Latest science news in Earth & Climate
Climate Change And Species Distributions
Scientists have long pointed to physical changes in the Earth and its atmosphere as indicators of global climate change. But changes in climate can wreak havoc in more subtle ways,...
Mother Earth Naked: A Modern Masterpiece
Have you ever wondered what our world would look like stripped bare of all plants, soils, water and human-made structures? Well wonder no longer -- images of the Earth as...
Timing Is Everything: How Vulnerable To Flooding Is New York City?
A new high-resolution storm surge modeling system will better be able to predict flood levels and when flooding will occur in the New York metropolitan area, information crucial to emergency...
Cold and Ice Episodically Gripped Tropical Regions 300 Million Years Ago
Geoscientists have long presumed that, like today, the tropics remained warm throughout Earth's last major glaciation 300 million years ago. New evidence, however, indicates that cold temperatures in fact episodically...
Opinion: Meeting the carbon challenge? The place of your house in the city
Expecting to meet the carbon challenge without adjusting our cities is like telling your doctor you want a lung cancer cure without giving up smoking, writes Juris Geste.
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.
Fish caught at 7,500 feet
PARIS, Aug. 1 (UPI) -- French researchers said a deep-sea fish was caught at a record 7,500 feet beneath the surface of the Atlantic Ocean.
Spanish Bank Notes Contain Highest Traces Of Cocaine Of Any European Currency
A study of randomly selected Spanish euro notes carried out by chemists at the University of Valencia (UV) has shown that they contained traces of cocaine at an average concentration...
California threat to sue US govt over ship, aircraft emissions
California said Thursday it planned to sue the US government for failing to regulate greenhouse gas emissions from ships, aircraft, construction and agricultural equipment.
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...
Marine-Life Hot Spots Shift Over Time, Study Says
Earth's richest concentrations of marine life have shifted over time, cropping up where tectonic plates collide and climate is friendliest to life, researchers say.
Signs of life found inside rock salt
A team of researchers working in New Mexico has found traces of life inside salty halite crystals.
More acidic ocean could spell trouble for marine life's earliest stages
Increasingly acidic conditions in the ocean—brought on as a direct result of rising carbon dioxide levels in the atmosphere—could spell trouble for the earliest stages of marine life, according to...
Brian May, guitarist for rock band Queen, completes Ph.D. thesis following 30-year hiatus
Brian May, the guitarist and founding member of the legendary rock band Queen, earned his PhD in astronomy last year from Imperial College London. His PhD thesis A Survey of...
Plants' ability to find water is studied
TEL AVIV, Israel, July 31 (UPI) -- Israeli scientists say they are attempting to resolve the inefficiencies of current irrigation methods by improving plants' ability to find water.
Miscanthus grass an ideal biofuels source
CHAMPAIGN, Ill., July 31 (UPI) -- U.S. crop experts say they've discovered the giant perennial grass Miscanthus x giganteus can significantly outperform current biofuel sources.
Cilantro recalled in the U.S. and Canada
OTTAWA, July 31 (UPI) -- The Canadian Food Inspection Service announced the voluntary U.S. and Canadian recall of various brands of fresh cilantro due to possible contamination.
Eclipse revives homemade telescopes
BARNAUL, Russia (Reuters) - From a garden bursting with roses, violets, burgeoning cabbages and broken furniture in the remote West Siberian town of Barnaul rises a rickety wooden tower capped...
Penguins wash up closer to equator in Brazil
(AP) -- Penguins from frigid waters near the bottom of the world are washing up closer to the equator than ever before, Brazilian wildlife authorities said Wednesday.
Coal-To-Methanol Plant Planned For West Virginia
Backers will convert the alcohol into 100 million gal of gasoline
Nunavut to release climate-change adaptation plan
The Nunavut government is expected to release its strategy this fall on how it plans to deal with the effects of climate change.
Researchers Employ New Tool to Assess Potential for Ecosystem Damage
Scripps Institution of Oceanography at UC San Diego plans to purchase and deploy an autonomous buoy-mounted sensor to study the effect increasingly acidic ocean water could be having on ecosystems...
Replacing Roofing, Siding, an Opportunity to Lower Energy Bills
Are you planning to add a new roof or new siding to your home before winter? Paul Fisette, an expert on green building, says that these home improvement jobs can...
Tibetan plateau melts in the face of climate change
The Tibetan plateau is feeling the effects of climate change, with glacial retreat and permafrost degradation among the effects.
Red Cross warns of summer dangers for pets
NEW YORK, July 30 (UPI) -- The Red Cross is warning the 67 million dog owners in the United States that summer can be a dangerous time for...
Telemarketers bite the dust on Sept. 30
Canadians will be able to give telemarketers the slip as of Sept. 30 when the national do-not-call-list officially begins operating.
Expert Can Can Discuss Disasters Involving Earthquakes and Levee Breaks
David Elton is a professor of civil engineering at Auburn University and an expert on seismicity and earthquate damage.
U.S. beach water quality still bad overall
WASHINGTON, July 30 (UPI) -- A study of U.S. beach water quality by the Natural Resources Defense Council shows 2007 was the second worst year since studies began...