Top-secret Cold War military project found perfectly preserved fossil plants under Greenland ice By Mindy Weisberger Plant fossils that may be a million years old hint that Greenland's icy shell melted away more recently than expected — and could melt again.
Ozone-destroying CFCs could make late-21st-century comeback By Rafi Letzter The chemicals that tore a hole in the ozone layer are set to make a comeback in the late 21st century, in a process accelerated by climate change.
'Dark Watchers' have been spooking California hikers for centuries. What are they? By Brandon Specktor Enormous, shadowy figures in hats and cloaks have haunted the California coast for more than 300 years. What are they?
Orange veil of dust chokes Beijing in record-breaking sandstorm By Harry Baker Beijing and northern China have been hit with one of the worst sandstorms in decades which has increased air pollution concentrations to dangerous levels.
Traces of ancient magma ocean found in Greenland By Nicoletta Lanese The rocks contain chemical "fingerprints" from when the magma oceans crystallized.
Daylight saving time 2021: When we change our clocks and why By Jeanna Bryner Here's everything you've ever wanted to know about daylight saving time (often misspelled as "savings"), including times, dates, its history and more.
6 months of summer could be the norm by 2100, study finds By Brandon Specktor If humans don't curb climate change, the average summer could last 6 months long by the year 2100, a new study finds.
Exotic crystals of 'ice 19' discovered By Tom Metcalfe Scientists have identified the 19th form of water ice. The exotic, four-sided crystals of this rare ice variety, now dubbed ice XIX, form at ultra-low temperatures and ultra-high pressures.
Saudi Arabia's wants to build a 105-mile-long 'Line' city in the desert By Stephanie Pappas Saudi Arabia's proposed linear city relies on technology that doesn't exist yet and on a design idea that has failed in the past.
Earth has a hidden layer, and no one knows exactly what it is By Stephanie Pappas Earth may have a layer no one knew about, an inner-inner core where something is different in the structure of solid iron.
Swarm of 20,000 earthquakes could make Iceland's volcanoes erupt By Brandon Specktor A swarm of more than 20,000 earthquakes has rattled southern Iceland this week, and geologists suspect a volcanic eruption is on the way.
Powerful 8.1-magnitude earthquake off New Zealand triggers tsunami warnings By Rachael Rettner The powerful earthquake occurred at 8:28 a.m. local time near New Zealand's Kermadec Islands.
'Gravity portals' could morph dark matter into ordinary matter, astrophysicists propose By Paul Sutter Astrophysicists have a wild idea to explain the bizarre abundance of super-high-energy radiation shooting from the center of our galaxy: gravity portals.
The Gulf Stream is slowing to a 'tipping point' and could disappear By Brandon Specktor The Gulf Stream, one of Earth's major climate-regulating currents, is flowing slower now than it has in 1600 years. Climate change could kill it.
Fireball lights up the night sky above UK as meteor breaks apart By Harry Baker An meteor breaking apart as it entered the atmosphere above the U.K. might be the most well documented fireball meteor ever seen.
Oozing tendrils of lava spew from Mount Etna in spectacular nighttime photos By Brandon Specktor Mount Etna, Europe's most active volcano, has been erupting for nearly two weeks straight, and the photos are stunning.
Rare red sprite and blue jet create otherworldly light show above Hawaii By Stephanie Pappas A camera at an observatory in Hawaii captured a red sprite and a blue jet in the same frame.
Giant crack frees a massive iceberg in Antarctica By Yasemin Saplakoglu This dramatic breakup comes after a major crack formed on the shelf in November 2020 and continued to grow.
Pirate attacks linked to destructive fishing By Patrick Pester A new study reveals pirate attacks are more common in waters experiencing destructive and illegal fishing, suggesting the two may be linked.
Mysterious stripes spotted over Russia in satellite images — and NASA is perplexed By Brandon Specktor Scientists can't agree on why these hills in the Russian Arctic ripple with stripes.
