Arctic communities are increasingly exposed to dangerous weather events due to climate change and rely on accurate weather forecasts. However, conditions in the lower atmosphere remain poorly observed in the Arctic because monitoring systems are expensive and difficult to deploy. Now, researchers propose a new framework for on-demand atmospheric observations based on lightweight, low-cost profiling systems that can be operated by local communities whenever additional weather data are needed, helping improve forecasting and climate resilience.

The Nankai Trough just off southern Japan poses a severe seismic threat, with locked plates accumulating enormous stress. A new dataset from the Japan Coast Guard offers an unprecedentedly detailed look into the variability of this locking state over a ten-year period, contributing to understanding of the seismology of this hazardous plate boundary and to disaster preparedness, representing a significant step forward in subduction zone risk monitoring.

After an asteroid slammed into Earth 66 million years ago, there is very little evidence of fish in the fossil record. Now, a research team including University of Michigan graduate student Sanaa El-Sayed has discovered the earliest known examples of six modern fish groups that still swim in Earth's seas today.

• Fossil fragments suggest Praearcturus gigas represents the largest scorpion ever discovered, perhaps one metre in length

• Specimens held in the Natural History Museum collection since the 1870s have been reinterpreted using modern techniques

• Giant scorpion lived tens of millions of years before other famous “giant” arthropods, reshaping ideas about how and why early arthropods grew so large