Latest articles by Stephanie Pappas
Giant structure discovered deep beneath Bermuda is unlike anything else on Earth
A thick layer of more than 12 miles of rock may explain why Bermuda seems to float above the surrounding ocean.
Russia's Bezymianny volcano blew itself apart 69 years ago. It's now almost completely regrown.
A 1956 eruption collapsed much of the Bezymianny volcano in Kamchatka, Russia, but frequent eruptions since — including a large event in November — means it has now almost completely regrown.
Has America's obesity rate plateaued?
Some recent national numbers suggest the obesity rate has plateaued or even declined. Experts are skeptical.
US could lose its measles elimination status within months, experts say
With 45 outbreaks of measles over the past year, the United States is at risk of endemic spread within months, experts told Live Science.
A gulf separating Africa and Asia is still pulling apart — 5 million years after scientists thought it had stopped
The Arabian and African tectonic plates failed to pull apart 28 million years ago at the Gulf of Suez, but the area hasn't stopped rifting.
Eruptions of ocean volcanoes may be the echoes of ancient continental breakups
Waves in Earth's mantle created by the rifting of continents may peel the planet's crust from below, feeding volcanoes in the middle of the ocean.
What are the signs that nature is telling us?' Scientists are triggering earthquakes in the Alps to find out what happens before one hits
Researchers are deliberately setting off real (small) earthquakes to understand how to gauge the danger of a fault line before it breaks.
Scientists create ultrapowerful, squishy robotic 'eye' that focuses automatically and doesn't need a power source
Inspired by animal vision, the eye could become part of soft robots without any electronic components.
An Iranian volcano appears to have woken up — 700,000 years after its last eruption
Taftan volcano near the border of Pakistan has shown signs of unrest in recent years.
Link between Cascadia and San Andreas Fault earthquakes discovered 30 years after lost vessel stumbled across key data
Geological records hint that earthquakes at the Cascadia subduction zone might trigger the San Andreas Fault.
An 'ice tsunami' in 2024 ripped through the Yukon with such force it tore up trees and the riverbed
Chunks of river ice tore down trees after a landslide caused a tsunami in the Yukon in December.
The Red Sea experienced 'one of the most extreme environmental events on Earth' 6 million years ago
The Red Sea became a desert about 6.2 million years ago, before a massive flood from the Indian Ocean turned it into a waterway again.
AI can now be used to design brand-new viruses. Can we stop it from making the next devastating bioweapon?
Scientists have used AI to design bacteriophages, or viruses that infect only bacteria. Does the prospect of designing viruses with AI pose threats to biosecurity?
Plate tectonics may be why Earth has life — and the key to finding life elsewhere in the universe
Feature Emerging evidence suggests that plate tectonics, or the recycling of Earth's crust, may have begun much earlier than previously thought — and may be a big reason that our planet harbors life.
Yosemite's glaciers have survived 20,000 years — but we could be the first people to see Sierra Nevada ice-free
New research finds the disappearance of glaciers in the Sierra Nevada will be unprecedented in the human history of North America.
Perplexing diamonds from South Africa mine contain 'almost impossible' chemistry
Seemingly contradictory materials are trapped together in two glittering diamonds from South Africa, shedding light on how diamonds form.
RFK's handpicked advisers are coming for the childhood vaccine schedule. Here's what to know.
The Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices may vote to disrupt the childhood vaccine schedule, despite what experts say is a lack of evidence to do so.
Canada's 2023 wildfires contributed to 87,000 early deaths worldwide, study estimates
The health impacts from Canada's worst wildfire stretched into Europe, Asia and Africa, a new study reveals.
'We know what to do; we just have to implement it.': Pregnancy is deadlier in the US than in other wealthy countries. But we could fix that.
Cuts to Medicaid and legal confusion around patient care post-Roe v. Wade may prevent improvements in the maternal mortality rate.
Toxic chemicals that pollute groundwater are formed up in the stratosphere, surprise findings show
Perchlorates, a group of toxic chemicals that pollute groundwater, first form on rare particles in the stratosphere, scientists have discovered.
Mystery quake that rocked Northern California in 1954 came from 'eerily quiet' Cascadia Subduction Zone
Scientists link a magnitude 6.5 earthquake that shook Humboldt Bay, California, 71 years ago to the "locked" Cascadia Subduction Zone.
'Sleeping giant' fault beneath Canada could unleash a major earthquake, research suggests
A new assessment of the enormous Tintina fault suggests it has been slowly accumulating strain over thousands of years.
First video of an earthquake fault cracking has revealed another surprise
A stunning video of the ground cracking during a magnitude 7.7 earthquake in Myanmar is revealing new surprises.
