The Guardian

Our inability to confidently predict sea level rise between an extremely challenging two metres and a civilisation-ending 10 metres is an exemplar of the problem facing researchers

These last few months have been a turbulent time to be an oceanographer, particularly one specialising in the vast Southern Ocean around Antarctica and its role in our climate. The media has been awash with stories of marine heatwaves across the northern hemisphere, the potential collapse of the Atlantic meridional overturning circulation by mid-century and the record-breaking deficit in Antarctic sea ice emerging this southern winter. Alongside heatwaves and bushfires in North America and southern Europe, flooding in China and South American winter temperatures above 38C, the climate has moved from a “future problem” to a “now problem” in the minds of many.

The global climate is one hugely complex interconnected system. While the Antarctic and Southern Ocean are far removed from our daily lives, they play an oversized role in this system and the future climate that concerns humanity now. “Global warming” is really “ocean warming”. The atmospheric temperature change, the 1.5C Paris target we are now perilously near to exceeding, really is only a few percent of our total excess trapped heat. Almost all the rest is in the ocean and it is around Antarctica that it is predominantly taken up. How this uptake may change in the future as winds, temperatures and ice shift is a critical scientific, and human, question.

Release of contaminated water from the damaged nuclear plant has been criticised by fishers and countries in the region

Japan plans to start releasing treated radioactive water from the tsunami-wrecked Fukushima nuclear power plant into the ocean as soon as late August, Japan’s Asahi Shimbun daily reported on Monday, citing unnamed government sources.

The release is likely to come shortly after the prime minister, Fumio Kishida, meets the US president, Joe Biden, and the South Korean president, Yoon Suk-yeol, next week in the US, where Kishida planned to explain the safety of the water in question, it reported.

This video 'hyperlapse' follows the 145km Canberra Centenary Trail. The journey starts at the doors of Parliament House, invades the pitch at a Big Bash cricket match, and culminates with a stunning ride in a hot air balloon. It took videographer David Fanner a year to complete the project. He told the Guardian his aim was to 'capture the immersive experiences of a long-distance hike in a way the typical highlight reel approach doesn't'. He said he also wanted to showcase the stunning beauty that Canberra, in Ngunnawal and Ngambri country, has to offer

► Subscribe to Guardian Australia on YouTube

• Hyperlapse video: hiking the epic Grampians Peaks Trail in 5.5 minutes

• Happy isolation: hiking the ridges of the Larapinta trail

The Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory’s National Ignition Facility achieved the feat using lasers to fuse two atoms

US scientists have achieved net energy gain in a fusion reaction for the second time since December last year, the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory said on Sunday.

Scientists at the California-based lab repeated the breakthrough in an experiment in the National Ignition Facility (NIF) on 30 July that produced a higher energy yield than in December, a Lawrence Livermore spokesperson said.

Invasive Species Council releases material showing contrast between original $133m plan to fully eradicate the ants and $89m ‘revised work plan’

• Get our morning and afternoon news emails, free app or daily news podcast

Lack of proper funding is hindering efforts to contain the spread of invasive fire ants by Australian authorities, according to documents obtained by the Invasive Species Council.

The documents show a stark contrast between the original $133m plan to fully eradicate the ants and an $89m “revised work plan” to continue for the next 12 months. This revised plan would only treat half the area needed, even as the ants continue their southward march towards New South Wales.

Sign up for Guardian Australia’s free morning and afternoon email newsletters for your daily news roundup

Campaigners voice hopes and fears for the rainforest before leaders of eight Amazon nations attend summit in Belém

Thousands of Indigenous activists and environmentalists have converged in one of the Amazon’s biggest cities to voice their hopes and fears about the future of the world’s biggest rainforest.

The Brazilian city of Belém will this week host a two-day conclave bringing together the presidents of eight Amazon nations including Brazil, Colombia, Peru and Venezuela.

Grey skies, gale-swept beaches, soggy donkeys: my childhood holidays were all wet, wet, wet. And, as a result, deliciously idle

I am enjoying this sodden summer. I do know this much rain is bad: July was the UK’s sixth wettest on record and the wettest ever for Northern Ireland. It is worse than bad in China; it is catastrophic, with 20 killed in the worst rainfall in 140 years, since records began. And in the UK, there is harvest havoc to worry farmers, plus a very real danger that the insular and idiotic will point to a persistently, dramatically wet summer that is probably linked to the climate crisis as the opposite: a sign that everything is fine, really, so let’s celebrate with more North Sea drilling.

I am sorry, too, for anyone who needs a summer fix of vitamin D, light and warmth to maintain their health and equanimity. I am on record as being fairly anti-summer, and that remains true, but I am not implacably opposed to a bit of balmy weather. I don’t want to go all “some of my best friends are balls of incandescent gas” on you, but I am attempting to grow some tomatoes this year and I have a hammock. I wouldn’t say no to some sun now and then.

At this week’s Amazon summit, the world must stand with Indigenous peoples – and demand protection for the rainforest

Some of the most fulfilling moments in my life as an actor are when I play roles that speak to the challenges facing humanity. In The Avengers, for example, in which I play the Hulk, the team tries to undo the “the snap” – an apocalyptic event brought about by the villain Thanos to eradicate half of all living beings.

As a good friend of mine says: “Fantasy is not an escape from our world, but an invitation to go deeper into it.” The simple fact is that humanity has triggered extinction events – and the collapse of the Amazon is a disaster that will be terrible for all of us in real life.

What kind of person opposes initiatives designed to protect the future of our planet so his enfeebled party can retain power?

I view human nature through the Techniscope ™® lens of 1960s Italian cowboy films. In Spaghetti Western World, the men we most despise are those who, when the chips are down, snatch an innocent peasant child and put a pistol to their temple, to use as a human shield until their demands are met. Our cowardly prime minister, cornered by the possibility of a catastrophic election defeat, has just done the same thing, but instead of merely manhandling an infant peon on the steps of a saloon, he is holding a gun to the head of the whole world and threatening the future of all life on Earth. See him now in His Name Is Sunak, Our Angel of Death, and You Must Prepare Your Coffin, Amigo (Gianfranco Parolini, 1968).

For Sunak has, in the face of all credible scientific evidence, and in naked contempt for the international court of civilised opinion, decided to grant hundreds of new licences for drilling for North Sea oil. Why? Is Sunak perhaps sexually aroused by the idea of being held in contempt on a global scale? Does he retire to his North Yorkshire mansion priapic and alone under a cloud of assumed loathing, wondering in the dark what he can do to make himself ever-more despised? Did Sunak choose his job as an investment banker because he enjoyed the rhyming slang connotations?

Basic Lee tour dates are here. A fun-size ™ ® version of the show is at the Stand’s New Town theatre, Edinburgh, from 11 to 20 August

Human-caused climate disruption and El Niño push temperature in mountains to 37C

Exceptional winter heat in the Andean mountains of South America has surged to 37C, prompting local scientists to warn the worst may be yet to come as human-caused climate disruption and El Niño cause havoc across the region.

The heatwave in the central Chilean Andes is melting the snow below 3,000 metres (9,840ft), which will have knock-on effects for people living in downstream valleys who depend on meltwater during the spring and summer.

Lowering pollution produced by houses, offices and factories is just as crucial as tackling vehicle emissions

Imposing strict controls on car exhausts will only partially improve the quality of air people breathe in the UK, scientists have said. New measures to counter emissions of nitrogen oxides and other air pollutants will also be needed for buildings, heating plants and many other domestic and industrial sources in future.

The warning follows the controversy that has surrounded London’s ultra low emission zone (Ulez) in which drivers are charged for their vehicles’ polluting impact. This month the mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, will expand the zone from inner London so it covers all boroughs in the city. The decision has provoked opposition from some drivers and was blamed by various Labour party figures for the Conservatives surprise byelection win in Uxbridge and South Ruislip last month.

The celebrated science broadcaster and environmental activist says we have to stop elevating the economy and politics over the state of our world

David Suzuki is in an office, shirt unbuttoned, sunglasses on, a bookshelf over his left shoulder overflowing with a mess of boxes, bottles and binders, some barely hanging on to the top shelf. We’re speaking via video between his family cabin on an island off the Canadian west coast and my barely-more-organised home office in southern Tasmania. But the celebrated science broadcaster and environmental activist is considering something else.

“Maybe I can just give you an idea of what I’m looking out at,” he says, turning his laptop so I can see what he sees: a beautiful bay in late afternoon sun. My response is involuntary: “Oh, wow.”

Athletes competing on stretch of UK coastline where reduced water quality at centre of dispute over sewage discharges

At least 57 people fell ill with sickness and diarrhoea after competing in sea swimming events at the World Triathlon Championship Series in Sunderland, health officials confirmed this weekend.

About 2,000 people participated in the events last weekend, which included a swim off Sunderland’s blue flag Roker beach. The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) said it would be testing samples from those who were ill to establish the cause of the illness and any common pathogens.

People scoffed at the idea of electric vehicles for the masses. But now a Tesla hatchback has outsold the Toyota Corolla

An intriguing news item dropped into my inbox this week. It said that in the first quarter of this year, an electric vehicle (EV) had become the biggest-selling car in the world, outselling the Toyota Corolla. I know, I know, dear reader: you think this is non-news of the “Small earthquake in Chile, not many dead” variety. But to those of us condemned to follow the tech industry, three things are significant about it: the vanquished car was a Corolla, the EV was a Tesla (the Model Y hatchback), and the runner-up is made by Toyota.

The poor Corolla gets a lot of disdainful looks from petrolheads, who tell rude jokes about it and view the vehicle as bland, unimaginative and boring. Normal people, however, have consistently regarded it as one of the best compact cars available, with good fuel economy, impressive reliability and excellent luggage capacity. And they have backed that judgment with their wallets for many years. So on the sales front, the Corolla was no pushover.

Industry figures warn climate crisis goals cannot be met unless government pumps more money into renewables

Britain faces being left with no hope of meeting its crucial climate crisis goals and losing its status as a world leader in offshore wind energy without an urgent overhaul of government support, ministers are being warned.

The sudden halting of one of the country’s biggest offshore windfarm projects last month could signal a “tipping point” in the construction of new sites unless ministers intervene, a number of senior energy industry figures told the Observer.

Outdoor adventurers return to national park after ruling in appeal that restored right to wild camp

Outdoor adventurers have laced up their hiking boots and headed back on to Dartmoor to celebrate the restoration of the right to wild camp in the only national park in England where such a freedom exists.

Adrian Partridge was among those spending a night under the stars to commemorate the court ruling on Monday. Partridge, 63, camped on Dartmoor on Thursday night with his son Oli, 22, who suggested the trip after the judgment.

Chevron component approved even though it could cause cancer in virtually every person exposed over a lifetime

• This article is co-published with ProPublica, a nonprofit newsroom that investigates abuses of power

The Environmental Protection Agency approved a component of boat fuel made from discarded plastic that the agency’s own risk formula determined was so hazardous, everyone exposed to the substance continually over a lifetime would be expected to develop cancer.

Current and former EPA scientists said that threat level is unheard of. It is a million times higher than what the agency usually considers acceptable for new chemicals and six times worse than the risk of lung cancer from a lifetime of smoking.

City leaders say UK capital’s scheme to improve air quality is inspiring and explain their own measures

Mayors from cities around the globe have urged Sadiq Khan to stay strong in the face of harsh criticism of his clean air policies.

The Conservative party narrowly held the constituency of Uxbridge in a recent byelection, with its victory attributed partly to opposition to the London mayor’s upcoming extension of the capital’s ultra-low emissions zone (Ulez). A culture war over the role of cars in cities has erupted which has included arch comments from Keir Starmer, the Labour leader, who suggested his party was doing something “very wrong”.

Climate activist pulls out of event, saying sponsor Baillie Gifford invests heavily in fossil fuel industry

The climate activist Greta Thunberg has pulled out of an appearance at the Edinburgh book festival, accusing its lead sponsor of “greenwashing”.

Thunberg was scheduled to speak at the 3,000-seat Playhouse theatre to discuss her appeal for climate action, It’s Not Too Late to Change the World, as part of a series of “climate positive” events at this year’s festival.