Some of the world's smallest animals and their tiny poops could aid in the fight against climate change. A Dartmouth-led study reports that clay dust sprayed on the surface of seawater converts free-floating carbon particulates into food for zooplankton, which the microscopic animals later deposit deep into the sea as feces. The particulates are the remnants of carbon dioxide removed from the atmosphere by marine plants that re-enters the atmosphere when the plants die. This new method redirects the carbon into the marine food chain.

The way hydrocarbon molecules interact with light can affect the production of nitrous acid in the atmosphere. In this study, researchers used an ultrafast electron camera to image the motions of hydrocarbon molecules at ultrafast, ultrasmall scales. They identified a proton transfer step followed by an out-of-plane twisting motion as key components of energy relaxation after molecules interact with light.

Members of the American Meteorological Society (AMS) have elected Alan Sealls to the position of AMS president-elect for 2025, as well as electing six new members of the AMS Council: Stephen B. Bennett, Danielle A. Breezy, Jenny Frankel-Reed, Stephanie C. Herring, John M. Lanicci, and Russ A. Schumacher. 

Hail is the result of raindrops being propelled into the coldest parts of the atmosphere. Eventually, stones fall back to Earth, where scientist have been studying for decades how they form. Now, with the help of CT scans, researchers could see the insides of the icy stones without breaking them for the first time. This way they have observed the entire internal structure of exceptionally large hailstones, which might provide important information about future extreme hail events.