-
Swedish producer is trying to to accelerate the process of extracting the elements vital for hi-tech products
It is deep winter with temperatures dropping to -20C. The sun never rises above the horizon, instead bathing Sweden’s most northerly town of Kiruna in a blue crepuscular light, or “civil twilight” as it is known, for two or three hours a day stretching visibility a few metres, notwithstanding heavy snow.
But 900 metres below the arctic conditions, a team of 20 gather every day, forgoing the brief glimpse of natural light and spearheading the EU’s race to mine its own rare earths.Despite identification of several deposits around the continent, and some rare earth refineries including Solvay in France, there are no operational rare earth mines in Europe.
Continue reading...
-
As climate breakdown puts millions more people at flood risk, traumatised homeowners are finding common voice
Darren Ridley is always on high alert, constantly checking his phone for rain warnings – even in the middle of the night.
“Our whole family is permanently on edge,” he says. “If we hear rain, day or night, we’re up and checking the house. I can’t sleep without replaying our flood plan in my head for weaknesses.”
Continue reading...
-
Alnmouth, Northumberland: They were once the rocky abode of a burrowing worm, and are normally found at sea not on the beach
Each time we visit this beach, the landscape of the strand has changed. Giant boulders are exposed or disappear completely. Bladderwrack accumulates in spongy piles – tricky to walk on – then is taken back by the sea to leave smooth clean sand. Sometimes there’s sea coal, at other times heaps of periwinkles and limpets. Wind and tides are forever shaping and reshaping the coast.
Today, after a turbulent sea, there are crunchy razor clams underfoot. Sharp-edged, they were named after the cut-throat razors used for wet shaves. These are molluscs that drag themselves beneath the sand using strong muscular “feet”. To make their downward passage smoother they shoot out a jet of water, which led to the delightful Scottish name of spoots. Their pale shells stand out against the background of sea‑moulded nuggets of coal, along with broken crab claws and the spiral skeletons of whelks.
Continue reading...
-
Richest 1% took 10 days while wealthiest 0.1% needed just three days to exhaust annual carbon budget, study shows
The world’s richest 1% have used up their fair share of carbon emissions just 10 days into 2026, analysis has found.
Meanwhile, the richest 0.1% took just three days to exhaust their annual carbon budget, according to the research by Oxfam.
Continue reading...
-
Severe weather, driven by two low-pressure systems merging, is expected to bring power outages and hazardous road conditions
Atlantic Canada is under widespread weather warnings for snow, freezing rain and strong winds as a winter storm moves across the region. In Newfoundland, up to 40cm of snow fell on Sunday, along with wind gusts of about 74mph, creating blizzard-like conditions.
The storm began late on Sunday and is forecast to persist until Tuesday morning. Freezing rain warnings are in place across Nova Scotia, including Annapolis and Kings counties, while parts of New Brunswick could get up to 25cm of snow on Monday.
Continue reading...
-
Unlike in food, there is no upper limit on the amount of pesticide residue levels in flowers. But after French officials linked the death of a florist’s child to exposure in pregnancy, many in the industry are now raising the alarm
On a cold morning in December 2024, florist Madeline King was on a buying trip to her local wholesaler when a wave of dizziness nearly knocked her over. As rows of roses seemed to rush past her, she tried to focus. She quickly picked the blooms she needed and left.
I’m not doing this any more, she thought.
Continue reading...
-
Experts and community trying to untangle mystery of outburst that saw water travel almost 10km overland into a bigger lake
Manoel Dixon had just finished dinner one night last May when a phone dinged nearby with a Facebook message.
Dixon, 26, was at his family’s hunting camp near their northern Quebec home town of Waswanipi. They knew the fellow hunter who was messaging Dixon’s father, but what he wrote didn’t make sense.
Continue reading...
-
Cyclists prepare for Australia’s big race by training in extreme temperatures – and they have noticed a contradiction in the relationship with Santos
The first time Maeve Plouffe trained in the heat, she was in Paris in the lead-up to the Olympics. It was supposed to be an easy ride to help get used to the conditions. When she returned, she fainted from heat sickness.
“That’s how badly I was affected,” she says. “Racing in extreme heat is like playing chicken with your environment.”
Continue reading...
-
‘I don’t think anyone realised how bad it would get,’ says one resident, who says she might need a boat or a helicopter
Ashleigh Brieffies is standing on the front steps of her home in central Queensland on Monday afternoon as knee-deep water sweeps over the grounds of her property.
“If it comes up another 2ft we’ll probably be underwater,” says Brieffies, who lives in Clermont. “I think we’ll be looking for a boat or a chopper.”
Continue reading...
-
My Flemish giant bunny loved chomping on carrots, computer cables and my skirting board – and being walked on a leash. When I suffered a medical emergency, she jumped into action
The first time I saw a Flemish giant rabbit was at TruckFest in Peterborough in 2002. Among a sprawling maze of stalls at the East of England showground, I was led into a tent filled with the biggest rabbits I’d ever laid eyes on. I’d never heard of Flemish giants before, but I knew then that I needed one. I couldn’t have predicted in that moment that one of these beautiful creatures might save my life.
Dory was a baby when I met her, but even as a bunny she was already bigger than most normal-sized rabbits. We brought her home in a cat carrier, but she soon outgrew it. By the time she was fully grown, she weighed nearly 10kg, and I was walking her on a leash like a dog.
Continue reading...
