People may be frustrated by the lack of detail when weather forecasters say “there will be thunderstorms popping up, but we don’t know where”. Now a key finding in a study by the UK Centre for Ecology & Hydrology (UKCEH), published in the journal Nature, is set to improve the certainty about the location of upcoming storms on hot days.

New research published in the Geological Society of America Bulletin reveals how  fluids naturally carbonate ultramafic rocks formed within Oman’s Samail Ophiolite, providing new insight into tectonic processes and natural carbon sequestration.

A 13-year study led by Anne Bernhard, professor of biology at Connecticut College, found that prolonged drought in southeastern Connecticut was associated with reduced stability in key nitrogen-cycling microbes in a coastal salt marsh. The research, published in Estuaries and Coasts, examined microbial communities from 2006 to 2019, including a severe drought from 2013 to 2018.

While most microbial groups declined during dry periods, ammonia-oxidizing archaea and ammonia-oxidizing bacteria showed the largest fluctuations in abundance. Archaeal amoA gene abundances were nearly 35 times higher in wet conditions than in dry conditions. After drought conditions eased, abundances returned to levels more similar to those observed before the dry period.

The findings provide long-term field evidence that extended drought can alter the stability of microbes central to nitrogen cycling in coastal marshes.

Soils surrounding large, ancient alerce trees in Chile accumulate a disproportionately high diversity of fungi, which help store more carbon and make the entire forest healthier, suggesting that protecting the biggest, oldest trees offers exceptionally outsized benefits.

Hairdressers are emerging as powerful, under-recognised influencers in tackling climate change, according to new research from academics at the University of Bath’s Centre for Climate Change and Social Transformations (CAST), and the Universities of Cardiff, Oxford and Southampton.

Indigenous peoples have used forest thinning to protect against wildfires for millennia. These traditional methods – including cultural burning – have often been neglected in modern times, which is thought to have contributed to wildfires in the US and elsewhere. Now, researchers have shown for the first time in a regional hotspot for wildfire risk and drought risk that forest thinning with modern tools has an additional benefit: it increases the snowpack in winter by 16 to 30%, thus recovering lost water and helping to safeguard its supply for natural and human needs.

A newly launched scientific journal is calling for a deeper integration of artificial intelligence into environmental research, arguing that AI may be one of the most powerful tools available to address climate change, pollution, and resource sustainability.

The newest issue of The Journal of Raptor Research is a special issue focused on movement ecology — how and why raptors move. This can include classic movements like migration, as well as nomadism. Short-eared Owls (Asio flammeus) fall into the latter category — they have a penchant for small mammals that breed in “boom and bust” cycles approximately every four years. Therefore, these owls must travel great distances to find prey in sufficient numbers. This requires a high degree of nuanced perception, yet we know very little about the actual mechanisms that allow an owl to accurately locate these peaks in prey cycles. Changing climate regimes can severely impact where and when small mammals show up on the landscape, especially in the tundra, where many predators rely up on their presence. There is an increased need for conservation leaders to understand the decision-making of species whose survival is linked to these ephemeral pulses in prey, and owls are a strong choice for future investigation.

The GRACE project (Growing Climate Resilience in Remote rural Areas through Community Empowerment) started in October 2025 and is funded under the Horizon Europe Programme and the EU Mission Adaptation to Climate Change. Coordinated by the Fondazione Centro Euro-Mediterraneo sui Cambiamenti Climatici (CMCC) in Italy, the project brings together 26 partners from ​15​ countries in a four-year collaboration focused on community-led adaptation, local innovation, and capacity-building in remote rural territories.