Most Emailed Science News

A 35-mile rift in the desert of Ethiopia will likely become a new ocean eventually, researchers now confirm.

WASHINGTON - The snows of Kilimanjaro may soon be gone. The African mountain's white peak — made famous by writer Ernest Hemingway — is rapidly melting, researchers report.

A gigantic, previously unknown set of galaxies has been found in the distant universe, shedding light on the underlying skeleton of the cosmos.

The ancient South American Nasca civilization may have caused its own demise by clear-cutting huge swaths of forest, a new study has found.

Circle Nov. 17 on your calendar, for early that morning a moderate to possibly very strong showing of annual Leonid meteor shower is likely.

BARCELONA, Spain (Reuters) - The mysterious people who etched the "Nasca Lines" across deserts in Peru hastened their own demise by clearing forests 1,500 years ago, according to a study on Monday.

WASHINGTON - The nightly attacks by two man-eating lions terrified railway workers and brought construction to a halt in one of east Africa's most notorious onslaughts more than a hundred years ago. But the death toll, scientists now say, wasn't as high as previously thought.

GENEVA (AFP) - More than 1,000 freshwater fish species are threatened with extinction, reflecting the strain on global water resources, an updated global "Red List" of endangered species showed Tuesday.

When they do their thing, female Chinese fruit bats add oral sex to get the males to prolong the act, scientists now find, suggesting the behavior confers evolutionary benefits.

WASHINGTON - Independent health advisers begin monitoring safety of the swine flu vaccine on Monday, an extra step the government promised in this year's unprecedented program to watch for possible side effects.

CHICAGO - An international group of scientists has decoded the DNA of the domestic pig, research that may one day prove useful in finding new treatments for both pigs and people, and perhaps aid in efforts for a new swine flu vaccine for pigs.

CHICAGO (Reuters) - Two man-eating lions terrorized Kenya during the building of a railroad bridge over the Tsavo River in the late 19th century, but only one was making regular meals of human prey, researchers said on Monday.

OMUTA, Japan (AFP) - Swathes of dirty clouds brood over a coal plant in rural Japan, but scientists are now hoping to send the pollutants the other way, deep into the bowels of Mother Earth.

A husband and wife team of paleontologists has discovered a newfound species of armored dinosaur that lived 112 million years ago in what is now Montana.

CHICAGO (AFP) - The two man-eating lions of Tsavo which terrorized a railroad camp in Kenya and have inspired three Hollywood films may not have been as deadly as legend would have it, a study published Monday has found.

In the arachnid version of trying to get some, male suitors of a female cannibalistic spider must perform a 100-minute-long dance on the gal's web lest they be eaten before copulation is complete.

Some people really are just bad drivers. That's according to new research suggesting individuals born with a certain variant of a gene don't stay on the road as well as their counterparts.

PARIS (AFP) - A satellite sent into orbit to study the effects of global warming has successfully deployed three antenna arms that will track the oceans, the European Space Agency said Tuesday.

Once every 15 years, Saturn's ring system is plunged into a four-day-long night, throwing the orbiting dust particles into startling relief.

A crowd of consumer gadgets such as cell phones and wireless devices may overwhelm the small band of scientists straining to detect faint radio emissions from offbeat sources ranging from hurricanes here to galaxies in the distant cosmos.

Researchers have simulated a mini black hole in the lab, though luckily not the kind that could swallow up the Earth.

A new panoramic image of the full night sky — with the Milky Way as its centerpiece — has been made by piecing together 3,000 individual photographs.

NASA's Mars rover Spirit is suffering a new bout of amnesia, one that comes after months of being stuck in deep Martian sand.

The world's largest cruise ship is making its first transatlantic crossing from Finland to Fort Lauderdale, Fla., where it will make its U.S. debut. Though colossal, the ship relies on the same physical principles as its smaller brethren to stay afloat.

KUALA LUMPUR (AFP) - European palm oil buyers who are refusing to purchase expensive eco-friendly palm oil were named and shamed Monday by environmental campaigners WWF International.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - An international team of researchers said Monday it had mapped the DNA of a domestic pig, work they say could help lead to better breeding techniques as well as improve vaccines against diseases such as swine flu.

WASHINGTON — Space Exploration Technologies (SpaceX) has requested a Feb. 2 launch date for the maiden flight of its new Falcon 9 rocket, according to a recent launch range forecast issued by the U.S. Air Force's 45th Space Wing.

WASHINGTON (AFP) - The snows capping Mount Kilimanjaro, Africa's tallest peak, are shrinking rapidly and could vanish altogether in 20 years, most likely due to global warming, a US study published Monday said.

GENEVA - A rare Panamanian tree frog, a rodent from Madagascar and two lizards found only in the Philippines are among over 17,000 species threatened with extinction, a leading environmental group said Tuesday.

PARIS (AFP) - Leaders from nine major faiths meet at Windsor Castle on Tuesday in an exceptional initiative that supporters predict will harness the power of religion in the fight against climate change.