Climate Change: Greenland's Ice Melting Also from Below
Each year, Greenland's ice sheet diminishes by more than 200 billion metric tons. Responsible for the melting of the ice sheet are not only increasing air and water temperatures. A hitherto neglected factor in this occurrence is Greenland's upper stratum, its uppermost layer of earth, which is very thin in some areas. In these thin areas, the heat flow from inside the Earth melts the ice. This influences in particular the effluent of large amounts of ice from within the ice sheet.
Obesity: Identifying the Causes
Across the globe, some 250 million people suffer from the medical condition of excess body fat. Researchers from the Max Delbrueck Center for Molecular Medicine (MDC) Berlin-Buch, a member of the Helmholtz Association, collaborate with scientists from Brazil to find out more about the causes of this condition. An interview with Michael Bader, Head of the Research Group "Molecular Biology of Peptide Hormones" at the MDC.
Energy Transition: Our Best Power Plant
The sun provides us with free energy. Yet one problem remains unsolved: what happens with all the energy we capture. After all, private households and the industry need the largest amount of electricity at just such a time when the sun does not shine very much and the wind does not blow with force.
Podcast: Solar Fuels
How to most effectively create energy sources directly from sunlight? The Helmholtz-Zentrum Berlin für Materialien und Energie (HZB) researches these so-called solar fuels. In the latest issue of the Resonator audio podcast, presenter Holger Klein discusses this with HZB materials scientist Roel van de Krol.
Awarded: German Teacher Gets Scientists into Schools
Out of the ivory tower and into the schools. A common practice in the USA since many years ago, this now is steadily on the increase also in our country: scientists go visit schools where they talk about their research. For his project "Experten in die Schule" (Experts into schools), a teacher from Brunswick recently received an international award from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). We spoke with him.
Biomining: Metal Extraction with Bacteria
Without them, our modern world would be inconceivable: metals. Take the light metal aluminium in a car body, rare earth metals such as yttrium in plasma screens or copper in electrical leads. And global demand increases continuously due to the rapid development of new technologies. In principle, there are sufficient amounts of metals; the problem is to make them available.
