Hunga Volcano eruption produced record-breaking lightning show

The eruption of Tonga’s Hunga Volcano on January 15, 2022, produced a record-breaking amount of lightning. The information gathered about the eruption can be used to better monitor aviation-related hazards arising from these sorts of eruptions.

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Cambridge reactor converts plastic waste and CO2 into useful chemicals

CO2 emissions and plastic waste are two major environmental problems, but a Cambridge device may help tackle both at once. The team demonstrated a new version of their solar reactor, which uses sunlight to convert CO2 and plastic into useful chemicals.

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Doomsday Glacier map to shed light on future sea levels

A team from the British Antarctic Survey has completed the first map of the ground beneath West Antarctica's Doomsday Glacier, which is the size of Great Britain and could raise global sea levels by 65 cm (25 in) in the coming centuries as it melts.

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Bad drug, good weedkiller: “Failed” antibiotic repurposed as herbicide

Herbicide resistance represents a huge problem for the agricultural sector. Exploiting molecular similarities between bacteria and plants, researchers have repurposed a "failed" antibiotic as an effective weedkiller that's safe for humans.

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To stop mice from eating seeds … make everything smell like seeds?

By digging up and eating sown wheat seeds, mice can have a huge impact on farmers' crops. In an eco-friendly effort to stop the rodents from doing so, scientists are now using wheat germ oil to make entire fields smell appetizing.

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The platypus returns to Australian national park after half a century

A team led by researchers from the University of New South Wales in Australia has established a new platypus colony in the Royal National Park on the banks of the Hacking River outside of Sydney for the first time in more than half a century.

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The platypus returns to Australian national park after half a century

A team led by researchers from the University of New South Wales in Australia has established a new platypus colony in the Royal National Park on the banks of the Hacking River outside of Sydney for the first time in more than half a century.

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Ocean Cleanup looks to halt flow of plastic trash from Indonesian river

The Ocean Cleanup has announced a second Indonesian river trash removal mission. The solar-powered Interceptor 020 will prevent around 1,000 tons of plastic waste flowing into the Java Sea each year from the Cisadane River.

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Huge pile of condor poop provides a 2,200-year trip through time

Perhaps fortunately, animal droppings generally don't stick around in the environment too long. But when they do, like in the case of this special Andean condor poop pile, these unique fossils offer new insights into the history of our planet.

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Wood’s unique “chemical fingerprint” could thwart timber fraudsters

Even though logging is prohibited in many of the world's forests, that doesn't stop some companies from logging in those areas anyways, then lying about the origins of the timber. Such groups may soon be foiled by the wood's chemical fingerprint.

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