Environment & Science

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

Dozens of students from across Pennsylvania will descend on Saucon Valley Middle School’s gymnasium for FIRST Tech Challenge’s robotics state championship, including two teams from the Lehigh Valley.

Pennsylvania’s maple sugaring season is well underway. At the Monroe County Conservation District’s Singing Hemlock Sugar Shack, educators guided visitors through the history of maple syrup production.

A flood watch remains in effect from 1 p.m. Saturday through Sunday evening for a large swath of the region, including Lehigh and Northampton counties.

Forecasters say a weekend storm will not only bring active weather, windy conditions Sunday and Monday are likely to bring isolated instances of tree damage and power outages to the Lehigh Valley.

Farmers say that the final offer for a property doesn’t account for fertile soil or product reliability. Plus, it doesn't accurately reflect the financial burden of moving to a new place.

Advocates and officials across Pennsylvania have signaled their support the new standards for fine particle pollution, also called soot or PM 2.5. However, federal officials don’t anticipate communities will meet the standard for almost a decade.

Norfolk Southern crews remained at the derailment site along the Lehigh River in Lower Saucon Township. The company released no details on what the trains were hauling or where they were going.

More than 200 years after the sanctuary was built, church leaders are working to make its heating and cooling more sustainable. While work is already underway, the oldest Moravian Church in North America still needs funding.

After a washout Saturday in the Lehigh Valley, forecasters say a parade of storms could easily produce another 2 to 3 inches of rain or more over the next week.

Tuesday's fast-moving storm swept quickly through the Lehigh Valley but packed a wallop, bringing nearly a foot of snow to several spots.

“This has been a tremendously difficult storm to forecast due to rapidly changing conditions/temperatures expected and the difference in timing,” the National Weather Service said in its forecast discussion.

PPL Electric Utilities and Met-Ed reported more than 13,000 customers without power Tuesday morning as a winter storm swept through the region.

Several Lehigh Valley schools are closing Tuesday because of the weather forecast.

Early Monday, the National Weather Service issued a winter storm warning in effect for the Lehigh Valley for 7 to 10 inches of snow, with locally higher amounts over the higher elevations.

One area of potential concern at the Allentown State Hospital had been the presence of dioxins in the soil. Dioxins are a group of toxic chemical compounds that take a long time to break down in the environment, and can cause health problems in people.

Betelgeuse is the red supergiant star at Orion’s ‘right shoulder.’

Lehigh and Northampton counties are under a winter storm watch in effect from 12 a.m. to 6 p.m. Tuesday, with 4 to 8 inches of heavy, wet snow possible.

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

It’s a special year for cicadas, insects known for their high-pitched mating songs. Two adjacent broods are expected to co-emerge for the first time in 221 years. Here's the next time they emerge in the Valley.

Northern flying squirrels are endangered, and the Pa. Game Commission works to improve their habitat. A group went searching for the species in the Poconos.

Stanley cups have skyrocketed in popularity, following other trends in reusable drinkware. But, fads like these can encourage overconsumption, experts said.