Why the Discovery of an Active Volcano on Venus Matters
Venus had a lot going for it. Roughly the same diameter and density as Earth, it orbits in the solar system’s habitable zone—just the right distance from the sun for liquid water to exist. But the planet’s biological prospects were long ago wrecked by a runaway greenhouse effect that left it with an atmosphere that is 95% carbon dioxide, and 90 times the pressure of...
A Controversial Technology Is Creating an Unprecedented Rift Among Climate Scientists
Geoengineering our atmosphere to cool the planet has long been a taboo subject. But as the earth keeps heating up, that may now be changing.
WEDNESDAY 15. MARCH 2023
The U.S. Has a New Favorite Dog Breed—and It’s Controversial
A new dog breed has waddled its way into Americans’ hearts. While Labrador retrievers were the most popular purebred dog for a record 31 years, French bulldogs—or “frenchies” as they’re called by enthusiasts—took the top spot in 2022 for the first time, the American Kennel Club announced on March 15.
But the selection doesn’t come without some...
TUESDAY 14. MARCH 2023
EPA To Crack Down on Toxic PFAS ‘Forever Chemicals’ in Drinking Water
The Environmental Protection Agency on Tuesday proposed limiting the amount of harmful “forever chemicals” in drinking water to the lowest level that tests can detect, a long-awaited protection the agency said will save thousands of lives and prevent serious illnesses, including cancer.
The plan marks the first time the EPA has proposed regulating a toxic group of compounds that are...
Conflicts of Interest Could Undermine the Cleanup Efforts in East Palestine
Many residents of East Palestine, Ohio, are suspicious of the environmental contractor Norfolk Southern has brought in to measure chemical exposures following last month’s massive train derailment, toxic spill, and chemical burn off. Over the last decade, the Center for Toxicology and Environmental Health (CTEH) has become the go-to contractor for corporations looking to follow up on...
MONDAY 13. MARCH 2023
Scientists Sound the Alarm Over a Growing Trash Problem in Space
Sixty-six years ago, there was just a single human-built object in Earth orbit. It was Sputnik, the Soviet Union’s—and the world’s—first satellite, launched on Oct. 4, 1957. Now take a moment and try to guess how many objects—including active satellites, defunct satellites, and bits of debris from all of that space traffic—are currently circling the planet....
FRIDAY 10. MARCH 2023
Scientists Just Discovered an Asteroid Heading Our Way. Here’s What to Know
Chances are, you haven’t yet made your plans for Valentine’s day 2046. But just in case you’re thinking about it, you may want to make sure you spend the day indoors. That, at least, is the take home message from NASA’s Planetary Defense Coordination Office, which earlier this week sounded the alarm via Twitter that in just under 23 years, a newly discovered asteroid...
TUESDAY 7. MARCH 2023
Our Relationship With Time Is Changing—Maybe for the Better
The pandemic created a window for many to re-evaluate their attitudes toward time itself. Now we’ll find out if what we learned will stick.
Less Than 1% of Earth Has Safe Levels of Air Pollution, Study Finds
It’s no secret that air pollution is a serious problem facing the world today. Just how serious? A new study on global daily levels of air pollution shows that hardly anywhere on Earth is safe from unhealthy air.
About 99.82% of the global land area is exposed to levels of particulate matter 2.5 (PM2.5) — tiny particles in the air that scientists have linked to lung cancer and heart...
MONDAY 6. MARCH 2023
Current Food Consumption Habits May Add Nearly 1 Degree of Warming by 2100
Greenhouse gas emissions from the way humans consume food could add nearly 1 degree of warming to the Earth’s climate by 2100, according to a new study.
Continuing the dietary patterns of today will push the planet past the 1.5 degrees Celsius (2.7 degrees Fahrenheit) limit of warming sought under the Paris climate agreement to avoid the worst effects of climate change, according to the...