A rundown of noteworthy science stories from the past year.

H1N1/Swine Flu

Originally detected in Mexico in early 2009, the H1N1 pandemic became the first major influenza outbreak in 40 years. Nearly 10,000 Americans had died from H1N1 by mid-November, but the total number of casualties for the year was expected to be well below the 30,000 to 90,000 originally forecast by the government. For more details, see the H1N1 Earth Current Special.

Copenhagen Climate Summit

U.N. climate talks ended with a voluntary agreement that fell far short of the conference's original goals. President Obama, who took an active part in the negotiations, said, "I think that people are justified in being disappointed about the outcome in Copenhagen." For more details, see the climate conference homepage.

Mass Extinction Fears

Species around the globe are being threatened with extinction, according to numerous studies. Experts from the IUCN stated that "scientific evidence of a serious extinction crisis is mounting." According to IUCN, 21% of all known mammal species, 30% of amphibians, 70% of plants, and 35% of invertebrates are now at serious risk. More information is available on the IUCN homepage.

Ardi Replaces Lucy

Scientists discovered of the oldest fossil skeleton of a human ancestor, Ardipithecus ramidus, nicknamed Ardi. The find revealed that our forebears underwent a previously unknown stage of evolution more than a million years before Lucy (Australopithecus afarensis) and put the popular "missing link" theory to rest. For more information on Ardi, see this Science magazine special (free site registration required).

One Small Drop for Moon...

There is water on the moon. This was confirmed by NASA's LCROSS mission, which crashed a probe near the moon's south pole. Scientists hope that this discovery will help to support future manned missions to the moon. For more details, see the LCROSS Project Site.

It's Not Heavy--It's Copernicum

The Periodic table has a new element. The "super heavy" element 112 is named copernicium, with the symbol Cp, in honor of the astronomer Nicolaus Copernicus. At 277 times heavier that hydrogen, copernicum is now the periodic table's "heavyweight."

WWII "Samurai Subs" Found

After the end of World War II, the U.S. Navy seized technologically-advanced submarines that Japan had been developing. The subs were scuttled in Hawaiian waters to hide the technology from Soviet spies. In 2009, two of the long lost subs were rediscovered. See also the National Geographic Channel's Hunt for the Samurai Subs website.

Lord of Úcupe (Moche Peru)

In Peru, archaeologists uncovered a treasure trove of ancient wealth belonging to a Moche ruler dubbed the Lord of Ucupe. "Among the finds: 19 golden headdresses, various pieces of jewelry, and two funerary masks, as well as skeletons of two other men and a pregnant woman."

Cloudy with a Chance of Asperatus

Move over cumulus and stratus. Asperatus is the first new cloud type to be defined by meteorologists since the 1950's.

Tweeting for Freedom in Tehran

2009 was the year of the tweets heard 'round the world. In the aftermath of the Iran's contested elections in June, anti-government protestors used Twitter to coordinate their efforts. Meanwhile, the Australian government gave bushfire alerts to citizens and researchers followed public awareness of the H1N1 outbreak using the microblogging site.

Photo credits: CDC (H1N1); IUCN/Tim Laman (lizard); NASA (moon)