Pain, Strain and Gain on the Rae Lakes Loop
Five days, 45 miles, 7,000 feet of climbing elevation, and a welcome escape from the noise of everyday life.
California Curated
California, explained. Science, landscapes, and hidden systems of the Golden State. New stories weekly.
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Reading California's History in Highway Roadcuts
How geologists read millions of years of history in California's highway roadcuts.
California Has a Huge Whale Graveyard off the Coast. And That’s Not a Terrible Thing.
Whale falls offer scientists a treasure trove of information about life in the deep ocean. Microbiologist Jeffery Marlow talks about the importance of microbes.
Hidden Near Los Angeles Is One of the World's Most Important Centers for Endangered Apes
The Gibbon Conservation Center in Santa Clarita is home to about 40 endangered apes and has become a globally important center for conservation, research, and education.
The Miracle of Cabo Pulmo in Baja California
How local fishermen transformed Cabo Pulmo into one of the world's greatest marine conservation success stories.
Yes, Baja California Is Slowly Tearing Away from the North American Continent
Don't worry, you won't be around to see it.
A Planet Built by Microbes
Deep-sea scientist Jeffrey Marlow discusses the astonishing diversity of microbial life, whale falls, hydrothermal vents, deep-sea mining, and the tiny organisms that help make Earth habitable.
The Rock That Powered California
From microscopic plankton to billions of barrels of oil, few rock formations have shaped California's history more profoundly.
Mountain of Knives
Lookout Mountain obsidian became prized toolstone, traded through Indigenous networks from the eastern Sierra to the Channel Islands.
The California Supervolcano You Can Visit...and Other Amazing Geologic Attractions
The Long Valley Caldera owes its existence to one of the most dramatic volcanic events in Earth’s history, a super-eruption that occurred approximately 760,000 years ago.
The Moon May Help Drive California’s Next Flooding Crisis
An 18.6-year lunar cycle is expected to amplify tides just as rising seas push more of California’s coastline toward flooding thresholds.
Sea Turtles Are Thriving in a Concrete River in Los Angeles
A threatened population of green sea turtles is thriving in the concrete channels of the San Gabriel River in Long Beach.
The Walls of Yosemite Are Coming Down
Exfoliation helped create Yosemite’s famous rounded granite domes and continues to peel the cliffs apart in massive sheets of rock.
Inside The Huntington’s Extraordinary Succulent Garden
At The Huntington, one of the world’s great succulent collections reveals how plants from some of Earth’s harshest climates evolved to survive, even as many species face threats from plant theft.
It’s Going to Be a Sharky Summer. Here’s Why That’s Okay.
Shark populations are rebounding along California’s coast, and the risks may be far lower than people think, says Chris Lowe, the director of the Shark Lab at Cal State Long Beach.
One of the best birding spots in America is in the San Gabriel Mountains
Bear Divide, newly discovered, is one of the only places in the western United States where you can see thousands of birds migrating during daylight hours.
That Time We Tried to Live Under the Sea Off California
In the 1960s, as America raced to the Moon, the Navy sent aquanauts to the ocean floor off La Jolla in an ambitious experiment called SEALAB II.
This Week: A Shift to Video
Tufa towers, brine shrimp, and one of California’s most unusual ecosystems. And don't forget the flies!
Why Southern California is the Stingray Capital of the World
Seal Beach has the perfect conditions for Stingrays to feed, breed and sting unsuspecting swimmers.
Clair Patterson: The Caltech Scientist Who Exposed Lead Poisoning and Changed the World
At Caltech, Clair Patterson's relentless determination to understand the health impacts of atmospheric lead changed the world for the better.