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science/climate

Amazon's Off-Grid AI Data Center Highlights Tension Between Cloud AI Expansion and Climate Commitments

Amazon has revealed plans for its first self-sufficient data center, designed to operate independently from the broader electrical grid. The facility will be powered by a newly funded natural gas power plant that is projected to become one of the largest sources of greenhouse gas emissions in the United States.

El Niño Alters Marine Life in the Pacific

El Niño is reshaping marine life across the Pacific Ocean, according to new data from NASA satellites. Measurements of chlorophyll at the sea surface—collected as part of NASA's Earth observation efforts—show notable changes in the ocean's nutrient availability during mid-2026. These shifts occur because

AI's Water and Energy Appetite Sparks Land-Use Debates Near Datacentres

The rapid expansion of AI infrastructure is increasingly clashing with local community needs for housing and land. Datacentres powering AI systems require substantial water for cooling and enormous amounts of electricity, leading to visible environmental trade-offs in regions where they are being built. Locals in several areas have raised concerns

Technology News

Amazon's Texas Data Center Plans Would Rely on Massive On-Site Gas-Fired Power Plant

Amazon is moving forward with plans for a large-scale data center in West Texas that would be paired with an on-site power plant capable of producing 7.65 gigawatts of electricity—potentially ranking it among the largest single sources of climate pollution in the country. According to reporting by the

Trump and Musk's xAI Reportedly Targets Environmental Enforcement Mechanisms

According to news reports, environmental enforcement mechanisms are reportedly being targeted by the Trump administration in conjunction with Elon Musk's artificial intelligence company, xAI. The reports suggest that this focus could affect the ability of federal agencies to pursue environmental violations and hold polluters accountable. Environmental enforcement has

Technology News

Court Blocks Trump Administration's Wind Project Suspension, Rules It Violates Law

A federal court has issued a ruling against the Trump administration's hold on wind energy projects, determining that the blanket suspension clearly violates established law. The decision represents a legal checkpoint on executive actions targeting the wind power sector. The court's ruling focused on whether the

UCLA Researchers Demonstrate Wave-Like Heat Conduction at Room Temperature

Heat conduction is typically a diffuse process—thermal energy spreads outward in all directions from a hot source, much like ink spreading through water. Now, researchers at UCLA have demonstrated a fundamentally different behavior: directing heat through a crystal in concentrated, beam-like rays, at room temperature. The team showed that