Scorching alien planet takes seasons to an extreme

Scientists got a close look at an extreme case of seasons thanks to a retired NASA telescope. Researchers used NASA’s Spitzer Space Telescope to film a year on an exoplanet called XO-3b. Conveniently, a year on this world lasts only three Earth days. Within that time, the exoplanet experiences a one-day-long summer and a two-day-long … Read more

California Presents Plan to Prevent Extreme Heat Deaths

Extreme heat threatens to effect all of California in coming years, prompting state officials to outline life-saving measures in an adaptation report released this week. Average annual temperatures have already jumped in California by more than 1 degree Fahrenheit, and it has exceeded 2 F in some areas, according to the analysis by the California … Read more

‘Icemageddon’ Strikes Alaska in Record Bout of Extreme Weather

Extreme weather in Alaska that has brought record high temperatures and torrential downpours has left authorities in the far northern US state warning of “Icemageddon”. Huge sheets of ice are blocking roads and choking traffic in Fairbanks, Alaska’s second largest city, reported the state’s transportation department, which has coined the neologism – a play on … Read more

Watching for Extreme Weather? Try a Radio

When you live in Tornado Alley, you get used to the school drills, the periodic testing of the sirens, and storms that knock over trees and flood roadways. A face you know above all others is the broadcast meteorologist, who tells you routinely about tornado watches, and occasionally tornado warnings. When tornadoes materialize, this feature … Read more

Jenson Button: ‘Extreme E is great racing without combustion engines’

Extreme E, an off-road racing series that started this year, aims to prove that internal combustion engines are no longer required in motor sport. New Scientist spoke to Jenson Button about the burgeoning sport Technology 21 December 2021 Extreme E, an off-road racing series that started in 2021, aims to prove that internal combustion engines … Read more

16-Year Study of Extreme Stars Has Once Again Proved Einstein Is Still Right

Two pulsars locked in close binary orbit have once again validated predictions made by Einstein’s theory of general relativity. Over 16 years, an international team of astronomers has observed the pulsar pair, named PSR J0737−3039A/B, finding that the relativistic effects can be measured in the timing of their pulses – just as predicted and expected. … Read more

Polar bears: Extreme lack of sea ice in Hudson Bay puts predators under pressure

Sea ice in Canada’s Hudson Bay has been unusually late to form, raising fears over the impact on polar bears that hunt for seals on the ice Environment 6 December 2021 By Adam Vaughan A lone polar bear along Hudson Bay Cindy Hopkins / Alamy An extreme lack of sea ice in Canada this winter … Read more