Latest science news in Earth & Climate
Chevron Remains Committed to Deepwater Drilling
A top company executive says that it expects little long-term impact from the moratorium on oil drilling in the Gulf of Mexico.
OU GeoChip technology plays critical role in Gulf of Mexico deepwater oil plume study
A University of Oklahoma technology - GeoChip - played a critical role in an intensive study of the dispersed oil plume that formed at a depth between 3,600 and 4,000...
Coral off Puerto Rico's coast 'ideal case study' for Gulf oil spill's impact
Coral living off the coast of Puerto Rico may provide researchers valuable information about the potential impact of the Gulf of Mexico oil spill...
Cement, the glue that holds oyster families together
Oyster reefs are on the decline, with over-harvesting and pollution reducing some stocks as much as 98 percent over the last two centuries. With a growing awareness of oysters' critical...
France prepares to drain alpine lake
PARIS, Aug. 25 (UPI) -- French engineers say they've begun an operation to drain a hidden like under a glacier on Mont Blanc that threatens to flood a valley. ...
Canada's lost salmon found
Sockeye salmon, which mysteriously vanished last year prompting a government inquiry, are expected to return to Canada's Fraser River this month in numbers not seen since 1913, officials said Wednesday.
Dustup over Nigeria oil spill report
ABUJA, Nigeria, Aug. 25 (UPI) -- It is too early to criticize a U.N.-backed examination into oil spills in the Niger Delta, a U.N. environmental group said. ...
U.N. explores gas hydrates for energy
ARENDAL, Norway, Aug. 25 (UPI) -- The United States has enough natural gas locked in methane gas hydrates to last 100 years, researchers at the U.N. Environment Program said. ...
PKK blamed for gas pipeline blast
TEHRAN, Aug. 25 (UPI) -- The Kurdistan Workers' Party is responsible for an explosion on a pipeline carrying Iranian natural gas to Turkey, Tehran said. ...
Marathon may be fined for deadly explosion
WASHINGTON, Aug. 25 (UPI) -- The pipeline division of energy company Marathon faces a $1 million penalty for an accident that killed one worker in Louisiana, the U.S. government...
Study predicts massive impact of drought tolerant maize in Africa
NAIROBI, KENYA (26 AUGUST 2010) -- As climate change intensifies drought conditions in Africa and sparks fears of a new cycle of crippling food shortages, a study released today finds...
NASA satellite sees Tropical Storm Mindulle make landfall in Vietnam
Tropical Storm Mindulle came ashore in central Vietnam today, August 24 and brought heavy rainfall and gusty winds with it. NASA's Aqua satellite captured strong convection and thunderstorms in Mindulle's...
Making an explosive double date with Russian volcanoes
Two French scientists are travelling to one of the remotest places on Earth, the Kamchatka peninsula, to piece together the complex life story of two volcanoes...
New study shows how giant tortoises, alligators thrived in High Arctic 50 million years ago
A new study of the High Arctic climate roughly 50 million years ago led by the University of Colorado at Boulder helps to explain how ancient alligators and giant tortoises...
Ward Hunt Ice Shelf loses chunk
A large parcel of ice has fractured from a massive ice shelf on Ellesmere Island, the third known case of Arctic ice loss this summer alone.
China launches mapping satellite
BEIJING, Aug. 24 (UPI) -- China launched an Earth mapping satellite into polar orbit Tuesday, official Chinese media outlets said. ...
Snow crabs found clustered around methane vents at bottom of Sea of Japan
Large clusters of a type of snow crab called benizuwaigani have been discovered around methane vents at the bottom of the Sea of Japan, but scientists are not quite sure...
The Gates Path to an Energy Revolution
Bill Gates lays out a path toward a clean-energy future, with sustained money for innovation a core need.
Facebook campaign to save Canadian bears caught in drug bust
An international campaign with the help of social networking site Facebook hopes to save the lives of some 14 black bears used to guard an illegal marijuana farm in western...
Fish farming projects in B.C. get funding boost
The federal government announced $640,000 in funding this week for six aquaculture projects in B.C. aimed at reducing the harmful impact of salmon farming and promoting sustainable fish farming practices.
Pakistan floods: Deluges after the deluge | Jeremy Hunt
Catastrophic floods in Pakistan are likely to recur as global warming combines with El NiñoThe Pakistani crisis is already one of the very first order. Some 20 million people have been left homeless,...
Report: Grand Canyon park at 'risk'
PHOENIX, Aug. 24 (UPI) -- The Grand Canyon, one of America's iconic national parks, is under threat from without and within, a report from a conservation group says. ...
Moldova seizes smuggled uranium
Moldovan police have seized 1.8kg of uranium-238 in the capital, Chisinau, interior ministry officials say.
Scientists map origin of large, underwater hydrocarbon plume in Gulf
Scientists funded by the National Science Foundation (NSF) and affiliated with the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI) have detected a plume of hydrocarbons at least 22 miles long and more...
Fruit flies use horizontal landmarks for altitude control, says Caltech research team
PASADENA, Calif. -- Flies follow horizontal edges to regulate altitude, says a team of researchers from the California Institute of Technology (Caltech). This finding contradicts a previous model,...
Low Fly-Overs Measure Thickness of Melting Arctic Ice
Efforts could paint clearer picture of the state of Arctic in a warming world.
Noble gas detection system reaches maturity
The Preparatory Commission for the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty Organization certified the first noble gas detection system at its radionuclide station in Charlottesville, Va., United States, on Aug. 19, 2010. The...
National Briefings | Midwest: Illinois: 5 States Seek to Close Possible Carp Route
The states are asking a federal judge to take emergency action to close two shipping locks and install barriers to prevent Asian carp from overrunning the Great Lakes via a...