Latest news with #SouthernAlps
RNZ News
28-05-2025
- Entertainment
- RNZ News
The award winning film Southern Alps traverse
Waiatoto follows a seven-day east-to-west adventure across the Main Divide - with the three-man team travelling on packraft, skis and on foot. Charlie Murray, Jasper Gibson and Nick Pascoe set off from the Matukituki valley and made their way across rugged terrain to the Tasman Sea via the Volta Glacier. Along the way, the group battled through snow drifts and took in epic scenery on the slopes beneath Mount Aspiring/Tititea. The 22-minute film is part of the NZ Mountain Film and Book Festival . For their efforts, the filmmakers have been awarded the Hiddleston/ MacQueen Award and $2500 prizemoney for the Best NZ-made Film at the festival. Kathryn is joined by Jasper Gibson, who was on this incredible adventure, and Wanaka-based film-maker Josh Morgan, who was brought onto the project after the fact thinking he was going to make a YouTube short - but ended up making a prize-winning film. Short film Waiatoto tells the story of a traverse across the Southern Alps through packraft, skis and tramping. Photo: JASPER GIBSON
Forbes
25-05-2025
- Science
- Forbes
Most Extreme Solar Storm Hit Earth 14,350 Years Ago
Illustration of a solar storm impacting the Earth. Scientists have discovered a huge spike in radiocarbon levels 14,300 years ago by analyzing ancient tree-rings. The radiocarbon spike was caused by a massive solar storm, the biggest ever identified. In the study, Postdoctoral Researcher Kseniia Golubenko and Professor Ilya Usoskin at the University of Oulu, Finland utilized their newly developed chemistry–climate model called SOCOL:14C-Ex, specifically designed to reconstruct solar particle storms under ancient glacial climate conditions. The model confirmed that the detected solar event was approximately 18 percent stronger than the notorious AD 775 event — until now the strongest solar storm ever recorded in tree-ring archives. 'Compared to the largest event of the modern satellite era — the 2005 particle storm — the ancient 12,350 BCE event was over 500 times more intense, according to our estimates', says Dr. Golubenko. Other large solar storms have occurred around 7,176 BCE, 5,259 BCE, 663 BCE and 994 AD. A few other candidates are still under investigation. The new chronology used wood samples recovered from the Drouzet River in the Southern French Alps. Here the river is cutting into ancient sediments, exposing fossil tree stumps dating back some 14,300 years. Looking at the individual tree-ring allows researchers to reconstruct environmental and chemical changes for almost every year the tree lived. By stacking sections of different trees together, scientists can reconstruct a tree-ring record spanning many thousands of years. Coronal mass ejections or flares are powerful outbursts of high-energy particles. When such a flare hits Earth, it can cause a solar storm. The particles coming from the sun collide with gases in Earth's atmosphere, forming new isotopes like the radioactive beryllium-10 and carbon-14 (or radiocarbon). Trees absorb these isotope, creating an isotopic record with their tree-rings. 'The ancient event in 12,350 BCE is the only known extreme solar particle event outside of the Holocene epoch, the past 12,000 years of stable warm climate', says Golubenko. This discovery is not only of great importance to better understand the how frequent extreme solar flares are, but also improves the use of radiocarbon to date archeological and biological samples. 'Our new model lifts the existing limitation to the Holocene and extends our ability to analyze radiocarbon data even for glacial climate conditions.' 'Miyake events (distinct spikes in past radiocarbon levels) allow us to pin down exact calendar years in floating archaeological chronologies', explains Usoskin. Radiocarbon signals from such events have already enabled researchers to precisely date Viking settlements in Newfoundland and Neolithic communities in Greece. The largest, directly-observed, solar storm occurred in 1859 and is known as the Carrington Event. Polar lights were observed during daylight as far as the equator. At the time, long before mobile telecommunications and the widespread use of electronic devices, damage was fortunately quite solar storm recorded in the fossil trees was an estimated ten to hundred times more powerful. Today the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's Space Weather Prediction Center monitors solar activity and its impact on our infrastructure. Electronics with no electromagnetic shielding are still at a high risk of interference and jamming. A similar massive event happening today could be catastrophic for our technology-based society. The study,"New SOCOL:14C-Ex model reveals that the Late-Glacial radiocarbon spike in 12350 BC was caused by the record-strong extreme solar storm," was published in the journal Earth and Planetary Science Letters. Additional material and interviews provided by the University of Oslo.
Scoop
24-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Scoop
Celebrating The Sublime: Look Out Wins 2025 NZ Mountain Book Of The Year
Press Release – NZ Mountain Film and Book Festival Look Out is an artistic collaboration that celebrates the sublimity of New Zealands SouthernAlps by two well-known New Zealand artists, Euan Macleod and Craig Potton. Lake Wānaka, New Zealand (23 May 2025) – Euan Macleod and Craig Potton have been selected as the winners of the 2025 Nankervis/Bamford NZ Mountain Book of the Year award for their book Look Out. The $2,000 grand prize is awarded in the NZ Mountain Book Competition as part of the long-running NZ Mountain Film and Book Festival. Look Out is an artistic collaboration that celebrates the sublimity of New Zealand's Southern Alps by these two well-known New Zealand artists. Two friends, painter Euan Macleod and photographer Craig Potton, are both drawn to the high mountains around Aoraki/Mt Cook in the central core of the Southern Alps of New Zealand. 'Here is a mountain art book that is not over-endowed with words though there is a long introductory essay to set the scene,' explains judge Marjorie Cook. The task for readers then is to observe and reflect on what stories could be revealed in mountain paintings (MacLeod) and photographs (Potton). Such is the subjective nature of art, there is unlikely to be just one story. One moment the mountains and the mountain men look murderously scary, deathly and cold. Next, they appear soft, warm and comfortable.' 'I thank the organisers of the NZ Mountain Film and Book Festival and am truly delighted and grateful Euan and I have won the Mountain Book of the Year with Look Out,' says Potton. He continues, 'We have both gotten more than we will ever know from the Southern Alps and even at our advanced ages we find ourselves at Aoraki, in the throne room of the mountain gods, with the same awe, amazement and joy of the sublime that we have felt from our first trips there so long ago. It was our hope that our art might convey something of that connection to the mountain wilderness and your nod to our book has vindicated that hope.' The overall prize for the Nankervis/Bamford NZ Mountain Book of the Year is awarded for a book that brings the mountain experience into the hearts and minds of the reader and leaves people with a knowledge of, and respect for, the place the mountains play in the human and physical worlds. Potton explains that the award has a special meaning for him. 'For me it is very special and poignant that this generous prize has been established as part of the wonderful legacy my friend Nank bequeathed to our mountaineering community. When first heading to the Southern Alps I was inspired by Nank and Dave Bamford's forays on the western side of the central Southern Alps when they were pushing up great original lines. In those days it was the epitome of wilderness climbing. Nank became a friend, opening my book launch and exhibition on my Nepal book and during my tenure on the Conservation Authority when he was serving on the Tongariro National Parks Board. We frequently talked conservation issues. He knew the Conservation Act inside out and had such a big heart for the places and people we were trying to protect …. a most likeable humorous and generous man … To have won this award in honour of Nank's legacy is a highlight in my publishing path.' The Mountain Book Competition covers literature on the world's remote places, expedition tales and stories about people and their adventures. Submissions were invited for two categories: Mountain and Adventure Narrative for stories and accounts about specific adventures (non-fiction); and Mountain and Adventure Heritage for guidebooks, coffee table or picture books, history books, analyses, reflections on culture, environments or ethics and advocacy. The Heritage Award goes to Kahurangi by Dave Hansford. The book is a celebration of the biodiversity of Kahurangi National Park, Northwest Nelson and Golden Bay. Energised by ancient, complex geology and a multitude of habitats, from vast beech stands to lush coastal rainforest, from sprawling ramparts of karst and marble to extensive wetlands and estuaries, this region holds the greatest variety of plants and animals in the country. 'Hansford is simply a wonderful natural history writer,' says Cook. 'His first sentence, his first scene – detailing a paleolithic orgy of creatures forever fossilised in the act of getting it on – is startling and memorable. Just a warning. This book is big, meaty, dense and packed with knowledge and great images and photos. You will not be able to romp through it in one sitting.' Hansford said, 'It's gratifying to hear that others see the same wonder, the same beauty, the same lessons in Kahurangi that I see. My heartfelt thanks to everyone who helped me tell this story; the scientists, the rangers, the volunteers, my publisher, my editor, my wife— but especially all those gifted photographers who crafted a sprawling wilderness into exquisite pixels.' Andrew Fagan takes out the Narrative Award for his book Swirly World: Lost at Sea. Known to many as the frontman of the iconic 1980s band The Mockers, Fagan has also carved a distinct path as a solo sailor and author. In 1994 he set the record for the smallest sailing boat to sail from New Zealand to Australia, and in 2007 his NZ circumnavigation via the subantarctic Auckland Islands set the record for the smallest sailing boat to have done so. Swirly World: Lost at Sea documents his harrowing experiences and the psychological challenges faced when confronting the vast, unpredictable power of the ocean. Judge Marjorie Cook describes the book as 'a love story to a boat not much bigger than a bathtub, in which Fagan attempts to circumnavigate the globe. In delivering this very enjoyable book, Fagan weaves together past and present sailing adventure stories while having another go at 'living the dream', this time on a potent ocean of doubts. Expect to find lyrical sentences, humour, self-depreciation, and attention to detail.' Fagan said he was 'totally flattered' by the award, describing it as an 'unexpected accolade!' He adds, 'I'm looking forward to discussing the pleasures and pains of solo offshore sailing at the festival.' Fagan and Hansford will be guest speakers at the NZ Mountain Book Festival in Wānaka in June. Before selecting the winners of the 2025 NZ Mountain Book competition, the judges had a difficult task narrowing the entries down to six finalists. Head judge Allan Uren said, 'The lineup has been a real pick n mix, from surfing, skiing, tramping, sailing, climbing, even a collection of guidebooks. Notable in its absence has been pure mountaineering books. Maybe it's becoming harder for mountaineering authors to come up with anything new to say or ways to get across the essence of mountaineering. Here's hoping that's not the case. 'Production values have also been high, with dazzling photography. Some of the book covers are things of such beauty that you'd want to display them as objects of art in their own right. 'Everybody always says it is difficult to pick a winner from such a high calibre of books and that is true of this year's collection. It's unfortunate that a prize can't be given to all the authors for the amount of passion and work that obviously goes into each, and every book judged. But it makes your spirit soar to know that there is such high standard of book being produced and the festival is there to give them wings.' The 2025 finalists were: Mountain & Adventure Narrative Award Swirly World: Lost at Sea by Andrew Fagan Sam the Trap Man by Sam Gibson A Light Through the Cracks by Beth Rodden Mountain & Adventure Heritage Award Unbound: Volume 1 by Rambo Estrada Look Out by Euan Macleod and Craig Potton Kahurangi by Dave Hansford The following were Highly Commended by the judges: Northbound: Four Seasons of Solitude on Te Araroa by Naomi Arnold Southern Faces: An Introduction to Rock Climbing in Ōtepoti Dunedin by Riley Smith Fire & Ice: Secrets, Histories, Treasures and Mysteries of Tongariro National Park by Hazel Phillips Ski Bum by Sam Masters The NZ Mountain Film & Book Festival will run in Wānaka from 20 to 24 June, in Queenstown 26 to 27 June, and films will be online in NZ and Australia throughout July. The festival's literary events include guest speakers, author readings, book signings and book launches.
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Travel + Leisure
08-05-2025
- Travel + Leisure
This Is the Smallest Village in Switzerland—and It Could Disappear Soon
Corippo, located in the scenic Verzasca Valley, was once on the verge of becoming a ghost town with only nine elderly residents remaining. But it underwent a revitalization in 2022 through the Albergo Diffuso model, turning historic structures into dispersed hotel rooms. Despite its picturesque setting in the heart of Switzerland's Southern Alps, Corippo isn't a tourist hot spot. In 2019, it was on the brink of becoming a ghost town as its population dwindled to just nine residents, all of whom were elderly. This earned Corippo the title of smallest municipality in Switzerland, prompting news headlines, as local officials scrambled to save the village from depopulation. A fairy-tale-like hamlet in the Italian-speaking canton of Ticino, Corippo has only one narrow road leading to it. When I visited it in 2020, during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, I didn't meet a single person while wandering its narrow alleyways lined with stone buildings—typical of the Verzasca Valley where it's located. In many ways, this village felt as if it was frozen in time, only a ringing clocktower bell served as a reminder of every passing hour. In 2022, Corippo became Switzerland's first Albergo Diffuso (or widespread hotel), a concept native to Italy, but still relatively new to Switzerland. Unlike in a traditional hotel, where rooms are located in one building, rooms in an Albergo Diffuso are scattered throughout historic structures in the area, allowing tourists to stay among locals and enjoy a more authentic atmosphere. The Fondazione Corippo, a local organization tasked with preserving the village, came up with the idea of Corippo Albergo Diffuso to boost the local economy after many residents left the area. The hotel rooms are located in previously abandoned buildings, which have been carefully restored to bed-and-breakfast-style accommodations. Jeremy Gehring and Désirée Voitle, managers of the Corippo Albergo Diffuso, now live in Corippo full-time with their son and twin daughters—the youngest residents of the village. 'We heard about the Albergo Diffuso in Corippo by chance on the radio and decided to apply for the management (position),' Voitle said. Today, Corippo Albergo Diffuso has 10 rooms and welcomes visitors year-round. Its cozy accommodations have rustic charm and an on-site osteria (restaurant) that serves gourmet dishes from the southern part of the Alps on a spacious terrace. The approach to cooking is Italian, but with French techniques. The summer season here kicked off during Easter weekend, and Voitle said she looks forward to welcoming visitors. 'We aim to have more return guests. Most guests checking out tell us they want to come back. Some actually do come back, so we want to have more of them,' she added. Although the project brought more tourists to the area, the village is unlikely to change because of its protected status. That's the essence of the Albergo Diffuso concept: Develop a hotel in historic structures with minimal modifications to their original appearance. Records show Corippo dates back more than 700 years, and had 315 residents at its peak in 1850. As rural agriculture declined and migration intensified in the 20th century, the population has been declining steadily. But things are starting to look up for Corippo: As Albergo Diffuso generated renewed interest, dozens of tourists flocked to this remote mountain village to see what the buzz was about. While you can spend a night in Corippo and enjoy the quiet lifestyle, the surrounding Verzasca Valley demands more time. The 25-kilometer glacial valley boasts superb outdoor activities, including hiking, camping, and mountain biking. Just a quick drive from Corippo is Ponte dei Salti, a photogenic stone bridge over the Verzasca river, a popular launching point for a refreshing swim on a hot summer day. I stopped in the area as part of my road trip through Verzasca, where dozens of small villages similar to Corippo dot the postcard-worthy landscape. It's hard not to fall in love with Verzasca as you drive along the jade-colored river, cutting through the valley's heart and plunging waterfalls on each side. The area is home to emerald-hued pools, scenic trails with bright alpine flowers, and dreamy grottos—small taverns where you can try Ticino staples like polenta and risotto. Movie buffs should check out the Verzasca Dam, a major draw of the valley featured in the opening scene of "GoldenEye," part of the James Bond film series. A 220-meter bungee jump offers a chance to relive Bond's legendary move. Despite being a hub of adventure, life in Verzasca is unhurried. The valley offers a perfect blend of exciting outdoor adventures and a quiet rural lifestyle within driving distance from Lugano, the biggest city in southern Switzerland. 'We simply love the beauty of it,' Desiree said about living in Corippo. 'From here, we enjoy the natural surroundings: the changing seasons, the clear water, the fresh air, the greenery, and the calm. The quality of the elements without artifice.'
Travel + Leisure
08-05-2025
- Travel + Leisure
Switzerland's Smallest Village Is a Fairy Tale—and It Could Disappear Soon
Despite its picturesque setting in the heart of Switzerland's Southern Alps, Corippo isn't a tourist hot spot. In 2019, it was on the brink of becoming a ghost town as its population dwindled to just nine residents, all of whom were elderly. This earned Corippo the title of smallest municipality in Switzerland, prompting news headlines, as local officials scrambled to save the village from depopulation. A fairy-tale-like hamlet in the Italian-speaking canton of Ticino, Corippo has only one narrow road leading to it. When I visited it in 2020, during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, I didn't meet a single person while wandering its narrow alleyways lined with stone buildings—typical of the Verzasca Valley where it's located. In many ways, this village felt as if it was frozen in time, only a ringing clocktower bell served as a reminder of every passing hour. In 2022, Corippo became Switzerland's first Albergo Diffuso (or widespread hotel), a concept native to Italy, but still relatively new to Switzerland. Unlike in a traditional hotel, where rooms are located in one building, rooms in an Albergo Diffuso are scattered throughout historic structures in the area, allowing tourists to stay among locals and enjoy a more authentic atmosphere. The clock tower of the parish church and the village of Fondazione Corippo, a local organization tasked with preserving the village, came up with the idea of Corippo Albergo Diffuso to boost the local economy after many residents left the area. The hotel rooms are located in previously abandoned buildings, which have been carefully restored to bed-and-breakfast-style accommodations. Jeremy Gehring and Désirée Voitle, managers of the Corippo Albergo Diffuso, now live in Corippo full-time with their son and twin daughters—the youngest residents of the village. 'We heard about the Albergo Diffuso in Corippo by chance on the radio and decided to apply for the management (position),' Voitle said. Today, Corippo Albergo Diffuso has 10 rooms and welcomes visitors year-round. Its cozy accommodations have rustic charm and an on-site osteria (restaurant) that serves gourmet dishes from the southern part of the Alps on a spacious terrace. The approach to cooking is Italian, but with French techniques. The typical granite stone houses of Corippo. imageBROKER/The summer season here kicked off during Easter weekend, and Voitle said she looks forward to welcoming visitors. 'We aim to have more return guests. Most guests checking out tell us they want to come back. Some actually do come back, so we want to have more of them,' she added. Although the project brought more tourists to the area, the village is unlikely to change because of its protected status. That's the essence of the Albergo Diffuso concept: Develop a hotel in historic structures with minimal modifications to their original appearance. Records show Corippo dates back more than 700 years, and had 315 residents at its peak in 1850. As rural agriculture declined and migration intensified in the 20th century, the population has been declining steadily. But things are starting to look up for Corippo: As Albergo Diffuso generated renewed interest, dozens of tourists flocked to this remote mountain village to see what the buzz was about. While you can spend a night in Corippo and enjoy the quiet lifestyle, the surrounding Verzasca Valley demands more time. The 25-kilometer glacial valley boasts superb outdoor activities, including hiking, camping, and mountain biking. Just a quick drive from Corippo is Ponte dei Salti, a photogenic stone bridge over the Verzasca river, a popular launching point for a refreshing swim on a hot summer day. I stopped in the area as part of my road trip through Verzasca, where dozens of small villages similar to Corippo dot the postcard-worthy landscape. It's hard not to fall in love with Verzasca as you drive along the jade-colored river, cutting through the valley's heart and plunging waterfalls on each side. The area is home to emerald-hued pools, scenic trails with bright alpine flowers, and dreamy grottos—small taverns where you can try Ticino staples like polenta and risotto. Movie buffs should check out the Verzasca Dam, a major draw of the valley featured in the opening scene of "GoldenEye," part of the James Bond film series. A 220-meter bungee jump offers a chance to relive Bond's legendary move. Despite being a hub of adventure, life in Verzasca is unhurried. The valley offers a perfect blend of exciting outdoor adventures and a quiet rural lifestyle within driving distance from Lugano, the biggest city in southern Switzerland. 'We simply love the beauty of it,' Desiree said about living in Corippo. 'From here, we enjoy the natural surroundings: the changing seasons, the clear water, the fresh air, the greenery, and the calm. The quality of the elements without artifice.'
