California drought linked to climate change, say scientists

Stanford researchers report that the drought now crippling California is likely linked to human-caused climate change. Other researchers disagree.

Video: New 3D look at brain circuitry

New imaging technology provides unprecedented 3-D views of an intact brain's neural structure and its vast internal connections.

Mars and its atmosphere, seen by MOM spacecraft

Two early images from India's MOM spacecraft. One shows an edge of Mars, with the planet's tenuous atmosphere above. The other shows the whole planet. Beautiful!

World population unlikely to stabilize in this century

Experts used “scenarios” to suggest global human population will stabilize around 9 billion by about 2050. A new statistical analysis tells a different story.

Clues to the rapid rise of birds

"There was no moment in time when a dinosaur became a bird, and there is no single missing link between them," said Steve Brusatte, who led the study.

Curiosity rover drill pulls first taste from Mars mountain

The mission's emphasis has changed from drive, drive, drive to systematic layer-by-layer investigation. "Curiosity flew hundreds of millions of miles to do this."

The water in your bottle might be older than the sun

Up to half of the water on Earth and throughout our solar system likely originated as ices that formed in interstellar space.

A young galaxy in the local universe?

The nearby dwarf galaxy DDO 68 - only 39 million light-years away - looks young. But its nearness to us in space suggests it's not as young as it looks.

Why is Antarctic sea ice increasing as Arctic sea ice declines?

Arctic sea ice continued its long-term decline in 2014. Meanwhile, sea ice on the other side of the planet was headed in the opposite direction. Why?

Water vapor in atmosphere of exoplanet four times Earth’s size

The exoplanet HAT P-11b - about Neptune's size - has an atmosphere that's cloudless at high altitudes. That's how astronomers could identify water vapor there.