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Earth Science

New research shows that abnormally cool waters in the Pacific, part of a natural cycle, have masked the warming we should have seen due to greenhouse gas emissions. When the waters go back to normal, global warming will likely accelerate.

Why Global Warming Has Paused—And Why It Will Soon Start Up Again

Abnormally cool waters in the Pacific, part of a natural cycle, have masked the underlying warming caused by humans burning fossil fuels

The Rim Fire

Wildfires Now Could Mean Floods Next Spring

By burning down trees, wildfires open the door for future flooding

The Bullialdhus Crater. It looks little, but it ain’t.

The Moon Had Water Since the Day It Was Born

The Moon was birthed from the Earth—a blob of molten rock sent spiraling off into space in the aftermath of a massive collision 4.5 billion years ago

The Yosemite fire as photographed by astronaut Karen Nyberg on Saturday

Yosemite Is Burning, And California Hasn’t Even Hit Peak Fire Season

The peak of California’s fire season is usually in September and October

Five Unusual Ways Scientists Are Studying Climate Change

Fossilized urine, old naval logbooks and the recent speeds of satellites are among the unexpected records that track changing climate

Watch This Sinkhole Swallow a Chunk of Louisiana Bayou Whole

The hole has been name the Bayou Corne Sinkhole, and has already forced the evacuation of 300 nearby residents, lest they also be swallowed into the swamp

Sprites over Red Willow County, Nebraska, on August 12, 2013

Scientists Capture Rare Photographs of Red Lightning

Graduate student Jason Ahrns and colleagues hunt the skies for sprites—fleeting streaks and bursts of color that can appear above thunderstorms

McShea (in Posey Hollow): “Nobody has tried anything nearly as comprehensive.”

A Scientific Laboratory 170 Feet High in the Sky

Grand-scale ecology brings a Virginia forest under unprecedented scrutiny by Smithsonian researchers

It’s 95 Percent Certain That We’re the Main Cause of Climate Change

A leaked copy of an upcoming report reinforces the fact that we are the main cause of modern climate change

From 1700 to 2000, the evolution of American anthromes

Watch How America’s Lands Changed From Forests to Fields

“Arthromes” are like biomes, but they acknowledge humanity’s influence

In new research, Japanese scientists determined that warmer temperatures have gradually made the Fuji apples mealier and less flavorful.

Climate Change Is Altering the Taste and Texture of Fuji Apples

Japanese scientists determined that warmer temperatures have gradually made the fruits mealier and less flavorful

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Waters Around Antarctica May Preserve Wooden Shipwrecks for Centuries

Some capsized ships may linger on the ocean floor indefinitely

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Shark Repellent: It’s Not Just For Batman Anymore

It was actually first developed during World War II in an effort to help save the lives of seamen and pilots who had to await rescue in open water

Nuclear power produces a great deal of energy–and waste.

Energy Innovation

Is Shale the Answer to America’s Nuclear Waste Woes?

With the plans for a Yucca Mountain waste repository scrapped, scientists suggest that clay-rich rocks could permanently house spent nuclear fuel

Wildfires burning in Alaska

Arctic Forests Are On Fire Now More Than at Any Point in the Past 10,000 Years

The Arctic is burning stronger and more often, but what the future holds is still up in the air

An English Town Had to Dye This Beautiful Lagoon Black to Get People to Stop Swimming in It

The lagoon is so blue it attracts visitors from all over. The problem is that the lagoon is incredibly toxic.

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Tatooine Is About To Be Reclaimed by the Desert

The Star Wars set is about to be buried, but in the mean time it’s helping scientists do real research

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The End of the World Might Just Look Like This

Artist Ron Miller presents several scenarios—most of them scientifically plausible—of landscapes imperiled and of Earth meeting its demise

Flooded streets in Kolkata following heavy June rains Elsewhere in the country, flooding from the monsoon was much more extensive.

5,700 Dead As India Struggles With Changing Monsoon

As the climate changes, India’s monsoon is changing with it

ARBIMON—a system of distributed recording stations and centralized analysis software—was used to track populations of the endangered plains coqui frog, in Puerto Rico.

A New Technology Can Remotely Analyze an Ecosystem’s Species By its Sound

By distributing networks of microphones to wetlands and forests around the world, biologists could track biodiversity in a whole new way

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