Climate
2026’s El Niño is record-breaking — and it’s not done yet
Within the ocean region where El Niños form, daily sea-surface temperatures are already more extreme than at any point in recorded history.
By Nikk Ogasa
Earth's Systems
More Stories in Earth's Systems
- Oceans
Meet the world’s biggest waves — and the mysteries behind them
These towering walls of water carry a lot of energy. Scientists are investigating what gives rise to such behemoths and their destructive power.
- Space
Art helped this astrophysicist make sense of math
Ronald Gamble takes cues from the arts to study supermassive black holes and their spacetime geometry.
- Earth
Scientists Say: Fjord
These dramatic, steep-sided sea inlets form when glaciers carve deep channels from the terrain.
- Climate
A ‘super’ El Niño appears to be emerging. What’s the big deal?
The climate pattern could bring “shockingly high” temps this winter, plus extreme weather. Some scientists are looking into an engineering “fix.”
- Earth
Earth’s crust under Africa is thinning in a way never seen before
Africa’s Turkana Rift Zone has been caught in the act of “necking" — a key point in breakup of continental crust.
- Agriculture
Scientists Say: Corn Sweat
Cornfields release moisture into the air — or “sweat” — a couple of ways. One is evaporation. The other is transpiration.
- Earth
Could a storm last forever?
Thunderstorms help fix imbalances found in our atmosphere. For constant storms, those imbalances would have to persist.
- Earth
Scientists Say: Snow line
On Earth, this line marks the edge of snow-covered ground. In space, it marks a spot where a certain molecule might freeze.
- Earth
Clouds come in all shapes and sizes
Here’s a basic breakdown of the different cloud types, as well as how clouds form and why they float.
