Latest science news in Earth & Climate
Stalled, Nations Meet Again on Climate Change
With Agreement on Emissions Looking More Distant than Ever, Focus will Be on Money at Leaders Meet in Cancun
Charging for plastic bags cut bag consumption by half in China
Use of plastic bags is a growing global environmental problem. As a result, the bags are becoming subject to various regulations in an increasing number of countries, with mixed results....
Global Climate-Change Talks Begin
After last year’s Copenhagen conference failed to produce agreement on climate change, hopes are that small steps can be made in Mexico.
Four degree rise 'would scupper African farming'
Drastic changes in African farming would result from a 4C temperature rise, say scientists, as climate talks begin in Cancún, Mexico.
Male reproductive problems may add to falling fertility rates
Reduced male fertility may be making it even harder for couples to conceive and be contributing to low birth rates in many countries, reveals a new European Science Foundation (ESF)...
The oldest salt mine known to date located in Azerbaijan
French archeologists have recently provided proof that the Duzdagi salt deposits, situated in the Araxes Valley in Azerbaijan, were already being exploited from the second half of the 5th millennium...
Some coral reefs less vulnerable to rising sea temperatures
New research highlighting coastal locations where coral can better withstand rising sea temperatures, a leading cause of stress to coral reefs, may guide efforts to conserve the largest living structures...
Climate change scientists warn of 4C global temperature rise
Team of experts say such an increase would cause severe droughts and see millions of migrants seeking refugeThe hellish vision of a world warmed by 4C within a lifetime has been set...
Why a severe North Sea storm could spell disaster for the fens
Man has interfered so much with the landscape in the English countryside that it is hard to comprehend and measure how natural changes to climate and sea levels have altered the geography. However,...
Scientists worry North Pacific salmon may run out of food
With the number of salmon in the North Pacific having doubled in the past 50 years, scientists are increasingly concerned there may not be enough food to support them, and...
Experts split on global warming, highland malaria link
Malaria cases in east African highland areas hitherto unaffected by the disease have caused worry that global warming is creating new mosquito breeding grounds but experts disagree on whether there...
Eyewitnesses Watched as China Earthquake Ripped Ground
First-person accounts of ground rupture rare but extraordinary.
Despite Economy In The West, Global CO2 Emissions Rise In 2010
Climatology might replace economics as the 'gloomy science'. Projections that the lousy economy might mean a slowdown in fossil fuels were cause for joy among activists, without realizing that people...
Whale-inspired ocean turbine blades: US Naval Academy researchers look to convert tidal energy into electricity
Lessons learned from the ocean's largest mammals have inspired United States Naval Academy researchers to tackle one of the serious design challenges facing a technology that uses underwater turbines to...
Use the profit motive to fight climate change | David Cameron
The prime minister argues that there are huge gains to be made from a green economyOver the past 12 months, we've seen the devastation that unchecked climate change could bring – floods...
Antarctic ice reveals trapped secrets of climate change
Cores drilled from the icecap are going on show at London's Science Museum. The centuries-old information they contain could help scientists predict Earth's future weatherThey were found deep below Earth's surface, provide vital...
In a far corner of Greenland, hope is fading with the language and sea ice
Climate change, hunting controls and a new consumerism threaten the way of life of the Polar Eskimos of north-west Greenland. In the second of a series of dispatches, Stephen Pax Leonard reports...
How tropical storms get their names
Fiona and Gaston weren't pulled from a hat. There's a method to the selections.When it comes to storm monikers, Fiona and Gaston don't exactly sound fierce, and neither do Hermine...
Video: Fall Foliage in the Blue Ridge Mountains
This Sunday Morning nature piece takes a look at the changing colors in the Blue Ridge Mountains of North Carolina.
Stranded turtles rescued on Cape Cod
BOSTON, Nov. 26 (UPI) -- Twenty-one sea turtles have been rescued from chilly waters around Cape Cod to be cared for by workers at the New England Aquarium, officials...
Green: A 'Crazy Bad' Day in Beijing
After coal-fired heating kicks in, a tweet from the United States Embassy describes high levels of air pollution.
Scarab sculpture to warn of climate woe
More than 200 students and activists have created an image of a scarab in the Egyptian desert, to send a message to world leaders ahead of next week's UN climate...
Why such cold weather so early?
Further heavy snow has hit parts of the UK, causing school closures and travel disruption, but why have such harsh conditions arrived early this year?
Outdoor holiday lights pose fall risk: CSA
This is the weekend tens of thousands of Canadians climb ladders, hang from rooftops, and untangle strings of lights, which have been stuffed away for the past year.
The Impact Of Impact Factor
Nature featured an article last week about a study at NIH that compared funding level with output for grant-funded research. It's a great idea, but I'm not entirely happy about the...
Four countries account for 92% of scientists in L.A.C.
Argentina, Brazil, Chile and Mexico account for most of the researchers, and most of the R&D investment, in Latin America and the Caribbean, says UNESCO.
China launches hourly air quality data index
China has started publishing hourly air-quality information for major cities across the country as the world's top source of greenhouse gas emissions tries to rein in its notorious pollution.
World warmer, short-term trends need study: report
LONDON (Reuters) - The global average temperature has increased over the past 160 years, but short-term trends in temperature and sea ice seem to be at odds with each other...