This story originally appeared on WIRED en Español and has been translated from Spanish. Brown howler monkeys are dropping dead by the dozens in southern Mexico. Between May 4 and May 21, at least 138 died, with deaths occurring in places where temperatures have been abnormally high, exceeding 43 degrees …
Read More »Everyone's Pumped About Heat Pumps
People everywhere are hot for heat pumps. These electric appliances—which perform the same heating and cooling tasks as traditional HVAC systems, just much more efficiently—have been outselling gas furnaces for the past couple of years. Their proliferation seems to be pointing toward a more energy-conscious electric future in people’s homes. …
Read More »'Furiosa' Crystalizes the Power—and Limits—of Cli-Fi
The title card that opens 1979’s original Mad Max places the action in a very near future, looming just “a few years from now.” George Miller’s cult action-thriller captured the edginess of a world teetering on the brink. The film depicts a not-quite-postapocalyptic Australia, where gangs of high-octane galoots rove …
Read More »How do we navigate climate disinformation online?
Since the emergence of social media, the spread of climate mis- and disinformation has been evolving dramatically. From TikTok greenwashing strategies by oil giants, to wellness influencers spreading disinformation, the internet seems to be the mecca of fake news. But what’s behind climate disinformation’s shifting tactics? And how can you …
Read More »The World Is Ignoring the Other Deadly Kind of Carbon
Once again, vast expanses of Canadian wilderness are on fire, threatening towns and forcing thousands to flee. It appears to be a breakout of “zombie fires”: wildfires from last year that never actually went out completely but carried on smoldering underground, reigniting ground vegetation again this year. They’ve been pouring …
Read More »These Electric School Buses Are on Their Way to Save the Grid
The big yellow school bus is a US icon, but perhaps not one that future Americans will remember fondly. Chugging through neighborhoods, idling in front of kids’ houses, the vehicles spew both noise and fossil-fuel pollution all across town. In a city like Oakland, California, that significantly worsens air quality, …
Read More »Climate Protesters Storm Tesla’s Gigafactory in Europe
German climate protesters clashed with police as they attempted to break into Tesla’s factory site near Berlin on Friday, during a five-day demonstration against the carmaker’s local expansion plans. Footage on social media showed crowds of black-clad protesters running toward Tesla premises. German media reported injuries among police and protesters, …
Read More »Drone footage shows the devastating floods in Rio Grande do Sul
Days of heavy rain in Brazil’s Rio Grande do Sul have caused the worst floods the country’s southernmost state has seen in at least 80 years — and the sheer impact of it can be seen in new drone footage. Since 2 May, 417 of the state’s 497 cities have …
Read More »City Trees Save Lives
The humble tree has long protected humans from sickness and even death—and in the modern city, it’s still doing so. As global temperatures rise, so too does the “urban heat island effect”—the tendency for cities to absorb and hold on to the sun’s energy, which is a growing public-health crisis …
Read More »The One Thing Holding Back Heat Pumps
If billionaires actually cared about saving the planet, they’d pool their vast wealth and buy everyone a heat pump. Instead of burning planet-warming fossil fuels, these appliances extract warmth from even freezing outdoor air and transfer it into a building, thanks to neat tricks of physics. In the summer, they …
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