
The Worst Wildfires Are Started by People. Here’s How
From stray bullets to power companies, humans spark almost all of California’s wildfires
Jane Braxton Little is an award-winning freelance writer focusing on science and the environment.

The Worst Wildfires Are Started by People. Here’s How
From stray bullets to power companies, humans spark almost all of California’s wildfires

Some Surprising Places Are at Risk of Devastating Urban Wildfires like Maui’s
Hundreds of communities across the U.S.—many in unexpected places—are at risk from an urban wildfire like the one that tore through the Hawaiian town of Lahaina

Firefighting Robots Go Autonomous
Both independent and remote-controlled machines can save lives

AI Could Spot Wildfires Faster Than Humans
A prediction system undergoes testing as the U.S. West braces for another potentially devastating wildfire season

One Climate-Change Wildfire Risk Lurks in the Dark
Rising nighttime temperatures stymie traditional firefighting methods

California Looks to Battle Mega Wildfires with Fire
As flames once again rage across the state, officials embrace a counterintuitive firefighting approach

Fukushima Residents Return Despite Radiation
Eight years after the nuclear meltdown, wary citizens are moving back to contaminated homesteads—some not by choice

Can Meadows Rescue the Planet from CO2?
An unusual research project is determining whether restoring California’s meadows can reduce atmospheric carbon dioxide

California Dam Crisis Could Have Been Averted
A dismissed lawsuit to strengthen the dam because of climate change effects predicted catastrophic flooding

California Farmers Will Intentionally Flood Their Fields This Winter
Hydrologists experiment with a groundwater-banking technique that could ease drought pains

At Chernobyl, Radioactive Danger Lurks in the Trees
For 26 years forests around Chernobyl have been absorbing radioactive elements, but a fire would send them skyward again--a concern as summers grow longer, hotter and drier

Plight of the Condors
Once on the verge of extinction, North America's largest land birds have made a dramatic comeback. To ensure their continued survival, biologists are relying on high-tech gadgets and unusual interventions

Clean Energy from Filthy Water
California cities are pumping their treated wastewater underground to create electricity

The Ogallala Aquifer: Saving a Vital U.S. Water Source
The massive underground water source feeds the middle third of the country but is disappearing fast. Can it be conserved?

Regrowing Borneo's Rainforest--Tree by Tree
To save orangutans, scientist Willie Smits is restoring a rain forest—and creating new livelihoods for the Indonesian families who help him