Planet Earth, features and articles | Educational Science

Sep 30, 2015

In Images: Stunning Flower Fields of the Atacama Desert

The normally barren, almost Martian landscape of the Atacama Desert recently erupted in flowers, painting the hillsides, blue, fuschia, orange and yellow. The almost magical transformation occurred thanks to heavy rains earlier in the year, which watered flower seeds that had lain dormant for years. One Twitter user, Tomás Cuadra...

Aug 31, 2015

California Faces Threat of Earthquake-Triggered Tsunamis

Californians may be used to hearing about the threat of potentially deadly earthquakes, but a new study finds that quake-triggered tsunamis pose a greater risk to Southern California than previously thought. Tsunamis are monster waves that can reach more than 100 feet (30 meters) high. They are often caused by...

Aug 31, 2015

Many Injuries in California's 2014 Quake Occurred During Cleanup

Many of the people who were injured from the 6.0-magnitude earthquake in Napa, California, last year were actually hurt during the cleanup effort, after the quake was over, according to a new study. The earthquake — which was the largest in the San Francisco Bay Area in 25 years —...

Aug 31, 2015

How Plastics-to-Fuel Can Become the Next Green Machine (Op-Ed)

Doug Woodring is director and co-founder of the Ocean Recovery Alliance, a nonprofit that brings together innovative solutions, technology, collaborations and policy to benefit ocean health. Steve Russell is vice president of the American Chemistry Council's Plastics Division, which leads efforts to reduce, reuse, recycle and recover more plastics through...

Jul 31, 2015

'Overshoot Day' 2015: Earth is Now Officially in the Red

Dave McLaughlin is vice president of the World Wildlife Fund (WWF)'s Sustainable Food program. He contributed this article to Live Science's Expert Voices: Op-Ed & Insights. Planet Earth is in the red. For the rest of the year, people will be writing checks our planet can't cash. Today is Earth...

Jul 31, 2015

Why California's Droughts are Just Going to Get Worse (Op-Ed)

Jeremy Proville, senior GIS specialist and economic analyst at Environmental Defense Fund, contributed this article to Live Science's Expert Voices: Op-Ed & Insights. California is now well into its fourth consecutive year of drought. This is not without consequences. Tensions in the state have mounted as urban and agricultural water...

Jul 31, 2015

Free Pass! National Parks Waive Admissions Fee on Tuesday

In celebration of its 99th birthday, the U.S. National Park Service (NPS) is providing free admission to all of its sites for one day next week. Next Tuesday (Aug. 25), people can visit any of the NPS' 408 sites across the country, including popular spots such as Joshua Tree National...

Jul 31, 2015

Fire Fountains of the Ancient Moon Explained

The ancient lunar surface once erupted with geysers of lava — and now, scientists think they know what caused those fiery fountains. Current research suggests that the moon formed when a Mars-size object barreled into Earth in the early solar system, and for a long time, its surface was much...

Jul 31, 2015

Unforgettable Images Capture Volcano Rumbling to Life

The towering volcano of Cotopaxi, which looms over Ecuador, recently began erupting. Photographers Jorge Castillo and Lucas Bustamante recently captured photos of the stunning ash plumes emerging from the volcano. The volcano has blanketed nearby towns and villages with a fine dusting of ash, as the locals wait to see...

Jul 31, 2015

Hurricane Katrina's Stark Changes Endure in Images from Space

Louisiana's dramatically enlarged lakes and inundated marshes — stark reminders of Hurricane Katrina’s ferocity 10 years ago — are prominent in a new satellite image. Hurricane Katrina, which made landfall along the Louisiana-Mississippi border as a Category 3 storm on Aug. 29, 2005, transformed the marshes that buffer New Orleans...

Jul 31, 2015

10 Years After Hurricane Katrina: Have Weather Forecasts Improved?

The fierce Hurricane Katrina, which devastated the Gulf Coast, taking more than 1,800 lives, made landfall 10 years ago. And though meteorologists knew then it would slam New Orleans with levee-toppling intensity, today's weather forecasters are even better equipped to give notice of a storm's coming havoc. Overall, meteorologists have...

Jul 31, 2015

Common Mullein: Stunning Photos of the 'Flannel Leaf' Plant

Common mullein, Verbascum thapsus, is a perennial herb that was first introduced into the United States in the mid-1700s by colonies in Virginia and was used as a piscicide, a chemical substance that is poisonous to fish. Check out these photos of this fascinating herb. (Credit: Linda & Dr. Dick...

Jun 30, 2015

'Hacking' Gut Bacteria Could Spur New Medical Treatments

Faintly glowing mouse droppings are now evidence that one of the most common microbes in the human gut can be easily hacked, or genetically modified, researchers say. The finding means that the microbe could one day be used in making medicines or detecting diseases, the researchers said. Of the 100...

Jun 30, 2015

Oldest Animal Sperm Lasted 50 Million Years in Antarctica

It's time to call Guinness World Records: Researchers on an Antarctic expedition have uncovered sperm cells dating to a whopping 50 million years ago, making these the oldest known animal sperm cells, a new study finds. The researchers found the sperm fragments embedded within the walls of a fossilized cocoon....

Jun 30, 2015

Photos: Spectacular saltwater marshes of the Eastern US

The extensive estuarine saltwater marshes of eastern North America are large, flat, grassy areas that are flooded daily by the semidiurnal tides of the Atlantic Ocean. Most areas experience two high tides and two low tides each day, but when the high and low tides are about the same height,...