Latest science news in Earth & Climate
Diamonds reveal how continents are stabilized, key to Earth's habitability
The longevity of Earth's continents in the face of destructive tectonic activity is an essential geologic backdrop for the emergence of life on our planet. This stability depends on the...
Human encroachment alters air quality over Amazon rainforest
Plumes of air pollution generated from a rapidly expanding city within the Amazon rainforest are wafting hundreds of miles and degrading air quality in the pristine rainforest, according to a...
In degrading Nature humanity harms itself, UN report warns
Diplomats and scientists from 130 nations gather in Paris next week to vet and validate the first UN global assessment of the state of Nature in more than a decade,...
Earth lost nearly 30 million acres of tropical forest last year
Tree cover tropics shrank by 30 million acres in 2018, the fourth largest decline since record keeping began in 2001.
Natural landscapes? Scientists call for a paradigm shift in restoration projects
Regardless of whether we are dealing with a floodplain landscape or an entire national park, the success of a restoration project depends on more than just the reintroduction of individual...
Diamonds reveal how continents are stabilized, key to Earth's habitability
The longevity of Earth's continents in the face of destructive tectonic activity is an essential geologic backdrop for the emergence of life on our planet. This stability depends on the...
Mysterious eruption came from Campi Flegrei caldera
The caldera-forming eruption of Campi Flegrei (Italy) 40,000 years ago is the largest known eruption in Europe during the last 200,000 years, but little is known about other large eruptions...
400 firefighters battle Germany forest fire amid spring heat
Hundreds of firefighters battled a major forest fire in central Germany on Thursday they said was the size of eight soccer fields, which injured three crew members.
Antarctica's Effect on Sea Level Rise in Coming Centuries
How will Antarctica's melting ice sheet affect sea level rise hundreds of years in the future? Scientists now have a more accurate model to answer this question.
Rewilding complex ecosystems
The practice of rewilding has been both promoted and criticized in recent years. Benefits include flexibility to react to environmental change and the promotion of opportunities for society to reconnect...
Nitrogen isotope evidence for expanded ocean suboxia in the early Cenozoic
The million-year variability of the marine nitrogen cycle is poorly understood. Before 57 million years (Ma) ago, the 15N/14N ratio (15N) of foraminifera shell-bound organic matter from three sediment cores...
Sulfur isotopes in diamonds reveal differences in continent construction
Neoproterozoic West African diamonds contain sulfide inclusions with mass-independently fractionated (MIF) sulfur isotopes that trace Archean surficial signatures into the mantle. Two episodes of subduction are recorded in these West...
Human-caused climate change played limited role in Beijing's 2013 'airpocalypse'
Although the particulate matter that filled the winter skies resulted from both human and natural emissions, a new study concludes that human-caused climate change played only a minor role in...
Watch: 'Lucifer' teases love triangle in Season 4
Lucifer (Tom Ellis) is torn between Chloe (Lauren German) and Eve (Inbar Lavi) in Season 4 of the Netflix series.
Living walls at Smith Campus Center bring beauty, cleaner air, calm
In the winter, they are oases of green offering respite from the bitter January chill and serving as verdant reminders of warmer times to come. In summer, they’re lush connections to the...
Mysterious eruption came from Campi Flegrei caldera
The caldera-forming eruption of Campi Flegrei (Italy) 40,000 years ago is the largest known eruption in Europe during the last 200,000 years, but little is known about other large eruptions...
Researchers trace 3,000 years of monsoons through shell fossils
The tiny shells at the bottom of Lake Nakaumi in southwest Japan may contain the secrets of the East Asia summer monsoon. This rainy season is fairly predictable, ushering in...
Unravelling the complexity of air pollution in the world's coldest capital city
A joint Mongol-Japanese research team conducted the first detailed study of organic air pollutants in Ulaanbaartar city. The polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH) contents of airborne particulates were determined, and indicated...
Place-based management can protect coral reefs in a changing climate
Scientists have applied new computer models to identify where cesspool conversion and marine conservation efforts will minimize human impacts on coral reefs.
In photos: Ryan Reynolds, Justice Smith attend 'Pokemon: Detective Pikachu' world premiere
The cast of "Pokemon: Detective Pikachu" attends the world premiere of the film in Tokyo on April 25, 2019.
Scientists on a Sailboat Just Found Nearly 200,000 Viruses Hiding in Earth's Oceans
The boat, named the Tara, has given scientists an unprecedented, detailed map of viruses in the marine ecosystem.
A global survey finds that the Arctic Ocean is a hot spot for viruses
Scientists mapped virus diversity around the world’s oceans. That knowledge may be key to making better climate simulations.
Place-based management can protect coral reefs in a changing climate
Researchers from the University of Hawai'i at Mānoa (UH Mānoa) and the State of Hawai'i Department of Health have developed and applied a new technology in Hawai'i that identifies where...
Thousands of emperor penguin chicks drown
After severe weather in 2016 a large penguin colony at the Brunt ice shelf in Antarctica never recovered.
Forest fires blight Europe amid drought fears
Weather experts warn of drought in Europe over its summer as firefighters tackled forest fires on Thursday, and farmers fretted over wilting crops and a repeat of 2018's arid conditions.
Tornado kills 2 in Louisiana, damages LA Tech campus
Two people were killed in rural Louisiana when a tornado tore through the town of Ruston with 160-mph winds early Thursday.
Reindeer adapt to climate change by eating seaweed
The bodies of Svalbard reindeer are extremely well adapted to their arctic home at 79 degrees N latitude. As the northernmost reindeer population on the planet, they are thick and...
Microbes could influence earth’s geological processes as much as volcanoes
By acting as gatekeepers, microbes can affect geological processes that move carbon from the earth’s surface into its deep interior, according to a study published in Nature and coauthored by microbiologists at...