Variations in air pressure on the top of Mount Everest affect oxygen availability, changing the perceived elevation of the summit by hundreds of meters.

Katherine Kornei
Katherine Kornei is a freelance science journalist covering Earth and space science. Her bylines frequently appear in Eos, Science, and The New York Times. Katherine holds a Ph.D. in astronomy from the University of California, Los Angeles.
Waterways Change as Cities Grow Nearby
Using multidecadal data sets, researchers have traced how urbanization affects streamflow across the continental United States.
Tracing the Moisture That Nourishes the World’s Highest Glacier
Using data from weather stations on and around Mount Everest, scientists find that the Khumbu Glacier receives most of its moisture from the Bay of Bengal.
La Geología y la Química Impulsan la Migración Animal en el Serengueti
Trabajo de campo en Tanzania sugiere que la química del suelo—influenciada por el vulcanismo local y la actividad tectónica—podría ayudar a determinar la migración sin precedentes de más de un millón de ñus.
Homes and Other Buildings Abound in Natural Hazard Hot Spots
Researchers mined maps of natural hazards and land use to show that nearly 60% of structures are built in regions at high risk of earthquakes, wildfires, floods, hurricanes, and/or tornadoes.
Agricultura Sustentable Reflejada en Calidad del Agua de Cuba
Las muestras de agua de 25 ríos en el centro de Cuba están dominadas por signos de erosión de las rocas en lugar de la escorrentía de fertilizantes, según muestran investigadores que trabajan en instituciones cubanas y estadounidenses.
Students Learn New Skills with Scientist-in-Training Programs
AGU’s Bright STaRS offers a model for programs to give middle and high school students a taste of what a career in science can offer.
Powerful Glacial Floods Heave Himalayan Boulders
Many of the house-sized boulders that litter Himalayan river channels were transported thousands of years ago by glacial lake outburst floods, new observations suggest.
Birds Sang a New Song During the Pandemic
White-crowned sparrows in the San Francisco Bay Area sang differently during California’s COVID-19-induced shutdown, recordings have revealed.
Sediment Layers Pinpoint Periods of Climatic Change
Researchers studying sediment cores from the Gulf of Alaska have pinpointed when the Cordilleran Ice Sheet, now extinct, disgorged icebergs into the Pacific Ocean.