What's Current in

Environment + Sustainability

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aerial shot of North Atlantic right whale and calf
Photo Credit
NOAA Northeast Fisheries Science Center/Lisa Conger and Elizabeth Josephson
North Atlantic right whale mother and calf as seen from a research drone called a hexacopter

Whale-saving cargo ship speed tracking program heads east

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A school of hammerhead sharks.
Photo Credit
Masayuki Agawa via OceanImageBank
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satellite image of Mississippi River and surrounding towns
Photo Credit
USGS via Unsplash
The Mississippi River and surrounding towns near the border of Arkansas and Mississippi
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Shorebirds on a kelp-laden beach
Photo Credit
Jenny Dugan
Shorebirds forage in kelp wrack on a beach in California
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Power pylons at sunset.
Photo Credit
Matthew Henry via Unsplash
Decarbonizing the grid is the dawn of a new era of electricity.
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Side view of a researcher in a lab, wearing goggles and a white coat, looking down
Photo Credit
Elena Zhukova
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Snow-covered conifers cover the mountains under an overcast sky.
Photo Credit
Joan Dudney
The trees in this lush, temperate forest in the Cascade Range of Washington are likely less resistant to drought than their counterparts in drier regions to the south.

Trees are in trouble
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Flames from the Thomas Fire reflect in the waves at night.
Photo Credit
Ray Ford / Noozhawk
Flames from the Thomas Fire reflect in the waves just west of Ventura. Its proximity to the ocean provided researchers a unique opportunity.
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A large pile of small blue plastic objects rises from a relief map of Manhattan
Photo Credit
Courtesy Benioff Ocean Science Laboratory
This image of a blue plastic pile represents the cumulative amount of plastic waste that would be generated between 2010 and 2050 — enough to cover the entire island of Manhattan, and ten times the height of the Empire State Building — under a business-as-usual scenario where no aggressive policy actions are taken.
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The head of a California red-legged frog peers out from lily pads
Photo Credit
Gary M. Fellers/USGS
California red-legged frog (Rana draytonii) surfaces in a pond in Point Reyes National Seashore, Calif.