The April 21 earthquake was as strong as the 1906 San Francisco temblor but killed no one. Though fairly common, most big quakes occur out of harm's way, experts say.

The deadly bird flu may arrive in the U.S. and elsewhere via migrating birds. The key is just to keep them away from poultry, researchers say.

Earth Day meets the 21st century: Environmental and other scientists should embrace blogs as potentially potent tools for advancing science and policy, experts recommend.

Antiviral drugs can immobilize a virus, but mathematical models of viral pandemics show that if too many people pop the pills, the virus is likely to regain the upper hand.

Earth's climate may still warm up by several degrees in response to greenhouse gas pollution, but it may not be as sensitive as some scientists have feared, a new study says.

Deep beneath the ice sheet, massive volumes of water and life-forms may be gushing from lake to lake, scientists say.

One of the world's most active but least known volcanoes is threatening a wave of destruction on the densely populated Indonesian island of Java.

As oil prices hit record highs, scientists have unveiled a technology that can turn coal, natural gas, and biomass into a fuel that burns cleaner than gasoline.

Drive-through exams, foreign production of U.S. money, and travel bans are all parts of a reported federal plan for tackling a pandemic.

When will California's next big one strike? To help find out, scientists are building a miles-deep observatory inside the San Andreas Fault.

Explore the history of big quakes in northern California, and see what scientists are doing to try to lessen the impact of the next big one.

The volcano found in the South Pacific is dazzling scientists with its weird features, including a swirling vortex, strange animals, and a toxic zone that only one creature can survive.

A hundred years after the Bay Area's Big One, the heavily populated California region has a 62 percent chance of a magnitude 6.7 or greater quake between now and 2032, experts warn.

Teeth and jaw fossils discovered in Ethiopia provide a link between two species of early human ancestors, filling a crucial gap in human evolution, scientists have announced.

Katrina-scale disaster would ensue, experts say. Over a third of all buildings would fall, fires would rage, and bridges would fail.