Environment & Science

“This has been a tremendously difficult storm to forecast due to rapidly changing conditions/temperatures expected and the difference in timing,” the National Weather Service said in its forecast discussion.

PPL Electric Utilities and Met-Ed reported more than 13,000 customers without power Tuesday morning as a winter storm swept through the region.

Several Lehigh Valley schools are closing Tuesday because of the weather forecast.

Early Monday, the National Weather Service issued a winter storm warning in effect for the Lehigh Valley for 7 to 10 inches of snow, with locally higher amounts over the higher elevations.

One area of potential concern at the Allentown State Hospital had been the presence of dioxins in the soil. Dioxins are a group of toxic chemical compounds that take a long time to break down in the environment, and can cause health problems in people.

Betelgeuse is the red supergiant star at Orion’s ‘right shoulder.’

Lehigh and Northampton counties are under a winter storm watch in effect from 12 a.m. to 6 p.m. Tuesday, with 4 to 8 inches of heavy, wet snow possible.

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.

It’s a special year for cicadas, insects known for their high-pitched mating songs. Two adjacent broods are expected to co-emerge for the first time in 221 years. Here's the next time they emerge in the Valley.

Northern flying squirrels are endangered, and the Pa. Game Commission works to improve their habitat. A group went searching for the species in the Poconos.

As smoke from the Canadian wildfires continues to shroud the skies of the Lehigh Valley, air purifiers have become a hot-ticket item at just about every retailer.

Lafayette on May 26 submitted plans to replant College Hill after it was deforested for a $1.2 million walkway project. Here's the plan.

The air quality in Allentown, Bethlehem and Easton is so bad, it’s the equivalent of smoking more than 14 cigarettes.

Smoke from wildfires in Canada can be seen and smelled in much of the northeast, including the Lehigh Valley. Local pulmonologists are weighing in with what to do to avoid too much exposure.

The Lehigh Valley is under a code red air quality alert in effect until midnight.

The National Weather Service says thick smoke associated with wildfires in Canada is moving into parts of Pennsylvania and New Jersey.

Allentown Fire Department is warning against any outdoor fires due to dry conditions and elevated winds as a red flag warning continues for the region.

Any fires that develop may quickly get out of control and become difficult to contain, the National Weather Service said in a red flag warning in effect for the area until 8 p.m.

A brush fire closed Route 33 Southbound in Wind Gap early Monday afternoon, backing up traffic for miles, as crews battled a series of blazes in Northampton and Monroe counties, officials said.

The college resubmitted plans May 26, two weeks after Easton officials sent a letter notifying officials that the walkway project had deforested a portion of a slope without city approval.

Landfill officials have less than a week to appeal a judge's ruling that halted expansion efforts and conditional use hearings. If not appealed, the process could be started over.

The resolution, passed 129-72, empowers the House Legislative Budget and Finance Committee to complete a study on the status, management and benefits of wildlife corridors across the state.