Articles for category: Climate & Environment, Physics

Why Lightning Strikes More Often Over Cities Than Forests

Why Lightning Strikes More Often Over Cities Than Forests

Jan Otte

Have you ever watched a summer thunderstorm roll over a sprawling metropolis and wondered why cities seem to attract more lightning than rural areas? The answer reveals a fascinating interplay between human development and atmospheric physics. When urban planners first started building skyward and outward, they unknowingly created perfect conditions for increased lightning activity. Modern ...

What's Causing the Mysterious Green Glows Seen Over U.S. Cities?

What’s Causing the Mysterious Green Glows Seen Over U.S. Cities?

Gargi Chakravorty

You might have noticed something eerie in the night sky lately. Reports of mysterious green glows above American cities have been popping up across social media and local news outlets. These otherworldly phenomena have sparked curiosity, concern, and countless theories about what might be causing them. From spectacular aurora displays reaching unusually far south to ...

Skaftafell National Park, Iceland, UNESCO World Heritage Sites

Moon Caves in Iceland: NASA’s Training Ground for Future Astronauts

Trizzy Orozco

When you think of astronaut training, you probably picture high-tech simulators and sterile laboratories. But what if I told you that some of the most crucial preparation for lunar missions happens in the frozen volcanic landscapes of Iceland? This Nordic island nation has become NASA’s secret weapon in preparing astronauts for the harsh realities of ...

The Glacier That Bleeds Red: The Science Behind Antarctica’s Creepiest Feature

9 Strange Natural Phenomena That Actually Have a Scientific Explanation

Trizzy Orozco

Nature has always been full of surprises, throwing curveballs that make us scratch our heads and wonder if we’re living in some kind of science fiction movie. You’ve probably seen those viral videos of fish falling from the sky or heard tales of mysterious lights dancing across the horizon. For centuries, people explained these bizarre ...

What Causes Fire Tornadoes - Nature's Rarest Storms

What Causes Fire Tornadoes – Nature’s Rarest Storms

Gargi Chakravorty

Picture this: You’re watching the evening news when footage appears of what looks like a tornado, but it’s glowing red and orange with flames spiraling hundreds of feet into the sky. It seems impossible, something from a disaster movie. Yet true fire tornadoes are rare and are always associated with extreme fire behavior. These spinning ...

The World's Lakes That Vanish Overnight - and Why

The World’s Lakes That Vanish Overnight – and Why

Gargi Chakravorty

Imagine waking up one morning to discover that a lake where you swam just days before has completely disappeared, leaving nothing but a bare basin behind. This isn’t science fiction – it’s a real phenomenon happening around the world with increasing frequency. From the glacial lakes of Alaska to the salt domes of Louisiana, bodies ...

The Enigma of Tardigrades' Resilience

What’s the Most Extreme Lifeform Ever Found?

Trizzy Orozco

Imagine a creature that laughs in the face of boiling acid, survives the vacuum of space, and thrives in conditions that would instantly kill any human. These aren’t science fiction monsters from distant planets—they’re real organisms living right here on Earth. Scientists have discovered life forms so extreme they’ve completely rewritten our understanding of what’s ...

The Giant Ice Crystals Growing Beneath Alaska's Tundra

The Giant Ice Crystals Growing Beneath Alaska’s Tundra

Andrew Alpin

Deep beneath Alaska’s frozen landscape, a hidden world of ice formations is taking shape. While you might think of permafrost as simply frozen ground, the reality is far more complex and fascinating. Permafrost continuously remains below 0 °C for two years or more, with the deepest extending greater than 1,500 meters. Within this frozen realm, ...