Arctic Sea Ice Just Hit Its Eighth-Lowest Minimum Ever Recorded
The Arctic ice cap melted to hundreds of thousands of square miles below average this summer. Climate change is pushing temperatures up most rapidly in the polar regions and left the extent of Arctic sea ice at 1.79 million square miles at the end of the summer melt season. This is the time when it reaches its lowest area for the year, before … Read More
These Are the Crazy Climate Records from 2016 You Haven’t Heard Much About
By now, we’ve all heard that 2016 was the hottest year on record, and that heat-trapping greenhouse gases hit their highest concentration ever, surpassing 400 parts per million for the first time in nearly 1 million years. But there are other climate change-related records that have flown more under the radar. Several of those records were… Read More
Court Scuttles Rule Cutting Potent Greenhouse Gas
One of the most powerful climate pollutants on earth, hydrofluorocarbons or HFCs, account for a small portion of U.S. climate pollution, but scientists say it’s important for countries to urgently cut them just because they’re so potent — and growing. A federal appeals court ruled Tuesday that the EPA cannot regulate HFCs under the Clean Air Act.… Read More
Disaster and Neglect in Louisiana
A year after the worst rainstorm in a rainy state’s history killed 13 and damaged nearly 100,000 homes, the federal government has provided less than half of what Louisiana says it needs to recover. Adding to the rebuilding woes, FEMA rejected a $16 million request to fund counseling services beyond Aug. 25, even as the state’s residents report … Read More
Massachusetts May Overlook Climate Impacts of Biofuels
Massachusetts is considering a plan that would classify wood pellets and other tree products as sources of renewable energy, allowing the logging industry to contribute to the state’s climate goals to cut greenhouse gas emissions. However, research shows that burning biomass to generate electricity can actually make climate change worse by … Read More
This is British Columbia’s Second-Worst Wildfire Season. It’s Far From Over
Poor air quality, blood-red sunsets and mountains swallowed by smoke are just a handful of the impacts of wildfires roaring in British Columbia. The fires kicked up in early July but have spread in recent days as hot, dry and windy weather has fanned the flames and sent smoke streaming across the border into Washington and Oregon. Wildfires have … Read More
Global Warming Is Fueling Arizona’s Monstrous Monsoons
Summer in Arizona and throughout the Southwest is monsoon season, which means a daily pattern of afternoon thunderstorms, flash floods, dramatic dust clouds and spectacular displays of lightning over the desert. As the climate changes, Arizona’s monsoon rainfall is becoming more intense even as daily average rainfall in parts of the state has … Read More
Alphabet Turns to Molten Salt to Store Clean Energy
Using giant vats of molten salt and antifreeze under the codename “Malta,” Google's parent company Alphabet is joining Tesla and smaller companies that are developing ways to store wind and solar power affordably to expand renewables and combat climate change. Alphabet’s X research lab is developing a cutting-edge molten salt technology that aims … Read More
