Articles for category: Climate & Environment

Why Lightning Strikes More Often in Volcanic Ash Clouds

Why Lightning Strikes More Often in Volcanic Ash Clouds

Annette Uy

Picture this: you’re watching the news and see footage of a massive volcanic eruption, its towering ash column piercing the sky like a dark monument. Then suddenly, brilliant flashes of lightning begin crackling through the plume, turning the already dramatic scene into something that looks almost supernatural. But here’s the thing that might surprise you ...

Geothermal Marvels: Hot Springs in the Arctic

The Trees That Live in Boiling Water: Earth’s Toughest Photosynthesizers

Trizzy Orozco

Picture this: you’re standing at the edge of a steaming hot spring, watching water bubble at temperatures that would instantly cook your dinner. The air shimmers with heat, and you can barely get close without feeling like you’re facing an oven door left wide open. Yet if you looked closely – really closely – you’d ...

Explore the breathtaking limestone formations and clear waters in a Mexican cave.

How Satellites Detect Underground Rivers and Buried Ancient Lakes

Maria Faith Saligumba

Imagine standing in a vast desert, the sun beating down, not a drop of water in sight. But beneath your feet, hidden from view, ancient rivers flow silently and the remains of massive prehistoric lakes still linger, shaping the landscape in ways we can barely comprehend. The notion that satellites, soaring hundreds of kilometers above ...

tundra

From Tundra to Tap: Arctic Microbes That Influence Northern Ecosystems

Trizzy Orozco

Imagine sticking a thermometer deep into the frozen ground of Alaska and watching the mercury climb higher than it’s ever been in recorded history. It’s happening right now, and with each degree of warming, an invisible army is stirring beneath our feet. These aren’t ordinary soldiers – they’re microscopic life forms that have been locked ...

The Mighty Andes Mountains

The Andes Are Thirsty: How South America Is Losing Its Ice Water Towers

Trizzy Orozco

You probably never thought of a mountain as a water bottle. But in South America, the towering Andes have been just that for millions of people—nature’s glacier-capped reservoirs, silently storing and releasing life-giving water. Imagine waking up one morning to find your well dry, your crops wilting, and the rivers that once danced down the ...

Colorful hot air balloon floating amid fluffy clouds on a bright summer day.

Air Isn’t Weightless: The Surprising Mass Above Your Head

Maria Faith Saligumba

Have you ever looked up at the sky and felt the invisible presence pressing down on your shoulders? The air above you might seem like nothing, but in reality, it’s a staggering ocean of molecules, all with weight and force. Every breath you take is evidence of this unseen mass, quietly shaping our world in ...

Desert Rain: Deluges That Transform the Landscape

Desert Doesn’t Mean Dunes: A Guide to the World’s Weirdest Drylands

Trizzy Orozco

Beneath the blazing sun and endless blue skies, deserts whisper stories of survival, defiance, and the sheer strangeness of nature. If you think all deserts are endless seas of golden dunes, think again. From icy wastelands to stony plains, the world’s drylands are far weirder, wilder, and more beautiful than most people ever realize. Imagine ...