After years of planning, testing, and assembly, the James Webb Space Telescope, the world's largest infrared, space-based observatory, is taking shape.
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Iron Fertilization Might Not Make Oceans Better Carbon Sinks
New research suggests more iron during the last ice age did not mean more algae production in the equatorial Pacific, pointing to possible futility of a controversial geoengineering idea.
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Proposed Planet Nine Elicits Cheers, Yawns, Hunt for Proof
Evidence of a large, unseen planet at the solar system's margins prompted a flurry of scientific paper downloads, as well as oodles of skepticism. There's no sighting yet of the purported body.
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Mercury in Rain Increasing in Western and Central United States
Despite tightening emissions rules, mercury concentrations are rising in rainfall wetting western and central regions of the United States. The pollutant may waft in from Asia, scientists speculate.
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Human-Made Fires Pollute Air with Ozone Half a World Away
Fires in Africa and Southeast Asia contributed to western Pacific pollution, a study finds. Prior understanding attributed hefty levels of the harmful agent and greenhouse gas to natural processes.
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Scientists Discover a New Source of Atmospheric Carbon Dioxide
In an African region where continental crust is pulling apart and fracturing—the East African Rift zone—the area's many faults are slowly releasing a large amount of carbon dioxide.
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Arctic States Nearing Science Cooperation Pact
Negotiations are focusing on removing obstacles to conducting research rather than on setting international scientific priorities. Research priorities among Arctic nations already overlap considerably, according to a U.S. negotiator.
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Antarctic Ice May Harbor Huge Network of Canyons
Scientists saw hints in satellite data of dramatic geologic features under thousands of meters of ice in a little-probed part of East Antarctica. Now they are using airborne radar to explore further.
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United States Still First in Science, Tech Research Spending
Although federal funding of science and engineering research has fallen behind inflation, private sector investment remains high, reports the U.S. National Science Board in its latest update.
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Icebergs Fertilize Southern Ocean, Sequester Carbon
Huge, drifting ice rafts (the white spot on the satellite image below ) shed minerals as they melt, painting trails of nutrients, teeming phytoplankton, and chlorophyll across hundreds of kilometers of ocean.