Yesterday, avalanche dangers in parts of Valais, including Zermatt and Saas Fee reached 5, the highest level, before shifting back to 4, according to the WSL Institute for Snow and Avalanche Research. Heavy snowfall strands 13,000 tourists in Swiss Alps https://t.co/tzllxV9FgJ #Zermatt pic.twitter.com/sIgeob96LV — AFP news agency (@AFP) January 9, 2018 Access in and out […]
Swiss Rail cuts train heating to save electricity
During January and February, Swiss Rail is experimenting with lower train temperatures in the hope of cutting its electricity bill. Dubbed the temperature reduction test project, the experiment will be run on the double-decker S-Bahn trains running from Zurich. During winter Swiss Rail heats carriages to 22 degrees. The project, run with Lucerne University, will alternate […]
Why storm Eleanor had two names
The area of low pressure that became a storm was first spotted in early December by experts at the Metrological Institute at the University of Berlin who named it Burglind. The institute has been naming storms since 1954. However, the UK Met Office and Met Eireann, its Irish counterpart, have a pre-agreed list of storm names. Eleanor was next […]
How storm Eleanor was made
Weather expert Christophe Salamin from Swiss Meteo spoke to Swiss broadcaster RTS about storm Eleanor (Burglind in German). He says these storms are created at high altitude. The principle driver is the temperature difference between masses of air at the north pole and the tropics, the same force driving the jet stream, a high altitude […]
Storm Eleanor leaves trail of destruction across Switzerland
As high winds from storm Eleanor (Burglind in German) blew across Europe and through Switzerland, flights were disrupted, trucks overturned, trees blown over, buildings damaged and a train derailed. Here are some images from Twitter. Après Eleanor, la Suisse fait ses comptes https://t.co/TbJARJH1F4 #Suisse — Tribune de Genève (@tdgch) January 4, 2018 The image above […]
Record number of Swiss helicopter rescue callouts
Since Sunday, nearly ten people have been caught in avalanches in Switzerland, according to 20 Minutes. Nearly ten back country skiers and snowshoers were caught in three three avalanches. All of them were located and dug out. Unfortunately one suffered serious injuries and died in hospital after being air lifted out. The avalanches were near […]
High winds forecast to hit most of Switzerland
According to Swiss Meteo, high winds will buffet most of the country starting at around 3 AM on Wednesday morning, lasting through the day until around 9 PM. Winds from the west of 80 km/h to 200 km/h, depending on altitude and exposure, are forecast to hit nearly all of the country. Only a few […]
Swiss fact: forests expanded 9% in Switzerland since 1990
In 1990, Switzerland had 11,510 sq. km. of forest. By 2015, it was up by 9% at 12,540 sq. km. This is 30% of the nation’s land area, slightly less that the global average of 31%. Globally forests are in decline. Since 1990 they shrank 3%, a modest figure that masks the real damage. Planting […]
A high-speed pod that could one day get you from Zurich to Geneva in 15 minutes
A bunch of brainy students at the Federal Institute of Technology in Zürich (Einstein was a student there) designed a prototype of a passenger pod that might one day carry commuters through a vacuum tube in magnetically levitating cars at more than 1,000 km/h. At this speed a trip between Zürich and Geneva could take 15 […]
Swiss rail tests its first automatic train
The Swiss train system is not throwing its engineers off the train (yet), but is experimenting with how to make their job simpler, while improving efficiency without compromising safety. Aircraft have long used a proven autopilot system that helps them fly efficiently, mostly hands-off, conserving fuel while minimizing travel time. Now CFF/BSS/FFS is testing similar […]
