PollutionNovember 12, 2018
Solving Microplastic Pollution Means Reducing, Recycling—and Fundamental Rethinking
New practices, and new chemistries, are needed to end the scourge
Stories by Andrea Thompson
Andrea Thompson is senior desk editor for life science at Scientific American, covering the environment, energy and earth sciences. She has been covering these issues for nearly two decades. Prior to joining Scientific American, she was a senior writer covering climate science at Climate Central and a reporter and editor at Live Science, where she primarily covered earth science and the environment. She has moderated panels, including as part of the United Nations Sustainable Development Media Zone, and appeared in radio and television interviews on major networks. She holds a graduate degree in science, health and environmental reporting from New York University, as well as a B.S. and an M.S. in atmospheric chemistry from the Georgia Institute of Technology. Follow Thompson on Bluesky @andreatweather.bsky.social
Public HealthOctober 24, 2018
Microplastics Have Been Found in People's Poop—What Does It Mean?
Suspicions humans are consuming tiny plastic particles have been confirmed, spurring future work into the possible health impacts
Climate ChangeOctober 17, 2018
What’s in a Half a Degree? 2 Very Different Future Climates
A new IPCC report shows the impacts in the near future that can be avoided by limiting warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius instead of 2 degrees C
Climate ChangeOctober 11, 2018
Why Did Hurricane Michael Rev Up to Category 4 So Quickly?
Scientists have made major strides in recent years in understanding why storms rapidly intensify
Natural DisastersOctober 3, 2018
Indonesian Tsunami Was Powered by a Deadly Combo of Tectonics and Geography
The magnitude 7.5 earthquake that touched off the tsunami occurred amid a complex puzzle of tectonic plates
EnvironmentSeptember 19, 2018
Mosquitoes Could Carry Plastic Particles into the Food Chain
Microplastics stay in the insects’ bodies from larva to adulthood
WeatherSeptember 12, 2018
Extreme Flooding from Florence Likely, Due to a Convergence of Threats
Compound flooding can exacerbate the impacts from storm surge and rain
EnvironmentSeptember 4, 2018
From Fish to Humans, A Microplastic Invasion May Be Taking a Toll
Tiny bits of plastic have seeped into soil, fish and air, posing a threat to animal and human health
Natural DisastersAugust 16, 2018
This Scientist Chases Wildfires to Better Predict Fire Behavior
To know what a wildfire might do next, researchers need to know how an inferno interacts with the atmosphere
EarthAugust 15, 2018
Plants Dominate the Planet's Biomass
About 80 percent of Earth's biomass is plant life, with humans about equal to krill way down the heft chart.
PollutionAugust 13, 2018
Earth Has a Hidden Plastic Problem—Scientists Are Hunting It Down
Trillions of tiny particles generated by our plastic-reliant society are polluting environments worldwide
BiologyAugust 1, 2018
Plants Are the World's Dominant Life-Form
Flora make up the majority of Earth’s biomass, followed by bacteria
Climate ChangeJuly 13, 2018
L.A.’s Not Just Sizzling, It’s Sultry: Why California’s July Heat Wave Is So Weird
An unusually early—and humid—heat wave has set all-time records
Climate ChangeMay 14, 2018
Antarctic Quest Seeks to Predict the Fate of a Linchpin Glacier
Adventurer scientists swarm the melting Thwaites Glacier for clues to how fast sea level will rise
Climate ChangeMay 2, 2018
Shock and Thaw—Alaskan Sea Ice Just Took a Steep, Unprecedented Dive
Weather conditions and a boost from global warming led to the stunning record low ice cover in winter 2018
EnvironmentApril 11, 2018
Slow-Motion Ocean: Atlantic’s Circulation Is Weakest in 1,600 Years
If hemisphere-spanning currents are slowing, greater flooding and extreme weather could be at hand
EnvironmentMarch 23, 2018
Wave of Climate Migration Looms, but It “Doesn't Have to Be a Crisis”
Slow-onset climate impacts could displace 140 million in their own countries by 2050
EnvironmentJanuary 30, 2018
Where Plastic Goes, Coral Disease Follows
An onslaught of bottles, bags and other litter makes reefs 20 times more likely to get sick. Scientists are scrambling to learn why
Climate ChangeDecember 20, 2017
Alaska’s Northernmost Town Warms So Fast, It Fools NOAA Computers
As sea ice grows shockingly low and late, Utqiaġvik’s record warmth stymies algorithms
Natural DisastersDecember 6, 2017
Why the Ventura Wildfire Is So Explosive
Dry weather and strong winds this year have left southern California primed for blazes
WeatherNovember 30, 2017
Alaska's Coast Is Vanishing, 1 Storm at a Time
Ordinary storms are chipping away at coastal communities as protective sea ice disappears
EnvironmentNovember 26, 2017
How Did This Weird, Super-Salty Pond Form in Antarctica?
Studying the pond could help scientists better understand similar features on Mars
WeatherNovember 7, 2017
“Slightly Crazy” 19th-Century Weathermen Who Braved Formidable Conditions Could Aid Climate Predictions
A new effort aims to recover meteorology data collected by a group of hardy Victorian Scottish scientists
EnvironmentOctober 13, 2017
NASA Satellite Reveals Source of El Niño–Fueled Carbon Dioxide Spike
The OCO 2 mission serendipitously coincided with one of the strongest El Niños on record