Tropical Storm Zeta Moves across Atlantic
December 31 — Tropical Storm Zeta moved across the Atlantic, a day after it tied a record for the latest developing named storm in an already-infamous hurricane season. (Reuters)

Mount St. Helens' Lava Baffles Scientists
December 30 — Roughly every three seconds, the equivalent of a large dump truck load of lava oozes into the crater of Mount St. Helens, and with the molten rock comes a steady drumfire of small earthquakes, but experts say it is unclear what the activity signifies or how much longer it will continue. (Associated Press)

Europe Hammered by a Second Snowstorm
December 30 — Europe's second snowstorm this week piled drifts onto railway tracks and roads, slowing buses, trains and trams and stranding motorists; the week of icy weather was blamed for dozens of deaths. (Associated Press)

Bellwether Delta Fish Hit Historic Lows
December 29 — The population of a tiny fish that lives near San Francisco Bay has hit an all-time low, a new study shows, troubling scientists who see it as an indicator of the health of the vast estuary that funnels water to two-thirds of Californians. (Associated Press)

American Pika Seen Headed Toward Extinction
December 29 — Human activity and climate change may be pushing the tiny American pika toward extinction in the mountains of western North America, according to a new study. (Reuters)

Rare Seabirds Being Spotted in California
December 28 — Scientists are stumped about why thousands of rare seabirds are suddenly being spotted on land in Northern California. (Reuters)

Experts Say British Ladybugs in Danger
December 28 — British ladybugs are in danger of being overrun by insects from Central and Southeast Asia that are encroaching on their food supply, experts said. (Reuters)

Scientists: Coral Reefs Spared in Tsunami
December 28 — A new study has found that about 14 percent of the coral reefs in the 2004 tsunami zone surveyed by the team were severely damaged or destroyed, roughly 50 percent sustained moderate damage, and 36 percent survived with little or no damage. (Associated Press)

Maine Ocean Floor Has Mud-Trapped Gas
December 28 — The Maine coast has dozens of methane gas fields on the ocean bottom where mud-trapped gas occasionally bubbles to the surface, according to a team of University of Maine scientists. (Associated Press)

Fires Race across Windy Oklahoma, Texas
December 28 — Firefighters in Texas and Oklahoma battled wind-fueled wildfires that burned homes and cars and forced one small town to evacuate residents. (Reuters)

Study: Southwest Summers Will Be Hotter
December 27 — A study billed by its researchers as the most detailed projection yet of climate change says hotter, drier Southwestern summers will become a reality by the late 21st century if human-caused global warming continues. (Associated Press)

Good Weather Lowers Western Avalanche Risk
December 27 — Following a deadly avalanche season marked by two deaths within ski areas, forecasters around the West say favorable weather has kept the risk of slides relatively low so far this winter. (Associated Press)

Man Says Thai Hotels Not Ready for Tsunami
December 27 — A leading meteorologist who was accused of scare-mongering when he warned nearly eight years ago that a tsunami could strike Thailand, said that coastal hotels and resorts are still unprepared for another killer wave. (Associated Press)

Study: Climate Change May Melt Permafrost
December 26 — Climate change could melt the top 11 feet of Alaska permafrost by the end of the century, according to a new study. (Associated Press)

Downside of Cleaner Air: More Warming
December 26 — Fewer pollutants mean average temperatures may rise 8 degrees Fahrenheit by 2100, a new study suggests. (Christian Science Monitor)

Mexican Volcano Spews Glowing Rock
December 25 — Mexico's giant Popocatepetl volcano threw up an ash column almost 2 miles (3 kilometers) high and spat glowing rocks down its snow-clad slopes, but nearby towns were not affected, officials said. (Reuters)

Quake Rocks North Pakistan, No Reports of Damage
December 25 — An earthquake of magnitude 5.2 shook northern Pakistan, but there were no immediate reports of casualties or damage, a meteorological official and police said. (Associated Press)

Torrential Rains Bring Floods to Western Sahara
December 24 — Torrential rains have flooded parts of the normally dry and desert Western Sahara, cutting off the main town of Laayoune. (AFP)

Alaska Braces for Possible Volcanic Eruption
December 23 — A restless volcano near Alaska's most populated region is being watched by scientists and officials, who warned of the risk of clouds of ash and a tsunami from a possible eruption. (Reuters)

White House Issues Tsunami Disaster Plan
December 23 — Hoping to protect U.S. shores from being hammered by a tsunami, the White House issued a national plan for increased earthquake and volcano monitoring systems, deep ocean buoys and other high-tech means of alerting ocean side communities. (Associated Press)

Planting Trees to Fight Warming Brings New Woes
December 22 — Some scientists advocate growing trees to absorb carbon -- the biggest contributor to climate warming -- out of the air, but scientists have discovered that large-scale tree growing brings its own problems and worry that the solution may substitute one environmental disaster for another. (National Public Radio)

Pollution May Slow Warming; Cleaner Air May Speed It, Study Says
December 22 — An international scientific team provides evidence suggesting that a reduction in haze from human causes may accelerate warming of the Earth's atmosphere, and that pollutants had held down the rate of global warming by absorbing and scattering sunlight. (The New York Times)

One Region's Bid to Slow Global Warming
December 22 — Seven Northeast states agreed to cap "greenhouse gas" emissions - amid warnings the move will trigger higher electricity costs. (Christian Science Monitor)

Southeast Asia Hit With Historic Floods
December 22 — Spawned by unrelenting rains, some of the severest floods in decades have killed at least 130 people in peninsular Southeast Asia, according to the latest reports. (Associated Press)

Heavy Snow Storms Blanket Japan, South Korea
December 22 — Heavy snowfalls blanketed large parts of Japan and South Korea, leaving at least 13 people dead and bringing traffic chaos to roads and airports in both countries, officials said. (AFP)

Surface Permafrost Could Disappear by 2100
December 21 — This permafrost layer--defined as soil that remains icy cold for more than two years--covers nearly a quarter of the land in the Northern Hemisphere, but that total is shrinking and new models show that it may nearly disappear by the end of this century. (Scientific American)

Seattle Scientists Expand Tsunami Research
December 21 — Mathematical modelers and software experts are working together to analyze the complex data that determines tsunami behavior to create simulations that can predict if a deep-sea quake will produce a tsunami, how big it will be, and how will it impact coastal communities. (Associated Press)

Perfect Day for Weather Satellite
December 21 — Europe has launched the latest spacecraft in its next-generation series of meteorological satellites. (BBC)

Scientists Study Coral Reefs in Caribbean
December 21 — Government scientists were taking aerial photos and conducting underwater surveys to study a coral disease threatening life in the Caribbean Sea, officials said. (Associated Press)

Space Weather Forecasts Improve
December 21 — There's finally a way to forecast when a bout of nasty space weather is going to knock silly your GPS navigation system, say researchers who have discovered a method to the madness of solar storms. (Discovery.com)

Experts: Katrina Was Weaker Than Originally Thought
December 21 — Researchers say Hurricane Katrina was a weaker storm than first thought when it slammed the Gulf Coast, with the strength of a Category 3 storm instead of a Category 4. (Associated Press)

South Asian Experts Vow to Protect Endangered Elephants
December 20 — Asian elephant numbers are falling because of deforestation, road-building and expansion of farmlands and plans to protect remaining populations are crucial, wildlife experts meeting in Bangladesh said. (Reuters)

Deadly Drought Hits South Somalia
December 19 — Serious droughts in many parts of southern Somalia have claimed the lives of both humans and livestock. (BBC)

Search for Ivory Woodpecker Continues
December 18 — Dozens of birders have flocked to the wildlife refuges of the Arkansas Delta to follow up on a kayaker’s 2004 sighting of a bird so rare it was thought to have become extinct. (Associated Press)

Experts Weigh Damage by Tsunami, Humans
December 18 — There’s enough tsunami trash in Banda Aceh to make a three-story-high pile covering 30 football fields and in Sri Lanka, the volume of waste dumped in lagoons and waterways is more than twice what was generated by the September 11 terrorist attacks, shows a United Nations estimate. (Associated Press)

Engineers Develop Tsunami Prediction Model
December 17 — As the first anniversary of the Asian tsunami nears, Queensland engineers have developed a model to predict the impact of tsunamis on the coastline. (Australian Broadcasting Corporation)

Earth Changes is Top Science Story
December 16 — Global warming and its possible connection to the record-breaking 2005 hurricane season is the number one science story of the year, according to Discover magazine. (CBS)

Climate, Storms Hit Extremes in 2005
December 16 — Catastrophic storms like Hurricanes Katrina and Stan took weather extremes to new levels in 2005, with flooding and heat waves touching almost every continent, the United Nations’ weather body World Meteorological Organization said. (Reuters)

The Northeast is Moving South
December 16 — During the last Ice Age, large portions of North America were blanketed by giant glaciers, and although they’ve been gone for more than 10,000 years, the land they once rested upon is still recovering from the weight, say scientists. (LiveScience.com)

Vietnam Flood Toll Rises to 32, Rice Crop Damaged
December 16 — Flash floods triggered by prolonged rains in central Vietnam have killed at least 32 people in recent weeks and damaged rice crops, officials said. (Reuters)

Mexican Park Rangers Protect Butterflies
December 16 — With assault rifles over their shoulders and body armor strapped to their chests, heavily armed park rangers are helping guard one of nature’s most delicate creatures—the monarch butterfly. (Associated Press)

Hawaii Experts Try to Save Plant from Bug
December 15 — Hawaii researchers and plant experts are trying to prevent a mysterious bug from attacking the wiliwili, the only native dryland tree that is still widespread in the state. (Associated Press)

NASA and the U.S. Department of the Interior Honor Scientists for Achievements in Remote Sensing
December 15 — NASA and the U.S. Department of the Interior recently presented two NASA scientists with the 2005 William T. Pecora Award, a prestigious federal award given to recognize career achievements in remote sensing. (Science Daily)

Fears for Dwindling Forests in Pakistani Quake Zone
December 15 — The October 8 earthquake that flattened much of northern Pakistan has taught a lesson to mountain villagers that conservationists had long failed to instill: the importance of their forests in landslide protection. (Reuters)

Surprise: High Ozone Levels in Mountains of Tibet
December 15 — New research shows that mountains in the Tibetan plateau - where Mt. Everest is located - contain levels of ozone as high as that of heavily polluted cities. (LiveScience.com)

Experts Say Arkansas Duck Numbers Down 50 Percent
December 15 — Drought conditions during the summer left Arkansas wetlands dry this winter, forcing a 50 percent decrease in the number of ducks statewide, waterfowl experts said. (Associated Press)

New Species Discovered Along Australian Coast
December 15 — Marine scientists aboard an Australian research vessel say they have found hundreds of new species along the northwest Australian coast. (Australian Broadcasting Corporation)

Bulge in Oregon Shows No Sign of Bursting
December 15 — The swelling bulge on the west flank of the South Sister volcano is slowing and geologists say there are no signs that the uplifted region will erupt in the near future. (Associated Press)

Alaskan Volcano Shows Signs of Erupting
December 15 — A sulfurous steam plume, hundreds of miniature earthquakes and a new swath of ash on snowy Augustine Volcano have scientists looking for a possible eruption in the next few months. (Associated Press)

Study: Snowmobiles May Not Impact Wildlife
December 14 — Most elk, bison and trumpeter swans are unfazed by the presence of snowmobiles in Yellowstone National Park, a new study suggests. (Associated Press)

The Ancient Trees of the Amazon
December 14 — Trees in the Amazon grow slower and are older than scientists thought, a discovery that has implications for computer models of climate change. (LiveScience.com)

Glaciers Erode Earth Faster than Rivers
December 13 — Using a new technique, researchers have documented how quickly glaciers eroded the spectacular topography of the Coast Mountains of British Columbia. (LiveScience.com)

Undersea Quake Strikes near Fiji
December 13 — A powerful undersea earthquake struck near Fiji, geologists said, and officials issued a tsunami alert for the local area. (Associated Press)

Ancient Clues to Ocean Currents
December 13 — The close link between temperatures in the North Atlantic and the strength of ocean circulation is underlined by a new analysis of sea-floor sediments. (BBC)

Group: Orcas Most Polluted Arctic Mammal
December 12 — Killer whales are the most toxic mammals in the Arctic, riddled with household chemicals from around the world, the environmental group WWF said. (Reuters)

Extinction Alert for 800 Species
December 12 — Researchers have compiled a global map of sites where animals and plants face imminent extinction - and it covers almost 800 species which they say will disappear soon unless urgent measures are taken. (BBC)

Reef Closures Helping Fish Stocks, Says Scientist
December 12 — The scientist at the head of an 11-year study into the effects of line fishing on the Great Barrier Reef says the policy of area closures to allow spawning has been very successful. (Australian Broadcasting Corporation)

Christmas and Cocos Reefs in Good Shape
December 12 — An eight-year research project has found coral reef around the Christmas and Cocos Islands is in much better shape than first thought, showing that the Cocos Keeling Reef has not been affected by human activities. (Australian Broadcasting Corporation)

Storm-Battered Indian State Braces for Possible Cyclone
December 12 — The south Indian state of Tamil Nadu was on alert for a possible cyclone as a major storm in the Bay of Bengal gathered strength. (AFP)

Report: California Unprepared for Tsunami
December 12 — Tsunami waves generated by a large offshore earthquake would threaten at least 1 million coastal residents in California and inundate the nation's largest port complex, according to a new report. (Associated Press)

Strong Earthquake Jolts South Asia
December 12 — A strong earthquake measuring 6.7 on the Richter scale struck Pakistan and Afghanistan, triggering panic among survivors of October's tremor, but there were no immediate reports of casualties or major damage. (AFP)

Severe Quake off PNG Coast
December 11 — A severe earthquake estimated at 6.8 on the Richter scale struck off the coast of eastern Papua New Guinea, the Hong Kong observatory said. (AFP)

Nine Whales, 24 Dolphins Die on Cape Cod
December 11 — More than two dozen whales and dolphins became stranded on the shores of Cape Cod Bay last week, and experts say a snowstorm may have contributed to their deaths. (Associated Press)

Scientists: Fissure Could Become New Ocean
December 10 — Ethiopian, American and European researchers have observed a fissure in a desert in the remote northeast that could be the "birth of a new ocean basin," scientists said. (Associated Press)

Researcher Pleads to Save Fish from Global Warming
December 9 — Some fish species could come under threat if temperatures continue to rise, according to a far north Queensland marine expert. (Australian Broadcasting Corporation)

Eruption of Vanuatu Volcano Eases Slightly
December 9 — The eruption of a South Pacific volcano eased slightly and thousands of villagers who fled to temporary evacuation centers returned to their deserted gardens for food. (Associated Press)

Project Opens Up Quake 'Machine'
December 9 — Scientists are expecting promising results from a project to drill into the famous San Andreas Fault using an 800 mile-long "crack". (BBC)

Europe's Pollution Hotspots Shown
December 9 — Dutch scientists are putting together remarkable maps showing pollution over Europe and other regions of the globe. (BBC)

Sand, Salt Strangling Australia's Greatest River
December 9 — The Murray-Darling basin, Australia's food bowl, is battling rising salinity, decreased water flows and suffering from the after-effects of drought and demands of irrigators, say researchers. (Reuters)

Government Says New Orleans Environmentally Safe
December 9 — Most of the air, water and soil around New Orleans is as clean -- and in some cases cleaner -- than it was before Hurricane Katrina devastated the region, government officials said. (Reuters)

Tropical Storm Epsilon Peters Out
December 8 — Tropical Storm Epsilon petered out over the Atlantic, perhaps bringing an end to the record-breaking hurricane season more than a week late. (Associated Press)

Greenland Glacier Races to Ocean
December 8 — Scientists have been monitoring what they say may be the fastest moving glacier on the planet - as the Kangerdlugssuaq Glacier on the east coast of Greenland - has been clocked to be flowing at a rate of 9 miles per year. (BBC)

Earth's Magnetic Pole Drifting Quickly
December 8 — Earth's north magnetic pole is drifting away from North America and toward Siberia at such a clip that Alaska might lose its spectacular Northern Lights in the next 50 years, scientists said. (Associated Press)

Wild Pigs Harming Virginia Beach Lands, Plants
December 8 — Wild pigs whose blood lines likely date to Virginia's earliest white settlers are tearing up sensitive beach lands with their tusks and threatening rare plants at Back Bay National Wildlife Refuge. (Associated Press)

Report: Great Lakes near Ecological Breakdown
December 8 — Stresses from polluted rivers to invasive species threaten to trigger an ecological breakdown in the Great Lakes, a group of scientists hoping to sway U.S. environmental policy said. (Reuters)

Scientists: Surprising Tsunami Findings
December 7 — Just one year after the Great Sumatra Earthquake of 2004 created the deadliest tsunami in history, scientists are getting a better idea of how it all happened and are making lifesaving predictions about where the next big waves will strike. (Discovery.com)

Scientists Voice Tsunami Concern
December 7 — A U.S. scientist studying the islands off southern Sumatra says it is very clear the region can expect more big quakes and tsunamis in the coming decades. (BBC)

Trees May Be Bad for You
December 7 — New computer simulations indicate that establishing new forests across North America could provide a cooling effect for a few decades to a century, but that after that, they would lead to more warming, say researchers. (The New York Times)

Scientists: Greenland Glaciers Retreating
December 7 — Two of Greenland's largest glaciers are retreating at an alarming pace, most likely because of climate warming, scientists said. (Associated Press)

Vanuatu Volcano Bursts Into Life
December 7 — An erupting volcano on a remote South Pacific island burst into spectacular life shooting steam and toxic gases 9,845 feet into the sky. (Associated Press)

Detailed New Images of the San Andreas Fault
December 7 — New satellite images, some as small as two inches, are showing scientists San Andreas Fault lines that hadn't been seen before, along with the area's trees and some cows. (LiveScience.com)

NASA Satellite Eyes Atmosphere to Improve Pollution and Climate Forecasting
December 7 — Thanks to the latest sophisticated, NASA satellite-based instruments, local and regional air pollution and their sources can now be observed closely from space. (Science Daily)

Antarctica's Ice Bottom Exposed
December 6 — British and U.S. scientists have produced a remarkable map of the underside of the West Antarctic Ice Sheet (WAIS), showing in unprecedented detail the mountains, troughs and lakes that lie under the great ice mass. (BBC)

Slow Extraction for Icy 'Tooth'
December 6 — Antarctic scientists are monitoring the slow birth of a giant iceberg as a block of ice known as "Loose Tooth" is in the process of cracking away from the eastern edge of the White Continent. (BBC)

Hurricane Outlook Brightens (a Bit) Next Year
December 6 — Just days after the official close of the busiest Atlantic hurricane season on record, the first 2006 forecast is out and predicts an active season - but shows less storms should threaten the United States, say researchers. (LiveScience.com)

Report: 2005 Will Be Hottest, Stormiest
December 6 — This year is likely to go down as the hottest, stormiest and driest ever, making a strong case for the urgent need to combat global warming, a report said. (Associated Press)

Ozone Hole Recovery May Take Longer
December 6 — The eventual recovery of the gaping ozone hole over Antarctica, first discovered two decades ago, may take years longer than previously predicted, NASA scientists reported. (Associated Press)

Way-Out Weather: Cold Fronts in Space
December 6 — New insight into giant space weather systems that sometimes buffet Earth is expected to help scientists better predict when radio and other terrestrial communication systems will be impeded. (USA Today)

NASA's Aura Satellite Peers into Earth's Ozone Hole
December 6 — NASA researchers, using data from the agency's Aura satellite, determined the seasonal ozone hole that developed over Antarctica this year is smaller than in previous years. (Science Daily)

NASA: Best Maps for That Antarctic Vacation?
December 5 — Researchers are using new maps that provide the most detailed look at surface features on the snow-covered Antarctic, that shed clues on how and why the continent's massive ice sheets and glaciers are changing. (Science Daily)

Brazil: Deforestation Slowed in the Amazon
December 5 — The Amazon rain forest lost 7,300 square miles - an area more than half the size of Maryland - but deforestation slowed by nearly a third this year, Brazilian officials said. (Associated Press)

Scientists to Study Acid Rain, Smokies
December 5 — Scientists plan to study soil this spring in high elevations of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, the area most affected by acid rain and other environmental problems, officials say. (Associated Press)

Scientists Discover New Hydrothermal Vents
December 5 — Scientists exploring the world's sea floor have discovered new super-hot, mineral-rich geysers belching from the southern Atlantic, Arctic and Indian oceans. (Associated Press)

More of Third World Fit for Wind Power
December 4 — Windmills have far bigger than expected potential for generating electricity in the Third World, according to new U.N. wind maps of countries from China to Nicaragua. (Reuters)

Epsilon Strengthens Into Hurricane Again
December 4 — Hurricane Epsilon regained strength in the open Atlantic, surprising experts but still posing no threat to land. (Associated Press)

Expert: Taiwan Skyscraper May Cause Quakes
December 3 — The weight of the world's tallest skyscraper specially built to withstand Taiwan's frequent earthquakes could be causing a rise in the number of tremors beneath it, a researcher finds. (Associated Press)

Inuits Transformed by Global Warming
December 3 — While Canada's isolated northern aboriginals are not sitting at the same table as the 180 nations attending the U.N. Climate Change Conference; they have a front-row seat to the chilling effects of global warming, from eroding shorelines, to thinning ice and loss of hunting and polar bears. (Associated Press)

44 Acres of Coastline Collapse in Hawaii
December 2 — About 44 acres of coastline collapsed into the ocean this week, setting loose a glowing stream of lava that shot out from the newly exposed cliffside 45 feet above the water. (Associated Press)

Sinking Venice Saved by Flooding?
December 2 — Flooding the ground beneath Venice with seawater could save the city from sinking, according to a new controversial scheme by a panel of engineers and geologists from the University of Padua. (Discovery.com)

The Ghosts of Earthquakes Past
December 2 — A new study finds that a portion of the Earth's crust in central Nevada is still quietly reeling from a series of temblors that struck more than 50 years ago. (LiveScience.com)

Papua New Guinea Proposes Tree-Saving Plan
December 2 — Wealthy countries would pay poor nations not to cut down their trees under a proposal by Papua New Guinea, where officials say protecting a rain forest is as important to reversing global warming as cleaning up gas-spewing factories and developing clean energy alternatives. (Associated Press)

Rare December Hurricane Caps Record Year
December 2 — December hurricanes are rare but not unprecedented, and according to the National Weather Service, Epsilon is only the fifth December hurricane recorded in more than 120 years. (LiveScience.com)

Groups Urge Soil Cleanup in New Orleans
December 1 — The city's parks and yards will be contaminated with dangerous chemicals and heavy metals for years unless the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency orders a widespread cleanup of areas flooded by Hurricane Katrina, environmentalists said. (Associated Press)

Engineers Confirm LSU Levee Study
December 1 — Government engineers performing sonar tests at the site of a major levee failure confirmed that steel reinforcements barely went more than half as deep as they were supposed to, a U.S. Army Corps of Engineers official said. (Associated Press)

Mexico Volcano Erupts on Annual Schedule
December 1 — Popocatepetl, a volcano one hour southeast of Mexico's capital, kept up its pattern of erupting every December for ten years, when it spit a plume of ash three miles into the sky, raining ash on villages north of the volcano. (AFP)

Cyclone off India Expected to Intensify
December 1 — A high alert remained in effect along the southeastern Indian coast as weather officials said stalled Cyclone Baaz would intensify and move onshore within a few days. (AFP)

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