Climate & environment

The Baltimore area broke at least two heat records last week. This week, conditions should be cooler.

Howard County residents have voted to name a new tunnel-boring machine “Rocky.” Its first order of business is to cut through 5,000 feet of granite, part of an effort to tame floodwaters in Ellicott City.

I joined more than 150 people Sunday as part of the inaugural Harbor Splash organized by the Waterfront Partnership of Baltimore.

Baltimore's Waterfront Partnership is trying to make the Inner Harbor swimmable. More than 150 people jumped in Sunday morning to prove it's possible.

If the weather cooperates, on Tuesday she will enter the bay near the Chesapeake Bay Bridge and swim more than 24 miles to the Harborplace Amphitheater in Baltimore’s Inner Harbor, one of her longest swims ever — a never-before-done swim and the longest anyone has attempted in the harbor in decades.

Cooling centers are being opened across the region this weekend, offering air-conditioned spaces and water. You can check this map to find one in your area.

A wave of extreme heat has come to the region. Here’s how to stay safe.

The National Weather Service for Baltimore-Washington has issued an excessive heat warning for Saturday. The weather service said dangerous heat is possible with heat index values between 105-110 degrees.

The Carlyle Group is funding the largest depot for electric- and hydrogen-powered buses in the U.S. in Montgomery County. Local officials there are doubling down on their efforts to combat climate change.

Long a sad tale of neglect, the Jabez Branch may represent the future — told through an $8 million project that incorporates ideas about climate change, water quality and habitat into a mile and a half of restored waterway.

The mapped database can include all sorts of details about every single tree — its approximate age, its condition, whether it has lightning protection installed and when it was last maintained.

Beginning Sunday, a NASA research team will fly a small aircraft over Baltimore for about two weeks to gather data on emissions and air quality.

Joseph H. Brown Jr. Funeral Home is already gearing up for what he likens to a “death care spa” to his West Baltimore location.

The exhibit, including the walkable floating dock, spans to 10,000 feet. Admission will be free, and it will operate the same hours as the aquarium, which is open between 9 a.m. and 6 p.m. from Sunday through Thursday and until 9 p.m. on Fridays and Saturdays.

The stench can be overpowering. A rotten egg cloud so sour it causes headaches and watery eyes. Residents weep as they describe the feelings of nausea and helplessness, sick with the frustration of suffering this miasma.

High temperatures could reach 96 degrees in Baltimore next week.

Stella the Hawk, who escaped after a tree fell on her enclosure at Oregon Ridge, was safely recaptured in Perry Hall on Sunday. She lost a lot of weight, but is regaining her strength at Phoenix Wildlife Rescue.

Properly implementing Gov. Wes Moore's executive order to establish air standards for heating, ventilation and air conditioning systems and water heaters will mean healthier Maryland communities, the president of the Green & Healthy Homes Initiative says.

Residents keep finding and rescuing young herons in this small urban park.

The seventh annual Floatilla attracted 350 participants from nine states. They made a five-mile round trip from Canton to the Inner Harbor to tout healthy and clean water recreation. Proceeds from the event will also go to support people impacted by the collapse of the Francis Scott Key Bridge.