Environment & Science

Starting this month, and running on select Thursdays through March, this year’s series includes officials from state and local agencies, as well as nonprofits. It's free for members and costs $5 for non-members.

Brad Klein reviews the week’s astronomical highlights with Bethlehem’s 'Backyard Astronomy Guy," Marty McGuire.

Less than a decade old and with trainees coming from all over the country, Rodale Institute’s Veteran Farmer Training program aims to give veterans the tools they need to pivot into successful farming careers, as well as spread knowledge about sustainable farming practices and regenerative organic agriculture.

Two professors were recently awarded a three-year, $750,000 grant from NASA to help engage and retain women in STEM, or science, technology, engineering and math, disciplines. The college was one of seven institutions to get funding.

Hunters Sharing the Harvest, Pennsylvania’s venison donation program, has since 1991 built a network of deer processors and food pantries across the state, donating nearly 2 million pounds of venison. Deer rifle season begins Saturday.

Widespread heavy rains moved out of the Lehigh Valley early Wednesday, with the storm expected to bring a wintry mix across New England and the interior Northeast on the day before Thanksgiving.

Lehigh Valley Zoo will welcome red pandas in 2024 as part of its effort to introduce new species to the zoo.

The Governor’s Award for Environmental Excellence is open to any commonwealth business, farm, government agency, educational institution or nonprofit organization that has developed or participated in a project that promotes environmental protection and stewardship. Applications are due by Jan. 3.

When state officials announced a series of in-person and virtual meetings there were no in-person meetings slated for the Lehigh Valley, even though the region is the third largest metropolitan area in the commonwealth. A meeting in Allentown has been added to the schedule.

A decade or so after buying his South Whitehall Township home in the late 1960s, Fred Buse started recording the average temperature, precipitation type and amount, as well as any animal sightings in his backyard to study and track the health of the local environment.

The school district informed the community it will dismiss all students early “out of an abundance of caution” ahead of the solar eclipse on Monday, April 8.

A lab dedicated to the treatment of hematologic cancers is now open in Allentown. A generous donation helped the cellular therapy lab come into fruition at HNL Lab Medicine.

As severe weather rakes the East Coast, the National Weather Service has issued a special weather statement for the Lehigh Valley effective Wednesday afternoon. A nor'easter is also expected as a secondary low redevelops off the coast.

Monday's solar eclipse will not turn the skies in the Lehigh Valley pitch black, Moravian University astronomy professor Gary A. Becker said. Just a bit wonky. The ideal time in the Lehigh Valley to view the eclipse is 3:24 p.m.

Crews are set to get to work this year on a project to restore Bogert's Bridge after years of fundraising and design work.

The National Weather Service issued the flood watch starting from 6 a.m. Wednesday through 6 p.m. Thursday as the region undergoes several days of rain.

Township Manager Doug Bruce said the plans set forth in the Lehigh Valley Priority Climate Action Plan for Transportation Decarbonization will “set a precedent for other regions to follow.”

Pennsylvania Attorney General Michelle Henry is alerting consumers of scammers selling sunglasses to view the eclipse on April 8 that do not protect one's eyes from potentially permanent damage.

The Lehigh Valley is not only looking at a cold, damp and dreary start to the week, there's rain in the forecast through Thursday. Elevated parts of the region could even see some snow Wednesday into Thursday.

The Devil's Comet, which orbits the sun once every 71 years, will swing through our spatial backyard later in April.

Willow Haven Farm began its Foster a Chick program this week. Community members can take home the farm’s day-old baby chicks, take care of them for a few weeks, then return them to the farm.

Take a look at stories throughout the week of which we are most proud, had a profound impact on readers or that you might want to look at again.