"A new study confirms that the ocean has been rising in fits and starts since the 19th century -- and that the rate appears to have accelerated in the early 1990s to almost twice the rate of increase that prevailed through most of the 20th century."

"A gene that causes a wide range of bacteria to become resistant to antibiotics has been found in the water supply in Delhi, with worrying implications for the rest of the globe."

"A shutdown would cut short a key NASA field campaign to survey Arctic land and sea ice, and a larger project it is part of. The measure now funding federal operations expires on April 8."

"U.S. officials say the nation’s health system is ill-prepared to cope with a catastrophic release of radiation, despite years of focus on the possibility of a terrorist 'dirty bomb' or an improvised nuclear device attack."

"The 2011 Atlantic hurricane season will be above average in activity and there is a more than 70 percent chance of at least one major hurricane hitting the U.S. coastline, Colorado State University forecasters predicted on Wednesday."

"Faced with a lawsuit from environmentalists, U.S. EPA has changed course and rejected Alabama's plan to change how the state decides whether industrial plants are releasing too much soot from their smokestacks."

"A long-term Republican budget plan released this week by Representative Paul Ryan of Wisconsin calls for drastic cuts in federal spending on energy research and development and for the outright elimination of subsidies and tax breaks for wind, solar power and other alternative energy technologies."

"The first round of UN climate change talks since the Cancun summit in December is underway in Bangkok this week."