Strong Winter Storms can move 600-ton Boulders Around: What Could a Superstorm Do?

January 30, 2018
A new study has confirmed that waves generated by powerful storms can move massive seaside boulders that weigh hundreds of tons, and as global warming spurs stronger and more powerful storms, this finding illustrates the sheer force that our planet's... continued

Climate Watch Update

January 27, 2018
Unknowncountry's Climate Watch section has been updated for winter 2017/2018. It discusses the extreme heat in the Southern Hemisphere and the extreme cold in the Northern Hemisphere, and explains why this is happening. It points out that Winter Storm Dylan that struck... continued

Marine Biologist Films Humpback Whale Protecting Her from a 15-Foot Tiger Shark

January 26, 2018
A recent encounter between a human diver and a humpback whale has illustrated how concern for the safety of others can reach across species. Marine biologist Nan Hauser was on an expedition to the South Pacific's Cook Islands to study... continued

New Research Shows that Geoengineering Efforts Would Have to be Done Right… Or Not At All

January 25, 2018
As Earth's climate continues to warm, some scientists are looking at doing more than simply reducing humanity's outpouring of greenhouse gases into the atmosphere by devising ways to actively cool the planet back to temperatures that our civilization is comfortable... continued

Challenger Astronaut Christa McAuliffe’s Science Lessons to be Taught from the ISS

January 24, 2018
On January 28, 1986, the space shuttle Challenger launched with America's first civilian to be sent into space, Christa McAuliffe. McAuliffe was chosen from a list of over 11,000 applicants for NASA's Teacher in Space Project, aimed at sending civilian... continued

The Afterglow of a Neutron Star Collision Continues to Brighten Months After the Event

January 23, 2018
A collision that occurred between two neutron stars in a galaxy 138 million light years from Earth was observed in August of 2017, generating both gravitational waves that were detected by the LIGO and Virgo gravity-wave observatories, and a gamma-ray... continued

Global Warming in the Arctic has Broken Climate Change Data Algorithms

January 20, 2018
While the global average temperature continues to rise, it does so disproportionately around the world: the closer to the poles one gets, the more drastic this temperature rise becomes, a phenomenon in climate science called Polar Amplification. This effect has... continued

Michigan Meteor Causes 2.0 Earthquake — and may have Reached the Earth’s Surface

January 19, 2018
The United States Geological Survey has confirmed that a bright meteor that broke up over the Detroit area on the evening of January 16 caused a 2.0 magnitude earthquake in Michigan. The meteorite fell about five miles (8 kilometers) from... continued

Massive Reservoirs of Ice have been Found just under the Surface of Mars

January 18, 2018
A significant layer of water ice has been spotted across the mid latitudes of Mars, located just a few feet below the planet's surface. This new finding adds a new layer to the geological history of the Red Planet, and... continued

Australian Firehawks Deliberately Start Wildfires to Flush Out Prey

January 17, 2018
Adding to the list of animals that make use of tools, it turns out that Australian raptors deliberately set fires to flush out prey, picking up burning sticks from an existing fire and dropping them onto dry grass to start... continued