Pollution, features and articles | Educational Science

Oct 9, 2020

15 million tons of microplastics pollute the seafloor

An estimated 15 million tons (14 million metric tons) of microplastics have settled in the deep ocean, according to a new report by Australia's national science agency. That's more than double the amount of plastic pollution at the ocean's surface. Researchers sampled seafloor sediments in locations hundreds of miles from...

Feb 23, 2021

Mysterious oil spill covers Israel's coastline in toxic tar balls

More than 100 miles (161 kilometers) of Israel's normally pristine Meditteranean coastline have been stained with thick globules of tar that washed up after an oil spill off the coast of the country last week. Authorities have yet to identify the culprit, but they say it is harmful to both...

Jun 1, 2021

Tons of toxic pellets blanket Sri Lanka beaches, causing environmental disaster

A burning container ship dumped tons of plastic debris onto Sri Lanka's beaches, prompting a widespread environmental disaster, according to recent news reports. The ship, the X-Press Pearl, had sailed to Sri Lanka from India and was anchored near Colombo on May 20, when the crew first reported smoke coming...

Jul 6, 2021

Fish get addicted to meth in polluted rivers, go through withdrawal

Fish can get hooked on meth that washes into their freshwater homes, to the point that they actively seek out the stimulant, a new study suggests. After being used by humans, methamphetamine enters waterways through sewage systems and discharges from wastewater treatment plants. Where methamphetamine users are, there is also...

Feb 12, 2022

5 million shipwrecked Legos still washing up 25 years after falling overboard

A once-in-a-century wave that pummeled a cargo ship in 1997 caused the worst toy-related environmental disaster of all time. As the vessel Tokio Express pitched and rolled near the United Kingdom's southwestern coast, 62 shipping containers tumbled off the ship — and one of them dumped nearly 5 million plastic...

Apr 5, 2022

Light pollution: Environmental impact, health risks and facts

Light pollution, or photo pollution, is the presence of excess artificial light and is the result of urbanization and industrialization. It is only one of the many forms of pollution on Earth, alongside plastic waste, greenhouse gases and sewage. Light pollution can have serious implications for our environment and even...

Oct 14, 2022

Kids' Mental Health Risks Rise with Poor Air Quality

Higher levels of air pollution may correspond to higher rates of mental health disorders in kids and teens, according to a new study conducted in Sweden. Researchers found that, in areas with higher levels of pollution, there were more medications dispensed for psychiatric conditions in children and teens, compared with...

Oct 14, 2022

No More Free-Pass for Carbon Pollution (Op-Ed)

Laurie Johnson, chief economist at the Natural Resources Defense Council's climate and clean air program, contributed this article to LiveScience's Expert Voices: Op-Ed & Insights. For more than 40 years, the Clean Air Act has proved itself an effective, efficient and flexible tool that has safeguarded public health while fostering...

Oct 18, 2022

Hole in the ozone layer has grown for a 3rd year in a row — but scientists aren’t concerned

The ozone hole that forms yearly over Antarctica has grown for the third year in a row. At nearly 10 million square miles (26.4 million square kilometers), the ozone hole is the largest it's been since 2015. But despite that growth, scientists say that the hole's size is still on...

Nov 1, 2022

How Much Trash Is on Mount Everest?

Mount Everest has a mountain of a problem: human waste. And not just leftover camping meals, beer and fuel cans, but human poo, too. So, how much poopy and other garbage calls the planet's highest mountain home? A Tech Times story describes the mountain as the world's highest garbage dump....

Feb 8, 2023

Monet and Turner's atmospheric landscapes actually depicted air pollution, new study finds

Impressionist artists like Claude Monet and Joseph Mallord William (J. M. W.) Turner are famous for their hazy, dreamlike paintings. However, a new study finds that what these European painters were really depicting in their works wasn't a figment of their imagination, but an environmental disaster: air pollution. Scientists examined...

Feb 14, 2023

Even brief exposure to diesel fumes alters activity in key brain network, study finds

Even brief exposures to diesel fumes may alter the brain's function, messing with how signals zip through a major brain network, a new study suggests. Past studies suggest that people exposed to air pollution may be more likely to develop mental health conditions and neurodegenerative diseases. Now, the new study,...

Mar 17, 2023

Pollution facts and types of pollution

Pollution is the process of making land, water, air or other parts of the environment dirty and not safe or suitable to use. This can be done through the introduction of a contaminant into a natural environment, but the contaminant doesn't need to be tangible. Things as simple as light,...

Sep 1, 2023

What are the most polluted cities in the world?

For a day or two during wildfire season, cities like New York, Chicago, San Francisco, Sacramento and Seattle earn the dubious title of worst air quality in the world, according to real-time data from air sensor company IQAir. But most of these cities don't typically have such polluted air. So...