Climate Change

UC Merced Scientists Among Global Elite Shaping AI, Climate and Health

January 26, 2026

UC Merced continues to demonstrate its growing influence on the global stage. Several faculty members landed on Clarivate’s 2025 list of the world’s most‑cited researchers. The honor is reserved for the top 1% of scholars whose work has shaped their fields over the last 10 years....

Members of the BioSCape team are pictured with NASA and South African aircraft.

Multinational Research Project Shows How Life on Earth can be Measured from Space

Measurements and data collected from space can be used to better understand life on Earth. An ambitious, multinational research project funded by NASA and co-led by UC Merced civil and...

Image depicts a scene of grass, sidewalks and a large UCM at UC Merced.

Sensor Provides Cheap, Smart Way to Monitor How Much Water Crops Need

As water becomes an ever more precious and unpredictable resource, particularly in the Central Valley, finding ways to precisely irrigate crops is a valuable tool in the fight against climate change...

Study of Sugar Pines Reveals Urgent Issue in Protecting Forests from Climate Change

Sugar pines are the tallest pine species in the world, and they only grow along the West Coast of North America. They are a valued source of timber with cones as large as an adult’s forearm....

The cover of the October edition of Science is depicted in front of a UC Merced sign and palm trees.

Western US Fires Getting Faster, More Dangerous, Study Shows

Fast-growing fires were responsible for nearly 90% of fire-related damages despite being relatively rare in the United States between 2001-2020, according to a new study. "Fast fires,"...

Study: Climate Change Extends Drought Recovery by at Least Three Months

A group of researchers at UC Merced has found that climate change means it takes about three months longer for California to recover from drought, and probably longer. “Climate change has...

Global CO2 emissions from forest fires increase by 60%

A major study publishing Friday in Science reveals that carbon dioxide emissions from forest fires have surged by 60% globally since 2001, and almost tripled in some of the most climate-...

air quality and health conference uc merced

Valley Air Quality, Public Health the Focus of UC Merced Conference

Scientists, policymakers and concerned community members will gather at UC Merced this week to compare notes and chart new directions to improve air quality and public health in the San Joaquin...

Lions consume a giraffe carcass in Ruaha National Park, Tanzania.

Researchers Accurately Model Animals’ Hunting, Scavenging Behavior

A group of UC Merced researchers modeled predation behaviors, as well as changes in those behaviors, among large carnivores, developing a new theory that will help biologists assess the health of...

A great white shark passes the diving cage holding Professor Sora Kim.

UC Merced Researcher Dives with the Big Sharks on Shark Week

UC Merced's resident shark expert, Professor Sora Kim, will be featured on the prime-time, premiere-night episode of Discovery’s Shark Week discussing an enormous, legendary sea creature...