Earth

  1. Earth

    How thunderstorms can spawn damaging ‘downbursts’

    Powerful winds called downbursts are not the same as a tornado, but the damage they cause can be similar — and can hit with little warning.

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  2. Climate

    Arctic sea ice may melt faster in coming years due to shifting winds

    A complex dance between Arctic wind patterns and the Atlantic has limited the flow of warmer water north in recent years. That may be about to change.

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  3. Chemistry

    Chemists turned plastic waste into tiny bars of soap

    Researchers developed a process to turn plastic waste into surfactants, the key ingredients in dozens of products, including soap.

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  4. Climate

    Emperor penguins lost thousands of chicks to melting ice last year

    In 2022, groups of emperor penguins in western Antarctica lost almost all their chicks to receding sea ice, signaling the threat of climate change.

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  5. Climate

    How one device could help transform our power grid

    As coal-fired power plants are retired, grid-forming inverters may be key to a future that relies on solar and wind power.

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  6. Climate

    Some leaves in tropical forests may be getting too hot for photosynthesis

    Climate change may be forcing some tropical leaves to stop photosynthesis and die. It’s still unclear what effect this will have on entire forests.

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  7. Chemistry

    Magnetic ‘rusty’ nanoparticles pull estrogen out of water

    Iron oxide particles adorned with “sticky” molecules trap estrogen in water, possibly limiting the hormone’s harmful effects on aquatic life.

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  8. Climate

    Nature’s changing colors makes climate change visible

    The world’s color palette is shifting in response to climate change. Seeing these changes in nature firsthand is a powerful communication tool.

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  9. Plants

    The fastest-evolving moss in the world may not adapt to climate change

    The genus Takakia has the largest number of fast-evolving genes of any moss, a study finds. But it’s losing ground in the warming Himalayas.

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  10. Climate

    Extreme ocean heat off Florida has ebbed. But for marine life, the danger remains

    After the recent heat wave, corals have received too much heat too early in the summer, and other sea life could see lingering effects too.

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  11. Earth

    50 years ago, mysterious glass hinted at Earth’s violent past

    Like Hansel and Gretel followed a trail of breadcrumbs, scientists have followed tektites to the sites of major meteorite impacts.

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  12. Climate

    Extreme heat taxes the body in many ways. Here’s how

    Climate change is bringing longer, humid heat waves and hotter nights. Here's how our bodies try to beat the heat and what happens when they can't.

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