ESA Centre of Excellence opens in Switzerland Politics PSI The European Space Agency ESA has officially opened the “European Space Deep-Tech Innovation Centre” (ESDI). Set up in close collaboration with the Paul Scherrer Institute PSI, it is located in the immediate vicinity of the research institute, at Park Innovaare. The opening ceremony was attended by high-ranking ESA representatives, as well as high-ranking Swiss and Aargau politicians. Space Further Reading Spring in mountains starting earlier and earlier WSL “The lack of vision has led transport policy down a dead end” ETH Zurich Could the layout of trees impact human health? ETH Zurich Flying robots unlock new horizons in construction Empa EPFL Gut microbiome serves as a “second brain” regulating our bodies EPFL Subscribe to our monthly newsletter Where power will come from in 2050 Politics ETH Zurich EPFL By 2050, the aim is for Switzerland’s energy system to be decarbonised and no longer reliant on nuclear power. How this can be achieved and the costs of doing so are set out in a new report by a Swiss research consortium involving researchers from ETH Zurich, the universities of Geneva and Bern, EPFL, WSL, and ZHAW. Energy Sustainability Future Exceptional diversity of whitefish Research Eawag The diversity of whitefish species in Swiss lakes is unique and plays a central role in lake ecosystems. A comprehensive Eawag report now summarises the results of 150 years of research on these fish. They make it clear that the mechanisms and environmental conditions that have contributed to their development must be taken into account in order to preserve this species diversity. Last but not least, protecting whitefish diversity helps to preserve the natural yield potential of lakes as a source of food for humans. Environment Ecosystem Biodiversity Biology How efficient are heat pumps in reality? Research ETH Zurich Researchers from ETH Zurich have carried out the largest field study to date, to find out whether heat pumps are running efficiently. When looked at in operation, it turns out that these units are often not optimally configured. Monitoring systems and legal standards could provide a remedy. Energy Sustainability Economics The ETH Domain strives to strengthen the competitiveness of Switzerland in the long term and contribute to the development of society through excellence in research, teaching and knowledge and technology transfer. A little pioneering spirit would not harm us Research ETH Board ETH Zurich Gabriela Hug, Professor of Electric Power Transmission and Chair of the Energy Science Center at ETH Zurich, is convinced that the transformation to clean energy can succeed. However, it will take a little pioneering spirit and intelligent control of the power grids.
