Wildfire smoke messing with orangutans’ eating and sleep

“They sounded raggedy, a little like humans who smoke a lot,” said a researcher who studies orangutans in the Indonesian forests.

2018 Atlantic hurricane season outlook

Atlantic hurricane season starts today. Experts are forecasting a 75% chance that the 2018 season will be near- or above-normal, thanks in part to a weak El Niño.

2017’s costliest hurricanes

Harvey, Irma and Maria - all 2017 hurricanes - are among the top 5 costliest Atlantic hurricanes since record-keeping began in 1851.

Today is Walt Whitman’s birthday

"Love the earth and sun and the animals ..." - Walt Whitman

Top 10 new species 2018

This year's list includes a towering tree and a tiny, single-celled protist, as well as a rare great ape and the fossil of an Australian marsupial lion.

On and in extinction

"I am living a few hundred feet above a scar, a surface representing the worst disaster ever inflicted on planet Earth."

Lightning sprites over Oklahoma

My best sprite lightning capture to date, said long-time observer Paul Smith.

When was Earth’s 1st snow?

A new study suggests our planet got its 1st snowfall about 2.4 billion years ago, after a lot of land rose swiftly from the sea and set off dramatic changes on Earth.

Scientists track major freshwater change

'What we are witnessing is major hydrologic change,' they said. Over 14 years, Earth's wet land areas got wetter. Dry areas got drier. They also reported multiple hot spots resulting from groundwater depletion.

Top tips for poison ivy

Summer is a great time to frolic in the woods, but look out for poison ivy, oak, and sumac! Top tips for summer itch-prevention.