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An animation of the change in sea surface temperature departures from average in the tropical Pacific Ocean, from January 1 to June 8, 2026.

El Nino has officially begun, bringing risk of drought, extreme heat and bushfires

The US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration confirmed the existence of the El Nino, expected to grow to historic strength and turbocharge extreme weather.

  • Seth Borenstein and Caitlin Fitzsimmons

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Raymond Lee was known for his severe leadership style.

Exxon CEO Lee Raymond, the ‘Darth Vader of global warming’, dies at 87

The former head of Exxon Mobil oversaw the oil industry’s biggest corporate merger and brandished hostility towards climate-change activism.

  • Joe Carroll and Kevin Crowley
The NSW government grant covered almost half the cost of the solar panels on this building, which have slashed residents’ electricity bills.

Push to deliver solar to 2.5m apartment dwellers gains traction

Houses are still 10 times more likely to have rooftop solar panels than apartments, but the financial case for solar on strata buildings is better than ever.

  • Caitlin Fitzsimmons
Northern NSW will experience some of the harshest effects of climate change reflecting high exposure to flooding, drought and bushfire, and high reliance on climate-sensitive or outdoor industries.

You’re losing $20k a year because of climate change – and it’s predicted to get worse

As well as the cost of extreme weather and natural disasters, longer-term climatic changes are also a drag on economic productivity, the NSW Net Zero Commission says.

  • Caitlin Fitzsimmons
Neoen owns the Victorian Big Battery outside Geelong in Victoria.

Green energy is shielding Australia from a global power price shock

The rollout of renewables and batteries is buffering Australian electricity bills from the Iran war energy crisis.

  • Nick Toscano and Mike Foley
Renewable energy powered a record share of the grid in the latest data released by the Australian Energy Market Operator.

Investors desert Australia’s renewable rollout at ‘critical juncture’

Investment in the clean energy transition tanked over the past year, collapsing by 50 per cent.

  • Mike Foley and Nick Toscano
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Crowds of visitors at the beach on May 24 in Weymouth, England. An exceptional bank holiday heatwave is bringing record-breaking weather to England with temperatures forecast to climb into the low 30s by Monday.

UK wilts under brutal spring heat as records set to tumble

A “heat dome” is forecast to linger across parts of Europe as the prospects of an El Nino continue to firm.

  • Caitlin Fitzsimmons and Nick O'Malley
Francisco Irazusta, chief executive of InfraBuild, at the Laverton steel mill.

Steel mill becomes nation’s first to switch on mostly green power

A plant on the edge of Melbourne has made a breakthrough in the long-running push to clean up the carbon-heavy manufacturing sector.

  • Nick Toscano
Let’s stick together: how penguins avoid the deep freeze.

Humanity’s endangered, so let’s take a tip from the penguins

In 500 years from now, what will they say about us? Did we dare to choose courage over silence?

  • Natalie Kyriacou
Andrea McGann owns a simple house in Botany, quite a long way from the bay. Her home and contents insurance went up from about $3000 to $6000 last year, now she is being quoted over $19,000 to renew. QBE says she is at high risk of storm or flood damage.

Andrea lives in a simple home in central Sydney. She was quoted $19,000 to insure it

In a sign of how insurance companies are slashing their appetite for climate risk, even homes that have never been flooded are becoming hard to insure.

  • Caitlin Fitzsimmons