Which is the largest continent? The smallest? By Meg Duff published 4 December 22 Pangaea was one of the largest continents in world history, but now it's broken up. So which continent today is the largest, and which is the smallest?
Rising sea levels could swamp the US coastline by 2050, NASA predicts By Joe Phelan published 28 November 22 Sea levels are expected to rise around the contiguous U.S. faster than previously thought, a new NASA study finds.
Dozens of earthquakes swarm Hawaii as the world's largest volcano erupts By Ben Turner published 28 November 22 The eruption is so far not threatening downhill communities or affecting flights
Where did ocean currents come from? By Michael Dhar published 26 November 22 Billions of years ago, wind, heat and the rotating Earth formed currents just as they're produced today — but their paths would have been wildly different.
Pesky 'leap second' will be abolished by 2035 By Jennifer Nalewicki published 24 November 22 An international group of experts has voted to retire the leap second by 2035.
Fluorescent flashes reveal the leaf-closing secrets of 'touch-me-not' plant By Harry Baker published 24 November 22 Flashy new videos of the plant shameplant (Mimosa pudica), which is renowned for its ability to rapidly fold up its leaves, reveal how chemical and electrical signals help to trigger its lightning reflexes.
Climate summit agrees to 'historic' loss-and-damage fund — but misses warming goals By Michael Dhar published 23 November 22 New fund would aid responses to floods, fires and storms. But a failure to address warming and greenhouse gas emissions undercuts the funding success, critics say.
Save up to 50% on a 'How It Works' magazine subscription for Black Friday By Ben Biggs published 21 November 22 Get a half-price How It Works magazine subscription in our 2022 sale
Logic-defying 'bottom blooms' could sustain hidden ecosystems in Arctic and Antarctica By Harry Baker published 17 November 22 A pair of new studies has revealed 'highly unlikely' phytoplankton blooms appearing near the seafloor and under sea ice at both Earth's poles.
New 'artificial' photosynthesis is 10x more efficient than previous attempts By Stephanie Pappas published 16 November 22 A new method of using the machinery of photosynthesis to make methane is 10 times more efficient than previous attempts.
Scientists just found a hidden 6th mass extinction in Earth's ancient past By Joshua A. Krisch published 15 November 22 A global drop in oxygen levels about 550 million years ago led to Earth's first known mass extinction, new evidence suggests.
Global CO2 emissions are cooking the planet and 'show no sign of decreasing,' report warns By Joshua A. Krisch published 11 November 22 Staving off the worst impacts of climate change means preventing global temperatures from rising more than 1.5 degrees Celsius above preindustrial levels. But CO2 emissions are so high that we are slated to cross that line within a decade.
Glaciers in Yellowstone and Yosemite on track to vanish within decades, UN report warns By Michael Dhar last updated 10 November 22 A United Nations report warns of imperiled glaciers at iconic World Heritage sites — but climate action could save most of them.
3.5 billion-year-old rock structures are one of the oldest signs of life on Earth By Stephanie Pappas published 10 November 22 Fossils called stromatolites from Western Australia were created by microbes 3.48 billion years ago.
'Spectacular' and bizarre ocean creatures (like stilt-walking fish) found living near deep-sea volcanoes By Stephanie Pappas published 10 November 22 Light-up fish and ancient volcanic structures are among the discoveries of a new expedition to map the remote Cocos Islands in the Indian Ocean.
World’s largest iceberg is getting swept away from Antarctica to its doom, satellite image shows By Harry Baker published 8 November 22 A new satellite image shows that the world's largest iceberg, A-76A, has entered the Drake Passage, a waterway that contains a fast-moving ocean current that will send the mighty berg on a one-way trip to its watery grave.
Solar storm smashes hole in Earth's magnetosphere, triggering extremely rare pink auroras By Harry Baker published 7 November 22 On Nov. 3, a solar storm caused a temporary crack in Earth's magnetic field. The resulting hole enabled energetic particles to penetrate deep into the planet's atmosphere and set off extremely rare pink auroras.
Will Antarctica ever be habitable? By Martin McGuigan published 7 November 22 As global temperatures rise, the ecology of Antarctica is already changing, but Earth's climate would have to change drastically before the continent could support agriculture and permanent settlers.
What was Earth's biggest explosion? By Michael Dhar published 6 November 22 The biggest blasts come from above, while volcanic eruptions and human-caused detonations have also unleashed incredible levels of energy.
Watch an ancient ice sheet cover the British Isles then vanish, in eerie time-lapse animation By Joshua A. Krisch published 5 November 22 The rapid decline of the British-Irish Ice Sheet thousands of years ago may hold lessons for how melting ice sheets in Greenland and Antarctica will influence sea-level rise in the future.
