Features

By Issam Ahmed
Agence France-Presse

WASHINGTON — From the Mars Ingenuity helicopter's first powered flight on another world to the launch of the James Webb telescope that will peer into the earliest epoch of the Universe, 2021 was a huge year for humanity's space endeavours.

Beyond the science milestones, billionaires battled to reach the final frontier first, an all-civilian crew went into orbit, and Star Trek's William Shatner waxed profound about what it meant to see the Earth from the cosmos, as space tourism finally came into its own.

Here are selected highlights. 

Red Planet robot duo

NASA's Perseverance Rover survived its "seven minutes of terror," a time when the craft relies on its automated systems for descent and landing, to touch down flawlessly on Mars' Jezero Crater in February.

Since then, the car-sized robot has been taking photos and drilling for samples for its mission: determining whether the Red Planet might have hosted ancient microbial life forms.

A rock sample return mission is planned for sometime in the 2030s.

With its state-of-the-art instruments, "Percy," as the helicopter is affectionately known, can also zap Martian rock and chemically analyse the vapour.

Percy has a partner along for the ride: Ingenuity, a two kilogramme rotorcraft that in April succeeded in the first powered flight on another celestial body, just over a century after the Wright brothers' achieved the same feat here on Earth, and has performed many more since.

"Perseverance is sort of the flagship mission, it's doing a long-term detailed investigation of this fascinating area of Mars," Jonathan McDowall, an astronomer at the Harvard-Smithsonian Centre for Astrophysics, told AFP.

By contrast, "Ingenuity, is one of these cute, small, cheap little technology demos that NASA can do so well," he added.

The insights gained from Ingenuity could help scientists develop Dragonfly, a planned thousand-pound drone copter, to search for signs of life on Saturn's moon Titan in the mid-2030s.

Private spaceflight takes off

An American millionaire became the world's first space tourist in 2001, but it took 20 more years for the promise of private space flight to finally materialise.

In July, Virgin Galactic founder Richard Branson faced off against Blue Origin's Jeff Bezos to complete a suborbital spaceflight. 

While the British tycoon won that race by a few days, it was Blue Origin that surged ahead, launching three more flights with paying customers and celebrity guests.

Elon Musk's SpaceX entered the fray in September with a three-day orbital mission around the Earth featuring an all-civilian crew on Inspiration 4. 

"It's really exciting that finally, after so long this stuff is finally happening," said space industry analyst Laura Seward Forczyk, author of the forthcoming book "Becoming Off-Worldly," intended to prepare future space travellers.

But it was William Shatner, who played the swashbuckling Captain Kirk on the 1960s TV series "Star Trek," who stole the show with a moving account of his experience.

"What you're looking down on is Mother Earth, and it needs protecting," he told reporters. 

A Russian crew shot the first feature film in space aboard the International Space Station (ISS) in 2021, and Japanese tourists made their own visit there on a Russian rocket. 

For a few minutes on December 11, there were a record 19 humans in space when Blue Origin carried out its third crewed mission, the Japanese team were on the ISS along with its normal crew, and Chinese taikonauts were in position on their station.

The sight of wealthy elites gallivanting in the cosmos hasn't been to everyone's liking, however, and the nascent space tourism sector triggered a backlash from some who said there were more pressing issues to face, such as climate change, here on Earth. 

Globalisation of space

During the Cold War, space was dominated by the United States and the former Soviet Union. 

Now, in addition to the explosion of the commercial sector, which is sending up satellites at a dizzying pace, China, India and others are increasingly flexing their space flight muscles. 

China's Tiangong (Palace in the Sky) space station — its first long-term outpost — was launched in April, while its first Mars rover, Zhurong, landed in May, making it the only the second country to achieve such an exploit.

"In the past 20 years since China finally decided to go big on space, they've been in catch up mode," said McDowall. "And now they're kind of there, and they're starting to do things that the US hasn't done."

The UAE placed a probe into Martian orbit in February, becoming the first Arab nation and fifth overall to reach the planet.

Russia meanwhile launched a missile at one of its own satellites, becoming the fourth country to hit a spacecraft from the ground, in a move that reignited concerns about the growing space arms race.

Washington slammed Moscow for its "reckless" test, which generated over 1,500 pieces of large orbital debris, dangerous for low Earth orbit missions such as the ISS. 

Coming soon...

The year closed out with the launch of the James Webb Space Telescope, a $10 billion marvel that will make use of infrared technology to peer back 13 billion years in time.

"It's arguably the most expensive, single scientific platform ever created," said Casey Drier, chief advocate of the Planetary Society. 

"To push the boundaries of our knowledge about the cosmos, we had to build something capable of accessing that ancient past," he added.

It will reach Lagrange Point 2, a space landmark a million miles from Earth, in a matter of weeks, then gradually start up and calibrate its systems, coming online around June.

Also next year, the launch of Artemis 1 — when NASA's giant Space Launch System will carry the Orion capsule to the Moon and back, in preparation for America's return with humans later this decade.

NASA plans to build lunar habitats and use lessons learned there for forward missions to Mars in the 2030s. 

Observers are encouraged that the programme launched by former president Donald Trump has continued under Joe Biden — even if he hasn't been as vocal in his support.

Finally, sometime next fall, NASA's DART probe will smash into an asteroid to kick it off course.

The proof-of-concept test is a dry run should humanity ever need to stop a giant space rock from wiping out life on Earth, as seen in Netflix's new hit film "Don't Look Up."

By Nicolas Garcia
Agence France-Presse

PUNTA ARENAS, Chile — Chilean scientists studying organisms in one of the most remote places on Earth are urging regional leaders to step up efforts to tackle climate change.

A recent expedition, which was delayed by a year due to the coronavirus pandemic, sought to investigate harmful organisms and how they are impacting climate change.

Chile’s Magallanes region — on the southern tip of South America where the Atlantic and Pacific oceans meet — is known as the “end of the world” and extends from Punta Arenas through the Magallanes Strait to the Beagle Channel.

Sailing through peak-lined straits past glaciers and soaring birds, the scientists on board the oceanographic research vessel Cabo de Hornos had their focus trained on the water, which has lower levels of acidity, salt and calcium than other seas and oceans, especially in their shallowest parts.

Scientists believe the conditions found in the water will appear in other parts of the world in the coming decades, as the impact of climate change mounts.

“The regional plans for mitigation and adaptation to climate change are out of date with respect to what is happening in the environment,” Jose Luis Iriarte, who headed the expedition, told AFP.

“The environment is changing quicker than we as a society are responding to it.”

The scientific mission paid special attention to the “red tides” — harmful algal blooms that can turn the sea red.

They were first recorded in the Magallanes region half a century ago and have since been responsible for the deaths of 23 people and poisoned more than 200.

This area is also affected by melting glaciers, a product of global warming.

“We don’t know how these organisms and particularly microorganisms will respond to these effects,” said Iriarte.

The expedition stopped at 14 places, each time taking water samples at different levels up to a depth of 200 metres using a piece of equipment called a rosette.

Another piece of equipment was used to collect soil samples, sometimes at a depth of more than 300 metres.

The scientists also combed the shores for algae and molluscs.

Last bastion of biodiversity 

From the highest point on the boat, marine biologist Rodrigo Hucke, one of 19 scientists on the expedition, spent hours scanning the surface of the water.

Spotting a far off whale, he would give the signal and then jump into a small motorboat to try to get as close as possible to the huge mammal in a bid to collect its faeces, with the aim of looking for changes to its diet.

Hucke says there has been a historical lack of action by governments when it comes to the oceans, which cover 70 per cent of the planet’s surface.

He hopes the next UN Climate Change Conference — COP27 in Egypt — will mark a true global transformation in how the oceans are managed.

“All of this needs to change in 2022 and there needs to be a concrete decision in advancing toward profound policies of change in how us humans do things,” said Hucke.

He is worried that this region could one day become “one of the last bastions of biodiversity on Earth”.

Afer the nine-day mission, it was time to head back to laboratories to analyse the information gathered.

“I think we’re the voice of what nature cannot say,” said Wilson Castillo, a biochemistry student who, at 24, was the youngest member of the expedition.

One of the last few great combustion engine supercars as it reaches the end of its decade-long production run, the Lamborghini Aventador remains as thrilling and extrovert as when first launched in 2011. Updated in 2017 when it received a 40BHP power hike as the Aventador S LP740-4, the Italian manufacturer’s regular production flagship supercar also then gained four-wheel-steering. Instantly identifiable with the squat dimensions and sharply angular lines that have defined Lamborghini since the iconic 1970s Countach, the updated Aventador S, however, adopts a sharper, more assertive look than its pre-facelift predecessor.

A distinctively dramatic design that looks as fast as it goes, the low-slung mid-engine Aventador S is a feast of jutting sharp edges, angles and lines. With more palpable urgency, the revised Aventador S has greater horizontal emphasis with a more layered, jutting, pert and black rear fascia and more complex face with wider grille and intakes separated by gills and more prominent lower air splitter. It also receives revised vents and intakes, engine cover slats, slimmer upper heat extractors, more prominent air diffuser slats and hexagonal central exhaust port cluster.

Razor-sharp response

Lamborghini’s first all-new V12 engine developed under Audi ownership, and the brand’s second V12 since their original 1963-2011 Giotto Bizzarrini design, the Aventador’s viciously vocal naturally-aspirated 6.5-litre is among the world’s most viscerally charismatic engines and one of the few great naturally-aspirated engines in production. Bumped up to produce 730BHP at a stratospheric 8,400rpm since 2017, the Aventador S’ over-square engine design emphasises swift, searing high-end power over low-end torque. Nevertheless, it produces abundant 509lb/ft torque output at 5,500rpm, or at equivalent to most modern turbocharged engines’ peak power point.

Eager and free-revving throughout, and just as responsive winding down on lift-off, the Aventador S delivers razor-sharp throttle control for dialing in exacting increments of power for managing slip and grip through corners. Relentless, urgent and evocative, the massive mid-mounted V12 runs through a visceral medley from resonant and metallic staccato to intense buzz-saw like wail as its reaches its peak. Decidedly high-revving, the Aventador S’ V12, however, isn’t lacking at low-end, and digs deep to deliver a consistently progressive and urgently escalating torrent of power from idling to 8,500rpm redline.

Quick and charismatic

Versatile in mid-range and capable of pulling hard in high gear, the Aventador S is scintillatingly swift with a 350km/h top speed. Brutally quick from standstill with four-wheel-drive traction, it blasts through 0-100km/h in just 2.9-seconds, 0-200km/h in 8.8-seconds and 0-300km/h in 24.2-seconds. Channelling power through a single-clutch automated 7-speed gearbox with three escalating shift modes, the Aventador S may not ultimately match its Huracan junior supercar sister’s dual-clutch gearbox for swiftness or seamlessness. Nevertheless, gear changes are quick, charismatic and satisfyingly deliberate at higher speed, if slightly jerky at lower speeds. 

Built using a rigid yet lightweight carbon-fibre moncoque with front and rear aluminium frames and mixed material body, the Aventador S meanwhile rides on sophisticated double wishbone suspension with horizontal pushrod active magnetic dampers. Meanwhile, 255/30ZR20 front tyres allow good steering feel and huge low profile 355/25ZR21 rear tyres produce massive traction and grip. Undoubtedly sporting in character, the Aventador S is firm and buttoned down on road, if stiff over jagged bumps. However, its softest damper setting is sufficiently forgiving, while a wide footprint helps deliver impeccable motorway stability.

Crisp confidence

Confidently carrying high speeds, the Aventador S’s new four-wheel-steering meanwhile ensures improved lane-changing stability. Improved aerodynamics include 130 per cent more front downforce and a 3-position adjustable pop-up rear wing for alternately enhanced downforce or reduced air resistance. Road-hugging and buttoned down, with its low-mounted mid-engine engine allowing ideal 53 per cent within wheelbase rear weight bias, the Aventador drives through corners like it is riding on rails. Turning in with crisp immediacy, the Aventador S delivers a high degree of lateral body control and huge grip levels when reapplying power by a corner’s apex.

Rear-biased for alert and nimble handling, the Aventador S’ four-wheel-drive however automatically reapportions power where needed and ensures excellent road-holding through corners. But perhaps more significant is the Aventador S’ new four-wheel-steering. Turning rear wheels slightly in the same direction as front at higher speed for enhanced stability, but in the opposite direction at lower speeds to effectively shorten the wheelbase and improve agility, maneuverability and road-holding, four-wheel-steering exponentially improves the Aventador’s driving dynamic and allows it to send more power rearwards for a more balanced driving style and to virtually eliminate understeer.

Traditional charms

A defining supercar that wears its old school charm and machismo with pride, the Aventador S is a visceral indulgence for the senses, but is nevertheless underpinned by sophisticated modern technology, systems and development. At home on the track with its quick, direct steering and tirelessly effective and huge carbon ceramic brakes, driving the Aventador S is always an occasion. However, among its few concessions to practicality is that it can raise its front ride height from 115mm to 155mm to safely clear most ramps and bumps in the city.

As traditional to true supercars, the Aventador S isn’t particularly practical, but requires one to adjust and accept its idiosyncrasies, width and limited rear visibility. Entering through scissor doors, the Aventador driver sits in a focused position, while a huge centre console features numerous buttons, including a guarded firing button-like starter. Leather-bound, sportily luxurious and otherwise adequately spaced, its low cabin however requires tall drivers to hunker down for headroom and slouch for added visibility. Reversing visibility is meanwhile highly dependent on camera and sensors, or a more unorthodox driving position, traditionally employed by Countach drivers.

Lamborghini Aventador S LP740-4

• Engine: 6.5-litre, mid-mounted, dry sump, V12-cylinders
• Bore x stroke: 95 x 76.4mm
• Compression ratio: 12:1
• Valve-train: 48-valve, DOHC
• Rev limit: 8,500rpm
• Gearbox: 7-speed automated manual
• Ratios: 1st 3.909; 2nd 2.438; 3rd 1,81; 4th 1.458; 5th 1.185; 6th 0.967; 7th 0.844; R 2.929
• Final drive, F/R: 3.273/2.867 
• Driveline: Four-wheel-drive, multi-plate clutch, limited-slip rear differential
• Power, BHP (PS) [kW]: 730 (740) [544] @8,400rpm
• Specific power: 112.3BHP/litre
• Power-to-weight: 449.2BHP/ton
• Torque, lb/ft (Nm): 509 (690) @5,500rpm
• Specific torque: 106.2Nm/litre
• Torque-to-weight: 424.6Nm/tonne
• 0-100km/h: 2.9-seconds
• 0-200km/h: 8.8-seconds
• 0-300km/h: 24.2-seconds
• Top speed: 350km/h
• Fuel consumption, urban / extra-urban / combined: 26.2- / 11.6- / 16.9-litres/100km 
• CO2 emissions, combined: 394g/km
• Fuel capacity: 85-litres
• Length: 4,797mm
• Width: 2,030mm
• Height: 1,136mm
• Wheelbase: 2,700mm
• Track, F/R: 1,720/1,680mm
• Ground clearance, min/mx: 115/155mm
• Dry weight: 1,575kg
• Weight distribution, F/R: 43% / 57%
• Cargo volume: 140-litres
• Steering: Power-assisted rack & pinion, and rear-wheel-steering
• Lock-to-lock, min/max: 2.1-/2.4-turns
• Turning circle: 11.5-meters
• Suspension: Double wishbones, horizontal pushrod active magnetic dampers
• Brakes, F/R: Ventilated, carbon-ceramic discs 400 x 38mm / 380 x 38mm
• Brake calipers, F/R: 6-/4-piston calipers
• Braking distance, 100-0km/h: 31-meters
• Tyres: 255/30ZR20 / 355/25ZR21

PARIS — Across a quarter century of UN climate conferences tasked with saving humanity from itself, one was deemed a chaotic failure (Copenhagen/2009), another a stunning success (Paris/2015), and the rest landed somewhere in between.

This year’s COP26 inspired all these reactions at once.

Swedish activist Greta Thunberg, leading a 100,000-strong march through the streets of Glasgow, dismissed the two-week meet as a “greenwashing festival”.

But dedicated experts in the negotiating arena hailed solid — even historic — advances in beating back the existential threat of global warming.

More often than not, observers vacillated between approval and criticism, hope and despair.

“The Glasgow Climate Pact is more than we expected, but less than we hoped for,” Dann Mitchell, head of climate hazards at Britain’s Met Office, said with haiku-like economy.

Gauging the efficacy of measures announced at the COP26 summit largely depends on the yardstick used to measure them.

Compared to what came before, the first-ever call by 196 countries to draw down coal-fired power, or a promise to double financial aid each year — to roughly $40 billion — so poor nations can brace for climate impacts, are giant steps forward.

Likewise a provision obliging countries to consider setting more ambitious targets for reducing carbon pollution every year rather than once every five years.

But all these hard-won gains at COP26 shrivel in significance when stacked up against hard science.

Glasgow exit lane 

An unbroken cascade in 2021 of deadly floods, heatwaves and wildfires across four continents, combined with ever more detailed projections, left no doubt that going beyond the 1.5 degrees Celsius  heating limit envisioned in the Paris Agreement would push Earth into the red zone.

“As a lifelong optimist, I see the Glasgow outcome as half-full rather than half-empty,” said Alden Meyer, a senior analyst at climate and energy think tank E3G.

“But the atmosphere responds to emissions — not COP decisions — and much work remains ahead to translate the strong rhetoric here into reality.”

The past year also saw Part 1 of the UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change’s (IPCC) first comprehensive synthesis of climate science in seven years.

It found that global heating is virtually certain to pass 1.5C, probably within a decade. Meanwhile, ocean levels are rising faster than anticipated, and will do so for centuries.

And forests, soil and oceans — which absorb more than half of humanity’s carbon pollution — show signs of saturation.

Then there is the threat of “tipping points” that could see permafrost release massive amounts of CO2 and methane, the Amazon basin transformed into savannah, and ice sheets shedding enough mass to submerge cities and deltas home to hundreds of millions.

“Make no mistake, we are still on the road to hell,” said Dave Reay, head of the University of Edinburgh’s Climate Change Institute.

“But Glasgow has at least created an exit lane.”

Permanent breaking story 

Part 2 of the IPCC report on climate impacts, seen exclusively by AFP ahead of its February 2022 publication, reveals another yawning gap between the baby steps of COP26 and what is needed in the long term.

Helping vulnerable nations cope with the multiplier effect of global heating on extreme weather could soon require trillions of dollars per year, not the tens of billions put on the table at COP26, a draft version of the report makes clear.

“Adaptation costs are significantly higher than previously estimated, resulting in a growing ‘adaptation finance gap’,” said an executive summary of the 4,000-page report.

The failure of rich nations to deliver $100 billion a year by 2020 to help developing countries makes it hard to imagine where these trillions will come from.

Glasgow marked the transition from fleshing out the rules for the 2015 Paris treaty to implementing its provisions.

But unlike the aftermath of other major COPs, the climate crisis will remain a permanent breaking story that is not going to recede into the background anytime soon.

How that saga unfolds will depend a lot on the world’s four major emitters, collectively responsible for 60 per cent of global carbon pollution.

The United States and the European Union have pledged carbon neutrality by 2050 and recently set more ambitious emission-reduction targets for 2030.

But they refused to set up a fund demanded by more than 130 developing countries to help pay for climate damage already incurred.

All sectors, all countries 

China and India — accounting for 38 per cent of global emissions in 2021, and rising — have resisted pressure to give up fossil fuels.

Beijing has steadfastly refused to do what scientists say is doable and necessary to stay under 2C: peak their emissions far earlier than 2030.

If climate politics remains stymied, however, global capital is already flowing into what some have called the most massive economic transformation in human history.

In Glasgow, former Bank of England governor Mark Carney boasted that nearly 500 banks, insurers and asset managers worth $130 trillion were ready to finance climate action.

“If we only had to transform one sector, or move one country off fossil fuels, we would have done so long ago,” commented Christiana Figueres, who headed the UN climate convention when the Paris deal was struck.

“But all sectors of the global economy have to be decarbonised, and all countries must switch to clean technologies.”

Where some of that money might flow — and who might get left out — has also come into focus, with major investment deals announced for South Africa, and others in the pipeline for emerging economies such as Indonesia and Vietnam.

But there is little incentive for private capital to help the poorest and most vulnerable countries to cope with climate ravages and shore up their defences.

“We cannot just wait for open market incentives to have their way, we need to set prices on carbon globally, we need to set science-based targets that become climate laws”, said Johan Rockstrom, director of the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research.

PHUKET, Thailand — After laying eggs on a deserted Thai beach, a green sea turtle dives back into the turquoise-coloured waters of the Andaman Sea — a welcome sight for biologists who say the absence of tourists spurred the marine animal’s return.

The turtle’s nesting was spotted in November by scientists. In about two months, the 100 eggs will hatch and babies will slide towards the sea, guided by the moonlight.

Pre-pandemic, millions of tourists thronged to the white sand beaches of southern Thailand, ferried to the islands by tour boats which dissuaded the skittish creatures from venturing ashore.

But with almost 20 months of COVID travel restrictions in place, several different species of sea turtles have returned to nesting around Phuket, an ultra-popular beach destination before the pandemic.

Between October 2020 and February 2021, 18 nests of leatherback turtles — which can grow up to 400 kilogrammes as an adult and are the largest species of sea turtles — were found in Phuket.

“Their nesting has improved in the last two years thanks to the absence of tourists, noise and light pollution,” Kongkiat Kittiwatanawong, director of the Phuket Marine Biological Centre, told AFP.

“We had never seen such a number in 20 years.”

Although chances of survival are very low — about one egg hatched out of 1,000 will reach adulthood — Kongkiat said the increase in nesting is a positive sign for efforts to preserve endangered species.

A nest of the olive ridley sea turtle was also spotted — the first time in two decades.

Other species that live in the warm waters around Thailand include leatherback, hawksbill, green and loggerhead turtles.

No long-term reprieve 

But as Thailand tentatively begins to reopen its doors to fully vaccinated international tourists, scientists have tempered their optimism.

“The pandemic may offer sea turtles a welcome break,” Thon Thamrongnawasawat from Kasetsart University in Bangkok said.

“But they live long and are a highly migratory species. Without effective policies to protect them, we can’t expect many long-term benefits to population recovery.”

In Thailand — as in many other countries — the marine animal’s future is threatened by global warming, which harms coral reefs and increases temperatures of waters.

The hotter conditions could in turn disrupt turtle species’ populations: studies have shown that warmer sands where they nest leads to more female hatchlings relative to males.

Pollution is also a problem.

At the moment, plastic and discarded fishing lines and nets remain the primary cause of disease and death.

“In 56 per cent of the cases, the turtles that are brought to us have ingested marine waste or become trapped in it,” said Dr Patcharaporn Kaewong from the Phuket Marine Biological Centre.

Currently, 58 turtles are being treated there. Some need operations, amputation or prosthetics before they are released back into the wild.

Tracking the turtles 

At the moment, scientists and local authorities are on high alert for nesting sea on, which runs until February.

After a female turtle lays a nest, the authorities will act quickly — either moving them to a safe place if they are too close to the water or surrounding it with bamboo fences and security cameras.

“After hatching, we take care of the weak turtles until they are strong enough to go to the sea,” Patcharaporn said.

She added that educating the public about conservation was also important.

Up until a few decades ago, eating turtle eggs was a common custom in Thailand, but gathering them was banned by the Thai government in 1982.

Illegally possessing or selling leatherback turtle eggs is now punishable by three to 15 years in prison, and carries fines of up to $50,000.

Some marine protection NGOs are also financially rewarding locals who report a nest, while technology — like microchipping a turtle — also plays a part in long-term monitoring.

“Thanks to satellite tracking, we have observed that they can migrate much further than we thought,” Kongkiat said, adding that some have gone as far as Australia.

SALACGRIVA, Latvia — At a cauldron bubbling away on a riverbank near Latvia’s Baltic coast, a queue forms of visitors eager to taste the local delicacy — a parasitic eel-like creature, the lamprey.

The animals, which feed by attaching themselves to herring and salmon and sucking their blood, were once a popular food in the Middle Ages but have gone out of fashion across much of Europe.

But in Latvia, they are still prized and celebrated at local festivals.

“When smoked or boiled in a soup, lampreys have a unique taste,” said Laura Berzina, attending one autumn festival in the town of Salacgriva.

Berzina said she had travelled some 100 kilometres with her family for a taste of lamprey.

As for Nataliya Alexandrova, a retired accountant from Riga: “I was born in Russia but living in Latvia has made me appreciate this fantastic food.”

A kilogramme of lamprey in a typical Latvian supermarket costs up to 30 euros ($35) — nearly four times more than an average kilogramme of beef.

According to BIOR, a food safety and animal health institute in Riga, around 50 tonnes of lamprey are caught every year in Latvia.

Despite being parasites that prey on saltwater fish, lampreys have found their way into the official symbols of coastal towns in the EU member state of 1.9 million people.

The European Commission has even included them on its list of food and drink products with “protective designation of origins”, alongside the likes of French champagne and Greek feta cheese.

In Britain, lampreys have a strong association with the royal family.

A lamprey binge is said to have been the reason for the death of King Henry I of England in 1135.

Lamprey pies are served up to this day for crowned heads in the kingdom.

 ‘Like it has been for centuries’ 

Lampreys hatch in the rivers that flow into the Baltic Sea, then migrate to feed on fish and are generally caught when they return to the rivers after seven or eight years to mate.

Fishermen use nets attached to temporary wooden constructions called “tacis” — footbridges made of wooden booms and planks that stretch across rivers.

“Each spring, when the ice on the river melts away, we rebuild our tacis,” Aleksandrs Rozenshteins, owner of a small specialised lamprey fishing company, told AFP.

The catch usually arrives when autumn storms push the lampreys from the sea back into the rivers.

Since lampreys move only at night, fishermen check their nets in the morning.

“It may vary from nothing or just a few kilos to several hundred kilogrammes,” Rozenshteins said.

The “tacis” are then taken down for the winter.

By law, nets may cover only two-thirds of the river’s width to allow other life forms in the stream to move freely.

The only difference now from the fishing traditions of the past is the use of factory-produced nets rather than traps made of fir branches.

“Regardless of whether the lampreys are smoked, grilled or boiled in a cauldron, we keep all the fishing and cooking process just like it has been for centuries,” Rozenshteins said.

MATARO, Spain — For Neil Harbisson, a self-described “cyborg” artist living near Barcelona, colour is quite literally music to his ears thanks to an antenna he designed to overcome colour blindness.

Well-known in Spain and with an international following that enabled him to meet the likes of Leonardo di Caprio and Tom Cruise, Harbisson is now testing out a new device designed to feel physically the passing of time.

Where once the term cyborg conjured up images of Arnold Schwarzenegger’s Terminator, technology today is expanding human capacities through prostheses and implants.

Born in Northern Ireland with achromatopsia, a rare condition meaning he can only see in greyscale, Harbisson moved to Barcelona as a child and grew up obsessed with colour and things he couldn’t sense.

It was an obsession that saw the now 39-year-old Briton eventually go under the surgeon’s knife to transform his identity and his life.

While at music college in England, he developed the slim metal rod that arches over his head and vibrates according to colours it detects.

At first glance it looks like wearable technology, but it’s as much a part of his body as his nose or his ears, giving him the ability to “hear” the colour his eyes cannot see.

“Being a cyborg means technology is part of your identity,” he tells AFP.

“It allows me to sense colours from infrared to ultra-violet through vibrations in my head that then become sound, so I can actually hear colour.”

‘Eureka moment’ 

In 2004, he managed to persuade a surgeon — who remains anonymous — to drill it into his skull, the technology becoming part of his body as the bone grew around it.

The sensor picks up the frequency of colours and translates them into sounds that he perceives through bone conduction.

Humans normally hear using air conduction with sound waves passing through the outer and middle ears and causing the inner eardrum to vibrate.

But with bone conduction, the vibrations are transmitted through the skull or jawbone directly to the inner ear.

The colour-sound association also means he senses colours when listening to music or even speeches, with every syllable having a frequency that relates to colour.

“At the beginning, everything was chaotic because the antenna was not telling me: Blue, yellow, pink, it was giving me vibrations and I had no idea what colour I had in front of me,” Harbisson said.

“But after some time, my brain got used to it and it slowly became part of my perception and became normal,” he added.

Although it cannot be switched off, Harbisson’s antenna falls silent in darkness. His “eureka moment” came after dreaming “in colour” and realising the colours “had been created by my brain and not by the chip”.

Although he may be the first person to “hear” colour frequencies as notes, bone conduction helped Beethoven as he started going deaf. The German composer realised he could still hear by resting a wooden stick on the piano while biting the other end as he played.

Some 200 years later, bone-anchored hearing aids work in the same way via a metal implant inserted into the skull.

‘Stretch time’ 

In the home where Harbisson grew up and where his mother still lives, a riot of coloured canvases line the walls, the staircase lined with curious-looking “facial scores” of celebrities like di Caprio and Cruise.

These Hollywood stars let Harbisson detect the “sound” of their skin tone and lip colour, which are rendered in enigmatic charcoal lines.

But Harbisson is now turning his attention to a new project.

He’s created a device shaped like a chunky metal collar, designed to sense the passing of time, and is kicking off a year-long trial to see how it works.

“There’s a point of heat that takes 24 hours to go around my neck and allows you to feel the rotation of the planet,” he told AFP.

“Once the brain gets used to it, you can use an app to make subtle changes to the speed of the point of heat which should alter your perception of time,” he added.

“You could potentially stretch time or make it feel like time is going faster.”

For now, it’s a permanent wearable rather than an implant. A previous incarnation had to be scrapped because he was “getting burnt” at 6:00pm.

“This is an art that does carry some kind of risk but it’s an unknown risk because we don’t have much history of bodies and technology being merged,” he said.