• Climate change is causing animal body shrinkage

    Rising global temperatures and changes in weather patterns have knock-on effects on the growth of a wide range of species. The change could have a major impact on the expanding human population, with major food sources like fish likely to reduce in size and crops

  • Animals heading polewards in search of cooler temperatures

    New research by scientists in the Department of Biology at the University of York shows that species have responded to climate change up to three times faster than previously appreciated. These results are published in the latest issue of the leading scientific…

  • One of every seven people worldwide suffer from hunger

    No one really knows how many people are malnourished. The statistic most frequently cited is that of the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization, which measures ‘undernutrition’. The most recent estimate, released in  October 2010 by FAO,  says that 925

  • Kyoto deal loses four big nations

    Russia, Japan and Canada told the G8 they would not join a second round of carbon cuts under the Kyoto Protocol at United Nations talks this year and the US reiterated it would remain outside the treaty, European diplomats have said.The future of the Kyoto Protocol

  • Could crop ancestors feed the world?

    The world is facing starvation as climate change disrupts food production and the population booms and science’s last hope may be locked inside Syria’s forgotten wild plants.The race is on to develop and test improved crop varieties to feed the world’s growing

  • Earth’s gravity revealed in unprecedented detail

    After just two years in orbit, ESA's GOCE satellite has gathered enough data to map Earth's gravity with unrivaled precision. Scientists now have access to the most accurate model of the 'geoid' ever produced to further our understanding of how Earth…

  • A colony of emperor penguins disappears

    A small colony of emperor penguins on an island off the West Antarctic Peninsula is gone, and the most likely culprit is loss of sea ice caused by warming. Although it has been predicted that penguins could suffer greatly because of global warming, this is the first

  • GOCE delivers on its promise

    ESA’s GOCE satellite has reached its ambitious goal of mapping Earth’s gravity with unprecedented precision. In two short years, the sophisticated satellite has collected the measurements needed to record the ‘geoid’ reference shape of our planet. “GOCE is one

  • Exotic species spreading through world’s seas

    Exotic species have invaded more than 80 percent of the oceans and coasts on Earth, causing problems that can ultimately cost billions of dollars to handle — and these species may spread even further as climate changes worldwide, scientists find.Invasive species a