A fiery meteorite crashed into southern Peru over the weekend, experts confirmed Wednesday, but they were still puzzling over claims that it gave off fumes that sickened 200 people.
A second outbreak of foot and mouth disease has been confirmed in Britain at a Stroude Farm, Egham, near the scene of the previous outbreak discovered on Wednesday in Surrey.
The area covered by sea ice in the Arctic has shrunk to its lowest level this week since satellite measurements began nearly 30 years ago, opening up the Northwest Passage – a long-sought short cut between Europe and Asia that has been historically impassable, the European Space Agency.
As representatives from almost 200 Governments prepare to gather next week in Montreal, Canada on the 20th anniversary of the United Nations-backed treaty to protect the world's ozone layer, a senior UN official today called for intensified action to eliminate the use of hydro chlorofluorocarbons (HCFCs) which damage it.
Paraguay's government declared a national state of emergency on Wednesday amid the worst ever forest fires there.
Scientists are trying to find the cause of the latest foot-and-mouth outbreak and establish whether it is the same strain which infected herds last month.
The United Kingdom farming industry has been plunged back into crisis with the confirmation of another outbreak of foot and mouth disease in cattle in Surrey. Last week Environment Secretary Hilary Benn had declared the UK free of FAM following an initial outbreak in August.
Scientists from the Center of Scientific Studies of Valdivia (CECS) said this week that Chile's glaciers are melting at twice the speed observed just ten years ago. The scientists, who recently participated in a specially called international forum on glaciers, also warned that this trend could have devastating ramifications due to current plans to construct hydroelectric dams around Chile.
A senior United Nations official called this week for action not only to tackle the causes of global warming by reducing greenhouse gas emissions but also to cope with its effects such as the increasing vulnerability of agriculture which places developing countries especially at risk.
Melting glaciers, vanishing forests and urban sprawl are transforming the world around us, photographs illustrating the impact of environmental changes such as global warming show.