Earth's Systems
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PhysicsScientists Say: Neutron
Neutrons are one of the main building blocks of atoms and have no electric charge.
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PhysicsCosmic timeline: What’s happened since the Big Bang
Energy, mass and the cosmos' structure evolved a lot over the past 13.82 billion years — much of it within just the first second.
By Trisha Muro -
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EarthOne 2022 tsunami may have been as tall as the Statue of Liberty
A massive volcanic eruption in the South Pacific, earlier this year, appears to have triggered one tsunami that was initially 90 meters (nearly 300 feet) tall.
By Sid Perkins -
ClimateHeat waves appear more life-threatening than scientists once thought
This is bad news as a warming planet leads to growing numbers of excessive heat waves — and millions more people facing potentially deadly temperatures.
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PhysicsScientists used lasers to make ‘smoke rings’ of light
Physicists had a bright idea: Make light into swirling, ring-shaped vortices, similar to smoke rings or bubble rings.
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EarthUplifting Antarctic shores point to accelerating loss of glaciers
It appears the Pine Island and “Doomsday” Thwaites glaciers are losing ice — and shrinking faster — than at any time in the past 5,500 years.
By Douglas Fox -
ChemistryLet’s learn about diamond
Diamond is born under extreme heat and pressure inside Earth and elsewhere in the universe.
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EarthScientists Say: Fault
A fault is a crack in Earth’s crust where pieces of rock scrape past each other.
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EarthTiny gemstones show when Earth’s crust first started moving
Chemical hints observed in zircons suggest when the important process of plate tectonics first took off.
By Nikk Ogasa -
PhysicsGravitational waves ‘kicked’ a newborn black hole across space
Two black holes merged into one, and then sped off at around 5 million kilometers (3.1 million miles) per hour.
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EarthScientists Say: Atmosphere
An atmosphere is an envelope of gas around a planet, dwarf planet or moon.