Ozone Hole Over Antarctica Shrinks to Record-Small Size By Jeanna Bryner The ozone hole over Antarctica has shrunk to its smallest size yet. Here's why.
What Is the Ionosphere? (And Who Is Steve?) By Nicoletta Lanese A concentration of plasma in the Earth's atmosphere, called the ionosphere, interacts with solar winds, ultraviolet radiation and radio waves.
Mystery of Weird Sky-Glow Named 'STEVE' Finally Solved By Mindy Weisberger Enigmatic STEVE is somewhat like an aurora...and somewhat different.
WWII Bombs Had Rippling Effect on the Edge of Space By Megan Gannon The shock waves from Allied bombing raids during World War II briefly weakened the ionosphere.
A Solar Storm Is Coming Tonight — Here's Where You Might See the Aurora By Rafi Letzter An alert released yesterday (Sept. 10) warns of a moderate geomagnetic storm that will lash the planet tonight. It shouldn't be dangerous, but might bring auroras.
Eerie Sky Glow Called 'Steve' Isn't an Aurora, Is 'Completely Unknown' to Science By Brandon Specktor There is a beautiful mystery in the sky, and its name is Steve.
Ghostly 'Lightning' Waves Discovered Inside a Nuclear Reactor By Marcus Woo Whistler waves are normally produced in the atmosphere by lightning. They could help protect nuclear fusion reactors from runaway electrons.
These 'Dirty' Thunderstorms Fill the Sky with As Much Smoke As a Volcanic Eruption By Megan Gannon Wildfires can fuel "dirty" thunderstorms that fill the stratosphere with as much smoke as a volcanic eruption.
These Scientists Have a Wild Plan to Throw Salt into the Atmosphere. Here's Why. By Laura Geggel Sprinkling large amounts of salt into the atmosphere could stave off climate change, a group of researchers has proposed.
The Hole in Earth's Ozone Layer Is Healing By Calla Cofield Efforts to heal the hole in Earth's ozone layer over Antarctica appear to be paying off, according to a first-of-its-kind study that looked directly at ozone-destroying chemicals in the atmosphere.
NASA Goes for 'GOLD' to Scan the Border of Earth and Space By Sarah Lewin A new NASA mission, the first to hitch a ride on a commercial communications satellite, will examine Earth's upper atmosphere to see how the boundary between Earth and space changes over time.
July Fourth Comes Early: NASA Sounding Rocket Releases Colorful Morning Cloud Show (Photos, Video) By Doris Elin Salazar A NASA sounding rocket launched early this morning and lit up the skies over the U.S. East Coast with colorful clouds, ringing in an early July Fourth celebration.
Chicken Sandwich Takes One Giant Leap for Food-Kind By Calla Cofield In what appears to be a historic first, a chicken sandwich was successfully carried to the edge of space today aboard a high-altitude balloon.
NASA Rocket to Create Colorful Artificial Clouds Over US East Coast Tonight (Watch Live) By Mike Wall
Ammonia Detected in Earth's Atmosphere for First Time By Laura Geggel In an unexpected first, researchers have discovered ammonia in the troposphere, Earth's lowest atmospheric layer, a new study finds.
Mystery of Bizarre Radar Echoes Solved, 50 Years Later By Jeanna Bryner Weird radio echoes that appear at dawn every day over an observatory in Peru have long baffled scientists, until now.
Missing Electrons in the Atmosphere Possibly Found By Tia Ghose The mysterious disappearance of electrons in the atmosphere could be caused by meteors burning up in the sky, new research suggests.
Whiffs of Antarctic Sulfur Hold Climate Clues By Becky Oskin Huge wildfires sparked by a powerful El Niño event 16 years ago left a distinct tinge of sulfur in Antarctica's snow.