Planet Earth

Planet Earth

Mother Earth, Gaia, the third rock from the Sun - whatever you call it, this 4.5 billion-year-old planet is the one that we and all known living creatures call home.
Hands holding US dollars.

Climate change has now shrunk US salaries by 12%. And worse is to come

No matter where you live, a new study has found warmer temperatures are picking your pocket
Show more
Two photos: On the left is a person on a bicycle in a flooded urban street. On the right is a firefighter fighting a wildfire.

A deadly new wave of 'whiplash weather' is set to hit our biggest cities. Are we ready?

Weather patterns are see-sawing from one extreme to another faster and more frequently than ever before. And the phenomenon is coming to places you wouldn’t expect
Show more
A scientist works on the assembly of the Dark Energy Spectroscopic Instrument

The 7 most important (and weirdest) discoveries of 2025

Featuring an world-changing supercomputer, a potential HIV cure, and signs of life on Mars
Show more

null

undefined

Artwork of exoplanet 55 Cancri e. 55 Cancri is a binary star system located 41 light-years away, made up of a sun-like (G-type) star and a much smaller and dimmer red dwarf. The two stars are extremely widely separated, however, with around 1000 AU between then. There are several planets here, but the one featured in this picture is 55 Cnc e. Announced to the world in 2004, 55 Cnc is a 'super-earth', a terrestrial exoplanet weighing in at around 8.3 Earth masses. It is possible that this odd world is carbon rich, with much of its content being made up of diamonds owing to the high pressures and temperatures in the planet's interior. In this illustration, the red dwarf is just beyond the horizon, its light split into a spectrum of dazzling colours as it passes through a mountain of solid diamond.

The 8 strangest places in the Universe (including one on Earth)

Glass rain, anyone?
Show more
Crocodilian eye.

8 (very weird) animals that outlived the dinosaurs

Meet the 'living fossils' that give us a glimpse into life in the distant past
Show more
A group of people holding up an artwork of the Earth made of waste

5 sustainability habits you think are helping the planet – but probably aren’t

Confusing and outdated messaging could be holding you back from being a keen, green, Earth-saving machine…
Show more
A pink nebula surrounded by dust clouds against a background of stars

Try not to smile at these 5 feel-good science stories from 2025

When 2025 got a bit much, science stepped in with the good news we needed to hear
Show more
An image of the sun behind the Earth

Climate change will soon make Earth's days longer. Here’s what that means for the planet

Two recent studies have shown that global warming is changing things in ways we couldn’t imagine
Show more
A penguin diving off ice into water

How deep can a penguin dive?

Penguins are skilled divers, transitioning from land to water with smooth movements. But what's the deepest a penguin can actually dive?
Show more
A farmer working in a field at sunset

Only one country in the world produces all the food it needs. Here's why

While hundreds of millions around the world face food insecurity, a tiny South American nation has managed to become the only country that can entirely feed itself. How did Guyana manage it?
Show more
The Orca plant in Iceland, which captures carbon from the atmosphere and injects it into volcanic rocks

How whales, vodka and volcanic ice blocks could soon solve the carbon crisis

From living paint to injecting rocks, scientists have bizarre carbon capture ideas that could help us tackle the climate crisis
Show more
Firefighters standing in front of hills that are on fire

Major ‘megafires’ are now primed to ignite across the US. All it needs is a spark

The US is a tinderbox, just waiting to go up in flames
Show more
A volcano erupting

Massive volcanic eruptions may have actually caused the Black Death

New research suggests that a combination of volcanic activity, cold summers and famine brought the deadly plague to Europe
Show more
Ron Mikulaco, left, and his nephew, Brad Fernandez, examine a crack caused by an earthquake on highway 178

Massive climate-induced earthquakes are brewing beneath our biggest cities. Are we prepared?

Climate change isn’t just warming the planet; it’s shaking Earth’s foundations
Show more
The surface of the sea

Was the sea always blue?

Several billion years ago, tiny little creatures may have changed the colour of the ocean
Show more
A sample of ancient rock.

Scientists may have just found a new way to hunt for aliens

A brand new technique is uncovering Earth’s oldest secrets, and could soon be turned to the stars
Show more
A NASA engineer checks six flight-ready segments of the JWST's primary mirror, a third of the final total.

The 25 most powerful ideas of the 21st century (so far), picked by the world’s top thinkers

We asked the world's foremost minds to highlight some of the game-changing scientific breakthroughs shaping our world since the year 2000
Show more
Illustration of the Solar System expanding.

Here's how scientists are rewriting the origin story of Earth & life itself

Although key details are missing from the story of how our Solar System formed, recent discoveries are helping scientists fill in the blanks and understand how rare it is.
Show more
Head shot of a wild cheetah in Masai Mara Kenya

This ‘internet of animals’ could unlock the secrets of nature’s greatest superpowers

Scientists are using electronic tags and satellites to track wild animals and build a data network.
Show more

The surprising truth about Formula 1’s new sustainable fuel

Formula 1's 'sustainable' fuels are coming as soon as 2026, but critics are warning this could just be a 'box ticking exercise'
Show more
A man harvesting potatoes in a field

Only 1% of the world is eating a healthy and sustainable diet, major report finds

Eating healthier diets could transform the food system to be kinder on the planet and improve human lives around the globe
Show more
A side on photo of a group of four people walking in a desert, with a hazy sky in the background

We didn’t conquer the world alone. This is humanity’s untold origin story

We’re discovering there were more characters, and more acts, in the tale of how Homo sapiens spread across the globe
Show more
A cut away showing the internal structure of Earth. There is a bright core, surrounded by cooler layers of mantle and a dark crust

Somehow, Earth's ancient core froze solid. Now we finally know why

When it comes to understanding how the planet's core cooled, carbon is the key
Show more
Photo of Stonehenge

Are there any other Stonehenges?

Stonehenge is one of many ancient stone circles dotted around the world, in Japan, Australia and even the US
Show more
This website is owned and published by Our Media Ltd. www.ourmedia.co.uk
© Our Media 2026