Health & Science

• Saturday, March 5th 2016 - 10:33 UTC

  Olympics organizers in Rio do Janeiro struggling with tickets, 50% remain unsold

  

  With five months to go before the Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazilian organizers are struggling to sell tickets for South America’s first games. The IOC president Thomas Bach said the locals will buy up tickets at the last minute.

• Wednesday, March 2nd 2016 - 07:45 UTC

  Brazil begins reconstruction of Antarctica base “Comandante Ferraz” lost to fire in 2012

  

  A symbolic ceremony launching the reconstruction of Brazil's “Comandante Ferraz” Antarctic base was held at the Chilean Antarctic Institute in Punta Arenas with the attendance of top officials from both countries. The Brazilian base, located in King George Island was a total loss back in February 2012 caused by a fire that started at the power room.

• Wednesday, February 24th 2016 - 05:53 UTC

  Huge fireball plunged through the atmosphere into the Atlantic, off Brazil coast

  

  The biggest fireball since the Chelyabinsk explosion has plunged through the atmosphere over the Atlantic Ocean. The event, which has only just come to light, occurred off the coast of Brazil at 13:55 GMT on 6 February.

• Saturday, February 20th 2016 - 07:19 UTC

  Francis admits contraception is morally acceptable in fighting Zika virus

  

  Pope Francis suggested that using artificial contraception may be morally acceptable in fighting the Zika virus. But the Argentine pontiff, speaking to reporters as he flew back to Rome from an exhausting visit to Mexico, categorically ruled out abortion as a response to Zika, comparing the practice to a “Mafia” killing.

• Tuesday, February 16th 2016 - 07:55 UTC

  President Rousseff with 200.000 troops leads the “Zika Zero” campaign

  

  More than 200,000 troops fanned out across Brazil over the weekend to raise awareness about the mosquito that spreads the Zika virus, which has been linked to a surge in birth defects.

• Tuesday, February 16th 2016 - 07:43 UTC

  Brazil will hold Olympic Games despite Zika, says president Rousseff

  

  Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff said that the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro would take place despite the Zika virus, at a time when various athletes have expressed their fears about competing.

• Friday, February 5th 2016 - 07:41 UTC

  Brazil: health workers can enter private properties to crush Zika breeding grounds

  

  Brazilian president Dilma Rousseff implemented a nationwide mandate this week allowing government health workers to enter private properties to crush Zika breeding grounds. Exterminators now have the right to inspect and disinfect households, even without the presence of its owners.

• Wednesday, February 3rd 2016 - 06:32 UTC

  US reports first known case of Zika virus transmission through sex

  

  The first known case of Zika virus transmission in the United States was reported in Texas on Tuesday by local health officials, who said it likely was contracted through sex and not a mosquito bite, a day after the World Health Organization declared an international public health emergency.

• Tuesday, February 2nd 2016 - 06:05 UTC

  Zika virus declared an international public health emergency

  

  The World Health Organization has declared the mosquito-borne Zika virus to be an international public health emergency due to its link to thousands of suspected cases of birth defects in Brazil.

• Tuesday, February 2nd 2016 - 05:42 UTC

  Zika cancellations to be waived by cruise lines in the Caribbean

  

  Cruise lines have followed the lead of major airlines and begun waiving cancellation penalties for some customers booked on voyages to the Caribbean and other destinations affected by the fast-spreading Zika virus.