Researchers explored past precipitation in India using shells from very large land snails collected there in 1918 and preserved in a British museum.
News
Unprecedented Hurricane Season Sees Widespread Damage
This hurricane season has broken multiple records already.
Faults off Alaska Look Akin to Those Behind 2011 Japan Disaster
In a seismically quiet segment of Alaska’s subduction zone lie faults with structures similar to those of the system that caused the deadly Tohoku earthquake and tsunami.
Pluto’s Features Receive First Official Names
Names of mountains, plains, valleys, and craters honor human and technological pioneers, Pluto scientists, and underworld mythology from around the world.
Caribbean Sediment Traced to 1755 Portuguese Quake and Tsunami
Archaeologists digging in Martinique chanced upon the first tsunami deposit from the earthquake found in the New World. The tsunami left a strong trace, it seems, because the wave went up a river.
World’s Heavy Dependence on Fossil Fuels Projected to Continue
The report forecasts a 2.8% annual increase in renewable energy through 2040, making it the world’s fastest growing source of energy for electricity generation.
Cassini Plunges into Saturn, Ends a 20-Year Mission
NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory streamed the spacecraft’s final moments live, allowing the public to listen to the mission’s end.
Diamonds Really Do Rain on Neptune, Experiments Conclude
Researchers subjected hydrocarbon samples in a laboratory to Neptune-like pressures. The samples, reminiscent of molecules found in the ice giant’s atmosphere, compressed into nanodiamonds.
Environment and Labor Groups Push to Protect EPA Budget
The groups protested funding cuts, reductions in staff, and demoralizing working conditions.
Deepwater Horizon Dispersant Cleared the Air, New Model Shows
A simulation of oil and gas leakage during the Deepwater Horizon disaster finds that the main chemical dispersant used improved air quality for emergency responders.