Klimawandel

The new year is young and many hopes are still pinned on 2021. May it be better than 2020, more normal, less characterized by uncertainty. Twitter memes and feature articles look back with disgust and forward with optimism and cynicism in equal measure, spurred on by the turn of the year, which may only be one night among many, but is nevertheless highly symbolic if you are looking for a reason to leave the past behind.

Climate protection doesn't just mean driving less and consuming more sustainably. Climate protection often starts with breakfast and goes far beyond dinner. But are vegans the better climate protectors? And why shouldn't we neglect the soil?

Climate protection, environmental protection, nature conservation. All the same thing - or not? We set out in search of an answer and asked ourselves whether doing without plastic actually protects the climate.

In line with the still not at all wintry weather situation, the weather services of Germany, Austria and Switzerland have stated in a joint press release that winters are becoming milder and that there is less and less snow, especially at low altitudes. Rising temperatures mean that proportionately more winter precipitation is falling than rain.

Corona caused us to throw a few plans overboard in 2020. The pandemic has dominated everyday life and everything else has suddenly become unimportant. Nevertheless, we ask ourselves the question: why should we continue to ski as environmentally friendly as possible in winter 20/21?

Somehow it feels like winter is just beginning, at least if you are traveling in the areas currently blessed with fresh snow. Winter in terms of meteorological statistics, on the other hand, has come to an end at the turn of the month and the weather services are presenting their reviews.

Every two years, the International Snow Science Workshop (ISSW) brings together scientists and practitioners from a wide range of different, but always snow-related, subject areas. New findings and research results are presented in various thematic blocks - so-called sessions. We break the whole thing down into more or less digestible morsels and summarize the sessions of the ISSW2018 for you every two weeks.

In the last few days, the WeatherBlog has often heard the question of whether the current weather misery can be blamed on climate change. It's somehow to blame for everything and in the meantime we've often read that it's causing more "extreme" or simply more persistent weather conditions. So what's this all about again?

At the Arc'teryx Academy in the Giessereihalle in Zurich, you can spend the whole day in the spirit of outdoor and mountain sports. The day's program includes workshops on climbing/bouldering, climate research and outdoor photography, while the evening program is filled with film screenings, lectures and, of course, a party. And best of all: admission is free! Here is the exact schedule of the Arc'teryx Academy.

A strong westerly flow will bring fronts and intermediate highs in rapid alternation. For the most part, it will remain too warm for the lowlands, but there will be more snow at higher altitudes. The western Alps are favored, in the east there will only be grazing snow.

Mountain glaciers and the seasonal snow cover play an important role in the local and regional water balance. When they change, the hydrological conditions also change - not only in the direct catchment areas, but possibly also far downstream. What exactly does this mean and what are the consequences, apart from "it's bad for the ski resorts" and "it looks stupid"?

"Skiing is politics - we cannot escape the world we live in": this was the headline of the American Powder Magazine in 2017. And we are doing the same in 2019. Skiing is politics. Or is it? Our author Lisa went in search of clues.