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Thursday, December 7, 2006

NASA scientists have announced that the Mars Global Surveyor has captured images of deposits in gullies on the surface of the planet Mars which have been created since the areas were photographed seven years ago. These deposits are believed to be the residue of liquid water breaking out of cliffs and crater walls, carrying sediment downhill through the gullies, and later evaporating. The gullies are located inside the Terra Sirenum crater and the Centauri Montes regions.

“These observations give the strongest evidence to date that water still flows occasionally on the surface of Mars,” said the head scientist for the Mars Exploration Program in Washington D.C., Michael Meyer.

The bright appearance of the deposits suggests that, at some recent period, the surface material in these gullies has either been heavily disturbed or covered over by new, different, material. Whilst it is not proven that this is the result of water activity—it could be frost, for example, or the result of localized landslides—it ties in with previous theories that suggest liquid water is locked below the surface of Mars, occasionally being released in short and violent local bursts.

“These fresh deposits suggest that at some places and times on present-day Mars, liquid water is emerging from beneath the ground and briefly flowing down the slopes. This possibility raises questions about how the water would stay melted below ground, how widespread it might be, and whether there’s a below-ground wet habitat conducive to life.” said Michael Malin of Malin Space Science Systems located in San Diego, California. Malin is the head investigator for the Mars Orbital Camera, the instrument which made these photographs, and is the author of the report about the discovery, published in the journal Science.

One factor suggesting water is the shape of the deposits, which are sinuous and appear to “flow” downhill. “The shapes of these deposits are what you would expect to see if the material were carried by flowing water. They have finger-like branches at the downhill end and easily diverted around small obstacles,” explained Malin. Scientists do not know how or why the water is making its way to the surface. “The big question is how does it happen, and does it point to a habitat for life?” said Meyer.

However, many in the scientific community stress possible alternative explanations for what has been seen, suggesting that the features could have been created by dust, sand or liquid carbon dioxide. Oded Aharonson of the California Institute of Technology (Caltech) described the hypothesis of recent water activity on Mars as just one possible explanation and insisted further study was needed to determine whether the deposits could have been left there by the flow of dust rather than water.

Other scientists think it possible that the gullies were caused by liquid carbon dioxide. One reason is that computer models of the Martian crust indicate water could exist only at depths of several kilometers, but liquid carbon dioxide could persist much nearer the surface.

Contact was lost with Mars Global Surveyor in November, and has not yet been recovered. The spacecraft has been in orbit since 1997, operating over a lifespan which far exceeded the two-year mission originally planned. NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, manages the Mars Global Surveyor mission for the NASA Science Mission Directorate located in Washington D.C..

Wednesday, June 3, 2009

Over 60 miners were killed in an abandoned gold mine shaft near Welkom, in the Free State province of South Africa, after a fire broke out inside the mine.

36 bodies from the Harmony Gold mining company Eland mine shaft were brought up earlier on the weekend from depths up to 1.4 kilometers (1 mi). On Tuesday, 25 more bodies were recovered by other illegal workers.

“We suspect there was a fire on the 18th of May. We never saw any smoke. Over the weekend [30 May] we were informed by other illegal miners that people had died,” said Tom Smith, Chief Operating Officer for Harmony’s South Region, “The bodies are not burnt. It seems more of a case of gas or smoke inhalation. I don’t know if there are any more bodies down there, we just have to wait.”

The workers may have died from poisonous gasses, smoke inhalation, suffocation, cave-ins or carbon monoxide poisoning.

Harmony gold mine will not send anyone in to the mine as the conditions are extremely dangerous and abandoned shafts are without safety equipment. Illegal workers may gain access bypassing security at one mine site, and exit via a series of interconnected underground tunnels many miles away.

Harmony is internationally the fifth largest gold mining company and has bought up old, abandoned mines.

Police were seeking relatives to help identify the bodies, and are instigating an investigation into the circumstances.

Almost 300 “gold pirates” were arrested over the past two weeks at the Eland mine shaft alone. Thousands of illegal workers can be underground, and remain working for weeks and months continuously. “These are ex-miners and unemployed people – we need to target the syndicates,” said Smith.

There are over 4.18 million unemployed in South Africa due to the economic decline, and another 1 million may soon join the ranks.

Susan Shabangu, the minister of mining, extended her condolences.

Welkom, with a population of over 400,000 is located 160 kilometers (99 mi) northeast of Bloemfontein, the provincial capital.

Thursday, November 8, 2007

What you are about to read is an American life as lived by renowned author Edmund White. His life has been a crossroads, the fulcrum of high-brow Classicism and low-brow Brett Easton Ellisism. It is not for the faint. He has been the toast of the literary elite in New York, London and Paris, befriending artistic luminaries such as Salman Rushdie and Sir Ian McKellen while writing about a family where he was jealous his sister was having sex with his father as he fought off his mother’s amorous pursuit.

The fact is, Edmund White exists. His life exists. To the casual reader, they may find it disquieting that someone like his father existed in 1950’s America and that White’s work is the progeny of his intimate effort to understand his own experience.

Wikinews reporter David Shankbone understood that an interview with Edmund White, who is professor of creative writing at Princeton University, who wrote the seminal biography of Jean Genet, and who no longer can keep track of how many sex partners he has encountered, meant nothing would be off limits. Nothing was. Late in the interview they were joined by his partner Michael Caroll, who discussed White’s enduring feud with influential writer and activist Larry Kramer.

Sunday, October 7, 2007

Shona Bracken is running for the Communist Party in the Ontario provincial election in Toronto—Danforth. Wikinews interviewed her regarding her values, her experience, and her campaign.

Sunday, July 1, 2018

Argentine footballer Javier Mascherano announced retirement from international football after losing 3–4 against France in the Last 16 knockout phase of the FIFA World Cup yesterday.

Mascherano made his international debut on June 17, 2003, at the age of nineteen. Since then, he has won 147 international caps with Argentina, a national record. Mascherano has featured in four different FIFA World Cup tournaments, since the 2006 World Cup.

After the match, 34-year-old Mascherano said, “It’s time to say goodbye and for the younger players to step in.” He also said, “Personally, from now on, I will be just another fan, it’s over” ^{((es))Spanish language: ?En lo personal, a partir de ahora, seré un hincha más. Se terminó}.

In the last four years, Mascherano has won the silver medal at the 2014 FIFA World Cup, 2015 Copa América ^{((en))America Cup} and 2016’s Copa América Centenario.

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Tuesday, August 9, 2005

On a CNN Wolf Blitzer Late Edition broadcast Sunday, U.S. Senators George Allen (R-VA) and Barbara Boxer (D-CA) both told Blitzer that in the furore created by the protest that they believe President Bush should personally meet with Cindy Sheehan. She is the mother of a soldier son killed in Iraq in April 2004, and leader of a protest march now camped near the presidential ranch in Crawford, Texas.

After returning from commercial break, Blitzer told his guests that CNN had just received a news bulletin from the White House. The bulletin said that Bush had met previously with Sheehan in the summer of 2004. Both Senators and Blitzer withheld further comment on the matter during the remaining segment of the show.

Later that day, Cindy Sheehan herself appeared on CNN Sunday with Blitzer and said she did meet with Bush in Seattle with fifteen or sixteen other families.

She defended her current protest by saying, “The whole meeting was simply bizarre and disgusting.”

Sheehan said that Bush entered the meeting chamber with an insensitive comment to those present, “Who we’all honorin’ today?” She added, “His mouth kept moving, but there was nothing in his eyes or anything else about him that showed me he really cared or had any real compassion at all. This is a human being totally disconnected from humanity and reality. His eyes were empty, hollow shells.”

The angry mother of the fallen U.S. soldier on Saturday led a protest march of nearly 50 on the Bush ranch. Cindy Sheehan of Vacaville, California demanded, but was denied, the chance to speak with Bush and personally ask him, “‘Why did you kill my son? What did my son die for?”

Sheehan was met outside the ranch, after progress of the march was stopped by Texas troopers and the Secret Service, by national security adviser Steve Hadley and deputy White House chief of staff Joe Hagin. They spoke with her approximately 45 minutes.

Sheehan, unsatisfied with the meeting, vowed to remain camped outside the ranch until she is granted a personal interview with Bush. Meanwhile, Bush arrived in Albuqerque, New Mexico Monday where he signed into law the new energy bill. He will travel back to his Texas ranch this week to meet with his defense and economic advisers, then later, he will travel to Illinois to sign a highway bill.

Cindy Sheehan said Sunday that she plans to hold the roadside peace protest near Bush’s ranch until he talks to her again. “I’ll follow him to D.C.,” she said.

Cindy’s current comments are a drastic change from her comments in a 2004 interview with THE REPORTER of Vacaville, CA. From the article:

“I now know he’s sincere about wanting freedom for the Iraqis,” Cindy said after their meeting. “I know he’s sorry and feels some pain for our loss. And I know he’s a man of faith.”

Saturday, November 19, 2005

In a joint agreement by Australia and the United States, the U.S. Air Force will begin regular strategic bomber aircraft training in the Northern Territory early next year. At the recent high-level AUSMIN talks between the U.S. and Australia it was announced that the strategic bomber training program would involve B-52 and B-1 bombers and the B-2 stealth aircraft.

Under the new arrangements aircraft would fly direct from the United States for bombing operations at the Delamere Air Weapons Range situated about 130km south-west of Katherine in the Northern Territory. Delamere is a 211,000ha bombing range used regularly by the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) for dropping live weapons. The Darwin RAAF base would also be available for the bombers to land and refuel if necessary. The planes will fly to the Northern Territory from the U.S. Pacific Island base of Guam.

Tuesday, January 26, 2010

Pakistan security forces attacked Taliban strongholds in northwest Pakistan yesterday. Aided by fighter jets and gunship helicopters they claim to have killed 21 Taliban militants in Kurram and Bajaur. The offensive targeted the remote town of Bajaur, along the Afghan border; this area has been frequently targeted to attack Islamic extremists.

Sources claim the first attack occurred in the Damdola, Sewai and Shago segments of Mamoond tehsil. The latter is a renowned Taliban stronghold located only about fifteen miles northeast of the town of Khar.

“Air strikes by the jet fighters continued for more than two hours. Ten militants have been killed and several hideouts were destroyed,” stated a Frontier Corps official in Khar.

Speaking for local authorities, Firamosh Khan confirmed the attack, “[i]t is true that several militants were killed.”

Bajaur was the location of anti-terrorist actions in late 2008; by February last year the army claimed to have secured the area. Despite this, conditions of the area have been tumultuous; air attacks are again frequent. Such attacks are part of an offensive against Taliban strongholds throughout northwest Pakistan, started last year.

The Pakistani government also sent approximately 30,000 troops, assisted by fighter planes, to fight Taliban extremists in South Waziristan in October. The army claims this attack has progressed, and they have attained some success.

Related to this, helicopter gunships shelled Salarzai, about twenty kilometers northwest of Khar. Pakistani security sources claimed this action resulted in the deaths of two militants.

In a separate incident, eleven suspected insurgents died when security forces, along with jets and helicopters, raided their hideouts. Official sources claimed four such hideouts were demolished.

In the past day, about 23 extremists have been captured by security forces. The arrests were made during search and raiding in multiple areas of Khyber Agency, say sources.

In a statement yesterday, NWFP Frontier Corps expressed hope that the situation at Kurram Agency had marginally improved. They added that the Thal-Parachinar Road is now partially open.

On Sunday, near Badama, explosives were detonated which injured two soldiers of the Pakistani army. One suspected militant was arrested by security in Bajaur Agency, on Saturday. Two other suspects were located in Dir district; they were handed over to Lal Qila police.