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Sluggish start for Arctic sea ice freeze-up
Early ice retreat amid warm Arctic air temperatures set the stage for the slow refreeze in 2020.
December 15, 2020
New marine protection zone will help endangered penguins and more
Plans are in place to create the world’s 4th-largest fully protected marine reserve at the Tristan da Cunha archipelago.
December 4, 2020
Less air pollution during Covid-19 restrictions, says study
NASA researchers have found that since February, pandemic restrictions have reduced global nitrogen dioxide concentrations by nearly 20%.
December 4, 2020
Phew! Record-smashing 2020 Atlantic hurricane season is officially over
November 30 marked the official end of the record-breaking 2020 Atlantic hurricane season, although more storms are still possible. Why did 2020 have so many storms? And what does climate change have to do with it?
December 2, 2020
When is my earliest sunset?
For the southernmost US and similar latitudes, the earliest sunsets of the year are happening now. Your earliest sunset depends on your latitude, but always comes before the winter solstice.
November 29, 2020
Huge iceberg A-68A nears South Georgia Island
Scientists watch as A-68A, currently the planet’s largest iceberg, approaches a remote island in the southern Atlantic Ocean.
November 19, 2020
Clues to Mars life in Earth’s Atacama Desert
Researchers in the U.S. and Spain have discovered a plethora of previously unknown microbes living in wet clay layers below Chile's arid Atacama Desert. The finding will help future rovers search for life on Mars.
November 17, 2020
Scientists discover ancient lake bed deep beneath Greenland ice
The ancient lake bed, sealed more than a mile under Greenland ice, may be hundreds of thousands or millions of years old, and contain unique fossil and chemical traces of past climates and life.
November 14, 2020
2020 Atlantic hurricane season busiest on record
The formation of Subtropical Storm Theta on November 10 over the northeastern Atlantic Ocean made the 2020 season the most active on the 169-year record.
November 11, 2020
Why Arctic sea ice has stalled, and what it means for the rest of the world
In the next few decades, scientists expect we'll see an ice-free Arctic Ocean throughout the summer. That prospect got much closer in 2020, due in part to the exceptional summer heatwave that roiled the Russian Arctic.
November 8, 2020
