Climate

Oceans

Ocean heat waves often lurk out of sight

About 1 in 3 marine heat waves occur below the surface, a new study reports, suggesting these harmful events are more common than previously thought.

Climate

COP28 is making headlines. Here’s why the focus on methane matters

Here’s one takeaway from COP28: Deep cuts to methane are essential to meet the Paris Agreement goals. That’s still possible.

Climate

Here’s how 2023 became the hottest year on record

The effects of climate change were on clear display in 2023 as records not only broke, but did so by surprising amounts.

Climate

A new UN report lays out an ethical framework for climate engineering

The report’s release, which coincides with COP28, weighs the ethics of using technological interventions to mitigate climate change.

Climate

Capturing methane from the air would slow global warming. Can it be done?

Removing methane from the atmosphere requires different technology from removing carbon dioxide. Scientists are taking on the challenge.

Science & Society

Reindeer herders and scientists collaborate to understand Arctic warming

Siberian reindeer herders and scientists are working together to figure out how to predict rain-on-snow events that turn tundra into deadly ice.

Climate

The last 12 months were the hottest on record

The planet’s average temperature was about 1.3 degrees Celsius higher than the 1850–1900 average, a new report finds.

Plants

On some Australian islands, sea level rise may be helping mangroves thrive

Rising seas usually spell trouble for mangroves. But the first survey of the Howick Islands in 50 years finds that mangroves there have expanded a lot.

Animals

At the foot of a melting glacier in Peru, llamas helped revitalize the land

A partnership between scientists and farmers suggests how llama herding can mitigate some of the impacts of climate change.

Life

See the wonders of two newfound deep-sea coral reefs off the Galápagos

Coral reefs around the world are in trouble. But these reefs in the Galápagos Island Marine Reserve have yet to be damaged by humans.

Animals

Pumping cold water into rivers could act as ‘air conditioning’ for fish

Hundreds of salmon, trout and other fish sought shelter from summer heat in human-made shelters, suggesting a way to help fish adapt to river warming.

Plants

Berkley Walker wants to revamp photosynthesis for a changing climate

Finding ways to make plants work better could help feed a growing population, especially as the planet warms.