National weather analysts released their 2023 “billion-dollar disasters list” on Jan. 9, just as 2024 was getting off to a ferocious start. A blizzard was sweeping across across the Plains and Midwest, and the South and East faced flood risks from extreme downpours. The U.S. set an unwelcome record for weather and climate disasters in […]
Cross-sectional illustration of Earth’s layers, down to molten core. Scientists in China recently made a discovery at the heart of our planet: Every 8.5 years, the Earth’s inner core wobbles around its rotational axis. This shift is likely caused by a tiny misalignment between the inner core and the Earth’s mantle—the layer below the Earth’s […]
Sign up for CNN’s Wonder Theory science newsletter. Explore the universe with news on fascinating discoveries, scientific advancements and more. Long before the first sharks appeared, large predator worms were the “terror beasts” of the seas more than 500 million years ago, according to new research. Scientists discovered fossils of the previously unknown worm species during […]
Oprah has a knack for knowing exactly what we crave. The media mogul really piqued our interest with her 2022 Favorite Things list, where she sang the praises of home brand Cozy Earth — for the fifth year in a row. Oprah dubbed their ultra-soft socks, loungewear, pajamas, sheets and towel sets her “favorite,” and […]
Sign up for CNN’s Wonder Theory science newsletter. Explore the universe with news on fascinating discoveries, scientific advancements and more. Thousands of years ago, Earth’s magnetic field underwent a significant power surge over a part of the planet that included the ancient kingdom of Mesopotamia. People at the time probably never even noticed the fluctuation, […]
The largest lake in Earth’s history is now in the Guinness Book of World Records. The Paratethys—or Lake Paratethys, if you will—and contained 10 times more water than all of Earth’s modern lakes. In other words, it’s long overdue for its place in the Guinness Book. At its height, the Paratethys stretched from Austria in […]
Using advanced computer simulations, scientists have shown how easily a runaway greenhouse effect can rapidly transform a habitable planet into a hellish world inhospitable to life. Not only does this research have implications for our understanding of extrasolar planets, or “exoplanets,” but it also offers insight into the human-driven climate crisis on Earth. The team […]