Latest science news in Earth & Climate
National Briefing | Northwest: Alaska: Suit Filed Over Polar Bears
The state has sued Interior Secretary Dirk Kempthorne, seeking to reverse his decision to give polar bears protection under the Endangered Species Act.
Beijing heat 'could clear minds'
Hot, humid conditions may actually improve athletic performance at the Olympics, research suggests.
Research Team Advances Knowledge of Antarctica's Climate History
North Dakota State University researchers are among the leaders of a group of National Science Foundation-funded scientists who have discovered the last traces of tundra on the interior of Antarctica...
Study Links Warming of Indian Ocean to Decreased Rainfall in Africa
(PhysOrg.com) -- A study led by a team of geographers from the University of California, Santa Barbara, suggests that warming of the Indian Ocean - - a direct result...
Carbon dioxide poses risk to marine life survival
(PhysOrg.com) -- Climate change and the subsequent acidification of the world's oceans will significantly reduce the successful fertilisation of certain marine species by the year 2100, an international team of...
Bacterial Persistence In Streams
Ecological researchers have completed a study on an East Tennessee river to determine the connection between watershed hydrology and fecal bacteria statistical time series analysis. A new article presents a...
China's Olympian efforts to tackle air pollution
Chinese action on Olympic air pollution is a huge experiment that will be closely watched across China, and further afield, writes Wang Ying.
Congo gorilla bonanza doubles population estimates
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A crowd of gorillas has survived in the northern part of the Republic of Congo -- so many that environmentalists can double population estimates, according to a...
ENVIRONMENT PHOTOS WEEKLY: Subs, Salmon, Storms, More
A typhoon crashes into a Chinese province; farmers slather sunblock on crops, and more in our new weekly roundup of nature news photos.
Yucca Mountain cost estimate is increased
WASHINGTON, Aug. 5 (UPI) -- The U.S. Department of Energy says it has revised upward its cost estimate of the Yucca Mountain nuclear repository from its 1983 start...
Energy conservation cuts power grid strain
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind., Aug. 5 (UPI) -- A U.S. scientist says people often waste power because they aren't aware of how they can reduce electrical consumption.
Kenyan courts consider terminating biofuel plans
The Kenyan courts might halt a US$370 million biofuel project, following complaints from various environmental and nomadic groups.
Ventura County hot spot puzzles experts
A two-acre patch of land north of Fillmore has heated up to 800 degrees, and firefighters and geologists are unsure why. ...
Microbe Diet Key To Carbon Dioxide Release
As microbes in the soil break down fallen plant matter, a diet "balanced" in nutrients appears to help control soil fertility and the normal release of the greenhouse gas carbon...
Falun Gong: Oppressed Movement or Just Plain Wacky?
Although the banned Chinese spiritual movement Falun Gong gets much positive press in the West, most Western practitioners have little idea how bizarre the Falun Gong principles are and how...
Clean energy: Do we need an Apollo project for energy?
Scientists, economists and others who are convinced a warming planet is a global emergency have been proposing - and opposing - an Apollo-type project to wean the west off...
6.0 Earthquake Hits China's Sichuan Province
The U.S. Geological Survey says a 6.0 earthquake has hit China's Sichuan province, which was devastated by a more powerful quake in May.
"New" Killer Whale Types at Risk From Antarctic Warming
Newly identified types of Antarctic killer whales feed off of ice shelves that may soon be gone, due to global warming.
Evaluating Ecosystem Services
Environmental conservation efforts have traditionally focused on protecting individual species or natural resources. Scientists are discovering, however, that preserving the benefits that whole ecosystems provide to people is more economically...
Eclipse darkens NW China, a week before Olympics
JIAYUGUAN, China (Reuters) - Darkness fell on Friday over the last outpost of the Great Wall of China, where a rare total solar eclipse delighted skywatchers a week before the...
A Problem of Bubbles Frames an Olympic Design
The new Beijing National Aquatics Center -- no ordinary building -- is a box made of bubbles.
Great Planet Debate: Scientists Could Overturn Official Definition
Scientists will convene this month to figure out what makes an object a planet.
Opinion: It's the water, stupid!
Professor Mike Young and Fiona McKenzie comment on the 3 July 2008 Council of Australian Governments (COAG) water agreement.
World Briefing | The Americas: Brazil: Fund Is Created to Protect Amazon Rain Forest
President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva signed a decree on Friday formally creating the Amazon Fund to fight deforestation of the world’s largest rain forest.
Energy Boom in West Threatens Indian Artifacts
With the urgent push for more energy, archaeologists worry that history and prehistory could be lost.
A Push to Wrest More Oil From Land, but Most New Wells Are for Natural Gas
While those hoping to lower prices at the pump are clamoring for new oil, most of the new onshore drilling of the past seven years has produced natural gas, not...
Stinging Tentacles Offer Hint of Oceans’ Decline
The explosion of jellyfish populations reflects overfishing, rising sea temperatures and pollution, scientists say.
Observatory: Fossils Add More Proof of Global Climate Shift
Fossils uncovered from the Antarctic form the basis for further understanding of global cooling that occurred during the mid-Miocene epoch.