Latest science news in Earth & Climate
Hayabusa capsule recovery begins
Japanese scientists begin the process of retrieving the Hayabusa asteroid sample capsule from the Australian Outback.
Predicting amount of oil in contaminated soils: Scientists develop faster method for testing soils around oil spills
A team of scientists has demonstrated a new method for testing soils for oil contamination that is faster than traditional testing methods.
On the Trail of Methane and Plumes
Scientists from Texas A&M and the University of California at Santa Barbara will try to measure the size of the gulf oil spill more precisely by taking continuous measurements of...
South Stream set for 2013 construction
MOSCOW, June 10 (UPI) -- The South Stream natural gas pipeline to Europe is scheduled for construction in 2013, Russian energy giant Gazprom said in a statement.
Climate change threatens tropical areas
HOUSTON, June 9 (UPI) -- A U.S. study suggests global warming may threaten animal and plant life in hot spots that were once thought to be less likely to...
Gas pipeline to Israel scrapped
ISTANBUL, Turkey, June 9 (UPI) -- Though both sides offered different reasons, Russian and Turkish leaders said a planned natural gas pipeline may no longer stretch to Israel.
Video: Allen: Oil Spill Will Last Into Fall
Coast Guard Adm. Thad Allen, the point man for the federal government's response to the oil spill in the Gulf, said that the fight to stop and contain the oil...
India eyes undersea gas pipeline
NEW DELHI, June 8 (UPI) -- Indian officials said Iran may be warming to the idea of an undersea natural gas pipeline to bypass volatile territory in Pakistan.
Gulf oil spill could widen, worsen 'dead zone'
While an out-of-control gusher deep in the Gulf of Mexico fouls beaches and chokes marshland habitat, another threat could be growing below the oil-slicked surface. The nation's worst oil spill...
Thousands report feeling magnitude 3.7 Santa Monica Bay earthquake
Thousands of people from around the Los Angeles area reported feeling a series of small earthquakes that struck the Santa Monica Bay on Monday.
Water source discovered near Death Valley
About 10,000 gallons of water per minute gush up from the desert floor at an oasis near Death Valley, Nev., but only after the water completes a slow 15,000-year underground...
NJIT professor tells architects building practices to withstand hurricanes
Rima Taher, an expert in the design of low-rise buildings for extreme winds and hurricane, hopes her phone won’t ring much this hurricane season. It’s already been ...
USGS: Drug companies cause water pollution
RESTON, Va., June 7 (UPI) -- U.S. Geological Survey scientists say they've identified pharmaceutical manufacturing facilities as significant sources of surface water pollution.
Study: Filter cleans water, recovers oil
PITTSBURGH, June 7 (UPI) -- A U.S. engineering professor says he has developed a polymer-based filter that successfully cleaned water while recovering oil in Gulf of Mexico tests.
Germany mulls nuclear extension
BERLIN, June 7 (UPI) -- The German government will extend the running times of its nuclear power plants by no more than ten years.
Helen Thomas retires after Israel remark flap
Longtime Washington journalist Helen Thomas abruptly retired Monday, according to her employer, Hearst News Service.
Taking the guesswork out of soil classification
A University of Missouri doctoral student has developed a technique that uses digital imaging of soil samples to take some of the guesswork out of wetland identification...
New York State Cracks Down on E-Waste
New York joins 22 other states in passing an e-waste recycling law.
Pole-to-pole climate research: Adaptation lessons from tiny springtails
What can minuscule soil-dwellers teach us about nature's adaptation to climate change? Researchers in Norway and South Africa are using springtails as model systems in order to study how different...
China and US can measure and report their emissions
The United States and China, by far the world's two biggest emitters of greenhouse gas pollution, have the technology and processes in place right now to accurately measure and report...
Arsonist who set Station Fire still at large; reward is extended
Ten months after the largest fire in L.A. County history killed two firefighters, authorities are still looking for the arsonist who set the blaze.
Russia's Rosneft moving into Iraq?
SHARJAH, United Arab Emirates, June 7 (UPI) -- Russian oil giant Rosneft will make its debut in the Middle East when it teams with Emirati energy company Crescent, executives...
Statoil touts Arctic experience
STAVANGER, Norway, June 7 (UPI) -- Experience gained from gas production in the Arctic paves the way to future developments in the Barents Sea, Norwegian energy giant Statoil announced.
Collection improving, BP says
NEW ORLEANS, June 7 (UPI) -- Oil collection from the latest effort to control the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico is improving, though an assessment is a...
Norway's PM co-chair of climate group
UNITED NATIONS, June 7 (UPI) -- Norwegian Prime Minister Jens Stoltenberg accepted the nomination to help lead a U.N.-backed panel on climate change, the U.N. secretary-general said.
An IPCC for biodiversity?
A global, independent panel will build scientific capacity and raise awareness of biodiversity change, says an editorial in Nature.
Wider windrows can help dry alfalfa for dairy silage
(PhysOrg.com) -- The alfalfa silage harvests happening this month can shape the success of an entire year's milk production. That's according to South Dakota Cooperative Extension Dairy Specialist...
New tsunami early warning system stands guard
(PhysOrg.com) -- The 2004 Boxing Day tsunami killed 230,000 people. The next time a tsunami threatens Indian Ocean nations, a lifesaving early warning system spearheaded by the EU will be...