Evolution
Imported Tortoises Could Replace Madagascar's Extinct Ones
Aldabra giant tortoises may fill a gap in Madagascar's sensitive ecosystem, scientists say
Stories by OurAmazingPlanet
Biology
How Eerie Sea-Ice "Brinicles" Form
When salt-rich water leaks out of sea ice, it sinks into the sea and can occasionally create an eerie finger of ice called a brinicle. New research explains how these strange fingers of ice form and how the salty water within sea ice could have been a prime environment in which life may have evolved...
Biology
How to Count Komodo Dragons
Camera traps worked about as well as physical traps at detecting the presence of Komodo dragons―and, in certain areas, did even better, an analysis reveals. The finding is significant because Komodo populations are threatened by human activities...
Environment
Katrina-Like Storm Surges Could Become Norm
The combined effects of sea level rise and more powerful storms could cause a 10-fold increase in the occurrence rate of extreme storm surges, but smart planning could prevent Katrina-level destruction...
EARTH
California Closer to Getting Early Warning of Earthquakes
A lawmaker has introduced a bill to fund a public version of an earthquake early warning system in California that's currently just in the prototype phase
Environment
New Forecasts Could Help Transoceanic Flights Avoid Thunderstorms
Thunderstorms are well-monitored over land areas, but there is no similar radar system over the ocean. A new system can provide up to eight-hour forecasts that are updated hourly based on satellite data and weather models...
Evolution
Once-Extinct Toads Reintroduced to Wild
Waterfall-loving Kihansi spray toads had been declared extinct in the wild. Some of the frogs conserved at New York's Bronx Zoo were later bred in Tanzania and are now living in the wild near an artificial system of sprinklers...
Environment
Satellites Track Hurricane Sandy Water Pollution
Sandy's storm surge has long since receded, but authorities remain concerned about the plumes of raw sewage left in its wake
The Sciences
Salton Sea Volcano Mystery Solved
The Salton Buttes, five volcanoes at the Salton lake's southern tip, last erupted between 940 and 0 B.C., not 30,000 years ago, as previously thought, according to a new study
Environment
Carbon Dioxide Might Damage Glaciers
Materials scientists hope their computer model results will spark further research into the effects of carbon dioxide on fracturing in glaciers and ice sheets
Environment
Isaac's Impacts: Destruction from "Just a Cat 1" Storm
Along with wind speed, the sheer size of a storm, how quickly it is moving and the angle at which it's approaching land also influence its potential to wreak havoc. Isaac possessed some of the most menacing of these qualities...
Environment
Why Did Isaac Take So Long to Become a Hurricane?
Isaac encountered and ingested a system of dry air that prevented the storm's eye wall from forming, a key step in a storm's intensification
Biology
Submarine Volcanoes Help Rebuild Great Barrier Reef
"Pumice rafting" colonizes large swaths of the damaged reef instantaneously with organisms hitching a ride on trillions of pieces of floating rock
Natural Disasters
Just How Big Was the Biggest Earthquake?
This week marks the anniversary of the largest earthquake recorded, a magnitude 9.5 event along southern Chile's coast in 1960
Environment
Deadly March Tornadoes Were First Billion-Dollar Disaster of 2012
The swarms of March caused more than $1.5 billion in damage and killed 40. The drama is difficulty to qualify, however, because tornadoes are "atypical events" by nature
Archaeology
New Images of Titanic Wreck Revealed
Sweeping images of the sunken ship were made by stitching together hundreds of optical and sonar images collected by deep-diving robots during a 2010 expedition
Evolution
World's Tiniest Chameleon Discovered
Brookesia micra may represent the limit of miniaturization possible for a vertebrate with complex eyes
Environment
Why Did Europe's Danube River Freeze?
A "Russian winter" climate pattern is keeping Europe frozen, with a strong Siberian anticyclone hovering over northern Russia and triggering intense cold and snow, according to NASA
Environment
Success Is Official: Russian Team Breaches Buried Antarctic Lake
The revelation comes after days of speculation on whether the years-long effort had finally achieved its goal
The Sciences
Russian Team Has Reached Buried Antarctic Lake, Reports Say
Despite the risks of contaminating what may be a pristine and fragile environment, scientists have now drilled to the top of the lake
