Earth

  1. Oceans

    Melissa Omand’s clever tech follows the fate of ocean carbon

    Drawn to the water early, oceanographer Melissa Omand now leads research cruises studying how carbon and nutrients move through the seas.

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  2. Ecosystems

    Shrinking sea ice threatens natural highways for caribou, plants

    As Arctic sea ice declines, Peary caribou or plants risk getting stranded when their frozen highways thaw.

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  3. Earth

    Primordial continental crust re‑created in lab

    Compressing rocks from an ocean plateau at high temperatures and pressures re-creates the formation of Earth’s first continental crust.

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  4. Climate

    Arctic sea ice shrinks to second-lowest low on record

    A warm summer helped shrink sea ice in the Arctic Ocean to a statistical tie with 2007 for the second smallest sea ice minimum on record.

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  5. Oceans

    First U.S. ocean monument named in the Atlantic

    A region of ocean off the coast of Cape Cod has become the first U.S. marine national monument in the Atlantic Ocean, President Barack Obama announced.

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  6. Animals

    Sandboxes keep chicken parasites at bay

    Fluffing feathers in sand and dust prevents severe mite infections in cage-free hens.

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  7. Earth

    Where the young hot Earth cached its gold

    A simulation of the infant Earth provides a new view of how the iron-loving precious metals ended up buried deep in the planet’s core.

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  8. Oceans

    Fish escapes from marine farms raise concerns about wildlife

    Farmed salmon, sea bass and other fish frequently escape from sea cages into the ocean. Will these runaways harm native wildlife?

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  9. Earth

    Wave-thumping ‘weather bomb’ storms send elusive S waves through Earth

    A rare type of deep-Earth tremor called an S wave generated by a rapidly strengthening storm could help scientists map the planet’s mantle and core.

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  10. Climate

    Global warming amplified death toll during 2003 European heat wave

    Climate change caused hundreds of fatalities in London and Paris during the 2003 European heat wave, simulations suggest.

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  11. Plants

    How a tomato plant foils a dreaded vampire vine

    Tomatoes can foil a dodder plant attack by getting scared and scabbing over.

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  12. Animals

    Ways to beat heat have hidden costs for birds

    Birds that look as if they’re coping with heat waves and climate change may actually be on a downward slide, with underappreciated disadvantages of panting and seeking shade.

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