WEIRD NATURE
Researchers at the University of Florida planted thale cress in harsh lunar dirt returned by Apollo 11 astronauts. Researchers at the University of Florida have grown plants in soil from the moon for the first time. Photograph: Tyler Jones/AP – Associated Press Last …
Don’t dismiss soil: its unknowable wonders could ensure the survival of our species. When a plant root pushes into soil, it triggers an explosion of activity in billions of bacteria. Photograph: Liz McBurney/The Guardian – By George Monbiot Published: 2022 May 07 – …
The Moon as seen by the Galileo deep-space probe in 1992. NASA/JPL/USGS – By Michael Irving 2022 May 04 – The Moon may look like a big dry ball, but there’s more water up there than you might expect. In a new study, scientists have …
Wind quickly spread a blaze that burned homes near Flagstaff, Ariz., in April of 2022. Coconino National Forest via AP – By Molly Hunter, Associate Research Professor in Environment and Natural Resources, University of Arizona Published: 2022 May 04 – New Mexico and …
An artist’s illustration of how the newly discovered large megaraptor Maip macrothorax might have looked in life. Agustín Ozán – By Michael Irving 2022 Apr 28 – Paleontologists have discovered the largest raptor dinosaur ever found. The new species, known as Maip macrothorax, was …
An artist’s illustration of an asteroid delivering nucleobases (seen as molecular models) to early Earth. NASA Goddard/CI Lab/Dan Gallagher – By Michael Irving 2022 Apr 27 – How life on Earth first arose is one of the most profound mysteries of science, and evidence …
The Atolla reynoldsi is one of three formally identified new specimens of Atolla jellyfish floating in the depths of Monterey Bay. A new species of deep-sea crown jelly, Atolla reynoldsi, discovered by MBARI researchers. Photograph: © 2014 MBARI Seascape: the state of our …
A jaguar in Brazil’s Patanal region. Sergio Pitamitz /VWPics/Universal Images Group via Getty Images – By Ganesh Marín, Ph.D. Candidate in Wildlife Conservation and Management, University of Arizona and by John Koprowski, Dean, Haub School of Environment and Natural Resources, University of Wyoming …
Subterranean fires are almost impossible to extinguish and add to global emissions from fossil fuels. A man watches as a hillside burns in an area of Colorado where abandoned coalmines could be a cause of the wind-driven wildfire. Photograph: Matthew Brown/AP – Jeremy …
Conservationists say the farms are a danger to sea lions and other marine mammals, who can become entangled in their nets. A sea lion enjoys an easy meal at the industrial fish farm. Photograph: Jeremy Mathieu/Clayoquot Action – By Leyland Cecco First published …
