The complexity of modeling the tropical Atlantic makes identifying the source of the ongoing seaweed blooms difficult.
unsolved mysteries
Proposed Experiment Could Clarify Origin of Martian Methane
Curiosity’s detection of the gas, if atmospheric, could be an indicator of life on the Red Planet. But skeptics say further work is needed to rule out the rover itself as the source of the methane.
A Super Speedy Star May Be Streaking Through Our Galaxy
Astronomers suggest the star is towing along an exoplanet. The system could be traveling fast enough to escape the Milky Way.
How Do You Make Earth into an Icehouse?
A new model accurately reconstructs Earth’s past icehouses and indicates there’s no one driver behind them.
Cave Deposit Links Greenland’s and Europe’s Climate Records with a German Volcano
Dating a late Pleistocene eruption has big implications for understanding the Younger Dryas—and current climate change.
Jupiter’s Moon Callisto Is Very Likely an Ocean World
A closer look at previously disregarded observations reveals stronger evidence that a deep ocean lies beneath Callisto’s icy surface.
How to Build the World’s Highest Mountain
The rocks of Mount Everest’s peak made an epic journey from seafloor to summit.
Arctic Ice Is Getting Smoother and Moving Faster
A decrease in pressure ridges over the past 3 decades is making the ice more uniform, with unclear consequences.
Ice Core Records Shed Light on a Volcanic Mystery
By analyzing sulfur and volcanic ash entrained in ice cores, researchers pinpointed a caldera in the remote Kuril Islands as the site of an unidentified 19th century eruption.