📖+10 XP
🎧+10 XP
✅+15 XP
Level A1 – BeginnerCEFR A1
2 min
73 words
- A new study looks at pollution and warming.
- The study finds pollution is not the main cause.
- The planet is gaining heat now.
- In the north, air has become cleaner.
- Cleaner air lets more sun reach the ground.
- In the south, fires and a volcano made more particles.
- Those particles make clouds brighter and reflect sunlight.
- The north and south changes go in opposite ways.
- They mostly cancel out and do little worldwide.
Difficult words
- pollution — dirty air or water that harms nature
- warming — a rise in the planet's average temperature
- particle — a very small piece of solid or liquidparticles
- reflect — to send light or heat back away
- volcano — a mountain that can send out lava
Tip: hover, focus or tap highlighted words in the article to see quick definitions while you read or listen.
Discussion questions
- Is the air clean where you live?
- Do you see many clouds near your home?
- Have you ever seen a volcano?
Related articles
16 Dec 2025
Electric car batteries can power homes and cut costs
A University of Michigan study finds that using electric vehicle batteries to power homes (vehicle-to-home, V2H) can save owners thousands of dollars and reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Results differ across regions and the technology is still being tested.
3 Nov 2025
27 Mar 2026
28 Mar 2026
Disposable gloves can cause false microplastic counts
University of Michigan researchers found that coatings on disposable nitrile and latex gloves can leave stearate residues that look like microplastics. The contamination can affect filters and slides used for air, water and other samples.
26 Apr 2026