Earth's Systems
- Climate
Explainer: Earth’s water is all connected in one vast cycle
Water on Earth is connected in an endless loop called the water cycle.
- Earth
Explainer: How is water cleaned up for drinking
Unless you’re drinking well water, city folks typically get drinking water that has been treated in a water-treatment plant. Here’s what that means.
- Climate
Explainer: The furious eye(wall) of a hurricane or typhoon
The eyewall is the most intense part of a hurricane. Here’s what drives its fury.
- Earth
Explainer: Where fossil fuels come from
Despite one oil company famously using an Apatosaurus as its logo, oil, gas and coal don’t come from dinosaurs. They do, however, come from a long time ago.
- Earth
Explainer: CO2 and other greenhouse gases
Carbon dioxide is just one of several chemicals that contribute to the greenhouse effect. Nitrous oxide, methane and CFCs are other big contributors.
- Planets
Asteroids may have delivered water to early Earth
Scientists shot mineral pellets at a simulated planet. It showed an impact wouldn’t have boiled off all of an asteroid’s water.
- Earth
How long will Kilauea’s new eruption last?
A government volcano expert answers burning questions about the ongoing Kilauea eruption.
- Climate
Analyze This: Climate change could make food less healthy
Levels of important nutrients are lower in crops exposed to high levels of carbon dioxide, a greenhouse gas. How high? Try levels expected to be typical 30 years from now.
- Physics
Explainer: What is thundersnow?
Wacky weather produced lots of thundersnow during New England’s recent winter storms. Some scientists now suspect Mother Nature got some human help.
- Physics
Explainer: Winds and where they come from
Temperature and pressure are critical factors affecting why the wind blows where it does. Understanding the nature of wind can teach us a lot about weather.
- Earth
Explainer: What makes dirt different from soil
Although most people use the terms dirt and soil interchangeably, scientists argue that they shouldn’t. Soil has provenance — meaning history. Dirt doesn’t.
- Science & Society
Explainer: Weather and weather prediction
The sun and Earth combine to create the planet’s weather systems. And science is getting good at predicting what they’ll do.
