The lithium revolution has arrived at California’s Salton Sea
I’m finally convinced: California’s Imperial Valley will be a major player in the clean energy transition. After a dozen years of engineering, permitting and financing,…
Are dams good or bad?
The latest forecast has arrived for the West’s largest reservoir — and, stop me if you’ve heard this one, it’s not great. Federal scientists are…
Meet John Curtis, the Utah Republican who cares about climate change
Solving climate change would be a hell of a lot easier if the Republican Party would get on board. Can John Curtis make it happen?…
NASA astronomers detect high-energy ‘signal’ outside our galaxy in ‘serendipitous discovery’
Astronomers have discovered a surprising light "signal" outside of our galaxy after analysing 13 years of data from NASA's Fermi Gamma-ray Space Telescope.Key points:The source…
A starring role for NASA in Biden’s push to end cancer
Pharmaceutical companies are increasingly interested in space to develop and improve drugs, and to extend their patents. “We’re right on the cusp of some major…
It’s 2024. Time to start acting like climate change actually matters
My introduction to climate change politics came via Al Franken. Yes, Al Franken, the “Saturday Night Live” comedian-turned U.S. senator who resigned from Congress amid…
US military X-37B spaceplane blasts off on another secretive mission
The US military's X-37B space plane has blasted off on another secretive mission that is expected to last at least a couple of years.Key points:The…
Who will make sure L.A. reaches 100% clean energy by 2035?
Few people have a more important role to play in confronting the climate crisis than the head of the L.A. Department of Water and Power.…
Stand down, Smokey Bear. Burnie the Bobcat wants good fires
The newly installed billboard off Interstate 80 offers a badly needed twist on eight decades of firefighting dogma. Its message: “Only you can decide our…
How I learned to stop worrying and love rooftop solar power
As global leaders celebrated a hard-fought agreement to triple the world’s renewable energy production and transition away from fossil fuels, an attorney for the state…
I spent a week in Montana coal country. Here’s what surprised me
There was a lump of coal waiting for me at the hotel in Montana. Technically it was a stress ball, designed to resemble the fossil…
The California cities leading on electric buses
Hi everyone, my name is Tony Briscoe. I’m the Los Angeles Times’ air quality and environmental health reporter. I’m filling in for Sammy Roth in…
Can changing cows’ diets help California fight global warming?
Hi everyone, my name is Tony Briscoe. I’m the Los Angeles Times’ air quality and environmental health reporter. I’m filling in for Sammy Roth in…
NASA shuttle astronaut, scientist Mary Cleave remembered as ‘trailblazer’
NASA is remembering astronaut and scientist Dr. Mary Cleave, who became NASA's first woman associate administrator for NASA's Science Mission Directorate. She died Nov. 27.…
Next Thanksgiving, Smokey Bear should talk climate change
Call me basic, but I love waking up on Thanksgiving morning and watching the Macy’s parade. Without fail, I’m enthralled by the pageantry and comforted…
The Salton Sea has even more lithium than previously thought
Want to produce a huge amount of lithium for electric vehicle batteries — and also batteries that keep our homes powered after sundown — without…
I’m a Nasa engineer – here’s how to make your car horn sound friendly instead of an angry honk that’ll enrage others
A NASA engineer has revealed how you can make your car horn sound friendly instead of an angry honk that just annoys other drivers. YouTube…
Climate change is scary. Here’s what gives people hope
Two years ago for Thanksgiving, I asked my L.A. Times colleagues who write about the environment: What gives them hope? Last year, I posed the…
Lawmakers ‘mystified’ after NASA scales back Mars collection program
“This short-sighted and misguided decision by NASA will cost hundreds of jobs and a decade of lost science, and it flies in the face of…
Solving climate change will have side effects. Get over it
When I wrote a column two weeks ago urging the Biden administration to approve a lot more solar and wind farms on Western public lands,…