Ecosystems reliant on groundwater are vulnerable to water depletion and climate change, but often their locations are unknown. A map of groundwater-dependent ecosystems across global drylands provides essential information to advance the protection of these biologically diverse ecosystems and the rural societies that depend on them.

A glaring gap in the portfolio of reactions used to synthesize libraries of organic compounds has been filled by the advent of a general method for joining together 3D molecular fragments — a boon for pharmaceutical research.

Laser-induced imaging of radioactive elements was used to work out the age of an ancient cave painting on the Indonesian island of Sulawesi. The results reveal that the narrative scene is 51,200 years old, making it the earliest known example of representational art. This study challenges previous dating methods and suggests a deeper origin for human image-making and storytelling.

Considerable uncertainties surround whether and how Earth could bounce back from a transgression of the temperature limits agreed in Paris. An analysis of overconfidence in models suggests that it might be safer to avoid such a path.