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How much can scientists learn from eclipses?
What in the World
Apr 9, 2024

On Monday, millions of people across Mexico, the US and Canada saw a total solar eclipse. That’s when the Moon moves between the Earth and the Sun, blocking its light.

But it’s not just eclipse-chasers who are excited. Scientists are too. They’re using the opportunity to study the Earth's upper atmosphere (known as the ionosphere), the Sun’s corona, and even animal behaviour.

So, could this solar eclipse could help unlock some of the secrets of our universe? Astronomer Jimena Stephenson and the BBC’s Laura Garcia explain.

Instagram: @bbcwhatintheworld WhatsApp: +44 0330 12 33 22 6 Email: [email protected] Presenter: Hannah Gelbart Producers: Emily Horler and Mora Morrison Editor: Verity Wilde

*In this episode Laura says Mexico last witnessed a solar eclipse in 1999. But it was in fact 1991.*

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Feb 5, 2025
USAID: Can the world live without it?

The U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) is under fire. It is the world’s biggest donor and spends billions of dollars a year, funding programmes around the world, like fighting malaria in Bangladesh, clearing unexploded landmines in Cambodia and Laos and providing medical supplies in Sudan.

But President Trump says it is run by “radical lunatics” and he and billionaire Elon Musk, who’s got the job of trying to slash American government spending, want to shut it down. They have paused almost all international spending for 90 days and issued “stop work” orders to their staff. BBC journalist Nathalia Jimenez tells us what USAID does - and why the Trump administration wants to close it.

A large proportion of USAID funding goes towards healthcare and HIV medication in sub-Saharan Africa. Makuochi Okafor, the BBC’s Africa Health correspondent tells us what impact closing USAID could have in this region.

Anselm Gibbs, a BBC reporter based in Trinidad and Tobago, tells us about programmes USAID funds in the Caribbean. And Hilde Deman from Search for Common Ground, an international NGO that uses USAID funding in countries affected by violent conflict, talks about the impact to their work in the Democratic Republic of Congo.

Instagram: @bbcwhatintheworld Email: [email protected] WhatsApp: +44 0330 12 33 22 6 Presenter: William Lee Adams Producers: Benita Barden and Julia Ross-Roy Editor: Rosanna La Falce


13min 08sec




How much can scientists learn from eclipses?

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