Africa is less safe, secure and democratic than a decade ago, with insecurity holding back progress in health, education and economic opportunities, according to an assessment of the continent. From a report: The Ibrahim index of African governance, wh…

Far below our feet, a giant may have started moving against us. From a report: Earth’s inner core, a hot iron ball the size of Pluto, has stopped spinning in the same direction as the rest of the planet and might even be rotating the other way, researc…

Research suggests if trend continues, view of Orion’s belt will disappear due to glow from artificial lighting. From a report: “There is no light in earth or heaven / But the cold light of stars,” wrote the poet Henry Wadsworth Longfellow. But for myri…

An anonymous reader quotes a report from CNN: As humans fiddle with the planet’s thermostat, scientists are piecing together Greenland’s history by drilling ice cores to analyze how the climate crisis has impacted the island country over the years. The…

The forest carbon offsets approved by the world’s leading provider and used by Disney, Shell, Gucci and other big corporations are largely worthless and could make global heating worse, according to a new investigation. The Guardian: The research into …

An anonymous reader quotes a report from The Guardian: Dust that billows up from desert storms and arid landscapes has helped cool the planet for the past several decades, and its presence in the atmosphere may have obscured the true extent of global h…

An anonymous reader quotes a report from CBS News: Eating one freshwater fish caught in a river or lake in the United States is the equivalent of drinking a month’s worth of water contaminated with toxic “forever chemicals,” new research said on Tuesda…

fahrbot-bot shares a report from Engadget: Lightning rods have been used to safely guide strikes into the ground since Benjamin Franklin’s day, but their short range (roughly the same radius as the height) and fixed-in-place design makes them ineffecti…

The return of the El Nino climate phenomenon later this year will cause global temperatures to rise “off the chart” and deliver unprecedented heatwaves, scientists have warned. From a report: Early forecasts suggest El Nino will return later in 2023, e…

England will ban businesses from selling and offering a variety of single-use plastics, including plates and cutlery, by the end of the year, the UK’s Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs announced on Saturday. From a report: The governme…