Earth's Systems
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Earth
Rock rising from below the Atlantic may drive continents apart
Molten rock rising from the deep mantle at the Mid-Atlantic Ridge may drive plate tectonics there more than had been expected.
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Environment
What you can do to improve soils
Soils are the life-sustaining structures under our feet. Here are some tips for keeping soils healthy. First rule of thumb: Give more than you take.
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Agriculture
Healthy soils are life-giving black gold
Scientists explain why everyone needs to value the soils beneath our feet — and why we should not view them as dirt.
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Chemistry
Extreme pressure? Diamonds can take it
Diamond retains its structure even at extreme pressures, which could reveal how carbon behaves in the cores of some exoplanets.
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Earth
Explainer: What are aerosols?
We may not see them, but tiny particles and droplets cloud the air, affecting its properties. Some may be pollutants, others all-natural products.
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Climate
Can wildfires cool the climate?
Severe wildfires are becoming more common. Science is showing that the tiny particles they release into the air can alter Earth’s temperature — sometimes cooling it.
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Earth
Let’s learn about snow
Snow is more than just frozen water vapor. Scientists are studying everything from its shape to other planets where snowflakes fall.
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Climate
Analyze This: 2020 ties with 2016 for hottest year on record
Last year capped the warmest decade on record. It coincided with a growing increase of warming greenhouse gases in Earth’s atmosphere.
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Earth
Space station sensors saw how weird ‘blue jet’ lightning forms
A mysterious type of lightning in the upper atmosphere has been traced to a brief, bright flash of light at the top of a storm cloud.
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Agriculture
Dew collector brings water to thirsty plants
This invention grabs water from the air at night. All it needs is the sun’s warmth the next day to release that moisture to growing plants.
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Earth
Explainer: Our atmosphere — layer by layer
Earth’s five layers extend from the ground up and into outer space. Each has its own distinct features and serves as the site of different activities and phenomena.
By Beth Geiger -
Environment
Surprising long-haul dust and tar are melting high glaciers
Dust and tar blown onto high mountains, like the Himalayas, boost the melting of snow and ice far more than scientists had realized. Here’s why.
By Sid Perkins