Earth
We summarize the week's scientific breakthroughs every Thursday.
- Planetary Science
Long-lost ‘extinct’ meteorite found
A newly discovered meteorite, nicknamed Öst 65, may have originated from the same collision that formed L chondrites, one of the most abundant groups of meteorites on Earth.
- Earth
A third of the population can’t see the Milky Way at night
Light pollution conceals the Milky Way’s star-spangled core from more than a third of Earth’s population, a global atlas of artificial sky luminance reveals.
- Climate
The ‘super’ El Niño is over, but La Niña looms
The 2015–2016 El Niño has officially ended while its meteorological sister, La Niña, brews.
- Climate
Volcanic rocks help turn carbon emissions to stone — and fast
A pilot program in Iceland that injected carbon dioxide into basaltic lava rocks turned more than 95 percent of the greenhouse gas into stone within two years.
- Ecosystems
Ocean plankton held hostage by pirate viruses
The most abundant photosynthesizers on Earth stop storing carbon when they catch a virus.
- Earth
Spy satellites reveal early start to Antarctic ice shelf collapse
Declassified spy satellite images reveal that Antarctica’s Larsen B ice shelf began destabilizing decades earlier than previously thought.
- Environment
Bikini Atoll radiation levels remain alarmingly high
Lingering radiation levels from nuclear bomb tests on Bikini Atoll are far higher than previously estimated.
- Animals
Maximum size of giant squid remains a mystery
A scientist has come up with a new estimate of the maximum size of giant squid. He says the animals could be as long as two public buses.
- Animals
Tiny plastics cause big problems for perch, lab study finds
Researchers have linked microplastics to feeding behavior changes and development issues in Baltic Sea perch.
- Environment
Tiny plastics cause big problems for perch
Researchers have linked microplastics to feeding behavior changes and development issues in Baltic Sea perch.
- Climate
Readers share climate change concerns
Readers respond to the April 16, 2016, issue of Science News with thoughts on climate change, prairie dogs and more.
- Climate
U.S. weather has gotten more pleasant, but will soon worsen
Warmer winters have made U.S. weather more pleasant since 1974 thanks to climate change, but that will soon change.
