Continent formation may have set the stage for life on Earth
Long before forests, fish, or even single cells, Earth may have needed something as unglamorous as growing continents…
Human activity found to literally move mountains
From a distance, the Matterhorn looks fixed in place, a giant wedge of rock planted above Zermatt and…
Perovskite breakthrough brings self-charging screens closer to reality
A display that quietly gathers energy from room light sounds a bit like science fiction, but the underlying…
Antarctica’s ice shelves face a growing threat from warm waters below
For years, climate models warned that warm deep water around Antarctica could edge closer to the continent’s icy…
NASA cleanroom fungus could survive a trip to Mars, raising contamination concerns
A fungus pulled from NASA cleanrooms kept surviving tests that were meant to mimic nearly every stage of…
Three million years of climate history, captured in Antarctic ice
Frozen air from Antarctica is giving scientists a longer look at a climate mystery that has lingered for…
Planting a billion trees won’t save the climate, however, the right ones might
The appeal of reforestation is almost intuitive. Trees absorb carbon dioxide. The planet has too much carbon dioxide.…
New international study traces plant viruses back to the last Ice Age
Recent research findings indicate that many of the plant pathogens affecting agriculture today originated during an earlier era…
How ancient shorelines played a crucial role in the survival of early sea creatures
Coastlines can look like simple lines on a map. Over Earth’s history, they acted more like gates and…
New platinum-free photocatalyst turns sunlight and water into renewable energy
A small beaker of water can look ordinary. Under the right light, it can also become a quiet…
Tardigrades and water reveal potential for food growth on Mars
Tardigrades have a reputation for being nearly indestructible. These microscopic animals, often nicknamed water bears, can dry out…
Recycled waste could make the moon or Mars suitable for growing food
Tiny pits, webbing patterns, and a dusting of nanoparticles are not what most people picture when they think…