Storms take deadly toll; states brace for more
Emergency teams on Sunday were assessing damage from deadly storms that devastated parts of Missouri, Kentucky and West Virginia this past weekend. And forecasters warned that more severe weather and flooding could be on the way. full story

Mysterious, Glowing Clouds Appear Across America's Night Skies

"Mysterious, glowing clouds previously seen almost exclusively in Earth’s polar regions have appeared in the skies over the United States and Europe over the past several days.

Photographers and other sky watchers in Omaha, Paris, Seattle, and other locations have run outside to capture images of what scientists call noctilucent (”night shining”) clouds. Formed by ice literally at the boundary where the earth’s atmosphere meets space 50 miles up, they shine because they are so high that they remain lit by the sun even after our star is below the horizon.

The clouds might be beautiful, but they could portend global changes caused by global warming."

Massive Quake Moves New Zealand Closer to Australia

WELLINGTON (AFP) – A massive 7.8 magnitude earthquake last week has moved the south of New Zealand closer to Australia, scientists said Wednesday.

With the countries separated by the 2,250-kilometre-wide (1,400-mile-wide) Tasman Sea, the 30 centimetre (12 inch) closing of the gap in New Zealand's southwest won't make much difference.

But earthquake scientist Ken Gledhill of GNS Science said the shift illustrated the huge force of the tremor, the biggest in the world so far this year.

Oldest Animal Fossils Found in Lakes, Not Oceans

Charles Q. Choi
Special to LiveScience
LiveScience.com charles Q. Choi
special To Livescience
livescience.com – Mon Jul 27, 5:12 pm ET

Conventional wisdom has it that the first animals evolved in the ocean.

Now researchers studying ancient rock samples in South China have found that the first animal fossils are preserved in ancient lake deposits, not in marine sediments as commonly assumed.

These new findings not only raise questions as to where the earliest animals were living, but what factors drove animals to evolve in the first place.

For some 3 billion years, single-celled life forms such as bacteria dominated the planet. Then, roughly 600 million years ago, the first multi-cellular animals appeared on the scene, diversifying rapidly.

The oldest known animal fossils in the world are preserved in South China's Doushantuo Formation. These fossil beds have no adult specimens - instead, many of the fossils appear to be microscopic embryos.

"Our first unusual finding in this region was the abundance of a clay mineral called smectite," said researcher Tom Bristow, now at the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena. "In rocks of this age, smectite is normally transformed into other types of clay. The smectite in these South China rocks, however, underwent no such transformation and have a special chemistry that, for the smectite to form, requires specific conditions in the water - conditions commonly found in salty, alkaline lakes."

Texas earthquake 0:55
Five earthquakes have hit Cleburne, Texas, in the past seven days.

Raging water topples hotel 0:54
A six-story hotel that is part of a hot springs resort in Taiwan crashes into floodwaters caused by Typhoon Morakot.

Deadly mudslides strike across East Asia

Story Highlights

* NEW: Typhoon Morakot affects more than 11 million people in China and Taiwan
* Dozens dead, even more missing in Taiwan from storm-caused flooding
* Taiwanese villagers fear hundreds of people buried under mudslides
* Reports: Mudslides crush homes, bury unknown number of people in China

Typhoon survivors airlifted to sanctuary
In the foothills of the Central Mountain chain in southern Taiwan, a rescue helicopter lowers itself onto an athletic field in the town of Nei Pu. The helicopter doors open and eight typhoon survivors stumble out with their belongings in plastic bags. It's a common scene as Taiwan deals with the aftermath of deadly Typhoon Morakot. full story

Hurricane Bill forecast to strengthen, turn north
Hurricane Bill churned toward west-northwest Tuesday as it teetered on the brink of becoming a major hurricane. The National Hurricane Center expects Bill to continue to strengthen Tuesday night and turn to the northwest Wednesday, heading nearer to the upper U.S. East Coast. full story

Wildfires rage near Athens
Greek firefighters are working to contain dozens of wildfires, including a massive blaze outside Athens, authorities said. There were no official numbers Saturday on the extent of destruction, which including burned homes, some of which were vacation houses. full story

Toddler swept away as floods kill 5, officials say
Georgia creeks and rivers, swollen by days of rain, burst their banks Monday, and at least five people were killed in flooding in the state, officials said. At least four others were thought to be missing, and one person was presumed dead in Tennessee. Among those who died in Georgia was a 2-year-old child swept out of the arms of her father, an official said. full story

With 140 dead, flood survivors count blessings
Eyewitnesses in the Philippines describe the devastation caused to their homes and cities after a month's worth of rain fell in six hours, leaving at least 140 people dead and up to 300,000 homeless. Power and water supplies failed, while many roads are impassable. But survivors are just glad to be alive. full story

'River of rocks ... and cars' 2:25
Joey Cummings talks to CNN's John Roberts about the devastation in American Samoa after it was hit by a tsunami.