Bee with light

A British photographer has achieved his "Holy Grail" of capturing the Aurora Borealis, or Northern Lights, over an erupting volcano in Iceland. Max Milligan, 56, braved boiling lava, noxious gases and temperatures of up to 1200C (2192F) but the travel book photographer's results are as spectacular as the story that goes with them. Mr Milligan had to attach himself to a search and rescue team and wait until everyone else had been cleared out of the area on the night in question and he was the only photographer left. Having been allowed back up to the mountain by the team, he managed to catch the picture he really wanted at 2.58am, just a couple of minutes before it became too light and the chance was gone. Mr Milligan said: "It was my holy grail and it was so dark, I didn't know I'd got it until about 24 hours later when I uploaded it to a laptop." Advertisement He waited, he said, "six years for an eruption and six weeks [after arriving in Iceland] … [Read more...] about Photographer captures his ‘Holy Grail’ of the Northern Lights over an erupting volcano

How much of the world's emissions are down to aviation? How much of the greenhouse gases being pumped into the atmosphere are coming from our homes, whether in the form of the electricity we use or the gas that goes in our boilers? What about deforestation, or agriculture, or manufacturing? These questions are worth pondering because it turns out the answers are actually rather surprising. Follow live updates from Joe Biden's climate change summit Advertisement Indeed, there is a serious disconnect between the stuff you often see depicted on screens and in newspapers to symbolise the environmental movement, and what the data actually tells you about the realities of carbon emissions. Did you know, for instance, that we create far, far more greenhouse gas emissions through the manufacture of cement than the entire total emissions from the aviation industry? More from Daily Climate Show Joe Biden commits to slashing US greenhouse gas emissions … [Read more...] about Climate change: Net-zero cannot be achieved by planting a few trees or keeping lights switched off a bit more

A visit to an ice hotel isn't exactly the first choice if you prefer to spend your holidays under palm trees in warmer climes. But if you can manage to overcome your fear of freezing, you'll be rewarded with a unique natural experience. Visitors to this hotel spend the night amid ice and snow around 200 kilometers (about 125 miles) north of the Arctic Circle, in the Swedish locality of Jukkasjärvi. Ice-cold experience: A night in the Icehotel DW reporter Hendrik Welling found out what that feels like. For the "Europe to the Maxx" in DW's magazine "Euromaxx," he regularly explores places in Europe that hold a record all their own. He traveled to Europe's oldest ice hotel in Sweden. Even the journey by snowmobile through the frozen landscape was a bit of an adventure. Find out how he experienced the night in sub-zero temperatures ― and whether he was lucky enough to see the famous northern lights ― in the video. From art gallery to hotel Everything began in 1989, with an … [Read more...] about A night in an ice hotel

Fallon Fox, the only openly-transgender MMA fighter, is to have a movie made about her life. Fox's biopic will be produced amid the backdrop of US states legislating against transgender people in the US, with many denying them the right to play sports with the gender they identify as. When Fox first started the sport, she had initially held back that she was transgender over fears it could end her career if she was outed. Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player Why trans people are self-medicating hormones However, a journalist threatened to out her to the world, so instead she revealed that she was transgender on her own terms in an interview with Outsports and Sports Illustrated in 2013. After revealing she was transgender, debates ensued that questioned whether someone who was assigned male at birth should be allowed to fight in the women's MMA leagues. Advertisement In a statement, the now-retired fighter said: … [Read more...] about Transgender MMA fighter Fallon Fox to have film made about her life

BORIS Johnson will today warn US President Joe Biden and other leaders they must slash emissions this decade or be remembered as the people who failed the planet. The PM will urge them to match the UK's target of net zero by 2050 at the President's major climate summit this afternoon. Speaking on Earth Day, he will say: "The UK has shown it's possible to slash emissions while growing the economy. If we want to stop climate change, then this must be the year." It comes as MPs from across the political spectrum have today come together to vow new green goals to help save the planet. To celebrate Earth Day with an international day of action, Britain's politicians have vowed to go even greener to combat the climate emergency. Later today the US President will host a huge international summit online to address world leaders and call on them to do more to save the world before it's too late. He and the PM will push others to match the UK's ambitious climate targets, … [Read more...] about Earth Day 2021: Boris Johnson leads climate calls as MPs come together to make pledges to save the planet