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15 incredible environmental images that captured the world in 2017

From an usually active hurricane season in the Gulf of Mexico to uncontrollable wildfires in California, the planet endured a lot in 2017.

From an usually active hurricane season in the Gulf of Mexico to record-breaking wildfires in California, the planet endured a lot in 2017.

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Take a look back at some of the biggest environmental changes, events, and catastrophes from the year through these 15 impactful images.

California's Oroville dam — the tallest in the United States — collapsed in February.

From 2011 to 2016, California underwent the worst drought the state had seen in 1,200 years. But after an unprecedented amount of rain in late 2016 and early 2017, the Oroville area's water levels began to rise.

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In early February, the Oroville dam reached water-level capacity, which caused a giant hole to open in the middle of the spillway.

Early 2017 temperatures ranked as the hottest in 122 years for the contiguous US.

From April 2016 to March 2017, the US went through an unusually warm period that brought record-high temperatures to the Lower 48 states (everywhere but Alaska and Hawaii), according to the National Oceanic and

A groundbreaking study warned that continuing to burn fossil fuels at the current rate could bring atmospheric carbon dioxide to its highest concentration in 50 million years.

the study published in April, if the world continues to emit greenhouse gases at its current pace,

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This fall, the Trump administration took steps towards repealing the Clean Power Plan, which was e

Another alarming study found that the rate of global sea-level rise may have nearly tripled since the 1990s.

Throughout 2017, multiple studies suggested that global sea-level rise is becoming even more dire than previous estimates.

In April, one such study suggested that from 1990 to 2012, the rate of sea-level rise tripled from

Some scientists point to increased ice loss from Greenland and parts of Antarctica, made worse by rising temperatures, as one root cause. Rising sea levels put ocean-side communities at risk of flooding.

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Two controversial oil pipelines — the Dakota Access Pipeline and the Keystone XL — were approved.

Protests against the DAPL and Keystone XL pipelines, which began in 2014, continued in 2017.

The Trump administration officially approved both pipelines this year. The DAPL started delivering oil in May, and the Keystone pipeline extension's construction was greenlit in November.

Opponents to the pipelines argued that each one will lead to more CO2 being emitted, and harm local wildlife, farmland, and water sources.

In early November, the existing Keystone pipeline spilled over 200,000 gallons of oil.

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In June, Trump announced that the US will withdraw from the Paris agreement on climate change.

agreement would make the country the only one in the world not signed on to the accord.

The agreement, created in 2015, set a global goal to keep the planet from warming by more than 2 degrees Celsius above preindustrial levels. After that threshold, scientists say, the planet will see irreversible consequences including unpredictable superstorms, dramatic heat waves, increased wildfires, and severe drought.

A Delaware-size iceberg broke off from Antarctica's Larsen C ice shelf in July.

A giant crack in Antarctica's Larsen C caused a 1.1-trillion-ton iceberg — the third-largest in recorded history — to break off and float away.

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Scientists say that the ice chunk, called A-68, will likely lie in the ocean for years until it ultimately melts into sea water.

A-68 won't noticeably raise sea levels, but the rest of the shelf is now less stable than it was before the rift. If its accompanying glacial ice collapses, sea levels could rise by up to four inches.

A total solar eclipse captured America's attention in August.

In August, those within treated to a total solar eclipse (

The Gulf of Mexico experienced a record-breaking hurricane season.

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The 2017 Atlantic hurricane season was " target="_blank"extremely active," according to the definition used by the National Hurricane Center.

In August, Hurricane Harvey brought unprecedented rain levels to Houston area, and Irma plowed through theVirgin Islandsslamming into

This summer and fall, monsoons left some cities in India, Nepal, Bangladesh, and Pakistan underwater.

Communities in India, Nepal, Bangladesh, and Pakistan suffered an intense monsoon season that began in late August. Flooding destroyed buildings, breached dams, and killed more than 1,400 people across South Asia.

Meanwhile, more than 500,000 Rohingya refugees have fled to Bangladesh due to violence in Myanmar's Rakhine state, leading to a humanitarian crisis in the region.

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A powerful earthquake jolted central Mexico in September.

A 7.1-magnitude earthquake killed more than 200 people in Mexico on September 19.

California endured the deadliest series of wildfires in the state's history throughout September, October, and December.

In 2017, more than 9,050 wildfires raged across California and burned more than 1.2 million acres of land, according to the state's Department of Forestry and Fire Protection.

In October, 250 wildfires ripped through Northern California, causing more than $9.4 billion in insured property damages. At least 100 people were injured and 44 people were killed in the fires that month.

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Strong Santa Ana winds ignited another series of wildfires in Southern California in December. More than 212,000 people evacuated, and the largest fires decimated over 1,000 structures. The Thomas wildfire in Ventura and Santa Barbara Counties is now considered the largest in California's history.

An earthquake near the Iran-Iraq border killed more than 500 people in November.

In November, the Mount Agung volcano erupted in Bali, Indonesia.

On the Indonesian island of Bali,

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As many as 100,000 locals in 22 villages were living in the expanded danger zone, Reuters reported

In December, the Trump administration announced it will shrink the Bears Ears National Monument in Utah by 85%.

Decreasing the size of Bears Ears National Monument by 85% would make the move the largest reduction of a national monument in American history.

The Trump administration also announced plans to cut Utah's Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument in half.

Environmentalists and some native nations say Trump's move will destroy artifacts of national heritage in these areas and threaten some 100,000 sites of archaeological importance. The decision will likely spur a lengthy legal battle.

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