Planet Earth
Earth is one big spinning mystery in a constant state of change. With more than 4.5 billion years of history locked inside a ball of molten rock and iron, our planet is made up of a vast array of geological wonders, carved by the oceans, shaped by the shifting plates beneath our feet and sculpted by weather across the surface.
Our team of expert science writers and editors are here to reveal our planet’s secrets — from the deepest depths of the ocean, through the coldest places on Earth to the very edge of space — keeping you up to date with the latest discoveries with planet Earth news, articles and features.
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Latest about Planet Earth
![A satellite photo of dark water flowing into the ocean from an estaury](https://cdn.statically.io/img/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/m69gwLzwhzujFNMmw3NnJ4-320-80.jpg)
'River of tea' bleeds into sea after Hurricane Sally smashes into US coast
By Harry Baker published
Earth from space A 2020 satellite photo shows "blackwater" flowing from South Carolina's Winyah Bay after Hurricane Sally made landfall and triggered flash flooding.
![A picture of the seafloor off the eastern U.S. coast covered in metallic nodules rich in manganese.](https://cdn.statically.io/img/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/8Rs9jqep6rjpHtS7zP6CdB-320-80.jpg)
Discovery of 'dark oxygen' from deep-sea metal lumps could trigger rethink of origins of life
By Sascha Pare published
In a global first, scientists working in the Clarion-Clipperton Zone in the North Pacific Ocean have found that metallic nodules on the seafloor produce their own oxygen, dubbed "dark oxygen."
![Three researchers walk out onto the salty crust left behind after water has evaporated at Last Chance Lake in September 2022.](https://cdn.statically.io/img/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/xiCcFhrjHisyCSfwAvNa3o-320-80.jpg)
Last Chance Lake: The unusual 'soda lake' with conditions that may have given rise to life on Earth
By Sascha Pare published
Scientists consider Last Chance Lake to be an analog for lakes that may have existed on Earth 4 billion years ago and contained the ingredients for early life on our planet.
![Three panels showing different desert flower blooms with dew drops on the petals](https://cdn.statically.io/img/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/hzuEEfmurvoXWwbeeFpnw7-320-80.jpg)
See stunning photos of the Atacama Desert — the driest on Earth — blooming in winter for 1st time in a decade
By María de los Ángeles Orfila published
"This very arid soil houses a treasure," ecologist María Fernanda Pérez told Live Science after the Atacama Desert produced a rare winter bloom.
![Looped video footage of Earth spinning](https://cdn.statically.io/img/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/UHZE4MiFq5vMcG5qCHeC7Q-320-80.gif)
Earth is wobbling and days are getting longer — and humans are to blame
By Harry Baker published
New studies, which utilized AI to monitor the effects of climate change on Earth's spin, have shown that our days are getting increasingly longer and that our planet will get more wobbly in the future. These changes could have major implications for humanity's future.
![Digital rendition of the earth's core shown from a quarter](https://cdn.statically.io/img/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/td6kD7tuxU9SV9HkDDadkf-320-80.jpg)
Earth's plate tectonics fired up hundreds of millions of years earlier than we thought, ancient crystals reveal
By Stephanie Pappas published
New research hints that plate tectonics began earlier than 4 billion years ago — not long after Earth had formed.
![A pair of arrow-shape ripples in clouds as viewed from space](https://cdn.statically.io/img/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/6QkQ7zshxCryZVGd35nxQg-320-80.jpg)
Earth from space: Gravity waves spark pair of perfect cloud ripples above uninhabited islands
By Harry Baker published
This 2023 astronaut photo shows a pair of perfectly aligned "wave clouds" rippling above the Crozet Islands in the Southern Ocean. The unusual patterns are the result of changes in temperature caused by gravity waves.
![A wide angle photo of downtown Los Angeles showing a sunset and snowy mountains in the background](https://cdn.statically.io/img/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/Mu8v9evSJCFwgKbVPKfkkg-320-80.jpg)
LA may be spared 'horrifying' fate of the 'Big One' from San Andreas, simulation suggests
By Stephanie Pappas published
A new simulation of the shaking from a magnitude 7.8 south San Andreas earthquake suggests that Los Angeles might avoid a worst-case scenario.
![The Dragon Eye at dusk with the surrounding bay in the background. The eye is lit for the photograph.](https://cdn.statically.io/img/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/jCSBxRTh98Acc3Hq7JS9KQ-320-80.jpg)
Norway's Dragon's Eye: The fantastical 'pothole' that emerged from ice 16,000 years ago
By Sascha Pare published
Norway's photogenic "Dragon's Eye" likely formed around 20,000 years ago, when all of Scandinavia sat beneath an enormous mass of ice called the Fennoscandian Ice Sheet.
![An aerial view of the helium drilling site near Babbitt, northern Minnersota.](https://cdn.statically.io/img/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/H53BPNRBo4nhtJTyZ9RcPa-320-80.png)
Massive helium reservoir in Minnesota is even more 'mind-boggling' than we thought, new data suggest
By Sascha Pare published
New seismic data show that a helium reservoir discovered in February in northern Minnesota is larger than initial estimates indicated, inching the project closer to commercial extraction.
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