Science

Summer and water

This content was published on Jun 22, 2011 Summer, according to astronomers, starts on June 21 at 7.16pm and ends on September 23 at 11.05am. It therefore lasts 93 days, 15 hours and 48 minutes. Summer is the longest season and is five days longer than winter. Switzerland offers plenty of opportunities to cool down in lakes and rivers and enjoy it.

Climate protestors on trial in Denmark

This content was published on Jun 20, 2011 The Greenpeace members are on trial after gate crashing a dinner party given by Queen Margrethe of Denmark. Once inside, they held up signs demanding action to stop global warming. Their banners read: “Politicians talk, leaders act.” Two of the protestors posed as the president and first lady of Georgia. One of the Swiss took…

Climate solutions

Bern bears find new home in Romania

This content was published on Jun 16, 2011 The female twin cubs were born in the Bern Bear Park in December 2009. As mother bears reject their cubs when they are old enough to survive on their own, they must be found a new home. A spokesman for the bear park said Ursina and Berna would be moved to a reserve near Zarnesti,…

Climate solutions

Cloud covers views of lunar eclipse

This content was published on Jun 16, 2011 Eclipse enthusiasts in the French-speaking western regions in cantons Valais and Jura had a clear view of the alignment of the earth’s shadow crossing the moon between 9.20pm and 11pm local time. But cloud cover prevented much of the rest of the country from seeing the eclipse, a spokesman for MeteoSwiss said. The next lunar…

Climate solutions

Green firms rewarded with CO2 tax payout

This content was published on Jun 15, 2011 Around SFr180 million ($212 million) will be distributed among firms in June, with each receiving SFr64.40 per SFr100,000 spent on salaries. The companies must use renewable energy or fossil fuels efficiently. The biggest firms will profit most, says the government. The tax has been collected since 2008 from fossil fuels such as heating oil and…

Climate solutions

Deep-sea submersibles explore Lake Geneva

This content was published on Jun 14, 2011 The Elemo programme, comprising 16 projects, is bringing together researchers from around the world to better understand the largest body of water in Switzerland. This week sees researchers from Geneva University and the Eawag Aquatic Research Institute exploring the mysterious “canyons of the Rhone”, a series of sediment cliffs formed by the River Rhone at the…

Climate solutions

Protesters urge swift closure of nuclear plant

This content was published on Jun 13, 2011 The demonstrators gathering at the site of the plant on Monday said serious safety risks of the reactor were threatening more than half a million residents in the region. Speakers said it was a scandal that the authorities continued to ignore reality and had no emergency evacuation plans in case of a disaster at the…

Climate solutions

Spring was too warm and dry

This content was published on Jun 2, 2011 The national weather service said the first 11 days of April were particularly warm for that time of year, with parts of southern Switzerland setting a record with some days above 31°C. On the whole, temperatures were between three and four degrees warmer than the spring average. MeteoSwiss said March and April, in particular, were…

The Edelweiss – Switzerland’s national flower?

This content was published on May 25, 2011 Everybody knows the Edelweiss, which grows high in the Alps and is regarded in Switzerland as a national symbol. But how much do the Swiss really know about the Edelweiss? For the first time, an exhibition and a book explore the myths and paradoxes of this queen of alpine flowers. Did you know that the…

Climate solutions

Shale gas could remain out of reach in the ground

This content was published on May 23, 2011 The technique for extracting this natural gas, known as hydraulic fracturing, or fracking, has come under scrutiny for causing pollution and adversely affecting water supplies. The concerns are such that one canton, Fribourg, in April suspended all authorisations to prospect for shale gas on its territory for an undetermined period. A u-turn by the government…

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Summer and water

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Climate protestors on trial in Denmark

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Bern bears find new home in Romania

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Cloud covers views of lunar eclipse

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Green firms rewarded with CO2 tax payout

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Deep-sea submersibles explore Lake Geneva

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Protesters urge swift closure of nuclear plant

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Spring was too warm and dry

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The Edelweiss – Switzerland’s national flower?

More

Shale gas could remain out of reach in the ground

Popular Stories

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