Featured
-
-
News & Views |
Forests don’t just absorb CO2 — they also take up methane
Field studies reveal that the woody surfaces of upland trees are a substantial global sink for methane, a potent greenhouse gas. The findings help to fill a hole in the global methane budget and should improve the accuracy of climate models.
- Patrik Vestin
-
News |
Exclusive: the Trump administration demoted this climate scientist — now she wants reform
Virginia Burkett has filed a whistle-blower complaint, asking for an investigation and better policies to protect scientists against political interference.
- Jeff Tollefson
-
Article
| Open AccessGlobal net climate effects of anthropogenic reactive nitrogen
A comprehensive model framework is used to estimate the global net direct radiative forcing of anthropogenic reactive nitrogen as being about −0.34 W m−2, which has a cooling effect on the climate.
- Cheng Gong
- , Hanqin Tian
- & Sönke Zaehle
-
News & Views |
Carbon pricing reduces emissions
A meta-analysis of 21 carbon-pricing schemes suggests that the strategy reduces greenhouse-gas emissions. Deciding how high to set prices is the next step — and one that might benefit from the insights of less-aggregated studies in various sectors.
- Thomas Sterner
-
News |
This glowing speck is a freezing exoplanet six times the size of Jupiter
One of the closest extrasolar planets to our Solar System is the most frigid ever to be directly imaged.
- Davide Castelvecchi
-
Article |
Deep, hot, ancient melting recorded by ultralow oxygen fugacity in peridotites
Analysis of peridotites reveals ultralow oxygen fugacity, suggesting that rafts of ancient, ultrareduced mantle were generated by deep melting at high temperatures and continue to circulate in the modern mantle, although they contribute little to modern ridge volcanism.
- Suzanne K. Birner
- , Elizabeth Cottrell
- & Jessica M. Warren
-
Article
| Open AccessGlobal atmospheric methane uptake by upland tree woody surfaces
Studies of in situ woody surface methane exchange in upland tropical, temperate and boreal forest trees find that methane uptake can result in a net tree methane sink that is globally significant and demonstrates an additional climate benefit provided by trees.
- Vincent Gauci
- , Sunitha Rao Pangala
- & Yadvinder Malhi
-
Article |
Cultivation and visualization of a methanogen of the phylum Thermoproteota
We demonstrate that the ability to conserve energy coupled to methane production is not restricted to the Euryarchaeota and is much more widespread than originally thought.
- Anthony J. Kohtz
- , Nikolai Petrosian
- & Roland Hatzenpichler
-
-
Correspondence |
Cement at 200: towards net-zero fully recycled concrete
- Jianzhuang Xiao
- & Shuai Zou
-
News |
Google AI predicts long-term climate trends and weather — in minutes
Models that are more reliable and less energy-intensive could help us to better prepare for extreme weather.
- Helena Kudiabor
-
Where I Work |
I pioneered a method to study cement using a particle accelerator
Materials scientist Shiva Shirani measures how cement hardens at the nanoscale to inform how to develop a more eco-friendly material.
- Virginia Gewin
-
News |
What Kamala Harris’s historic bid for the US presidency means for science
The daughter of a scientist and a supporter of diversity in STEM, Harris as a potential candidate has stirred optimism among scientists.
- Max Kozlov
- , Mariana Lenharo
- & Jeff Tollefson
-
News |
Mystery oxygen source discovered on the sea floor — bewildering scientists
A chemical reaction could be producing oxygen by splitting water molecules, but its source of energy remains unknown.
- Davide Castelvecchi
-
Article
| Open AccessNeural general circulation models for weather and climate
A hybrid model that combines a differentiable solver for atmospheric dynamics with machine-learning components is capable of weather forecasts and climate simulations on par with the best machine-learning and physics-based methods.
- Dmitrii Kochkov
- , Janni Yuval
- & Stephan Hoyer
-
News |
NASA cancels $450-million mission to drill for ice on the Moon — surprising researchers
The already-built rover could now be scrapped for parts.
- Alix Soliman
-
Article
| Open AccessGroundwater-dependent ecosystem map exposes global dryland protection needs
Mapping of groundwater-dependent ecosystems, which support biodiversity and rural livelihoods, shows they occur on more than one-third of global drylands analysed, but lack protections to safeguard these critical ecosystems and the societies dependent upon them from groundwater depletion.
- Melissa M. Rohde
- , Christine M. Albano
- & John C. Stella
-
Nature Podcast |
The plastic that biodegrades in your home compost
Enzymes embedded directly into the material allows PLA plastic to completely break down — plus a gel that can safely store proteins for shipping.
- Benjamin Thompson
- & Emily Bates
-
Research Briefing |
A minimalistic model achieves long-range explainable El Niño forecasts with high accuracy
A conceptual model provides accurate forecasts of the El Niño–Southern Oscillation (ENSO) climate phenomenon 16–18 months in advance, outperforming global climate models and rivalling the best forecasts using artificial-intelligence methods. The model quantifies the effects of ocean climate patterns on ENSO predictability.
-
News |
Freezer holding world’s biggest ancient-ice archive to get ‘future-proofed’
Repository of samples drilled from glaciers and ice caps is replacing a coolant that can harm the ozone layer.
- Nicola Jones
-
World View |
Severe turbulence ahead — how scientists can keep air travellers safe in a warming world
From weakening jet streams to causing bumpier flights, climate change is altering atmospheric behaviour. Researchers need to find out how.
- Haoxuan Yu
-
News |
What Twisters gets right — and wrong — about tornado science
Nature talks to tornado specialists and scientific advisers for the new disaster film about how it stacks up.
- Alexandra Witze
-
Research Highlight |
Blowout! Satellites reveal one of the largest methane leaks on record
An oil well in Kazakhstan dumped more than 100,000 tonnes of the potent greenhouse gas into the atmosphere.
-
Research Highlight |
Wine grapes’ sweetness reveals Europe’s climate history
Records on the quality of the grape harvest sheds light on 600 years of weather.
-
Outlook |
Contenders for The Spinoff Prize 2024
Although not chosen to be finalists, these seven science-based university spin-off companies offer potentially high-impact innovations.
- Neil Savage
-
News |
These period pads solidify blood to prevent leaks
They’re filled with a seaweed-derived product that forms a gel and is biodegradable.
- Bianca Nogrady
-
Article
| Open AccessDeeper and stronger North Atlantic Gyre during the Last Glacial Maximum
Analysis of benthic foraminiferal δ18O profiles from sediment cores in two depth transects in the Northwest Atlantic suggests that the subtropical gyre was deeper and stronger during the Last Glacial Maximum compared with today.
- Jack H. Wharton
- , Martin Renoult
- & David J. R. Thornalley
-
Article
| Open AccessAirborne DNA reveals predictable spatial and seasonal dynamics of fungi
Using a globally distributed standardized aerial sampling of fungal spores, we show that the hyperdiverse kingdom of fungi follows globally highly predictable spatial and temporal dynamics, with seasonality in both species richness and community composition increasing with latitude.
- Nerea Abrego
- , Brendan Furneaux
- & Otso Ovaskainen
-
Correspondence |
Regulate to protect fragile Antarctic ecosystems from growing tourism
- Yi Luo
- , Huan Zhong
- & Christian Sonne
-
Correspondence |
More studies needed on how climate change affects exercise health benefits
- Zhenxiang Guo
-
News & Views |
How mud brought France and England together — 150 years ago
Artificial daylight lacks commercial interest, and a geologist’s thirst for knowledge kickstarts the bid for the Channel Tunnel, in our weekly dip into Nature’s archive.
-
Where I Work |
Why I work to revive the Tasmanian tiger
Andrew Pask develops genetic sequencing techniques for marsupials — including an apex predator that was hunted to death in the twentieth century.
- Margaret Simons
-
Arts Review |
Kyoto review: ‘thrilling’ play shows fight for landmark climate treaty
Drama behind the scenes at the Kyoto Protocol negotiations is laid bare in a major theatrical production.
- Peter Stott
-
News |
‘Chemical recycling’: 15-minute reaction turns old clothes into useful molecules
Fast fashion creates millions of tonnes of waste each year — could clever chemistry help to tackle the problem?
- Helena Kudiabor
-
News & Views |
Last year’s summer was the warmest in 2,000 years
A record spanning two millennia of Northern Hemisphere summer temperatures has revealed the extent to which 2023 was anomalously hot. The finding is a striking confirmation of warming since the pre-industrial period.
- Gabriele C. Hegerl
- & Katherine L. Taylor
-
Article
| Open AccessHuman degradation of tropical moist forests is greater than previously estimated
A global survey on the magnitude and persistence of moist forest cover change and canopy height following degradation using satellite remote sensing data finds that the effects are substantial and persist for decades.
- C. Bourgoin
- , G. Ceccherini
- & F. Achard
-
Article |
Giant stem tetrapod was apex predator in Gondwanan late Palaeozoic ice age
A study describes a new giant stem tetrapod, Gaiasia jennyae, from high-palaeolatitude early Permian-aged deposits in Namibia that challenges current hypotheses of early tetrapod evolution.
- Claudia A. Marsicano
- , Jason D. Pardo
- & Helke Mocke
-
Research Highlight |
The surprising driver of Amazon deforestation
Demand from Brazil itself accounts for more than half of the demand for crops and livestock from the Amazon and the savannah that surrounds it.
-
World View |
Climate change is worsening the housing crisis — we must tackle the two together
Thousands of people are being displaced across the Arctic. Governments must listen to Indigenous and local communities and act on their advice.
- Julia Christensen
-
Nature Podcast |
Audio long read: How NASA astronauts are training to walk on the Moon in 2026
NASA astronauts have been performing simulated lunar exploration in Arizona to help prepare them for doing geology at the Moon's south pole.
- Alexandra Witze
- & Benjamin Thompson
-
News & Views |
Deep-sea dye confirms turbulent-mixing theory — with implications for climate
Carbon storage in Earth’s oceans is controlled by deep-sea mixing processes, but the details have proved difficult to test. Ambitious efforts to track ocean mixing using dye have now demonstrated the pivotal role of the sea floor.
- Ryan M. Holmes
-
Article |
Explainable El Niño predictability from climate mode interactions
An extended nonlinear recharge oscillator model shows skilful and explainable El Niño–Southern Oscillation forecasts at lead times up to 16–18 months, better than global climate models and comparable to the most skilful artificial intelligence forecasts.
- Sen Zhao
- , Fei-Fei Jin
- & Wenju Cai
-
Book Review |
How the grid came to shape the US landscape
Science and reason underpinned early surveys, but sociopolitical ideals left their mark on the nation too, a historical account concludes.
- K. John Holmes
-
Article
| Open AccessCenozoic history of the tropical marine biodiversity hotspot
A reconstruction of Cenozoic marine biodiversity in the Indo-Australian Archipelago reveals decreasing rates of net diversification and identifies the factors that have established it as the richest marine biodiversity hotspot.
- Skye Yunshu Tian
- , Moriaki Yasuhara
- & Tomoki Kase
-
Article
| Open AccessObservations of diapycnal upwelling within a sloping submarine canyon
A dye-release experiment within a sloping submarine canyon provides direct evidence that vigorous mixing at topographic features, such as canyons, leads to rapid diapycnal upwelling of deep water.
- Bethan L. Wynne-Cattanach
- , Nicole Couto
- & Matthew H. Alford
-
Correspondence |
How societies respond to environmental stressors needs detailed studies
- Yitzchak Jaffe
- , Ari Caramanica
- & Max Price
-
News |
You’re not imagining it: extreme wildfires are now more common
For the first time, data show that cataclysmic infernos are increasing in frequency and intensity globally.
- Jeff Tollefson
-
Research Highlight |
A mighty river’s radical shift changed the face of ancient Egypt
Samples taken near a capital of the pharaohs reveal an overhaul of the Nile 4,000 years ago.
-
Spotlight |
How to address agriculture’s water woes
Water isn’t the only challenge facing agriculture in a climate-altered future, but a lack of it could have catastrophic effects.
- Bianca Nogrady