For more than 50 years, forecasters at the National Hurricane Center used the Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Wind Scale (SSHWS) to classify hurricane strength. This scale, which ranks hurricanes from Category 1 to Category 5, is based on only one metric: maximum sustained wind speed. That wasn’t always the case. Until 2012, the SSHWS also took central […]
Arctic Rivers Are Turning an Eerie Orange, and This Might Be Why
Researchers have long believed that frozen environments slow chemical reactions, but new research challenges this belief. In a study published last month in the journal PNAS, researchers have demonstrated that ice can dissolve iron minerals better than liquid water, with implications for the many Arctic rivers mysteriously turning orange as the planet warms. Specifically, Jean-François […]
New Research Answers Lingering Questions About Siberia’s Exploding Tundra
Looking for one more reason to worry about climate change? No? Well, here’s one anyway. Rising global temperatures are causing parts of the Siberian tundra to spontaneously explode. Scientists have been studying this bizarre phenomenon since 2014, when a mysterious 165-foot-deep (50-meter-deep) hole suddenly appeared on the Yamal Peninsula in northwest Siberia. Since then, they’ve […]
This Unlikely Chemical Could Be a Powerful Weapon Against Climate Change
Year after year, humans pump more carbon dioxide (CO2) into the atmosphere than nature can remove, fueling global warming. As the need to mitigate climate change becomes increasingly urgent, scientists are developing ways to actively remove CO2 from the atmosphere in addition to cutting emissions. One of the biggest hurdles to scaling current carbon capture […]
One of the World’s Tallest, Oldest Trees Is Ablaze in Oregon
The Doerner Fir, one of the world’s tallest coastal Douglas-fir trees, has stood within the remote forest of the Oregon Coast Range mountains for at least 450 years. On Saturday, August 16, officials received reports that this historic giant was engulfed in flames. Firefighters rushed to the scene, deploying drones, aircraft, and hand crews in […]
Hurricane Swarms Are a Thing We Have to Worry About Now
In early October 2024, hurricanes Milton, Kirk, and Leslie churned in the Atlantic Basin—the first time on record that three Atlantic hurricanes were simultaneously active after September, according to NOAA. New research warns that tropical cyclone “clusters” are becoming more common in this part of the world, compounding the hazards of hurricane season. Tropical cyclone […]
Trump Administration Moves to Destroy Satellite That Monitors Greenhouse Gases
The Trump Administration’s budget proposal for Fiscal Year 2026 would take an axe to NASA science. Two satellite missions on the chopping block have provided climate scientists, oil and gas companies, and farmers with critical atmospheric carbon data for years. The Orbiting Carbon Observatories are a pair of instruments that map atmospheric carbon on a […]
Wildfire Smoke Chokes Canada and U.S., Triggering Air Quality Alerts
Canada is battling more than 700 active wildfires across the country, roughly two-thirds of which are burning out of control, according to the Canadian Interagency Forest Fire Center (CIFFC). Smoke billowing from the blazes has blanketed central Canada and the northern U.S., prompting widespread air quality alerts. Federal officials have issued air quality warnings across […]
Trump’s EPA Wants to Pretend That Greenhouse Gases Aren’t a Threat to Human Health
In 2009, the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) “endangerment finding” empowered the U.S. to regulate emissions of greenhouse gases. This scientific and legal determination ruled that planet-warming gases such as carbon dioxide are dangerous to human health and welfare. Now, the Trump administration has moved to rescind that finding. At an auto dealership in Indiana on […]
Deadly ‘Wet-Bulb’ Temperatures Are Smothering the Eastern U.S.
An oppressive heat dome has gripped the eastern U.S. this week, prompting the National Weather Service (NWS) to issue heat warnings for nearly 170 million Americans. To make matters worse, severe humidity is making high temperatures feel even hotter. Extreme heat and humidity make for a deadly combination. The human body lowers its temperature by […]