Latest science news in Earth & Climate
Earlier butterfly emergence linked to climate change
Butterflies are emerging in spring over 10 days earlier than they did 65 years ago, a shift that has been linked to regional human-induced climate change in an Australian-led study....
Protected forests may slow climate change
NEW YORK, March 18 (UPI) -- A U.S.-led study involving scientists from 13 organizations, universities and institutions suggests forest protection is effective in slowing climate change.
Little Shrimp Makes Big Splash Beneath Antarctica
A JPL-designed camera submerged 600 feet beneath the Antarctic ice sheet to image its underbelly has yielded an unexpected find -- a shrimp.
Tomas moving away from Fiji Islands after causing damages
Cyclone Tomas hit the north and east areas of Fiji as a Category 4 Cyclone on the Saffir-Simpson Scale, and has now moved south of them. NASA's Tropical Rainfall Measuring...
Statoil eager to exploit continental shelf
STAVENGER, Norway, March 17 (UPI) -- Fast-tracking four fields in the Norwegian continental shelf will reduce operating costs by as much as 40 percent, officials at energy giant Statoil...
Study debunks Amazon rainforest theory
BOSTON, March 16 (UPI) -- A NASA-funded study contradicts a previous U.N. report that the Amazon rainforests thrive during long droughts.
Adding iron to sea boosts deadly neurotoxin: study
Adding iron to the world's oceans to capture carbon and fight global warming could do more harm than good, as the mineral appears to boost the growth of a plankton...
British team trek to measure CO2 in Arctic Ocean
Three British explorers set out on a skiing expedition on Monday across 500 kilometers (310 miles) of floating sea ice to investigate rising acid levels in the Arctic Ocean that...
Stellar McGill Researcher Receives Killam Research Fellowship
McGill University is pleased to announce that the Canada Council for the Arts has awarded a Killam Research Fellowship to Dr. Victoria Kaspi for her astrophysics research.
Findings: Chasing the Sound Barrier, in a Leap From 23 Miles Up
From a helium balloon, Felix Baumgartner, no stranger to high jumps, intends to break the speed of sound in free fall.
Study: Grass, fungus combination affects ecology
HOUSTON -- (March 15, 2010) -- The popular forage and turf grass called tall fescue covers a vast amount of land in the U.S. -- an area that's estimated to...
ABE, Robot Explorer of the World’s Oceans, Is Lost at Sea
The autonomous underwater vehicle had come out of semi-retirement to help researchers study the seafloor off the coast of Chile.
Half-male and half-female chickens studied
EDINBURGH, Scotland, March 15 (UPI) -- Scottish researchers say they've solved a longstanding puzzle -- why some chickens appear to be male on one side of their body and...
Germany to research nuke waste site
BERLIN, March 15 (UPI) -- The German government plans to end a 10-year moratorium by reopening research into a potential nuclear waste storage site, a decision that sparked immediate...
Apparent cause determined for Texas quakes
DALLAS, March 15 (UPI) -- U.S. scientists say they've determined the possible cause of a series of small 2008 and 2009 earthquakes near the Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport.
Siena meat products recalled in Canada
OTTAWA, March 15 (UPI) -- The Canadian Food Inspection Agency is warning people not to eat certain Siena-brand dried meat products because of possible contamination.
Researchers introducing sustainable agriculture practices to improve food security
Two Virginia Tech professors are leading research teams that will work with scientists and small-scale farmers in South America and the Caribbean to increase food production, improve soil quality, and...
Were short warm periods typical for transitions between interglacial and glacial epochs?
At the end of the last interglacial epoch, around 115,000 years ago, there were significant climate fluctuations. In Central and Eastern Europe, the slow transition from the Eemian Interglacial to...
How can accidental captures of loggerhead turtles be reduced?
Spanish scientists have studied interactions between the loggerhead turtle (Caretta caretta) and fishing gear such as longline hooks used at the water surface, mass beachings, and the effects of climate...
Dust-up ensues over Indonesian energy
JAKARTA, March 15 (UPI) -- Government plans to expand work in the geothermal energy sector in Indonesia is counterproductive to efforts to curb deforestation, environmental groups said.
NoMix toilets trendy in 7 European nations
DUEBENDORF, Switzerland, March 15 (UPI) -- Swiss scientists are urging wider support for a new type of eco-friendly toilet that could substantially reduce pollution and conserve water.
More than 1: Long-reigning microbe controlling ocean nitrogen shares the throne
Marine scientists long believed that a microbe called Trichodesmium, a member of a group called the cyanobacteria, reigned over the ocean's nitrogen budget...
Seeing the hidden services of nature
Following an intense study of agricultural ecosystems near Montreal, a new tool that enables the simultaneous analysis and management of a wide range of ecological services has been developed by...
Gulf Keystone cashes in for Iraq work
LONDON, March 15 (UPI) -- Gulf Keystone Petroleum announced Monday that it raised $24 million to fund its drilling campaign in the Kurdish region of Iraq.
Russian gas for Nabucco?
ANKARA, Turkey, March 15 (UPI) -- The partners to the Nabucco pipeline for Europe could look to Russia and Iran for natural gas if rival suppliers don't commit, Turkish...
Arctic crystals hold evidence of early ocean
The theory that oceans covered the Earth four billion years ago has received a boost from a study of crystals found in Greenland.
Sea volcanoes stash carbon
A new study has found undersea volcanoes release iron, improving plankton growth – which takes carbon out of the atmosphere.
Busy bees, but hives are besieged
More than three years after beekeepers starting seeing the sudden disappearance of hive populations, scientists have yet to find the cause for colony collapse disorder. Colony...