Why are mountains so high? It doesn't add up
Researchers have analyzed mountain ranges worldwide to show that a theory relating erosion and mountain height doesn't always add up.
Read moreGlobal Warming
Surrogate-reared sea otters helped restore threatened population
The population of threatened southern sea otters in Elkhorn Slough, an estuary in Central California, has made a significant comeback as a result of Monterey Bay Aquarium's Sea Otter Program. A newly-published study documents 15 years of research showing how the program helped restore the population in the coastal estuary.
Read moreClimate change study finds that maple syrup season may come earlier
Once winter nights dip below freezing and the days warm up above freezing sap begins to flow in sugar maples marking the start of the syrup season. With climate change, daily temperatures are on the rise, which affects sap flow and sugar content. By 2100, the maple syrup season in eastern North America may be one month earlier than it was during 1950 and 2017, according to a new study.
Read moreAI helps reduce Amazon hydropower dams' carbon footprint
A team of scientists has developed a computational model that uses artificial intelligence to find sites for hydropower dams in order to help reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
Read moreStudy of ancient climate suggests future warming could accelerate
The rate at which the planet warms in response to the ongoing buildup of heat-trapping carbon dioxide gas could increase in the future, according to new simulations of a comparable warm period more than 50 million years ago.
Read moreCutting emissions gradually will avert sudden jump in warming
Steadily reducing fossil fuel emissions over coming years will prevent millions of premature deaths and help avoid the worst of climate change without causing a large spike in short-term warming that some studies predict, new analysis from finds. The finding dispels the misconception that the air-quality and climate benefits of transitioning to clean energy play out at different timescales — a sticking point in recent climate negotiations.
Read moreDust from a giant asteroid crash caused an ancient ice age
About 466 million years ago, long before the age of the dinosaurs, the Earth froze. The seas began to ice over at the Earth's poles, and new species evolved with the new temperatures. The cause of this ice age was a mystery, until now: a new study argues that the ice age was caused by global cooling, triggered by extra dust in the atmosphere from a giant asteroid collision in outer space.
Read moreRethinking scenario logic for climate policy
Current scenarios used to inform climate policy have a weakness in that they typically focus on reaching specific climate goals in 2100 – an approach which may encourage risky pathways that could have long-term negative effects. A new study presents a novel scenario framework that focuses on capping global warming at a maximum level with either temperature stabilization or reversal thereafter.
Read moreActions to save coral reefs could benefit all ecosystems
Scientists say bolder actions to protect the world's coral reefs will benefit all ecosystems, human livelihoods and improve food security.
Read moreGreenland's growing 'ice slabs' intensify meltwater runoff into ocean
Thick, impenetrable ice slabs are expanding rapidly on the interior of Greenland's ice sheet, where the ice is normally porous and able to reabsorb meltwater. These slabs are instead sending meltwater spilling into the ocean, according to a new assessment, threatening to increase the country's contribution to sea level rise by as much as 2.9 inches by 2100.
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