1

ClimateBook @climatebook.bsky.social · 2d

TheAtlantic has a good summary of the ways the "compact" offered by the US administration to select Universities (including MIT) would destroy their independence and undercut their mission. www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archiv... It claims to foster a vigorous "marketplace of ideas" while at the same

A Deal That Would End Universities’ Independence

The free-speech provisions of the so-called compact are an exercise in contradiction.

www.theatlantic.com

1 1

ClimateBook @climatebook.bsky.social · 2d

principles, and insist on concessions on healthcare before allowing the government to re-open. This is a Republican shutdown, and so long as they prioritize tax cuts for the wealthy over health care for working people, they own this shutdown and its consequences.

1

ClimateBook @climatebook.bsky.social · 2d

will continue to do it in line with the Project 2025 agenda with or without a shutdown. A majority rightly blame the shutdown on Republican intransigence in sticking to their plan to strip health care from millions to fund continuing tax cuts for the wealthy. Democrats should stick to their

1

ClimateBook @climatebook.bsky.social · 2d

As we enter the second week of the Republican shutdown of the government, we shouldn't be cowed by Trump's threats to use the shutdown as an excuse to dismantle parts of the government he dislikes. He's shown that he needs no excuse to do that. He's been doing it all along, legal or not, and

1 1 3

ClimateBook @climatebook.bsky.social · 2d

be. The more and faster we decarbonize, the less suffering there will be. (and solar geoengineering is no solution, since it just kicks the can down the road and introduces a near certainty of greater suffering through termination shock at some point).

ClimateBook @climatebook.bsky.social · 2d

Given how much that optimistic scenario relies on aggressive and massive scaling of direct CO2 air capture, I'd say it's very optimistic indeed. The reality is that we will be stuck with a hotter world for a long, long time, perhaps millennia, but that we still have control over how hot that will

1

ClimateBook @climatebook.bsky.social · 5d

Amen to that!

Michael Tobis (mt) @mtobis.bsky.social · 5d

3

ClimateBook @climatebook.bsky.social · 6d

I remember reading about Jane Goodall's work when I was a kid, through National Geographic Magazine. A real inspiration. There is hope for humanity, when there are people like Jane Goodall amongst us

Project Drawdown @projectdrawdown.bsky.social · 7d

The world has lost a legendary champion for wildlife, nature, and climate action. www.theguardian.com/science/2025...

Jane Goodall, world-renowned primatologist, dies aged 91

Jane Goodall Institute says ‘tireless advocate’ for natural world died in California during US speaking tour

www.theguardian.com

5

ClimateBook @climatebook.bsky.social · 12d

... as many of his hits as possible. A bit like Mama Mia.)

1