Earth
We summarize the week's scientific breakthroughs every Thursday.
- Earth
China’s deserts expand with population growth
Carried forward by winds and sandstorms, the dunes of northern China are expanding at an unprecedented rate, primarily because of human activities that have contributed to erosion.
-
- Earth
Rome at Risk: Seismic shaking could be long and destructive
If a large earthquake struck Rome, ground motions could rock the city for up to a minute, threatening many of the city's ancient landmarks.
- Earth
Species-aid budget looks fishy
State and federal governments spent $1.4 billion in 2004 on conserving endangered and threatened species, with one-third of that sum going to protect fish.
- Earth
Finding dirty diesels
Just a few diesel-fueled vehicles account for much of traffic-related soot.
- Earth
Krakatoa stifled sea level rise for decades
Ocean cooling caused by the volcanic eruption of Krakatoa in 1883 kept sea level worldwide in check well into the 20th century.
- Earth
How to rate a snowstorm
Scientists have developed a rating scale to assess the impact of major snowstorms that strike the northeastern United States.
- Earth
Global warming may already be a killer
Earth's rising temperatures may be a precipitating factor in the extinctions of dozens of tropical frog species.
- Earth
Wind Makes Food Retailers Greener
Green grocers are among food companies turning ever greener owing to huge investments in wind power.
- Earth
Prions’ dirty little secret
The malformed proteins responsible for mad cow disease bind tightly to clay, a finding that points to farm soil as a potential long-term reservoir for these infective agents.
- Earth
Cold and Deep: Antarctica’s Lake Vostok has two big neighbors
Trapped beneath Antarctica's kilometers-thick ice sheet are two immense bodies of water that may harbor ecosystems that have been isolated for millions of years.
- Earth
2005 was warmest year on record
Last year's global average temperature was the warmest since scientists began compiling records in the late 1800s.
