Apple has broken an all-time sales record with the MacBook Neo in its first week. The surprise is absolutely zero

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Tim Cook himself confirmed it a few days ago in X. And Apple has managed to beat its own record with the help of MacBook Neo In terms of sales, it is the best launch of a Mac for new users in its entire history. The theme is striking to say the least, although it is little surprising considering that it is a significantly cheaper product than the rest of the equipment offered by the brand. Why does it matter? Apple has dominated the premium laptop market for decades, but it has always had a clear ceiling: its entry price. He MacBook Air with M5 part of the 1,199 euros, which leaves out a huge group of Windows PC users, Chromebook or directly without a computer. The launch of the MacBook Neo, at 699 euros (which remains at 599 for students), is Apple’s first serious attempt to conquer that market. And it seems to be working. busy week. On March 11, Apple presented three new computers simultaneously: the MacBook Neo, the MacBook Air with M5 chip and the MacBook Pro with M5 Pro and M5 Max. It was a pretty dense week for the Mac line. A few days later, Tim Cook published in X that this launch had broken the historical record of new Mac buyers, that is, people who purchased an Apple computer for the first time. Although Cook does not break down the figures or specify which model leads the data, the logic points in one direction. The responsible one. The MacBook Air and MacBook Pro have a consolidated user base that periodically renews their equipment. The MacBook Neo, on the other hand, has no previous installed base: it is a completely new product, designed from the ground up to attract those who have never bought a Mac. With a price approximately half that of the Air, it is a profile that fits exactly with that of a buyer making the jump from Windows or a Chromebook. And it should be noted that the Mac has been on the market for decades, but there is still a huge volume of PC users who have never had one, and the Neo seems destined to change that. Who would imagine that a Mac would sell more if it were at a more competitive price… Demand exceeds supply. Another indicator of the Neo’s impact is that Apple is not being able to meet demand, according to they count from 9to5Mac. During March 20, all MacBook Neo models in Apple’s online store had a delivery date between April 6 and 13, according to the media, which means between two and three weeks of waiting for a product launched just a week ago. Normally it is something that usually happens when a new iPhone arrives, but on Mac it is something much less common. Those with an Apple Store nearby may have better luck, although the assortment varies greatly depending on location and color. The industry was already on alert. The impact of the Neo has not gone unnoticed outside of Apple. According to AppleInsiderWindows PC manufacturers have been surprised by both the price and the features of the new laptop. It is not a device for everyone, but it does seem to be for many: it has the A18 Pro chip (the same as iPhone 16 Pro) that, for office automation and navigation tasks it gives you plentyand it comes in a good assortment of colors, with a value proposition that was unprecedented on Mac and that seems to convince many users. Cover image | Apple In Xataka | Apple is not only being penalized for being late to the AI ​​boom: it is also penalizing itself for allying itself solely with Google

Tehran has a gigantic “Plan B”

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“A single shot at one of our men or ships, and he would make a good deal of Kharg Island. He would come in and take it.” The phrase could have been written this morning on the social network Truth Social, but it is almost forty years old. American President Donald Trump was already fantasizing in 1988, during an interview with Guardianwith taking over the main Iranian oil terminal. Today, four decades later and in the midst of the Third Gulf War, that old script has jumped from the paper to the Pentagon crisis room. For influential figures in Washington, such as Republican Senator Lindsey Graham, the equation is simple: He who controls Kharg, controls the fate of the war. The prevailing idea is that this island of just 20 square kilometers functions as an “off button” for the ayatollah regime. However, this one-dimensional vision collides head-on with a much more complex reality. Washington believes that taking this terminal will subdue Tehran, but they have forgotten that the Islamic Republic has been building a gigantic “Plan B” for years to survive precisely this scenario. Kharg: the untouchable heart. To understand America’s obsession, you have to look at the numbers. Kharg Island is the true economic heart of Iran. Located about 25 kilometers from the coast in the Persian Gulf, its deep waters allow supertankers to dock that the continental coast cannot accommodate. He usually travels there 90% of the country’s crude oil exportsgenerating annual revenues of $78 billion that directly finance the Iranian military. Even though the war began in late February 2026 and the United States and Israel have bombed thousands of targets, the island’s oil infrastructure remains strangely intact, and the reason is economic. Analysts at JP Morgan and Chatham House They warn that destroying Kharg It would cause an earthquake in global markets, shooting up the price of a barrel to $150. “Plan B”. This is where the American strategy breaks down, just as Javier Blas explainsenergy columnist Bloomberg. The idea that capturing Kharg will subdue Tehran is, in Blas’s words, “fanciful.” Iran does not depend on a single faucet. If Kharg falls or is blocked, the regime would immediately activate its network of secondary terminals: Jask: It is the strategic jewel of “Plan B”. Located in the Arabian Sea, it allows Iran to export oil, completely bypassing the disputed Strait of Hormuz. According to Blas, it could pump about 300,000 barrels per day. Lavan, Sirri and Qeshm: These three islands within the Persian Gulf have a combined capacity of another 200,000 to 300,000 barrels per day. The treasure of derivatives: Iran does not only live off crude oil. It exports another million barrels per day of natural gas liquids (NGL) and refined products (naphtha, liquefied gas) from terminals such as Assaluyeh, Bandar Mahshahr and Abadan. It is their second most lucrative source of income. As Javier Blas explains, To truly choke off the flow of petrodollars, Trump would have to not only take Kharg, but capture all of these terminals simultaneously. Otherwise, a constant flow of barrels would continue to sustain the Iranian war effort. Besides, as I already explained in Xatakathe war has not sunk the Iranian oil business, it has accelerated it. The failed ultimatum: a step back from Trump? Washington’s strategy until now was shifting from bombing to occupation. As my colleague Miguel Jorge has detailedthe Pentagon is accelerating the deployment of the USS Boxer amphibious group and thousands of Marines to the region. The objective would be to take physical control of the island to use it as a negotiating lever and force the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz, which Iran maintains blocked. In fact, as you have had access AP NewsTrump gave Iran 48 hours to open the strait under threat of “wiping its power plants off the map.” However, hours before the deadline expired, the president backed down. through your Truth Social account: “I am pleased to report that the United States, and the country of Iran, have had, over the past two days, good and productive talks (…) I have instructed the War Department to postpone any and all military attacks against Iranian power plants and energy infrastructure for a period of five days, subject to the success of the ongoing meetings.” Iranian state media, for its part, They quickly denied any direct negotiations and stated that the American president “withdrew for fear of Iran’s response.” The threat of regional destruction. Added to this is the doctrine of “mutual assured destruction” at the regional level. If Trump attacks Iran’s energy infrastructure or takes Kharg, Tehran has vowed to respond with fire. According to AP NewsIran’s Defense Council has threatened to mine the entire Persian Gulf (“like in the 1980s,” they warned) and bomb power and desalination plants in Arab countries allied to the United States, including the Barakah nuclear plant in the United Arab Emirates. Finally, recent history works against the White House. Javier Blas remember that during the campaign of Trump’s “maximum pressure” between 2020 and 2022, Iranian crude oil exports fell by 90%, below 250,000 barrels per day for months. Despite extreme financial pain, the regime did not collapse. To think that they will give in today, when they started from a record production of almost 5 million barrels of liquid petroleum per day (the highest in 46 years), is to ignore the lessons of the past. Washington’s miscalculation. Donald Trump’s fixation on Kharg Island belongs to an era when brute American force rarely met with asymmetrical resistance. Occupying this tiny patch of land in the Persian Gulf may seem like the perfect coup d’état to force a quick outcome, but the reality on the ground is stubborn. By focusing its sights on a single objective, Washington underestimates the resilience of a regime that has been preparing for economic and military isolation for decades. If the Marines manage to plant their flag in Kharg, they will discover that they have not shut down the Iranian … Read more

A polar air mass will descend over Spain just before Easter. AEMET is already talking about polar cold and significant snowfall

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The key day will be Wednesday the 26th. It will be then when, at the gates of Holy Week, a mass of polar air will enter the national territory leaving cold and snow during the last week of march. And yes, that’s what matters to us right now; but the general context is much more complicated. But let’s talk about the cold. Starting on Wednesday, an undulation of the polar jet will push the anticyclonic ridge towards the north of the Atlantic and a very deep polar trough will descend over Europe. This will generate several storms. In Spain, the models they don’t agree. While the European model is committed to a colder and more intense scenario; The American believes that the irruption will be limited to the north, the east and the Balearic Islands. Be that as it may, we are talking about an isotherm of -4 degrees in the heart of the peninsula, more than significant snowfall in the Cantabrian Mountains, the Pyrenees and the Iberian system (at least in the north). This is just what we hope for. And skepticism is more than justified: the 2025-2026 storm season has broken all records totaling (to date) 19 named systems. Furthermore, this winter has been the third wettest of the 21st century and January was the wettest month since records began. The uncertainty is, understandably and unjustifiably, greater than normal. We must not forget that “Holy Week” is synonymous with millions of trips, thousands of outdoor activities throughout the country and hundreds of sectors that critically depend on it. But it’s not a surprise either. According to AEMET climate dataBetween the end of March and the beginning of April, it rains some day in 70-80% of recorded years. That is to say, the distinctive thing this year will not be the rain, but the cold. The good news. If we pay attention to the medium-term models, everything seems to indicate that the anticyclone It will recover ground around April 1 or 2. That is, we can expect the weather to be more stable in the second half of Holy Week. Of course, the uncertainties are great and, as the old saying goes, “you should not sell the bear’s skin before hunting it.” Interesting days are coming. Image | Tropical TidBits In Xataka | The snowiest ski resort in Europe right now is not in the Alps or the Pyrenees: it is in Granada

AI will not be the only focus

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If you are interested in what Apple is preparing for the coming months, you can now start marking a date on the calendar, because the company has confirmed when it will hold its next big event for developers. The WWDC26 It will start on June 8 and will do so in a very specific context: the Cupertino company continues to be one of the most valuable technology companies on the planet, with recent launches that have strengthened its business, but also with several promises still pending in artificial intelligence. What is presented at this event will not only set the course for their platforms, it will also serve to measure the extent to which those plans are beginning to materialize. The date. As we say, the appointment will begin on June 8 and will last until June 12. It will maintain that format that Apple has been consolidating in recent years, combining digital with a special in-person event at Apple Park, with limited places. Most of WWDC26 will be held online, with free access to video sessions, workshops and developer meetups. The starting point will be on Monday with the keynote, accompanied by the Platforms State of the Union session, where we hope to see Tim Cook’s speech. More than artificial intelligence. Apple has already hinted at where the shots will go this year, and the reading is quite clear if we connect the official messages with what we have been seeing in recent months. In his own press release he speaks of “advances in AI” along with “important developments in software and programming tools”, which suggests that artificial intelligence will be very present, but it will not be the only focus of the conference. It is a way to balance expectations at a time when several of the functions associated with Apple Intelligence and the renewal of Siri continue to generate attention. A WWDC focused on software. It’s no secret that this type of event is focused on software. Apple’s developer conference has traditionally been the showcase for its operating systems, and for now there are no clear signs that this year will be different. In fact, after a recent series of recent hardware updates, such as the MacBook Neothe AirPods Max 2the new Studio Display XDR wave second generation of AirTagwe will have to wait to see if there are any surprises in that area, which is very unlikely. What we hope to see. Although Apple has not gone into detail about the specific news, we do have enough clues to draw a fairly approximate scenario of what could be presented in the keynote. Platforms and operating systems: As usual at WWDC, new versions of iOS, iPadOS, macOS, watchOS and visionOS are expected. AI and Siri– The evolution of Apple Intelligence should take center stage. We could see improvements to Siri that have been long overdue. Countdown running. There is little time left to verify to what extent these forecasts are met. Everything points to a balanced WWDC26, with artificial intelligence sharing the spotlight with the rest of the software news. It will then be when we can see if Apple manages to shape the pending promises and how they fit into its global strategy. Images | Apple In Xataka | Transferring files from a Samsung to an iPhone is a pain. So the Galaxy are going to be compatible with AirDrop

A brotherhood in Sagunto has closed its doors to women during Holy Week. The decision threatens to cost the entire town

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What weighs more, tradition or equality? It seems like a whimsical question, but it’s exactly the same as yesterday they had to consider hundreds of brothers from Sagunto. There the members of Sang de Sagunt have had to make a controversial decision with Holy Week around the corner: Keep the doors of their brotherhood closed to women, preserving the status quo with which they have functioned in recent centuries, or accept the requests increasingly pressing of the women who want to procession just like the men of the town? For them there are few doubts. What has happened? That nothing will change in Sagunto. At least for now. Yesterday the brotherhood of the Sang de Sagunt decided by an overwhelming majority that it will remain faithful to tradition and keep its door closed to women. The members of the brotherhood with the right to vote were called to a conclave in which they had to decide a crucial question: whether or not to alter the statutes so that where it now says “male” it now includes “any baptized person”, a small change that would nevertheless allow women to participate in the work of the entity. The brothers voted for do not touch a single comma. What was the result? The vote was held behind closed doors, but its results were not long in coming. To begin with, we know that of the 1,627 brotherOnly 403 voted, all men, of course. Regarding the result, the ‘no’ to the change won resoundingly. 267 people spoke out against altering the statutes compared to 114 who supported it. Another eight brothers abstained, 12 voted blank and two issued invalid ballots. The result throws a bucket of cold water (the umpteenth) on the claims of the dozens of women of the Semana Santa Inclusiva Sagunto collective who were waiting gathered at the doors of the temple where the summit was held. Why is it important? Beyond the vote and what it means for the brotherhood, the result is important for several reasons. To begin with, it shows that, despite the attempts at Inclusive Holy Week, the message of equality is far from reaching the brotherhood. It’s not just that the ‘no’ won overwhelmingly, it’s that it’s the third time that the brotherhood has spoken out in that sense. A similar vote was held in 1999 in which only nine brothers They spoke out in favor of the inclusion of women. In 2022 the experience was repeated with the same result, although the ‘yeses’ shot up to 135, leaving at least a positive reading for women. Yesterday the vote did not even leave that little consolation. Support plummeted to only 114. Are there more reasons? Yes. Yesterday’s vote is also relevant for what it may represent for Holy Week in Sagunto. In February elDiario revealed that the Ministry of Tourism had initiated an investigation file to decide whether or not to remove the label Festival of National Tourist Interest (FITN). The reason: precisely the lack of gender equality in the brotherhood that has been in charge of the central events of Holy Week for centuries. The loss of the title would be a lot more than a simple administrative formality. The FITN label clears the way to benefit from promotion channels and subsidies, so if Sagunto loses that label it could be affected at a tourism level. The Government already has advanced which, after yesterday’s vote, has decided to initiate a file to “revoke” the 2004 declaration. Why did they vote against? In the background there is a key debate: Maintain the current status to preserve tradition or adapt it to the values ​​of the 21st century for greater equality? As the reporters who were waiting yesterday for the result of the vote at the doors of the temple explained, arguments in favor of both positions could be heard in the streets of Sagunto. At the summit, however, the first one won with arguments like “tradition is tradition” or that women can set up their “own brotherhood.” “We are sad, above all disappointed,” admits to The Newspaper Blanca Ribelles, from Holy Week Inclusive. “I thought that our society would have evolved and that we would be more mature than three years ago, because equality is something that is no longer questioned. It is not about being more, but about equality.” After collecting signatures to encourage voting, Ribelles recognizes that now the next move may be to go directly to court, although assures which is a path “that we would never have wanted to reach”. Is it a unique case? Not quite. What the group demands is that women not have to limit themselves to mending their clothes, cleaning the hermitage or raising funds. They want to go out in procession in “the usual brotherhood, the one they have always had.” It is not the only place in Spain where the debate has arisen. A year ago the Constitutional gave the reason to a woman from La Laguna (Tenerife) who reported a similar situation. The case has been resorted at the European level, however, which explains why yesterday it was not decisive in the Sagunto vote. Images | Sagunto Tourism and Valencian Community In Xataka | Holy Week has been a huge marketing campaign for decades. Now it even has board games

How this airport has become a haven for airlines

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The war conflict in Iran has forced Qatar Airways to park part of your fleet thousands of miles from home. What may have surprised some is that the chosen destination was the Teruel airport. But it makes more sense than it seems. We tell you all the details. The trigger. On February 28, when the United States and Israel launched Operation Epic Fury against Iran, the military escalation that followed caused the closure of airspace Qatar and, with it, the temporary suspension of Qatar Airways commercial flights. The company, based at Doha’s Hamad International Airport, announced it would not resume operations until civil aviation authorities ensured safe conditions. Since then, as has shared El Confidencial has only operated specific flights through restricted air corridors. Why Teruel? With a fleet grounded and the risk of keeping it in a war-torn region, Qatar Airways needed to move its planes to safe and affordable locations. Teruel Airport, which does not operate regular passenger flights but is home to Tarmac Aerosave, a company specialized in parking, maintenance and aeronautical recycling with offices also in Toulouse and Tarbes, was a perfect fit. It is not the first time that its facilities have faced a crisis of this caliber, since during the pandemic it managed to guard 127 aircraft simultaneously, including more than twenty Airbus A-380s, according to they count from Diario de Teruel. The numbers. In less than ten days, Qatar Airways has moved at least 17 of its aircraft to Teruel, which were joined by three other planes from different companies, including an Air France Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner from Paris, according to The Diary. Among the models that have arrived at the facilities are several wide-body Airbus A330s (with capacity for between 335 and 440 passengers), Airbus A350s and some Boeings. Just like share The medium, this Sunday five planes landed in just over an hour: four A330s from Doha and one A350 from Los Angeles. They all arrived with special flight codes indicating they were traveling without passengers on board. Octavio López, president of the Teruel Airport Consortium, said that the airlines arrive “knowing that in Teruel they will find a safe and prepared place for parking and all the maintenance tasks that their aircraft require.” There are currently about 70 aircraft parked on the Teruel platform, and that number may continue to grow as long as the conflict lasts. Change of plans. Qatar Airways is not the only one affected. Etihad Airways, based in Abu Dhabi, operates a very reduced commercial program, and Emirates, from Dubai, also maintains a reduced scheme. The European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) issued at the end of February an alert bulletin in which it recommends not operating in the airspace of eleven countries in the region, including Bahrain, Iran, Iraq, Israel, Kuwait, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates, at any altitude. Routes between Europe and Asia, which usually cross the Persian Gulf, have been diverted south (via Egypt, Saudi Arabia and Oman) or north (via the Caucasus and Afghanistan), adding between 45 minutes and two hours to each flight. Added to that are interference in GPS signals detected over Lebanon and Oman, which further complicate commercial flights. What happens now? The situation remains very volatile. US President Donald Trump threatened this Sunday with attack Iran’s power plants if the country does not open the Strait of Hormuz, to which the Iranian Army responded warning of possible attacks on US strategic assets in the region. The situation is not yet expected to normalize soon. In fact, Qatar Airways has asked to its passengers not to go to the airports unless they receive official confirmation of their flight, offering date changes or refunds to those who had reservations until March 22. For now, it seems that more planes will continue to arrive in Teruel. Cover image | Jan Rosolino In Xataka | Guess what ubiquitous industry in our lives depends on helium? And now guess where that helium comes from?

With this VPN it is very simple and you can use it on all your devices

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Privacy and more security while browsing the Internet. That’s just what it can give us a VPNwhich is generally activated in just a few seconds. Although there are free options that can be useful for a specific moment, in the long run it is worth investing in a paid one. Especially when you can get a quality one like Surfshark for 1.88 euros per month. And be careful: because with an account, you can use it on all the devices you have. Surfshark Starter Subscription – monthly The price could vary. We earn commission from these links Cost-benefit, it is worth it (and a lot) to invest in a paid VPN With free options, why pay for a VPN? As we say, for very specific use, a free VPN can get you out of trouble. Now, the problem that these types of free tools have in common is that They are not as safe as they promise. That’s exactly where the payment options come in and where There are very economical alternatives such as Surfshark. If you are traveling somewhere and have to use the WiFi of a cafe or a hotel, one of these VPNs can be great for you. By activating it (something that takes just a few seconds), you will be passing all your Internet traffic through a secure tunnel to which no one will have access. This gives you an extra layer of security and privacy that, as we say, allows unlimited devices with a single account. Not all VPNs offer this. All this in exchange for a very affordable price. Its price is 1.88 euros per month if we opt for its two-year modality. That, doing the math, implies that 24 months of this VPN costs us a total of 50.76 euros, a quite attractive figure. To this, we must add two things: The first is that we will have three extra monthsso we will actually enjoy this VPN for 27 months. If we take into account the cost-benefit of this VPN, the truth is that It is worth it if you are looking for a good tool of this type. Some of the links in this article are affiliated and may provide a benefit to Xataka. In case of non-availability, offers may vary. Images | surfshark In Xataka | Best VPNs 2026: guide with the 17 best services to protect your online privacy In Xataka | Why it is dangerous to connect to public Wi-Fi and what you should do to protect yourself

The most unexpected blow of the Iran war is not the price of oil. It’s the one with the chips

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The Strait of Hormuz does not manufacture semiconductors or host data centers. However, its closure effective March 4 threatens to destabilize the heart of the global technology economy. Taiwan, which through TSMC manufactures around 90% of the world’s most advanced semiconductors, runs on imported energy, and a large part of it flowed through that strait. The connection between a conflict in the Middle East and the price of a GPU It is not metaphorical. It is totally physical. Why is it important. What Trump has described as a “minor excursion” began on February 28 as a military intervention against the Iranian leadership and has led to the almost total closure of the passage that connects the Persian Gulf with the Indian Ocean. 20% of the world’s natural gas and 25% of the global oil usually pass through there. Now, practically nothing happens. Between the lines. The problem for the chip industry is not oil, but two much less visible resources: The LNG. The Middle East supplies 37% of the fuel that powers the Taiwanese electrical grid, and that electricity is what TSMC’s factories consume with an energy hunger that demands continuous supply. And helium, which is even more delicate: it is essential in the process of photolithography and has no viable substitute. Taiwan only has LNG reserves for 11 days without external imports. South Korea has 52; Japan, three weeks. The contrast. South Korea and Japan have been building energy security buffers for years precisely because they know how much they depend on abroad. Taiwan, on the other hand, has historically prioritized cost over resilience: its LNG storage capacity is much lower than that of its neighbors, and that is now taking its toll. It’s not just a matter of reserve days. The thing is that Samsung and SK Hynix operate in a country with more robust emergency infrastructure, while TSMC, the company on which practically the entire global technological ecosystem depends, turns out to be the most exposed of all. Yes, but. Companies are not sitting idly by: TSMC has secured LNG supplies until mid-May. As for helium, Australia and the United States have the capacity to partially compensate for Qatar’s decline. Morgan Stanley estimates that several additional shipments are already heading to the islandalthough Taiwan has probably paid a notable premium for them. That premium will most likely translate into a price increase. The big question. The real risk is not the immediate cut, but how long this lasts. Consumers expecting GPUs for gaming They will be the last in line. In Xataka | Chinese airlines are the only ones still flying over Russia. And that is why they are the winners of the Iran crisis Featured image | Xataka

the toxic hell of Tehran after the bombing of the worst fuel in the world

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The water in emergency reserves is no longer transparent; It has turned a thick black. The city’s once passable streets are covered in a slippery, dark layer. “Night became morning and morning, with all the smoke, became night again,” said one astonished resident. These are not scenes from a dystopian movie, but the reality that describe The New York Times after the bombings on the oil infrastructure in Iran. The attacks have left Tehran residents facing a rain laden with oil and toxins that stains cars, roofs and hanging clothes. Faced with this unprecedented situation, the Iranian authorities and the Red Crescent have been forced to ask the more than 9 million inhabitants of the capital to lock themselves in their homes, with severe warnings for children, the elderly and pregnant women. What falls from the sky is no longer just water; It’s poison. A fog that reaches space. The constant military bombings against multiple fuel facilities in and around Tehran, such as the Shahran and Aqdasieh depots, have left a black scar. As detailed GuardianDays after the impacts, satellite images showed that the facilities were still burning, sending columns of dense smoke into the atmosphere. But the problem is aggravated by the type of fuel that burns. An exhaustive analysis of The New York Times reveals that the clouds They are extraordinarily toxic because Iran burns and stores large quantities of “mazut.” This is a very low quality residual fuel, the “bottom of the barrel” that remains after refining the oil, and which contains very high levels of sulfur. Although much of the world prohibits its use, Iran depends on it due to its aging refineries and international sanctions. And it started to rain black. When the facilities were blown up, smoke laden with soot, sulfur dioxide and nitrogen compounds rose to the skies. Why did it rain black? Akshay Deoras, scientist at the University of Reading consulted by Guardianand the magazine Nature They explain it with a clear metaphor: the raindrops acted like “sponges or magnets”, absorbing all the pollutants and oil suspended in the air before collapsing on the city. Furthermore, Tehran is a victim of its own geography. As the magazine explains NaturelThe city is surrounded by the Alborz mountains. This generates a phenomenon known as “thermal inversion,” where a layer of warm air traps cold, contaminated air near the ground, functioning as a lid that prevents toxicity from dispersing. The invisible enemy. The citizens they expressed thatAlmost instantly, they began to suffer headaches, eye and skin irritation, and severe breathing difficulties. The Iranian Red Crescent issued urgent alerts warning that the mixture of humidity and sulfur dioxide was generating acid rain, capable of causing chemical burns on the skin. However, the medical community’s real fear is long-term. This is the “invisible enemy” that Professor Armin Sorooshian talks about in The Conversation. Not only do explosions release petroleum smoke, but the ammunition itself contains heavy metals such as lead and mercury. Exposure to fine particles (PM2.5) that penetrate deep into the lungs brings with it a devastating legacy. As John Balmes, professor emeritus at the University of California, warns, in The New York Times: “Can you imagine a fire in an oil depot in Manhattan? That’s what we’re talking about.” Experts predict a future increase in cardiovascular disease, cognitive damage, DNA alterations and various types of cancer due to the carcinogens present, such as benzene. The threat also filters into what the population drinks and eats. The World Health Organization (WHO) and the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP) have warned that spilled oil and toxic rain are contaminating groundwater, public canals and farmland, poisoning the food chain in a country already suffering from a severe drought. Beyond: ecocide. The magnitude of the disaster brings legal loopholes and massive collateral damage to the table. Iran has called the attacks “ecocide,” a term that makes sense when analyzing international law. The legal limbo that allows this horror. It may seem paradoxical, but bombing a fuel tank is not technically a chemical attack. Expert Alexandra R. Harrington explained it in detail in The Conversation: Although the Geneva Conventions prohibit destroying civil infrastructure, they do not specifically shield gasoline tanks or industrial products. Added to this is that international treaties on chemical weapons only punish the use of weapons manufactured expressly for this purpose. The result? A huge legal loophole that allows a refinery to explode and an entire city to be poisoned without having fired a single factory-made toxic missile. A black sea in the Gulf. The disaster is not only in the sky of Tehran. If we look towards the Persian Gulf and the Strait of Hormuz, the war has turned the water into another ground zero after direct hits against oil tankers and desalination plants. Oil spills are already spreading across the sea, putting local fishing communities on the ropes and drowning coral reefs. Species that were already on the verge of extinction, like dugongsthey are now swimming in a death trap. The smoke that crossed half the world. The gigantic column of black smoke that was born in the Iranian deposits has not remained stagnant there. The currents have been dragged eastwarddrawing a dark line over Afghanistan and China until it sneaks into Russian airspace. The big fear now is that if all that accumulated soot falls on the high mountain ranges, it will act as a magnet for the sun and drastically accelerate the melting of the glaciers. The hidden climate bill. There is collateral damage that is hardly talked about and that Deutsche Welle has put on the table: The military machinery is an insatiable devourer of fossil fuels. Bombings and troop movements are injecting millions of tons of CO2 into the atmosphere in record time. The most frustrating thing about this situation is that the current climate agreements have a “fine print” that exempts countries from accounting for emissions derived from war in their official balance sheets. An indelible toxic legacy. Historically, … Read more

A year ago, the blackout caused the Spanish data network to collapse. The CNMC believes it has the solution

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In April 2025 Spain suffered a zero energy of which, precisely now, we are going to begin to pay some of its consequences. I remember quite clearly being cut off, not being able to call or send messages via data connection. However, when I changed locations and arrived at my relatives’ houses, some of them could do it. The fall of telecommunications It was uneven in Spainand the CNMC has published a document with preventive measures in case a similar situation occurs again. What happened. The energy blackout that left Spain plunged into darkness resulted in a large part of the population being cut off from communication. However, some operators They managed to keep their mobile network active for hours. Backup generators, generating sets moved to each area, backup systems… The challenge for operators to maintain coverage in Spanish territory was a titanic challenge, quite dependent on internal logistics, the state of the reserve batteries (some of them run on fuel), and the network infrastructure itself They were variables that influenced such unequal conditions to be experienced. A single network. In its statement, the CNMC proposes that the four giants of the Spanish territory put roaming plans at the service of the population in emergency cases. The experience of other countries shows that it is viable to incorporate roaming plans between operators in case of emergency. In this way, in areas where this was necessary due to the unavailability of service in an operator’s mobile network, the networks could be prepared to quickly enable the basic telecommunications services of the affected users through roaming in the networks of other operators. According to the regulator, this is an “ideal measure to strengthen resilience”, but it is not so easy to apply. Yes, but. What the CNMC proposes is a cross-roaming service between Telefónica, Vodafone and MásOrange, something that requires coordination and agreement between the three giants. The best example is Sweden where, after two years of preparation, any mobile phone can connect to any operator. Go deeper. In addition to this proposal, the CNMC requests the mandatory nature of the alert system HANDLE in those cars with DAB+ radio receivers (the evolution of FM radio). Although DAB+ works via antenna (like AM and FM radio), its signal is digitally encoded. The ASA system allows you to automatically activate a DAB+ radio connected to power, being able to quickly launch alerts. At the moment, there is a distance from proposal to fact. In Xataka | Europe has a million reasons to fear an increase in the price of electricity. Spain has something else: renewables

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