Earth

  1. Environment

    Rare earth elements could be pulled from coal waste

    The scheme would provide valuable rare earth metals and help clean up coal mining’s dirty legacy.

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  2. Astronomy

    New data show how quickly light pollution is obscuring the night sky

    Tens of thousands of observations from citizen scientists spanning a decade show that the night sky is getting about 10 percent brighter every year.

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  3. Climate

    Cyclones in the Arctic are becoming more intense and frequent

    Over the last 70 years, boreal storms have steadily grown stronger. And climate change may make them worse, threatening both people and sea ice.

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  4. Physics

    A powerful laser can redirect lightning strikes

    In a mountaintop experiment, a laser beamed into the sky created a virtual lightning rod that snagged several bolts before they hit the ground.

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  5. Chemistry

    How rare earth elements’ hidden properties make modern technology possible

    Because of their unique chemistry, the rare earth elements can fine-tune light for many different purposes and generate powerful magnetic fields.

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  6. Science & Society

    Sea life offers a lens for self-exploration in ‘How Far the Light Reaches’

    In a collection of essays profiling 10 marine animals, author Sabrina Imbler mixes in stories of their own family, self-discovery, sexuality and healing.

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  7. Earth

    Rare earth mining may be key to our renewable energy future. But at what cost?

    We take you inside Mountain Pass, the only rare earth mine in the United States.

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  8. Earth

    Indigenous people may have created the Amazon’s ‘dark earth’ on purpose

    Modern Amazonians make nutrient-rich soil from ash, food scraps and burns. The soil strongly resembles ancient dark soils found in the region.

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  9. Climate

    Extreme weather in 2022 showed the global impact of climate change

    Heat waves, floods, wildfires and drought around the world were exacerbated by Earth’s changing climate.

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  10. Earth

    No, Yellowstone isn’t about to erupt, even after more magma was found

    A new study offers the best views yet of what lurks beneath the Yellowstone supervolcano.

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  11. Climate

    2022’s biggest climate change bill pushes clean energy

    Experts weigh in on the pros and cons of the United States’ first major climate change legislation, the Inflation Reduction Act, signed this year.

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  12. Earth

    The Hunga Tonga volcano eruption touched space and spawned a lightning blitz

    The eruption of the Hunga Tonga-Hunga Ha’apai volcano in the Pacific Ocean earlier this year was one for the record books — in several surprising ways.

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