Earth
- Materials Science
Qingsongite
This newly christened mineral has an atomic structure that’s similar to diamond and nearly as hard.
- Earth
Wet terrain responsible for Iceland’s hollow lava towers
Normally found underwater, the rocky structures form on land too.
- Climate
Tiny shells hint at hidden ocean warming
Pacific waters are heating up 15 times faster than in earlier eras.
- Earth
Pressure patterns could portend heat waves
High-pressure systems may help scientists forecast temperature hikes 15 to 20 days out.
- Environment
Polluted water interferes with drug that combats parasitic scourge
Arsenic contamination fuels resistance to one treatment for leishmaniasis.
- Environment
Mercury contamination in California to last 10,000 years
Toxic remnants of gold rush will seep into San Francisco area waterways for millennia.
- Earth
Trees mark the spot of buried gold
Tiny bits of the precious metal in eucalyptus leaves indicate treasure lurks belowground.
- Environment
Feedback
Readers respond to "Solving soot," trade-offs of horn size for male Soay sheep and the huge galactic explosion story from 50 years ago.
- Agriculture
Fertilizer has staying power
Nitrogen-based fertilizer may remain in the soil for eight decades, complicating efforts to reduce pollution from runoff into rivers.
- Climate
Tropics to launch into uncharted climate territory by 2038
Global temperatures will take a permanent leap above historical bounds by 2047 if greenhouse gas emissions continue unabated, a simulation suggests.
- Earth
African dust once fertilized the Everglades
Humans aren't the only source of nutrients for Florida’s wetlands. African dust may have fertilized the region thousands of years ago.
- Earth
Deep network
The NEPTUNE observatory — a ring of six underwater research stations connected to the Internet with fiber optic cables — is the first online observatory to brave the depths of the abyss.
