Ruth Mottram
@ruthmottram.bsky.social
14K followers 5.7K following 1.8K posts
Climate scientist at DMI, Greenland, Antarctica, polar regions in general. Dipping a toe in yet another social media site. Mostly on mastodon though @[email protected] Blogging at sternaparadisaea.net
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ruthmottram.bsky.social
In case you were wondering why we're doing glaciology fieldwork in NW Greenland this year, here is (part of) the answer...
It's all to do with an early break up of sea ice.

❄️🧪🥼⚒️⛏️
Animated gif showing series of satellite images from early March to mid-May this year, the sea ice (white) gradually and then abruptly fractures and retreats.
Reposted by Ruth Mottram
jessefilbert.bsky.social
Perhaps it’s time to give veganism a try.
ruthmottram.bsky.social
It probably is. It's a good time to try. There are a lot more options, including very good online resources now than even 5 years ago...
Reposted by Ruth Mottram
dustinmulvaney.bsky.social
Next time they make up some thing about offshore wind and whales, ask about this.
dustinmulvaney.bsky.social
Republicans are aiming next to dismantle the marine mammal protection act, which protects whales, dolphins, manatees, polar bears, and sea otters.. among other ocean wildlife. 🦦
splitrailfence.bsky.social
I love it. Makes me happy.
Weird that I'm now seeing your post here after I just read about the bill to end the 1970s marine mammal legislation to protect these beautiful creatures.
abcnews.go.com/Politics/wir...
Reposted by Ruth Mottram
henrymance.ft.com
The right-wing campaign group that helped topple Roe v Wade in the US is now working to roll back abortion laws in the UK, with the help of Nigel Farage.

Its first step? Trying to create a debate around "free speech"
www.nytimes.com/2025/10/13/w...
Reposted by Ruth Mottram
sdinpraxis.bsky.social
👀 US interference in UK abortion rights, with allies in Trump world. In 2024, Alliance Defending Freedom (UK) received £1.1M from its US parent, to fund buffer‑zone protesters, Westminster lobbying, attending the APPG on Freedom of Religion or Belief, briefing MPs and officials - and citing Farage
petergeoghegan.bsky.social
Really good piece from Jane Bradley and co at NYT.

Earlier this summer Democracy for Sale revealed how anti abortionists, including ADF, were pumping money into the U.K.

Free Speech Union still hasn’t responded to our queries. Funny that…

democracyforsale.substack.com/p/us-antiabo...
ruthmottram.bsky.social
Not that this is getting this proposal written. If you see me on here the rest of the day, tell me to go and write....
ruthmottram.bsky.social
Nonetheless, a fascinating social observational study is also unravelling, involving a "student" with no fewer than 2 support workers travelling to Manchester - as loudly informed to the whole carriage...
ruthmottram.bsky.social
Travelling on train and trying to work. Thank goodness for headphones and Pollini's Chopin Nocturnes.

If only everyone else would use them too... 🙄
ruthmottram.bsky.social
I have often said that if people could see how trawlers actually work, maybe they'd stop eating fish - guess it's time to test that?
ecowarriorss.bsky.social
Its not monsters from outer space
Its humans scraping the bottom floor and sucking up every life form that exists, leaving nothing
Fish often in vain flee for their lives

Also releases 370 million metric tons of planet-warming c02 every year, roughly same as running 100 coal power plants
Reposted by Ruth Mottram
peterthorne.bsky.social
This is an interesting piece www.theguardian.com/commentisfre... but amen in particular to the two paragraphs in this screenshot
Screencap from the piece arguing to stop the travelling circus that is cop to base it on a few places that are easy to reach and to cut the numbers of side events right down
Reposted by Ruth Mottram
respublications.bsky.social
New #OpenAccess work in #RESInsectConsDiv reports on the establishment and rapid spread of #SocialWasps (#Hymenoptera: #Vespinae) in #Greenland
doi.org/10.1111/icad.70023

#InsectMonitoring #SpeciesIntroductions
@manusaunders.bsky.social @wiley.com
Reposted by Ruth Mottram
davidho.bsky.social
Psst: Stop burning stuff on Earth for energy. Let the burning fireball in the sky be your energy source.
transportenvironment.org
NEW: Biofuels globally emit more than the fossil fuels they replace, our latest study shows.

The first-of-a-kind study looks at global biofuels production today and the potential impacts of government biofuel targets.
🧵⤵️
ruthmottram.bsky.social
They are not shown on this map as neither are EU countries!
Reposted by Ruth Mottram
drnereide.bsky.social
🧵
A nice circumhorizontal arc (informally known as a fire rainbow, which is a misnomer) over West Virginia captured by Christa Harbig!

It is an optical phenomenon belonging to the family of ice halos, so it is neither fire nor a rainbow.

➡️ apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap21083...

🔭 🧪 #science

1/3
The image shows a circumhorizon arc (or circumhorizontal arc), an optical phenomenon resembling a fiery rainbow. It forms in a clear sky with cirrus clouds made of flat, hexagonal ice crystals aligned horizontally. These crystals refract sunlight, creating a colorful arc parallel to the horizon. Vibrant colors shine brightly against the blue sky, captured near North Fork Mountain, West Virginia.
ruthmottram.bsky.social
This is an interesting study in how local conditions skew your perceptions, I'm actually surprised how *low* the numbers are, but I see in Denmark EVs are much higher than the rest of the EU, who also clearly have some catching up to do.
ec.europa.eu
The numbers of electric vehicles sold in Europe in 2024 are in:

⚡ 1.45 million new battery-only EVs registered
📈 +32% growth in the total electric fleet
🔋 13.6% of all new car registrations are electric

Europe is going full throttle to a clean future.

link.europa.eu/cNKjkh
A color-coded map of Europe titled "Share of electric vehicles sold in each EU country in 2024," showing the share of battery electric vehicles (BEVs) as a percentage of total new passenger car registrations. The EU average is 13.5%. Countries with the highest shares (>20%, darkest shade) include Sweden (35%), Netherlands (34.5%), Finland (29.5%), Luxembourg (27.4%), Belgium (28%), and Denmark (51%).  Other countries like France (16.5%), Portugal (19.9%), and Austria (17.5%) are also in the <20% range. Several Eastern and Southern European countries (including Italy, Spain, Poland, and Czechia) have shares below 10% (the lightest shades).
Reposted by Ruth Mottram
janinegibson.ft.com
Good morning and welcome to your FT Weekend highlights in threaded gift link form. Each is free x300 and then it's gone but if you miss out you can pop out and buy a paper! It lasts all week! Enjoy!
Reposted by Ruth Mottram
katjadiehl.bsky.social
2/2

in Denmark if a connection to a district heating or natural gas network is possible. This heating conversion will be supported with DKK 42 million from 2012 to 2015. The legal basis for this is the “Green Transition for Denmark” initiative.
Reposted by Ruth Mottram
katjadiehl.bsky.social
1/2

A small reminder for unimaginative, fearful, and innovation-free politicians in Germany.
Since January 2013, the installation of oil and gas heating systems in new buildings has been prohibited in Denmark. From 2016, the use of oil heating systems ist also be prohibited in old buildings
Reposted by Ruth Mottram
levparikian.bsky.social
There are four house martins feeding above my head. They’re six inches long and are about to travel 6,000 miles. That’s about 63 million times their body length. The lunatics.
ruthmottram.bsky.social
“I think China is using it in a very, very geopolitically savvy way, taking advantage of America’s ... regression back into a petrostate... “China just wins. America has abrogated the playing field.”

The ‘profound’ global impact of China’s rise as an electrostate - on.ft.com/473JgPQ via @FT
The ‘profound’ global impact of China’s rise as an electrostate
The country’s companies now dominate many clean technology industries
on.ft.com
Reposted by Ruth Mottram
dougparr.bsky.social
“I think China is using [clean technology] in a very, very geopolitically savvy way, taking advantage of America’s stupidity and regression back into a petrostate. China just wins. America has abrogated the playing field.”

www.ft.com/content/013e...
The ‘profound’ global impact of China’s rise as an electrostate
The country’s companies now dominate many clean technology industries
www.ft.com
Reposted by Ruth Mottram
volberg.bsky.social
The French 🇫🇷 Navy has recently conducted an unexpected test, successfully intercepting a supersonic target launched by a Rafale M, using an ASTER 30 long-range interceptor fired from the air-defense destroyer FREMM DA Alsace.

This test is a significant demonstration!