Earth

Earth

Charcoal warms the whole world

The techniques used in developing nations to transform wood into charcoal are net emitters of greenhouse gases, even though the wood used to produce the fuel removed globe-warming carbon dioxide from the atmosphere as it was growing.

Earth

Fire Retardant Catfish?

It may sound like a barbecue chefs dream: fish that wont catch fire and char when their fat spatters onto overly hot charcoal. But the facts are less appealing. Although many U.S. fish contain fire retardants, they wont protect your grilled fare from burning. In fact, these compounds, which go by the name of polybrominated […]

Earth

Fishy data hid decline in global catch

Many coastal fisheries are in trouble, yet according to figures reported to the United Nations, the annual global yield has appeared to be stable or even growing.

Earth

Transgenes migrate into old races of maize

Genes from bioengineered corn have somehow strayed into the traditional varieties of southern Mexico.

Earth

Dried-up California lake gets muddy facial

A new dust-abatement program is transforming the nation's biggest source of respirable dust into a sea of nonpolluting mud.

Earth

Tough Choices

Federal programs to preserve water in streams during droughts have prompted lawsuits and new pressures on endangered species and the law that protects them.

Earth

Ripples Spread Wide from Ground Zero

Seismic vibrations produced by the collapse of the twin towers of the World Trade Center in lower Manhattan were recorded by seismometers scattered across the Northeast, some more than 425 kilometers away.

Earth

The Mountain

Tall, steep slopes, a crest of glacial ice that's larger than that on any other mountain in the lower 48 United States, and a burgeoning population in its surrounding valleys combine to make Washington state's Mt. Rainier the most dangerous volcano in America.

Earth

Coral-killing army recruits human bugs

The army of pathogens responsible for black band disease, which kills corals, contains some human bacteria that polluted waters carry out to sea.

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Greeks sailed into ancient Trojan bay

A combination of sedimentary analysis and careful reading of classical literature helps pinpoint where the Greek fleet that attacked Troy came ashore.

Earth

Warm spell did little for Eocene flora

A rapid warming period that began the Eocene epoch dramatically reshaped North America's animal community but not the continent's plants.

Earth

Tube worms like it hot, but larvae not

The larvae of some tube worms that attach themselves to the seafloor around hydrothermal vents can't stand the heat there, but they go into a state of suspended animation when they drift into the chilly water nearby.