Science & Technology Archives - The World from PRX

Guyana is hoping that newly discovered offshore crude reserves can help transform the country's economy and offset its ongoing poverty crisis. But some people are concerned about what this may mean for the environment.

As ice sheets from glaciers melt, dozens of lakes around the world risk overflowing, causing potentially deadly avalanches and flooding in nearby towns and villages. In Huaraz, Peru, residents hope to find ways to prevent Lake Palcacocha from overflowing again — before it's too late.

The lights may be off, but "crisis mode" is definitely switched on in South Africa. Despite a national state of disaster and a new minister of electricity, scheduled power outages, known as load-shedding, continue to heavily impact citizens.

A handful of salt-makers in Mexico are preserving an ancestral tradition of artisanal salt that goes back 2,000 years. It's a dying art form and many fear for its future amid climate change and migration.

Thousands of people gather every year in Villa de Leyva, Colombia, for the annual Astronomy Festival. Now, event organizers are working with the local government to implement lasting improvements for the town to draw more tourists to see the stars.

After a catastrophic earthquake destroyed northwest Syria, assistance is slowly trickling in. It took a full week for the UN to strike a deal with the Syrian regime to open two additional crossings into the region. US Ambassador to the UN Linda Thomas-Greenfield talks with host Marco Werman about the situation.

A humanitarian crisis looms in Brazil's Yanomami territory, where communities have been ravaged by malnutrition, malaria, COVID-19 and widespread illegal mining. Now, the central government is trying to crack down on illegal mining and support these communities after years of neglect.

More than a week after a 7.4-magnitude earthquake hit Syria, outside help has been slow to arrive. Parts of the country that have been impacted fall into two main categories: ones that are under government control and those that are not. In opposition-held areas relief has been almost nonexistent.

This corner of the globe sits at the intersection of three tectonic plates, including the Arabian Plate that’s moving northward into Europe. Pressure along the fault has been building, and when it finally released, it appears that an area nearly 120 miles long and 15 miles wide got displaced, unleashing the earthquake.

NASA is working with Senegalese astronomers to measure the dimensions of asteroids in outer space. Astronomer Maram Kaire speaks with The World's host Marco Werman about the work of "chasing after the shadow cast by the asteroids."