Earth
- Earth
Meet our trashy ‘technosphere’
People are creating a layer of debris and disturbance called the technosphere. A new study estimates just how truly massive it is.
- Climate
Earth breaks heat record for third year straight
Climate change and heat from a strong El Niño played roles in making 2016 the hottest year on record.
- Archaeology
Cool Jobs: Hunting surprises in thinning glaciers
Meet three scientists who are tracking the meltdown of Earth’s glaciers. They share their adventures, predictions and unexpected discoveries.
- Health & Medicine
Extreme survival: Managing the deadly cold
Extreme cold can cause frostbite, hypothermia — even death. Knowing the risks can help keep you safe even when it’s freezing cold.
- Health & Medicine
Seven tips for staying safe in frigid weather
Maps? Check. Water? Check. Insulating clothes? Check. Here’s the checklist to consult before planning to trek out in the frigid cold.
- Oceans
Massive ice shelf is poised to break off of Antarctica
A fast-growing crack in Antarctica’s Larsen C ice shelf could soon release a truly huge hunk of ice into the ocean.
- Climate
Feverish climate is melting glaciers, study confirms
Dwindling glaciers are “categorical evidence of climate change,” a new study affirms.
- Genetics
World’s tallest corn towers nearly 14 meters
Short nights and a genetic tweak helped novel corn reach record heights.
- Earth
Editors’ top picks for 2016
From gravity waves to climate’s human impact and an exploration of post-election racism, we’ve covered the year’s major stories. Here what was most important.
- Environment
Food-like smell on plastic may lure seabirds to eat it
When plastic smells like supper, seabirds and other animals can be fooled into thinking it is food.
- Climate
2015’s record heat: It will soon be ‘normal’
The record-setting global temperatures seen in 2015 could become common as soon as the 2020s, and known as the “new normal.”
- Climate
Predicting a wildfire with data from space
When the West gets dry it can catch fire. A teen decided to find out if satellite data might show where a fire’s fuel might reside.
