Climate
- Earth
A drop in CFC emissions puts the hole in the ozone layer back on track to closing
After a recent bump in illicit CFC-11 pollution, emissions of the ozone-destroying chemical are back down to pre-2013 levels.
- Earth
Three things to know about the disastrous flood in India
The flood, which killed at least 30 people, may have been caused by a collapsing glacier or a landslide, with climate change possibly playing a role.
- Climate
Ship exhaust studies overestimate cooling from pollution-altered clouds
Lines of clouds formed by ship exhaust offer a window into aerosol-cloud interactions but may overestimate how much pollution-altered clouds cool the climate.
- Climate
How much will Africa capitalize on cheap renewable energy as its power grid grows?
An analysis of the successes and failures of past electrical power projects across Africa suggests the continent isn’t likely to go green before 2030.
- Climate
‘The New Climate War’ exposes tactics of climate change ‘inactivists’
In his new book, climate scientist Michael Mann draws the battle lines for a new phase of the struggle against climate change denialism.
- Climate
2020 and 2016 tie for the hottest years on record
Ocean temperature data as well as temperatures measured over land at weather stations around the globe revealed the extent of the warming.
- Earth
Earth’s oceans are storing record-breaking amounts of heat
2020 was just the latest in a series of record-breaking years for ocean heat.
- Climate
Ocean acidification may make some species glow brighter
Ocean organisms use bioluminescence for hunting, defense and more. A new analysis shows that declines in water pH might change who glows and how much.
- Climate
What the pandemic can teach us about ways to reduce air pollution
Data collected during COVID-19 shutdowns may help tease out the complicated chemistry that brews poor air quality.
- Chemistry
A new iron-based catalyst converts carbon dioxide into jet fuel
Jet fuel made from carbon dioxide could one day reduce pollution from air travel.
- Climate
Wildfires, heat waves and hurricanes broke all kinds of records in 2020
Climate change did not take a break during the pandemic.
- Earth
Towering fire-fueled thunderclouds can spew as many aerosols as volcanic eruptions
A massive plume of smoke lofted into the stratosphere during Australia’s fires may represent a new class of “volcanic-scale” pyrocumulonimbus clouds.
