As Earth gets warmer, scientists expect to see some changes in hurricanes. There might not be more of them, but the strongest ones might be much more intense.

To better understand what might happen, scientists are digging deep into the past. They’re looking at how often especially powerful hurricanes made landfall when climate conditions were similar to what we’re seeing today.

One study looked at sediments found in a lake and a pond in the Florida panhandle. Both of them were far enough inland that they weren’t affected by smaller storms. But they were close enough to the Gulf of Mexico to be impacted by major storms.

Big storms moved sand into the lake and pond, forming layers. The details of the layers revealed the intensity of the storms. And the depth of the layers revealed when the storms happened.

The study found that monster storms—category four or five—were much more frequent from about the year 650 to 1250. That jibes with studies made at other locations. The water at the surface back then was warm, and the warm layer extended deeper than average. Winds were more favorable for big storms, too.

After that, the Gulf calmed down. Only one known category five storm has made landfall in the panhandle since that era—Hurricane Michael, in 2018.

These and other results should help scientists prepare for what we may see in the future—the potential for more monster hurricanes.

Until 2011, no one knew that a couple of groups of dolphins found along the coast of southeastern Australia were a separate species from all other dolphins.

Burrunan dolphins are related to the two other known species of bottlenose dolphins. There are two groups of Burrunans—about 250 dolphins in all.

But today, no one knows how much longer the species might be around. It’s critically endangered. And it’s threatened by several hazards, including industrial chemicals. In fact, the species contains higher levels of one group of chemicals than any other dolphins in the world.

In a recent study, biologists tested 38 dolphins, of several species, that were found on the shore. In particular, they looked for a group of chemicals known as PFAS. They’re used in food packaging, firefighting foam, and non-stick cookware. They’re known as “forever” chemicals because they never break down. They wash into the sea from industrial and wastewater treatment plants, and runoff from the ground.

The scientists found high levels of PFAS in all the dolphins. But by far the highest levels were in the Burrunans—10 times the concentration thought to cause liver problems and other health issues. And one dolphin had the highest level of the chemicals ever measured in any dolphin anywhere in the world.

The Burrunans eat fish, which have high concentrations of the compounds in their livers—increasing the danger for a rare and endangered species of dolphin.

“Million Mounds” may be overstating the case a bit, but there’s no doubt it’s one of the most extensive deep-water coral reefs on the planet. Or make that part of one. Scientists recently discovered that the system extends far beyond Million Mounds—the biggest deep-water coral reef yet seen.

The entire complex stretches along the southeastern Atlantic coast of the United States. It’s a few dozen miles out, from Miami to near Charleston. It encompasses about 50,000 square miles, at depths of about 2,000 feet or greater.

Million Mounds had been the only part of the system that had been studied in detail. Most of the corals are on the many mounds and ridges found across the region—hence the name “Million Mounds.”

Scientists used ships on the surface, plus robotic submersibles, to map a much larger region. The surface vessels scanned the ocean floor with sonar. And the submersibles provided close-up looks at selected locations.

The corals aren’t like the vibrantly colored ones found in shallower seas. Instead, they’re all white. That’s because they’re mainly the “stony” part of a coral. They don’t contain the same microorganisms that provide the color for their shallower cousins. Those organisms need sunlight, and it’s too dark for them in the deep ocean.

The deep-water coral filter food from the water—bits of organic matter that drift to the bottom. That allows them to survive—a lot of them—in the deep waters off the American coast.