For the first time, scientists have used a space-borne instrument to track the origin and movements of water vapor throughout Earth's atmosphere, providing a new perspective on the dominant role Earth's water cycle plays in weather and climate. (University of Colorado-Boulder press release)

Researchers are surprised by some of the animals found under the former Larsen ice shelf east of the Antarctic Peninsula. (Alfred Wegener Institute for Polar and Marine Research press release)

Scientists have discovered a warehouse-sized drumlin -- a mound of sediment and rock -- actively forming and growing under the ice sheet in Antarctica. (British Antarctic Survey press release)

Using 14,000- to 30,000-year-old wood samples from areas in the mid-latitudes of North America, researchers have learned that the prevailing winds in this region, which now blow from the west, once blew from the east. (Dartmouth College press release)

Scientists have developed a novel way of mapping carbon dioxide levels in parts of North America by analyzing corn grown in those regions. (American Geophysical Union press release)

Aerosols result in less wind power available for wind-turbine electricity and also reduce precipitation, according to a new study. (Stanford University press release)

High-speed images of the interaction between individual raindrops and soil particles are providing new insight into the physics of water erosion. (Vanderbilt University press release)

Researchers are gathering the first quantitative temperature data over the last millennium from areas of the Canadian Arctic, such as Baffin Island. (University of Buffalo press release)

Bags of decomposing leaf litter have allowed a research team to better understand the nitrogen released into the soil during decomposition, which could significantly improve the accuracy of global climate models. (University of California-Berkeley press release)

A series of research papers explores both the individual and cumulative effects of storms on coastal environments, animals, and plants. (Estuarine Research Federation press release)

An international team of scientists will begin gathering the most detailed information yet about the ever-changing Northern Lights. (University of Calgary press release)

The Atlantic Ocean does not receive the mother lode of fixed nitrogen, surprising researchers. (University of Washington press release)

Forest fires release more mercury into the atmosphere than previously recognized, a research project suggests. (University of Michigan press release)

Scientists have made a discovery that could help us breed new varieties of crops able to thrive in a changing climate. (Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council press release)

The transition from an ice age to an ice-free planet 300 million years ago was marked by extreme swings in climate and drastic effects on tropical vegetation, according to a new study. (University of California-Davis press release)

A new study reveals that a warming-induced deficiency in oxygen uptake and supply to tissues is the key factor limiting the stock size of a fish species under heat stress. (Alfred Wegener Institute for Polar and Marine Research press release)

A team of scientists has developed a method to determine the influence of past volcanic eruptions on climate and the chemistry of the upper atmosphere. (University of California-San Diego press release)