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![A satellite image of Jack Hills, Australia.](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/TkRwantuXAHFXu9TWykWUT-320-80.jpg)
The oldest rocks on Earth
By James Price published
The world's oldest rocks are spread across the globe and paint a picture of Earth's turbulent early history. Here are some of the most notable and important formations scientists have discovered.
![A polar bear walking on a floating chunk of ice at sunset near Harbor Islands in Canada.](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/U5PKRH6ckfVgm7ajNNSQ9f-320-80.jpg)
The most important and shocking climate stories of 2024
By Sascha Pare published
Soaring carbon emissions, an unexpected new source of global warming, and collapsing ocean currents shocked scientists in 2024. Here are our picks for this year's top climate change stories.
![A collage of images related to multiple important science experiments](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/r5PD59djgBvtXXx7WUUxTc-320-80.jpg)
The 10 biggest science experiments on Earth
By Stephanie Pappas published
From a telescope network that spans much of the globe to a psychology study that spans 67 countries, here are the biggest science experiments on the planet.
![Larsen B Ice Shelf, Weddell Sea, Antarctica.](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/BUWpfqgj6r4dXVD97Pbp4F-320-80.jpg)
Drastic Antarctic sea ice loss could fuel extreme weather in years ahead
By Skyler Ware published
Massive reductions in Antarctic sea ice in recent years has been correlated with more stormy days in the Southern Ocean, and could have implications for vital ocean currents.
![A satellite photo showing a zoomed-out version of Lake Dukan](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/8DzE5tFQNAVBrtid5uj5iX-320-80.jpg)
Strange phenomena create festive decorations on Iraq's 'Christmas tree lake'
By Harry Baker published
Earth from space A 2018 astronaut photo shows a festive, fir-tree-shaped artificial reservoir in Iraq decorated with both natural and imagined ornaments.
![Snow-capped Denali with clouds and flowers in foreground](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/wQaLUZtNN7wDWeQMWa7CoS-320-80.jpg)
There's a massive fault hidden under America's highest mountain — and we finally know how it formed
By Stephanie Pappas published
Today, the Denali Fault rips apart some of the North American plate, but it was once a place where tectonic plates came together.
![penguins walking onto land from the sea with mountains of ice in the background and blue sky](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/ZRPJnkU7PiFYw5hbMUuX9h-320-80.jpg)
Antarctica quiz: Test your knowledge on Earth's frozen continent
By Hannah Osborne published
Quiz How much do you know about Antarctica? Take our science quiz to see if you'll freeze up or be as cool as a cucumber.
![a photo of an angel oak tree](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/r98jazVHMMEWGbB3PasFob-320-80.jpg)
'Rising temperatures melted corpses out of the Antarctic permafrost': The rise of one of Earth's most iconic trees in an uncertain world
By Andrew L. Hipp published
As the Atlantic grew wider, the ancestral population of all of today's oaks may have been straddling the continents of the Northern Hemisphere. If so, the ancestor of the oaks we know today was a widespread population that was cleaved in half as North America inched westward.
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