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• U.S. spring crop season jeopardized as drought persists

  *Nebraska the most drought-stricken state. Jan 31- The unrelenting drought gripping key farming states in the U.S. It's not a pretty picture, "said climatologist Mark Svoboda of the University of Nebraska's Drought Mitigation Center.

• South Korea Catches Up to North Korea on the Space Race

  

  South Korea says its first successful launch Wednesday of a rocket from its own soil has opened a new era of opportunity, taking the pressure off to keep up with its rival, North Korea, on a space race. The CSM reports.

• Growing palm oil could speed up climate change, study says

  LONDON, Jan 30- Growing palm oil trees to make biofuels could be accelerating the effects of climate change, new research showed on Wednesday, adding further weight to claims the crop is not environmentally sustainable.

• Shale Gas Boom Now Visible From Space

  

  Oil companies at the heart of the US shale oil boom are burning off enough gas to power all the homes in Chicago and Washington combined in a practice causing growing concern about the waste of resources and damage to the environment.

• Obama climate push to tie environment, jobs -White House adviser

  WASHINGTON, Jan 24- President Barack Obama will renew his push to spur investment in renewable energy projects that create jobs as a key part of his second-term strategy for tackling climate change, a top White House policy adviser said on Thursday.

• Democrats urge Obama to avoid idle Congress on climate change

  WASHINGTON, Jan 24- Several Democratic lawmakers on Thursday urged President Barack Obama to use his broad powers to curb carbon emissions through federal agencies and address climate change by avoiding inaction in Congress.

• U.S. drought expands in top wheat-growing state of Kansas

  Jan 24- Crop-killing drought deepened in Kansas over the last week, further jeopardizing this season's production of winter wheat, a key U.S. crop. Kansas is generally the top U.S. wheat-growing state, but the new crop planted last fall has been struggling with a lack of soil moisture.

• A Plan to Save New Zealand's Birds: Get Rid of Cats

  

  A prominent New Zealand economist has set off a storm by suggesting that cats should eventually be eliminated from his country, claiming that they are posing a dire threat to native bird species. The New York Times reports.

• Into deep space: 2nd U.S. firm takes aim at mining asteroids

  *Deep Space Industries plans in-orbit manufacturing. Deep Space Industries, based in Santa Monica, California, said its inaugural mission is targeted for 2015, when it would send a small hitchhiker spacecraft called "Firefly" on a six-month expedition to survey an as-yet-unidentified asteroid.

• Obama gives unexpected nod to climate as second term priority

  WASHINGTON, Jan 21- President Barack Obama said on Monday he will confront climate change in his second term in office, an unexpected vow that puts the politically charged issue among his domestic priorities alongside gun control and immigration reform.

• Skinny CEO, Fat CEO 

  

  Is it better to have a skinny CEO or one who needs to drop a few pounds? CNBC's Jane Wells reports.

• 2012 was among 10 warmest years in global record - NASA/NOAA

  The U.S. space agency NASA and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration jointly issued two reports on 2012 world temperatures. NASA ranked last year the ninth-warmest since record-keeping began in 1880, while NOAA found last year was the tenth-warmest.

• Black carbon a powerful climate pollutant -international study

  WASHINGTON, Jan 15- Black carbon, the soot produced by burning fossil fuels and biomass, is a more potent atmospheric pollutant than previously thought, according to a four-year international study released on Tuesday.

• COLUMN-Global warming slows but beware complacency: Gerard Wynn

  LONDON, Jan 11- The latest forecasts from a foremost climate research institute that global warming has slowed present a new challenge to policymakers on how to inject urgency into the campaign to cut emissions of greenhouse gases.

• Eric's Electrifying Hobby Story

  

  A self-confessed amateur electrical engineer, Eric displays some of his pet projects, including a functioning Tesla Coil and Jacob's ladder.

• The Scientific Approach to Cars

  

  To some, an auto workshop would seem like an unusual place for science, but to Eric it's just another day on the job.

• Flu Cases Spike 

  

  Reports of flu cases are rising. Robert Bazell, NBC News Chief Science Correspondent reports the flu is widespread in 41 U.S. states. How to trade it, with Barbara Ryan of Barbara Ryan Advisors.

• Apocalypse NOW: Your Guide to the End of the World

  

  By now, most people know the date of the end of the world is almost here. But what time? And what will happen? Here's what to expect when you're expecting the end.

• UK's Met Office sees 2013 likely to be one of warmest on record

  LONDON, Dec 20- Global temperatures are forecast to be 0.57 degrees above the long-term average next year, making 2013 one of the warmest years on record, Britain's Met Office said on Thursday.

• U.S. drought has tight hold, snow not seen as big help

  Dec 20- A snow storm moving through the Plains states into the U.S. The snow is good, but in most instances it was less than one inch of liquid and if the soils are frozen, there will be little infiltration, "said Brian Fuchs, climatologist with the National Drought Mitigation Center at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln."