Kasha Patel

Washington, D.C.

Editor and writer focusing on weather, climate change and the environment.

Education: Wake Forest University, BS in Chemistry; Boston University, MS in Science Journalism

Kasha Patel is the deputy weather editor for the Capital Weather Gang at The Washington Post, covering weather, climate change and the environment. Before joining The Post, she produced news stories, videos and features about the Earth sciences, climate change and satellite research for NASA. She specialized in topics at the intersection of the environment and public health, such as tracking infectious diseases from space. Patel also has significant on-screen experience, appearing on the Weather Channel and BBC, among others. She hosted an award-winning miniseries on NASA TV highlighting Ear
Latest from Kasha Patel

Underground climate change is helping sink the land beneath us

In some locations, the excessive heat is causing deformations in the land and destabilizing buildings.

July 11, 2023

Why tires — not tailpipes — are spewing more pollution from your cars

Planning a summer road trip? What to know about two major sources of pollution coming from your car: tires and brakes.

July 9, 2023

Wildfires are bad for air quality. Fireworks can make the smoke worse.

Swirling soot from Canadian blazes is likely to compound the usual pyrotechnics pollution on July 4. Health experts urge caution.

July 3, 2023

The shocking things scientists found about this extremely powerful volcanic eruption

The volcano has already broken several records. Now, a new study reveals more details of this puzzling event by analyzing lightning data.

June 25, 2023

    LED lights are meant to save energy. They’re creating glaring problems

    Cities are swapping traditional light bulbs for more energy-efficient brighter LEDs. The rise of these blue LEDs are creating problems for our night sky and our health.

    June 23, 2023

    Scientists have a controversial theory for how — and how fast — Earth formed

    In a new study released in Nature this week, researchers say Earth formed within just 3 million years. That’s notably faster than previous estimates that place the timeline as high as 100 million years.

    June 16, 2023

    What’s actually in all that smoke you’re breathing

    The exact ingredients vary, but all wildfire smoke clouds are hazardous to people and the environment.

    June 8, 2023

    Images and video show Hawaii’s Kilauea volcano erupting again

    Hawaii’s second-largest volcano began erupting Wednesday morning, displaying a fiery light show after three months of inactivity.

    June 7, 2023

    Researchers find why San Andreas fault hasn’t caused a big earthquake in L.A. — yet

    Over the past 1,000 years, earthquakes at the southern San Andreas fault occurred when water levels of a large nearby lake were high.

    June 7, 2023

      How cities are trying to stop their land from sinking

      Some cities are putting water back into the ground to try to stabilize sinking ground.

      June 5, 2023