Webcams commonly used by surfers are helping scientists measure Oregon's coastal fog, shows a study from UC Davis and the USDA Forest Service. 

Researchers analyzed snow droughts in Xinjiang from 1980 to 2021 and classified them into warm-only, dry-only, and warm-dry types. The study identifies strong spatial heterogeneity, highlights the Kunlun Mountains as a major hotspot, and shows that warm-dry snow droughts increased markedly after 2000.

Researchers from Okayama University of Science and collaborating institutions have identified four previously unrecognized mosasaur fossil bones from a rock collected about 30 years ago in Osaka Prefecture, including the first confirmed mosasaur premaxilla ever found in Japan. The fossils, recovered during a reexamination of museum specimens, also display unique anatomical features that differ from those of known mosasaurs, suggesting the possibility of a previously unknown species. The discovery demonstrates the scientific importance of revisiting existing museum collections and provides new insights into Late Cretaceous marine ecosystems in the northwestern Pacific.

Earth scientists are slowly closing in on the class of impactor that caused the Cretaceous-Paleogene extinction event — new research indicates it wasn’t a garden-variety space rock.

A new study demonstrates that ramped pyrolysis/oxidation (RPO) can directly distinguish the sources of organic carbon transported by rivers after earthquakes and extreme rainstorms. By tracing carbon from vegetation, soils, and sedimentary rocks, the technique reveals how different natural hazards reshape carbon cycling and provides a powerful new tool for investigating climate-carbon feedbacks in rapidly changing mountain landscapes. The study was recently published in Science China Earth Sciences.

How can the long-term restoration effects of China’s Shan-Shui Initiative, recognized by the United Nations as one of the first World Restoration Flagships, be scientifically assessed? A research team from Chang’an University used long-term remote sensing and climate datasets from 2011 to 2024 to conduct a quantitative assessment of 25 early Shan-Shui Initiative across China. By developing an improved Remote Sensing Ecological Index, or kRSEI, the study found that vegetation greening does not always translate into broader improvements in satellite-observed ecological conditions. It also identified region-specific restoration pathways for forests, grasslands and croplands, and highlighted soil moisture as a key factor associated with the long-term stability of restoration outcomes. The findings provide a remote-sensing-based assessment framework that may support the Beautiful China initiative and offer a quantitative reference for evaluating large-scale ecological restoration projects.