The quest for rare earths vital to some of modern life's most indispensable technologies may see mining robots jet to the stars within decades, a world-first conference in Australia was told Wednesday.

Indonesia has announced a new shark and manta ray sanctuary, the first to protect the species in the rich marine ecosystem of the Coral Triangle, known as the "Amazon of the ocean".

North Korea is rewarding the scientists and workers behind its recent nuclear test with a fun-packed visit to Pyongyang to enjoy "the greatest privileges", state media said Wednesday.

Scientists have discovered a 200-kilometre-wide (125-mile-wide) impact zone in the Australian outback they believe was caused by a massive asteroid smashing into Earth more than 300 million years ago.

North Korea is rewarding the scientists and workers behind its recent nuclear test with a fun-packed visit to Pyongyang to enjoy "the greatest privileges," state media reported on Wednesday.

Hundreds of thousands of solar panels are at risk of setting roofs on fire because of an electrical fault, Dutch authorities and media warned Tuesday, with 15 roof fires already reported in Europe.

Scientists suspect chemicals which disrupt the hormone system are linked to early breast development, poor semen quality, low birthweight in babies and other problems, but more research is needed, UN agencies reported on Wednesday.

The European Parliament's environment committee on Tuesday backed efforts to make investment in clean technology financially more attractive by freezing about 900 million tonnes of pollution credits available to companies in 2013-2015.

Tens of thousands of protesters gathered in Washington to generate pressure on President Barack Obama to take concrete measures to fight global warming.

An Australian court on Friday dismissed a challenge against the patenting of human genetic material in a landmark case which has devastated a cancer group that says it could stifle research.

Last year's record shrinkage of Arctic sea ice and a spell of catastrophic droughts, floods and storms highlight the risk to the planet from climate change, the UN Environment Programme (UNEP) said on Monday.

NASA, universities and private groups in the US are working on asteroid warning systems that can detect objects from space like the one that struck Russia last week with a blinding flash and mighty boom.

For decades, the strange substance called dark matter has teased physicists, challenging conventional notions of the cosmos.

Russian scientists said Monday they had discovered over 50 fragments of the meteor that struck the Urals last week, creating a shockwave that injured 1,200 people and damaged thousands of homes.

Scientists said Monday they had discovered fragments of the meteor that spectacularly plunged over Russia's Ural Mountains creating a shockwave that injured 1,200 people and damaged thousands of homes.

Tens of thousands of protesters gathered in Washington to generate pressure on President Barack Obama to take concrete measures to fight global warming.

Tens of thousands of protesters gathered in Washington to generate pressure on President Barack Obama to take concrete measures to fight global warming.

Russian authorities halted their search Sunday for the meteorite that spectacularly struck the Urals last week, leaving about 1,200 people injured and damaging several thousand buildings.

Russian authorities halted their search Sunday for the meteorite that spectacularly struck the Urals last week, leaving about 1,200 people injured and damaging several thousand buildings.

Mussels secrete a powerful adhesive to hold tight on rocks swept by violent waves -- and a synthetic version could prove critical for surgery and cancer treatment, researchers said.