• Solving the mystery of rapidly rising Indian Ocean sea level

    Sea levels around the world have risen by 1.7 millimeters (0.07 inches) on average each year since 1880, but in recent years, scientists have observed a rapid increase in sea level in the north Indian Ocean. Tide gauge records and other datasets reveal the pace of…

  • Magma held in ‘cold storage’ before giant volcano eruption

    Long Valley, California, has long defined the "super-eruption." About 765 000 years ago, a pool of molten rock exploded into the sky. Within one nightmarish week, 760 km3 (182 mi3) of lava and ash spewed out in the kind of volcanic cataclysm we hope never…

  • Study estimates global reach of atmospheric rivers

    A recent study by NASA and several partners has estimated, for the first time, the global impact of atmospheric rivers on floods and droughts, as well as the number of people affected by these atmospheric phenomena. Atmospheric rivers are relatively long, narrow,…

  • Oldest recorded solar eclipse helps date the Egyptian pharaohs

    Researchers have pinpointed the date of what could be the oldest solar eclipse yet recorded. The event, which occurred on October 30, 1207 BC could have consequences for the chronology of the ancient world. Using a combination of the biblical text and an ancient…

  • Scientists detect comets outside our solar system

    Scientists from MIT and other institutions, working closely with amateur astronomers, have spotted the dusty tails of six exocomets — comets outside our solar system — orbiting a faint star 800 light years from Earth. These cosmic balls of ice and dust,…