New Scientist - Earth

The Anthropocene was officially spurned in 2024, but the idea lives on Wed, 11 Dec 2024 18:00:00 +0000 Geologists surprisingly declined to formally declare a new epoch, but proponents of the Anthropocene will continue to highlight humanity’s impact on the planet

Supersized snowflakes: A scientific quest to make enormous snow Mon, 16 Dec 2024 08:00:56 +0000 New Scientist embarks on a quest to make record-breaking snowflakes. This is our journey into the complex world of snow physics

Monitoring ocean chlorophyll could reduce impact of warming seas Sun, 08 Dec 2024 17:09:41 +0000 How chlorophyll data from satellites is helping scientists understand and mitigate changes in warming oceans

What ancient stalagmites can tell us about life on a hotter Earth Wed, 04 Dec 2024 14:31:07 +0000 Wildfires are already changing as a result of climate change but we don’t know what will happen as our planet gets even warmer. The answer could be hidden underground

Why scientists scanned giant hailstones in a dentist's office Fri, 06 Dec 2024 05:00:14 +0000 A high-resolution view of hailstones the size of tennis balls can reveal how they form – and help researchers better forecast which storms will generate these destructive pieces of ice

Ocean acidification is reaching deeper waters Wed, 27 Nov 2024 19:15:05 +0000 Rising carbon dioxide levels are driving an increase in the ocean’s acidity – and this change is sinking deeper as emissions increase, putting even more marine organisms at risk

Iceland’s Reykjanes volcanic eruption captured in stunning drone shots Thu, 21 Nov 2024 17:20:08 +0000 A new volcanic eruption has occurred on Iceland’s Reykjanes peninsula, the seventh this year

We may have solved the mystery of what froze Earth's inner core Mon, 18 Nov 2024 20:00:05 +0000 A supercomputer simulation of iron and carbon atoms in Earth’s inner core may explain how a molten ball at the centre of our planet froze solid

Next Mauna Loa eruption could be forecast months in advance Tue, 12 Nov 2024 16:00:36 +0000 An analysis of crystals in lava from the 2022 eruption of Mauna Loa has revealed an unknown magma reservoir within the volcano, which could extend forecasts of eruptions from minutes to months

Striking image shows well-preserved wreck of Shackleton’s doomed ship Wed, 30 Oct 2024 18:00:00 +0000 Endurance sank beneath the ice during Ernest Shackleton’s legendary Antarctic expedition. More than a hundred years later, researchers document their own saga of how they found the vessel

Forget Hollywood, science has real plans to defend us from asteroids Wed, 30 Oct 2024 18:00:00 +0000 Forget Armageddon-sized rocks, just one of 25,000 smaller asteroids could destroy a city on Earth. How to Kill an Asteroid by Robin George Andrew shows how science plans to save the planet

Some wildfires are growing twice as fast as they did two decades ago Thu, 24 Oct 2024 20:00:06 +0100 In the western US, the average maximum growth rate of fires has more than doubled over the past two decades

Folklore uncovers a tsunami that rocked Hawaii hundreds of years ago Fri, 18 Oct 2024 18:00:44 +0100 A story passed down in folklore led scientists to evidence of an 8-metre tsunami that hit an island in Hawaii hundreds of years ago

El Niño pattern can bring wet weather to UK one year later Fri, 04 Oct 2024 15:00:22 +0100 El Niño and La Niña cycles driven by ocean temperatures in the Pacific can influence weather in the North Atlantic 12 months later – a finding that could improve long-range forecasts

How 'river piracy' made Mount Everest grow even taller Mon, 30 Sep 2024 17:00:36 +0100 Rapid erosion caused by a geological act of “piracy” tens of thousands of years ago may have raised Earth’s crust and elevated Mount Everest by as much as 50 metres

These maps will change how you see the world Wed, 18 Sep 2024 19:00:30 +0100 Geographer Alastair Bonnett on his pick of the most diverse maps, from a collection of 100,000 galaxies to a 12th-century Chinese depiction of rivers on a grid

Why physicists are air-dropping buoys into the paths of hurricanes Fri, 20 Sep 2024 20:00:49 +0100 A sprawling research program aims to improve hurricane forecasts by collecting data at the chaotic interface of ocean and atmosphere

Earth may once have had a ring like Saturn Tue, 17 Sep 2024 12:14:52 +0100 A ring of asteroid debris could have orbited Earth for tens of millions of years, and perhaps even have altered the planet's climate

Greenland landslide caused freak wave that shook Earth for nine days Thu, 12 Sep 2024 20:00:02 +0100 Seismologists were mystified by a strange signal that persisted for nine days in 2023 – now its source has been identified as a standing wave caused by a landslide in Greenland

Cave diver explores a Mexican sinkhole in atmospheric photograph Wed, 11 Sep 2024 19:00:00 +0100 This claustrophobia-inducing image is taken from photographer Martin Broen's new book Light in the Underworld, a collection of shots from the Yucatán’s cenotes, or sinkholes

Earthquakes may explain how huge gold nuggets form in quartz rock Mon, 02 Sep 2024 17:00:44 +0100 Quartz crystals produce electricity when they are deformed by mechanical stress, which may explain how enormous chunks of gold can form in inert rock

A dramatic twist to the Gaia hypothesis Wed, 21 Aug 2024 19:00:00 +0100 James Lovelock's hypothesis that our planet is a living entity is well known. Ferris Jabr's new book Becoming Earth takes it a step further

Part of the Atlantic is cooling at record speed and nobody knows why Mon, 19 Aug 2024 23:24:41 +0100 After over a year of record-high global sea temperatures, the equatorial Atlantic is cooling off more quickly than ever recorded, which could impact weather around the world

Dramatic images show the dark side of cobalt mining boom Wed, 14 Aug 2024 19:00:00 +0100 Pascal Maitre's photos from the Democratic Republic of Congo detail the problems arising as demand for cobalt grows

Record-breaking drill core reaches 1.2 kilometres into Earth's mantle Thu, 08 Aug 2024 20:00:17 +0100 A scientific drilling ship has burrowed further into Earth’s mantle than ever before, obtaining new clues about the processes that feed oceanic volcanoes and the possible origins of life

New Scientist recommends Twisters – action sequel with added tornadoes Wed, 07 Aug 2024 19:00:00 +0100 The books, TV, games and more that New Scientist staff have enjoyed this week

Mangrove forests celebrated in stunning photographs Wed, 07 Aug 2024 19:00:00 +0100 See some of the top entries to this year's Mangrove Photography Awards, showing the beauty and fragility of these unique ecosystems

Ambitious story of how life shapes Earth ends superb trilogy Wed, 07 Aug 2024 19:00:00 +0100 The dynamics of how plants and animals change Earth is central to this last book in a trilogy by Other Minds author and "scuba-diving philosopher" Peter Godfrey-Smith

Epic images show old mines transformed into a library, lab and museum Wed, 24 Jul 2024 19:00:00 +0100 Amazing images of an open-air library, underground lab and design museum show the reincarnation of dead mines, captured in a new book, 102 Things to Do With a Hole in the Ground

Shock discovery reveals deep sea nodules are a source of oxygen Mon, 22 Jul 2024 17:00:12 +0100 Sea-floor nodules raise oxygen levels in the deep ocean, suggesting they may have a valuable role in ecosystems and adding to concerns about the impact of deep-sea mining

What would Earth look like in 25 years? I asked the experts Wed, 10 Jul 2024 19:00:00 +0100 Exhausted by today's political and environmental instability, Annalee Newitz investigated what a future Earth might look like. Get ready for green mining, soft cities and robo-taxis

Record amount of water from 2022 Tonga eruption is still in atmosphere Fri, 28 Jun 2024 14:00:55 +0100 Millions of tonnes of water vapour have been lingering in the atmosphere since the Hunga Tonga-Hunga Ha’apai volcano erupted in 2022– possibly contributing to global warming

Watch Philippines typhoon disaster film winner of Earth Photo 24 award Sat, 22 Jun 2024 11:00:52 +0100 A documentary film about three young survivors of super-typhoon Odette, a tropical cyclone that hit the Philippines in 2021, wins the New Scientist Editors Award at Earth Photo 2024

Photos of a rusting Alaskan river win New Scientist Editors Award Wed, 19 Jun 2024 19:00:00 +0100 Taylor Roades's images of a river in north-west Alaska that has turned orange because of global warming have won the New Scientist Editors Award at the Earth Photo competition

Is North America set for another bad wildfire smoke season? Mon, 27 May 2024 13:00:54 +0100 Smoke from wildfires burning in Canada and Mexico is already worsening air quality in the US, but some signs suggest clearer skies than last year

Hot Atlantic sets the stage for extreme hurricane season Thu, 23 May 2024 20:51:27 +0100 This year could bring up to 25 named tropical storms in the Atlantic Ocean due to a shift to La Niña conditions, says the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

Snow and rising sea levels may have triggered Japan's earthquake swarm Tue, 21 May 2024 16:00:54 +0100 In an ongoing swarm of earthquakes that began hitting Japan in 2020, the shifting weight of surface water may have spurred the shaking

Why criticisms of the proposed Anthropocene epoch miss the point Wed, 08 May 2024 19:00:00 +0100 A proposal to define the Anthropocene as a geological epoch was rejected this March, but humanity's impact on Earth is real, whether formalised or not, says Jan Zalasiewicz

Can these awesome rocks become central Asia’s first UNESCO Geopark? Tue, 30 Apr 2024 17:00:00 +0100 Long feted by fossil hunters and geologists, if UNESCO recognises the extraordinary rock formation at Madygen in Kyrgyzstan, it will soon be a player on the world stage

These photos show how a warmer climate is damaging Earth's waters Wed, 24 Apr 2024 19:00:00 +0100 Photographer Diane Tuft has documented how global warming is affecting bodies of water around the world

What are the mysterious continent-sized lumps deep inside Earth? Wed, 04 May 2022 13:00:00 +0100 For decades, planetary scientists have been trying to understand the origins of two colossal geological anomalies inside our planet. New insights suggest they could be leftovers from a cosmic collision

Extreme heat in 2023 linked to drastic slump in growth of marine life Fri, 19 Apr 2024 07:00:51 +0100 Last year’s marine heatwaves saw an unprecedented decline in the growth of phytoplankton and algae, which many animals in the oceans depend on for food

Geoscientists are using telecom 'dark fibres' to map Earth’s innards Mon, 15 Apr 2024 21:00:28 +0100 The networks of fibre optic cables that criss-cross the planet could be used to better understand what’s happening inside it

Deadly upwellings of cold water pose threat to migratory sharks Mon, 15 Apr 2024 17:00:05 +0100 Climate change is making extreme cold upwellings more common in certain regions of the world, and these events can be catastrophic for animals such as bull sharks

Huge crater in India hints at major meteorite impact 4000 years ago Tue, 26 Mar 2024 08:00:18 +0000 The Luna structure, a 1.8-kilometre-wide depression in north-west India, may have been caused by the largest meteorite to strike Earth in the past 50,000 years

Why supersonic, diamond-spewing volcanoes might be coming back to life Tue, 19 Mar 2024 16:00:00 +0000 Strange volcanoes called kimberlites bring diamonds up from Earth's depths. Scientists have always struggled to understand why they switched off millions of years ago – but perhaps they didn't

Sulphur dioxide from Iceland volcano eruption has reached the UK Thu, 21 Mar 2024 17:38:34 +0000 A huge plume of sulphur dioxide from the latest eruption in Iceland is drifting across Europe, but it isn't expected to cause any significant harm

It's time to accept that we are in the Anthropocene once and for all Wed, 13 Mar 2024 18:00:00 +0000 Humans are drastically changing the planet and the Anthropocene is a useful tool to help us deal with that – so let's stop quibbling over definitions

Stark, haunting images show Kazakhstan's former nuclear testing ground Wed, 06 Mar 2024 18:00:00 +0000 These stunning photographs are all shortlisted for the Sony World Photography Awards 2024

Surprise decision not to define the Anthropocene shocks scientists Tue, 05 Mar 2024 20:28:14 +0000 A proposal to define the Anthropocene, a geologic epoch defined by human activity, has been rejected – surprising even scientists who consulted the voting group

Eerie green sunsets after 1883 Krakatoa eruption finally explained Mon, 04 Mar 2024 22:07:04 +0000 Mysterious green sunsets were reported after the massive eruption of Krakatoa in 1883 – now simulations show how they were created and just how rare they are

Stark mountain landscapes exposed in Canada as glaciers shrink Wed, 21 Feb 2024 18:00:00 +0000 Global warming means many of the world’s ancient rivers of ice will be gone within decades, threatening ecosystems that rely on their meltwater, a looming crisis that photographer Edward Burtynsky highlights in his work

Largest volcanic eruption in recorded history happened 7300 years ago Wed, 21 Feb 2024 13:58:06 +0000 The Kikai-Akahoya eruption of an underwater volcano off the coast of Japan ejected enough material to fill Lake Tahoe twice, three times as much as the eruption of Mount Tambora in 1815

Bacteria could help turn CO2 to rock under extreme conditions Wed, 14 Feb 2024 14:57:50 +0000 Microbes that rapidly convert CO2 to rock could lock away the greenhouse gas in deep underground storage sites, such as depleted oil and gas reservoirs

Giant magma flow in Iceland was the fastest ever recorded Thu, 08 Feb 2024 19:00:27 +0000 As a 15-kilometre crack formed ahead of the recent eruptions, magma flowed into it at the highest rate observed anywhere in the world

Huge deposit of natural hydrogen gas detected deep in Albanian mine Thu, 08 Feb 2024 19:00:05 +0000 Companies are searching all over the world for deposits of geologic hydrogen that could be used as clean fuel, and a mine in Albania could give them clues about where to look

Enormous underwater mountains discovered off west coast of Americas Thu, 08 Feb 2024 14:00:29 +0000 An ocean research vessel has just discovered four underwater mountains, the tallest almost 3 kilometres high, that might be hotspots of deep-sea life

Ocean thunderstorms generate the most intense lightning ever observed Tue, 06 Feb 2024 15:00:49 +0000 An analysis of satellite observations has identified some extreme thunderstorms over the Indian Ocean and Gulf of Mexico with lightning flashes so frequent that the sky would appear continuously lit

Lightning during volcanic eruptions may have sparked life on Earth Mon, 05 Feb 2024 20:00:41 +0000 Lightning strikes during volcanic eruptions could have provided nitrogen in a form that was needed by early life forms

Lithium mining looks set to reshape Bolivia's Salar de Uyuni salt flat Wed, 24 Jan 2024 18:00:00 +0000 Photographer Matjaz Krivic has been charting the effects of lithium mining on locals in the world's largest salt flat in Bolivia since 2016

Siberia’s mysterious exploding craters may be caused by hot gas Mon, 15 Jan 2024 08:00:20 +0000 Several enormous craters left by explosions have been spotted in Siberia over the past 15 years, and a new explanation links them to hot gas – and climate change

World's first tunnel to a magma chamber could unleash unlimited energy Wed, 03 Jan 2024 14:00:00 +0000 In Iceland, scientists are planning to drill two boreholes to a reservoir of liquid rock. One will give us our first direct measurements of magma – the other could supercharge geothermal power

Vast submerged area near Australia may once have hosted 500,000 people Tue, 02 Jan 2024 14:13:45 +0000 An area of the seabed north of Australia has been mapped in detail for the first time, revealing that large numbers of people could have lived there until it was inundated by rising seas

See a dazzling collection of the year's best northern lights pictures Wed, 27 Dec 2023 18:00:00 +0000 This spectacular selection of images is taken from the winners of the Northern Lights Photographer of the Year competition, run by Capture the Atlas

We might officially enter the Anthropocene epoch in 2024 Tue, 26 Dec 2023 18:00:00 +0000 Scientific bodies are due to make an official decision in the coming year about whether to declare a new geochronological unit precipitated by the impact of humans on Earth

China started drilling ultra-deep holes in 2023 in a hunt for oil Sun, 24 Dec 2023 10:00:05 +0000 A drilling project in the Taklamakan desert is aiming to reach more than 11,000 metres below Earth’s surface as China explores the deep earth for resources

Dead spacecraft are seeding the upper atmosphere with metal Fri, 22 Dec 2023 14:00:55 +0000 The stratosphere seems to be full of aluminium particles and other metals that come from spacecraft burning up in the atmosphere, and those particles could mess up polar clouds

Iceland volcano: Watch the Fagradalsfjall eruption live Tue, 19 Dec 2023 16:48:05 +0000 Iceland’s Fagradalsfjall volcano, located on the country’s south-west Reykjanes peninsula, has erupted after weeks of earthquake activity

The magnificent medieval map that made cartography into a science Tue, 12 Dec 2023 16:00:00 +0000 Some 550 years ago, a Venetian monk named Fra Mauro set out to create a world map. Rather than myth and religion, it was based on solid evidence for the first time

Popocatépetl: Predicting Mexico's most dangerous volcano Thu, 30 Nov 2023 11:00:23 +0000 Few volcanos come with more risk than Mexico's Popocatépetl, situated near Mexico City. To mitigate danger, volcanologist Chiara Maria Petrone is trying to predict its next eruption

Forget the Amazon – are these the most remarkable rivers in the world? Thu, 16 Nov 2023 16:00:00 +0000 When most people are asked to name a river, they often reach for the Amazon or Nile, but these aren’t the only remarkable rivers out there. Here are 10 more from around the world – and solar system

Iceland volcano: Current cycle of eruptions could last for decades Wed, 15 Nov 2023 13:15:46 +0000 Iceland is bracing for a volcanic eruption, as thousands of small earthquakes have shaken the southern part of the Reykjanes peninsula since October

Ice might be ubiquitous, but we are still discovering things about it Wed, 15 Nov 2023 18:00:00 +0000 Once seen as miraculous, these days ice is no longer extraordinary. But in a winter season when Antarctic sea ice hit a historic low, it is clear we should cherish it more, says Max Leonard

Iceland volcano: 15km magma tunnel under town threatens to erupt Tue, 14 Nov 2023 15:18:23 +0000 A 15-kilometre-long mass of lava has formed underneath the Reykjanes peninsula in Iceland and could erupt at any time

Stunning image of South America's largest lake hides a dark secret Fri, 03 Nov 2023 12:31:34 +0000 Lake Maracaibo in Venezuela, the largest lake in South America, has been captured in detail by the European Space Agency's Copernicus Sentinel-2 mission

Bits of an ancient planet called Theia may be buried in Earth’s mantle Wed, 01 Nov 2023 16:00:57 +0000 Two strange, high-density blobs buried more than a kilometre underground may have come from the ancient world Theia, which is thought to have slammed into Earth to create the moon

Sun-blocking dust from asteroid impact drove the dinosaur extinction Mon, 30 Oct 2023 16:00:35 +0000 The Chicxulub impact 66 million years ago filled the sky with fine silicate dust, which blocked out sunlight and lingered for 15 years

Ancient river valleys discovered beneath Antarctic ice sheet Tue, 24 Oct 2023 17:00:42 +0100 A better picture of the hidden landscape beneath the frozen surface of Antarctica could help us understand how the ice will respond to climate change

Earth’s core is oddly squishy and we may now know why Wed, 11 Oct 2023 19:00:55 +0100 Earth’s iron-rich inner core may owe some of its surprising softness to the motion of atoms, suggest experiments with iron at high temperature and pressure coupled to AI simulations

Huge earthquake shook Seattle 1100 years ago and it could happen again Wed, 27 Sep 2023 20:00:56 +0100 Analysis of tree rings shows that two faults near Seattle, Washington ruptured at the same time or soon after each other more than 1000 years ago – a repeat today would cause a major disaster in the region

Nearly all mammals will go extinct in 250 million years as Earth warms Mon, 25 Sep 2023 17:00:19 +0100 If humans still exist millions of years from now, they will face inhospitably warm conditions on a supercontinent centred at the equator. Most land mammals won't be able to survive

Rare Australian pink diamonds emerged when a supercontinent broke up Tue, 19 Sep 2023 17:00:47 +0100 Understanding how the world’s largest-known collection of pink diamonds came to the surface in Australia around 1.3 billion years ago could help us find hidden deposits elsewhere in the world

NASA’s UFO task force has released its final report – it’s not aliens Thu, 14 Sep 2023 19:25:26 +0100 An independent task force formed by NASA to look into unidentified anomalous phenomena found no evidence of alien craft, and suggests that if we want to find proof of visitors we need better data

Tonga volcano unleashed underwater flows that reshaped the seafloor Thu, 07 Sep 2023 20:00:42 +0100 The destruction of telecommunications cables during the eruption of Hunga Tonga-Hunga Haʻapai volcano in 2022 shows that underwater debris currents can travel at 122 kilometres per hour

Sea level may have been higher than it is now just 6000 years ago Tue, 25 Jul 2023 16:00:45 +0100 Climate researchers thought that current global average sea levels were the highest in more than 100,000 years, but new models suggest oceans just 6000 years ago may have been higher than at the beginning of the industrial revolution, and possibly even higher than today

Earth is coated in ancient space dust that could be from the moon Mon, 24 Jul 2023 09:00:17 +0100 A 33-million-year-old layer of Earth's crust is laced with helium-3, which is normally only found in space. Now we might have an explanation for how it got there

GPS could predict earthquakes two hours ahead, but there's a catch Thu, 20 Jul 2023 20:00:59 +0100 An analysis of GPS data has revealed a slow and otherwise undetectable slip of tectonic plates that begins two hours before an earthquake - but detecting this in advance would require more accurate sensors

Stunning image of erupting volcano reminds us of Earth’s violent past Wed, 19 Jul 2023 19:00:00 +0100 This photo of Tungurahua, a volcano exploding in the Ecuadorian night, comes from an illustrated book to accompany a TV series about Earth’s deep history

Canadian lake selected as site to mark the start of the Anthropocene Tue, 11 Jul 2023 19:00:23 +0100 Geologists hoping to declare a new epoch dominated by humanity’s influence on Earth have chosen Crawford Lake in Canada as the location where the start of the Anthropocene is defined

Chris Packham: We're precipitating a mass extermination event Tue, 11 Jul 2023 15:00:33 +0100 Chris Packham's new BBC series, Earth, looks at significant moments in Earth's history, including anthropogenic climate change and biodiversity loss, "It's not a sixth mass extinction event that we're precipitating," he says, "it's a mass extermination event"

There's a gravity 'hole' in the Indian Ocean and now we may know why Sat, 24 Jun 2023 10:00:24 +0100 Earth appears to have less mass beneath a certain part of the Indian Ocean compared with the rest of the planet. Plumes of magma at the location could explain why

Humans have pumped so much groundwater, we’ve shifted Earth’s axis Sat, 17 Jun 2023 00:06:44 +0100 Changes in the distribution of groundwater around the planet between 1993 and 2010 were enough to make Earth's poles drift by 80 centimetres

See some of the images up for the Earth Photo 2023 competition Thu, 08 Jun 2023 18:00:28 +0100 From a photograph of algae choking an Indian river to a shocking depiction of the wearing away of the UK coast, these are some of the pictures in the running for the contest

Kīlauea volcano: Watch live footage of the eruption in Hawaii Thu, 08 Jun 2023 12:18:42 +0100 The Kīlauea volcano in Hawaii has begun erupting, spewing volcanic gas and ash across the island

Dried-up lake may explain why California is 'overdue' major earthquake Wed, 07 Jun 2023 17:00:17 +0100 Pressure on the San Andreas fault from a now-dried lake could have been sufficient to trigger past major earthquakes in California. The lake’s disappearance could explain why there have been no such quakes for nearly 300 years

Why is China drilling a hole more than 10,000 metres deep? Fri, 02 Jun 2023 20:36:30 +0100 An oil company in China has started drilling a hole that would be the deepest in the country and among the deepest in the world

Tonga volcano eruption disrupted satellites halfway around the world Mon, 22 May 2023 11:00:40 +0100 A link between volcanic activity and rising bubbles of low pressure in the ionosphere has now been proven, which may be why the colossal Tonga volcano eruption in 2022 disrupted satellite communications

Prehistoric Planet 2 review: Attenborough returns to ancient Earth Sun, 14 May 2023 09:01:16 +0100 The second series of this show about Earth 66 million years ago is a joy to watch - but it inspires more than it informs. A little more science would have been nice

These bizarre lights in the sky hint at a way to predict earthquakes Wed, 03 May 2023 17:00:00 +0100 Semi-mythical "earthquake lights" may be accompanied by changes to Earth's magnetic field. Now researchers say these changes could be used to forecast major tremors

World's first drilling project to seek natural hydrogen hits a snag Fri, 14 Apr 2023 21:59:25 +0100 A well in Nebraska is the first in the world to have been drilled in search of naturally occurring geologic hydrogen, but tests to determine how much of the gas it might supply are on hold because of a broken pump