Latest science news in Earth & Climate
Climate change linked to major vegetation shifts worldwide
Vegetation around the world is on the move, and climate change is the culprit, according to a new analysis of global vegetation shifts.
Surfing crocodiles travel far
UQ ecologists have unlocked the mystery of how salt-water crocodiles travel long distances across the ocean: they surf ocean currents.
Survey Shows Poorly Designed Wastewater Treatment Plants May Emit More Nitrous Oxide
(PhysOrg.com) -- The first large-scale survey of 12 wastewater plants across the U.S., led by Columbia scientists, shows that the magnitude of N2O emissions from these wastewater treatment plants may...
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...
Could life survive on Mars? Yes, expert says
Researchers at McGill's department of natural resources, the National Research Council of Canada, the University of Toronto and the SETI Institute have discovered that methane-eating bacteria survive in a highly...
Not Just Pelicans in Peril, But Pancake Batfish, Too
As far as oil spill poster animals go, the pancake batfish seems unlikely to...
Brazilian Water Protection Could Be a $100M Market
With conservation cheaper than cleanup, governments are paying people to protect water supplies at the source ...
The Human Equation
A federal judge, in two rulings regarding pumping Sacramento River delta water to California's central valley, insists that environmental analyses are invalid unless they take humans into account.
Disaster Laws: Will Gulf Oil Spill Change Anything?
Will the Gulf Oil Leak provoke government regulations in the same fashion as earlier environmental and industrial disasters?
France gives major boost to international water treaty
France is set to become the 20th country to sign up to a key international convention governing the use and protection of rivers and lakes crossing or forming international boundaries...
Earth from Space: A smoke-free Iceland
(PhysOrg.com) -- This Envisat image features a smoke-free Iceland. Although the island has received a lot of attention in the past months for its volcanic activity, it is also home...
Drilling into the unknown -- the first exploration of a sub-glacial Antarctic lake is a major step closer
(PhysOrg.com) -- Scientists have located the ideal drill site for the first ever exploration of an Antarctic sub-glacial lake, a development that it likely to facilitate a revolution in climate-change...
EasyJet to test infrared ash detectors on planes
Low-cost British airline easyJet PLC unveiled plans Friday to test the ability of infrared technology to detect volcanic ash clouds and urged other airlines to help map the ash risk...
Drugmakers Wash Painkillers Down The Drain
Water pollutants: Sewage treatment plants that serve drugmakers release pharmaceuticals at high concentrations.
Agronomist: Monitor winter wheat crop for freeze damage
(PhysOrg.com) -- Winter wheat producers should carefully monitor their crops over the next week to assess possible damage from late frosts.
Head to Head on Energy and Climate
An exchange of views on oil troubles, climate policy and other environmental issues.
Q&A: Andreas Schild and sharing climate data
Hindu-Kush-Himalayan countries need to share data and collaborate better to tackle climate change, Andreas Schild tells SciDev.Net.
Ankara halts energy projects with Israel
ANKARA, Turkey, June 4 (UPI) -- Ankara suspended several energy projects with Israel until bilateral ties are normalized in the wake of the aid flotilla raid, the Turkish energy...
U.N.: Damaged ecosystems can create wealth
KIGALI, Rwanda, June 4 (UPI) -- Targeted investments will be central to preserving natural reserves and generating wealth in developing nations, U.N. officials said in Rwanda.
Russians say BP rejected their help
MOSCOW, June 4 (UPI) -- U.S. authorities would be "appalled" if the Russian mini-submarine Mir were dispatched to help control the Gulf of Mexico oil spill, Russian officials said.
Megacities in Berlin to discuss climate
By STEFAN NICOLAUPI Europe CorrespondentBERLIN, June 4 (UPI) -- Representatives of the world's biggest cities are flocking to Berlin to learn how to make urban energy supply more efficient...
BP may begin pumping oil to surface
A cap placed atop a gushing well on the floor of the Gulf of Mexico could allow BP officials to begin pumping oil to the surface later Friday, the Coast...
For Five Days of Oil
The oil deposit now leaking slowly into the sea would have provided about five days' worth of oil to Americans.
Insuring the world’s poor against climate change
By ANNIE SNIDER, MEDILL NEWS SERVICEWritten for UPIWASHINGTON, June 4 (UPI) -- With climate legislation stalled in the U.S. Senate and international climate control negotiations facing equally daunting obstacles,...
BP exec says cap is collecting some oil in Gulf
Chief Operating Officer Doug Suttles says it will be later in the day before they know how much is being captured. Obama will visit the area today. BP reported some oil was...
Now, New York Is His Oyster
Fabien Cousteau, grandson of the famous Jacques Cousteau and son of diver Jean Michael Cousteau, is a noted deep sea explorer and documentary filmmaker. His new non-profit, Plant a...
Ocean Acidification in the Arctic: What are the consequences of carbon dioxide increase on marine ecosystems?
Carbon dioxide emissions not only lead to global warming, but also cause another, less well-known but equally disconcerting environmental change: ocean acidification. Scientists have just started the first major CO2...
Logs Show Coast Guard Saw Potential Threat Early
Coast Guard officials grasped the potential threat of a catastrophic spill within hours of the explosion on board the Deepwater Horizon drilling rig, logs show.