Strong winds are supersizing the ocean’s biggest waves

Strong winds are driving the ocean’s biggest waves to dizzying new heights. The University of Melbourne researchers behind the work, published April 25 in the journal Science, say the supersized waves could compound the effects of rising sea levels, leading to more frequent flooding and accelerated coastal erosion.

Preventing collapse after catastrophe

As the impacts of climate change escalate, ecosystems will likely undergo events that will disrupt entire populations. In marine ecosystems, anthropogenic warming has subjected organisms to elevated temperatures, oxygen loss, and acidification. The increased frequency and severity of catastrophic events may inhibit a population’s ability to recover and, in turn, may spur collapse.

Greenland ice melting four times faster than in 2003

Greenland is melting faster than scientists previously thought – and will likely lead to faster sea level rise -thanks to the continued, accelerating warming of the Earth’s atmosphere, a new study has found.

Earth Day: 60 Minutes climate stories

On this Earth Day, there’s a lawsuit focused squarely on climate change that’s working its way through the federal court system. It was filed on behalf of a group of kids who are trying to get the courts to block the U.S. government from continuing the support of the fossil fuel industry.

Since the first Earth Day, the planet’s CO2 levels have gone off the rails

When Americans celebrated the first Earth Day on April 22, 1970, the planet’s atmosphere was markedly different than it is today. Now, almost five decades later, that number has shot up to around 412 ppm, nearly 90 ppm higher. It’s a change atmospheric researchers, geologists, and climate scientists call unparalleled in at least 800,000 years, though it’s likely carbon dioxide levels haven’t been this high in millions years.