Environment
See how aerosols fly through Earth’s skies
These small airborne particles may offset one-third of human-caused climate warming. But the cooling influence of aerosols is fading.
Current Issue
Featured Articles in this Issue
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Cover Story
There’s life beneath the snow — but it’s at risk of melting away
The organisms that make winter homes in this subnivium help forests thrive year-round. But climate change is making this ecosystem disappear.
Explainer
Technically Fiction
Animals
Rudolph’s red nose could glow through bioluminescence
Simple chemistry could give the reindeer his iconic red snout. But physics would make it look different colors to anyone who spied Rudolph from the ground.
Profile
Humans
This linguist has invented over 20 languages
Margaret Ransdell-Green draws on her expertise in linguistics and music to create new, fictional languages — and sings in them, too.
Features
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There’s life beneath the snow — but it’s at risk of melting away
The organisms that make winter homes in this subnivium help forests thrive year-round. But climate change is making this ecosystem disappear.
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How to invent a language — like that of Avatar’s Na’vi
Linguists can choose to follow, mix or break the rules of real-world languages to create interesting fictional ones.
More Stories from the December 1, 2025 issue
- Health & Medicine
TikTok skincare routines may cause more harm than good
Many videos used lots of costly skincare products full of potential irritants. And most left out the most important way to care for your skin: sun protection.
- Materials Science
Scientists transform pee into a golden opportunity
By transforming urine into a valuable medical product, scientists hope to change how we view this human waste.
- Plants
Unlock pinecone secrets with this science activity
Let’s find out how pinecones respond to different temperatures — by mimicking changes in weather from the comfort of our own kitchens!
- Planets
The surface of Venus is morphing
Circular landforms speckling Venus' surface may be the work of tectonics — similar to the forces that reshape Earth’s surface.
- Animals
Young capuchins are kidnapping baby howler monkeys
The disturbing habit has emerged among capuchin monkeys on a remote island off Panama. Scientists are baffled — and concerned.
- Earth
This ‘megaflash’ is now the longest lightning bolt on record
A reanalysis of satellite data showed that a 2017 Texas-to-Missouri lightning megaflash stretched 829 kilometers (515 miles) and lasted 7.39 seconds.
- Space
A rogue black hole is on the loose in our galaxy
Astronomers now agree there’s a lone black hole wandering around the Milky Way — the first solitary black hole ever detected.
