environment news
Coronavirus severely restricts Antarctic science
Image caption Major science projects in the deep interior and other remote places will be postponed by a year The British Antarctic Survey is scaling back its research in the polar south because of coronavirus. Only essential teams will head back to the continent as it emerges from winter and virtually all science in the …
MV Wakashio: Ship aground off Mauritius begins leaking oil
Image copyright Maxar/EPA Image caption Satellite images show the vessel leaking fuel off Mauritius The island nation of Mauritius has declared a state of emergency after a vessel offshore began leaking oil into the ocean. MV Wakashio ran aground on a coral reef off the Indian Ocean island on 25 July and its crew was …
Climate change: Lockdown has ‘negligible’ effect on temperatures
Image copyright Getty Images Image caption The global restrictions saw roads and motorways hardly used for several months The dramatic drop in greenhouse gases and air pollutants seen during the global lockdown will have little impact on our warming planet say scientists. Their new analysis suggests that by 2030, global temperatures will only be 0.01C …
Beaver families win legal ‘right to remain’
Image copyright Devon Wildlife Trust Image caption A female beaver, having a good scratch … She was one of the first in England to be born in the wild Fifteen families of beavers have been given the permanent “right to remain” on the River Otter in East Devon. The decision was made by the government …
‘Paradise island’ hosts untold botanical treasures
Image copyright RBG Kew Image caption A flower from a species of forest climbers New Guinea has the highest plant diversity of any island in the world, botanists have discovered. The first full inventory of plants on the world’s largest tropical island reveals a treasure trove of flora. More than 13,000 species can be found …
City growth favours animals ‘more likely to carry disease’
Image copyright Getty Images/AFP Image caption Rats are among the winners from our transformation of nature Turning wild spaces into farmland and cities has created more opportunities for animal diseases to cross into humans, scientists have warned. Our transformation of the natural landscape drives out many wild animals, but favours species more likely to carry …
SpaceX: Musk’s ‘Mars ship’ prototype aces 150m test flight
Image copyright SpaceX Image caption The test flight lasted less than a minute A prototype of SpaceX’s next-generation Starship vehicle has successfully flown to an altitude of 150m (500ft). The uncrewed test vehicle rose up on a plume of exhaust before deploying its landing legs and touching down softly. The flight was carried out at …
Climate change: Satellites find new colonies of Emperor penguins
Image copyright Copernicus Data/Sentinel/Esa Image caption Guano stains: A new colony on fast ice that has formed around grounded icebergs Satellite observations have found a raft of new Emperor penguin breeding sites in the Antarctic. The locations were identified from the way the birds’ poo, or guano, had stained large patches of sea-ice. The discovery …
James Lovelock: Gaia theory creator on coronavirus and turning 101
James Lovelock, one of Britain’s greatest scientists, is famous for developing the Gaia hypothesis, which sees the Earth as a self-regulating system. In his long and influential career, he also revealed the chemicals that were destroying the ozone layer. He’s just celebrated his 101st birthday and the BBC’s chief environment correspondent Justin Rowlatt visited him …
Other mammals lose out in panda conservation drive
Image copyright Getty Images Image caption Decades of conservation efforts have led to a rebound in the number of giant pandas Saving the giant panda is one of the big success stories of conservation. Decades of efforts to create protected habitat for the iconic mammal has pulled it back from the brink of extinction. But, …
