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Dark for 2 years after dino-killing asteroid?
Can you imagine a sky so laden with soot that all of Earth stayed dark for 2 years? New research suggests it happened, at the end of the age of the dinosaurs.
August 31, 2017
Earliest flying mammals discovered
Two 160 million-year-old fossils discovered in China are the oldest known mammal gliders. “These Jurassic mammals are truly ‘the first in glide.’”
August 30, 2017
Floods: Not just a coastal issue
As Hurricane Harvey shows, flooding can happen wherever large storms stall and dump lots of rain. A new study finds development is increasing in flood zones far from any coast.
August 29, 2017
Hidden river once flowed under Antarctica
"Ice, by itself, is only capable of flowing at velocities of no more than tens of meters per year. That means the ice is being helped along. It’s sliding on water or mud or both."
August 25, 2017
July 2017 tied with 2016 for hottest July
It was another hot July. Last month was tied with July 2016 as the warmest July in the 137 years of modern record-keeping.
August 23, 2017
Largest-ever Gulf of Mexico dead zone
For 32 years, scientists have tracked the oxygen-depleted waters that appear each summer in the Gulf of Mexico. This year's dead zone is the biggest yet.
August 21, 2017
It’s smoky in the Pacific Northwest
The smoke is from wildfires, an increasingly common occurrence at this time of year. It can't be welcome news to those who've planned trips to that area for the August 21 total solar eclipse.
August 10, 2017
Intense Antarctic melt season causes decade-long effects
Multi-decade study reveals changes in Antarctica's Dry Valleys and suggests "significant transformations of Antarctic ecosystems are underway now and will continue to be affected by future climate events."
August 8, 2017
Earth’s eclipses are special
Solar eclipses aren't exclusive to Earth, but eclipses viewed from our planet have few rivals in the solar system. A word about Earth's solar eclipses, and what eclipses would be like on other planets, here.
August 3, 2017
To restore soils, feed the microbes
Healthy soil teems with bacteria, fungi, viruses and other microorganisms that help store carbon and fend off plant diseases.
August 3, 2017
