Environment

Nuclear and fossil fuel power plants consume huge amounts of water for cooling, which then goes to waste as water vapor. MIT engineers have now developed a system that can capture and recycle that lost water.

The Greenland Ice Sheet is associated with a range of environmental issues, but now researchers have discovered a surprising new problem. Glacial meltwater was found to be unexpectedly high in mercury, which could end up in ecosystems and seafood.

An ambitious Israeli startup claims it can pull carbon dioxide out of the air vastly cheaper than anyone else, using massive high-altitude balloons to take advantage of stratospheric temperatures and freeze CO2 out of the air with minimal energy.

A new study has revealed that Earth’s glaciers have lost a staggering amount of ice over the last two decades, and the rate of loss is accelerating. The global effort used satellite data to track the deteriorating condition of some 220,000 glaciers.

High-altitude icy clouds may have allowed ancient Mars to host rivers and lakes by warming the planet via a greenhouse effect, according to a new study. The theory could be tested by NASA’s Perseverance rover, which is currently exploring the planet.

Most plastics don’t break down easily – and when they do, they create problematic microplastic particles. A new type of compostable plastic is embedded with enzymes that, when triggered, quickly break the material down to its constituent molecules.

The mega-berg that last year threatened one of the world's largest marine nature reserves is no more. Measuring an incredible 2,187 square miles when it broke off Antarctica in 2017, iceberg A-68a has now disintegrated into fragments too small to track.

Just like a tree trunk, the tusk of the narwhal acquires a new growth ring every year. Analyses of those rings have now revealed some interesting facts about the animals' diet, and about changes in their environment.

In the event of a global catastrophe, how would we protect the wide variety of plants and animals on Earth? A team of researchers has now proposed a “Noah’s Ark” on the Moon that stores millions of samples of seeds, spores, sperm and eggs.

A little over two years after Israel-based start-up Aleph Farms unveiled the world’s first lab-grown steak, the company has now revealed a much more complex, thick-cut rib-eye steak cultivated using a novel 3D bioprinting technology.

Unfortunately concrete production is a major source of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. Now engineers at Purdue University have developed a new cement recipe that can absorb CO2 twice as fast as usual, hopefully turning it into a useful carbon sink.

As part of its goal to reach net zero carbon dioxide emissions by 2050, Rolls-Royce has begun testing 100-percent Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF) in a small commercial business jet, which could lead to lifecycle emissions reductions of over 75 percent.