Environment

Researchers found that Hurricane Helene was stronger, rainier, and significantly more likely because of climate change. The U.S. can expect more such storms in the future as warming continues.

(Image credit: Joe Raedle)

The EPA is finalizing a rule to require replacement of lead service lines that connect homes to water systems. The change would lower lead levels in drinking water but poses logistical challenges.

The Atlantic hurricane season isn't over yet. Get ahead of the next storm with these emergency preparedness tips to protect you, your family and your home.

(Image credit: Spencer Platt)

Climate change hasn't increased the total number of hurricanes hitting the U.S., but it is making dangerous storms more common.

(Image credit: Phelan M. Ebenhack)

Most of the people who live in Poplar, N.C, are seniors. One priority is securing propane and kerosene heaters to keep them warm when it turns cold.

(Image credit: Jessica Tezak for NPR)

Chestnut trees began disappearing from eastern deciduous forests in the U.S. almost a century ago due to a nasty fungus. That has contributed to a vastly different eastern forest landscape today.

We look at local effort by kayakers to clean up the Anacostia River, which is polluted with trash and debris.

Three photojournalists have created an in-depth report on electronic waste — its negative and ... positive ... consequences.

(Image credit: Muntaka Chasant)

For six decades, coal has provided for — and polluted — the Navajo Nation. Demolition of a power plant brings mixed emotions.

(Image credit: Benjamin Hunter)

Lightning: It happens all the time, and yet the exact details of how it's made has long eluded scientists. That is, until now. New research out this week in the journal Nature holds new insights into the precursor to lightning. To figure it out, researchers flew a NASA ER-2 – essentially the research version of a spy plane – over several tropical thunderstorms. What they found: The same high energy radiation is found in places like neutron stars and around black holes.

Want to hear more stories about the science behind natural phenomena? Email us at shortwave@npr.org — we'd love to hear from you!

(Image credit: Bashaar Tarabay)

The death toll reported from an average tropical cyclone is 24. But the true toll is maybe 300 times higher—and the losses stretch for years after the storm passes.

(Image credit: Melissa Sue Gerrits)

Over six million fungal species are believed to inhabit planet Earth. Outsmarting them is the work of Arturo Casadevall's lifetime. What If Fungi Win? is the question at the heart of Arturo's new book, co-authored with journalist Stephanie Desmon. In this episode, Emily and Regina take a trip to Arturo's lab at Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore and meet a group of scientists thinking about the fungal consequences of climate change, urban heat islands, and scooping up microbes with candy.

Curious about fungi? Email us at shortwave@npr.org — we'd love to hear from you!

Tropical storm Helene has left western North Carolina with catastrophic damage from historic flooding to a loss of power for thousands. And, Lebanon mourning the loss of Hezbollah leader.

(Image credit: Mahmous Zayyat)

The worst floods that Bangladesh has seen in decades occurred in August, displacing millions. Many people are still struggling to rebuild their lives and find sources of income.

(Image credit: Fatima Tuj Johora)

Governors across the southeastern United States have declared statewide states of emergency as Hurricane Helene continues its ascent. After forming in the northwestern Caribbean Sea Tuesday, Helene escalated from a tropical storm, then to a cyclone, and finally to a Category 4 hurricane by the time it made landfall late Thursday night. We talk to hurricane climatologist Jill Trepanier about how a storm tropical storm system rapidly intensifies into a major hurricane, the impact of a changing climate on future storms — and why the devastation doesn't stop at the shore.

Follow local updates on Hurricane Helene.

Want to know more about the scientific underpinning of serious weather events? Email us at shortwave@npr.org — we might cover it on a future episode!

A new study finds that more than 90 million acres of wetlands — nearly all that exist in the Lower 48 U.S. states — may have lost federal protections after the Supreme Court’s recent ruling.

California and other states — and some cities — have learned a lesson: Bans on plastic bags don’t always go as planned. In fact, California's original ban made things worse.

(Image credit: Justin Sullivan)

California's lawsuit against Exxon Mobil throws plastic recycling into doubt. We look at what the consumer should do.

California’s lawsuit alleges that ExxonMobil has known for decades that recycling would not effectively stem the flow of plastic waste.

(Image credit: Mark Humphrey)