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Bulletin of Atomic Scientists turned the hands of the Doomsday clock to two-and-a-half minutes to midnight, the closest the clock has been to midnight since 1953.

UNSW, which pioneered developed of PERC solar technology, is now installing the technology on its roof to power parts of the school.

Offshore wind power costs fall below UK Government and industry target four years ahead of schedule, putting offshore wind on target to become one of cheapest large-scale clean energy sources.

A rare sea turtle discovered washed up on an Anglesey beach is closer to full health after scans reveal why she found it difficult to dive.

Environmental Protection Agency spokesman says employees are anxious after Trump team placed a hold on the release of work and edited website

Fears that Donald Trump’s presidency will suppress climate science at the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) are causing widespread unease, with a spokesman for the administration admitting staff are experiencing “tension and stress” over the transition.

Related: Standing Rock Sioux tribe says Trump is breaking law with Dakota Access order

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My friend Martin Alder, who has died aged 69 from an embolism, was a driving force in building the renewable energy industry in Britain.

Martin led the renewable energy committee of the Association of Electricity Producers from 1992 until 2014, by which time it had become Energy UK. He also served as the association’s vice-chair, supporting renewable energy interests on the board alongside representatives from the largest British electricity companies. He steered this broad church of member companies towards policies that have increased the proportion of UK electricity provided from renewable energy from 2% in 1992 to more than 25% today.

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The name of my friend, Margaret Bowdery, who has died aged 83, will be forever linked with the public footpaths of east Berkshire.

When she moved to Maidenhead in 1964 the paths were in a dire state. An officer from the former Berkshire county council told her that they were not needed and should not be maintained. Margaret was indignant and swiftly called a public meeting to form the East Berkshire Ramblers’ Group, with herself as footpath secretary.

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Embryos that are about 0.001% human could lead to human organs being grown in animals.

The minute hand of the symbolic Doomsday Clock moves to two-and-a-half minutes to midnight.

Accused has ‘no memory’ of shotgun killings in Spanish olive grove

Two forest rangers have been shot dead in the Spanish region of Catalonia after approaching a hunter reportedly carrying an unlicensed shotgun.

The rangers, who worked for the region’s agriculture department, were on a routine mission on Saturday when they met a hunter in an olive grove and asked to see his firearms licence, according to Roger Cole, from the International Rangers Federation.

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A new study identifies an extra 0.1°C of human-caused warming

We don’t want the Earth to warm more than 1.5–2°C (2.7-3.6°F) compared to the pre-industrial climate. These targets are not magical; they are expert judgements about what it takes to avoid some of the more serious effects of climate change. We know the seas will rise (they already are). We know droughts and flooding will get more severe (they already are). We know there will be more heat waves, more intense storms, and ocean acidification (all happening now). We cannot stop some of the changes. But if we keep climate change to these limits, we think we can avoid the worst effects.

Where did these targets come from? Well, I mentioned that they are expert judgements but they are based on science. For instance, we can look into the deep past using ice cores, sediment records, and other tools to see how the past climate changed. We can also look into the future with computer models to predict how the future climate will evolve. Through these tools we can get a sense of how large the impact is if temperatures rise.

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UK astronaut Tim Peake talks about returning to space as the capsule that carried him to the ISS goes on display.

2017 AUSTRALIAN OF THE YEAR: Emeritus Professor Alan Mackay-Sim has been awarded Australian of the Year for stem cell research which has led to groundbreaking advances in the treatment of spinal cord injuries.

The capsule that carried Tim Peake to and from the International Space Station goes on display at London's Science Museum.

A campaign by locals and farming businesses to halt a large opencast mine highlights a far wider conflict over South Africa’s continued addiction to coal

On the horizon are the mountains, verdant rainforest on their well-watered, shaded southern slopes and arid scrub on the dry reverse slopes. Then there is the plain, studded with baobab trees and outcrops. Finally there is the river Limpopo. Beyond is another country: troubled, restive Zimbabwe.

But here in the far north-east of South Africa, there is tension, too. In the Soutpansberg range and on the flat lands beyond, an improbable coalition of local farmers, villagers, big agricultural businessmen and activists are fighting to halt the development of a large opencast mine which, they say, would cause massive harm to the region.

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Sandy, Bedfordshire Nothing seemed to have changed here in months. The stubble of skeleton stems appeared not so much dormant as dead

On one side of a straight farm track, winter held about 2.5m plants in a state of suspense. The land had been tilled and drilled in November, and vestigial warmth in the soil had tempted the first narrow leaves to rise 10cm high in a matter of days. Two months – and numerous visits– later, there was still a green baize, but the leaves stood no taller.

My Scots-Irish ancestor was a coulter, a maker of plough blades. He might have marvelled at the idea of winter wheat. Here was a crop that sprouted in autumn, then needed months in the outdoor fridge to trigger further growth. And it would have its heads up even before spring arrived. I had paced out the length and breadth of this field to estimate this colossal number of plants. Surely here was a miracle – a plant that could grow, slow, then throw out ears of corn under the warming sun of spring?

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Wilderness Society has funds to launch SkyScout craft in Queensland and NSW – and wants a third for Western Australia

Conservationists are raising funds to launch a drone program across three Australian states, aiming to catch farmers conducting broadscale clearing and to share the images with the world.

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Rupture of 138,600 gallons is ‘not a major disaster’ but environmental advocates say it highlights their fears about the Keystone XL and Dakota Access projects

Just a day after Donald Trump signed executive orders to revive the Keystone XL and Dakota Access pipeline projects, a pipeline rupture spilled 138,600 gallons of diesel fuel in northern Iowa.

Magellan Midstream Partners, an Oklahoma company with more than 10,000 miles of oil and ammonium pipeline, acknowledged that the spill began Wednesday morning in Worth County, Iowa, and said it was “unsure of the cause of the incident at this time”.

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Square Mile teams up with Network Rail, coffee chains and employers in effort to prevent 5m cups a year ending up in landfill

A scheme to boost disposable coffee cup recycling has been launched in the City of London in an attempt to prevent 5m cups a year from the Square Mile ending up in landfill.

The City of London Corporation, in conjunction with Network Rail, coffee chains and some employers, are introducing dedicated coffee cup recycling facilities in offices, shops and streets.

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Review extended to content on agency’s website, including details of scientific evidence of climate change and that manmade carbon emissions are to blame

The Trump administration is mandating that any studies or data from scientists at the Environmental Protection Agency undergo review by political appointees before they can be released to the public.

The communications director for Donald Trump’s transition team at the EPA, Doug Ericksen, said on Wednesday the review also extends to content on the federal agency’s website, including details of scientific evidence showing that the Earth’s climate is warming and manmade carbon emissions are to blame.

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