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Did scientists find a lost continent beneath the Indian Ocean?

Analyzing beach sand from Mauritius, scientists discovered minerals between 660 million and 1,970 million years old, suggesting an ancient, lost continent beneath the Indian Ocean.
Warming climate could cut labor capacity by 10 percent, study finds

US scientists warned that heat stress-related labor capacity losses will double globally by 2050 if the Earth's temperature rises by another 1.8 degrees F.
Discovery of smallest planet yet a 'milestone' in search for another Earth

The Kepler space telescope has found a planet smaller than Mercury orbiting a distant star. The discovery suggests Kepler has the precision to find a planet more like Earth.
Supernova alert! Astronomers spot warning sign

Astronomers have identified the early warning sign of an imminent supernova: a stellar belch that could indicate the star will explode within a month or two.
Study: Moles can smell in stereo, still can't see anything

A study involving the common mole discovered that they can locate the source of an odor based on how strong it smells in each nostril. The burrowing animals are still useless when it comes to perceiving things visually, though.
Are human-caused and natural global warming different? Study says yes.

A study suggests that human-caused and natural global warming episodes affect rainfall rates differently. The finding could help scientists better forecast what's ahead.
Cats kill billions of creatures every year according to new study

Cats kill billions: According to new research, cats kill between 1.4 billion and 3.7 billion birds and between 6.9 billion and 20.7 billion small mammals, such as meadow voles and chipmunks.
Northern winter not as cold as expected? It could be urban 'waste heat'

Waste heat has a smaller impact on global climate than does CO2, but heat from highly urbanized northern regions appears to explain observed deviations from climate forecasts, a study says.
New York's heat may be warming Siberia

Heat from northern cities from New York to Tokyo could warm winters in Canada and Siberia, according to a new study, but cool the fall in the western US and Eastern Europe.
What's going on around Andromeda? Curious structure puzzles scientists.

Scientists have found 13 dwarf galaxies orbiting the Andromeda galaxy in what appears to be a fairly narrow ring. That makes no sense according to current models of galaxy formation.
West Antarctica warming much faster than expected

Average temperatures in West Antarctica rise 4.3 degrees since 1950s. The region's warming is nearly twice as much as expected and one of the most rapid on the planet.
Cheese: Not as newfangled as we thought

Researchers have linked ancient milk residue (thousands of years-old) to early forms of cheese-making. The scientists say this research provides new insights into the human diet and food production technologies.
How reliable are drought predictions? Study finds flaw in popular tool.

Researchers say the Palmer Drought Severity Index, devised for monitoring short-term trends, has been misused for longer term analyses and is thrown off by higher temperatures from global warming.
Focus Surging storms: Can the US adapt in time to avert coastal damage?

Damage from severe storms such as Sandy is likely to escalate by the end of the century as the population grows and people continue to build along the Eastern Seaboard.
When did humans get smart? Maybe a lot earlier than some thought.

A find in South Africa suggests that humans had mastered the skill of producing small stone blades – and could pass on the know-how – as early as 71,000 years ago.
Difference Maker Steven Amstrup says it's not too late to save polar bears – and ourselves

'We know the answer to what it takes to save' polar bears, says environmental prize winner Steven Amstrup, who has gone to the Arctic to study the bears for 30 years.
Moon formed from humongous Earth collision, new theories attempt to explain

The new research potentially plugs a big hole in the giant impact theory, long the leading explanation for the moon's formation.
Earth-size planet found just next door, in Alpha Centauri system

The planet is not habitable, it is too close to Alpha Centauri B. But rocky planets tend to have siblings, researchers note, raising hopes others could be found in the system just 4.4 light-years distant.
Scientists confident moon born of colossal Earth collision that vaporized Zinc

Researchers examined rocks collected by astronauts during NASA's Apollo lunar landing missions, as well as a meteorite that originated on the moon to make the find.
Earth-sized planet too hot for non-asbestos life forms, but ...

Earth-sized planet: With a mass about 1.1 times that of Earth, it is strikingly similar in size. Could the Alpha Centauri B system hold more Earth-sized, but habitable planets?
Water on the moon? Maybe a lot more than we thought ... thanks to the sun.

A new study finds 'an unanticipated, abundant reservoir' of water on the moon, molecules formed on the surfaces of oxygen-bearing rocks bombarded by protons from the solar wind.
Mysterious moon water: Did solar winds create lunar water?

These findings suggest that other airless bodies in the solar system may also possess water on their surfaces, investigators added.
Ancient, fossilized, insect-like brain surprisingly complex

The fossilized brain, found in an extinct arthropod from China, looks very similar to the brains of today's modern insects.
Bizarre star spiral may provide glimpse into sun's future

Using the Atacama Large Millimeter/Submillimeter Array in northern Chile, an international team of astronomers found the spiral structure never seen before.
Startling discovery debunked: bacteria can't survive on arsenic

A two-year old report suggested that one type of bacteria could survive by assimilating arsenic – a finding that held implications for the search for life in the cosmos. But new research contradicts those conclusions.