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Global Warming

“We’ve been raising CO2 in this marsh for 30 years, but [elevated] CO2 comes with warming,” says Pat Megonigal, lead researcher of the new study in the Global Change Research Wetland at Smithsonian Environmental Research Center (SERC).

Age of Humans

For the World’s Wetlands, It May Be Sink or Swim. Here’s Why It Matters

One of the world’s most long-studied marshes has revealed a wealth of information, but it continues to perplex and intrigue the scientists who analyze it

Does Altitude Affect Animals the Same Way it Affects Humans and More Questions From Our Readers

You asked, we answered

Everybody Loves Lists

Our Top Ten Stories of 2015

From treasures buried in glaciers to the racial history of a vanished city in Oregon, here are the most-read stories on Smithsonian.com this year

New Research

Is Global Warming Changing How Fast the Earth Spins?

New research suggests that as glaciers melt, the planet’s axis is shifting

On the last day of the climate conference in Paris, thousands of people gathered to demonstrate for global climate justice and against climate change.

Trending Today

Four Things to Know About the Paris Climate Deal

The strengths and limitations of the roadmap for fighting climate change

With the recent opening of the Northwest Passage in the Arctic due to melting sea ice barriers, Smithsonian research biologist Seabird McKeon and his team report increasing numbers of animals making the journey into new territories.

Age of Humans

If Atlantic and Pacific Sea Worlds Collide, Does That Spell Catastrophe?

While the Arctic ice melt is opening up east to west shipping lanes, some 75 animals species might also make the journey

Cool Finds

This Visualization of the World’s Carbon Emissions Is Chillingly Beautiful

A NASA simulation shows how carbon dioxide moves

Iceberg, Amundsen Sea, Antarctica

New Research

What is Happening to Antarctica’s Ice Sheets

While parts of Antarctica get icier, others are on the verge of collapse

Ask Smithsonian

Why Do Astronauts on the International Space Station Float and More Questions From Our Readers

You asked, we answered

New Research

Climate Change Is Turning 500-Year Floods Into 24-Year Ones

Rising sea levels and an increase in large storms will continue to threaten the Atlantic coast

New Research

King Crabs Are About to Take Over Antarctica

As oceans warm, Antarctica braces for an invasion of shell-cracking crabs

Cool Finds

Scientists Have Been Talking About Greenhouse Gases for 191 Years

The first explorations of the greenhouse effect began in 1824

A glacier in Svaldbard

Cool Finds

As Glaciers Retreat, They Give up the Bodies and Artifacts They Swallowed

Around the world global warming is exposing bodies lost in glaciers

Anthropocene

Scientists Discover Sudden Melting in the Antarctic

Warmer waters are eating away at protective ice shelves, letting glaciers flow into the sea

Cool Finds

This Man Plans to Spend a Year Living in a Giant Ball on an Iceberg

Adventurer Alex Bellini wants to watch a Greenland iceberg melt while he dwells in a “survival pod”

Cool Finds

Fish Can Adjust Gender Balance in Face of Rising Temperatures

Warmer waters mean fewer female reef fish. But, over generations, populations can restore the balance.

New Research

Population Growth Can Warm a City As Much As Climate Change

Urbanization in California’s Central Valley could raise local temperatures an extra one to two degrees Celcius

Icebergs break off, or calve, from the Dawes Glacier at the end of Endicott Arm in southeast Alaska.

New Research

The Loud Noise of Melting Glaciers May Actually Be Good for Animals

Melting glacier ice has been found to the loudest noise in the ocean—what does that mean for marine animals?

New Research

Canada’s Outdoor Ice Skating Rinks’ Days Are Numbered Thanks to Climate Change

Skating rinks are already open for fewer days in the year than they were just a decade ago

New Research

Even A/C Can’t Keep Our Economies From Slacking Off on Hot Days

As global warming turns up the temperature on the planet, it’s going to be tougher to get anything done

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