Threads of underground fungal networks are long enough to reach beyond the Solar System
Summary
Scientists mapped underground fungal networks called arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi, which stretch across the Earth in vast webs that help plants get nutrients and store carbon. Their research showed these networks are longest in grasslands and shrinking in farmed areas, affecting how plants grow and how much carbon stays underground instead of warming the air.Key Facts
- Underground fungal threads total 110 quadrillion kilometers, enough to stretch nearly a billion times the distance between Earth and the sun.
- These fungi connect with about 80% of the world’s plants, exchanging nutrients for carbon.
- The networks store about 1 billion tons of carbon underground annually, helping slow climate change.
- The study combined past research, soil samples worldwide, machine learning, and lab tests to map fungal distribution.
- The fungi’s thin threads are smaller than human hair and can reach nutrients deep in the soil.
- The densest fungal networks are found in grasslands; they are declining in agricultural areas.
- The new global fungal map helps understand how these networks support plants and capture carbon.
- Researchers used a robot with a camera to measure fungal thread size in lab conditions for more accurate data.
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