Wellington, N.Z. A bout that used to be on the edge of the road sits in the harbour where the land fell into the sea at the Port Wellington Container terminal caused by an earthquake on July 21, 2013. (Marty Melville/AFP/Getty Images) New Zealand may be looking at a worst-case scenario, after a recently published study revealed the country is in danger of experiencing a ‘megathrust’ earthquake. The study revealed the Pacific plate just off of the country’s east coast...

Climate Change poses a threat that is evident everywhere, President Barack Obama said during a commencement address at the U.S. Coast Guard Academy in Connecticut Wednesday. Obama stated the security of the United States and its military was being put at risk by those who denied the "indisputable"science. Declining to combat global warming amounts to a “dereliction” of duty, he said, and undermines the preparedness of the United States’ forces. Those forces now include 218 graduates he spoke to today....

This image, taken on July 22, 2014, shows the advancement of the Hubbard Glacier in Alaska, as compared to previous years. (NASA) For years, images of melting glaciers have been a big part of the climate change discussion. But there's one image released this week by NASA that shows one Alaskan glacier that might actually be growing. Part of Hubbard Glacier has been advancing into Disenchantment Bay for more than 100 years, according to NASA's Earth Observatory. In addition to...

Officials say the 10-square-mile oil slick off the California coast is becoming harder to clean up as waters grow choppy. On Friday sunlight and waves helped to break up some of the oil that covered animals and beaches Tuesday when a pipeline burst and leaked 105,000 gallons of oil in Santa Barbara. Federal regulators ordered Plains All American Pipeline to drain the pipe that leaked, test the metal in the damaged section of pipe, and complete a series of steps...

Glaciers around Mount Everest are disappearing at an alarming rate, according to results of new research. (Thinkstock) If we continue emitting greenhouse gases into the atmosphere at current rates, glaciers in the Mount Everest region could disappear by up to 99 percent by the end of the century. That’s a by scientists from the International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development (ICIMOD) in Nepal and Utrecht University in the Netherlands. They published their findings Wednesday, May 27, in the journal The...

Record-breaking rain across Texas and Oklahoma this week caused widespread flooding, the likes of which the region has rarely, if ever, seen. For seven locations there, May 2015 has seen the most rain of any month ever recorded, with five days to go and the rain still coming. While rainfall in the region is consistent with the emerging El Niño, the unprecedented amounts suggest a possible climate change signal, where a warming atmosphere becomes more saturated with water vapor and...

The El Niño event underway in the Pacific Ocean is impacting temperature and weather patterns around the world. But its effects aren’t confined to the atmosphere: A new study has found that the cyclical climate phenomenon can ratchet up sea levels off the West Coast by almost 8 inches over just a few seasons. The findings have important implications in terms of planning for sea level rise, as ever-growing coastal communities might have to plan for even higher ocean levels...

NASA’s series of stark, eye-opening satellite images, its “” project, reveals years of global change in just seconds, changes from weather, humans and natural phenomena that transform Earth’s landscape. From 2000 to 2012, for example, the in Brazil went from more than 80,000 square miles of pristine forest to just 26,000 square miles due to deforestation. The in Asia has shrunk by 90 percent. Changes are happening in the United States, too, with the , Massachusetts, expanding, in the Gulf...

Several Southern California beaches will remain closed over the weekend as officials investigate an oily substance that washed ashore over the last couple of days. Nearly every beach on the Los Angeles South Bay , when the tar balls first began washing up, according to the Los Angeles Times. Cleanup crews were immediately dispatched to the area to collect the black globs. "Investigators have said the tar has moderate hazardous characteristics and is slightly flammable," the report added. "The substance...

More bad news for drought-stricken California. NBC Bay Area reports that last Thursday, releasing 50 million gallons of drinkable water into the San Francisco Bay. The rubber dam prior to the multi-million dollar damage done Thursday. (Alameda County Water District ) For perspective, the Alameda County Water District says the water lost is equivalent to a year's supply for 500 households. (MORE: ) "It's shocking that someone would do this, given our current situation. Our drought is so severe," Fremont...

Despite a series of arctic air masses blasting the central and eastern U.S. during the first half of the month, January 2015 was warmer than average for the nation as a whole, according to a by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Association. January 2015 Statewide Ranks Even some of the individual states affected by the bitterly cold conditions ended up warmer than average for the month. The New Year rang in that sent temperatures well below zero, particularly in the...

The Everglades are one of Florida's most precious resources, but bad weather and a political fight may put the rich land in limbo. The Everglades are among the most unique wetlands in the world. The World Wildlife Fund explains the area is home to "" with habitats that support a "rich assemblage of species." Its ability to house so much life is why Everglades National Park has been recognized as asince 1979. You can see some of the land's beautiful...

First launched in 1999, NASA's Terra satellite has collected data that shows how carbon monoxide has decreased significantly around the globe in the last 14 years. Human acvitity is responsible for a portion of the carbon monoxide in the atmosphere due to the burning of carbon-based fuels such as oil, natural gas, coal and wood. Given that the Northern Hemisphere has a larger presence of human activity, it contains about twice the amount of carbon monoxide as the Southern Hemisphere,....