Tree Rings of a Stump

How Tree Ring Records Can Help Predict Droughts

Inside the trunks of trees lies a wealth of data on climate that goes back generations.
A woman's hands inspecting a cannabis plant

The Environmental Downside of Cannabis Cultivation

Wide-scale cannabis cultivation is causing environmental damage. Federal regulations could change this.
Charles Hatfield, the rainmaker, checking some equipment. (Copyright Bettmann/Corbis / AP Images)

When San Diego Hired a Rainmaker a Century Ago, It Poured

After Charles Hatfield began his work to wring water from the skies, San Diego experienced its wettest period in recorded history.
A desalination plant

Desalination: Drought Relief or Liability?

Is desalination a viable solution for California's water crisis?
A landscape of dust with sparse patches of grass

Revising Dust Bowl Myths

Charles J. Shindo attempts to revise common myths about the "Dust Bowl"