Comparisons of data obtained from instruments that orbited Earth more than 25 years apart provide direct evidence that the planet's greenhouse effect increased significantly between 1970 and 1997. (p. 165)

Satellite observations of ocean temperatures in tropical regions of the western Pacific suggest that when ocean temperatures there warm up, the amount of heat-trapping cirrus clouds decreases, possibly providing a heat-venting effect that could help reduce global warming. (p. 150)

A fossil tooth found along a dinosaur trackway in South Korea is the first evidence that brachiosaurs roamed Asia. (p. 159)

A fossilized pellet of partially digested bones of juvenile and baby birds provides the first evidence that birds served as food for predators. (p. 159)

Evidence trapped in 250-million-year-old sediments may help researchers pin the ultimate blame for the massive extinctions that occurred then on the impact of an extraterrestrial object about 9 kilometers across. (p. 116)

The inactivity of a single enzyme in peat due to the lack of oxygen may be the only thing preventing massive releases of carbon dioxide from the peatlands. (p. 95)

The strength of the winter weather feature called the Siberian high is linked to the amount of early-season snow cover in its namesake region. (p. 95)