All Environment
North Dakota pipeline spill larger than previously thoughtAn initial appraisal of the聽Belle Fourche Pipeline spill in December estimated that聽176,000 gallons of oil had been released from the leaking pipe. But now, officials are saying that number was actually about three times larger 鈥� 529,839 gallons of leaked oil.
First LookWhat is Earth Hour, and why are the lights out?From Sydney's Opera House to London's Big Ben and New York's Empire State Building, icons around the world are going dark from 8:30 to 9:30 p.m. on Saturday night 'to help change climate change.'
First LookIn break with Trump administration, California commits to cleaner carsThe sheer size of California鈥檚 car market, and a unique waiver from the Clean Air Act, give it an outsized role in determining what comes out of your car鈥檚 tailpipe.
Hopeful combo: World economy grows, carbon emissions stay flatFor three years running, global carbon dioxide emissions have been essentially flat, a survey finds. It hints at the potential for 'decoupling' economic growth from burning fossil fuels.
First LookDeeper down, are coral reefs surviving climate change?Greater depth and colder temperatures could buffer the so-called mesophotic zone against climate change and other well-known threats facing reefs.聽
First LookEvacuation orders lifted, but Oroville dam saga may have just begunAn unusually wet rainy season in California is in its final month, and officials are breathing slightly easier. But a new assessment of the dam's spillways has reached some alarming conclusions.
First LookWhy did the Germans build a super sun?Germany built what's being billed as an 'artificial sun' in the hopes of someday using real sunlight to make fake sunlight to produce sun-fuel, which we could use to power cars and other machines.聽
First LookMother Ganges: Can human rights save India's sacred river?An Indian court granted the Ganges River and one of its main tributaries the status of legal personhood, granting environmentalists a key tool to clean up the sacred waters. But advocates worry the new legal status may not be enough.
The Cheerios bee rescue: Can corporations help save pollinators?Many bee species have been on the decline for decades, but a new promotion from Cheerios hopes to raise awareness of their plight.- Is Trump pulling the plug on electric cars?In this edition: As government revisits gas-mileage targets, it'll test carmaker commitment to cleaner vehicles; science funding slashed in Trump budget proposal; why solar panels bloom in the land of hydropower.
Can crowdsourcing help save the Steller sea lions?Alaska sea lion populations have been rebounding, but not in the isolated western Aleutian islands. NOAA's solution: Crowdsourcing research with citizen scientists.
First LookTasmanian blue glow may hide a deadly secretAlgae lighting up Tasmanian waves could illuminate a deeper marine problem.聽
First LookCloudy with a chance of contrails: NASA clears up skies with new fuelA new report shows scientists were able to reduce particle pollution from aircraft exhausts, a discovery that could reduce the climate effects of such emissions significantly.
First LookSpring is coming 鈥� for real this time. Here's what to expect.Spring arrived in February, was interrupted across much of the country by this week's nor'easter, and is now making its way back. In their spring outlooks, NOAA and The Weather Channel share their projections for the next few months.
Climate science slashed in Trump budget. Why does that matter?America has a history of funding basic science at the federal level, on the notion that it pays off for society. The Trump budget challenges that view 鈥� including on climate research.聽
First LookWhat's with the humpback 'super-groups' forming near South Africa?The often solitary humpback whale is starting to engage in mysterious group behavior, scientists say.聽
First LookBees of all stripes to get help from Cheerios鈥� mascot, BuzzCheerios is running a campaign to increase wildflower coverage and bring back the bees.聽
First LookHow melting Arctic sea ice is keeping smog over China'We think climate change, as it is driving rapid warming of the Arctic, is having a large effect on pollution in China,' one of a new study's authors told Science.
First LookCoral bleaching now a 'global-scale event'The Great Barrier Reef clings to life in the warming waters around Australia, a phenomenon that threatens reefs around the planet.聽
New CO2 record: Is it time to geoengineer our planet?Ever-rising CO2 concentrations have scientists searching for ways to buy humanity time to reduce carbon emissions.聽