Climatology
Saving Top Predators Could Have a Climate Change Benefit, Too
Through their effect on the food web, shifting predator populations can change greenhouse gas levels
February 18, 2013 |
By Colin Schultz
Parched Middle East Faces Severe Water Crisis
Drought and over-pumping has led to groundwater losses in the Middle East that equal almost the entire volume of the Dead Sea, a new study shows.
February 15, 2013 |
By Claire Martin
Climate Change’s Latest Victim: Canada’s Outdoor Ice Rinks
A new project asks citizens to monitor their backyard rinks, helping to track how a warming climate is affecting Canada's skating tradition
February 15, 2013 |
By Joseph Stromberg
Can Birds Survive Climate Change?
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
Minnesota’s Moose Are Missing, And No One Really Knows Why
Disease? Warm summers? No one knows for sure what is leading to the moose's decline in this state
February 08, 2013 |
By Colin Schultz
How to Sleep Like Salvador Dali
Dali felt as though sleep was a waste of time (so did Edison, and many other influential people) but science suggests that sleep is pretty important
February 07, 2013 |
By Rose Eveleth
The Iditarod Is Being Threatened by Warm Temperatures
A lack of snow is affecting the annual Iditarod sled dog race
February 06, 2013 |
By Colin Schultz
Earthworms Could Make Climate Change Worse
While earthworms benefit soils, they do play a significant role in greenhouse gas emissions worldwide - though not nearly as great as humans, of course
February 05, 2013 |
By Rachel Nuwer
Scientists See Insect Outbreaks From Space
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
How Climate Change Affects the Smithsonian
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
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
February 2013 |
By Joseph Stromberg
How Long Can Turtles Stay Underwater and Other Questions From Our Readers
You asked? We answered
February 2013 |
By Smithsonian magazine
Urban Heat Islands Can Alter Temperatures Thousands of Miles Away From a City
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
Scientists Dismiss Geo-Engineering as a Global Warming Quick Fix
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
Here’s Why It Is Really, Really Cold Out
Blame this increasingly-common form of Arctic circulation for today's frigid weather
January 22, 2013 |
By Colin Schultz
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
January 16, 2013 |
By Joseph Stromberg
Black Carbon May Contribute Almost as Much as Carbon Dioxide to Global Warming
Black carbon's role in driving warming is much higher than previously thought
January 16, 2013 |
By Colin Schultz
NASA Drones to Study Stratosphere for Climate Change Clues
On Friday, the agency will send an unmanned aircraft 65,000 feet above the Pacific Ocean to gather data for use in climate change modeling
January 16, 2013 |
By Claire Martin
Round Three: Drills vs. Insanely Thick Antarctic Ice. Fight!
The hunt for microbial life in Antarctic subglacial lakes continues. Now it's the American's turn
January 15, 2013 |
By Colin Schultz
Scorchingly Hot 2012 Riddled With Extreme Weather
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
