© Jiri Rezac / Greenpeace

Top news: Cyclical changes in climate trigger wars; Climate models need to be revised to include cloud formation; Animals are good at predicting earthquakes.

#Wars: Cyclical climatic changes double the risk of civil wars, according to researcher Solomon Hsiang at Columbia University, New York. Research connected the El Niño climate phenomenon which leads to dry conditions to tropical nations, reducing food production, to violent outbreaks. Hsiang claims that 50 of 250 conflicts between 1950 and 2004 were triggered by the El Niño cycle.  Even before that, "we can speculate that a long-ago Egyptian dynasty was overthrown during a drought,” he says. Looking ahead, since El Niño events may be predicted two years in advance, Hsiang hopes that his research may “help reduce humanitarian suffering.”

#Clouds:  New studies on cloud formation cast a shadow on climate models.  Aerosol ingredients: sulphuric acid and ammonia create the ‘seeds’ from which clouds form. However, Jasper Kirkby, head of the CLOUD (Cosmics Leaving OUtdoor Droplets) experiment at CERN, Geneva, says that “these ingredients create only a tiny fraction of the cloud seeds formed in the atmosphere.” Professor Mike Lockwood of Reading University, UK, agrees, claiming that there is another source that is producing a feedback effect on the climate. Further studies will lead to better climate models, improving our understanding of the role of cloud formation in driving climate change.

#Earthquakes: Animals may be good earthquake predictors. Staff at Washington D.C.’s National Zoo, were warned of the looming 5.8 quake, 15 minutes before it hit. Red ruffed lemurs were the first to sound the alarm. "They started vocalizing and they went straight up into the trees which is what they should do in the wild if they sense danger,” says Randie Smith, a senior curator of animal care sciences. Zoo director Don Moore adds that animals are able to sense slight vibrations preceding a quake that we humans cannot. So, if you’re living near a fault line, having a pet may pay off (something larger than a hamster would be preferable).