Byzantine solar eclipse records illuminate obscure history of Earth’s rotation
To improve understanding of variation of Earth's rotation in the 4th--7th centuries CE, a research team analyzed Byzantine records from this period to identify...
N95 respirators could offer robust protection from wildfire smoke
N95 respirators offer the best protection against wildfire smoke and other types of air pollution, performing better than synthetic, cotton and surgical masks. N95s...
Simultaneous extreme weather created dangerous cascades in U.S.
Intense heat in the southwestern United States broke records last summer partly because it hit in tandem with an unusually severe drought, finds a...
Physics of disaster: How mudslides move
A devastating fire followed by an intense rainstorm triggered mudslides in Southern California in 2018 that claimed 23 lives. New findings elucidate the physics...
Diamond discovery under pressure
For the first time, scientists have found Earth's fourth most abundant mineral -- calcium silicate perovskite -- at Earth's surface.
Earliest life may have arisen in ponds, not oceans
Primitive ponds may have provided a suitable environment for brewing up Earth's first life forms, more so than oceans, a new study finds. Researchers...
Flowers of St. John’s Wort serve as green catalyst
An interdisciplinary team of scientists has for the first time used dried flowers of St. John's Wort (genus Hypericum) as an active catalyst in...
Plants as cold specialists from the ice age
Plants of the spoonweed group time-and-again quickly adapted to a changing climate during the Ice Ages of the last two million years. Evolutionary biologists...
Israeli coastline is contaminated with over two tons of microplastics, researchers discover
A first-of-its-kind study reveals alarming findings about the level of microplastic pollution on Israel's beaches.
Algorithm provides early warning system for tracking groundwater contamination
Scientists have developed a low-cost method for real-time monitoring of pollutants using commonly available sensors.