A spring heat wave is scorching parts of Western Europe, breaking temperature records and triggering government warnings. A temperature of 95 Fahrenheit was recorded in London on Tuesday. On Monday, London hit 95.2 F, smashing the previous record of 91.4 F set in 1922 and 1944. France is also seeing record temperatures, with temperatures reaching 97°F. Several drownings have been reported in Britain and France as people try to cool down. Experts say unpredictable and extreme weather is becoming more frequent. The U.K. Health Security Agency issued an amber health alert, warning of potential health risks, especially for older people.
Global warming extinctions usually have people picturing the last polar bears or other furry critters disappearing. But the world of plants also will be decimated by climate change, and they're often overlooked. One new study Thursday says tens of thousands of plant species will likely go extinct as warmer temperatures and shifting rain patterns ruin their habitats. A second study looks at what the world loses when flowering plants blink out of existence. In many cases, it's not just not just one species that is lost, but a giant chunk of the evolutionary tree of life.
Millions of people around the world will pause, at least for a moment, to mark Earth Day. The annual event is Wednesday. It was founded by people who hoped to stir activism to clean up and preserve a planet that's now home to some 8 billion humans and trillions of other organisms. Earth Day has its roots in growing concern over pollution in the 1960s. That's when author Rachel Carson's 1962 book "Silent Spring," about the pesticide DDT and its damaging effects on the food chain, hit bestseller lists and raised awareness about nature's delicate balance. A U.S. senator from Wisconsin, Democrat Gaylord Nelson, had the idea that would become the first Earth Day in 1970.
