The science behind airplane deicing – a mechanical engineer explains how chemistry and physics make flying a more uplifting experience

Waiting for your plane to get deiced may be annoying, but it’s an essential safety step in chilly conditions.

Andrew Sommers, Professor of Mechanical and Manufacturing Engineering, Miami University • conversation
Feb. 28, 2025 • ~10 min

Expanding Heathrow is incompatible with net zero – here’s the evidence

The UK’s environmental commitments leave no room for extra runways.

Richard Sulley, Senior Research Fellow, Sustainability Policy, University of Sheffield • conversation
Jan. 23, 2025 • ~7 min

It's time to limit how often we can travel abroad – 'carbon passports' may be the answer

The clock could be ticking for the travel industry unless action is taken to change our travel habits.

Ross Bennett-Cook, Visiting Lecturer, School of Architecture + Cities, University of Westminster • conversation
Nov. 3, 2023 • ~8 min

Machines can't always take the heat − two engineers explain the physics behind how heat waves threaten everything from cars to computers

People aren’t the only ones harmed by heat waves. The hotter it gets, the harder it is for machines to keep their cool.

Matthew T. Hughes, Postdoctoral Associate, Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) • conversation
Aug. 29, 2023 • ~9 min

Aviation turbulence soared by up to 55% as the world warmed -- new research

Turbulence strong enough to pose an injury risk could be set to double or triple in frequency in the future.

Mark Prosser, PhD Student in the Department of Meteorology, University of Reading • conversation
June 14, 2023 • ~7 min

How cats and dogs affect the climate -- and what you can do about it

The environmental pawprint of pets is huge – and it’s mostly down to what we feed them.

Peter Alexander, Senior Lecturer in Global Food Security, The University of Edinburgh • conversation
June 5, 2023 • ~8 min

Peanut butter is a liquid – the physics of this and other unexpected fluids

A mechanical engineer explains why you need to go with the flow. The TSA pronouncement that peanut butter is a liquid is scientifically sound.

Ted Heindel, University Professor, Bergles Professor of Thermal Science, and Director of the Center for Multiphase Flow Research and Education, Iowa State University • conversation
May 4, 2023 • ~6 min

The future of flight in a net-zero-carbon world: 9 scenarios, lots of sustainable biofuel

Airlines are promising net-zero emissions by 2050. To get there, they’re experimenting with used cooking oil, ag waste and corn ethanol in their fuel tanks. But that alone won’t be enough.

Steve Davis, Professor of Earth System Science, University of California, Irvine • conversation
Feb. 6, 2023 • ~9 min

Climate change: the fairest way to tax carbon is to make air travel more expensive

Carbon taxes targeting luxury emissions are more popular than those which make necessities more expensive.

Giulio Mattioli, Research Fellow, Department of Transport Planning, Technical University of Dortmund • conversation
Oct. 6, 2022 • ~6 min

Ghost islands of the Arctic: The world’s ‘northern-most island’ isn’t the first to be erased from the map

The new discovery echoes a mission in 1931, when a five-day zeppelin flight sent robots to the stratosphere and redrew the maps of the high Arctic.

Kevin Hamilton, Emeritus Professor of Atmospheric Sciences, University of Hawaii • conversation
Sept. 8, 2022 • ~11 min

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