Engineers at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif., are working to understand what caused NASA's Cassini spacecraft to put itself into "safe mode," a precautionary standby mode. Cassini entered safe mode around 4 p.m. PDT (7 p.m. EDT) on Tuesday, Nov. 2.
Since going into safe mode, the spacecraft has performed as expected, suspending the flow of science data and sending back only data about engineering and spacecraft health. Cassini is programmed to put itself into safe mode automatically any time it detects a condition on the spacecraft that requires action from mission controllers on the ground.
Engineers say it is not likely that Cassini will be able to resume full operations before a planned Nov. 11 flyby of Saturn's moon Titan. But Cassini has 53 more Titan flybys planned in its extended mission, which lasts until 2017.
"The spacecraft responded exactly as it should have, and I fully expect that we will get Cassini back up and running with no problems," said Bob Mitchell, Cassini program manager based at JPL. "Over the more than six years we have been at Saturn, this is only the second safing event. So considering the complexity of demands we have made on Cassini, the spacecraft has performed exceptionally well for us."
Since Cassini launched in 1997, Cassini has put itself into safe mode a total of six times.
The Cassini-Huygens mission is a cooperative project of NASA, the European Space Agency and the Italian Space Agency. The Jet Propulsion Laboratory, a division of the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena, manages the mission for NASA's Science Mission Directorate, Washington
Showing posts with label nepal news. Show all posts
Showing posts with label nepal news. Show all posts
Monday, November 8, 2010
Monday, September 27, 2010
Wildfires: A Symptom of Climate Change
This summer, wildfires swept across some 22 regions of Russia, blanketing the country with dense smoke and in some cases destroying entire villages. In the foothills of Boulder, Colo., this month, wildfires exacted a similar toll on a smaller scale.
That's just the tip of the iceberg. Thousands of wildfires large and small are underway at any given time across the globe. Beyond the obvious immediate health effects, this "biomass" burning is part of the equation for global warming. In northern latitudes, wildfires actually are a symptom of the Earth's warming.
'We already see the initial signs of climate change, and fires are part of it," said Dr. Amber Soja, a biomass burning expert at the National Institute of Aerospace (NIA) in Hampton, Va.
And research suggests that a hotter Earth resulting from global warming will lead to more frequent and larger fires.
The fires release "particulates" -- tiny particles that become airborne -- and greenhouse gases that warm the planet.
Human ignition
A common perception is that most wildfires are caused by acts of nature, such as lightning. The inverse is true, said Dr. Joel Levine, a biomass burning expert at NASA Langley Research Center in Hampton, Va.
"What we found is that 90 percent of biomass burning is human instigated," said Levine, who was the principal investigator for a NASA biomass burning program that ran from 1985 to 1999.
Levine and others in the Langley-led Biomass Burning Program travelled to wildfires in Canada, California, Russia, South African, Mexico and the wetlands of NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida.
Biomass burning accounts for the annual production of some 30 percent of atmospheric carbon dioxide, a leading cause of global warming, Levine said.
Dr. Paul F. Crutzen, a pioneer of biomass burning, was the first to document the gases produced by wildfires in addition to carbon dioxide.
"Modern global estimates agree rather well with the initial values," said Crutzen, who shared the Nobel Prize in Chemistry 1995 with Mario J. Molina and F. Sherwood Rowland for their "work in atmospheric chemistry, particularly concerning the formation and decomposition of ozone."
Northern exposure
Whether biomass burning is on the rise globally is not clear. But it definitely is increasing in far northern latitudes, in "boreal" forests comprised largely of coniferous trees and peatlands.
The reason is that, unlike the tropics, northern latitudes are warming, and experiencing less precipitation, making them more susceptible to fire. Coniferous trees shed needles, which are stored in deep organic layers over time, providing abundant fuel for fires, said Soja, whose work at the NIA supports NASA.
"That's one of the reasons northern latitudes are so important," she said, "and the smoldering peat causes horrible air quality that can affect human health and result in death."
Fires in different ecosystems burn at different temperatures due to the nature and structure of the biomass and its moisture content. Burning biomass varies from very thin, dry grasses in savannahs to the very dense and massive, moister trees of the boreal, temperate and tropical forests.
Fire combustion products vary over a range depending on the degree of combustion, said Levine, who authored a chapter on biomass burning for a book titled "Methane and Climate Change," published in August by Earthscan.
Flaming combustion like the kind in thin, small, dry grasses in savannahs results in near-complete combustion and produces mostly carbon dioxide. Smoldering combustion in moist, larger fuels like those in forest and peatlands results in incomplete combustion and dirtier emission products such as carbon monoxide.
Boreal fires burn the hottest and contribute more pollutants per unit area burned.
'Eerie experience'
Being near large wildfires is a unique experience, said Levine. "The smoke is so thick it looks like twilight. It blocks out the sun. It looks like another planet. It's a very eerie experience."
In Russia, the wildfires are believed caused by a warming climate that made the current summer the hottest on record. The hotter weather increases the incidence of lightning, the major cause of naturally occurring biomass burning.
Soja said she hopes the wildfires in Russia prompt the country to support efforts to mitigate climate change. In fact, Russia's president, Dmitri A. Medvedev, last month acknowledged the need to do something about it.
"What's happening with the planet's climate right now needs to be a wake-up call to all of us, meaning all heads of state, all heads of social organizations, in order to take a more energetic approach to countering the global changes to the climate," said Medvedev, in contrast to Russia's long-standing position that human-induced climate change is not occurring.
Scientists to present car for blind drivers next year
US Scientists and the National Federation of the Blind are developing a car for the blind and will present a prototype next year.
The vehicle will be fitted with technology that allows a blind person to drive independently, the NFB and Virginia Tech University said.
Non-visual aids include sensors indicating turns in the road via vibrating gloves.
Puffs of compressed air on the face will alert the driver to obstacles.
Other aids to be fitted include a vibrating vest to give feedback on speed and a steering wheel with audio cues and spoken commands indicating the car's direction.
Last year Virginia Tech turned a beach buggy into an experimental vehicle for blind drivers.
They used sensor lasers and cameras to act as the eyes of the buggy.
Continue reading the main story “
Start Quote
We're moving away from the theory that blindness ends the capacity of human beings to make contributions to society”
End Quote
Marc Maurer
NFB president
The model to be presented next year will be a modified Ford Escape sport utility vehicle, the NFB announced.
"We're exploring areas that have previously been regarded as unexplorable," said NFB president Marc Maurer.
He added that projects like this car was changing people's perception of the blind.
"We're moving away "from the theory that blindness ends the capacity of human beings to make contributions to society".
Mr Maurer said he started talking about a car for blind drivers ten years ago.
"Some people thought I was crazy," he said.
The prototype is expected be be publicly tested by a blind driver on the Daytona race track in Florida next January.
The vehicle will be fitted with technology that allows a blind person to drive independently, the NFB and Virginia Tech University said.
Non-visual aids include sensors indicating turns in the road via vibrating gloves.
Puffs of compressed air on the face will alert the driver to obstacles.
Other aids to be fitted include a vibrating vest to give feedback on speed and a steering wheel with audio cues and spoken commands indicating the car's direction.
Last year Virginia Tech turned a beach buggy into an experimental vehicle for blind drivers.
They used sensor lasers and cameras to act as the eyes of the buggy.
Continue reading the main story “
Start Quote
We're moving away from the theory that blindness ends the capacity of human beings to make contributions to society”
End Quote
Marc Maurer
NFB president
The model to be presented next year will be a modified Ford Escape sport utility vehicle, the NFB announced.
"We're exploring areas that have previously been regarded as unexplorable," said NFB president Marc Maurer.
He added that projects like this car was changing people's perception of the blind.
"We're moving away "from the theory that blindness ends the capacity of human beings to make contributions to society".
Mr Maurer said he started talking about a car for blind drivers ten years ago.
"Some people thought I was crazy," he said.
The prototype is expected be be publicly tested by a blind driver on the Daytona race track in Florida next January.
Tuesday, September 21, 2010
British man killed in Nepal plane crash was determined to travel to Mount Everest
Jeremy Taylor was one of six foreign tourists travelling to Mount Everest base camp in Nepal when their plane crashed in bad weather. There were no survivors.
A local travel agent who booked his tour said it had been Mr Taylor's dream to visit Mount Everest base camp, and that he had booked a 14 day trekking tour and was travelling with a Nepali mountain guide.
His trip had been cancelled on three consecutive days due to bad weather and he had extended his visit so he could "realise his dream," a spokesmen for Himal Reisen Tours said.
His flight finally took off early this morning but was forced to turn back as the weather deteriorated. It crashed into hills close to the village of Shikharpur, 50 miles from the capital Kathmandu.
Officials said there were no survivors and confirmed three crew and eleven tourists were killed in the crash. Four Americans and a nineteen year Japanese man were among the dead.
A spokeswoman for the airline Angi Air Planet said the company was investigating unconfirmed reports that engine problems may have caused the crash.
Mr Taylor had travelled to Nepal from his home in Cape Town, South Africa, and had already spent a month in the country when he headed for Lukla, the main airport for Everest base camp. He had completed a 14 day trekking tour of the Annapurna mountain circuit but was determined not to leave without seeing Everest, a spokesman for Himal Reisen Tours said
A local travel agent who booked his tour said it had been Mr Taylor's dream to visit Mount Everest base camp, and that he had booked a 14 day trekking tour and was travelling with a Nepali mountain guide.
His trip had been cancelled on three consecutive days due to bad weather and he had extended his visit so he could "realise his dream," a spokesmen for Himal Reisen Tours said.
His flight finally took off early this morning but was forced to turn back as the weather deteriorated. It crashed into hills close to the village of Shikharpur, 50 miles from the capital Kathmandu.
Officials said there were no survivors and confirmed three crew and eleven tourists were killed in the crash. Four Americans and a nineteen year Japanese man were among the dead.
A spokeswoman for the airline Angi Air Planet said the company was investigating unconfirmed reports that engine problems may have caused the crash.
Mr Taylor had travelled to Nepal from his home in Cape Town, South Africa, and had already spent a month in the country when he headed for Lukla, the main airport for Everest base camp. He had completed a 14 day trekking tour of the Annapurna mountain circuit but was determined not to leave without seeing Everest, a spokesman for Himal Reisen Tours said
Monday, September 6, 2010
In Nepal crisis, India believes Centrists are key
Even a sixth round of voting for a new prime minister is unable to produce a majority consensus on anyone.
Nepal remained mired in a political deadlock that verges on a constitutional breakdown, as its 601 lawmakers were unable to elect a prime minister by simple majority in the sixth round of voting that was held in Kathmandu this afternoon
Amidst rising concern and frustration in Delhi and in several other key world capitals over Nepal’s inability to come to terms with its political future, Maoist Pushpa Kamal Dahal, commonly known as Prachanda, won 240 votes, while his Nepali Congress opponent, Ram Chandra Poudel, managed to secure only 122 votes.
Three Madhesi parties who belong to the Terai region adjoining India stayed neutral, as did the left-of-centre Communist party led by caretaker prime minister Madhav Kumar Nepal, the CPN-UML. A fourth Madhesi party, led by Upendra Kumar Yadav, had split from the united Madhesi alliance on the eve of the sixth round of voting, sparking rumours that he would support Prachanda in the secret ballot.
But it was a leaked audio tape three days ago about a conversation allegedly between Maoist ideologue and Krishna Bahadur Mahara and another person, said to be Chinese, in which Mahara is said to have asked the Chinese government for Nepali Rs 50 crore to buy lawmakers, that has rocked the young Himalayan republic.
As the political temperature rose in Kathmandu all week, India’s ambassador, Rakesh Sood, met CPN-UML chairman, Jhalanath Khanal, reinforcing speculation that Delhi was again seeking to broker an anti-Maoist political alliance.
On the face of it, Indian officials vehemently denied any suggestion of interfering in the Nepali political process, with Sood telling Business Standard that “Prime Minister Manmohan Singh would never allow it, he doesn’t like this kind of thing at all”.
However, Indian officials privately admitted that when Shyam Saran, former foreign secretary and a former ambassador to Nepal, travelled to Kathmandu as the PM’s special envoy last month, alongside his desire to understand the emerging political dynamics, his mandate also included the need to see whether India should “engage in any course correction”.
Saran, in fact, in his conversations with the Madhesi parties is believed to have advised them to “stay united,” leading some observers to believe that India did not want the Madhesis to “cross the floor” and vote for Prachanda to become PM, as some had done during the third round of voting.
Speaking on condition of anonymity, sources in Kathmandu and New Delhi agreed that India, as the major country in the region, “continued to play a very important role in Nepal; in fact, there can be no government in Nepal without Indian support.”
Significantly, the Indian sources agreed that New Delhi had grown increasingly uncomfortable with the Maoists in recent months, a far cry from April 2006, when Shyam Saran brokered a deal with former King Gyanendra and persuaded him to abdicate in favour of a republican government led by the Maoists.
“The Maoist refusal to transform themselves from an insurgent outfit to a political party since 2006 has meant that Delhi is increasingly uncomfortable with them,” said an Indian political source.
He pointed out that when Prachanda came to India as prime minister in 2008, he was given the full red carpet treatment. At the time, the Indian source said, the only thing Prime Minister Manmohan Singh had told Prachanda was “that the matter of the Nepal army was a sensitive one and that it was in the Maoist interest to create a political consensus before he made any moves regarding the integration of the Maoist cadres into the Army”.
Prachanda had conceded, the Indian source added, “that this was a sensitive issue and that as the largest political party, it was their responsibility to take the initiative to build political consensus”.
But the Maoists had not only refused to disband the Youth Communist League, return all the property they had seized during their war against the state from 1996-2006 (“they can’t return the seized lands,” said another analyst, “they have distributed it amongst the people, who are already cultivating it”), they had even refused compromise deals to variously integrate the 19,600 cadres into the Army or paramilitary forces or send the women and children cadres back home with honourable compensation.
The China factor began to make a comeback. As Maoist ideologue Mohan Vaidya began to follow an openly anti-India line, Delhi’s insecurities against its northern neighbour returned. The Nepali army, whose chief had been sacked by Prachanda — and reinstated by President Ram Baran Yadav — began to move centre-stage in the political chaos.
A former Indian diplomat who has served in Nepal said India had made several proposals to integrate the Maoist cadres in various ways and even help with economic and political compensation during Prachanda’s tenure in power, but none of these had come to fruition.
He pointed out that the Nepal Army remained a “brother army” with the Indian army, as well as a custodian of the 1950 guarantee that Nepal would first look at India to satisfy its defence requirements, only later at the rest of the world.
Moreover, considering the nature of the open border, “Nepal needed to recognise that India’s security and stability was directly related to a peaceful and tranquil border”.
But as the Maoists gradually lost confidence in New Delhi, India moved to support Madhav Nepal as PM, persuade the Madhesis to remain united — despite which Upendra Yadav broke away. Whether or not UML chairman Jhalanath Khanal or Nepali Congress leaders Sher Bahadur Deuba or K P Oli now emerge as consensus PMs, Nepali sources said, India has already cast its vote against the Maoists.
“In Nepal,” the Indian political source said, “the Centre must hold.”
The Indian diplomat agreed the current political impasse was a function of the insecurities between all sides. “The Maoists are afraid that an effort at political consensus-making will mean the other political parties will gang up against them. The other political parties fear that if they allow the Maoists to take power again, they will not abide by their promises to return seized properties or integrate their cadres in a seemly fashion.”
Even Sitaram Yechury, whose CPI(M) had helped broker the 12-point understanding between the Maoists and Nepal’s other political parties in 2005, enabling them to come overground, expressed frustration with the political deadlock emerging from today’s sixth round of voting.
“When we played a role in bringing the Maoists and the political parties together, we told them all very clearly that the interim government could only be a transitional arrangement until the Constitution was adopted. Once that happened, elections could take place so that a new government assumed political power,” Yechury told Business Standard.
But as Yechury pointed out, the Constitution-making deadline expired on May 29, when all sides gave themselves another six months till November 29 to complete the Constitution-writing process. However, nearly three months had elapsed and none of the parties had even been able to agree on a PM.
In an effort to break this deadlock, Saran had gone to Nepal last month. But as an Indian diplomat with intimate knowledge of Saran’s visit said, “all the political parties Saran met had one request, please help us to become Prime Minister of Nepal”.
Nepal remained mired in a political deadlock that verges on a constitutional breakdown, as its 601 lawmakers were unable to elect a prime minister by simple majority in the sixth round of voting that was held in Kathmandu this afternoon
Amidst rising concern and frustration in Delhi and in several other key world capitals over Nepal’s inability to come to terms with its political future, Maoist Pushpa Kamal Dahal, commonly known as Prachanda, won 240 votes, while his Nepali Congress opponent, Ram Chandra Poudel, managed to secure only 122 votes.
Three Madhesi parties who belong to the Terai region adjoining India stayed neutral, as did the left-of-centre Communist party led by caretaker prime minister Madhav Kumar Nepal, the CPN-UML. A fourth Madhesi party, led by Upendra Kumar Yadav, had split from the united Madhesi alliance on the eve of the sixth round of voting, sparking rumours that he would support Prachanda in the secret ballot.
But it was a leaked audio tape three days ago about a conversation allegedly between Maoist ideologue and Krishna Bahadur Mahara and another person, said to be Chinese, in which Mahara is said to have asked the Chinese government for Nepali Rs 50 crore to buy lawmakers, that has rocked the young Himalayan republic.
As the political temperature rose in Kathmandu all week, India’s ambassador, Rakesh Sood, met CPN-UML chairman, Jhalanath Khanal, reinforcing speculation that Delhi was again seeking to broker an anti-Maoist political alliance.
On the face of it, Indian officials vehemently denied any suggestion of interfering in the Nepali political process, with Sood telling Business Standard that “Prime Minister Manmohan Singh would never allow it, he doesn’t like this kind of thing at all”.
However, Indian officials privately admitted that when Shyam Saran, former foreign secretary and a former ambassador to Nepal, travelled to Kathmandu as the PM’s special envoy last month, alongside his desire to understand the emerging political dynamics, his mandate also included the need to see whether India should “engage in any course correction”.
Saran, in fact, in his conversations with the Madhesi parties is believed to have advised them to “stay united,” leading some observers to believe that India did not want the Madhesis to “cross the floor” and vote for Prachanda to become PM, as some had done during the third round of voting.
Speaking on condition of anonymity, sources in Kathmandu and New Delhi agreed that India, as the major country in the region, “continued to play a very important role in Nepal; in fact, there can be no government in Nepal without Indian support.”
Significantly, the Indian sources agreed that New Delhi had grown increasingly uncomfortable with the Maoists in recent months, a far cry from April 2006, when Shyam Saran brokered a deal with former King Gyanendra and persuaded him to abdicate in favour of a republican government led by the Maoists.
“The Maoist refusal to transform themselves from an insurgent outfit to a political party since 2006 has meant that Delhi is increasingly uncomfortable with them,” said an Indian political source.
He pointed out that when Prachanda came to India as prime minister in 2008, he was given the full red carpet treatment. At the time, the Indian source said, the only thing Prime Minister Manmohan Singh had told Prachanda was “that the matter of the Nepal army was a sensitive one and that it was in the Maoist interest to create a political consensus before he made any moves regarding the integration of the Maoist cadres into the Army”.
Prachanda had conceded, the Indian source added, “that this was a sensitive issue and that as the largest political party, it was their responsibility to take the initiative to build political consensus”.
But the Maoists had not only refused to disband the Youth Communist League, return all the property they had seized during their war against the state from 1996-2006 (“they can’t return the seized lands,” said another analyst, “they have distributed it amongst the people, who are already cultivating it”), they had even refused compromise deals to variously integrate the 19,600 cadres into the Army or paramilitary forces or send the women and children cadres back home with honourable compensation.
The China factor began to make a comeback. As Maoist ideologue Mohan Vaidya began to follow an openly anti-India line, Delhi’s insecurities against its northern neighbour returned. The Nepali army, whose chief had been sacked by Prachanda — and reinstated by President Ram Baran Yadav — began to move centre-stage in the political chaos.
A former Indian diplomat who has served in Nepal said India had made several proposals to integrate the Maoist cadres in various ways and even help with economic and political compensation during Prachanda’s tenure in power, but none of these had come to fruition.
He pointed out that the Nepal Army remained a “brother army” with the Indian army, as well as a custodian of the 1950 guarantee that Nepal would first look at India to satisfy its defence requirements, only later at the rest of the world.
Moreover, considering the nature of the open border, “Nepal needed to recognise that India’s security and stability was directly related to a peaceful and tranquil border”.
But as the Maoists gradually lost confidence in New Delhi, India moved to support Madhav Nepal as PM, persuade the Madhesis to remain united — despite which Upendra Yadav broke away. Whether or not UML chairman Jhalanath Khanal or Nepali Congress leaders Sher Bahadur Deuba or K P Oli now emerge as consensus PMs, Nepali sources said, India has already cast its vote against the Maoists.
“In Nepal,” the Indian political source said, “the Centre must hold.”
The Indian diplomat agreed the current political impasse was a function of the insecurities between all sides. “The Maoists are afraid that an effort at political consensus-making will mean the other political parties will gang up against them. The other political parties fear that if they allow the Maoists to take power again, they will not abide by their promises to return seized properties or integrate their cadres in a seemly fashion.”
Even Sitaram Yechury, whose CPI(M) had helped broker the 12-point understanding between the Maoists and Nepal’s other political parties in 2005, enabling them to come overground, expressed frustration with the political deadlock emerging from today’s sixth round of voting.
“When we played a role in bringing the Maoists and the political parties together, we told them all very clearly that the interim government could only be a transitional arrangement until the Constitution was adopted. Once that happened, elections could take place so that a new government assumed political power,” Yechury told Business Standard.
But as Yechury pointed out, the Constitution-making deadline expired on May 29, when all sides gave themselves another six months till November 29 to complete the Constitution-writing process. However, nearly three months had elapsed and none of the parties had even been able to agree on a PM.
In an effort to break this deadlock, Saran had gone to Nepal last month. But as an Indian diplomat with intimate knowledge of Saran’s visit said, “all the political parties Saran met had one request, please help us to become Prime Minister of Nepal”.
Monday, August 30, 2010
Nepal media aggressively targets Indian Embassy, Kantipur takes the lead
Including several professional media organizations, Nepal’s main opposition Unified Maoists’ Party and the leaders of various political parties have heavily come down against the Indian Embassy in Kathmandu, under the dynamic leadership of Ambassador Rakesh Sood, for violating diplomatic norms and also blamed for blatant interference in Nepal’s media.
The media organizations, the main-opposition and leaders have been criticizing a press-release issued by the Indian mission which claimed referring to Indian Joint-Ventures in Nepal that certain print and television media houses (in Nepal) had approached them for release of advertisements.
The Indian embassy press release also claimed that the Indian JVs were threatened with negative publicity if requests for release of advertisements were not met with.
Money matters!
The Federation of Nepalese Journalists (FNJ), Revolutionary Journalists’ Association and the Press Council-a statutory body constituted and controlled by Nepal government have collectively deplored the press-statement of the Indian Embassy.
Jolt in series. Bad days for India in Nepal. Poor India.
“The Indian Embassy in the past had threatened the media here in Nepal for publishing the news of blocking consignment of newsprints at the Kolkata port by India”, the joint statement made by FNJ-Kathmandu, Lalitpur and Bhaktapur district chapters read.
Friendship shattered! So sad.
“Such events have exposed Indian Interference in series”, the statement also adds insult to injury.
Narayan Sharma of Press-Council states that India has been ignoring diplomatic norms and that it has begun interfering in affairs exclusive to Nepali media.
Mr. Sharma was handpicked by the Maoist led government and made the Press Council Chairman.
Similarly, Nepal’s main opposition Unified Maoists’ Party has also deplored the act of the Indian Embassy in making a statement against the Nepali media. The party has also demanded apology from Indian Embassy to the free media here.
Asking the absurd. Good joke indeed.
“Our central committee meeting has deplored the act of Interference of the Indian Embassy”, said vice chairman Narayan Kaji Shrestha.
The so-called democratic parties, the Nepali Congress and the UML are yet to criticize the event.
This has some meaning underneath.
Similarly, making exclusive comments to the Kantipur National Daily August 30, 2010, Chakra Prasad Bastola of the Nepali Congress, Pradip Nepal of UML, Devendra Poudel of Unified Maoists’ Party, Jay Prakash Gupta of Madhesi Janaadhikar Forum-Nepal and Sarita Giri of Sadvawana Party too have criticized the Indian Embassy for targeting the Nepali media.
Those who have made scathing comments against the Indian Embassy, mentioned above, were at one time in the not so distant past very very friendly to India.
But why they are distancing themselves? Naughty Nepali political animals.
Some may have, it could be presumed, talked against the Embassy with “heavy hearts”.
The Kantipur, Nepal’s largest circulating daily has penned an editorial in the issue.
The media organizations, the main-opposition and leaders have been criticizing a press-release issued by the Indian mission which claimed referring to Indian Joint-Ventures in Nepal that certain print and television media houses (in Nepal) had approached them for release of advertisements.
The Indian embassy press release also claimed that the Indian JVs were threatened with negative publicity if requests for release of advertisements were not met with.
Money matters!
The Federation of Nepalese Journalists (FNJ), Revolutionary Journalists’ Association and the Press Council-a statutory body constituted and controlled by Nepal government have collectively deplored the press-statement of the Indian Embassy.
Jolt in series. Bad days for India in Nepal. Poor India.
“The Indian Embassy in the past had threatened the media here in Nepal for publishing the news of blocking consignment of newsprints at the Kolkata port by India”, the joint statement made by FNJ-Kathmandu, Lalitpur and Bhaktapur district chapters read.
Friendship shattered! So sad.
“Such events have exposed Indian Interference in series”, the statement also adds insult to injury.
Narayan Sharma of Press-Council states that India has been ignoring diplomatic norms and that it has begun interfering in affairs exclusive to Nepali media.
Mr. Sharma was handpicked by the Maoist led government and made the Press Council Chairman.
Similarly, Nepal’s main opposition Unified Maoists’ Party has also deplored the act of the Indian Embassy in making a statement against the Nepali media. The party has also demanded apology from Indian Embassy to the free media here.
Asking the absurd. Good joke indeed.
“Our central committee meeting has deplored the act of Interference of the Indian Embassy”, said vice chairman Narayan Kaji Shrestha.
The so-called democratic parties, the Nepali Congress and the UML are yet to criticize the event.
This has some meaning underneath.
Similarly, making exclusive comments to the Kantipur National Daily August 30, 2010, Chakra Prasad Bastola of the Nepali Congress, Pradip Nepal of UML, Devendra Poudel of Unified Maoists’ Party, Jay Prakash Gupta of Madhesi Janaadhikar Forum-Nepal and Sarita Giri of Sadvawana Party too have criticized the Indian Embassy for targeting the Nepali media.
Those who have made scathing comments against the Indian Embassy, mentioned above, were at one time in the not so distant past very very friendly to India.
But why they are distancing themselves? Naughty Nepali political animals.
Some may have, it could be presumed, talked against the Embassy with “heavy hearts”.
The Kantipur, Nepal’s largest circulating daily has penned an editorial in the issue.
Stand aside, the behe-moths of the insect world have arrived
With their stunning colours and 12in wingspan they're not the sort of insect you could ignore.
And now not just one but nine of the world's largest moths have hatched at a butterfly sanctuary in Gloucestershire.
The giant Atlas moths emerged from their chrysalises at Berkeley Castle Butterfly House
Atlas moths are named after the intricate, colourful map-like patterns on their wings It is the first time the moths have successfully bred and hatched offspring in two years.
The moths, which do not have fully-formed mouths and survive off fat they built up as caterpillars, only live for a maximum of two weeks.
They are unsteady fliers and they do not stray far. Their sole purpose of life as a moth is to breed. Atlas moths are found in the tropical and subtropical forests of South-East Asia and are common across the Malay archipelago.
And now not just one but nine of the world's largest moths have hatched at a butterfly sanctuary in Gloucestershire.
The giant Atlas moths emerged from their chrysalises at Berkeley Castle Butterfly House
Atlas moths are named after the intricate, colourful map-like patterns on their wings It is the first time the moths have successfully bred and hatched offspring in two years.
The moths, which do not have fully-formed mouths and survive off fat they built up as caterpillars, only live for a maximum of two weeks.
They are unsteady fliers and they do not stray far. Their sole purpose of life as a moth is to breed. Atlas moths are found in the tropical and subtropical forests of South-East Asia and are common across the Malay archipelago.
Sunday, August 22, 2010
.Moon is shrinking, NASA's LROC mission discovers evidence of lunar contraction
A team of scientists led by Thomas Watters announced in the August 20, 2010 issue of Science that the Moon is shrinking. According to their paper, the radius of the Moon has decreased by about 100 meters in the last billion years or less.
Watters' team studied images of the Moon's surface made with the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter Camera (LROC). The astronomers studied geologic features on the Moon known as lobate scarps with the LROC. Scarps are cliffs caused by fault lines or vertical movement of the crust. Lobate scarps are curved and are indicative that the Moon or planet is shrinking.
The planet Mercury, whose surface is very similar to the cratered highland areas of the Moon, also has many scarps indicating that Mercury has shrunk. Mars also has scarps. The lunar scarps are smaller scale structures than the scarps on Mercury or Mars. Scarps on Mercury or Mars can be more than a kilometer high and extend for hundreds of kilometers. Lunar scarps are less than 100 meters high and a few dozen kilometers long at most.
The Apollo missions imaged scarps near the Moon's equator, but did not study the entire Moon. The new LROC images discovered 14 new scarps distributed over the entire Moon. The global distribution indicates that the Moon is shrinking globally.
Astronomers estimate the age of geologic features on the Moon by the number of craters. More heavily cratered areas are geologically older. The lunar scarps are the youngest tectonic features on the Moon and are less than a billion years old. The scarps most likely formed from the stress on the surface as the Moon contracted, and their scale indicates that the Moon's radius has decreased by about 100 meters.
The Moon has shrunk by about 100 meters in less than the last 1 billion years. Why?
The Moon was hot and molten when it first formed. The Moon gradually cooled and solidified. The lunar interior, while not as hot as Earth's interior, is still warm. So the Moon continues to cool and shrink slightly as it cools.
Sunday, August 15, 2010
History of Nepal
The history of Nepal is characterized by its isolated position in the Himalayas and its two dominant neighbors, India and China.
Due to the arrival of disparate settler groups from outside through the ages, it is now a multi-ethnic, multi-cultural, multi-lingual country. Its population is predominantly Hindu with significant presence of Buddhists, who were in majority at one time in the past. Nepal was split in three kingdoms from the 15th to 18th century, when it was unified under a monarchy. The national language of Nepal is called 'Nepali', a name given - long after unification of Nepal - to the language called Khas Kura.
Nepal experienced a failed struggle for democracy in the 20th century. During the 1990s and until 2008, the country was in civil strife. A peace treaty was signed in 2008 and elections were held in the same year.
Many of the ills of Nepal have been blamed on the royal family of Nepal. In a historical vote for the election of the constituent assembly, Nepalis voted to oust the monarchy in Nepal. In June 2008, Nepalis ousted the royal household. Nepal was formally renamed the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal when it became a federal republic.
Due to the arrival of disparate settler groups from outside through the ages, it is now a multi-ethnic, multi-cultural, multi-lingual country. Its population is predominantly Hindu with significant presence of Buddhists, who were in majority at one time in the past. Nepal was split in three kingdoms from the 15th to 18th century, when it was unified under a monarchy. The national language of Nepal is called 'Nepali', a name given - long after unification of Nepal - to the language called Khas Kura.
Nepal experienced a failed struggle for democracy in the 20th century. During the 1990s and until 2008, the country was in civil strife. A peace treaty was signed in 2008 and elections were held in the same year.
Many of the ills of Nepal have been blamed on the royal family of Nepal. In a historical vote for the election of the constituent assembly, Nepalis voted to oust the monarchy in Nepal. In June 2008, Nepalis ousted the royal household. Nepal was formally renamed the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal when it became a federal republic.
Monday, August 9, 2010
Poor in Nepal face growing hardships
International aid agency Oxfam today warned that the poor people in Nepal are facing growing hardships.
"Economic growth is slowing down to two per cent, inflation is approaching double digits, and public services are not effectively functioning," said Sarah Ireland, Oxfam's Program Manager for South Asia.
Nepal was already one of the poorest countries in Asia. Now, on top of a decade of conflict, life has become even more difficult, as poor people are facing physical insecurity, shortages, rising costs of basic goods, difficulties in making a living, and reduced access to health, education, clean water and sanitation.
Oxfam is urging the international community to facilitate a rapid resolution to the current crisis.
"Overcoming poverty in Nepal is dependent upon peace, and peace is dependent on an inclusive process through which Nepalis determine their own future and where everyone's social, economic and human rights are respected," said Ireland.
"Economic growth is slowing down to two per cent, inflation is approaching double digits, and public services are not effectively functioning," said Sarah Ireland, Oxfam's Program Manager for South Asia.
Nepal was already one of the poorest countries in Asia. Now, on top of a decade of conflict, life has become even more difficult, as poor people are facing physical insecurity, shortages, rising costs of basic goods, difficulties in making a living, and reduced access to health, education, clean water and sanitation.
Oxfam is urging the international community to facilitate a rapid resolution to the current crisis.
"Overcoming poverty in Nepal is dependent upon peace, and peace is dependent on an inclusive process through which Nepalis determine their own future and where everyone's social, economic and human rights are respected," said Ireland.
Sunday, July 25, 2010
Global Warming is decreasing the peak of Mounteverest
The rising temperature on the mountains has melted much ice and snow on the trail to the summit. It is difficult for climbers to use their crampons on the rocky surfaces,” Apa told reporters after flying to Katmandu on Tuesday.
Apa, who uses only one name, reached the 29,035-foot (8,850-meter) summit on Saturday for the 20th time, beating his own previous record. The 49-year-old first climbed Everest in 1989 and has repeated the feat almost every year since. His closest rival is fellow Sherpa guide Chhewang Nima, who has made 16 trips to the summit.
Apa said when he first began climbing Everest, there was hardly any rocky surface on the trail to the summit. Now, he says, the trail is dotted with bare rocks. The melting ice has also exposed deep crevasses, making it dangerous for climbers.
Apa has been campaigning on global warming's negative effect on the Himalayan peaks for the past three years. In a separate environmental campaign to clean up the mountain, his Eco-Everest Expedition team has been collecting garbage from the slopes of Everest. This year the team collected 7,630 pounds (4,770 kilograms) of garbage. Apa grew up in the foothills of Everest and began carrying equipment and supplies for trekkers and mountaineers at age 12. He moved to the United States in 2006 and lives in the Salt Lake City suburb of Draper.
Sherpas were mostly yak herders and traders living in the Himalayas until Nepal opened its borders to tourists in 1950. Their stamina and knowledge of the mountains makes them expert guides and porters.
A total of 233 climbers in 25 expedition teams from various nations have been permitted by the Nepalese government to climb Everest during the spring season from the southern face of the peak.
Apa, who uses only one name, reached the 29,035-foot (8,850-meter) summit on Saturday for the 20th time, beating his own previous record. The 49-year-old first climbed Everest in 1989 and has repeated the feat almost every year since. His closest rival is fellow Sherpa guide Chhewang Nima, who has made 16 trips to the summit.
Apa said when he first began climbing Everest, there was hardly any rocky surface on the trail to the summit. Now, he says, the trail is dotted with bare rocks. The melting ice has also exposed deep crevasses, making it dangerous for climbers.
Apa has been campaigning on global warming's negative effect on the Himalayan peaks for the past three years. In a separate environmental campaign to clean up the mountain, his Eco-Everest Expedition team has been collecting garbage from the slopes of Everest. This year the team collected 7,630 pounds (4,770 kilograms) of garbage. Apa grew up in the foothills of Everest and began carrying equipment and supplies for trekkers and mountaineers at age 12. He moved to the United States in 2006 and lives in the Salt Lake City suburb of Draper.
Sherpas were mostly yak herders and traders living in the Himalayas until Nepal opened its borders to tourists in 1950. Their stamina and knowledge of the mountains makes them expert guides and porters.
A total of 233 climbers in 25 expedition teams from various nations have been permitted by the Nepalese government to climb Everest during the spring season from the southern face of the peak.
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Sunday, July 18, 2010
Jamim killing linked to Butwal shootout
Jamim killing linked to Butwal shootout
Jamim killing linked to Butwal shootout
02 Mar 2010
KATHMANDU: The police have found a link between December 25 shootout in Butwal and the killing of media baron Jamim Shah.
A Nepal Police source at the Metropolitan Police Range told The Himalayan Times today that the wife of Shaukhat Baeg, aka Parvej, who was killed in Butwal shootout, has identified the person who bought the bike used in the killing of Jamim Shah as the shooter who killed her husband. The police believe he is the same person who killed Jamim Shah.
“The shooting of Parvej took place when he was sitting in front of his motor garage with his wife. Two men came on a bike and stopped in front of Parvej and Najma Khatum. They talked with Parvej for nearly half-an-hour. Parvej’s wife told the police that they had no clue that the two had come to kill Baeg,”said the source.
“Suddenly the man who was riding pillion took out his gun and shot Parvej in the forehead. The two then sped away,” said the source, quoting Najma.
After Najma gave her statement to the police, she has been provided with tight security. Her whereabouts cannot be revealed for her security. Najma is the sole eyewitness in the Butwal shooting case and MPR considers her the most vital link in the two cases.
The shooter in Jamim Shah’s murder used a maroon coloured motorbike (Ba 17 Pa 8733), which has been impounded by NP and was shown to the media in a press meet. The police said Miteri Saving and Cooperative Finance Company had financed the bike. The man, who got the bike financed from Miteri, left his identity card with the company. The card is in the custody of the NP team probing into the murder of Jamim Shah.
Najma, who was shocked to the see the photo in the ID card, has identified it as being similar to that of the man who shot Parvej, according to the police source.
The police believe Mohammad Bakher Said to be the shooter, while they have yet to identify his accomplice, said the source. Said was also involved in the murder of a counterfeit currency racketeer, added the NP source.
Jamim killing linked to Butwal shootout
02 Mar 2010
KATHMANDU: The police have found a link between December 25 shootout in Butwal and the killing of media baron Jamim Shah.
A Nepal Police source at the Metropolitan Police Range told The Himalayan Times today that the wife of Shaukhat Baeg, aka Parvej, who was killed in Butwal shootout, has identified the person who bought the bike used in the killing of Jamim Shah as the shooter who killed her husband. The police believe he is the same person who killed Jamim Shah.
“The shooting of Parvej took place when he was sitting in front of his motor garage with his wife. Two men came on a bike and stopped in front of Parvej and Najma Khatum. They talked with Parvej for nearly half-an-hour. Parvej’s wife told the police that they had no clue that the two had come to kill Baeg,”said the source.
“Suddenly the man who was riding pillion took out his gun and shot Parvej in the forehead. The two then sped away,” said the source, quoting Najma.
After Najma gave her statement to the police, she has been provided with tight security. Her whereabouts cannot be revealed for her security. Najma is the sole eyewitness in the Butwal shooting case and MPR considers her the most vital link in the two cases.
The shooter in Jamim Shah’s murder used a maroon coloured motorbike (Ba 17 Pa 8733), which has been impounded by NP and was shown to the media in a press meet. The police said Miteri Saving and Cooperative Finance Company had financed the bike. The man, who got the bike financed from Miteri, left his identity card with the company. The card is in the custody of the NP team probing into the murder of Jamim Shah.
Najma, who was shocked to the see the photo in the ID card, has identified it as being similar to that of the man who shot Parvej, according to the police source.
The police believe Mohammad Bakher Said to be the shooter, while they have yet to identify his accomplice, said the source. Said was also involved in the murder of a counterfeit currency racketeer, added the NP source.
Butwal shuts against couple murder (Ramesh Bhandari )
Butwal shuts against couple murder
RUPANDEHI: A day after a group shot dead businessman Ramesh Bhandari and his wife Asha at the Jaycees Chowk in Butwal, infuriated locals shut Butwal and brought vehicular movement to a halt for two hours to mount pressure on the authorities to arrest the killers.
Final rites of the Bhandari couple were conducted on the Tinau River banks. Through slogans, participants at the funeral procession demanded that local authorities swing into action and bring the killers to book. They threatened to launch an agitation from Friday if the murderers were not arrested.
Meanwhile, Dan Bahadur Karki, DSP, said the police had already arrested five suspects and were collecting information from them. He pledged to speed up the investigation.
RUPANDEHI: A day after a group shot dead businessman Ramesh Bhandari and his wife Asha at the Jaycees Chowk in Butwal, infuriated locals shut Butwal and brought vehicular movement to a halt for two hours to mount pressure on the authorities to arrest the killers.
Final rites of the Bhandari couple were conducted on the Tinau River banks. Through slogans, participants at the funeral procession demanded that local authorities swing into action and bring the killers to book. They threatened to launch an agitation from Friday if the murderers were not arrested.
Meanwhile, Dan Bahadur Karki, DSP, said the police had already arrested five suspects and were collecting information from them. He pledged to speed up the investigation.
Friday, July 9, 2010
Cops unveil 4 killers of Butwal couple
Arun Gyawali
BUTWAL: Rupandehi police made public four persons who were held in connection with the murder of Butwal based business couple on Friday afternoon.
According to Rupendehi police chief Sher Bahadur Basnet the four people who were involved in the murders of Ramesh Bhandari and his wife Asha are Shambhu Gautam aka Bhole Baba, 32, a local resident of Saljhandi VDC, Rupandehi, Shyam Prasad B.K 32 and Nim Prasad Thapa, 32, local residents of Gajedi, Rupandehi and Purna Bahadur Shreesh Magar, 28, a local resident of Rudrapur VDC.
The police made them public in a press conference at the hall of Siddhartha Chambers of Commerce and Industries . Among them Shambhu was in the most wanted list of the police.
Two culprits involved in the incident are still absconding.
The Bhandari couple was shot dead at their shop in Jaycees Chowk of Butwal around 3 pm on June 23.
Asha died instantly and Ramesh succumbed to his injuries while undergoing treatment at Lumbini Zonal Hospital the same day. Ramesh had sustained a bullet in his throat while Asha was shot in the stomach.
Ramesh used to supply food grains to Lumbini, Gandaki and Dhaulagiri zones. He was also involved in various organisations including Jaycees and Lions Clubs of Butwal.
Three persons riding a black Pulsar bike had opened fire on the couple and managed to flee the scene.
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