Every year, Switzerland tests its apocalyptic-sounding sirens on the first Wednesday of February. This year it was done on 1 February 2021 at 13:30. The same day Switzerland’s Federal Department of Defence, Civil Protection and Sport (DDPS) announced that 99% of fixed sirens were functioning. Cantons and municipalities are required to fix or replace the […]
Switzerland breaks record for longest train
On 29 October 2022, Switzerland ran the longest passenger train in the world from Preda to Alvaneu in the mountainous canton of Graubunden in eastern Switzerland, reported RTS. The train, made up of 100 carriages and measuring close to 2 km long (1,910 metres), made the 25 km journey in around 45 minutes. The train, […]
Switzerland to use electric cars to power grid
This week, an experiment to use electric cars to stabilise the electricity grid started in Switzerland. The VX2 Swiss project, which will run for a year, will inject the power from the batteries of 50 electric vehicles into the grid while they are not being used. Run from Bern, the project brings together seven companies […]
Rare forest giraffe born at Basel Zoo
On 10 July 2022, an okapi, or forest giraffe, was born at Basel Zoo. The new arrival is only the fifth calf to be born at the zoo over more than 20 years. The newly born calf named “Toka” is the son of mother Ebony (10) and father Imba (15). Described as strong and curious, […]
World’s most powerful particle accelerator now operating at record energy
On 5 July 2022, the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) particle accelerator located just outside Geneva started operating at new higher record energy levels. After more than three years of upgrade and maintenance work the LHC is back online. Beams of particles have been circulating in CERN’s accelerator complex since April, with the LHC machine and […]
Enormous Swiss water battery to start operating next week
A water battery that can store up to 20 million kWh of electricity constructed in the Swiss canton of Valais is scheduled to start operating on 1 July 2022, announced the company Nant de Drance SA this week. The Nant de Drance power plant is a pumped storage power plant in a subterranean cavern located […]
Switzerland’s underground freight project gets start date
This week, a project to build an underground freight tunnel network stretching from Geneva to St Gallen, was given a start date of 1 August 2022 by the Federal Council, reported RTS. The Cargo sous terrain (CST) project will connect Switzerland’s key hubs starting in 2031. CST aims to take the strain off the road […]
Swiss post drops pioneering delivery drones
After five years of pioneering work, Swiss Post has decided to abandon it drone project. The experimental autonomous drones have attracted much global interest since their launch in 2017. However, given the current regulatory environment for unmanned aerial vehicles in Switzerland the company said it is unable to use the drones widely enough or operate […]
The Swiss start-up generating heat from basements
Heat pumps are high-efficiency electric heaters that take heat from the air or ground and concentrate it. Currently, extracting geothermic ground heat typically involves costly processes such as boring holes deep into the ground or laying long lengths of pipe underground. Enerdrape, a start-up at EPFL in Lausanne, has come up will a simpler way […]
Switzerland to see lunar eclipse on 16 May 2022
On May 16, 2022 (the night of May 15 in the Western Hemisphere), the Moon enters the Earth’s shadow, creating a total lunar eclipse, the first since May of 2021, according to NASA. The NASA animation above shows the changing appearance of the Moon as it travels into and out of the Earth’s shadow. The […]
