Hot Articles

Guatemalan landslide kills 33

Alexandra Ossola — Mon, 05 Jan 2009 15:24:28

A landslide in northern Guatemala buried dozens of people Sunday. Between 40 and 60 people are still missing.

Stonehenge's Mysterious Stones

Brian S. John and Lionel E. Jackson Jr. — Wed, 31 Dec 2008 11:11:16

At about 4,500 years old, Stonehenge is the world’s most iconic and mysterious prehistoric ruin, and archaeologists and geologists still wrangle over the origin of some of Stonehenge's stones: Did humans transport them hundreds of kilometers to southern England? Or were glaciers responsible, acting as a kind of natural conveyor belt?

Danger and wonder in Nat Geo's "Giant Crystal Cave"

Carolyn Gramling — Thu, 09 Oct 2008 16:09:59

“Giant Crystal Cave,” a new National Geographic Channel documentary on exploration beneath Mexico’s Naica Mountain, follows three scientists into a harrowing cave of wonders.

Underwater basalt formation looks like a city wall

Alexandra Ossola — Mon, 05 Jan 2009 16:00:34

...but it isn't. Beneath the Taiwan Strait, scientists have discovered an underwater geological formation that closely resembles a fortress wall. It's not Atlantis, either.

Benchmarks: Three men die in nuclear reactor meltdown

Cassandra Willyard — Fri, 02 Jan 2009 17:40:55

One frigid night in 1961, on a remote patch of desert about 65 kilometers east of Idaho Falls, a nuclear reactor exploded. Three men were killed in the nation’s only fatal nuclear accident.

Swarm of earthquakes rattles Yellowstone

Alexandra Ossola — Wed, 31 Dec 2008 12:24:57

A series of minor earthquakes has shaken up Yellowstone National Park over the past week. Although scientists say the swarm probably doesn't foreshadow a volcanic eruption, they are keeping a close watch over the region.

Comet finished off North American big game animals, cooled the planet?

Brian Fisher Johnson — Fri, 02 Jan 2009 17:25:57

Tiny nanoparticle-sized diamonds found in sediments dating to 13,000 years ago may hold a clue to why North America's mammoths disappeared about that time. The tiny gems suggest a cosmic impact, scientists say, that may have ultimately been behind the extinctions.

The Disappearing Lake

Cassandra Willyard — Thu, 20 Nov 2008 15:28:20

For many tourists, Mountain Lake in southwestern Virginia has been an idyllic retreat. But in 2008, it vanished, leaving behind only cracked earth and a small pond. In this multimedia presentation, EARTH reporter Cassandra Willyard tells the geologic story behind the lake's disappearing act.

Granite countertops: NOT silent killers

Cassandra Willyard — Thu, 02 Oct 2008 11:37:55

Media stories that granite countertops can emit dangerous radiation have sparked panic among consumers. But such fears are baseless, experts say.

Odd crests helped dinos communicate

Alexandra Ossola — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 10:29:04

The lambeosaur was a puzzle of a dinosaur: an odd-looking duck-billed creature with a curious hollow crest on its head. The crest concealed complex nasal airways whose function has been a mystery — until now.