The Environment

Christmas trees—and conifers in general—have made some surprising cameos throughout U.S. history, author Trent Preszler reveals in his book Evergreen

Tantalizing observations suggest marine mammals may be teaming up to hunt

TikTok is rapidly growing in Africa and is being used to sell bushmeat, underscoring the role of social media in the global illegal wildlife trade

Europe’s climate agency said 2025 is likely to be the second or third hottest on record

The site of the world’s worst nuclear disaster remains damaged, but so far, radiation levels outside the plant have not increased, according to officials

Hawaii’s Kilauea, one of Earth’s most active volcanoes, sent lava fountains spewing into the air, obliterating a U.S. Geological Survey camera

Japanese officials said to expect a tsunami of up to 3 meters in some areas after a magnitude 7.6 earthquake struck off the east coast of Japan

Scientific American sits down with nature writer Robert Macfarlane to discuss his latest book—one of our top picks of 2025—and whether a river has rights

An estimated 280 million metric tons of plastic waste will enter the air, water, soil, and human bodies every year by 2040, data shows

Hole in the Sky, by Daniel H. Wilson, is one of Scientific American’s best fiction picks of 2025. In the novel, aliens talk through an AI headset and land in the Cherokee Nation, while the military scrambles to contain and control the unknown

Fiber optics that connect the world can detect its earthquakes, too

China has rapidly become the world leader in renewable energy, but continued coal use means it could take longer for its emissions to decline