Environment & Science

The James Webb Space Telescope, launched on Christmas 2021, orbits the Sun about a million miles outside Earth’s orbit. It is the most powerful, largest, and most complex telescope ever made.

This New Year’s Day, tens of thousands of people across the country, including dozens in the Valley, will take a guided hike through a state park to mark the beginning of 2024.

December 2023 is now the wettest December on record in the Lehigh Valley, with a total of 8.17 inches of rainfall recorded as of 11:59 p.m. Wednesday. The high water mark was set during a day of record rain for Dec. 27.

The ski slopes just southeast of Lehigh County announced it would shut down at 3:00 p.m. Tuesday, awaiting colder weather to make snow

With a forecast projecting 1 to 1.5 inches of rain possible this week, the Lehigh Valley will move closer to its wettest December ever.

Lawmakers in Harrisburg passed nearly three dozen laws last week in a final burst of action as they held their last voting session of the year.

Look for the full moon on Wednesday, Dec. 27

Take a look at stories that ran throughout the week of which we are most proud, had a profound impact on readers or that you might want to look at again.

On Dec. 21 at approximately 10:27 p.m. EST, we’ll begin the winter solstice north of the equator. Will the change of season finally bring snow?

It might seem counterintuitive, but harvesting holiday trees year after year is better for the environment than using an artificial one, experts said, especially amid the proliferation of plastic piling up in landfills.

This week, news from the International Space Station, where the seven crew members have been hosting two unexpected guests for months.

Staff and volunteers at the sanctuary have monitored the autumnal migration since 1934 as part of conservation research efforts. It’s the longest-running raptor migration count in the world.

A pack of wolves will appear at the Allentown Fair as part of the free entertainment. One of the wolves will meet attendees. A tour of their den is also scheduled.

The Lehigh Valley will go beyond its average 90-degree window this year, with a heat advisory in effect and highs in the mid-90s expected Wednesday. But are the ingredients there for storms to fire?

Nine projects across Pennsylvania are included in the round of funding, awarded through the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Specialty Crop Block Grant Program. The projects focus on research, marketing, apprenticeships and sustainability for mushrooms, apples, potatoes and other crops.

Less than a month after a strong, bad smell permeated through the city and surrounding areas for several days, prompting a state Department of Environmental Protection investigation, the odor has returned.

Lehigh Valley Breathes is behind schedule from the course established in August 2023. Here's what officials have learned so far — and how they plan to proceed.

The Lehigh Valley has been reshaped by a massive wave of development, both in industrial and residential, that has swept over the region the last three decades. While the development boom may be slowing, the impacts to the region’s economy and the environment are clear. (First of 5 parts)

After temperatures that felt more like October than August last week, forecasters say the Lehigh Valley will return to summer in a big way this week. Near-record heat is expected Wednesday.

The planets Jupiter and Mars will share a small patch of the eastern sky with the crescent moon, and the star Aldebaran on August 27. Here's how to see it.

A renewable natural gas plant adjacent to the Bethlehem Landfill opened on Tuesday morning.

“We have cooler air coming in," Lehigh Valley meteorologist Bobby Martrich said in his latest update. "Cooler air and refreshing air coming in for the next several days.” How far will temperatures fall?