Earth

  1. Climate

    California drought worst in at least 1,200 years

    The current California drought is the most severe in 1,200 years, according to historical information gleaned from tree rings.

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  2. Climate

    Resilience protects corals from hurricanes — and climate change

    Coral reefs have evolved to be resilient in the face of hurricanes that can devastate human populations. But climate change is reducing the ability of reefs to bounce back from disaster.

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  3. Environment

    Black carbon fouls New York subway stations

    Black carbon, a respiratory irritant, fouls air in New York subway stations.

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  4. Climate

    Greenhouse gases may spell wet future for Africa

    Greenhouse gases played a role in boosting rainfall in Africa 14,000 to 21,000 years ago, a finding that may help predict future abundance of water on the continent.

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  5. Earth

    Feedback

    Readers comment on changing bird populations, question the usefulness of a new medical test and discuss the interesting physics behind rainbows.

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  6. Planetary Science

    Preparing for disaster, celebrating success

    Science cannot prevent all disasters or solve all the problems they spawn, but it can point to the best ways to prepare, making disasters less damaging than they might otherwise be

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  7. Earth

    Studying a volcano in a war zone

    New isotope analyses offer bad news for the people of Goma, a burgeoning city in the Democratic Republic of the Congo: Mount Nyiragongo may be more dangerous than expected.

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  8. Earth

    Exhibit lays out principles for disaster-resistant structures

    The National Building Museum’s ‘Designing for Disaster’ exhibit showcases the science and engineering of making disaster-resistant infrastructure.

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  9. Earth

    Earth’s most abundant mineral finally has a name

    Bridgmanite, the planet’s most common mineral, christened after traces found in 1879 meteorite.

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  10. Oceans

    Robotic subs reveal thicker Antarctic sea ice

    New measurements by robotic subs suggest that scientists have underestimated Antarctic sea ice thickness.

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  11. Earth

    ‘Mass Extinction’ vivifies the science of die-offs

    The dinosaurs were killed off some 65 million years ago after a colossal asteroid struck Earth. But what many people probably don’t know is how paleontologists came to that conclusion. "Mass Extinction: Life at the Brink" tells that story.

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  12. Animals

    Scientists’ tags on fish may be leading seals to lunch

    In an experiment, 10 young grey seals learned to associate the sound of a pinging tag with fish. The tags may make fish vulnerable to predators, scientists say.

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