Mystery tap water substance finally discovered, concerning scientists

<!doctype html> <html lang="en-AU" prefix="og: https://ogp.me/ns#" class="site"> <head> <meta charset="utf-8"> <meta http-equiv="x-ua-compatible" content="ie=edge"> <meta name="viewport" content="width=device-width, initial-scale=1, shrink-to-fit=no"> <link rel="icon" href="https://cdn.shortpixel.ai/spai/ret_img/cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/themes/cosmos/dist/images/favicon.svg?v=a905cf20" data-spai-egr="1" sizes="any" type="image/svg+xml" /> <link rel="apple-touch-icon" sizes="180x180" href="https://cdn.shortpixel.ai/spai/q_lossy+ret_img+to_auto/cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/themes/cosmos/dist/images/apple-touch-icon.png?v=0025be9a" data-spai-egr="1" /> <link rel="icon" type="image/png" sizes="48x48" href="https://cdn.shortpixel.ai/spai/q_lossy+ret_img+to_auto/cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/themes/cosmos/dist/images/favicon-48x48.png?v=17a9d6dc" data-spai-egr="1" /> <link rel="icon" type="image/png" sizes="32x32" href="https://cdn.shortpixel.ai/spai/q_lossy+ret_img+to_auto/cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/themes/cosmos/dist/images/favicon-32x32.png?v=af68c5be" data-spai-egr="1" /> <link rel="icon" type="image/png" sizes="16x16" href="https://cdn.shortpixel.ai/spai/q_lossy+ret_img+to_auto/cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/themes/cosmos/dist/images/favicon-16x16.png?v=b5cd24fd" data-spai-egr="1" /> <link rel="mask-icon" href="https://cdn.shortpixel.ai/spai/ret_img/cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/themes/cosmos/dist/images/safari-pinned-tab.svg?v=6575e507" data-spai-egr="1" color="#2f76bb" /> <script> var dataLayer = window.dataLayer = window.dataLayer || []; </script> <script> dimensionsData = ({"user_id":null,"country":null}); dimensionsData.event = "user_details"; dataLayer.push(dimensionsData); </script>  <script> (function(w, d, s, l, i) { w[l] = w[l] || []; w[l].push({ 'gtm.start': new Date().getTime(), event: 'gtm.js' }); var f = d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0], j = d.createElement(s), dl = l != 'dataLayer' ? '&l=' + l : ''; j.async = true; j.src = 'https://www.googletagmanager.com/gtm.js?id=' + i + dl; f.parentNode.insertBefore(j, f); })(window, document, 'script', 'dataLayer', 'GTM-5TDDMZV'); let dimensionsData; </script>  <script> dimensionsData = ({"post_type":"post","page_title":"Substance unknown to science identified in tap water","page_location":"https://cosmosmagazine.com/science/chemistry/tap-water-chloronitramide/","post_id":316640,"post_category":"australia|chemistry|science|earth|engineering|news|water","post_primary_category":"chemistry","revenue_type":"free","contributors":"Ellen Phiddian","publish_date":"2024-11-22","publish_time":"05:37","post_tags":"analytical-chemistry|drinking-water|water|water-quality","scroll_page_view":"false","parent_title":"Substance unknown to science identified in tap water","parent_location":"https://cosmosmagazine.com/science/chemistry/tap-water-chloronitramide/"}); dimensionsData.event = "page_view"; dataLayer.push(dimensionsData); </script>  <title>Mystery tap water substance finally discovered, concerning scientists</title> <meta name="description" content="After eluding chemists for 40 years, a mysterious compound found in tap water has finally been identified."/> <meta name="robots" content="follow, index, max-snippet:-1, max-video-preview:-1, max-image-preview:large"/> <link rel="canonical" href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/science/chemistry/tap-water-chloronitramide/" /> <meta property="og:locale" content="en_US" /> <meta property="og:type" content="article" /> <meta property="og:title" content="Substance unknown to science identified in tap water" /> <meta property="og:description" content="After eluding chemists for 40 years, a mysterious compound found in tap water has finally been identified." /> <meta property="og:url" content="https://cosmosmagazine.com/science/chemistry/tap-water-chloronitramide/" /> <meta property="og:site_name" content="Cosmos" /> <meta property="article:publisher" content="https://www.facebook.com/CosmosMagazine/" /> <meta property="article:tag" content="analytical chemistry" /> <meta property="article:tag" content="drinking water" /> <meta property="article:tag" content="water" /> <meta property="article:tag" content="water quality" /> <meta property="article:section" content="Chemistry" /> <meta property="og:image" content="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/1200-16-GettyImages-1445381865.jpg" /> <meta property="og:image:secure_url" content="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/1200-16-GettyImages-1445381865.jpg" /> <meta property="og:image:width" content="1200" /> <meta property="og:image:height" content="675" /> <meta property="og:image:alt" content="hand filling glass with tap water" /> <meta property="og:image:type" content="image/jpeg" /> <meta property="article:published_time" content="2024-11-22T05:37:00+10:30" /> <meta name="twitter:card" content="summary_large_image" /> <meta name="twitter:title" content="Substance unknown to science identified in tap water" /> <meta name="twitter:description" content="After eluding chemists for 40 years, a mysterious compound found in tap water has finally been identified." /> <meta name="twitter:site" content="@cosmosmagazine" /> <meta name="twitter:creator" content="@cosmosmagazine" /> <meta name="twitter:image" content="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/1200-16-GettyImages-1445381865.jpg" /> <meta name="twitter:label1" content="Written by" /> <meta name="twitter:data1" content="Ellen Phiddian" /> <meta name="twitter:label2" content="Time to read" /> <meta name="twitter:data2" content="2 minutes" /> <script type="application/ld+json" class="rank-math-schema-pro">{"@context":"https://schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https://cosmosmagazine.com/#organization","name":"Cosmos Magazine","url":"https://cosmosmagazine.com","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/CosmosMagazine/","https://twitter.com/cosmosmagazine"],"logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","@id":"https://cosmosmagazine.com/#logo","url":"https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/cosmos-logo.svg","contentUrl":"https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/cosmos-logo.svg","caption":"Cosmos Magazine","inLanguage":"en-AU","width":"1047","height":"172"}},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https://cosmosmagazine.com/#website","url":"https://cosmosmagazine.com","name":"Cosmos Magazine","publisher":{"@id":"https://cosmosmagazine.com/#organization"},"inLanguage":"en-AU"},{"@type":"ImageObject","@id":"/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/1200-16-GettyImages-1445381865.jpg","url":"/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/1200-16-GettyImages-1445381865.jpg","width":"1200","height":"675","caption":"hand filling glass with tap water","inLanguage":"en-AU"},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https://cosmosmagazine.com/science/chemistry/tap-water-chloronitramide/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":"1","item":{"@id":"https://cosmosmagazine.com","name":"Cosmos"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":"2","item":{"@id":"/science/chemistry/","name":"Chemistry"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":"3","item":{"@id":"https://cosmosmagazine.com/science/chemistry/tap-water-chloronitramide/","name":"Substance unknown to science identified in tap water"}}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://cosmosmagazine.com/science/chemistry/tap-water-chloronitramide/#webpage","url":"https://cosmosmagazine.com/science/chemistry/tap-water-chloronitramide/","name":"Mystery tap water substance finally discovered, concerning scientists","datePublished":"2024-11-22T05:37:00+10:30","dateModified":"2024-11-22T05:37:00+10:30","isPartOf":{"@id":"https://cosmosmagazine.com/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/1200-16-GettyImages-1445381865.jpg"},"inLanguage":"en-AU","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https://cosmosmagazine.com/science/chemistry/tap-water-chloronitramide/#breadcrumb"}},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https://cosmosmagazine.com/author/ellen-phiddian/","name":"Ellen Phiddian","url":"https://cosmosmagazine.com/author/ellen-phiddian/","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","@id":"https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/07e090106befe2d08eda23fa02420be6?s=96&d=mm&r=g","url":"https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/07e090106befe2d08eda23fa02420be6?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"Ellen Phiddian","inLanguage":"en-AU"},"worksFor":{"@id":"https://cosmosmagazine.com/#organization"}},{"@type":"NewsArticle","headline":"Mystery tap water substance finally discovered, concerning scientists","keywords":"tap water","datePublished":"2024-11-22T05:37:00+10:30","dateModified":"2024-11-22T05:37:00+10:30","articleSection":"Australia, Chemistry, Core Sciences, Earth, Engineering, News, Water","author":{"@id":"https://cosmosmagazine.com/author/ellen-phiddian/","name":"Ellen Phiddian"},"publisher":{"@id":"https://cosmosmagazine.com/#organization"},"description":"After eluding chemists for 40 years, a mysterious compound found in tap water has finally been identified.","copyrightYear":"2024","copyrightHolder":{"@id":"https://cosmosmagazine.com/#organization"},"name":"Mystery tap water substance finally discovered, concerning scientists","@id":"https://cosmosmagazine.com/science/chemistry/tap-water-chloronitramide/#richSnippet","isPartOf":{"@id":"https://cosmosmagazine.com/science/chemistry/tap-water-chloronitramide/#webpage"},"image":{"@id":"/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/1200-16-GettyImages-1445381865.jpg"},"inLanguage":"en-AU","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https://cosmosmagazine.com/science/chemistry/tap-water-chloronitramide/#webpage"}}]}</script>  <script> function paywall_impression_dataLayer() { dataLayer.push({ 'event': 'paywall_impression', 'paywall_name': '', 'page_location': 'https://cosmosmagazine.com/science/chemistry/tap-water-chloronitramide/' }); } if (window.location.pathname == '/restricted-content/') { paywall_impression_dataLayer(); } </script>  <noscript><iframe src="https://www.googletagmanager.com/ns.html?id=GTM-5TDDMZV" height="0" width="0" style="display:none;visibility:hidden"></iframe></noscript>  <link rel="stylesheet" href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/cache/minify/5e94f.css?x75256" media="all" /> <style id='safe-svg-svg-icon-style-inline-css' type='text/css'> .safe-svg-cover{text-align:center}.safe-svg-cover .safe-svg-inside{display:inline-block;max-width:100%}.safe-svg-cover svg{height:100%;max-height:100%;max-width:100%;width:100%} </style> <style id='rank-math-toc-block-style-inline-css' type='text/css'> .wp-block-rank-math-toc-block nav ol{counter-reset:item}.wp-block-rank-math-toc-block nav ol li{display:block}.wp-block-rank-math-toc-block nav ol li:before{content:counters(item, ".") ". ";counter-increment:item} </style> <style id='classic-theme-styles-inline-css' type='text/css'> /*! This file is auto-generated */ .wp-block-button__link{color:#fff;background-color:#32373c;border-radius:9999px;box-shadow:none;text-decoration:none;padding:calc(.667em + 2px) calc(1.333em + 2px);font-size:1.125em}.wp-block-file__button{background:#32373c;color:#fff;text-decoration:none} </style> <style id='global-styles-inline-css' type='text/css'> body{--wp--preset--color--black: #000000;--wp--preset--color--cyan-bluish-gray: #abb8c3;--wp--preset--color--white: #ffffff;--wp--preset--color--pale-pink: #f78da7;--wp--preset--color--vivid-red: #cf2e2e;--wp--preset--color--luminous-vivid-orange: #ff6900;--wp--preset--color--luminous-vivid-amber: #fcb900;--wp--preset--color--light-green-cyan: #7bdcb5;--wp--preset--color--vivid-green-cyan: #00d084;--wp--preset--color--pale-cyan-blue: #8ed1fc;--wp--preset--color--vivid-cyan-blue: #0693e3;--wp--preset--color--vivid-purple: #9b51e0;--wp--preset--color--brand-primary: #2f76bb;--wp--preset--color--rackley: #5B92AB;--wp--preset--color--queen-blue: #406E8E;--wp--preset--color--police-blue: #22476B;--wp--preset--color--oxford-blue: #0C2746;--wp--preset--color--light-grey: #e5e5e5;--wp--preset--color--my-cosmos-very-light: #f3f9f9;--wp--preset--color--my-cosmos-light: #00a8a8;--wp--preset--color--my-cosmos-dark: #008294;--wp--preset--color--greenlight-green: #36B34A;--wp--preset--color--greenlight-light-green: #8dc63f;--wp--preset--color--greenlight-dark-green: #0d6c28;--wp--preset--gradient--vivid-cyan-blue-to-vivid-purple: linear-gradient(135deg,rgba(6,147,227,1) 0%,rgb(155,81,224) 100%);--wp--preset--gradient--light-green-cyan-to-vivid-green-cyan: linear-gradient(135deg,rgb(122,220,180) 0%,rgb(0,208,130) 100%);--wp--preset--gradient--luminous-vivid-amber-to-luminous-vivid-orange: linear-gradient(135deg,rgba(252,185,0,1) 0%,rgba(255,105,0,1) 100%);--wp--preset--gradient--luminous-vivid-orange-to-vivid-red: linear-gradient(135deg,rgba(255,105,0,1) 0%,rgb(207,46,46) 100%);--wp--preset--gradient--very-light-gray-to-cyan-bluish-gray: linear-gradient(135deg,rgb(238,238,238) 0%,rgb(169,184,195) 100%);--wp--preset--gradient--cool-to-warm-spectrum: linear-gradient(135deg,rgb(74,234,220) 0%,rgb(151,120,209) 20%,rgb(207,42,186) 40%,rgb(238,44,130) 60%,rgb(251,105,98) 80%,rgb(254,248,76) 100%);--wp--preset--gradient--blush-light-purple: linear-gradient(135deg,rgb(255,206,236) 0%,rgb(152,150,240) 100%);--wp--preset--gradient--blush-bordeaux: linear-gradient(135deg,rgb(254,205,165) 0%,rgb(254,45,45) 50%,rgb(107,0,62) 100%);--wp--preset--gradient--luminous-dusk: linear-gradient(135deg,rgb(255,203,112) 0%,rgb(199,81,192) 50%,rgb(65,88,208) 100%);--wp--preset--gradient--pale-ocean: linear-gradient(135deg,rgb(255,245,203) 0%,rgb(182,227,212) 50%,rgb(51,167,181) 100%);--wp--preset--gradient--electric-grass: linear-gradient(135deg,rgb(202,248,128) 0%,rgb(113,206,126) 100%);--wp--preset--gradient--midnight: linear-gradient(135deg,rgb(2,3,129) 0%,rgb(40,116,252) 100%);--wp--preset--font-size--small: 13px;--wp--preset--font-size--medium: 20px;--wp--preset--font-size--large: 36px;--wp--preset--font-size--x-large: 42px;--wp--preset--spacing--20: 0.44rem;--wp--preset--spacing--30: 0.67rem;--wp--preset--spacing--40: 1rem;--wp--preset--spacing--50: 1.5rem;--wp--preset--spacing--60: 2.25rem;--wp--preset--spacing--70: 3.38rem;--wp--preset--spacing--80: 5.06rem;--wp--preset--shadow--natural: 6px 6px 9px rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.2);--wp--preset--shadow--deep: 12px 12px 50px rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.4);--wp--preset--shadow--sharp: 6px 6px 0px rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.2);--wp--preset--shadow--outlined: 6px 6px 0px -3px rgba(255, 255, 255, 1), 6px 6px rgba(0, 0, 0, 1);--wp--preset--shadow--crisp: 6px 6px 0px rgba(0, 0, 0, 1);}:where(.is-layout-flex){gap: 0.5em;}:where(.is-layout-grid){gap: 0.5em;}body .is-layout-flow > .alignleft{float: left;margin-inline-start: 0;margin-inline-end: 2em;}body .is-layout-flow > .alignright{float: right;margin-inline-start: 2em;margin-inline-end: 0;}body .is-layout-flow > .aligncenter{margin-left: auto !important;margin-right: auto !important;}body .is-layout-constrained > .alignleft{float: left;margin-inline-start: 0;margin-inline-end: 2em;}body .is-layout-constrained > .alignright{float: right;margin-inline-start: 2em;margin-inline-end: 0;}body .is-layout-constrained > .aligncenter{margin-left: auto !important;margin-right: auto !important;}body .is-layout-constrained > :where(:not(.alignleft):not(.alignright):not(.alignfull)){max-width: var(--wp--style--global--content-size);margin-left: auto !important;margin-right: auto !important;}body .is-layout-constrained > .alignwide{max-width: var(--wp--style--global--wide-size);}body .is-layout-flex{display: flex;}body .is-layout-flex{flex-wrap: wrap;align-items: center;}body .is-layout-flex > *{margin: 0;}body .is-layout-grid{display: grid;}body .is-layout-grid > *{margin: 0;}:where(.wp-block-columns.is-layout-flex){gap: 2em;}:where(.wp-block-columns.is-layout-grid){gap: 2em;}:where(.wp-block-post-template.is-layout-flex){gap: 1.25em;}:where(.wp-block-post-template.is-layout-grid){gap: 1.25em;}.has-black-color{color: var(--wp--preset--color--black) !important;}.has-cyan-bluish-gray-color{color: var(--wp--preset--color--cyan-bluish-gray) !important;}.has-white-color{color: var(--wp--preset--color--white) !important;}.has-pale-pink-color{color: var(--wp--preset--color--pale-pink) !important;}.has-vivid-red-color{color: var(--wp--preset--color--vivid-red) !important;}.has-luminous-vivid-orange-color{color: var(--wp--preset--color--luminous-vivid-orange) !important;}.has-luminous-vivid-amber-color{color: var(--wp--preset--color--luminous-vivid-amber) !important;}.has-light-green-cyan-color{color: var(--wp--preset--color--light-green-cyan) !important;}.has-vivid-green-cyan-color{color: var(--wp--preset--color--vivid-green-cyan) !important;}.has-pale-cyan-blue-color{color: var(--wp--preset--color--pale-cyan-blue) !important;}.has-vivid-cyan-blue-color{color: var(--wp--preset--color--vivid-cyan-blue) !important;}.has-vivid-purple-color{color: var(--wp--preset--color--vivid-purple) !important;}.has-black-background-color{background-color: var(--wp--preset--color--black) !important;}.has-cyan-bluish-gray-background-color{background-color: var(--wp--preset--color--cyan-bluish-gray) !important;}.has-white-background-color{background-color: var(--wp--preset--color--white) !important;}.has-pale-pink-background-color{background-color: var(--wp--preset--color--pale-pink) !important;}.has-vivid-red-background-color{background-color: var(--wp--preset--color--vivid-red) !important;}.has-luminous-vivid-orange-background-color{background-color: var(--wp--preset--color--luminous-vivid-orange) !important;}.has-luminous-vivid-amber-background-color{background-color: var(--wp--preset--color--luminous-vivid-amber) !important;}.has-light-green-cyan-background-color{background-color: var(--wp--preset--color--light-green-cyan) !important;}.has-vivid-green-cyan-background-color{background-color: var(--wp--preset--color--vivid-green-cyan) !important;}.has-pale-cyan-blue-background-color{background-color: var(--wp--preset--color--pale-cyan-blue) !important;}.has-vivid-cyan-blue-background-color{background-color: var(--wp--preset--color--vivid-cyan-blue) !important;}.has-vivid-purple-background-color{background-color: var(--wp--preset--color--vivid-purple) !important;}.has-black-border-color{border-color: var(--wp--preset--color--black) !important;}.has-cyan-bluish-gray-border-color{border-color: var(--wp--preset--color--cyan-bluish-gray) !important;}.has-white-border-color{border-color: var(--wp--preset--color--white) !important;}.has-pale-pink-border-color{border-color: var(--wp--preset--color--pale-pink) !important;}.has-vivid-red-border-color{border-color: var(--wp--preset--color--vivid-red) !important;}.has-luminous-vivid-orange-border-color{border-color: var(--wp--preset--color--luminous-vivid-orange) !important;}.has-luminous-vivid-amber-border-color{border-color: var(--wp--preset--color--luminous-vivid-amber) !important;}.has-light-green-cyan-border-color{border-color: var(--wp--preset--color--light-green-cyan) !important;}.has-vivid-green-cyan-border-color{border-color: var(--wp--preset--color--vivid-green-cyan) !important;}.has-pale-cyan-blue-border-color{border-color: var(--wp--preset--color--pale-cyan-blue) !important;}.has-vivid-cyan-blue-border-color{border-color: var(--wp--preset--color--vivid-cyan-blue) !important;}.has-vivid-purple-border-color{border-color: var(--wp--preset--color--vivid-purple) !important;}.has-vivid-cyan-blue-to-vivid-purple-gradient-background{background: var(--wp--preset--gradient--vivid-cyan-blue-to-vivid-purple) !important;}.has-light-green-cyan-to-vivid-green-cyan-gradient-background{background: var(--wp--preset--gradient--light-green-cyan-to-vivid-green-cyan) !important;}.has-luminous-vivid-amber-to-luminous-vivid-orange-gradient-background{background: var(--wp--preset--gradient--luminous-vivid-amber-to-luminous-vivid-orange) !important;}.has-luminous-vivid-orange-to-vivid-red-gradient-background{background: var(--wp--preset--gradient--luminous-vivid-orange-to-vivid-red) !important;}.has-very-light-gray-to-cyan-bluish-gray-gradient-background{background: var(--wp--preset--gradient--very-light-gray-to-cyan-bluish-gray) !important;}.has-cool-to-warm-spectrum-gradient-background{background: var(--wp--preset--gradient--cool-to-warm-spectrum) !important;}.has-blush-light-purple-gradient-background{background: var(--wp--preset--gradient--blush-light-purple) !important;}.has-blush-bordeaux-gradient-background{background: var(--wp--preset--gradient--blush-bordeaux) !important;}.has-luminous-dusk-gradient-background{background: var(--wp--preset--gradient--luminous-dusk) !important;}.has-pale-ocean-gradient-background{background: var(--wp--preset--gradient--pale-ocean) !important;}.has-electric-grass-gradient-background{background: var(--wp--preset--gradient--electric-grass) !important;}.has-midnight-gradient-background{background: var(--wp--preset--gradient--midnight) !important;}.has-small-font-size{font-size: var(--wp--preset--font-size--small) !important;}.has-medium-font-size{font-size: var(--wp--preset--font-size--medium) !important;}.has-large-font-size{font-size: var(--wp--preset--font-size--large) !important;}.has-x-large-font-size{font-size: var(--wp--preset--font-size--x-large) !important;} .wp-block-navigation a:where(:not(.wp-element-button)){color: inherit;} :where(.wp-block-post-template.is-layout-flex){gap: 1.25em;}:where(.wp-block-post-template.is-layout-grid){gap: 1.25em;} :where(.wp-block-columns.is-layout-flex){gap: 2em;}:where(.wp-block-columns.is-layout-grid){gap: 2em;} .wp-block-pullquote{font-size: 1.5em;line-height: 1.6;} </style> <style id='woocommerce-inline-inline-css' type='text/css'> .woocommerce form .form-row .required { visibility: visible; } </style> <link rel="stylesheet" href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/cache/minify/20adf.css?x75256" media="all" /> <script src="/wp-includes/js/jquery/jquery.min.js?x75256&ver=3.7.0"></script><script defer src="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/cache/minify/63b1f.js?x75256"></script> <noscript><style>.woocommerce-product-gallery{ opacity: 1 !important; }</style></noscript> <meta name="onesignal" content="wordpress-plugin"/> <script> window.OneSignal = window.OneSignal || []; OneSignal.push( function() { OneSignal.SERVICE_WORKER_UPDATER_PATH = 'OneSignalSDKUpdaterWorker.js'; OneSignal.SERVICE_WORKER_PATH = 'OneSignalSDKWorker.js'; OneSignal.SERVICE_WORKER_PARAM = { scope: '/wp-content/plugins/onesignal-free-web-push-notifications/sdk_files/push/onesignal/' }; OneSignal.setDefaultNotificationUrl("https://cosmosmagazine.com"); var oneSignal_options = {}; window._oneSignalInitOptions = oneSignal_options; oneSignal_options['wordpress'] = true; oneSignal_options['appId'] = '320b1551-21ef-49e1-b09c-5a188d0478da'; oneSignal_options['allowLocalhostAsSecureOrigin'] = true; oneSignal_options['welcomeNotification'] = { }; oneSignal_options['welcomeNotification']['title'] = ""; oneSignal_options['welcomeNotification']['message'] = ""; oneSignal_options['path'] = "https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/plugins/onesignal-free-web-push-notifications/sdk_files/"; oneSignal_options['safari_web_id'] = "web.onesignal.auto.4345f3b9-0648-4376-838e-008c1d802430"; oneSignal_options['promptOptions'] = { }; oneSignal_options['promptOptions']['actionMessage'] = "Get an update of science stories with push notifications. You can unsubscribe at any time."; oneSignal_options['notifyButton'] = { }; oneSignal_options['notifyButton']['enable'] = true; oneSignal_options['notifyButton']['position'] = 'bottom-left'; oneSignal_options['notifyButton']['theme'] = 'default'; oneSignal_options['notifyButton']['size'] = 'medium'; oneSignal_options['notifyButton']['displayPredicate'] = function() { return OneSignal.isPushNotificationsEnabled() .then(function(isPushEnabled) { return !isPushEnabled; }); }; oneSignal_options['notifyButton']['showCredit'] = false; oneSignal_options['notifyButton']['text'] = {}; oneSignal_options['notifyButton']['colors'] = {}; oneSignal_options['notifyButton']['colors']['circle.background'] = '#2f76bb'; oneSignal_options['notifyButton']['colors']['circle.foreground'] = 'white'; oneSignal_options['notifyButton']['colors']['pulse.color'] = '#2f76bb'; oneSignal_options['notifyButton']['colors']['dialog.button.background'] = '#2f76bb'; oneSignal_options['notifyButton']['colors']['dialog.button.background.active'] = '#2f76bb'; OneSignal.init(window._oneSignalInitOptions); OneSignal.showSlidedownPrompt(); }); function documentInitOneSignal() { var oneSignal_elements = document.getElementsByClassName("OneSignal-prompt"); var oneSignalLinkClickHandler = function(event) { OneSignal.push(['registerForPushNotifications']); event.preventDefault(); }; for(var i = 0; i < oneSignal_elements.length; i++) oneSignal_elements[i].addEventListener('click', oneSignalLinkClickHandler, false); } if (document.readyState === 'complete') { documentInitOneSignal(); } else { window.addEventListener("load", function(event){ documentInitOneSignal(); }); } </script> <script type="text/javascript" id="spai_js" data-cfasync="false"> document.documentElement.className += " spai_has_js"; (function(w, d){ var b = d.getElementsByTagName('head')[0]; var s = d.createElement("script"); var v = ("IntersectionObserver" in w) ? "" : "-compat"; s.async = true; // This includes the script as async. s.src = "https://cdn.shortpixel.ai/assets/js/bundles/spai-lib-bg" + v + ".1.1.min.js?v=3.8.0"; w.spaiDomain = "cdn.shortpixel.ai"; w.spaiData = { version: "3.8.0", key: "spai", quality: "lossy", convert: "auto", lqip: false, rootMargin: "500px", crop: true, sizeBreakpoints: {"on":false,"base":50,"rate":10}, backgroundsMaxWidth: 1920, resizeStyleBackgrounds: true, nativeLazyLoad: false, safeLazyBackgrounds: true, asyncInitialParsing: true, debug: false, doSelectors: [{"selectors":"img","type":"attr","targetAttr":"src","attrType":"url","lazy":true,"resize":true},{"selectors":"[data-spai-bg-on]","type":"attr","targetAttr":"style","attrType":"style"},{"selectors":"style","type":"inner","attrType":"style"}], exclusions: {"selectors":{".cta-and-payment-methods img":{"lazy":1,"cdn":1,"resize":0,"lqip":0,"crop":-1},"img.zoomImg":{"lazy":1,"cdn":1,"resize":0,"lqip":0,"crop":-1}},"urls":[]}, sizeFromImageSuffix: true }; b.appendChild(s); }(window, document)); </script> <style type="text/css" id="wp-custom-css"> /*.home-banner { background-image: url("data:image/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciIHZpZXdCb3g9IjAgMCAxIDEiIHdpZHRoPSIxIiBoZWlnaHQ9IjEiIGRhdGEtdT0iaHR0cHMlM0ElMkYlMkZjb3Ntb3NtYWdhemluZS5jb20lMkZ3cC1jb250ZW50JTJGdXBsb2FkcyUyRjIwMjElMkYwOSUyRkZvc3NpbF9OaWxwZW5hLmpwZyIgZGF0YS13PSIxIiBkYXRhLWg9IjEiIGRhdGEtYmlwPSIiPjwvc3ZnPg=="); }*/ .cross-sells { display:none; } .woocommerce .cart-collaterals .cart_totals, .woocommerce-page .cart-collaterals .cart_totals { float: left; } section.article-container.cart-page .woocommerce .wc-proceed-to-checkout { text-align: left; } section.article-container.cart-page .woocommerce .give_wc_donation_section_td { display: none; } p.mailchimp-newsletter { display:none; } p.add-latest-issue { display:none; } .is-provider-crowdsignal amp-iframe { display: none; } body:not(.amp-mode-touch) .hide-if-not-amp { display: none; } #place_order:hover { background: unset; } </style> <script async src="https://t.atmng.io/consent/stub.js"></script> <script async src="https://t.atmng.io/qvty/WiEbuew5P.prod.js"></script>  <script> var adUnits = adUnits || []; adUnits = adUnits.concat([{auId:'00000000001fc2ca',auW:'0',auH:'250',mediaType:'mobile',postId:316640,targetId:'adn-00000000001fc2ca-i0p0',requestParams:{proximity:800,load:'lazyRequest'}},{auId:'00000000001fc2ca',auW:'0',auH:'250',mediaType:'mobile',postId:316640,targetId:'adn-00000000001fc2ca-i1p0',requestParams:{proximity:800,load:'lazyRequest'}},{auId:'00000000001fc2ca',auW:'0',auH:'250',mediaType:'mobile',postId:316640,targetId:'adn-00000000001fc2ca-i2p0',requestParams:{proximity:800,load:'lazyRequest'}},{auId:'00000000001fc2ca',auW:'0',auH:'250',mediaType:'mobile',postId:316640,targetId:'adn-00000000001fc2ca-i3p0',requestParams:{proximity:800,load:'lazyRequest'}},{auId:'00000000001fc2ca',auW:'0',auH:'250',mediaType:'mobile',postId:316640,targetId:'adn-00000000001fc2ca-i4p0',requestParams:{proximity:800,load:'lazyRequest'}},{auId:'00000000001fc2cc',auW:'300',auH:'250',mediaType:'desktop',refresh:{delay:30,count:5,event:'onViewable'},targetId:'adn-00000000001fc2cc-i0p0',requestParams:{proximity:800,load:'lazyRequest'}},{auId:'00000000001fc737',auW:'320',auH:'50',mediaType:'mobile',refresh:{delay:30,count:5,event:'onViewable'},targetId:'adn-00000000001fc737-i0p0',requestParams:{proximity:800,load:'lazyRequest'}},{auId:'000000000023d099',auW:'970',auH:'90',mediaType:'desktop',refresh:{delay:30,count:5,event:'onViewable'},targetId:'adn-000000000023d099-i0p0',requestParams:{proximity:800,load:'lazyRequest'}},{auId:'000000000023d09a',auW:'300',auH:'250',mediaType:'mobile',refresh:{delay:30,count:5,event:'onViewable'},targetId:'adn-000000000023d09a-i0p0',requestParams:{proximity:800,load:'lazyRequest'}},{auId:'00000000001fc2bd',auW:'970',auH:'90',mediaType:'desktop',targetId:'adn-00000000001fc2bd-i0p0',refresh:{delay:30,count:5,event:'onViewable'},requestParams:{proximity:800,load:'lazyRequest'}}]); </script> <script> let adUnitsServed = []; let adUnitDivParentClassArray = []; var adUnits = adUnits || []; requestThirdPartyAds = (adUnits, adUnitsPrevious) => { let adUnitsFiltered = adUnits.filter(function(adUnit) { if (!adUnit.mediaType || adUnit.mediaType === 'all') { return true; } if (isMobileDevice()) { return adUnit.mediaType !== 'desktop'; } else { return adUnit.mediaType !== 'mobile'; } }); if (JSON.stringify(adUnitsFiltered) === JSON.stringify(adUnitsServed)) { return adUnitsFiltered; } adUnitsFiltered = adUnitsFiltered.filter(function(adUnit) { return !adUnitsServed.some(function(adUnitServed) { return JSON.stringify(adUnit) === JSON.stringify(adUnitServed) }); }); if (adUnitsFiltered.length === 0) { return adUnitsFiltered; } let adUnitsToRequest = []; adUnitsToRequest = JSON.parse(JSON.stringify(adUnitsFiltered)); adUnitsToRequest.forEach(function(adUnitToRequest) { delete adUnitToRequest.mediaType; }); window.adn = window.adn || {}; adn.calls = adn.calls || []; adn.calls.push(function() { adn.requestAds({ adUnits: adUnitsToRequest }); }); if (window.location.hostname !== 'cosmosmagazine.com') { console.log('Ad units requested: ', adUnitsFiltered); if (isMobileDevice()) { console.log("Mobile device detected."); } else { console.log("Desktop device detected."); } } adUnitsServed = adUnitsServed.concat(adUnitsFiltered); return adUnitsServed; }; function isMobileDevice() { let userAgent = navigator.userAgent || navigator.vendor || window.opera; let windowWidth = window.innerWidth; if (windowWidth > 1100) { return false; } if (/windows phone/i.test(userAgent)) { return true; } if (/android/i.test(userAgent)) { return true; } if (/iPad|iPhone|iPod/.test(userAgent) && !window.MSStream) { return true; } if (windowWidth < 1100) { return true; } return false; } adUnitsServed = requestThirdPartyAds(adUnits, adUnitsServed); </script> <link rel="preconnect" href="https://use.typekit.net" crossorigin> <link rel="preconnect" href="https://chimpstatic.com" crossorigin> <link rel="preconnect" href="https://connect.facebook.net" crossorigin> <link rel="preconnect" href="https://vars.hotjar.com" crossorigin> <link rel="preconnect" href="https://script.hotjar.com" crossorigin> <link rel="preconnect" href="https://static.hotjar.com" crossorigin> <link rel="preconnect" href="https://www.googletagmanager.com" crossorigin> <link rel="preconnect" href="https://cdn.adnuntius.com" crossorigin> <link rel="preconnect" href="https://t.atmng.io" crossorigin> <link rel="preconnect" href="https://cdn.onesignal.com" crossorigin> <link rel="preconnect" href="https://www.google-analytics.com" crossorigin> <link rel="preconnect" href="https://s3.amazonaws.com" crossorigin> <script> // console log the user's IP address for debugging purposes console.log('User IP Address: 173.169.84.5'); console.log('User has IP Access: '); console.log('User has Access (IP or subscription): '); </script> <link href="https://cdn.shortpixel.ai" rel="preconnect" crossorigin><style id="spai_bg_lazr">html.spai_has_js [data-spai-bg-on]:not([data-spai-bg-prepared]){background-image: none !important;}</style></head> <body class="post-template-default single single-post postid-316640 single-format-standard wp-custom-logo theme-cosmos/resources woocommerce-no-js tap-water-chloronitramide chemistry australia science earth engineering news water non-member app-data index-data singular-data single-data single-post-data single-post-tap-water-chloronitramide-data"> <div id="wrapper" class="wrap container" role="document"> <header class="banner Fixed">  <div class="advert full-width-advert ad-page-top ad-desktop auh-90"><div id="adn-00000000001fc2bd-i0p0" style="display: none"></div></div> <div class="container"> <div class="header-upper"> <div class="header-menu-wrapper"> <ul class="cols-all-gap"> <li class="col login"> <a href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/account/">LOG IN</a> </li> <li class="col signup"> <a href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/subscribe-now" class="signup-header">SIGN UP</a> </li> <li class="col search" id="magnifying-glass__icon"> <a class="open-search-form" href="#search-form" aria-label="Article Search Icon Link"> <svg xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" viewBox="0 0 24 24" fill="none" stroke="white" stroke-width="4" stroke-linecap="round" stroke-linejoin="round"> <circle cx="11" cy="11" r="8"></circle> <line x1="21" y1="21" x2="16.65" y2="16.65" stroke-width="5"></line> </svg> </a> </li> <li class="col menu-cart"> <a aria-label="Cart link Icon" class="menu-cart-icon" href='https://cosmosmagazine.com/checkout/' > <svg width="100%" height="100%" viewBox="0 0 34 28" version="1.1" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink" xml:space="preserve" xmlns:serif="http://www.serif.com/" style="fill-rule:evenodd;clip-rule:evenodd;stroke-linejoin:round;stroke-miterlimit:2;"> <g> <path d="M23.951,22.432C23.951,22.871 23.589,23.227 23.143,23.227C22.703,23.23 22.339,22.872 22.335,22.432L22.335,15.75C22.335,15.31 22.697,14.954 23.143,14.954C23.589,14.954 23.951,15.31 23.951,15.75L23.951,22.432ZM17.808,22.432C17.808,22.871 17.446,23.227 17,23.227C16.56,23.23 16.196,22.872 16.192,22.432L16.192,15.75C16.192,15.31 16.554,14.954 17,14.954C17.446,14.954 17.808,15.31 17.808,15.75L17.808,22.432ZM11.665,22.432C11.665,22.871 11.303,23.227 10.857,23.227C10.417,23.23 10.053,22.872 10.049,22.432L10.049,15.75C10.049,15.31 10.411,14.954 10.857,14.954C11.303,14.954 11.665,15.31 11.665,15.75L11.665,22.432ZM17,2.557L22.744,10.181L11.256,10.181L17,2.557ZM32.32,10.181L25.159,10.181L17.786,0.394L17.78,0.386L17.773,0.38C17.755,0.357 17.737,0.334 17.717,0.313L17.687,0.28L17.65,0.247C17.629,0.229 17.608,0.211 17.586,0.195L17.576,0.187C17.502,0.133 17.42,0.09 17.334,0.059L17.322,0.054C17.295,0.045 17.268,0.037 17.24,0.03L17.232,0.027C17.208,0.021 17.184,0.017 17.159,0.013L17.14,0.01L17.081,0.004L17.047,0L16.952,0C16.944,0 16.937,0.002 16.929,0.003C16.905,0.004 16.882,0.007 16.858,0.01L16.853,0.01C16.698,0.034 16.55,0.094 16.423,0.187L16.415,0.193C16.392,0.21 16.37,0.228 16.349,0.247C16.337,0.257 16.326,0.269 16.314,0.281C16.304,0.291 16.292,0.301 16.282,0.313C16.262,0.334 16.244,0.357 16.226,0.38L16.22,0.386L16.214,0.394L8.841,10.181L1.681,10.181C0.497,10.181 -0.315,11.354 0.118,12.438L3.773,26.045C4.149,27.211 5.244,28.005 6.47,28L27.53,28C28.767,28 29.86,27.208 30.227,26.045L33.882,12.438C34.315,11.354 33.502,10.181 32.32,10.181Z" /> </g> </svg> </a> </li> </ul> <div class="search-form-modal"> <div class="search-close"></div> <div class="search-container"> <div class="search-form__ui"> <div class="search-form__input-wrapper" id="searchInput"></div> <button class="search-form__button">SEARCH</button> </div> <div class="search-form__results" id="headerSearchHits"></div> <div class="search-form__view-more"> <span>View More Results</span> </div> </div> </div> <script> document.addEventListener('DOMContentLoaded', function() { let searchViewMore = document.querySelector('.search-form__view-more'); let seachInput = document.getElementById('searchInput'); // If algoliasearch is not defined. This is the case when the Algolia scripts are not loaded. (e.g. on single post pages for page speed optimisation). if (typeof algoliasearch === 'undefined') { // Add an input field to the search form seachInput.innerHTML = ` <div class="ais-SearchBox"><form action="" role="search" class="ais-SearchBox-form" novalidate=""> <input class="ais-SearchBox-input" type="search" placeholder="Search The Archives" autocomplete="off" autocorrect="off" autocapitalize="off" spellcheck="false" maxlength="512"> </form></div>`; searchViewMore.style.display = 'none'; } document.querySelectorAll('.search-form__button, .search-form__view-more').forEach( function(triggerEl) { triggerEl.addEventListener('click', function() { let searchQuery = triggerEl.parentNode.querySelector( 'input').value; document.location.href = '/search?query=' + searchQuery; }); }); document.querySelectorAll('.ais-SearchBox-input').forEach(function(inputEl) { inputEl.addEventListener('keydown', function(ev) { if (ev.key === 'Enter') { ev.preventDefault(); let searchQuery = ev.currentTarget.value; document.location.href = '/search?query=' + searchQuery; } }); }); }); </script> </div> </div> <div class="primary-menu-wrapper"> <div class="hamburger hamburger--collapse" type="button" aria-label="Mobile Menu" role="button" tabindex="1" onClick="document.getElementById('primary-menu').classList.toggle('active');" on="tap:primary-menu.toggleClass(class=active)"> </div> <a class="brand" href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/"> <img src="data:image/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciIHZpZXdCb3g9IjAgMCA4MzkgMTUxIiB3aWR0aD0iODM5IiBoZWlnaHQ9IjE1MSIgZGF0YS11PSIlMkZ3cC1jb250ZW50JTJGdXBsb2FkcyUyRjIwMjQlMkYwMyUyRkNvc21vc19sb2dvX3doaXRlLnN2ZyIgZGF0YS13PSI4MzkiIGRhdGEtaD0iMTUxIiBkYXRhLWJpcD0iIj48L3N2Zz4=" data-spai="1" alt="Cosmos" width="200" height="50"><noscript data-spai="1"><img src="https://cdn.shortpixel.ai/spai/ret_img/cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/Cosmos_logo_white.svg" data-spai-egr="1" alt="Cosmos" width="200" height="50"></noscript> </a> <div class="nav-wrapper"> <nav id="primary-menu" class="nav-primary"> <div class="primary-menu__background" onClick="document.getElementById('primary-menu').classList.toggle('active');" on="tap:primary-menu.toggleClass(class=active)"> </div> <div class="mobile-menu-actions"> <div class="mobile-search-toggle" onclick="(function() { document.getElementById('primary-menu').classList.remove('active'); document.getElementById('mobile-search').classList.add('active'); document.getElementById('mobile-search-input').focus(); })()" on="tap:primary-menu.toggleClass(class=active, force=false),mobile-search.toggleClass(class=active, force=true),mobile-search-input.focus"> SEARCH</div> <div class="mobile-account-button"> <a href="/account"> LOG IN </a> </div> </div> <ul id="menu-main-menu" class="nav"><li id="menu-item-1329" class="space-border menu-item menu-space"><a href="/space/">Space</a></li> <li id="menu-item-27168" class="technology-border menu-item menu-tech"><a href="/technology/">Tech</a></li> <li id="menu-item-1321" class="nature-border menu-item menu-nature"><a href="/nature/">Nature</a></li> <li id="menu-item-33108" class="current-post-ancestor current-post-parent earth-border menu-item menu-earth"><a href="/earth/">Earth</a></li> <li id="menu-item-1302" class="history-border menu-item menu-history"><a href="/history/">History</a></li> <li id="menu-item-1325" class="people-border menu-item menu-people"><a href="/people/">People</a></li> <li id="menu-item-1313" class="health-border menu-item menu-health"><a href="/health/">Health</a></li> <li id="menu-item-1335" class="current-post-ancestor current-post-parent science-border menu-item menu-core-sciences"><a href="/science/">Core Sciences</a></li> <li id="menu-item-311423" class="menu-item menu-newsletters"><a href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/newsletter/">Newsletters</a></li> <li id="menu-item-311215" class="menu-item menu-subscribe-now"><a href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/subscribe-now/">Subscribe Now</a></li> </ul> </nav> <div class="secondary-menu-wrapper "> <nav id="secondary-menu"> <ul> <li class="science-border"> <a href="/science/biology/">Biology</a> </li> <li class="science-border"> <a href="/science/chemistry/">Chemistry</a> </li> <li class="science-border"> <a href="/science/engineering/">Engineering</a> </li> <li class="science-border"> <a href="/science/mathematics/">Mathematics</a> </li> <li class="science-border"> <a href="/science/physics/">Physics</a> </li> </ul> </nav> </div> </div> </div> </div> </header> <div class="secondary-menu-wrapper duplicate-secondary-nav"> <nav id="secondary-menu"> <ul> <li class="science-border"> <a href="/science/biology/">Biology</a> </li> <li class="science-border"> <a href="/science/chemistry/">Chemistry</a> </li> <li class="science-border"> <a href="/science/engineering/">Engineering</a> </li> <li class="science-border"> <a href="/science/mathematics/">Mathematics</a> </li> <li class="science-border"> <a href="/science/physics/">Physics</a> </li> </ul> </nav> </div> <div id="mobile-search" class="mobile-search"> <form class="mobile-search__form" action="/search/" method="GET"> <input id="mobile-search-input" class="mobile-search__input" name="query" placeholder="Search..." aria-label="Search Input" /> <button class="mobile-search__button" aria-label="Search Button" title="Search" role="button"> <svg width="28" height="28" viewBox="0 0 28 28"> <path fill-rule="nonzero" d="M12 0c6.627417 0 12 5.372583 12 12 0 3.2085154-1.2592234 6.1229233-3.3104309 8.2759846.0054641.0049849.0115296.0109006.0175377.0169086l5.6568542 5.6568543c.3905243.3905243.3905243 1.0236892 0 1.4142135-.3905243.3905243-1.0236892.3905243-1.4142135 0l-5.6568543-5.6568542c-.0339069-.0339069-.0648699-.069643-.0928889-.1068905C17.1949096 23.1071552 14.7017223 24 12 24 5.372583 24 0 18.627417 0 12S5.372583 0 12 0zm0 2C6.4771525 2 2 6.4771525 2 12s4.4771525 10 10 10 10-4.4771525 10-10S17.5228475 2 12 2z"> </path> </svg> </button> </form> </div> <div class="content"> <main class="main rows-gap margin-top-1 margin-bottom-1"> <nav aria-label="breadcrumbs" class="rank-math-breadcrumb"><p><a href="https://cosmosmagazine.com">Cosmos</a><span class="separator"> » </span><a href="/science/chemistry/">Chemistry</a></p></nav> <section class="article-container cols-4 md-cols-1 cols-gap-1 padding-bottom-4"> <article class="col col-span-3 post-316640 post type-post status-publish format-standard has-post-thumbnail hentry category-chemistry category-australia category-science category-earth category-engineering category-news category-water tag-analytical-chemistry tag-drinking-water tag-water tag-water-quality"> <header class="rows rows-gap"> <h1 class="entry-title row">Substance unknown to science identified in tap water</h1> <div class="row primary-image has-featured-image " data-featured-image="1200-16-GettyImages-1445381865.jpg"> </div> </header> <div class="entry-content cols-6 md-cols-1 cols-gap-1 margin-top-1"> <div class="content-left-sidebar cols-1 col"> <section class="contributors md-cols-1 rows-gap"> <div class="row post-date"> <span class="published-date">November 22, 2024</span> </div> <a href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/contributor/ellen-phiddian/" class="author row md-hide"> <img src="data:image/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciIHZpZXdCb3g9IjAgMCA0NTAgNDM2IiB3aWR0aD0iNDUwIiBoZWlnaHQ9IjQzNiIgZGF0YS11PSIlMkZ3cC1jb250ZW50JTJGdXBsb2FkcyUyRjIwMjElMkYwMiUyRkVsbGVuLXNtYWxsLmpwZyIgZGF0YS13PSI0NTAiIGRhdGEtaD0iNDM2IiBkYXRhLWJpcD0iIj48L3N2Zz4=" data-spai="1" alt="Ellen Phiddian" width="200" /><noscript data-spai="1"><img src="https://cdn.shortpixel.ai/spai/q_lossy+ret_img+to_auto/cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/Ellen-small.jpg" data-spai-egr="1" alt="Ellen Phiddian" width="200" /></noscript> <div class="bio"> <h3>Ellen Phiddian</h3> <p>Cosmos science journalist</p> </div> </a> <div id="author-name" class="hide"> <a href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/contributor/ellen-phiddian/" class="bio"> By Ellen Phiddian </a> </div> <div class="favourite__wrapper row cols"> <button class="showDialog simplefavorite-button" aria-label="Favourite button"> </button> </div> </section> </div> <div class="primary-content cols-1 col-span-5 col"> <div class="flexible-content "> <div class="copy"> <figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" fetchpriority="high" width="850" height="478" src="data:image/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciIHZpZXdCb3g9IjAgMCA4NTAgNDc4IiB3aWR0aD0iODUwIiBoZWlnaHQ9IjQ3OCIgZGF0YS11PSIlMkZ3cC1jb250ZW50JTJGdXBsb2FkcyUyRjIwMjMlMkYwNyUyRjg1MC0xNi1HZXR0eUltYWdlcy0xNDQ1MzgxODY1LmpwZyIgZGF0YS13PSI4NTAiIGRhdGEtaD0iNDc4IiBkYXRhLWJpcD0iIj48L3N2Zz4=" data-spai="1" alt="Hand filling glass with tap water" class="wp-image-316639" title="substance unknown to science identified in tap water 1"><noscript data-spai="1"><img decoding="async" fetchpriority="high" width="850" height="478" src="https://cdn.shortpixel.ai/spai/q_lossy+ret_img+to_auto/cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/850-16-GettyImages-1445381865.jpg" data-spai-egr="1" alt="Hand filling glass with tap water" class="wp-image-316639" srcset="https://cdn.shortpixel.ai/spai/q_lossy+ret_img+to_auto/cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/850-16-GettyImages-1445381865.jpg 850w, https://cdn.shortpixel.ai/spai/q_lossy+ret_img+to_auto/cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/850-16-GettyImages-1445381865-600x337.jpg 600w, https://cdn.shortpixel.ai/spai/q_lossy+ret_img+to_auto/cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/850-16-GettyImages-1445381865-768x432.jpg 768w, https://cdn.shortpixel.ai/spai/q_lossy+ret_img+to_auto/cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/850-16-GettyImages-1445381865-300x169.jpg 300w" sizes="(max-width: 850px) 100vw, 850px" title="substance unknown to science identified in tap water 1"></noscript><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Credit: d3sign / Getty Images</figcaption></figure> <p>After eluding chemists for 40 years, a mystery compound found in drinking water has finally been identified.</p> <p>The compound – called chloronitramide anion – is previously unknown to science.</p> <p>While it’s important to research the toxicity of the compound, independent experts say it’s no reason to avoid your <a href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/earth/tapwater-explainer/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">tap water</a>.</p> <p>The compound forms, according to a <a href="https://doi.org/10.1126/science.adk6749" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">paper</a> in <em>Science,</em> as a by-product of common disinfectants called chloramines.</p> <p>The mystery molecule has a very simple structure, by chemical standards: Cl-N-NO<sub>2</sub><sup>–</sup>.</p> <p>The researchers identified it in 40 samples of tap water from the USA, at an average concentration of 23 micrograms, or 0.00023 grams, per litre.</p> <div class="advert ad-in-content ad-mobile auh-250"><div id="adn-00000000001fc2ca-i0p0" style="display: none"></div></div> <p>“This compound will be present in any chloramine system,” lead author Associate Professor Julian Fairey, a civil engineer at the University of Arkansas, USA, tells <em>Cosmos.</em></p> <p>“However, it could also form in systems that use chlorine or chlorine dioxide in which ammonia-nitrogen or other nitrogen-containing compounds are present.”</p> <p>The compound was first detected more than 40 years ago, as an unidentified signal from an analysis using UV light.</p> <p>Fairey began trying to unmask it 10 years ago. The tiny molecular size of the compound made it hard to pin down.</p> <p>“It does seem like a long time coming!” he says.</p> <div class="advert ad-in-content ad-mobile auh-250"><div id="adn-00000000001fc2ca-i1p0" style="display: none"></div></div> <p>“However, chloramine chemistry is complicated and until our <a href="https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.est.0c06456" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">recent</a> <a href="https://pubs.acs.org/doi/10.1021/acs.est.3c08088" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">work</a>, the formation pathway of this mysterious compound was not well understood.”</p> <figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" width="850" height="567" src="data:image/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciIHZpZXdCb3g9IjAgMCA4NTAgNTY3IiB3aWR0aD0iODUwIiBoZWlnaHQ9IjU2NyIgZGF0YS11PSIlMkZ3cC1jb250ZW50JTJGdXBsb2FkcyUyRjIwMjMlMkYwNyUyRjg1MC0xMDgwM19KdWxpYW5fRmFpcmV5X0FSTmV3c19SZXNlYXJjaC0yNC01MC5qcGciIGRhdGEtdz0iODUwIiBkYXRhLWg9IjU2NyIgZGF0YS1iaXA9IiI+PC9zdmc+" data-spai="1" alt="Person in lab" class="wp-image-316638" title="substance unknown to science identified in tap water 2"><noscript data-spai="1"><img decoding="async" width="850" height="567" src="https://cdn.shortpixel.ai/spai/q_lossy+ret_img+to_auto/cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/850-10803_Julian_Fairey_ARNews_Research-24-50.jpg" data-spai-egr="1" alt="Person in lab" class="wp-image-316638" srcset="https://cdn.shortpixel.ai/spai/q_lossy+ret_img+to_auto/cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/850-10803_Julian_Fairey_ARNews_Research-24-50.jpg 850w, https://cdn.shortpixel.ai/spai/q_lossy+ret_img+to_auto/cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/850-10803_Julian_Fairey_ARNews_Research-24-50-600x400.jpg 600w, https://cdn.shortpixel.ai/spai/q_lossy+ret_img+to_auto/cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/850-10803_Julian_Fairey_ARNews_Research-24-50-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cdn.shortpixel.ai/spai/q_lossy+ret_img+to_auto/cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/850-10803_Julian_Fairey_ARNews_Research-24-50-300x200.jpg 300w" sizes="(max-width: 850px) 100vw, 850px" title="substance unknown to science identified in tap water 2"></noscript><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Julian Fairey. Credit: University Relations</figcaption></figure> <p>The researchers were able to identify it by making it from compounds used to disinfect water, and performing a number of analytical techniques to show it was the same thing as the mystery water feature.</p> <p>Because no-one knew the compound’s identity, it’s not yet clear if it’s dangerous to human health. But computer modelling suggests it could be problematic.</p> <a href="https://link.cosmosmagazine.com/OP59" class="newsletter-cta" data-device="mobile"> <img decoding="async" src="data:image/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciIHZpZXdCb3g9IjAgMCAzMDAgMjUwIiB3aWR0aD0iMzAwIiBoZWlnaHQ9IjI1MCIgZGF0YS11PSIlMkZ3cC1jb250ZW50JTJGdXBsb2FkcyUyRjIwMjQlMkYwMyUyRldlZWtseS1DYXRjaHVwLTMwMHgyNTAtMS5wbmciIGRhdGEtdz0iMzAwIiBkYXRhLWg9IjI1MCIgZGF0YS1iaXA9IiI+PC9zdmc+" data-spai="1" alt="Newsletter" title="substance unknown to science identified in tap water 3"><noscript data-spai="1"><img decoding="async" src="https://cdn.shortpixel.ai/spai/q_lossy+ret_img+to_auto/cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/Weekly-Catchup-300x250-1.png" data-spai-egr="1" alt="Newsletter" title="substance unknown to science identified in tap water 3"></noscript> </a> <p>“We plan to collaborate with toxicity experts to help assess the public health relevance of this compound,” says Fairey.</p> <p>“It’s widely acknowledged that we don’t know the precise chemical identity of all the substances that form as byproducts from drinking water disinfection,” Professor Stuart Khan, a civil engineer at the University of Sydney, tells <em>Cosmos.</em></p> <div class="advert ad-in-content ad-mobile auh-250"><div id="adn-00000000001fc2ca-i2p0" style="display: none"></div></div> <p>Khan, who was not involved with the study, says that it would be useful to have occurrence and toxicity data for the compound.</p> <p>“It’s not surprising – and it’s potentially very helpful – to see the science chugging away at gradually identifying more and more of the components,” he says.</p> <div class="in-content-area related-box-wrapper content-third content-right margin-bottom-1"> <div class="gradient-title">Read More</div> <ul class="related-box article-listing"> <li class="cols"> <div class="article article-post"> <a href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/earth/tapwater-explainer/" class="thumbnail ar-16-9" aria-label="Article link"> <span data-spai-bg-on="1" class="image" style="background-image: url(data:image/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciIHZpZXdCb3g9IjAgMCAxMjAwIDY3NSIgd2lkdGg9IjEyMDAiIGhlaWdodD0iNjc1IiBkYXRhLXU9Imh0dHBzJTNBJTJGJTJGY29zbW9zbWFnYXppbmUuY29tJTJGd3AtY29udGVudCUyRnVwbG9hZHMlMkYyMDIyJTJGMDclMkYxMjAwLUdldHR5SW1hZ2VzLTEwMDIwMTA3NjIuanBnIiBkYXRhLXc9IjEyMDAiIGRhdGEtaD0iNjc1IiBkYXRhLWJpcD0iIj48L3N2Zz4=)"></span> </a> <div class="article-content has-very-light-grey-background-color"> <a href="/earth/"> <span class="category earth-color"> Earth </span> </a> <a href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/earth/tapwater-explainer/"> <h3>Explainer: what’s in my tapwater, and why isn’t it pure?</h3> </a> </div> </div> </li> </ul> </div> <p>“I agree that a toxicological investigation of this would be useful now that we know its identity, but I am not overly worried about my tap water,” says Professor Oliver Jones, a chemist at RMIT University, who also wasn’t involved with the research.</p> <p>“The compound in question is not newly discovered, just newly defined.”</p> <p>Fairey says that agencies need to develop analytical techniques for finding Cl-N-NO<sub>2</sub><sup>–</sup> in drinking water, so it can be monitored.</p> <div class="advert ad-in-content ad-mobile auh-250"><div id="adn-00000000001fc2ca-i3p0" style="display: none"></div></div> <p>“We also need to advance formation methods for this compound to generate sufficient quantities for health effects studies,” he says.</p> <p>Khan adds that disinfecting drinking water “saves millions of illnesses and deaths”.</p> <p>“The very low levels of toxicity that have been reported for disinfected drinking water are many orders of magnitude safer than a situation we would have without disinfection,” he says.</p> <p>“I used to work in a lab in the US that had a sign on the wall that read ‘drinking water disinfection has allowed millions of people to live long enough to worry about disinfection byproducts’.</p> <p>“That sign was, and remains, the truth!”</p> <div class="advert ad-in-content ad-mobile auh-250"><div id="adn-00000000001fc2ca-i4p0" style="display: none"></div></div> <div style><a href="https://link.cosmosmagazine.com/Q0f2"><p align="center"><img decoding="async" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-198773" src="data:image/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciIHZpZXdCb3g9IjAgMCA4MzcgMjU5IiB3aWR0aD0iODM3IiBoZWlnaHQ9IjI1OSIgZGF0YS11PSJodHRwcyUzQSUyRiUyRmNvc21vc21hZ2F6aW5lLmNvbSUyRndwLWNvbnRlbnQlMkZ1cGxvYWRzJTJGMjAyNCUyRjA5JTJGVHJhdmVsLXdpdGgtc2NpZW50aXN0cy1lbWJlZF83Mjh4MjI1LXYxLmpwZyIgZGF0YS13PSI4MzciIGRhdGEtaD0iMjU5IiBkYXRhLWJpcD0iIj48L3N2Zz4=" data-spai="1" alt="Buy the cosmos emag now" width="600" height="154" title="substance unknown to science identified in tap water 4"><noscript data-spai="1"><img decoding="async" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-198773" src="https://cdn.shortpixel.ai/spai/q_lossy+ret_img+to_auto/cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/Travel-with-scientists-embed_728x225-v1.jpg" data-spai-egr="1" alt="Buy the cosmos emag now" width="600" height="154" title="substance unknown to science identified in tap water 4"></noscript></p></a></div>  <img id="cosmos-post-tracker" width='1' height='1' style="opacity:0; height:1px!important; width:1px!important; border: 0!important; position: absolute!important; z-index: -1!important;" aria-label="Syndication Tracker" src="https://syndication.cosmosmagazine.com/?id=316640&title=Substance+unknown+to+science+identified+in+tap+water" loading="lazy">  <div class="share-syndicate-wrapper margin-top-1"> <div id="cosmos-link-back">  <p>Originally published by <a href="https://cosmosmagazine.com" style="font-style:italic;">Cosmos</a> as <a title="Substance unknown to science identified in tap water" href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/science/chemistry/tap-water-chloronitramide/" id="cosmos-post-url">Substance unknown to science identified in tap water</a></p>  </div> <div class="article-sharing"> <ul class="cols"> <li> <a href="https://www.facebook.com/sharer/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fcosmosmagazine.com%2Fscience%2Fchemistry%2Ftap-water-chloronitramide%2F" target="_blank" rel="nofollow" title="Share on Facebook" onclick="window.open('https://www.facebook.com/sharer/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fcosmosmagazine.com%2Fscience%2Fchemistry%2Ftap-water-chloronitramide%2F'); return false;" class="primary-svg-fill-hover"> <svg width="30" height="30"> <g fill="none" fill-rule="evenodd"> <circle cx="15" cy="15" r="14" stroke="#FFF" stroke-width="2"/> <path fill="#FFF" fill-rule="nonzero" d="M18 12.55075h-2.565572V10.5195c0-.6230625.594107-.7675625.8713992-.7675625h1.657358V7.01075L16.063679 7c-2.5916132 0-3.1831276 2.0439375-3.1831276 3.3545v2.1963125H11V15.375h1.8805514V23h2.5538766v-7.625h2.1694815L18 12.55075z"/> </g> </svg> </a> </li> <li><a href="https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?text=https%3A%2F%2Fcosmosmagazine.com%2Fscience%2Fchemistry%2Ftap-water-chloronitramide%2F&title=Substance%20unknown%20to%20science%20identified%20in%20tap%20water&via=CosmosMagazine&hashtags=science" target="_blank" rel="nofollow" title="Tweet" onclick="window.open('https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?text=https%3A%2F%2Fcosmosmagazine.com%2Fscience%2Fchemistry%2Ftap-water-chloronitramide%2F&title=Substance%20unknown%20to%20science%20identified%20in%20tap%20water&via=CosmosMagazine&hashtags=science'); return false;" class="primary-svg-fill-hover"> <svg width="30" height="30" viewBox="0 0 30 30" fill="none" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg"> <g fill="none" fill-rule="evenodd"> <circle cx="15" cy="15" r="14" fill="none" stroke="white" stroke-width="2" /> <path transform="matrix(0.011189,0,0,0.011189,8.28657,8)" d="M714.163 519.284L1160.89 0H1055.03L667.137 450.887L357.328 0H0L468.492 681.821L0 1226.37H105.866L515.491 750.218L842.672 1226.37H1200L714.137 519.284H714.163ZM569.165 687.828L521.697 619.934L144.011 79.6944H306.615L611.412 515.685L658.88 583.579L1055.08 1150.3H892.476L569.165 687.854V687.828Z" fill="white" /> </g> </svg> </a> </li> </ul> </div></div> </div> <div class="post-content-section"> </div> </div> </div> </div> </article> <aside class="col"> <div class="aside-content"> <div>  <div class="advert aside-ad ad-desktop auh-250"><div id="adn-00000000001fc2cc-i0p0" style="display: none"></div></div> </div> <div class="newsletter-sidebar margin-top-1"> <a href="https://link.cosmosmagazine.com/OP59" class="newsletter-cta" data-device="desktop"> <img src="data:image/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciIHZpZXdCb3g9IjAgMCAzMDAgMjUwIiB3aWR0aD0iMzAwIiBoZWlnaHQ9IjI1MCIgZGF0YS11PSIlMkZ3cC1jb250ZW50JTJGdXBsb2FkcyUyRjIwMjQlMkYwMyUyRldlZWtseS1DYXRjaHVwLTMwMHgyNTAtMS5wbmciIGRhdGEtdz0iMzAwIiBkYXRhLWg9IjI1MCIgZGF0YS1iaXA9IiI+PC9zdmc+" data-spai="1" alt="Newsletter"><noscript data-spai="1"><img src="https://cdn.shortpixel.ai/spai/q_lossy+ret_img+to_auto/cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/Weekly-Catchup-300x250-1.png" data-spai-egr="1" alt="Newsletter"></noscript> </a> </div> <div class="read-more-wrapper sidebar-wrapper margin-top-1 margin-bottom-1"> <div class="cols-1"> <h4 class="gradient-title margin-top-0 margin-bottom-1">You Might Like</h4> </div> <ul class="article-listing read-more-articles slider slide-last-20 cols-1 md-cols-1 rows-gap-1-dotted rows-list"> <li class="row read-more-articles__list"> <div class="article article-post"> <a class="thumbnail ar-16-9 md-ar-1-1" href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/people/behaviour/vr-overcome-fear-of-water/" aria-label="Article link"> <span data-spai-bg-on="1" class="image" style="background-image: url(data:image/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciIHZpZXdCb3g9IjAgMCAxMjAwIDY3NSIgd2lkdGg9IjEyMDAiIGhlaWdodD0iNjc1IiBkYXRhLXU9Imh0dHBzJTNBJTJGJTJGY29zbW9zbWFnYXppbmUuY29tJTJGd3AtY29udGVudCUyRnVwbG9hZHMlMkYyMDI0JTJGMTAlMkYyMDIzMDcyNV8xMTQwNTFfMTIwMC5qcGciIGRhdGEtdz0iMTIwMCIgZGF0YS1oPSI2NzUiIGRhdGEtYmlwPSIiPjwvc3ZnPg==);background-position: 50% 50%" data-position-x="50" data-position-y="50" data-image-width="1200" data-image-height="675"> </span> </a> <div class="article-content padding-1"> <div class="cols-8"> <a class="primary-category cols-1 col-span-7 category people-color" href="/people/behaviour/"> Behaviour </a> <div class="favourite__wrapper row cols"> <button class="showDialog simplefavorite-button" aria-label="Favourite button"> </button> </div> </div> <a class="title" href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/people/behaviour/vr-overcome-fear-of-water/" aria-label="Article link"> <h2 class=" ">Could VR help people overcome their fear of water?</h2> </a> </div> </div> </li> <li class="row read-more-articles__list"> <div class="article article-post"> <a class="thumbnail ar-16-9 md-ar-1-1" href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/earth/water/the-australian-water-industry-is-undergoing-profound-change/" aria-label="Article link"> <span data-spai-bg-on="1" class="image" style="background-image: url(data:image/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciIHZpZXdCb3g9IjAgMCAxMjAwIDY3NSIgd2lkdGg9IjEyMDAiIGhlaWdodD0iNjc1IiBkYXRhLXU9Imh0dHBzJTNBJTJGJTJGY29zbW9zbWFnYXppbmUuY29tJTJGd3AtY29udGVudCUyRnVwbG9hZHMlMkYyMDI0JTJGMDIlMkZHZXR0eUltYWdlcy01MDcyMTE2NjUuLUNyZWRpdC1Kb2huQ2FybmVtb2xsYS0xMjAwLmpwZyIgZGF0YS13PSIxMjAwIiBkYXRhLWg9IjY3NSIgZGF0YS1iaXA9IiI+PC9zdmc+);background-position: 50% 50%" data-position-x="50" data-position-y="50" data-image-width="1200" data-image-height="675"> </span> </a> <div class="article-content padding-1"> <div class="cols-8"> <a class="primary-category cols-1 col-span-7 category earth-color" href="/people/behaviour/"> Behaviour </a> <div class="favourite__wrapper row cols"> <button class="showDialog simplefavorite-button" aria-label="Favourite button"> </button> </div> </div> <a class="title" href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/earth/water/the-australian-water-industry-is-undergoing-profound-change/" aria-label="Article link"> <h2 class=" ">The Australian water industry is undergoing profound change</h2> <div class="logo"> <svg class = "gp-green" width="100%" height="100%" viewBox="0 0 296 296" version="1.1" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink" xml:space="preserve" xmlns:serif="http://www.serif.com/" style="fill-rule:evenodd;clip-rule:evenodd;stroke-linejoin:round;stroke-miterlimit:2;"> <g transform="matrix(4.16667,0,0,4.16667,0,0)"> <g transform="matrix(0.24,0,0,0.24,0,0)"> <path d="M154.188,285.762L154.346,295.767L150.167,295.833L149.775,271.162L159.3,271.013C164.4,270.933 167.737,273.45 167.813,278.275C167.879,282.413 165.504,284.821 161.617,285.487L168.929,295.537L164.187,295.613L157.158,285.717L154.188,285.762ZM198.996,289.887C192.642,291.896 186.542,288.179 184.333,281.175C182.108,274.133 184.983,267.629 191.333,265.625C197.687,263.617 203.813,267.283 206.033,274.325C208.246,281.329 205.346,287.883 198.996,289.887ZM118.596,280.062L115.946,288.871L111.946,287.671L119.05,264.05L128.167,266.792C133.05,268.262 135.479,271.763 134.008,276.65C132.563,281.454 128.596,283.071 123.712,281.6L118.596,280.062ZM192.458,269.183C188.325,270.487 186.779,274.929 188.35,279.904C189.921,284.883 193.738,287.633 197.871,286.329C202.004,285.025 203.588,280.567 202.017,275.596C200.446,270.617 196.592,267.879 192.458,269.183ZM154.129,282.267L159.396,282.183C162.167,282.142 163.713,280.629 163.675,278.338C163.637,276.046 162.046,274.588 159.275,274.629L154.013,274.713L154.129,282.267ZM127.046,270.229L122.008,268.717L119.637,276.6L124.675,278.117C127.446,278.95 129.367,277.725 130.05,275.454C130.754,273.108 129.817,271.067 127.046,270.229ZM226.346,268.942C227.921,270.738 229.775,271.162 231.725,269.821C234.042,268.229 234.254,266.133 232.271,263.254L223.125,249.967L226.563,247.596L235.712,260.887C239.033,265.717 238.121,270.05 233.954,272.917C229.592,275.921 225.554,274.8 222.775,271.4L226.346,268.942ZM247.938,225.079L250.779,227.442L243.096,236.679L248.104,240.842L255.067,232.467L257.875,234.804L250.917,243.179L256.354,247.7L264.033,238.458L266.908,240.85L256.608,253.238L237.633,237.471L247.938,225.079ZM259.042,203.592C261.225,198.446 265.567,196.446 270.475,197.529L268.875,201.304C266.096,201.171 263.804,202.033 262.517,205.067C260.821,209.062 263.262,212.979 268.038,215.008C272.775,217.017 277.308,216.104 279.021,212.071C280.308,209.033 279.342,206.792 277.275,204.867L278.875,201.092C283.104,203.892 284.667,208.437 282.5,213.546C280.017,219.392 273.383,221.862 266.387,218.892C259.396,215.925 256.558,209.437 259.042,203.592ZM266.313,182.471L268.267,161.996L271.946,162.346L271.167,170.504L292.042,172.496L291.646,176.654L270.771,174.663L269.992,182.821L266.313,182.471Z" style="fill:rgb(139,196,64);fill-rule:nonzero;"/> </g> <g transform="matrix(0.24,0,0,0.24,0,0)"> <path d="M15.996,149.317L12.433,149.042L13.154,139.708L15.075,139.854C21.892,140.379 25.912,145.167 25.446,151.175C24.942,157.787 19.421,162.358 11.854,161.775C4.279,161.192 -0.458,155.787 0.033,149.375C0.471,143.725 3.942,140.487 8.904,139.904L8.588,144.071C5.862,144.867 4.054,146.379 3.8,149.662C3.462,154.033 6.971,157.163 12.179,157.567C17.383,157.971 21.408,155.458 21.763,150.892C22.05,147.163 19.821,144.733 16.412,143.946L15.996,149.317ZM20.958,119.312L30.421,122.546L29.071,126.496L5.746,118.533L8.817,109.529C10.462,104.704 13.963,102.417 18.512,103.975C22.433,105.308 23.896,108.35 23.204,112.233L35.129,108.75L33.596,113.233L21.925,116.5L20.958,119.312ZM17.654,118.188L19.354,113.208C20.246,110.588 19.346,108.625 17.183,107.888C15.017,107.15 13.108,108.15 12.208,110.771L10.513,115.746L17.654,118.188ZM29.438,69.342L32.55,71.329L26.088,81.45L31.562,84.954L37.429,75.783L40.504,77.75L34.646,86.921L40.6,90.725L47.071,80.613L50.217,82.621L41.542,96.187L20.767,82.908L29.438,69.342ZM54.212,42.088L56.792,44.737L48.163,53.104L52.696,57.779L60.517,50.196L63.058,52.821L55.246,60.404L60.167,65.479L68.792,57.117L71.392,59.8L59.825,71.017L42.646,53.304L54.212,42.088ZM247.058,29.713L263.379,42.258L261.125,45.192L254.621,40.188L241.825,56.829L238.513,54.283L251.304,37.646L244.804,32.646L247.058,29.713ZM100.442,40.729L97.658,42.333L77.775,33.067L86.729,48.621L83.25,50.625L70.95,29.258L74.358,27.296L93.192,36.192L84.658,21.367L88.142,19.363L100.442,40.729ZM229.046,19.3L219.596,42.071L215.742,40.471L219.883,30.496L208.425,25.738L204.279,35.712L200.421,34.113L209.875,11.342L213.733,12.942L209.838,22.325L221.3,27.083L225.192,17.7L229.046,19.3ZM108.579,11.071L112.604,9.938L118.267,30.096L129.683,26.888L130.692,30.483L115.254,34.829L108.579,11.071ZM178.421,20.075L178.871,16.525L188.163,17.704L187.921,19.617C187.058,26.396 182.083,30.183 176.096,29.425C169.517,28.588 165.221,22.858 166.179,15.317C167.133,7.779 172.767,3.308 179.15,4.117C184.771,4.829 187.829,8.462 188.175,13.45L184.029,12.925C183.362,10.163 181.942,8.283 178.675,7.867C174.325,7.312 171.021,10.667 170.363,15.85C169.704,21.033 172.017,25.179 176.563,25.754C180.271,26.225 182.808,24.117 183.767,20.75L178.421,20.075ZM149.679,28.142L145.517,28.479L143.504,3.917L147.662,3.571L149.679,28.142Z" style="fill:rgb(9,146,71);fill-rule:nonzero;"/> </g> <path d="M37.738,38.88L36.572,38.88C35.222,35.014 33.718,32.59 31.294,32.59C27.213,32.59 26.875,39.095 26.875,41.703C26.875,44.772 26.906,51.246 30.833,51.246C31.509,51.246 31.815,50.786 31.815,49.989L31.815,45.017C31.815,43.545 31.662,43.146 29.422,43.023L29.422,42.072L39.671,42.072L39.671,43.023C38.382,43.146 38.229,43.545 38.229,45.017L38.229,50.97C36.295,51.983 33.319,52.413 30.926,52.413C28.102,52.413 25.525,52.106 23.438,50.817C21.382,49.497 19.602,46.95 19.602,42.102C19.602,39.555 20.185,36.825 21.812,34.891C23.438,32.958 25.832,31.485 31.325,31.485C33.687,31.485 36.388,32.099 37.738,32.866L37.738,38.88Z" style="fill:rgb(9,147,71);fill-rule:nonzero;"/> <path d="M48.657,35.522C53.72,35.522 56.85,33.466 56.85,28.986C56.85,26.593 56.114,24.844 54.15,23.893C52.861,23.248 51.511,23.126 48.657,23.126L38.04,23.126L38.04,24.077C39.758,24.138 39.912,24.353 39.912,25.856L39.912,40.34C39.912,41.843 39.758,42.027 38.04,42.089L38.04,43.071L48.933,43.071L48.933,42.089C46.847,42.027 46.724,41.843 46.724,40.34L46.724,35.338C47.154,35.43 47.644,35.522 48.657,35.522Z" style="fill:rgb(138,196,65);fill-rule:nonzero;"/> <path d="M49.766,30.805C48.918,31.361 47.778,31.124 47.221,30.276C46.665,29.427 46.902,28.287 47.75,27.73C48.599,27.174 49.738,27.411 50.296,28.259C50.852,29.108 50.615,30.248 49.766,30.805ZM51.858,28.377L52.837,27.454L52.045,26.247L50.811,26.778L50.32,26.445L50.36,25.099L48.948,24.804L48.449,26.056L47.866,26.167L46.944,25.189L45.738,25.98L46.268,27.213L45.934,27.703L44.592,27.663L44.298,29.077L45.548,29.576L45.659,30.158L44.679,31.081L45.471,32.288L46.705,31.757L47.196,32.09L47.156,33.436L48.569,33.73L49.067,32.479L49.65,32.368L50.572,33.346L51.778,32.555L51.248,31.322L51.582,30.832L52.924,30.872L53.218,29.458L51.968,28.959L51.858,28.377Z" style="fill:white;fill-rule:nonzero;"/> </g> </svg> </div> </a> </div> </div> </li> <li class="row read-more-articles__list"> <div class="article article-post"> <a class="thumbnail ar-16-9 md-ar-1-1" href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/earth/water/better-groundwater-knowledge-needed-as-climate-changes/" aria-label="Article link"> <span data-spai-bg-on="1" class="image" style="background-image: url(data:image/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciIHZpZXdCb3g9IjAgMCAxMjAwIDY3NiIgd2lkdGg9IjEyMDAiIGhlaWdodD0iNjc2IiBkYXRhLXU9Imh0dHBzJTNBJTJGJTJGY29zbW9zbWFnYXppbmUuY29tJTJGd3AtY29udGVudCUyRnVwbG9hZHMlMkYyMDI0JTJGMDElMkZHZXR0eUltYWdlcy01OTcyNjM3MDJfZWRpdC5qcGciIGRhdGEtdz0iMTIwMCIgZGF0YS1oPSI2NzYiIGRhdGEtYmlwPSIiPjwvc3ZnPg==);background-position: 50% 50%" data-position-x="50" data-position-y="50" data-image-width="1200" data-image-height="676"> </span> </a> <div class="article-content padding-1"> <div class="cols-8"> <a class="primary-category cols-1 col-span-7 category earth-color" href="/people/behaviour/"> Behaviour </a> <div class="favourite__wrapper row cols"> <button class="showDialog simplefavorite-button" aria-label="Favourite button"> </button> </div> </div> <a class="title" href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/earth/water/better-groundwater-knowledge-needed-as-climate-changes/" aria-label="Article link"> <h2 class=" ">Better groundwater knowledge needed as climate changes</h2> <div class="logo"> <svg class = "gp-green" width="100%" height="100%" viewBox="0 0 296 296" version="1.1" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink" xml:space="preserve" xmlns:serif="http://www.serif.com/" style="fill-rule:evenodd;clip-rule:evenodd;stroke-linejoin:round;stroke-miterlimit:2;"> <g transform="matrix(4.16667,0,0,4.16667,0,0)"> <g transform="matrix(0.24,0,0,0.24,0,0)"> <path d="M154.188,285.762L154.346,295.767L150.167,295.833L149.775,271.162L159.3,271.013C164.4,270.933 167.737,273.45 167.813,278.275C167.879,282.413 165.504,284.821 161.617,285.487L168.929,295.537L164.187,295.613L157.158,285.717L154.188,285.762ZM198.996,289.887C192.642,291.896 186.542,288.179 184.333,281.175C182.108,274.133 184.983,267.629 191.333,265.625C197.687,263.617 203.813,267.283 206.033,274.325C208.246,281.329 205.346,287.883 198.996,289.887ZM118.596,280.062L115.946,288.871L111.946,287.671L119.05,264.05L128.167,266.792C133.05,268.262 135.479,271.763 134.008,276.65C132.563,281.454 128.596,283.071 123.712,281.6L118.596,280.062ZM192.458,269.183C188.325,270.487 186.779,274.929 188.35,279.904C189.921,284.883 193.738,287.633 197.871,286.329C202.004,285.025 203.588,280.567 202.017,275.596C200.446,270.617 196.592,267.879 192.458,269.183ZM154.129,282.267L159.396,282.183C162.167,282.142 163.713,280.629 163.675,278.338C163.637,276.046 162.046,274.588 159.275,274.629L154.013,274.713L154.129,282.267ZM127.046,270.229L122.008,268.717L119.637,276.6L124.675,278.117C127.446,278.95 129.367,277.725 130.05,275.454C130.754,273.108 129.817,271.067 127.046,270.229ZM226.346,268.942C227.921,270.738 229.775,271.162 231.725,269.821C234.042,268.229 234.254,266.133 232.271,263.254L223.125,249.967L226.563,247.596L235.712,260.887C239.033,265.717 238.121,270.05 233.954,272.917C229.592,275.921 225.554,274.8 222.775,271.4L226.346,268.942ZM247.938,225.079L250.779,227.442L243.096,236.679L248.104,240.842L255.067,232.467L257.875,234.804L250.917,243.179L256.354,247.7L264.033,238.458L266.908,240.85L256.608,253.238L237.633,237.471L247.938,225.079ZM259.042,203.592C261.225,198.446 265.567,196.446 270.475,197.529L268.875,201.304C266.096,201.171 263.804,202.033 262.517,205.067C260.821,209.062 263.262,212.979 268.038,215.008C272.775,217.017 277.308,216.104 279.021,212.071C280.308,209.033 279.342,206.792 277.275,204.867L278.875,201.092C283.104,203.892 284.667,208.437 282.5,213.546C280.017,219.392 273.383,221.862 266.387,218.892C259.396,215.925 256.558,209.437 259.042,203.592ZM266.313,182.471L268.267,161.996L271.946,162.346L271.167,170.504L292.042,172.496L291.646,176.654L270.771,174.663L269.992,182.821L266.313,182.471Z" style="fill:rgb(139,196,64);fill-rule:nonzero;"/> </g> <g transform="matrix(0.24,0,0,0.24,0,0)"> <path d="M15.996,149.317L12.433,149.042L13.154,139.708L15.075,139.854C21.892,140.379 25.912,145.167 25.446,151.175C24.942,157.787 19.421,162.358 11.854,161.775C4.279,161.192 -0.458,155.787 0.033,149.375C0.471,143.725 3.942,140.487 8.904,139.904L8.588,144.071C5.862,144.867 4.054,146.379 3.8,149.662C3.462,154.033 6.971,157.163 12.179,157.567C17.383,157.971 21.408,155.458 21.763,150.892C22.05,147.163 19.821,144.733 16.412,143.946L15.996,149.317ZM20.958,119.312L30.421,122.546L29.071,126.496L5.746,118.533L8.817,109.529C10.462,104.704 13.963,102.417 18.512,103.975C22.433,105.308 23.896,108.35 23.204,112.233L35.129,108.75L33.596,113.233L21.925,116.5L20.958,119.312ZM17.654,118.188L19.354,113.208C20.246,110.588 19.346,108.625 17.183,107.888C15.017,107.15 13.108,108.15 12.208,110.771L10.513,115.746L17.654,118.188ZM29.438,69.342L32.55,71.329L26.088,81.45L31.562,84.954L37.429,75.783L40.504,77.75L34.646,86.921L40.6,90.725L47.071,80.613L50.217,82.621L41.542,96.187L20.767,82.908L29.438,69.342ZM54.212,42.088L56.792,44.737L48.163,53.104L52.696,57.779L60.517,50.196L63.058,52.821L55.246,60.404L60.167,65.479L68.792,57.117L71.392,59.8L59.825,71.017L42.646,53.304L54.212,42.088ZM247.058,29.713L263.379,42.258L261.125,45.192L254.621,40.188L241.825,56.829L238.513,54.283L251.304,37.646L244.804,32.646L247.058,29.713ZM100.442,40.729L97.658,42.333L77.775,33.067L86.729,48.621L83.25,50.625L70.95,29.258L74.358,27.296L93.192,36.192L84.658,21.367L88.142,19.363L100.442,40.729ZM229.046,19.3L219.596,42.071L215.742,40.471L219.883,30.496L208.425,25.738L204.279,35.712L200.421,34.113L209.875,11.342L213.733,12.942L209.838,22.325L221.3,27.083L225.192,17.7L229.046,19.3ZM108.579,11.071L112.604,9.938L118.267,30.096L129.683,26.888L130.692,30.483L115.254,34.829L108.579,11.071ZM178.421,20.075L178.871,16.525L188.163,17.704L187.921,19.617C187.058,26.396 182.083,30.183 176.096,29.425C169.517,28.588 165.221,22.858 166.179,15.317C167.133,7.779 172.767,3.308 179.15,4.117C184.771,4.829 187.829,8.462 188.175,13.45L184.029,12.925C183.362,10.163 181.942,8.283 178.675,7.867C174.325,7.312 171.021,10.667 170.363,15.85C169.704,21.033 172.017,25.179 176.563,25.754C180.271,26.225 182.808,24.117 183.767,20.75L178.421,20.075ZM149.679,28.142L145.517,28.479L143.504,3.917L147.662,3.571L149.679,28.142Z" style="fill:rgb(9,146,71);fill-rule:nonzero;"/> </g> <path d="M37.738,38.88L36.572,38.88C35.222,35.014 33.718,32.59 31.294,32.59C27.213,32.59 26.875,39.095 26.875,41.703C26.875,44.772 26.906,51.246 30.833,51.246C31.509,51.246 31.815,50.786 31.815,49.989L31.815,45.017C31.815,43.545 31.662,43.146 29.422,43.023L29.422,42.072L39.671,42.072L39.671,43.023C38.382,43.146 38.229,43.545 38.229,45.017L38.229,50.97C36.295,51.983 33.319,52.413 30.926,52.413C28.102,52.413 25.525,52.106 23.438,50.817C21.382,49.497 19.602,46.95 19.602,42.102C19.602,39.555 20.185,36.825 21.812,34.891C23.438,32.958 25.832,31.485 31.325,31.485C33.687,31.485 36.388,32.099 37.738,32.866L37.738,38.88Z" style="fill:rgb(9,147,71);fill-rule:nonzero;"/> <path d="M48.657,35.522C53.72,35.522 56.85,33.466 56.85,28.986C56.85,26.593 56.114,24.844 54.15,23.893C52.861,23.248 51.511,23.126 48.657,23.126L38.04,23.126L38.04,24.077C39.758,24.138 39.912,24.353 39.912,25.856L39.912,40.34C39.912,41.843 39.758,42.027 38.04,42.089L38.04,43.071L48.933,43.071L48.933,42.089C46.847,42.027 46.724,41.843 46.724,40.34L46.724,35.338C47.154,35.43 47.644,35.522 48.657,35.522Z" style="fill:rgb(138,196,65);fill-rule:nonzero;"/> <path d="M49.766,30.805C48.918,31.361 47.778,31.124 47.221,30.276C46.665,29.427 46.902,28.287 47.75,27.73C48.599,27.174 49.738,27.411 50.296,28.259C50.852,29.108 50.615,30.248 49.766,30.805ZM51.858,28.377L52.837,27.454L52.045,26.247L50.811,26.778L50.32,26.445L50.36,25.099L48.948,24.804L48.449,26.056L47.866,26.167L46.944,25.189L45.738,25.98L46.268,27.213L45.934,27.703L44.592,27.663L44.298,29.077L45.548,29.576L45.659,30.158L44.679,31.081L45.471,32.288L46.705,31.757L47.196,32.09L47.156,33.436L48.569,33.73L49.067,32.479L49.65,32.368L50.572,33.346L51.778,32.555L51.248,31.322L51.582,30.832L52.924,30.872L53.218,29.458L51.968,28.959L51.858,28.377Z" style="fill:white;fill-rule:nonzero;"/> </g> </svg> </div> </a> </div> </div> </li> <li class="row read-more-articles__list"> <div class="article article-post"> <a class="thumbnail ar-16-9 md-ar-1-1" href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/earth/water/csiro-sets-itself-water-quality-mission/" aria-label="Article link"> <span data-spai-bg-on="1" class="image" style="background-image: url(data:image/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciIHZpZXdCb3g9IjAgMCAxMjAwIDY3NSIgd2lkdGg9IjEyMDAiIGhlaWdodD0iNjc1IiBkYXRhLXU9Imh0dHBzJTNBJTJGJTJGY29zbW9zbWFnYXppbmUuY29tJTJGd3AtY29udGVudCUyRnVwbG9hZHMlMkYyMDIzJTJGMDYlMkY2LkNTSVJPX0FxdWFXYXRjaF9hbGdhZS1pbi13YXRlcl9jcmVkaXQtQ1NJUk8tMTIwMC5qcGciIGRhdGEtdz0iMTIwMCIgZGF0YS1oPSI2NzUiIGRhdGEtYmlwPSIiPjwvc3ZnPg==);background-position: 50% 50%" data-position-x="50" data-position-y="50" data-image-width="1200" data-image-height="675"> </span> </a> <div class="article-content padding-1"> <div class="cols-8"> <a class="primary-category cols-1 col-span-7 category earth-color" href="/people/behaviour/"> Behaviour </a> <div class="favourite__wrapper row cols"> <button class="showDialog simplefavorite-button" aria-label="Favourite button"> </button> </div> </div> <a class="title" href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/earth/water/csiro-sets-itself-water-quality-mission/" aria-label="Article link"> <h2 class=" ">CSIRO sets itself water quality mission</h2> <div class="logo"> <svg class = "gp-green" width="100%" height="100%" viewBox="0 0 296 296" version="1.1" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink" xml:space="preserve" xmlns:serif="http://www.serif.com/" style="fill-rule:evenodd;clip-rule:evenodd;stroke-linejoin:round;stroke-miterlimit:2;"> <g transform="matrix(4.16667,0,0,4.16667,0,0)"> <g transform="matrix(0.24,0,0,0.24,0,0)"> <path d="M154.188,285.762L154.346,295.767L150.167,295.833L149.775,271.162L159.3,271.013C164.4,270.933 167.737,273.45 167.813,278.275C167.879,282.413 165.504,284.821 161.617,285.487L168.929,295.537L164.187,295.613L157.158,285.717L154.188,285.762ZM198.996,289.887C192.642,291.896 186.542,288.179 184.333,281.175C182.108,274.133 184.983,267.629 191.333,265.625C197.687,263.617 203.813,267.283 206.033,274.325C208.246,281.329 205.346,287.883 198.996,289.887ZM118.596,280.062L115.946,288.871L111.946,287.671L119.05,264.05L128.167,266.792C133.05,268.262 135.479,271.763 134.008,276.65C132.563,281.454 128.596,283.071 123.712,281.6L118.596,280.062ZM192.458,269.183C188.325,270.487 186.779,274.929 188.35,279.904C189.921,284.883 193.738,287.633 197.871,286.329C202.004,285.025 203.588,280.567 202.017,275.596C200.446,270.617 196.592,267.879 192.458,269.183ZM154.129,282.267L159.396,282.183C162.167,282.142 163.713,280.629 163.675,278.338C163.637,276.046 162.046,274.588 159.275,274.629L154.013,274.713L154.129,282.267ZM127.046,270.229L122.008,268.717L119.637,276.6L124.675,278.117C127.446,278.95 129.367,277.725 130.05,275.454C130.754,273.108 129.817,271.067 127.046,270.229ZM226.346,268.942C227.921,270.738 229.775,271.162 231.725,269.821C234.042,268.229 234.254,266.133 232.271,263.254L223.125,249.967L226.563,247.596L235.712,260.887C239.033,265.717 238.121,270.05 233.954,272.917C229.592,275.921 225.554,274.8 222.775,271.4L226.346,268.942ZM247.938,225.079L250.779,227.442L243.096,236.679L248.104,240.842L255.067,232.467L257.875,234.804L250.917,243.179L256.354,247.7L264.033,238.458L266.908,240.85L256.608,253.238L237.633,237.471L247.938,225.079ZM259.042,203.592C261.225,198.446 265.567,196.446 270.475,197.529L268.875,201.304C266.096,201.171 263.804,202.033 262.517,205.067C260.821,209.062 263.262,212.979 268.038,215.008C272.775,217.017 277.308,216.104 279.021,212.071C280.308,209.033 279.342,206.792 277.275,204.867L278.875,201.092C283.104,203.892 284.667,208.437 282.5,213.546C280.017,219.392 273.383,221.862 266.387,218.892C259.396,215.925 256.558,209.437 259.042,203.592ZM266.313,182.471L268.267,161.996L271.946,162.346L271.167,170.504L292.042,172.496L291.646,176.654L270.771,174.663L269.992,182.821L266.313,182.471Z" style="fill:rgb(139,196,64);fill-rule:nonzero;"/> </g> <g transform="matrix(0.24,0,0,0.24,0,0)"> <path d="M15.996,149.317L12.433,149.042L13.154,139.708L15.075,139.854C21.892,140.379 25.912,145.167 25.446,151.175C24.942,157.787 19.421,162.358 11.854,161.775C4.279,161.192 -0.458,155.787 0.033,149.375C0.471,143.725 3.942,140.487 8.904,139.904L8.588,144.071C5.862,144.867 4.054,146.379 3.8,149.662C3.462,154.033 6.971,157.163 12.179,157.567C17.383,157.971 21.408,155.458 21.763,150.892C22.05,147.163 19.821,144.733 16.412,143.946L15.996,149.317ZM20.958,119.312L30.421,122.546L29.071,126.496L5.746,118.533L8.817,109.529C10.462,104.704 13.963,102.417 18.512,103.975C22.433,105.308 23.896,108.35 23.204,112.233L35.129,108.75L33.596,113.233L21.925,116.5L20.958,119.312ZM17.654,118.188L19.354,113.208C20.246,110.588 19.346,108.625 17.183,107.888C15.017,107.15 13.108,108.15 12.208,110.771L10.513,115.746L17.654,118.188ZM29.438,69.342L32.55,71.329L26.088,81.45L31.562,84.954L37.429,75.783L40.504,77.75L34.646,86.921L40.6,90.725L47.071,80.613L50.217,82.621L41.542,96.187L20.767,82.908L29.438,69.342ZM54.212,42.088L56.792,44.737L48.163,53.104L52.696,57.779L60.517,50.196L63.058,52.821L55.246,60.404L60.167,65.479L68.792,57.117L71.392,59.8L59.825,71.017L42.646,53.304L54.212,42.088ZM247.058,29.713L263.379,42.258L261.125,45.192L254.621,40.188L241.825,56.829L238.513,54.283L251.304,37.646L244.804,32.646L247.058,29.713ZM100.442,40.729L97.658,42.333L77.775,33.067L86.729,48.621L83.25,50.625L70.95,29.258L74.358,27.296L93.192,36.192L84.658,21.367L88.142,19.363L100.442,40.729ZM229.046,19.3L219.596,42.071L215.742,40.471L219.883,30.496L208.425,25.738L204.279,35.712L200.421,34.113L209.875,11.342L213.733,12.942L209.838,22.325L221.3,27.083L225.192,17.7L229.046,19.3ZM108.579,11.071L112.604,9.938L118.267,30.096L129.683,26.888L130.692,30.483L115.254,34.829L108.579,11.071ZM178.421,20.075L178.871,16.525L188.163,17.704L187.921,19.617C187.058,26.396 182.083,30.183 176.096,29.425C169.517,28.588 165.221,22.858 166.179,15.317C167.133,7.779 172.767,3.308 179.15,4.117C184.771,4.829 187.829,8.462 188.175,13.45L184.029,12.925C183.362,10.163 181.942,8.283 178.675,7.867C174.325,7.312 171.021,10.667 170.363,15.85C169.704,21.033 172.017,25.179 176.563,25.754C180.271,26.225 182.808,24.117 183.767,20.75L178.421,20.075ZM149.679,28.142L145.517,28.479L143.504,3.917L147.662,3.571L149.679,28.142Z" style="fill:rgb(9,146,71);fill-rule:nonzero;"/> </g> <path d="M37.738,38.88L36.572,38.88C35.222,35.014 33.718,32.59 31.294,32.59C27.213,32.59 26.875,39.095 26.875,41.703C26.875,44.772 26.906,51.246 30.833,51.246C31.509,51.246 31.815,50.786 31.815,49.989L31.815,45.017C31.815,43.545 31.662,43.146 29.422,43.023L29.422,42.072L39.671,42.072L39.671,43.023C38.382,43.146 38.229,43.545 38.229,45.017L38.229,50.97C36.295,51.983 33.319,52.413 30.926,52.413C28.102,52.413 25.525,52.106 23.438,50.817C21.382,49.497 19.602,46.95 19.602,42.102C19.602,39.555 20.185,36.825 21.812,34.891C23.438,32.958 25.832,31.485 31.325,31.485C33.687,31.485 36.388,32.099 37.738,32.866L37.738,38.88Z" style="fill:rgb(9,147,71);fill-rule:nonzero;"/> <path d="M48.657,35.522C53.72,35.522 56.85,33.466 56.85,28.986C56.85,26.593 56.114,24.844 54.15,23.893C52.861,23.248 51.511,23.126 48.657,23.126L38.04,23.126L38.04,24.077C39.758,24.138 39.912,24.353 39.912,25.856L39.912,40.34C39.912,41.843 39.758,42.027 38.04,42.089L38.04,43.071L48.933,43.071L48.933,42.089C46.847,42.027 46.724,41.843 46.724,40.34L46.724,35.338C47.154,35.43 47.644,35.522 48.657,35.522Z" style="fill:rgb(138,196,65);fill-rule:nonzero;"/> <path d="M49.766,30.805C48.918,31.361 47.778,31.124 47.221,30.276C46.665,29.427 46.902,28.287 47.75,27.73C48.599,27.174 49.738,27.411 50.296,28.259C50.852,29.108 50.615,30.248 49.766,30.805ZM51.858,28.377L52.837,27.454L52.045,26.247L50.811,26.778L50.32,26.445L50.36,25.099L48.948,24.804L48.449,26.056L47.866,26.167L46.944,25.189L45.738,25.98L46.268,27.213L45.934,27.703L44.592,27.663L44.298,29.077L45.548,29.576L45.659,30.158L44.679,31.081L45.471,32.288L46.705,31.757L47.196,32.09L47.156,33.436L48.569,33.73L49.067,32.479L49.65,32.368L50.572,33.346L51.778,32.555L51.248,31.322L51.582,30.832L52.924,30.872L53.218,29.458L51.968,28.959L51.858,28.377Z" style="fill:white;fill-rule:nonzero;"/> </g> </svg> </div> </a> </div> </div> </li> </ul> </div> </div> </aside> </section>  <div class="advert ad-bottom-sticky-mobile ad-mobile auh-50"><div id="adn-00000000001fc737-i0p0" style="display: none"></div></div> <div class="advert ad-post-bottom padding-bottom-4 ad-desktop auh-90"><div id="adn-000000000023d099-i0p0" style="display: none"></div></div>  <div class="advert ad-post-bottom padding-bottom-4 ad-mobile auh-250"><div id="adn-000000000023d09a-i0p0" style="display: none"></div></div> <div class="single-post-loadmore-wrap entry-content"> <div id="single-post-load-more-content" class="single-post-loadmore"> </div> <div class="load-more-trigger"> <div id="single-post-load-more-btn" data-page="0" data-single-post-id="316640" class="button-tertiary" data-max-pages="5"> <span id="single-loading-text" class="mt-1 hidden text-sm">Loading next article...</span> </div> </div> </div> </main> </div> <dialog class="favourite__dialog" id="favouriteDialog"> <div class="favourite__dialog__body"> <p>Please login to favourite this article.</p> </div> <div class="favourite__dialog__footer"> <button class="button closeDialog">Close</button> <button class="button loginUrl">Login</button> </div> </dialog><footer class="footer"> <div class="inner-container"> <div class="footer-branding cols-1"> <a class="brand" href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/"> <img src="data:image/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciIHZpZXdCb3g9IjAgMCA4MzkgMTUxIiB3aWR0aD0iODM5IiBoZWlnaHQ9IjE1MSIgZGF0YS11PSIlMkZ3cC1jb250ZW50JTJGdXBsb2FkcyUyRjIwMjQlMkYwMyUyRkNvc21vc19sb2dvX3doaXRlLnN2ZyIgZGF0YS13PSI4MzkiIGRhdGEtaD0iMTUxIiBkYXRhLWJpcD0iIj48L3N2Zz4=" data-spai="1" alt="Cosmos" width="300"><noscript data-spai="1"><img src="https://cdn.shortpixel.ai/spai/ret_img/cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/Cosmos_logo_white.svg" data-spai-egr="1" alt="Cosmos" width="300"></noscript> </a> </div> <div class="content cols-4 md-cols-2 sm-cols-1"> <div class="item menu"> <ul id="menu-footer-menu" class="nav"><li id="menu-item-313731" class="menu-item menu-subscribe-now"><a href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/subscribe-now/">Subscribe Now</a></li> <li id="menu-item-1345" class="menu-item menu-about-us"><a href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/about-us/">About Us</a></li> <li id="menu-item-1346" class="menu-item menu-faq"><a href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/faq/">FAQ</a></li> <li id="menu-item-1357" class="menu-item menu-terms-of-use"><a href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/terms/">Terms of use</a></li> <li id="menu-item-257148" class="menu-item menu-schools"><a href="https://education.cosmosmagazine.com">Schools</a></li> <li id="menu-item-100218" class="menu-item menu-contact-us"><a href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/contact-us/">Contact us</a></li> <li id="menu-item-239226" class="menu-item menu-privacy-policy"><a rel="privacy-policy" href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/privacy/">Privacy Policy</a></li> </ul> </div> <div class="item about"> <p class="about">'Cosmos' and 'The Science of Everything' are registered trademarks in Australia and owned by CSIRO. </p> </div> <div class="item contact"> <p>T: 1300 719623 (Australia)<br /> E: <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#2d44434b426d4e425e40425e034e5e445f42034c58"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="ed84838b82ad8e829e80829ec38e9e849f82c38c98">[email protected]</span></a></p> <p>Address:</p> <p>Cosmos,</p> <p>CSIRO Publishing,</p> <p>PO Box 10041,</p> <p>Adelaide SA 5001</p> <p>Australia</p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> </div> <div class="item newsletter"> <a href="https://link.cosmosmagazine.com/OP59" class="newsletter-cta" data-device="desktop"> <img src="data:image/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciIHZpZXdCb3g9IjAgMCAzMDAgMjUwIiB3aWR0aD0iMzAwIiBoZWlnaHQ9IjI1MCIgZGF0YS11PSIlMkZ3cC1jb250ZW50JTJGdXBsb2FkcyUyRjIwMjQlMkYwMyUyRldlZWtseS1DYXRjaHVwLTMwMHgyNTAtMS5wbmciIGRhdGEtdz0iMzAwIiBkYXRhLWg9IjI1MCIgZGF0YS1iaXA9IiI+PC9zdmc+" data-spai="1" alt="Newsletter"><noscript data-spai="1"><img src="https://cdn.shortpixel.ai/spai/q_lossy+ret_img+to_auto/cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/Weekly-Catchup-300x250-1.png" data-spai-egr="1" alt="Newsletter"></noscript> </a><a href="https://link.cosmosmagazine.com/OP59" class="newsletter-cta" data-device="mobile"> <img src="data:image/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciIHZpZXdCb3g9IjAgMCAzMDAgMjUwIiB3aWR0aD0iMzAwIiBoZWlnaHQ9IjI1MCIgZGF0YS11PSIlMkZ3cC1jb250ZW50JTJGdXBsb2FkcyUyRjIwMjQlMkYwMyUyRldlZWtseS1DYXRjaHVwLTMwMHgyNTAtMS5wbmciIGRhdGEtdz0iMzAwIiBkYXRhLWg9IjI1MCIgZGF0YS1iaXA9IiI+PC9zdmc+" data-spai="1" alt="Newsletter"><noscript data-spai="1"><img src="https://cdn.shortpixel.ai/spai/q_lossy+ret_img+to_auto/cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/Weekly-Catchup-300x250-1.png" data-spai-egr="1" alt="Newsletter"></noscript> </a> <ul class="social"> <li><a href="https://www.facebook.com/CosmosMagazine/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener" class="primary-svg-fill-hover" aria-label="Cosmos Facebook"><svg width="30" height="30"> <g fill="none" fill-rule="evenodd"> <circle cx="15" cy="15" r="14" stroke="#FFF" stroke-width="2"/> <path fill="#FFF" fill-rule="nonzero" d="M18 12.55075h-2.565572V10.5195c0-.6230625.594107-.7675625.8713992-.7675625h1.657358V7.01075L16.063679 7c-2.5916132 0-3.1831276 2.0439375-3.1831276 3.3545v2.1963125H11V15.375h1.8805514V23h2.5538766v-7.625h2.1694815L18 12.55075z"/> </g> </svg> </a></li> <li><a href="https://www.instagram.com/cosmosmagazine/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener" class="primary-svg-fill-hover" aria-label="Cosmos Instagram"><svg width="30" height="30"> <g fill="none" fill-rule="evenodd"> <circle cx="15" cy="15" r="14" stroke="#FFF" stroke-width="2"/> <path fill="#FFF" d="M20.6086957 19.533913c0 .5930435-.4817392 1.0730435-1.0730435 1.0730435H10.466087c-.59304352 0-1.07478265-.48-1.07478265-1.0730435V15H11.133913c0 .0034783-.0017391.0052174-.0017391.0086957 0 2.133913 1.7356522 3.8695652 3.8678261 3.8695652 2.133913 0 3.8695652-1.7356522 3.8695652-3.8695652 0-.0034783-.0017391-.0052174-.0017391-.0086957h1.7408696v4.533913zM15 12.44c1.4191304 0 2.5704348 1.1495652 2.5704348 2.5686957 0 1.4191304-1.1513044 2.5704347-2.5704348 2.5704347-1.4191304 0-2.5686957-1.1513043-2.5686957-2.5704347C12.4313043 13.5895652 13.5808696 12.44 15 12.44zm2.573913-.0852174h2.0139131v-2.013913H17.573913v2.013913zM19.5356522 8H10.466087C9.10956522 8 8 9.10956522 8 10.4643478v9.0695652C8 20.8904348 9.10956522 22 10.466087 22h9.0695652C20.8904348 22 22 20.8904348 22 19.533913v-9.0695652C22 9.10956522 20.8904348 8 19.5356522 8z"/> </g> </svg> </a></li> <li><a href="https://twitter.com/CosmosMagazine" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener" class="primary-svg-fill-hover" aria-label="Cosmos Twitter"><svg width="30" height="30" viewBox="0 0 30 30" fill="none" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg"> <g fill="none" fill-rule="evenodd"> <circle cx="15" cy="15" r="14" fill="none" stroke="white" stroke-width="2" /> <path transform="matrix(0.011189,0,0,0.011189,8.28657,8)" d="M714.163 519.284L1160.89 0H1055.03L667.137 450.887L357.328 0H0L468.492 681.821L0 1226.37H105.866L515.491 750.218L842.672 1226.37H1200L714.137 519.284H714.163ZM569.165 687.828L521.697 619.934L144.011 79.6944H306.615L611.412 515.685L658.88 583.579L1055.08 1150.3H892.476L569.165 687.854V687.828Z" fill="white" /> </g> </svg> </a></li> <li><a href="https://flipboard.com/@CosmosMagazine" target="_blank" class="primary-svg-fill-hover" aria-label="Cosmos Flipboard"><svg width="30" height="30"> <g > <circle cx="15" cy="15" r="14" stroke="#FFF" style="fill:none;stroke-width:2px;"/> <path fill="#FFF" transform="matrix(0.0466667,0,0,0.0466667,3.33333,3.33333)" d="M400,200L300,200L300,300L200,300L200,400L100,400L100,100L400,100L400,200Z"/> </g> </svg> </a></li> <li><a href="https://www.buzzsprout.com/1667224" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener" class="primary-svg-fill-hover" aria-label="Cosmos Buzzsprout"><svg width="30" height="30"> <g> <circle cx="15" cy="15" r="14" stroke="#FFF" style="fill:none;stroke-width:2px;"/> <path fill="#FFF" d="M17.354,12.171L18.656,12.171L18.656,13.243C18.653,14.978 17.384,16.416 15.711,16.751L15.711,21.722L14.314,21.722L14.314,16.766C12.599,16.463 11.287,15.007 11.285,13.243L11.285,12.171L12.524,12.171L12.524,11.433L17.354,11.433L17.354,12.171ZM9.497,20.189C11.167,21.86 14.058,21.679 14.058,21.679C14.058,21.679 14.238,18.79 12.567,17.119C10.896,15.448 8.006,15.628 8.006,15.628C8.006,15.628 7.826,18.518 9.497,20.189ZM20.503,20.189C18.832,21.86 15.942,21.679 15.942,21.679C15.942,21.679 15.762,18.79 17.433,17.119C19.104,15.448 21.994,15.628 21.994,15.628C21.994,15.628 22.174,18.518 20.503,20.189ZM12.524,12.854L11.97,12.854L11.97,13.243C11.972,14.614 12.97,15.779 14.314,16.07L14.314,15.349C13.283,15.085 12.524,14.182 12.524,13.109L12.524,12.854ZM17.354,12.854L17.354,13.109C17.354,14.13 16.666,14.997 15.711,15.307L15.711,16.051C17.012,15.73 17.969,14.585 17.971,13.243L17.971,12.854L17.354,12.854ZM17.355,10.319C17.355,9.039 16.273,8 14.939,8C13.606,8 12.524,9.039 12.524,10.319C12.524,11.435 12.524,10.935 12.524,11.157L17.355,11.157L17.355,10.319Z" style="fill-rule:nonzero;"/> </g> </svg> </a></li> <li><a href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/feed" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener" class="primary-svg-fill-hover" aria-label="Cosmos RSS feed"><svg width="30" height="30"> <defs/> <path fill="#FFF" fill-rule="nonzero" d="M15.0643691 0c8.2842713 0 15 6.71572875 15 15 0 8.2842712-6.7157287 15-15 15C6.7800979 30 .06436914 23.2842712.06436914 15c0-8.28427125 6.71572876-15 14.99999996-15zm0 2C7.8846674 2 2.06436914 7.82029825 2.06436914 15c0 7.1797017 5.82029826 13 12.99999996 13 7.1797018 0 13-5.8202983 13-13 0-7.17970175-5.8202982-13-13-13zM9.61448773 17.7505929c1.13224927 0 2.05011857.9178694 2.05011857 2.0501186s-.9178693 2.0501186-2.05011857 2.0501186c-1.13224923 0-2.05011859-.9178694-2.05011859-2.0501186s.91786936-2.0501186 2.05011859-2.0501186zm-2.05011859-5.4666412c5.18400766 0 9.41858876 4.1452018 9.56306776 9.2949295l.0038106.2719489h-2.7328081c0-3.6896155-2.939535-6.7050347-6.59949854-6.8290758l-.23457172-.0039695v-2.7338331zm0-4.7839517c7.80933326 0 14.18116996 6.2690823 14.34749786 14.0392347l.0033322.3115954h-2.732808c0-6.3080572-5.0522841-11.4563946-11.32319518-11.6133119l-.29482688-.0036851V7.5z"/> </svg></a></li> </ul> </div> </div> </div> </footer> <script data-cfasync="false" src="/cdn-cgi/scripts/5c5dd728/cloudflare-static/email-decode.min.js"></script><script> const paywallButton = document.querySelector('.wp-block-button__link'); function paywall_click_datalayer() { dataLayer.push({ 'event': 'paywall_click', 'paywall_name': '', 'page_location': 'https://cosmosmagazine.com/science/chemistry/tap-water-chloronitramide/' }); } if (paywallButton) { paywallButton.addEventListener('click', function() { paywall_click_datalayer(); }); } </script> <script> let previousMobileDevice = isMobileDevice(); // Request ads on page resize window.addEventListener('resize', function() { clearTimeout(window.resizedFinished); window.resizedFinished = setTimeout(function() { if (previousMobileDevice === isMobileDevice()) { return; } adUnitsServed = []; previousMobileDevice = isMobileDevice(); adUnitsServed = requestThirdPartyAds(adUnits, adUnitsServed); }, 1000); }); /** Handle loadmore article */ const handleLoadmore = (mutationsList) => { for (let mutation of mutationsList) { if (mutation.type === 'childList') { for (let addedNode of mutation.addedNodes) { if (addedNode.nodeType === Node.ELEMENT_NODE && addedNode.matches('section.article-container')) { // Fixed the selector here clearTimeout(window.domHeightChangeFinished); window.domHeightChangeFinished = setTimeout(() => { // console.log('The specific <section> was added!'); adUnitsServed = requestThirdPartyAds(adUnits, adUnitsServed); }, 250); } } } } }; const loadmoreNode = document.getElementById('single-post-load-more-content'); if (loadmoreNode) { const observer = new MutationObserver(handleLoadmore); observer.observe(loadmoreNode, { childList: true, subtree: false // This is set false because we only want to observe direct children of the target node }); } /** END: Handle loadmore article */ // Prevents the page from jumping when the ad loads adUnitsServed.forEach(function(adUnit) { let adUnitDiv = document.getElementById(adUnit.targetId); let adUnitDivParentClass = adUnitDiv.parentNode.className; if (!adUnitDiv || adUnitDivParentClassArray.includes(adUnitDivParentClass)) { return; } adUnitDivParentClassArray.push(adUnitDivParentClass); let adUnitDivStyle = window.getComputedStyle(adUnitDiv); let adUnitDivHeight = parseInt(adUnit.auH) + parseInt(adUnitDivStyle.marginTop) + parseInt(adUnitDivStyle.marginBottom) + parseInt(adUnitDivStyle.paddingTop) + parseInt(adUnitDivStyle.paddingBottom); let style = document.createElement('style'); style.type = 'text/css'; style.innerHTML = '.' + adUnitDivParentClass.replace(/ /g, '.') + ' { min-height: ' + adUnitDivHeight + 'px; }'; document.getElementsByTagName('head')[0].appendChild(style); }); </script> <script type="text/javascript"> (function () { var c = document.body.className; c = c.replace(/woocommerce-no-js/, 'woocommerce-js'); document.body.className = c; })(); </script> <script type='text/javascript' id='metorik-js-js-extra'> /* <![CDATA[ */ var metorik_params = {"lifetime":"6","session":"30","ajaxurl":"https:\/\/cosmosmagazine.com\/wp-admin\/admin-ajax.php","cart_tracking":"1","cart_items":"0","cart_checkout_button":"1","add_cart_popup_placement":"bottom","send_cart_events":"added_to_cart removed_from_cart updated_cart_totals updated_shipping_method applied_coupon removed_coupon updated_checkout","sbjs_domain":"","send_cart_fragments":"1"}; /* ]]> */ </script> <script defer src="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/cache/minify/ddaa7.js?x75256"></script> <script type='text/javascript' id='sage/main.js-js-extra'> /* <![CDATA[ */ var mainScript = {"ajaxUrl":"https:\/\/cosmosmagazine.com\/wp-admin\/admin-ajax.php","ajax_nonce":"0d9860deed","is_user_logged_in":""}; /* ]]> */ </script> <script src="/wp-content/themes/cosmos/dist/scripts/main.js?x75256&v=2bb182da"></script><script type='text/javascript' id='loadmore-js-extra'> /* <![CDATA[ */ var siteConfig = {"ajaxUrl":"https:\/\/cosmosmagazine.com\/wp-admin\/admin-ajax.php","ajax_nonce":"1eb733812b"}; /* ]]> */ </script> <script defer src="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/cache/minify/fef85.js?x75256"></script> <script src="https://cdn.onesignal.com/sdks/OneSignalSDK.js?ver=6.3.5" async="async"></script> </div> </body> </html>

CINXE.COM

Mystery tap water substance finally discovered, concerning scientists