Most Recommended Science News

Several lines of evidence point to the possibility of a past ocean on Mars, from apparent ancient shorelines to chemicals in the soil.

Protecting Jungles: One Way to Combat Global Warming

MAUNA LOA OBSERVATORY, Hawaii - The readings at this 2-mile-high station show a troubling upward curve as the world counts down to crucial climate talks: Global warming gases are building in the atmosphere at record levels from emissions that match scientists' worst-case scenarios.

WASHINGTON - Behind the elaborate ceremony of the Indian prime minister's state visit Tuesday, Manmohan Singh and President Barack Obama will be working to smooth over differences on climate change and U.S. ties with Indian rivals China and Pakistan.

WASHINGTON (AFP) - US authorities expanded a probe Monday into health impacts of drywall imported from China, saying an initial study found a "strong association" with indoor pollution in homes using the product.

GENEVA (AFP) - Greenhouse gas emissions have kept increasing, reaching a record level since the pre-industrial era, the UN climate agency warned Monday, just weeks before a crucial climate change summit.

PARIS (AFP) - Tackling climate change should also include providing low-carbon energy to the poor, UN agencies said Monday, pointing out that almost one third of the world?s population remains in the dark at night.

BRUSSELS (AFP) - The UN's top climate negotiator voiced optimism Monday that a deal can be salvaged next month at world talks on global warming, but said US President Barack Obama must offer a target and financing.

WASHINGTON (AFP) - Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said Monday that the emerging economy was ready to do more on climate change if developed nations make financial commitments.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The United States will propose an emissions reduction target at U.N. climate change talks in Copenhagen in December with an eye toward winning support from U.S. lawmakers who must agree to put it into law.

WASHINGTON (AFP) - The United States will announce a target for reducing its greenhouse gas emissions before the UN climate conference in Copenhagen, removing a major obstacle to a deal, officials have said.

"Science as a Contact Sport: Inside the Battle to Save Earth's Climate" (National Geographic, 295 pages, $28), by Stephen H. Schneider: Stephen H. Schneider, winner of one of those $500,000 genius grants, has written a witty, informative and impassioned account of perils he sees in global warming and what to do about them.

BRASILIA, Brazil - British pop star Sting says Brazil's government should listen to the voices of local indigenous groups before building a massive hydroelectric dam in the Amazon rain forest.

NATRONA, Pa. - The federal government and the Allegheny County Health Department have sued Allegheny Ludlum Corp. and a contractor for alleged air pollution violations at a slag dump near Pittsburgh.

BOULDER, Colo. - A leading climate change scientist said hackers breaking into a university's computer server and then posting documents online show the nasty politics of global warming.

TULSA, Okla. - One of the most closely watched environmental cases in years has turned into legal purgatory as the trial of Oklahoma's lawsuit against the Arkansas poultry industry is marred by delays and squabbling attorneys.

BOULDER, Colo. – Call it Operation: Plymouth Rock. A plan to send a crew of astronauts to an asteroid is gaining momentum, both within NASA and industry circles.

WASHINGTON (AFP) - Humanity would need five Earths to produce the resources needed if everyone lived as profligately as Americans, according to a report issued Tuesday.

WASHINGTON (AFP) - Astronauts from the US space shuttle Atlantis began the third and final spacewalk of their mission aimed at building the International Space Station, NASA reported on Monday.

WASHINGTON - The United States, under pressure from other nations as one of the world's largest greenhouse-gas polluters, will present a target for reducing carbon dioxide emissions at next month's climate conference in Copenhagen, Obama administration officials said Monday.

A tiny chameleon species with a scaly horn atop its snout and blue dots on its limbs has been discovered in Tanzanian forests.

HARRISBURG, Pa. - Radioactive dust unexpectedly blew out of a pipe being cut by workers during weekend maintenance at the Three Mile Island nuclear power plant, and officials on Monday were trying to determine exactly how and why it happened.

WASHINGTON - Since the 1997 international accord to fight global warming, climate change has worsened and accelerated — beyond some of the grimmest of warnings made back then.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Federal officials are investigating a radiation leak at Three Mile Island, scene of the worst U.S. nuclear power accident, but said on Sunday there was no threat to public health or safety.

WASHINGTON (AFP) - Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh offered a hand to the United States to help build an "open and inclusive" Asia as President Barack Obama prepared to toast him Tuesday with his first state dinner.

GENEVA (AFP) - Flooding in the world's major port cities caused by melting icecaps could cause up to 28 trillion dollars (18 trillion euros) in damage in 2050, environmental group WWF said in a report Monday.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - The astronauts aboard the orbiting shuttle-station complex are resting after their three successful spacewalks.

WASHINGTON (AFP) - Thousands of animal species thrive in the ocean depths beyond the reach of sunlight, between 200 to 5,000 meters below the surface, an international team of scientists has reported after nearly 10 years of research.