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Science Quickly

Fall Foliage Timing Comes into Clearer Focus

Science Quickly

Scientific American

Science

4.2639 Ratings

🗓️ 20 October 2015

⏱️ 2 minutes

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

Researchers picked apart satellite imagery from two New England forest ecosystems to get a better handle on exactly what factors influence the timing of the color changes of the autumn leaves Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcript

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0:00.0

Understanding the human body is a team effort. That's where the Yachtel group comes in.

0:05.8

Researchers at Yachtolt have been delving into the secrets of probiotics for 90 years. Yacold also

0:11.5

partners with nature portfolio to advance gut microbiome science through the global grants for

0:16.6

gut health, an investigator-led research program. To learn more about Yachtold, visit yawcult.co.

0:22.6

com.j. That's Y-A-K-U-L-T.C-O-J-P. When it comes to a guide for your gut, count on Yacolt.

0:34.1

This is Scientific American 60-second science. I'm Cynthia Graber. Got a minute?

0:39.4

In autumn, New England foliage turns vibrant shades of red, yellow, and orange, which brings in lots of green, as in the money spent by tourists who flock to the region to witness the explosion of color.

0:50.9

Because of falls economic implications, exactly when the leaf peeping season will begin

0:55.2

is thus a source of constant speculation. Scientists know that factors including frost, heat,

1:00.5

rain, and drought all affect the timing, but the whole colorful picture is still difficult to

1:05.4

accurately predict. Now scientists have picked apart satellite imagery from two New England

1:10.2

forest ecosystems

1:11.2

collected from 2001 to 2012 to try to get a better handle on exactly what factors influence

1:16.9

the autumn leaves. The scientists looked at northeastern highlands and coastal zones. They incorporated

1:21.9

available data on chills, frosts, and heat, and rain, drought, and flooding. In general, cold, wet, and extreme heat made leaves

1:29.5

change color sooner, while moderate heat and low rainfall delayed the coloration. But the different

1:34.8

ecosystems behave differently. Forests in the highlands reacted to frosts both in spring and in the

1:40.1

fall, while the coast only responded to fall frosts. The coastal region's forests

1:44.6

were also particularly sensitive to rain and flooding. Incorporating climate change

1:48.7

predictions for the next century, the researchers propose that the highlands will change color

1:53.0

later in the fall, while the coast may start to turn earlier. The study is in the proceedings

1:57.7

of the National Academy of Sciences. The researchers note that more data,

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