Earth

  1. Earth

    Is a long-dormant Russian volcano waking up? It’s complicated

    Scientists debate how to interpret seismic activity near Bolshaya Udina on the remote Kamchatka Peninsula.

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  2. Ecosystems

    Many of the world’s rivers are flush with dangerous levels of antibiotics

    Antibiotic pollution can fuel drug resistance in microbes. A global survey of rivers finds unsafe levels of antibiotics in 16 percent of sites.

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  3. Environment

    Some Canadian lakes still store DDT in their mud

    Yesterday’s DDT pollution crisis is still today’s problem in some of Canada’s lakes.

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  4. Climate

    The National Weather Service has launched its new U.S. forecasting model

    The United States has finally unveiled its new, highly touted weather prediction model, but some scientists worry that it’s not ready for prime time.

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  5. Agriculture

    The U.S. is still using many pesticides that are banned in other countries

    In 2016, the United States used millions of kilograms of pesticides that are banned or being phased out in the European Union, Brazil and China.

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  6. Oceans

    Tiny plastic debris is accumulating far beneath the ocean surface

    Floating trash patches scratch only the surface of the ocean microplastic pollution problem.

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  7. Health & Medicine

    Limiting global warming to 1.5 degrees C could prevent thousands of deaths in the U.S.

    A study projecting heat-related mortality in 15 U.S. cities illustrates urban risk from global warming.

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  8. Earth

    Soil eroded by glaciers may have kick-started plate tectonics

    How plate tectonics got going is a mystery. Now scientists say they’ve found a key part of the story: massive piles of sediment dumped in the ocean.

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  9. Environment

    Chemicals in biodegradable food containers can leach into compost

    PFAS compounds from compostable food containers could end being absorbed by plants and later eaten by people, though the health effects are unclear.

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  10. Science & Society

    The Smithsonian’s ‘Deep Time’ exhibit gives dinosaurs new life

    The Smithsonian’s renovated fossil hall puts ancient dinosaurs and other creatures in context.

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  11. Environment

    How one fern hoards toxic arsenic in its fronds and doesn’t die

    To survive high levels of arsenic, a fern sequesters the heavy metal in its shoots with the help of three proteins.

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  12. Climate

    The Southern Ocean may be less of a carbon sink than we thought

    The Southern Ocean’s ability to suck up much of the carbon that humans pump into the atmosphere is in question.

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