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Sunrise over the Salma Plateau in Oman.
There's a 'ghost' plume lurking beneath the Middle East — and it might explain how India wound up where it is today Researchers have discovered an unusual plume of magma beneath Oman that may have changed the course of the Indian tectonic plate between 25 million and 40 million years ago.
A freezer compartment at the University of Zurich containing microbial samples.
'It is our obligation to future generations': Scientists want thousands of human poop samples for microbe 'doomsday vault' The founders of the Microbiota Vault, a project that aims to preserve microbial diversity, have announced that they are ready to grow their frozen microbe collection to 10,000 samples by 2029.
Aerial view of a dry river in Nevada, near Colorado River and Grand Canyon, USA.
Ancient groundwater records reveal worrying forecast for US Southwest Groundwater records from the last ice age indicate that aquifers in the U.S. Southwest are more sensitive to global warming than aquifers in the Pacific Northwest.

Latest about Planet Earth

Earth is starting to spin faster — and scientists are considering doing something unprecedented

By Pandora Dewan published

Two days this summer have been unusually short, with the shortest expected on Aug. 5, leading global timekeepers to consider adding a negative leap second.

Planet Earth
Aguaje palm trees by lake Sandoval.

A peatland in the Amazon stopped absorbing carbon. What does it mean?

By Chris Simms published

Peatlands cover just a fraction of Earth's surface, but store huge amounts of carbon. In the Peruvian Amazon, one of these swamps has switched to carbon neutral.

Climate change

Trio of stripy glaciers merging in 'Earth's highest battleground' are part of a major anomaly scientists don't fully understand

By Harry Baker published

Earth from space This 2023 astronaut photo shows three glaciers merging into a single massive ice mass in the Karakoram mountains. The stripy glaciers have gained ice in recent decades, despite the effects of human-caused climate change.

Earth from space
A cityscape with a very large, bright sun shining over it.

We're within 3 years of reaching a critical climate threshold. Can we reverse course?

By Sascha Pare published

A report published in June found that the world only has three years before it crosses the 1.5 C climate target. So what should we do now?

Climate change
Split image of magic mushrooms and an artist's impression of the internet, showing the globe drawn up in a futuristic neon blue

'Anti-aging' magic mushrooms and record-breaking internet speeds

By Pandora Dewan published

Science news this week July 19, 2025: Our weekly roundup of the latest science in the news, as well as a few fascinating articles to keep you entertained over the weekend.

Science news this week
Screen-capture of a home security camera facing a front porch during an earthquake.

First video of an earthquake fault cracking has revealed another surprise

By Stephanie Pappas published

A stunning video of the ground cracking during a magnitude 7.7 earthquake in Myanmar is revealing new surprises.

Earthquakes

Scientists discover changes to the polar vortex that are plunging parts of US into deep freeze

By Stephanie Pappas published

When the polar vortex stretches, North America feels the chill. New research reveals some of the stratospheric patterns controlling these cold snaps.

Planet Earth
View of Tuvalu from an airplane. We see a long, thin island with a main road running down it and houses.

Tuvalu residents prepare for world’s first planned migration of an entire nation — and climate change is to blame

By Sascha Pare published

A first-of-its-kind lottery for residents of Tuvalu who want to move to Australia due to climate change threats is closing today, with more than 5,000 applications received.

Climate change

Mount Thor: The mountain with Earth's longest vertical drop

By Sascha Pare published

Mount Thor, also known as Thor Peak, is a mountain in Nunavut, Canada with the largest vertical drop in the world — a terrifying escarpment with an average overhang of 15 degrees from vertical.

Geology

Giant meteor impact may have triggered massive Grand Canyon landslide 56,000 years ago

By Sascha Pare published

Researchers have found a link between two geological events in iconic locations of the U.S. Southwest that scientists previously didn't think had anything to do with each other.

Geology
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