climate change

The U.S. Department of Agriculture has updated its Plant Hardiness Zone map, a map of the U.S. that helps gardeners decide what plants will grow best in their local areas, based on average annual extreme minimum winter temperature. The updates show an average of 2.5°F warmer across the contiguous U.S. compared to the previous map, […]

Quick Key Facts History of Seaweed Prior to 2020, seaweed, known as macroalgae, was thought to be around 800 million years old, but a green seaweed fossil discovery in Northern China dates back over a billion years, with some scientists believing that it was the ancestor of not just modern day seaweeds, but also land […]

The U.S. has released its fifth National Climate Assessment report, which outlines how the country is addressing climate change, major climate risks and actions by region and how climate change is already impacting the country. The report found that both new and existing risks are impacting every part of the U.S., while some regions may […]

Among autumn’s falling leaves, you might see a familiar flash of black and orange against the blue sky. Once again, migratory monarch butterflies are on the move from their summer breeding grounds to their overwintering habitats. These spectacular insects travel up to 2,500 miles across the Americas, sometimes covering 50-100 miles a day. Like migrating […]

While Antarctica has not lost as much sea ice as the Arctic, as global warming progresses, the continent has been losing its ice at a faster rate. In a surprising new study, scientists from The Pennsylvania State University (Penn State) found that sea ice loss in Antarctica causes an increased amount of snowfall over its […]

Large herbivores like elephants, moose and bison are some of the most recognizable and iconic species on the planet. But they’re not just impressive to look at — their consumption of plant matter and movement throughout the landscape provide great benefits to the ecosystems in which they live. In a new study, an international team […]

Graphic warning labels on cigarettes that show the health risks of smoking are enough to help some people quit, so would the same tactic work for meat consumption?  A new study from the Department of Psychology at Durham University found that cigarette-style warning labels could help reduce people’s consumption of meat. Researchers demonstrated that using […]

The Antarctic ice sheet is of vital importance to the climate. Ice reflects sunlight, keeping the planet cool. The sheet contains 70 percent of all the freshwater on the planet, which, if it were to melt entirely, would absorb heat and cause global sea levels to rise by around 200 feet. A new modeling study […]