Matt Simon
About Matt Simon
Matt is a science writer for WIRED magazine
Why are the Poles warming so fast? Invisible clouds
Clouds way up in the stratosphere act like a blanket, trapping heat in the Arctic and Antarctica. That could help explain why models keep underestimating how fast they’re warming.
The weird way that human waste is killing corals
Wastewater fuels blooms of reef-smothering algae. Better engineering and an army of funny-looking fish can come to the rescue.
Moths deserve a little pollinator love
More research is showing that moths are secret, critical pollinators, even of crops that feed humanity. Save the bees, but save the moths too.
Secret to saving species is blowing in the wind
Scientists just figured out that thousands of air-quality stations have been accidentally gathering invaluable DNA data on local organisms.
This critical Arctic organism is now infested with microplastics
The algae Melosira arctica is the foundation of the food chain, and its contamination could have major consequences for ecosystems and the climate.
Hey, EV owners — it pays to give back to the grid
If you agree to provide some of your car’s battery power in times of high energy demand, you’ll get paid, and help make the grid more stable.
Tiny aerosols present a big challenge for global warming
Fossil fuels are rapidly heating the planet, but their aerosols also help cool it. Just how much, though, is a major uncertainty in climate science.
War is an environmental disaster — but Ukraine can build back greener
Russia’s invasion is reversing years of environmental progress. But the world can help Ukraine reconstruct its damaged landscape and energy systems.
The Mediterranean Sea is so hot, it’s forming CO2-belching crystals
In the rapidly warming Eastern Mediterranean, water stratifies into layers, like a cake. That’s allowing carbon-spewing crystals to form.
Lawns are silly, but ripping them up may come with a catch
Meticulous turf is environmentally terrible. Yet grass does have one charm: It “sweats,” helping cool the local area.