Water
New reusable material makes saltwater drinkable in just 30 minutes
Access to clean, freshwater is a growing challenge for many communities. Finding scalable desalination technologies to turn our world’s abundant saltwater into a drinkable resource would eliminate water shortages in many areas of the globe, but turning seawater into freshwater is no easy Read More...
The bold plan to save Appalachia’s endangered mussels
You probably haven’t heard of the golden rifleshell mussel, but for Kentucky’s Center for Mollusk Conservation in Frankfort, saving these yellowy, fan-shaped river-dwellers from extinction is a daily battle. More than two-thirds of all identified North American freshwater mussel species are Read More...
New device aims to bring potable water to millions of people worldwide
While substantial progress has been made in increasing access to clean drinking water, billions of people worldwide still lack this basic need. Seeking to alleviate the problem, a startup has embarked on a mission to supply millions of people globally with clean drinking water, with the help of an Read More...
Ocean Voyages Institute completes largest ocean clean up in history
At the end of June the Ocean Voyages Institute’s marine plastic recovery vessel, S/V KWAI docked in Honolulu. The ship spent 48 days at sea recovering 103 tons (206,000 lbs.) of plastic from the Great Pacific Garbage Patch, setting a record for the largest at sea clean-up in the Gyre to Read More...
Research uncovers the complex world of beluga whale friendships
Most of us are missing our friends a lot these days. New research shows that humans aren’t the only ones that develop these feelings of loving companionship with those we meet. It turns out beluga whales also make the distinction between their immediate kin and more distant non-familial Read More...
Scientists develop anti-gravity solar panel that absorbs and purifies water
Pure drinking water may be a widely available commodity in developed countries, but in many other parts of the world, it’s still a scarcity. Many innovative solutions have been attempted, much like these ‘hydro panels’ from an Arizona-based startup, but there’s still a lot of work to be Read More...
Kelp forests are the silent coastal community protectors we need
Coral reef degradation has been a central topic in discussions about the immediate effects of a warming climate, but another coastal ecosystem is also feeling the pressures of warming waters. Kelp forests are integral to coastal health but have been declining dramatically in recent years. In areas Read More...
Rain storms bring life back to New South Wales after years of drought
Many regions of New South Wales have recorded more than 300mm of rain so far this year, surpassing rainfall totals of 2018 and 2019. After a year of devastating wildfires across Australia, the rain is bringing beautiful blooms and hopeful new growth to the area. Farmers in the region are Read More...
New data is rapidly improving our understanding of the Arctic’s permafrost
The Arctic covers about 20 percent of the planet, but we know very little about its soil, specifically its permafrost. This layer holds vast amounts of carbon, and thanks to researchers from the University of Texas, Austin, we now have a much more complete dataset on Arctic soil Read More...
First US woman to walk in space reaches deepest known point in the ocean
Kathy Sullivan, the NASA astronaut who 36 years ago became the first American woman to walk in space, has now become the first woman to reach the deepest known spot in the ocean. On Sunday, Dr. Sullivan, 68, an astronaut and oceanographer, emerged from her 35,810-foot dive to the Challenger Deep Read More...