The politico-economics of King Corn

Scott Fausti talks with EarthSky's Ben Duval about the potential future of corn agriculture and its implications for environmental sustainability.

Extremely loud, very close lightning strike

Caution! At full volume, the sound of the strike is so loud that it could damage speakers or affect hearing if headphones are used. Story and video by Peter Lowenstein in Mutare, Zimbabwe.

Extraordinary fossil find sheds light on duck-billed dinosaurs

Duck-billed dinosaurs lived 83 million years ago. They are sometimes called 'the cows of the Cretaceous.' A new fossil find reveals their origins.

Greatest-ever debris flow video

It starts slowly, but then ... whoa!

Is El Niño at its peak?

This year's El Niño has likely reached its peak, say scientists, but given that Earth is hotter than in 135 years, there are no guarantees.

X-ray view of Earth’s aurora

An ESA space observatory was looking for something else when it caught these X-ray images of an aurora.

Ancient diamonds hold clues to primeval Earth

New insights into ancient Earth’s early structure from diamonds formed 3.5 billion years ago. A scientist called diamonds "the perfect little time capsules."

Magnitude-7.1 earthquake in Alaska

There were no reports of injuries, but the powerful earthquake left a fair amount of cleanup to do, plus some frightened people in Alaska.

2015 hottest year on record, by far

"What we have seen this past year will likely be routine in about 15 years, although regionally the details will vary considerably," says climate expert Kevin Trenberth.

How to take photos of snowflakes

Try it yourself! With a little preparation and a good camera and with a macro lens, you can take your own photos of snowflakes.