In the lithium–sulfur (Li–S) batteries, developing catalytic materials to accelerate polysulfide redox kinetics and effectively mitigate the shuttle effect is crucial, as nonpolar carbon materials provide only physical confinement without offering catalytic activity. In this work, a novel functional interlayer is constructed by uniformly anchoring silver quantum dots (AgQDs) onto a MXene substrate, forming an AgQDs@MXene composite. This engineered interlayer is introduced into Li–S batteries to simultaneously address the challenges of polysulfide shuttle and sluggish redox kinetics. The abundant surface functional groups and high conductivity of MXene, coupled with the strong chemisorptive interactions and catalytic activity of AgQDs, enable effective immobilization of soluble lithium polysulfides and accelerated conversion reactions during cycling. As a result, Li–S batteries assembled with the AgQDs@MXene interlayer exhibit remarkable electrochemical performance, including enhanced capacity retention, prolonged cycling stability, and excellent rate capability. These improvements significantly outperform cells with conventional polypropylene (PP) separators, highlighting the potential of AgQDs@MXene as a multifunctional interface for high-energy–density and long-life Li–S batteries.

Artificial light at night (ALAN) marks the global impact of humanity1,2. Yet, our understanding of its true ebb and flow has been limited, often based on temporally aggregated satellite data that obscure finer dynamics. Here, using daily night-time satellite imagery3 and a continuous change detection approach4,5, we created global maps of high-frequency ALAN dynamics (2014-2022). Our findings challenge the prevailing perspective that changes in light radiance are largely gradual and unidirectional. Instead, the nightlights of Earth are surprisingly dynamic, characterized by frequent and coexisting brightening and dimming. On average, each location experiencing change underwent 6.6 distinct shifts over the 9 years. Driven by this volatility, the cumulative area of total ALAN change comprised 2.05 million km2 of abrupt changes and 19.04 million km2 of gradual changes. Brightening contributed a radiance increase equivalent to 34% of the 2014 global baseline, whereas dimming offset this by 18%. Notably, both brightening and dimming have markedly intensified over the past decade. This evidence of increasing volatility in human night-time activity provides an important dynamic dimension for understanding urban evolution, energy transitions, policy impacts and ecological consequences of rapidly changing illuminated nights.

Atomic-level Fe doping in MoO2/C regulates its electronic structure, strengthens polysulfide adsorption, accelerates catalytic conversion and provides additional active sites. Consequently, the Fe-MoO2/C-S cathode exhibits excellent performance, offering an effective strategy for designing highly catalytically active sulfur hosts for advanced Li-S batteries.

Arctic fires have become more frequent in recent decades. Previous research highlighted climate variables as the driving factor of fire occurrence in the Arctic, largely ignoring the contribution of human activity. Here, we analyzed the relationship between fire occurrence and human activity, as represented by artificial light at night, from 2001 to 2013 at pan-Arctic scale. Our results show a 2.45 [2.14, 2.82] times higher fire occurrence inside the lit area (exactly zero km distance) compared to control points randomly selected from areas with similar climate conditions. Moreover, fire occurrence exhibited a strong spatial association with distance to lit areas, with higher fire occurrence observed closer to human activity. Differences in fire occurrence near lit area for similar human activities suggest the potential of fire management. Effective management of fire risk around lit area to reduce ignition risks along with effective firefighting strategies are important to reduce damage to infrastructure, disturbance to permafrost ecosystems and positive feedbacks to climate warming. Human activity strongly increases Arctic fire occurrence, with fires 2.5 times more likely in lit areas and more frequent near artificial light at night, based on pan-Arctic analyses linking fire records with nighttime light data from 2001–2013.

Lithium oxalate (Li2C2O4) is regarded as a promising prelithiation agent due to its high specific capacity and cost-effectiveness. However, its intrinsically poor electronic conductivity and sluggish reaction kinetics result in a high lithium liberation potential (typically above 4.5 V), which challenges the stability of electrolytes and electrode materials, and deteriorates overall battery performance. In this work, the intermetallic NiBi3 catalyst with metallic conductivity and strong interfacial interaction is introduced to promote the low-potential decomposition of Li2C2O4. Benefiting from the synergistic electronic effect between Ni and Bi, the incorporation of Bi effectively modulates the electronic structure of Ni sites viad-p orbital hybridization, thereby enhancing the adsorption and activation of Li2C2O4, weakening the Li2C2O4 framework and facilitating its decomposition. When coupled with ultrahigh-Ni NCM96 cathodes, the NiBi3-Li2C2O4 prelithiation system provides higher charge capacity (273.3 mAh g-1) and improved reaction kinetics compared to the pristine counterpart. Furthermore, full-cell configurations based on SiOx anodes exhibit enhanced lithium compensation capability, maintaining a capacity retention of 52.9% after 150 cycles at 0.5C. These results demonstrate that intermetallic NiBi3 is an efficient catalyst for activating Li2C2O4 and provides a viable strategy for developing high-performance cathode prelithiation systems.

Forest aboveground biomass (AGB) density mapping initiatives generally use one of three remote sensing approaches: lidar, radar, or near-nadir multispectral imaging leveraging machine learning methods, or a combination thereof. However, the active instrument record is limited and near-nadir multispectral imaging data are relatively insensitive to canopy physical structure. Multiangle imaging enables annual wall-to-wall mapping with a global record that extends back to 2000 as these data are highly sensitive to forest AGB. This paper describes work to validate estimates in a published annual, wall-to-wall record of forest AGB on a 250 m grid, derived using 672 nm imagery from the NASA, Jet Propulsion Laboratory's Multiangle Imaging Spectro-Radiometer (MISR) for 2000-2021, covering the southwestern United States. Estimates in the published MISR-derived annual forest AGB map series for the southwestern United States and the Global Ecosystem Dynamics Investigation (GEDI) L4B Gridded 1 km AGB product were both found to be highly consistent with NASA Carbon Monitoring System (CMS) airborne lidar survey (ALS) AGB data. MISR and GEDI v.2 (v.2.1) estimates yielded similar coefficients of determination (similar to 0.7) and Root Mean Square Error (RMSE) (similar to 60 Mg ha(-1)) for all ALS data used. For the large CMS Sonoma County Improved AGB dataset, MISR and GEDI v.2 (v.2.1) estimates yielded R-2 = 0.88, 0.88 (0.91); RMSE = 58, 40 (37) Mg ha(-1). Estimates from MISR thus have an accuracy similar to that of the GEDI L4B gridded AGB product, with some limitations (e.g., topographic shading, tall, dense canopies). However the published MISR maps are on a 250 m grid, wall-to-wall, and cover the period 2000-2021. These results suggest MISR is able to provide a means to investigate trajectories of forest AGB change in the southwestern U.S. from 2000 onwards-over a substantial period of accelerating environmental and human- and climate-driven change- with reasonable precision.

In emerging lithium-sulfur (Li-S) batteries, the significant redox kinetic barriers and the severe shuttle effect of lithium polysulfides (LiPSs) are major challenges that hinder their practical use. In this study, Co/Cu heterostructure nanoparticles, highly dispersed within N-doped hollow carbon spheres (Cu/Co@NC), are meticulously designed and synthesized, serving as both an adsorbent and a catalyst for advanced Li-S batteries.

Interfacial challenges, including unstable electrode/electrolyte interfaces and sluggish ion transport, remain critical barriers to the deployment of solid polymer electrolytes (SPEs) in high-energy-density lithium metal batteries. However, the formation of a desired LiF/Li3N-rich solid-electrolyte interphase (SEI) remains challenging due to the presence of anion-depletion layer and the high reduction barrier of sulfonyl-imide moieties in conventional FSI-/TFSI- anions. Herein, benzamide was employed to functionalize the kaolinite in PEO-based SPEs. The high dipole moment of benzamide anchors TFSI- anions via its -NH2 groups, resulting in an enhanced Li+ transference number of 0.69 and a room-temperature ionic conductivity of 1.4 x 10-4 S cm- 1. This interaction also enriches anions at the anode/SPE interface, promoting the generation of LiF. Simultaneously, the electrophilic -NH2 groups facilitate the in-situ generation of Li3N. The resultant conformal, highly Li+-conductive LiF/Li3N-rich SEI layer accelerates Li deposition kinetics and effectively suppresses dendrite growth, enabling highly stable lithium plating/stripping for over 2400 h. Full cells employing LFP and NCM811 cathodes maintain outstanding cycling stability over 500 and 200 cycles, respectively. Moreover, pouch cells show excellent mechanical robustness and safety under deformation and abuse conditions, underscoring the exceptional promise of this functionalized SPE for safe and durable all-solid-state lithium metal batteries.

Intercalation pseudocapacitance is the key point to achieving the balance between the volumetric capacitance and the rate performance of energy storage. However, the low pseudocapacitive reactivity of the active center still limits the energy density of the pseudocapacitance devices. Herein, we propose a strategy that regulates the p-d hybridization of confined MXene via the co-doping of B and O atoms (BO-MXene) for outstanding electrochemical performance. Both experiments and density functional theory (DFT) reveal that the inner doped O atoms in low 2p orbital energy strengthen the hybridization of Ti and electron-deficient B in MXene for high retention of B atoms, weaken the Ti-O covalency in MXene. As a result, the weakened p-d hybridization of Ti and O for the outer surface and strengthened p-d hybridization of Ti and B for the inner, promote the adsorption of protons and electron transfer, respectively. Further, the BO-MXene-based hybrid supercapacitors achieve a significant volumetric energy density of 56.86 Wh L-1 at 25.6 kW L-1. This electronic structure via tuning the p-d hybridization in MXene proposes a new path for designing proton-confined intercalation pseudocapacitance.

Using observations from the Visible Infrared Imaging Radiometer Suite (VIIRS) day–night band (DNB), we examined the feasibility of developing a gridded nighttime aerosol optical thickness (AOT) data set based on the spatial derivative of measured top-of-atmosphere attenuated upwelling artificial lights at night (ALAN) over the US, Middle East, and Indian Subcontinent regions for 2017. We also studied the potential of using NASA's standard operational Black Marble nighttime lights product suite (VNP46) for estimating the spatial derivatives of surface artificial-light emissions, which is one of the key lower boundary conditions for the retrieval process. The sensitivity of nighttime aerosol retrievals to observing conditions and different methods of estimating the spatial derivative of surface artificial-light emissions were also explored. Root-mean-square errors (RMSEs) of ∼ 0.15 and ∼ 0.18 and correlations of ∼ 0.8 and ∼ 0.6 were found between VIIRS nighttime AOT and Aerosol Robotic Network (AERONET) nighttime and daytime data, respectively, suggesting that the proposed gridded nighttime AOT retrievals have reasonable skill levels for potential data assimilation, air quality, and climate studies of significant events. We also found that NASA Black Marble products can be used to estimate the spatial derivative of surface artificial-light emissions for nighttime AOT retrievals over regions that are not frequently contaminated by aerosol plumes, such as the USA. This study demonstrated the feasibility of constructing a gridded nighttime AOT data, using artificial lights, for monitoring of nighttime aerosol events over large spatial and temporal domains. Given the deployment of VIIRS instruments (currently in orbit and forthcoming) aboard the NOAA Joint Polar Satellite System (JPSS) series satellites, this study can be viewed as a precursor for gridded nighttime AOT retrievals at both regional and global scales in the future. We also show that the use of the NASA Black Marble products, which would greatly save the processing time of this method, is challenging over regions with frequent aerosol pollution, such as the Indian Subcontinent, and further exploration is required.

Among the emerging energy storage technologies, lithium–sulfur (Li–S) batteries are considered one of the most promising candidates for post–lithium-ion systems due to their exceptionally high theoretical energy density and the natural abundance of sulfur. However, their practical deployment is impeded by rapid capacity fading and safety concerns, primarily arising from the intrinsic low conductivity of S8 and Li2S, the severe shuttle effect of soluble polysulfides (LiPSs), and sluggish redox kinetics. Recent studies have demonstrated that catalytic strategies offer an effective route to overcome these challenges by enhancing interfacial reaction dynamics. In particular, metal-based quantum dots (QDs) with ultrasmall particle sizes (< 10 nm) exhibit unique colloidal characteristics, including a large accessible surface area, abundant active sites, and strong polarity. These features enable efficient adsorption and catalytic conversion of polysulfides, thereby suppressing the shuttle effect and accelerating sluggish redox processes. Beyond the cathode side, QDs also play a crucial role in stabilizing the lithium metal anode by regulating Li+ flux, homogenizing deposition, and suppressing dendrite growth through strong interfacial interactions and lithiophilic sites. This dual functionality at both electrodes significantly improves overall cell stability and safety. This review focuses on the interfacial roles of QDs in Li–S batteries, with emphasis on polysulfide adsorption mechanisms, phase transition catalysis, and the regulation of lithium deposition at both the cathode–electrolyte and anode–electrolyte interfaces. Furthermore, we summarize design strategies for QD-based catalysts, including defect engineering, morphology modulation, and controlled synthesis, while discussing their implications for interfacial stability and electrochemical performance. Finally, the key challenges and future research directions for integrating QDs into practical Li–S battery systems are highlighted, aiming to inspire the development of advanced colloidal nanocatalysts for next-generation energy storage.

Sodium selenium (Na-Se) batteries are considered promising candidates for next-generation energy storage devices due to their high volumetric energy density. However, the Se cathode still faces the problems of the shuttling effect and sluggish selenium reduction kinetics. Improving the surface adsorption and catalytic process of selenium cathode can greatly solve the above issues and achieve excellent performance to enhance the application of Na-Se batteries. Herein, experimental and theoretical simulation results indicate that the boron and defects co-doped MXene (BD-MXene) could initiate the redistribution of electrons and improve the surface polarity, promoting chemical adsorption, thus effectively suppressing the shuttle effect. More importantly, the BD-MXene can promote the conversion between polyselenide, accelerating the electrochemical reaction kinetics of Sodium polyselenide. As a result, the obtained Se@BD-MXene exhibits a high rate performance of 502 mAh g- 1 at 50 A g- 1 (calculated based on Se@BD-MXene) and excellent cycling stability with a decay per cycle of 0.001 % over 4500 at 10 A g-1. This work provides a viable strategy to design Se cathodes for Na-Se batteries with high-rate capability and long-term cycling.

While severe hurricanes continue to challenge the resilience of local communities, fine-scale knowledge of posthurricane recovery remains scarce. Existing recovery tracking approaches mainly rely on aggregated metrics that would disguise the spatial heterogeneity in recovery patterns. Here, we present a spatiotemporally explicit investigation into the recovery of human activity after 10 recent severe hurricanes in the U.S., with daily nighttime light (NTL) time series images from NASA's Black Marble VIIRS NTL product suite. We utilized a Bayesian-based time series change detection model and temporal clustering algorithm to analyze the posthurricane recovery of each built-up area pixel within 446 counties severely affected by the hurricanes. To investigate the potential inaccuracies stemming from assessments using aggregated statistics, we further compared the recovery pattern estimated at pixel scale with that estimated by aggregated NTL radiance at county and census tract scales. Last, we examined the inequality in post-hurricane recovery and how it related to socioeconomic factors and current hurricane assistance programs. Our analysis shows a 7-fold difference in the recovery duration of hurricane-affected built-up areas within a county, with one-third of the areas experiencing a prolonged recovery lasting over 200 days. We emphasize the necessity of fine-scale knowledge in recovery assessments as aggregated statistics tend to largely underestimate the severity of hurricane impact and spatial heterogeneity of recovery. More importantly, we identify a prevailing recovery inequality across minority and disadvantaged populations, as well as a continued disproportionate allocation of hurricane assistance served as a key driver of exacerbating recovery inequality. Our study offers nuanced insights into the spatial heterogeneity of post-hurricane recovery that can inform strategic and equitable recovery efforts, as well as more effective hurricane relief programs and protocols.

Metal selenide-based anodes show promise, but face challenges like poor conductivity, structural devastation, and slow ion transport, leading to performance loss. This work proposes a heterointerface among FeSe2, CoSe2, and N-doped carbon structures to enhance their stability and electrochemical performance, offering insights for designing durable, high-performance sodium-ion battery materials.

Electricity is a basic human necessity. We are highly reliant on continuous access to electricity for our health, well‐being, and it remains essential for critical infrastructure, industries, and human development. Yet, there remains a gap in populations with access to electricity across the globe. Mapping where gaps in electrification are currently is vital to estimate the unmet energy demand to ensure universal access to electricity and modern fuels. To be informative, mapping of electricity access gaps is needed on a global scale but with spatially‐disaggregated granularity and it is non‐trivial to derive this spatially‐explicit data globally. Satellite observations have the unique vantage point of acquiring global observations with frequent updates and are collected in a standardized manner. Specifically, NASA Black Marble is the only openly available data set that derives corrected, global, daily nighttime lights (NTL) that are ideal for analyzing settlement pixels and electrification with its decade‐long records. We derive global maps of electrification at 1 km resolution using NTL time‐series from 2012 to 2022 and fill in the existing global knowledge gap using improved NTL retrievals from this corrected data set. We evaluate our analyses with global surveys at the national scale and observe high agreement, derive quality flags, and share the results as an open‐access data set. We analyze our data set to examine the areas with highest access gaps and discuss the potential of the data set to inform energy transition plans and electricity demand estimations for integrated assessment models that jointly evaluate the effects of climate change and energy transitions.

Sodium-selenium (Na-Se) batteries are promising energy storage systems with high energy density, high safety, and low cost. However, the huge volume change of selenium, the dissolution shuttle of polyselenides, and low selenium loading need to be solved. Herein, Cu nanoparticles decorated MXene nanosheets composite (MXene/ Cu) are synthesized by etching Ti3AlC2 using a molten salt etching strategy. The Se-loaded MXene/Cu (Se@MXene/Cu) electrode delivers superior electrochemical performance even with a high Se loading of similar to 74.3 wt%, owing to the synergistic effect of the two-dimensional (2D) confined structure and catalytic role of the unique MXene/Cu host. Specifically, the obtained electrode provides a reversible capacity of 587.3 mAh/g at 0.2 A/g, a discharge capacity as high as 511.3 mAh/g at a high rate of 50 A/g, and still maintains a capacity of 471.9 mAh/ g even after 5000 cycles based on the mass of Se@MXene/Cu. With such excellent electrochemical kinetic properties, this study highlights the importance of designing various MXene-based composites with synergistic effects of 2D confined structure and Cu catalytic center for the development of high-performance alkali metal-chalcogen battery systems.

This paper provides a review and summary status of the research underway by the NASA Terra Aqua Suomi-NPP Land Discipline Team to provide continuity of global land data products from the NASA Moderate resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) to the Visible Infrared Imaging Radiometer Suite (VIIRS). The two MODIS instruments on the NASA Earth Observing System Terra (morning overpass) and Aqua (afternoon overpass) platforms have provided more than twenty years of data. The peer-reviewed land products generated from MODIS are now being transitioned to production using VIIRS inputs, with the intention of providing dynamic continuity for the Aqua observations. As part of that process, the products from the two instruments are undergoing intercomparison and evaluation. These results are provided where available and show promising levels of agreement and accuracy in all cases. The paper also offers options for establishing continuity of Terra MODIS data products.