Earth

Chemistry

Cooking up life for the first time

The basic components for life could have emerged together nearly 4 billion years ago on the surface of Earth, chemists report.

Microbes

Life’s ultra-slow lane is deep beneath the sea

Biologists had suspected the deep seafloor would be little more than barren sediment. But they found a surprising amount of oxygen — and life.

Earth

Explainer: Understanding plate tectonics

Plate tectonics is the process whereby Earth continually rebuilds itself — and causes destructive events like earthquakes and volcanic eruptions.

Climate

Arctic warming bolsters summer heat

Rapid warming in the Arctic is sapping summer storms of their power to cool. That worsens heat waves across the Northern Hemisphere.

Animals

Finding out why birds are out of range

Sometimes people see large numbers of birds outside of their normal range. A student examined how to predict these excursions.

Earth

Corals dine on microplastics

Plastic in the ocean is a growing problem. New research finds that corals may eat tiny bits of plastic, prompting new concerns about the health of living reefs.

Earth

Ancient ocean linked to supercontinent’s breakup

The supercontinent Pangaea started breaking apart 200 million years ago. This may have been triggered by the shrinking of the Tethys Ocean, a new study finds.

Earth

News Brief: Volcanic spark zaps ash to glass

The lightning associated with some erupting volcanoes can be quite crafty — turning ash into lots of microscopic glass beads.

Climate

Buildings may be chasing L.A.’s fog away

Roads and buildings that have mushroomed up around Los Angeles in the past half-century. Now, a study finds they may have created conditions that limit fog. And that could further dry out this very arid part of America’s West Coast.

Climate

Scientists confirm ‘greenhouse’ effect of human’s CO2

Government scientists link directly, for the first time, a boost in warming at Earth’s surface to increasing levels of carbon dioxide. Much of that gas has been released by human activities, such as coal burning and gas-burning vehicles.

Animals

Cats and foxes are eating up Australia’s mammals

Since the arrival of Europeans in Australia, a startling number of mammal species have disappeared. A new study puts much of the blame on cats and foxes introduced by the early settlers.

Animals

Orangutans take the low road

Cameras spotted orangutans walking down logging roads to get around. That may be a good sign that they can adapt to changes in their woodsy environment.