Earth records hottest year ever in 2024

Earth recorded its hottest year ever in 2024, with such a big jump that the planet temporarily passed a major climate threshold, several weather monitoring agencies announced Friday. Last year’s global average temperature easily passed 2023’s record heat and kept pushing even higher.

La Nina ocean cooling has arrived, but it's weak

A long-awaited La Nina has finally appeared, but the periodic cooling of Pacific Ocean waters is weak and unlikely to cause as many weather problems as usual, meteorologists said Thursday.

Spacecraft buzzes Mercury's north pole

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) - A spacecraft has beamed back some of the best close-up photos yet of Mercury's north pole. The European and Japanese robotic explorer swooped as close as 183 miles (295 kilometers) above Mercury’s night side before passing directly over the planet’s north pole.

NASA proposes cheaper way to get Mars rocks to Earth

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) - NASA is pitching a cheaper and quicker way of getting rocks and soil back from Mars, after seeing its original plan swell to $11 billion.

What are California's Santa Ana winds?

LOS ANGELES (AP) - Santa Ana winds are common in Southern California during cooler months. Here's a look at the often-fierce winds that topple power lines and trees and can turn a spark into a raging wildfire:

166-million-year-old Dinosaur tracks discovered in England

LONDON (AP) - A worker digging up clay in a southern England limestone quarry noticed unusual bumps that led to the discovery of a "dinosaur highway" and nearly 200 tracks that date back 166 million years, researchers said Thursday.

Smart bird feeders spark interest in bird-watching

CONCORD, N.H. (AP) - Marin Plank truly had no interest in birds when she gave her husband a camera-equipped bird feeder for his birthday. But by Christmas, she had become so obsessed with birds that most of the gifts she received this year - books, stickers, notecards - were related.

Bald eagle, now the national bird of the US

WASHINGTON (AP) - The bald eagle, a symbol of the power and strength of the United States for more than 240 years, earned an overdue honor on Tuesday: It officially became the country’s national bird.