Surfaces equipment at an oil and gas extraction site in the San Juan Basin. (Photo: Gabrielle PĂ©tron/CIRES)

Southwest US methane hotspot is snapshot of local pollution

Nov. 24, 2020

A giant methane cloud caught by satellite in 2014 wasn’t a persistent hotspot, as thought at the time. Instead, the cloud was the nightly build-up of polluted air—trapped emissions of the potent greenhouse gas—near the ground.

CT scan of a frog in vivid colors.

Museum spotlights reptiles and amphibians in incredible detail

Nov. 18, 2020

Ever want to see inside an iguana? A new project at the CU Museum of Natural History is collecting incredibly detailed images of specimens in its collection—including CT scans of their internal anatomy.

Bike lanes

How the COVID-19 pandemic can reshape our streets and relationship to cars

Nov. 17, 2020

In the spring of 2020, once-busy streets became quiet and empty. In many cities, pedestrians and bicycles filled city streets instead of cars. What could this mean for the future of our cities and transportation systems?

Bubble of expanding gas created by a supernova.

Tree rings may hold clues to earthly impacts of distant supernovas

Nov. 11, 2020

A very nearby supernova could wipe all life off the face of Earth. But even farther away events may still leave their mark on the planet, new research suggests.

Mushroom cloud expands over ocean

Scientists explore how to protect fisheries, food supply in event of nuclear war

Nov. 9, 2020

Well-managed, healthy fisheries could serve as an important source of food for people around the world in the event of a nuclear catastrophe, a new study finds.

Flour beetles

Tiny beetles a bellwether of ecological disruption by climate change

Oct. 19, 2020

New research shows that as species across the world adjust where they live in response to climate change, they will come into competition with other species that could hamper their ability to keep up with the pace of this change.

Strip mining

Unprecedented energy use since 1950 has transformed our planetary environment and humanity’s geologic footprint

Oct. 16, 2020

A new study makes clear the extraordinary speed and scale of increases in energy use, economic productivity and global population that have pushed the Earth towards a new geological epoch known as the Anthropocene.

Family in a park

Children heavily influenced by time in nature, social and emotional support

Oct. 1, 2020

CU Boulder Today spoke with Louise Chawla about how children are happier and more likely to protect the natural world when they have a greater connection to it, and the important role of social and emotional support from parents, peers and community in creating hope around issues like climate change.

Grand Staircase National Monument,

Someday, even wet forests could burn due to climate change

Sept. 29, 2020

While today's fires are exacerbated by dry conditions, CU Boulder researchers found that forest fires 94 million years ago occurred even in wet regions due to changes in global climate.

Coral reef fish

The pace of environmental change can doom or save coral reefs

Sept. 28, 2020

Increasing fishing too quickly can cause coral reef ecosystems to collapse, new CU Boulder-led research finds.

Pages