People have been sailing the world’s oceans for thousands of years, but not all of them have reached port. Researchers estimate that there are approximately three million shipwrecks worldwide, located in shallow rivers and bays, coastal waters and the deep ocean. Many sank during catastrophes – some during storms or after running aground, others during … Read more
Over the past three years, a highly contagious, often fatal form of bird flu has taken a staggering toll on animals around the world. The virus, known as H5N1, has infected birds in more than 80 countries. According to the Department of Agriculture, the disease has infiltrated large commercial poultry farms and small backyard chicken … Read more
The year 2023 was marked by extraordinary heat, forest fires and weather disasters. In the US, an unprecedented heat wave gripped much of Texas and the Southwest, with highs well above 37.8 degrees Celsius throughout July. Historic rains in April flooded Fort Lauderdale, Florida, with 2 feet of rain in 24 hours. A wave of … Read more
About 400,000 years ago, large parts of Greenland were ice-free. The rugged tundra basked in the sun’s rays on the island’s northwestern highlands. There is evidence that a forest of spruce trees, buzzing with insects, covered the southern part of Greenland. Global sea level was then much higher, between 6 and 12 meters above current … Read more
Abdoulaye Diabate suffered a life-threatening bout of malaria when he was just five years old. Diabate barely survived the mosquito-borne disease, but cousins aged three and four were not so lucky. Diabate, who is now head of medical entomology and parasitology at the Burkina Faso Research Institute in Health Sciences, is developing an innovative technique … Read more
Nearly three years ago, NASA’s Perseverance rover landed on Mars as part of a decades-long effort to investigate whether the now barren planet once hosted life. Jezero crater once housed a large lake and a river delta. The size of a car Perseverance, equipped with advanced cameras and scientific instruments, has so far spent its … Read more
Tropical forest landscapes are home to millions of indigenous peoples and small-scale farmers. Virtually every square meter of land is spoken for, even though claims are not formally recognized by governments. These local landowners hold the key to a valuable solution as the world tries to slow climate change – restoring deforested tropical landscapes for … Read more
Editor’s Note: Bill McGuire is Emeritus Professor of Geophysical and Climate Hazards at University College London and author of “Hothouse Earth: A Resident’s Guide.” The views expressed in this commentary are his own. read more CNN Opinion here. Q: How many climate change deniers does it take to change a light bulb? A: What are … Read more
In recent years there has been a wave of encounters and collisions with various asteroids. Interestingly, the composition of the asteroid debris clusters was surprising in several cases. Asteroid probes from several countries have found no solid objects, but numerous pieces of gravel and boulders loosely connected by the object’s small gravitational field. Lately, it … Read more
Prescription drugs and vaccines revolutionized healthcare, dramatically reducing deaths from diseases and improving the quality of life around the world. But how do researchers, universities, hospitals and the pharmaceutical industry decide which diseases to develop drugs for? In my work as director of the Health Outcomes, Policy, and Evidence Synthesis group at the University of … Read more