SCIENCE

Europe must massively ramp up investment including through joint borrowing as part of a "new industrial strategy" to keep pace with the United States and avoid dependence on China, a keenly awaited report warned Monday.

On a hot summer day, contractors snake wiring through the basement of a townhouse in southeast Washington to install a heat pump, a key component of the United States' multi-billion dollar push towards greater home electrification.

The 2024 northern summer saw the highest global temperatures on record, beating 2023's high and making this year likely Earth's hottest ever recorded, the EU's climate monitor said Friday.

Taiwanese volunteers gathered around a large inflatable whale as they learned how to help beached sea mammals -- an increasingly common sight across the island.

Republican White House candidate Donald Trump unveiled a plan Thursday to install billionaire entrepreneur Elon Musk at the head of a government efficiency commission to eliminate "trillions" of dollars in wasteful spending.

Pope Francis arrived in Muslim-majority Indonesia on Tuesday to kick off a four-nation tour of the Asia-Pacific that will be the longest and farthest of the 87-year-old's papacy.

Pope Francis, 87, flies to Indonesia Monday on the first leg of an ambitious four-nation tour, with inter-faith ties set to dominate his visit to the world's most populous Muslim-majority country.

Anti-whaling activist Paul Watson's detention in a Greenland prison pending his possible extradition to Japan has not prevented him from continuing his fight to save the animals, he told AFP in an interview.

Pacific leaders wrapped up a key summit in Tonga on Friday, endorsing a major joint policing initiative and rebuffing moves from China's regional allies to sideline long-term partner Taiwan.

By embarking aged 87 on the farthest journey of his papacy, Pope Francis is doing something some believed impossible -- and seeking to silence those who doubt his ability to fulfil his role.

Pope Francis embarks Monday on a 12-day trip to Southeast Asia, the longest and farthest of his papacy that will challenge the 87-year-old's increasingly fragile health.

The arrest and charging by France of Telegram founder Pavel Durov has thrown a spotlight on the international connections of a man with at least four passports and high-level contacts but who has also aroused the attention of security agencies around the world.

A quarter of all the energy China consumes now comes from non-carbon sources, according to research published Thursday, as Beijing rapidly pivots its huge economy to a greener footing.

Hundreds of rows of gleaming panels blanket swathes of scrubby sand at sunset in a remote northern Chinese desert -- once the biggest solar farm in the world.

A showdown is brewing over the gender makeup of the next European Commission after member states put forward an overwhelmingly male candidate lineup -- in open defiance of EU chief Ursula von der Leyen.

Among the swanky skyscrapers of India's financial capital Mumbai, hundreds of dangerously dilapidated buildings facing demolition are crowded with families risking their lives rather than braving impossibly high rents.

Near the heavily fortified border that divides North and South Korea, a monitoring device is working 24-7 -- not tracking missiles or troop movements, but catching malaria-carrying mosquitoes that may cross the border.

Australia on Friday launched a multi-million dollar effort to stop pesticide runoff and other water quality issues on the Great Barrier Reef, the latest effort to save the ailing natural wonder.

Pacific island leaders gather for a key summit in the Kingdom of Tonga on Monday, aiming to navigate rapidly rising seas, damaging great power rivalries and violent unrest in New Caledonia.

Tech billionaire Mike Cannon-Brookes once joked he could not tell the difference between an AA battery in his kids' toys and the gigantic lithium-ion units powering today's green energy revolution.

At a tiny outpost in the wine world, Ireland's handful of winemakers are cautiously eyeing long-term growth potential as climate change warms up its cool climate.

At just 18 years old, Nepali mountaineer Nima Rinji Sherpa is on the brink of a remarkable achievement.

As monsoon rains were about to break over Pakistan, 14-year-old Shamila and her 13-year-old sister Amina were married off in exchange for money, a decision their parents made to help the family survive the threat of floods.

Climate change may have played a part in the latest massive wildfire just outside Athens, but some critics blame inadequate equipment and lack of planning for what has become an annual crisis.

Despite three years of improved security following the end of the Taliban's insurgency, Afghanistan's economy remains stagnant and its population is in the grips of a worsening humanitarian crisis.

The Hindu sacred month of Shravan honours the god of destruction Lord Shiva, and in northern India, it has become increasingly associated with mob violence by saffron-clad devotees.

The UN voiced concern Tuesday over a "climate of fear" in post-election Venezuela as lawmakers mulled a package of laws critics say target opponents of strongman Nicolas Maduro.

The Earth was hit Monday by an intense solar storm that could bring the northern lights to night skies further south than normal, a US agency announced.

A massive wildfire in Athens' northeastern suburbs on Monday forced thousands of residents to flee their homes and sparked a Greek government appeal for international help.