Smoke from fires in southwestern Oregon drifted over much of Oregon in this true color image from late September 2009. The associated aerosol image reveals that the smoke reached as far east as eastern Montana and central Canada, illustrating that pollution travels long distances.

Acquired October 17, 2009, this true-color image shows fires burning along the Queensland coast. Red outlines indicate actively burning fires. With a few exceptions, wind blows smoke from the fires toward the northwest.

Category 5 Hurricane Rick sprawls across the tropical East Pacific in this natural-color image form October 18, 2009.

Acquired October 15, 2009, this true-color image shows fires burning in North Korea, just south of the Chinese border. Individual smoke plumes coalesce into a large plume over the Sea of Japan.

Acquired October 16, 2009, this true-color images shows fires burning south of Perth. The two largest fires produce thick smoke plumes.

Acquired October 16, 2009, this true-color image shows Typhoon Lupit spanning several hundred kilometers as it hovers over the Pacific Ocean east of the Philippines.

Kenya’s Ewaso Nyiro River is nothing more than a pale tan ribbon of sand in this detailed photo-like image from September 27, 2009.

This image shows Parma’s path between October 4 and 14, 2009. It also shows regional rainfall between October 8 and 14.

A tan layer of dust-laden air fills the valleys of the mountains that line the Black Sea in northern Turkey.

The plume of dust that swept over the South Pacific Ocean from Australia on October 13, 2009, was delicate, almost ghostly, compared to the large, dense plume of dust that darkened much of the east Australian coast on September 23.

Soufrière Hills volcano emitted thick ash plumes and exhibited a summit hot spot in mid-October, 2009.

Acquired October 13, 2009, this true-color image shows fires, likely agricultural fires, burning around Lake Malawi.

Dinosaurs are known for their huge size, but a new species discovered in Colarado, USA, is notable for being tiny. The miniature creature from the Jurassic is described in Proceedings of the Royal Society B this week.

The Royal Society is calling for a £2 billion “Grand Challenge” research programme on global food security. A report published today (21 October 2009) says that the UK should lead international research efforts if we are to achieve the massive increase in food crop production that will be required by 2050 to meet global food demands without damaging the environment.

The Independent: Study delves back into 200,000 years of history to demonstrate the devastating impact of global warming

NOAA’s Fisheries Service is seeking comments now through November 19 on its proposed rule to authorize impacts to marine mammals during Navy training exercises around the Mariana Islands. The NOAA proposal includes protective measures designed to minimize effects on marine mammals.

Today, students from Carmel Middle School in Carmel, Ind., welcomed home Christine Hedge, a seventh-grade science teacher who spent six weeks in the Arctic Ocean on board the U.S. Coast Guard icebreaker Healy as part of a multi-year, multi-agency effort to collect seafloor mapping and oceanographic data along the North American Extended Continental Shelf.

The Houston Chronicle: "It's just not the time to be passing legislation that kills jobs in the United States," said Larry Nichols, CEO of Devon Energy and chairman of the American Petroleum Institute.

Telegraph.co.uk: Climate change could cause an economic crisis worse than the Great Depression and two World Wars combined, Gordon Brown, the Prime Minister, has warned.

BBC: Roger Harrabin examines the difficulties faced by China as it puts together a negotiating position for the Copenhagen climate conference.