Earth

  1. Climate

    In ‘Warming Up,’ the sports world’s newest opponent is climate change

    In her debut book, Madeleine Orr presents an authoritative account of climate change’s impact on sports, and how the industry can fight back.

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  2. Earth

    Something weird is happening to Earth’s inner core

    A new study claims to confirm that the inner core is now rotating more slowly than it was over a decade ago, but some researchers remain skeptical.

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  3. Climate

    A heat dome is baking the United States. Here’s why that’s so dangerous

    As climate change makes heat waves more frequent and intense, older adults, pregnant people and others are at higher risk for heat-related symptoms.

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  4. Earth

    50 years ago, the sun’s influence on Earth’s lightning was revealed

    The solar wind and sunspots seem to give lightning a boost. But exactly how solar activity stimulates strikes is an enduring mystery.

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  5. Climate

    The Arctic is warming rapidly. These clouds may hold clues as to why

    Climate simulations can’t fully handle towering Arctic thunderclouds. So scientists have been flying a C-130 into and around the clouds to learn more.

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  6. Earth

    Geoscientists found the most dangerous part of a famous West Coast fault

    Seismic data reveal that the Cascadia megathrust consists of at least four segments, the most dangerous of which may lurk offshore of Washington.

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  7. Earth

    In 2018, Hawaii’s Kilauea volcano erupted like a stomp rocket

    The stomp rocket–like mechanism is a newly observed type of eruption.

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  8. Earth

    Freshwater first appeared on Earth 4 billion years ago, ancient crystals hint

    Oxygen ratios in ancient zircon crystals suggest that the planet’s water cycle got started hundreds of millions of years earlier than thought.

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  9. Climate

    Warm water is sneaking underneath the Thwaites Glacier — and rapidly melting it

    The salty water, just 3.6 degrees Celsius above the ice’s melting point, is undermining the foundation of the Antarctic glacier.

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  10. Environment

    ‘The High Seas’ tells of the many ways humans are laying claim to the ocean

    The book explains how the race for ocean resources from fish to ores to new medicines — the Blue Acceleration — is playing out.

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  11. Earth

    A weaker magnetic field may have paved the way for marine life to go big

    Decreased protection from cosmic radiation may have increased oxygen levels in the atmosphere and oceans, allowing animals to grow larger.

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  12. Earth

    A hidden danger lurks beneath Yellowstone

    A volcanic eruption at Yellowstone is unlikely anytime soon, but evidence is growing that a violent hydrothermal, or steam, explosion is possible.

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