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Climate Change
We’ve argued over ideology for far too long. It’s time to pick a better route to prosperity. In every civilized society around the world, there’s a trade-off that must be […]
It contains more water than all the Great Lakes combined, and the science of our planet explains why. Although practically all of Earth’s human population lives on dry land, our surface […]
In 774/775, tree rings show a spike in carbon-14 unlike anything else. At last, scientists think they know why. Every once in a while, science gives us a mystery that comes […]
Your opinions about a large number of complex scientific issues are probably wrong. That’s why we have science. In 2016, an Italian virologist named Roberto Burioni was invited to appear on […]
If you were to compress the entire history of the Universe into one calendar year, everything we love happens on December 31st. Our Universe has been around for 13.8 billion years […]
If an AT-AT walker (or something even larger) wanted to walk across a frozen lake, how thick would the ice have to be? Each winter, one of the most spectacular phenomena […]
She’s not a scientist, an expert, or even an adult. But she’s got one good lesson to teach us all. Like most people on Earth, Greta Thunberg is not a climate […]
It would be the ultimate method for solving our pollution or hazardous/radioactive waste problems, but we’ll never do it. Here’s why. Imagine our planet as it was for the first 4.55 […]
The remote volcano Raikoke just erupted after nearly 100 years of silence. Here’s why it matters. On June 22, 2019, a volcano that had been dormant and inactive for nearly a […]
Our planet is rare, precious, and fragile. It’s up to all of us to be its steward. With the advent of rocketry and spaceflight, our cosmic perspective changed forever. The very […]
Weather isn’t climate. The President isn’t a scientist. And physics is still real. The country is freezing in an unprecedented fashion, and global warming is to blame. Sound crazy? The cold […]
Sometimes, chemistry can be more important for color than even physics. All across the world, volcanic eruptions remind us of the destructive power residing beneath Earth’s surface. You might be used […]
The Earth is getting warmer, and humans are the cause. This is why. Let’s play pretend for a moment. Pretend, if you can, that you’ve never heard about the idea of […]
As individuals, we scientists are all flawed. But the enterprise of science rises above our individual shortcomings. The enterprise of science is perhaps the greatest achievement in all of human […]
If emissions don’t go down, there’s still an option for combatting global warming. We just have to effectively dim the Sun. Global climate change is one of the most pressing long-term […]
The same technology that Norway uses to keep its fjords ice-free could literally take the power out of hurricanes as they form. Among all the natural disasters that occur on planet […]
Congress refused the majority of Trump’s proposed cuts to NASA’s budget. But many uncertainties remain. On March 21st, 2018, both branches of Congress passed the United States’ Consolidated Appropriations Act, […]
The hole in the ozone is shrinking, for sure, but to assess the whole layer, you need to look at the whole Earth. Throughout the history of life on Earth, there’s […]
While it’s fresh in everyone’s mind, this is the best time to turn awareness into action. “Hurricane Katrina overwhelmed levees and exploded the conventional wisdom about a shared American prosperity, exposing […]
Just a few simple, common conditions can create the perfect storm. 80% of the time, humans are the trigger. “I’d rather fight 100 structure fires than a wildfire. With a structure […]
Some say it’s more than all of humanity emits in a year. But people say a lot of things. What does the science say? “One volcano puts out more toxic gases — one […]
Even if you have a problem with the messenger, you still need to heed the message. “Whether humans are responsible for the bulk of climate change is going to be left […]
If you think federal funding for science is expensive, wait until you see the cost of not funding it. “For me, it is far better to grasp the Universe as […]
What it means that 2016 is the hottest year on record. “There are now dozens of hockey sticks and the all come to the same basic conclusion. The recent warming does […]
There’s never been a more important time to be aware of how the fate of the Earth depends on us. “We only have one planet that serves as an example and […]