Primates – the group of animals that includes monkeys, apes and humans – first evolved in cold, seasonal climates around 66 million years ago, not in the warm tropical forests scientists previously believed. Researchers from the University of Reading used statistical modelling and fossil data to reconstruct ancient environments and trace where the common ancestors […]
Sunflower sea stars are the largest sea stars in the world: They have up to 24 arms and grow to the size of a bicycle tire. Starting in 2013, these creatures and other sea star species along the west coast of North America died in epidemic proportions. The stars had harrowing symptoms: Their arms contorted […]
A huge flood triggered by the rapid draining of a lake beneath the Greenland ice sheet occurred with such force that it fractured the ice above and burst out across its surface. This phenomenon, observed for the first time in Greenland and detailed in research published today in the journal Nature Geoscience, sheds new light […]
The Pacific Northwest boasts an extensive network of more than 600 seismic monitoring stations that help researchers track tectonic and volcanic phenomena, including earthquakes. This data provides key insights into regional faults and feeds into early warning systems, which can give a community precious moments to prepare before a natural disaster strikes. A significant threat […]