Andalusia

Spain is letting the lisp die in Andalusia without knowing that the /θ/ sound is a global rarity that we are losing

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In recent days, the University of Granada has presented a macroatlas with almost half a million audios that shows how the way of speaking of Andalusians has changed. The research is very interesting for many reasons, but today I want to focus on something specific: the slow, but inexorable agony of lisp. What is lisp. While the distinction between ‘s”https://www.xataka.com/”z’ and seseo gains ground in the south, lisping is losing speakers in the only place where lisping is used. It is a sociological question, yes: researchers are clear that stigma is the main force against this phonetic subsystem. But there is something else Because, in reality, what we are seeing is not just the death of the lisp, it is the end of the sound (θ) itself: one of the most unknown oddities of the Spanish language. A Spanish oddity? Although it is not something that is often explained much, the ‘c’ sound (/θ/) is relatively rare in the world — only in 43 of 566 languages ​​(7.6%) in the world. WALS sampling appears and only in 4% of the counts in typological databases (UPSID: 3.99%; PHOIBLE: ~4%). That is, very few living languages ​​have that sound among their phonetic repertoires. To give us an idea, the phoneme of the ñ (ɲ), quintessence of Spanish, appears in 35% of the world’s languages. But… what about the ‘c’? The usual explanation Why (θ)/(ð) are less frequent and why they are disappearing is simple: they are “soft” fricatives; That is, they are less strident sounds than (s)/(z) and, therefore, have less perceptual salience. This is what makes them tend to be lost or transformed easily over time. That does not mean that the Spaniard of the future is going to be sesante; but there is a high probability that it is sesante. The heritage of a language in the trash. It is clear that it cannot be argued from a philological point of view that the disappearance of (θ) is a bad thing. The Earth turns, languages ​​change. But it is striking that in a society in which historical heritage continues to be “valued”, the progressive loss of a sound does not set off alarm bells. And that it does so because we are not capable of accepting the diversity of our own language, normalizing it and defending it in the public sphere, is perhaps worse. Image | Wiebrig Krakau (Modified) In Xataka | “The most serious attack since there is memory”: Pérez-Reverte has started a crusade against the RAE from within the RAE

After historic rains and floods in Andalusia and Extremadura, it is the turn of another region: the Mediterranean

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Right now, as I write these lines, Catalonia is closed hard due to strong gusts of wind. From 12 midnight to 8:00 p.m., all educational and sports activities and non-urgent health care are suspended. But it is not the only bad news that comes from the Mediterranean: the flow of the Júcar has been shot as it passes through Cuenca (that is, before any important tributary flows into it) and has already entered the red level. We are talking about an account that, discounting Tous (which is at 34% and is for security reasons), has all its reservoirs above 70% capacity. What is happening in the Mediterranean? Beyond the last storms. Yes, it is true: the reservoirs are in an unbeatable moment after the accumulated rains since January 1 exceed three times the normal value (for the average of the years 1991-2020). In fact, the water reserve has experienced the best week of growth since records began: in just seven days, the levels have grown by 10.1%. The problem is that reservoirs and aquifers are not the only places where water accumulates. Therefore, changing patterns is a poisoned gift. Let’s not fool ourselves, it’s still raining in many areas of the country. Less than the previous weeks, but it’s still raining. However, as explains Andrea Danta“the first day without widespread rain in Spain will come as a consequence of a progressive reorganization of atmospheric circulation that will begin at the end of this week and will be consolidated as of Sunday, February 15.” And that, paradoxically, will also have its problems. It’s time to think about the snow. And, when we talk about Júcar, for example, it is inevitable to remember that as of February 2026 the Iberian system () has exceptional thicknesses well above normal at this time. And that snow is going to melt (As will also happen with that of the Pyrenees). And, inevitably, it will end up in the Mediterranean. As is evident, there are many things to take into account: we do not know what will happen in the coming months and how long the thaw will last. But, a priori, problems with the current water situation are almost guaranteed. And that not only translates floods or flash floods. The problems go much further because they break the predictability and constancy of water flows and that affects ecosystems, agriculture and in hydroelectric production. But what is urgent is what is urgent. And the urgent thing is to control the river beds. Something that, in the short term, is increasingly difficult. That is why we are in the middle of a situation of active hydrological surveillance that goes far beyond the Guadalquivir and the Guadiana. In the Ebrothe Arga, Aragón, Gállego (left bank) and the Tirón and Najerilla (right bank) are especially monitored. Inside Cataloniathe upper reaches of the Segre, Llobregat and Ter are monitored. Neither in Júcar nor in Turia active notices that transcend Cuencabut the entry of new fronts and the melting of ice can generate many problems downstream. Image | Water Alternatives In Xataka | After a succession of historic storms, the question is obvious: is Spain becoming a rainy country?

The most brutal rains in the history of Andalusia have already ended. Now the real problems begin

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The storm Leonardo little by little begins to fade from the maps, leaving in its wake mainly alerts for strong gusts of wind in certain regions of Andalusia. The problem is that its footprint on the ground is just beginning to show its true dimension, since the main danger is that even if rainfall begins to decrease, the water continues to rise in the rivers. And this gives rise to the feared floods that are already has caused numerous evictions. Extreme saturation. To understand why authorities and the AEMET maintain the emergency level 2 and red warnings despite lulls in rainfall, we have to look under our feet. The soil functions, under normal conditions, like a sponge capable of retaining large volumes of water. However, after weeks of constant rainfall, Andalusia has reached its saturation point. In this way, the land does not support any more water, which increases the runoff coefficient throughout the territory. This means that each new liter that falls, no matter how small, will barely filter through the ground. The result is that it will run on the surface, turning slopes and mountains into giant slides towards the rivers. Increase of the channel. This is the reason why 14 rivers are under red notice today and another 31 under orange. Rivers such as the Guadalete, the Genil, the Guadiaro and the Guadalhorce They are not just responding to today’s rain.but to the inability of the basin to drain what has accumulated in the last 48 hours. We have an example in Huétor Tájar in Granadawhere the Genil River overflowed, making the entire town become a large lake. And this is the main risk we face despite the fact that rainfall is beginning to reduce its intensity. The reservoirs. The other major front of this crisis is hydraulic engineering. The reservoirs act as buffers during floodsretaining the water to prevent it from devastating the towns downstream. But Leonardo has managed to finish filling these reservoirs to their maximum limits. This has forced us to initiate technical releases with increasing amounts of water to avoid breakages or uncontrolled overflows of the dams. The problem is that doing so injects more flow into rivers that are already at the limit of their capacity, keeping towns like Ubrique or the lower areas of the Guadalquivir in suspense. Sierra Nevada. Gravity in the Genil basin is not based solely on precipitation, but on thermodynamics. Leonardo is not a cold storm of polar origin, but rather an Atlantic storm loaded with humidity that is causing snow accumulated in previous weeks melts at a high speed. The result here is clear: a greater flow in the rivers that drain the Sierra that joins all the factors that we have mentioned before. Landslides. For the next few hours, in addition to the increase in the riverbed, we must also keep in mind the risk of hillslide. In these cases, water saturation increases the weight of the soil and reduces its internal friction. This translates into a greater risk of landslides on roads and slopes, something that can especially occur in mountain areas such as Cádiz or Axarquía in Malaga. More rain on Saturday. Faced with overflowing soil, the last thing you want is to receive more rain. But the reality is that this same Saturday a new storm comes in that has already activated an orange alert in a region that has been greatly punished by Leonardo such as Grazalema. In this case, accumulations of up to 80 liters per square meter are again expected, which may further aggravate the situation that is being experienced. Images | Ted Balmer In Xataka | We have always believed that London is very rainy and that Barcelona is not. The only problem is that it’s a lie

Ouigo has left 15,000 passengers stranded in Andalusia. Immediately afterwards, Renfe has put more trains at 7 euros

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From one day to the next and without giving too many explanations, Ouigo has canceled its services in Andalusia until next January 22. The French company leaves some 15,000 travelers on the ground who have to make ends meet to cover the Madrid-Seville or Madrid-Málaga that they already had planned. And Renfe is taking advantage of it. What has happened? About 15,000 passengers affected for the cancellation of eight daily services from Friday to Monday and six daily services from Tuesday to Thursday on those same routes until January 22 “for operational reasons.” These are all the explanations that Ouigo has given for paralyzing its services in the south of Spain. The French company has given these reasons to newspapers such as The Country either The World because it has not even published a statement with a press release or made public any type of text on social networks that communicates the massive cancellations for two weeks. The last tweet mentions the current offers. Since then, silence. And now? The customer has two options, as the company has communicated to passengers who have already purchased a ticket for the next ten days: Change travel date Cancel the trip at no cost Refund of the ticket price in a voucher that can reach 200% of the original ticket price On the rebound. The new situation has been taken advantage of by Renfe. The company has announced that it is activating two new daily services between Madrid and Seville with AVLO trains. The first of them leaves Madrid at 12:00 and returns from Seville at 5:17 p.m. The company has also indicated that the new trains are also available within the active offers of trains at seven euros. Renfe has also taken the opportunity to remind users that train companies have the obligation to propose an alternative means of transport. in less than 100 minutes since the cancellation occurs. If not, the customer has the right to a refund of the ticket price free of charge. The refund, they remember in the OCUmust be delivered in the same payment method and the acceptance of a voucher to travel on another occasion must always be voluntary. a stick. Although Renfe has arranged two special services on the Madrid-Seville, it seems clear that the new schedules cannot take on the volume of cancellations produced with the Ouigo trains, but it does serve Renfe for two things. The first is to receive unexpected income on the line. The second is that it allows them to send a message. And remembering the railway regulations is enough for Renfe to send a stick to Ouigo just when the controversy over compensation in case of delay is flying over the national panorama. It must be remembered that Renfe is obliged to refund, from January 1, 2026, 100% of the ticket if trains are delayed more than 30 minutes. A measure that the Government wants to avoid understanding that it is discriminatory for the public company compared to the competition. And Ouigo and Iryo benefit since what was approved by the Congress of Deputies only affects Renfe. Both the French and the Italian companies only return 100% of the ticket when delays exceed 90 minutes, a decision that Renfe continues to apply into 2026 since the State’s attorney has concluded with a report that the obligation is not such as of January 1 despite the change in regulations and that it is necessary to change the Railway Sector Regulation. as reported by the Ministry of Transport. The case has already occurred. Renfe also knows what it is talking about. And last summer, the fires in Zamora and León cut off the train service between Galicia and Madrid. Then Renfe was committed to returning the price total of the ticket, just as happens with Ouigo, but FACUA defended that the company was obliged to provide an alternative land service and that this was not being complied with. The railway company defended itself by saying that it was unthinkable to transfer the volume of passengers from the train to a bus service. Photo | Xataka In Xataka | Renfe has had a more dangerous rival than Ouigo: comply with its own schedules

“Tourismphobia” threatens to thwart Spain’s tourism boom. In Andalusia they have decided to nip it in the bud

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That tourism is a millionaire business It doesn’t have much discussion. Which is a sensitive sector in which it is terribly easy die of successneither. We are seeing it in Japan, where the avalanche of foreigners is encouraging a growing tourismphobia that already permeates the political sphere. In Spain the situation is somewhat different, but the record of travelers is also encouraging demonstrations against overcrowding, some as high-profile as the one that killed residents of Barcelona shooting with water guns to the vacationers on the terraces. In Andalusia they have decided to tackle the problem at its roots. “The Andalusian Treatment”. The Government of Andalusia just launched a tourist campaign, “The Andalusian Treatment”. The person in charge of presenting it was the advisor of the branch, Arturo Bernal, who explained its key points to representatives of the sector and the media. So far exceptional. The curious thing is that in this case the campaign does not seek to attract more visitors or open new markets. Its objective is to give certain guidelines to tourists and “raise awareness” about the sector. In the words of Bernalestablish “a contract of coexistence between the Andalusian and the visitor.” What does that mean? That the Andalusian Government wants to eliminate any hint of tourismphobia and insist on the importance of locals and tourists “coexisting” in the same territory. The statement launched by the Board leaves little doubt in this regard: although it is not excessively long, that word (“coexistence”) is repeated over and over again along with others such as “respect” or “responsibility.” Hence, during his presentation on Tuesday, Bernal asked his countrymen to join the “Andalusian Treaty” to achieve “tourism that reflects the best of our land and projects a future of opportunities for all.” He also spoke of “responsible tourism” and even turning the community into “an example of how a territory can welcome the world without losing its essence.” From theory to practice. The Board’s intention is to deploy the campaign through media and “innovative media” (it does not specify which ones) that allow it to be brought to visitors in the busiest points of the region. Its key piece is a video of two minutes in which tourists are encouraged to bet on local businesses and products, get to know the region beyond its large cities or respect the rest of locals and their right to enjoy spaces such as beaches. In total, the pact is articulated in eight points, including one that asks tourists to use water responsibly. Click on the image to go to the tweet. Tourism: side A and B. It is no coincidence that the Andalusian Government launches a campaign with that focus now, just when Spain registers a record flow of foreign tourists and aspires to become the most visited country of the planet, even ahead of France. The problem is that as the influx of tourists grows, so does the tension it exerts on commerce, transportation or (above all) housing, where the appearance of tourists is encouraged. vacation rentals. One word: tourismphobia. The result of this tension is a feeling of rejection towards mass tourism, a phenomenon that the Board knows well. In 2023 he published a report in which he already recognized that, although the majority of Andalusians agree that tourism is an economic engine, the sector must think about how it wants to grow in the future. “The excessive influx, especially of the most disruptive visitors, causes problems of coexistence, noise, dirt and incidents.” The report It goes further and leaves two warnings. First, the risk that the avalanche of tourists will saturate municipal infrastructure and resources. Second, an excess of visitors can end up degrading the quality of the destination. It’s nothing new. I warned about a similar risk not long ago a study from the Malaga City Council and in fact there are guides that they are already advising against visit certain saturated destinations in Spain, such as Mallorca or Barcelona. Beyond paper. Beyond the reports, the tensions generated by mass tourism can also be seen in the streets. Over the last few months, cities like Malaga, Seville, Palm, San Sebastian either Barcelona They have registered demonstrations by residents who are crying out against the saturation of their cities and the effect that this has (especially) on the residential rental market. Of all of them, perhaps the most media-worthy is the one that was held last year in Barcelona, ​​where a group of neighbors shot tourists in the street with water guns, an image captured by media around the world. There are billions of euros at stake. According to data managed by the Ministry of Industry and Tourism, only during the first ten months of the year have international visitors spent their time in Spain more than 118,000 million of euros, 7% more than in 2024. If we talk about Andalusia, during the same period the community received a record of 12.9 million of foreign tourists who accumulated an expenditure of approximately 18,000 million euros. Images | Chris Boland (Unsplash) In Xataka | There is a reason why Vigo is announcing its Christmas in Japan. And it has little to do with Japanese tourists

Christmas lights begin in a town in Andalusia that sells them to the rest of the planet: Puente Genil

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Every year, while cities like vigo boast of their light shows and countries like Venezuela either Portugal compete to light Christmas before anyone else, there is an Andalusian municipality that, discreetly, has been setting the real rhythm of that calendar for decades. Although few know it, this is where Christmas really begins. A light by chance. The story begins in Genil Bridgea town that, before becoming a global benchmark for festive lighting, already had an intimate and almost genetic relationship with electricity. At the end of the 19th century, its flour and electricity factory “La Alianza” turned on some of the first electric streetlights in Andalusia. From that early love affair with light would later arise a seemingly minor moment that would end up changing everything: an electrician named Francisco Jimenez Carmonaowner of a small appliance store, decided to build a wooden star with light bulbs to decorate his window one post-war Christmas Day. What could have been just a nice gesture of local commerce unleashed a collective fascination. The neighbors gathered, the City Council asked to illuminate entire streets, the nearby towns demanded the same, and without anyone being able to foresee it, a company had just been born that would end up illuminating half the planet. The birth of a giant. Decades later, that initial spark transformed into Iluminaciones Ximénez, today Ximenez Groupa group capable of designing and manufacturing lighting installations for more than 600 cities in 40 countriesfrom Madrid or Vigo to Dubai, passing through New York, Moscow, Sydney or Malabo. An expansion that maintains, however, a deeply artisanal root: all the lights are They manufacture in Puente Genilwhere every Christmas campaign more than 180 workers produce millions of LED points day and night that will then travel to the five continents. The company operates like a bright boutique that adapts each project to the culture of the destination, from the amber warmth of the Nordic countries to the explosive colors of Latin America, passing through the classic tones of the United States or the monochrome designs of some Spanish cities. To your catalog collaborations are added with renowned designers and projects as imposing as the largest Christmas tree in Europe or the tallest in Central America, or even giant tunnels in Moscow capable of transforming entire avenues into immersive scenarios. Puente Genil as a secret laboratory. Although the lights travel so far, everything always begins at home. Puente Genil has become a testing ground open, a space where the most risky and innovative proposals are experience before traveling to Vigo, Brussels or New York. La Matallana and Paseo del Romeral function as a technological gateway where new structures, lighting patterns, immersive tunnels and shows synchronized through pixel mapping appear every year, capable of converting entire streets into changing audiovisual surfaces. This 2025 the town will deploy about two million LED pointsa forest of illuminations that extends through villages, avenues, streetlights, squares and facades, accompanied by a cultural program of almost thirty events which turns the city into a first-rate Christmas epicenter. And more. But the hyperbole goes beyond the visual spectacle: Puente Genil, located between Seville, Córdoba, Málaga and Granada, preserves a unique industrial heritagefrom its old power plants to its modernist palaces, and a festive life that transcends even Christmas, with an Easter (the “Mananta”) so unique that it has rituals and processions impossible to find anywhere else. Economic impact. The success by Ximenez Group It not only lies in the ability to dazzle visually. Their projects have become real economic drivers for the cities that hire them: they attract tourism, increase sales, reactivate entire neighborhoods and generate local identity through decorations designed to dialogue with each culture. In Sydney they designed an interactive maze that changes color according to human movement, in Moscow they built an enchanted forest and a 200-meter tunnel, in Seville they synchronize Three Wise Men’s crowns with light and sound, in Vigo they deploy monumental digital trees, and in New York they provide engineering, design and pieces manufactured in Andalusia. The crux. The key, they countis in the fusion between tradition and avant-garde: a family business founded in a small store in Córdoba that today produces shows with its own low-consumption technology, advanced LED systems and intelligent motors capable of rescheduling shows in a matter of hours, as if the streets were gigantic living screens. Homemade star in global phenomenon. Despite driving more than 40 million euros annually and project a 50% growth In the next decade, the company continues to have the soul of a workshop and memory of origin. Three generations have given continuity to that first star burning wood in Puente Genil, transforming it into an industrial model combining craftsmanship, innovation and a deep understanding of what it means to illuminate as a business. Perhaps for this reason, Puente Genil is not only a global supplier: it is, in its essence, the place where Christmas is rehearse every year, where ideas are born that will later shine in giant cities like New York or Dubai, and where technology and tradition come together to demonstrate that some of the most universal stories begin, almost always, with a gesture as simple as turning on a light bulb… in a remote municipality in Andalusia. Image | Ximenez, Vigo Tourism In Xataka | The hidden cost of Christmas in Spain: how spending on lighting has overflowed in just a few years In Xataka | Abel Caballero had his enemy at his doorstep: Portugal’s plan to beat Vigo for Christmas

The first nest of Asian hornets in Andalusia was more than seven kilos and had thousands of larvae about to emerge. It’s not good news

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The 7.5 kilo nest, located 10 meters high in a pine tree in Alhaurín de la Torre. This mass full of thousands of larvae has the dubious honor of being the first Asian wasp nest detected in Andalusia. A species that, it is worth remembering has killed three people in Galicia in the last two weeks. “We caught it on time,” explained Alvaro Garciafrom the pest control company Lucanus. “If we had left it a few more days, hundreds of fertile queens would have emerged, and that would be unstoppable.” And yet, the relief of having stopped the expansion of the velutina throughout the most populated community in Spain has been followed by something else: the anxiety generated by knowing that we have found them by pure chance. What if by chance? The discovery It was due to Eduardo Sáezthe biologist who owns the farm where the nest was found. Sáez is not an expert on wasps, but upon seeing him he realized that it was not normal and raised the alarm. Given this, it seems inevitable to ask not only what would have happened if they had not “caught it in time”; but if it really has been like that. Is there not one but dozens of Asian wasp nests maturing in Andalusia without anyone noticing? What is the vespa velutina? The Vespa velutina nigrithoraxnative to Southeast Asia, is an invasive species that arrived in Europe in 2004. It is not difficult to identify itbut it is not something trivial either: it is larger than the common wasp (up to 3.5 cm), it is darker and has an almost completely black abdomen. After expanding from Cantabria, the Basque Country and Galicia throughout the north of the peninsula, it is growing at a rate of 80 kilometers per year. In addition, and if that were not enough, it feeds on fruit, bees and other pollinating animals. To this, of course, we must add that this type of wasps are especially aggressive. Didier Descouens And in response to that, Alhaurín has taken a desperate measure. The municipality of Malaga, recognizing that it is unable to trace its entire area to ensure that the velutina is not growing elsewhere, has requested citizen collaboration: Dozens of neighbors and volunteers have supported the call and are combing the Pinos de Alhaurín area. This obviously entails security risks (due to improper approach to the nests) and false positives (putting other species at risk). However, the situation is very complicated. We must not forget that Málaga has been fighting against Vespa orientalisadding the velutina would be a disaster for provincial beekeeping (and for another half dozen sectors). Why this urgency? Because, as its impact has shown in the north of the peninsula and endorses technical literatureOnce it enters an ecosystem, eradicating it is almost impossible. And the city councils do not have enough of their own equipment to deal with this type of threats. Above all, in a context in which both climate change and anarchic urbanization have made it incredibly easy. A problem that goes beyond beekeeping. And, as I said, in less than two weeks and in the middle of autumn, three men have lost their lives in Galicia due to stings from velutina wasps. It is true that these are deaths related to “severe allergic reactions”, but that does not make the situation any more reassuring. We must not forget that Galicia has been fighting this insect for 15 years with massive trapping and nest removal programs. Without any success. In fact, according to the Xuntawe are experiencing an “extraordinary increase” due to “enormous adaptability” and asks for “caution, especially in the case of allergic people.” Image | Francis ITHURBURU In Xataka | After centuries of disappearance, there are people releasing beavers into the Tagus and other rivers in Spain. The problem is that we don’t know who

is that they are the largest in Andalusia

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The speleology It is a fascinating activity. This discipline mixes sports exploration with scientific study and constantly reminds us that we can continue discovering things from our past. Recently, we have found treasuresfurther cave paintings and clues about the arrival of man to Mallorca. The latest has been a brutal underground connection in Malaga. And officially they are the largest caves in Andalusia. Historical connection. It was last September 26 of this year when the Underground Explorations Group of the Malaga Hiking Society confirmed what had been suspected for years: Sima Nevero and the Sima Aire They were physically connected. These are two cavities that are about 340 meters apart in a straight line, but of course, that distance is if we create an artificial tunnel. Nature is somewhat more complex. Let the numbers speak. This confirmation has given rise to the birth of the Nevero-Aire Complex, an underground system that, right now, is about 26,445 meters with a drop of 955 meters. These impressive figures make it one of the most extensive underground systems in Spain and the largest caves in Andalusia. Having discovered this cconnection between the chasms It is an achievement, but it is really not that strange if we take into account that the Sierra de las Nievesto which they belong, is an enormous karst system that extends for more than 12,000 hectares. Three decades of exploration. The carbonate terrain is very sensitive to erosion by rainwater, which favors the creation of underground networks formed by galleries and wells. And it has not been found by chance: in recent years, explorers have dedicated themselves to surveying and studying the cavities, looking for that connection between the chasms, something that was suspected. for more than 30 years. It was in the 80s when curiosity about these galleries began. At that time, the Sima del Nevero was a cavity barely 15 meters deep, but its study confirmed that it reached 755 meters. That of the Aire, for its part, sank to a depth of 724 meters and the clues that the speleologists followed pointed to that physical connection between the two. path ahead. As we say, although it is now that the connection to obtain those 26,445 meters of galleries has been confirmed, it is estimated that there is much more that we still do not know. So much so that researchers hope that it will be integrated with the Cueva del Agua and other systems, reaching a total of more than 50 kilometers of galleries. If so, the Sierra de las Nieves would go from being the largest cave system in Andalusia to being one of the largest underground systems in all of Europe, rubbing shoulders on the list with the Muotathal swiss or Alto del Tejuelo in Cantabria, both surrounding 213 kilometers of interconnected caves. All far, yes, from the more than 590 underground kilometers of the ‘Colossal Cave’ in Kentucky. Heritage. Aside from the records, it is interesting that we continue to discover new developments in both underwater and terrestrial exploration due to the valuable information on the geological, hydrological and climatic processes that they can provide. In this context, this information dates back millions of years and is another “medal” for a system that is already a National Park and UNESCO Biosphere Reserve. It is evident that this is a great addition to the underground geological heritage of Andalusia, and now it only remains to be seen how many more connections speleologists will be able to add in future expeditions and research. In fact, the intention is to continue exploring. Rogelio Ferrer is a member of the GES and has commented that the discovery has been like “opening the pandora’s box“, but the next step is to raise more money, since expeditions like this “require a significant investment that is beyond our reach.” For the moment, and as they point out researchers and the Commonwealth of Municipalities of the area, is that the Sierra de las Nieves “is not only beauty on the surface: also in depth, geological history and an example of commitment to science.” Images | David Garcia Rodriguez, Sierra de las Nieves (Miguel Benitez) In Xataka | The largest vertical well in Spain is in Cantabria: so deep that it takes 12 seconds for a stone to hit the bottom

The AVE to Andalusia once again suffers a cable robbery and anticipates another day of chaos and delays. It’s just the tip of the iceberg

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Entering the page where Adif collects information from high speed arrivals and outings serves to immerse yourself in the Infinite yellow of incidents. At the time of writing these lines, almost 11:00 am on Tuesday, September 16, each and every one of the trains with arrival in Madrid today have a possible delay warning. Someone has stolen a cable in the ADIF facilities near Córdoba. It is only the tip of the iceberg of an infrastructure that is suffering numerous delays in recent months. 40 minutes. They are not such, as we have learned in Xataka From the hand of one of its journalists who traveled in one of the birds that Córdoba connected with Madrid. Despite Adif’s notices that were discussed of an expected delay of between 10 and 40 minutes in the Andalusian line to Córdoba, the truth is that in this case it has lasted more than an hour. The reason has been a Cable theft between Córdoba and Guadajoz. The incidence was confirmed at the edge of 8:00 am and three hours later It was supposed to be. The problem is evidently the trains that has caused this breakdown that forces us to delay the usual paths for several hours. The last case. Today, Tuesday, September 16, it is just another case of cable robberies that Adif is suffering in recent months, with special incidence in the Andalusian corridor. Last May More than 16,000 passengers were thrown away for the theft of cable at various points of the line. This time, the bulk of the subtractions took place in the passage of the line through Toledo. Just a few days later, also the same month of Maythe section that connects Palencia with Catabria was also affected by a robbery of cables. Last June, Another robbery also caused delays in Catalonia. On that occasion, as in Madrid last Julythose affected were nearby users. A problem. Already in May, the president of Renfe, Álvaro Fernández de Heredia, left a phrase nothing optimistic in a Interview with Antena 3: “They cannot be monitored 24 hours 15,000 kilometers of network, but more means will have to be put.” Then, in Xataka We already wondered if it was so easy to steal in the train network. In 2015cable theft provided a group of thieves a booty that was valued at more than 800.00 euros. In 2022, another robbery also left some 135,000 euros in the pockets of another group of thieves. But in the case of the theft of Andalusian cable last May, the action was distributed by up to five points. And, despite this, According to the Government Delegationcopper had barely won worth 300 euros. So? Óscar Puente, Minister of Transport, said that robbery as “A serious sabotage act”. A few months later, the idea of ​​sabotage slipped again from the government. This time was the Minister of Finance, María Jesús Montero, to which An open microphone “caught” saying that the delays in the bird could be due to these supposed sabotages. On that occasion it coincided with Another of the chaotic days That Renfe and the rest of the operators have lived in the Spanish high -speed lines and, specifically, in La Andaluza. That time, a breakdown on an Ouigo train caused the chain stop of the rest of the trains. One of them, from Renfe, overheated and burned his electrical systems. As a result, More than 200 passengers spent the night Within one of those trains. In the same sense, those who pointed out that they pointed out that The real culprit of his fault was of Adifwhose facilities caused the problem. On the other hand, from the Popular Party they already pointed out months before (coinciding with the theft of May) that the maintenance of the network was inefficient or insufficient, ensuring that they would ask “An audit of the entire network”. The tip of the iceberg. Worst of all, Spain has entered a maelstrom of delays and cancellations in Spanish high speed trains as not remembered. This morning’s cable theft is only the last case of a summer that already closes with other cancellations due to infrastructure problems, trains that crack and Fire affectations that, according to Minister Óscar Puente, could have been avoided. What the summer is demonstrating is that, for some reasons or for others, the ADIF infrastructure needs more investments or is being oversized. The bridge itself indicated a few weeks ago that the volume of trains in recent years He has shot but in ELECONOMIST They also pointed out that the investment has not gone hand in hand with such growth. Photo | Dariusz Sieczkowski and Xataka In Xataka | This megameter that joins Europe with a high -speed train sounds good. The problem is too good to be real

Despite drought and climate change, Andalusia is today greener than in the 90s. It is not as positive as it seems

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A few months ago we count that Spain was getting greener. We did not refer to renewablesbut to the spectacular effects of a spring Exceptionally rainy that He moved the ghosts of the past. The problem was what would happen after those rains and If the drought would call back to the door. Now we are in a totally different scenario: heat waves and, Like every summer of recent years, The fight against fires. In spite of everything, and to climate change, NASA shows that Andalusia is today more “green” than in the 90s. And it is not to be too excited. Short. Spain is a country with drastic microclimal changes on which the flora depends. In the south of the peninsula, they are the Mediterranean forests Those who occupy 26% of Andalusia and the conditions of much of the soil have made pines and holm oaks are the dominant speciesS, since they adapt well to areas without plant cover. Andalusia is a good study scenario because climate change clearly draws its effects, such as upward temperature, decline rains and increased aridity. And, as we see in Physa team of researchers has published in Ecological Indicators How these forests have responded during the last 30 years. Tools. For the analysis, the researchers used more than 5,000 satellite images captured between 1994 and 2021 obtained Thanks to Landsat 5 and Landsat 7NASA. In total, they analyzed 2,358 plots that compared with data from Google Earth Engine and created an “greenery” index measured by Ndvi. They are the acronym of ‘Standardized Difference Vegetation Index ”, a way of quantifying, through satellite images or remote sensors, how much living vegetation there is in an area. In short, it is something that indicates the amount and vigor of the vegetation, being a tool widely used in studies of agriculture, natural resources management or those associated with climate change. Black squares represent 2,358 farms analyzed. In the most dependent areas of agriculture, the effects are much more limited What do we see. In general, except red eucalyptus, all species have shown an increase in this NDVI value, something that points to sustained revergeration. In trees such as holm oaks, cork oaks and pines, the maximum moment of activity is concentrated in the soft winter months, falling in the summers. And the chestnut, which is the only deciduous species of the study, operates on the contrary. The Effects of climate change And aridity have a decisive role in these cycles, extending the activity period of the Carrasco pine and the resin in the driest places and shortening that of other pine species, such as the wild, and that of the wild olive tree. Between 1994 and 2005, the growth of these species was evident, and followed its course from 2005 to 2021, although at a more moderate speed. ¿Because? The result is that, the green territory is now greener and the conclusion is that many species have maintained or increased its green coverage. There are several explanations, and very diverse. Carrasco or Encina pine are designed to support heat and droughtwhich allows them to remain active when other species lower the activity. Here the policies of natural reforestation and regeneration have played a role, as well as global factors such as the increase in Atmospheric co₂ that would act as fertilizer. There are also factors directly related to human activity, such as a progressive abandonment of farmland in certain areas that has favored the natural regeneration of the forest, as well as changes in land use, such as the decrease in livestock pressure that reduces the degradation of the undergrowth. We have also influenced the contrary, as with a cork oak, which we extract cork periodically, limiting the regeneration of the tree. Nuances. The study is very useful to see the current situation of the Andalusian Mediterranean forest, but also to observe which are the most resilient species and those that best adapt to changing conditions and a rampant aridity. And the conclusion of the study is that things are not going well, but due to that resilience of some species and, despite the continuous increase in annual average temperatures, most species did not demonstrate a relationship between phenological metrics and that temperature increase. And, perhaps, the most important thing is that the greenest does not equals a healthier vegetation, since various factors (natural and human) intervene and we see that this revergence is nothing uniform, with a south and this drier in which the vegetation is hardly growing. But well, as researchers point out, see what species are more resistant and adapt better is something that allows you to find the best options for adequate reforestation policies, Not how we are doing in many places in Europe. Before we talked about that rainy spring that moved the ghost of drought and that summer was returning to reality. And the Recent restrictions in Galicia They are a sad sign of this. Image | José Sánchez Rodríguez and Rafael Palomo López In Xataka | Spain has been dismissing its forest firefighters in winter for years. Fire show that it may not be a good idea

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