Editors' Picks

Air Pollution Has Been a Problem Since the Days of Ancient Rome

By testing ice cores in Greenland, scientists can look back at environmental data from millennia past

Plants Flower Nearly a Month Earlier Than They Did A Century Ago

In 2012, many plants in the eastern U.S. flowered earlier than in any other year on record

Drill, Baby, Drill: Sponges Bore Into Shells Twice as Fast in Acidic Seawater

In acidic water, drilling sponges damage scallops twice as quickly, worsening the effects of ocean acidification.

Science Beats

Trash Threatens Fragile Antarctic Environment

Decaying field huts, open pits of trash and oil-slicked beaches mar King George Island, a logistical hub for Antarctic research
February 12, 2013 | By Mohi Kumar

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The 147-foot-wide rock will pass a scant 17,200 miles from Earth's surface, under the orbits of some telecom satellites
February 12, 2013 | By Joseph Stromberg

A stunning look at starfish reveal beautiful patterns--but what exactly are those wormy structures, bald patches, and spiky maces?
February 08, 2013 | By Hannah Waters

Predicted increases in torrential rain and severe drought will force birds in Asia to relocate in search of food and viable habitat, a new study finds
February 08, 2013 | By Claire Martin

Their intuitive sense of the magnetic field surrounding them allow sockeye salmon to circumnavigate obstacles to find their birth stream
February 07, 2013 | By Marina Koren

A new tool uses satellite imagery to help researchers track small disturbances such as bug infestations, which may increase in scope as climate changes
February 01, 2013 | By Claire Martin

Ambient heat produced by a city's buildings and cars often gets lifted into the jet stream and affects temperatures in places thousands of miles away
January 26, 2013 | By Joseph Stromberg

Preview some of the top-notch shows—on anatomy, bioluminescence, water tanks and more—slated for the next year
December 28, 2012 | By Megan Gambino

A new study suggests that lightning alone—even without the other elements of a thunderstorm—might trigger migraines
January 25, 2013 | By Joseph Stromberg

A new study shows that dispersing minerals into oceans to stem climate change would be an inefficient and impractical process
January 23, 2013 | By Claire Martin

As cities like New York prepare for what appears to be a future of more extreme weather, the focus increasingly is on following nature's lead.
January 23, 2013 | By Randy Rieland

By testing ice cores in Greenland, scientists can look back at environmental data from millennia past
February 2013 | By Joseph Stromberg

Smithsonian Secretary Wayne Clough looks at how our scientists are studying our changing climate
February 2013 | By G. Wayne Clough, Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution

In 2012, many plants in the eastern U.S. flowered earlier than in any other year on record
January 16, 2013 | By Joseph Stromberg

New research on Pacific corals that trace climate patterns back 7,000 years shows how recent El Niños compare with those of the past
January 09, 2013 | By Claire Martin

In acidic water, drilling sponges damage scallops twice as quickly, worsening the effects of ocean acidification.
January 10, 2013 | By Hannah Waters

Drought, heatwaves, cyclones--even a tornado in Hawaii--mark last year as one filled with record-breaking severe weather
January 11, 2013 | By Claire Martin

Freshkills was once the biggest landfill in the world. Today, it's the biggest park in New York City
October 15, 2012 | By Jimmy Stamp

An underground scientist is pioneering a new way to learn what the climate was like thousands of years ago
January 2013 | By J. Madeleine Nash

Smithsonian scientists have taken to the Chesapeake Bay to investigate how marshlands react to the shifting environment
January 2013 | By Joseph Stromberg

Coral reefs and radio telescopes make a trip to the tropics more than worthwhile
January 2013 | By G. Wayne Clough, Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution

The devastating drought of the 1930s forever changed American agriculture. Could those conditions return?
November 16, 2012 | By Sarah Zielinski

When completed in 2013, this series of 170,000 mirrors will power 140,000 California homes
November 2012 | By Mark Strauss

Engineer William Parnell may have found a way to save at-risk cities from destruction
September 2012 | By Zeeya Merali

One hundred years ago, a German scientist was ridiculed for advancing the shocking idea that the continents were adrift
June 2012 | By Richard Conniff

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