Science

Britain could face food shortages as drought continues, farmers warn

Wheat is half normal height, while England is seeing earliest ever harvest as farmers battle to salvage what they can of their crops Britain could face shortages of certain foods after parts of England faced a punishing drought, the…

Brazil model rules out 92% of Amazon when tracing illegal timber

Brazilian scientists are innovating with an isotopic mapping model designed to tackle illegal logging head-on. This novel forensic tool examines atomic signatures within trees, allowing them to trace the origination of timber effectively…

Watch: Firefighting helicopters collide mid-air as Greece battles massive wildfire

New Orleans uses 9,000 Christmas trees to restore coastal marsh

New Orleans is giving used Christmas trees a second life by dropping them into coastal marshes to help slow land loss. The bundled trees trap sediment, reduce wave energy and support marsh grass growth. Scientists say the method helps…

Fire spread deeper into Athens region

Two firefighting helicopters have collided while battling a wildfire west of Athens in Greece. The Greek fire service says each helicopter was carrying a two-person crew, and a search-and-rescue operation is now underway. Greece is…

The ‘great net zero debate’ was anything but – so beware Coalition claims of renewables taking over ‘two Tasmanias’

One expert described Nationals leader Matt Canavan’s claim of land used for clean energy as ‘plain wrong and plain silly’ Sign up for climate and environment editor Adam Morton’s free Clear Air newsletter here Get our breaking news email…

6.5 million Americans live in landslide danger zones, study finds

A recent study identifies millions of Americans at risk from landslide hazards, revealing that densely populated eastern states have higher exposure. The challenges mount for rural communities when recovery from landslides is needed…

Bordeaux wildfires force 220,000 evacuations; wine damage may emerge later

France's worst wildfires in decades now threaten Bordeaux's famed wine production. Smoke taint can subtly damage grapes, affecting taste and value for years. This danger arrives during a sensitive ripening period for the grapes. The wine…

Chinese rocket scientists find ‘most effective’ way to nuke a doomsday asteroid

Chinese researchers believe they may have found the most effective way to destroy or deflect a large, Earth-threatening asteroid – by burying a nuclear bomb beneath its surface and exploding it. The idea is to first slam a metal penetrator…

‘There’s no nurdle fairy’: thousands mobilise to clean up plastic spillage in north-east England

Volunteers painstakingly gather plastic pellets washing up on beaches after ship collision on 19 July “You’ve got a local community that really cares about the coastline,” said Alice Laverty, reflecting on the huge army of volunteers who…

South Korea has hottest day on record amid extreme weather globally

Scientists say the climate crisis driven by human activity is making heatwaves more frequent.

Extreme heat wave across Europe fuels wildfires in France, Greece, drought in Hungary

Hungary's sole nuclear power plant to shut for the first time in over four decades due to drying out of the Danube; in Israel, temperatures in Jordan Valley hit 113°F on Saturday The post Extreme heat wave across Europe fuels wildfires in…