News
December 9, 2020
Manmade mass now outweighs life on Earth: study. For the first time in history manmade materials now likely outweigh all life on Earth, scientists said Wednesday in research detailing the "crossover point" at which humanity's footprint is heavier than that of the natural world.
December 5, 2020
Denmark to end oil, gas extraction in North Sea. Denmark has decided to end all oil and gas activities in the North Sea by 2050 and has cancelled its latest licensing round, saying the country is “now putting an end to the fossil fuel era.”
The Danish Parliament voted late Thursday to end offshore gas and oil extraction, which had started in 1972 and made the country the largest producer in the European Union. Non EU-members Norway and Britain are larger producers, with a bigger presence in the North Sea.
November 28, 2020
Mine ponds amplify mercury risks in Peru's Amazon. The proliferation of pits and ponds created in recent years by miners digging for small deposits of alluvial gold in Peru's Amazon has dramatically altered the landscape and increased the risk of mercury exposure for indigenous communities and wildlife, a new study shows.
November 26, 2020
The Russian Academy of Sciences (RAS) will study the issue of mining in space. An expert working group on space resources will be established in the structure of the RAS Space Council. It will address both scientific and legal issues of mining in space.
Despite the fact that earlier Dmitry Bisikalo, the director of the RAS Institute of Astronomy reported that with modern technologies, extraction of resources in space is simply unprofitable; the RAS will nevertheless look into these issues in detail.
October 30, 2020
Arctic methane deposits 'starting to release', scientists say. Expedition says preliminary findings indicate that new source of greenhouse gas off East Siberian coast has been triggered. Scientists say they have found evidence that frozen methane deposits in the Arctic Ocean have started to be released over a large area of the continental slope off the East Siberian coast, the Guardian can reveal.
October 18, 2020
'Hint That Life Exists' On Venus Reportedly Discovered by Scientists. Researchers suggested that their findings could be confirmed by a mission to Venus that would collect samples from the planet's "surface and cloud". A team of scientists has announced the discovery of a certain amino acid in Venus' atmosphere, which may hint at the presence of life on that planet, Science Alert reports.
September 22, 2020
Southern hemisphere could see up to 30% less rain at end of the century
Projections based on climate models for the mid-Pliocene Warm Period (about 3 million years ago) suggest that countries in the tropical and subtropical southern hemisphere, including Brazil, may face longer droughts in the future. Annual rainfall may decrease as much as 30% compared with current levels.
September 21, 2020
Carbon emissions of richest 1% more than double those of poorest half of the world – Oxfam
The carbon emissions of the richest one percent are more than double those of the three billion people who made up the poorest half of humanity during a critical 25-year period of unprecedented emissions growth, according to a new Oxfam report published today.
September 14, 2020
Hints of life on Venus: Scientists detect phosphine molecules in high cloud decks
An international team of astronomers, led by Professor Jane Greaves of Cardiff University, today announced the discovery of a rare molecule—phosphine—in the clouds of Venus. On Earth, this gas is only made industrially, or by microbes that thrive in oxygen-free environments.
July 16, 2020
Deputies of the Russian Federation State Duma have passed bill in its third reading , which release the Baikal-Amur and Trans-Siberian (Trans Sib) railroad construction projects from quite a few ecological restrictions, in particular, permitting clear-cut of the Baikal forests up till December 31, 2024.