TERRA DAILY EXPRESS - MAY 22, 2006
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24/7 Coverage Of Earth in the 21st Century
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NEWS AS OF 12:30 UTC - May 22, 2006


ENERGY TECH

Scientists say they have cleared technical hurdle in fusion research
Paris (AFP) May 21, 2006 - Physicists working in the United States believe they have cracked an important problem facing man-made nuclear fusion, touted as the cheap, safe, clean and almost limitless energy source of the future.

China reaches milestone with completion of Three Gorges dam
Beijing (AFP) May 20, 2006 - After 13 years of immense physical effort and technical ingenuity, China Saturday put the finishing touches to its controversial Three Gorges dam, the world's largest hydropower project.

Critics say price of China's Three Gorges dam too high

China mine flooding traps 44, management arrested

EPIDEMICS

Finding Cures For The Disease Of Neglect
Washington (UPI) May 22, 2006 - Neglected diseases -- diseases that are widespread and destructive but affect primarily the world's poor and thus attract little research investment in cures -- kill and sicken millions every year.

FLORA AND FAUNA

Putting The Puzzle Of Life Together
Uniontown PA (SPX) May 22, 2006 - Two laboratories at Penn State set out to show how an obscure undersea microbe metabolizes carbon monoxide into methane and vinegar. What they found was not merely a previously unknown biochemical process--their discovery also became the inspiration for a fundamental new theory of the origin of life on Earth, reconciling a long-contentious pair of prevailing theories.

WATER WORLD

Nanotube Membranes Offer Possibility Of Cheaper Desalination
Livermore CA (SPX) May 22, 2006 - A nanotube membrane on a silicon chip the size of a quarter may offer a cheaper way to remove salt from water. Researchers at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory have created a membrane made of carbon nanotubes and silicon that may offer, among many possible applications, a less expensive desalinization.

DISASTER MANAGEMENT

CapRock Expands Disaster Satellite Services in Preparation For Hurricane Season
Houston (SPX) May 22, 2006 - Building on the success of its DR-250 disaster recovery service launched last year, CapRock Communications, a leading global satellite communications provider, is significantly expanding its disaster recovery product line for 2006. The new service packages will be available under two different programs, Broadband DR-VSAT and Private Line DR-VSAT.

New Network Needed to Solve First Responder Communications Crisis

WOOD PILE

Scientific Group Endorses Radical Plan To Save Rainforests
Washington DC (SPX) May 22, 2006 - The Association for Tropical Biology and Conservation (ATBC), the world's largest scientific organization devoted to the study and wise use of tropical ecosystems, has formally endorsed a bold new proposal to help save tropical forests.

Smithsonian Helps To Plan For Panama's Coiba National Park

CLIMATE SCIENCE

Al Gore issues global warming wake-up call at Cannes
Cannes, France (AFP) May 20, 2006 - After years of failing to persuade the world's most powerful politicians to take the issue seriously, former US vice president Al Gore Saturday took his personal crusade against global warming to Cannes.

Canada wants Kyoto climate-change deal scrapped: report

WEATHER REPORT

Fresh Light Cast On Sandstorm Origins
Beijing (XNA) May 22, 2006 - A 10-year study on sandstorms has cast new light on the origins and movements of the dusty phenomenon. The storms are closely related to Siberian cold fronts, and come along three different routes, said Kang Ling, deputy director of the Observatory of the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region.
Extreme Events Challenge Chinese Weather Forecasters

SHAKE AND BLOW

More seek shelter from simmering Indonesian volcano
Mount Merapi, Indonesia (AFP) May 21, 2006 - More people have fled the slopes of Indonesia's simmering Mount Merapi, unsure whether the volcano is set to erupt because of thick cloud blanketing its peak, officials said Sunday.

Asian countries count the cost of Typhoon Chanchu
Hanoi (AFP) May 19, 2006 - Asian countries were left counting the cost of Typhoon Chanchu on Saturday after it swept through the Philippines, Vietnam and southern China leaving at least 90 people dead and hundreds more missing.

For many, a Merapi eruption is cause to rejoice

CIVIL NUCLEAR

Canada, Australia seek to protect uranium exports
Ottawa (AFP) May 19, 2006 - Canada and Australia, which hold the world's largest uranium reserves, agreed Friday to work together to protect their nuclear exports which may be threatened by US energy security proposals.

Sevmash Wins Tender For Floating Nuclear Reactor

FROTH AND BUBBLE

Finland hopes to clean up Russian shipping in Baltic
Helsinki (AFP) May 21, 2006 - Finland will use its upcoming presidency of the European Union to draw Russia's attention to pollution in the Baltic Sea, which is seeing unprecedented traffic as a result of rising oil exports and growing regional economic activity.

WATER WORLD

Zanzibar passes law to punish misuse of water amid drought
Zanzibar, Tanzania (AFP) May 21, 2006 - The president of Zanzibar passed a law to punish people convicted of misusing or polluting water, in a bid to save water in the parched Tanzanian island, officials said on Sunday.

SUPERPOWERS

New Tests For Sino-Russian Ties
Beijing (UPI) May 22, 2006 - The strategic partnership forged between China and Russia as a counterweight to American predominance on the world stage a decade ago is gaining momentum.

Germany's Merkel to push China to play larger international role

Chinese filmmaker risks five-year ban over Cannes entry: report

POLITICAL ECONOMY

The Global Roulette Wheel Could Spin The Economy Out
Washington (UPI) May 22, 2006 - American gross domestic product is $10 trillion a year. A staggering amount when you realize that one trillion seconds ago was 29,000 years before Jesus Christ. A billion hours ago, human beings and their ancestors were in the Middle Paleolithic Age, or the Stone Age.

FLOATING STEEL

RIT Students Design Deep-Sea Explorer To Search For Lake Ontario Shipwrecks
Rochester NY (SPX) May 22, 2006 - It's designed to explore the depths of large bodies of water—and one recent weekend, that's exactly where it was found: searching the depths of the deep end of Judson Pool in Rochester Institute of Technology's Gordon Field House and Activities Center. (As the adage goes, every journey begins with a single step.)

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TERRA DAILY EXPRESS - MAY 26, 2006
http://www.terradaily.com
24/7 Coverage Of Earth in the 21st Century


+ MIT Poet Develops 'Seeing Machine'

Cambridge MA (SPX) May 26, 2006 - An MIT poet has developed a small, relatively inexpensive "seeing machine" that can allow people who are blind, or visually challenged like her, to access the Internet, view the face of a friend, "previsit" unfamiliar buildings and more.

EPIDEMICS

+ New Vaccine Development Provides Potent Long-Lasting Immunity

Pittsburgh PA (SPX) May 26, 2006 - The field of vaccine development is getting a boost from new research that has identified a promising vaccine delivery approach, which in animal studies produced long-term immune protection after just one immunization.

+ Cure For Reading Glasses May Be In View
+ Orange Juice Could Be A Source Of Foodborne Disease
+ Robotic Joystick Reveals How Brain Controls Movement

CYBER WARS

+ When It Comes To Privacy, Gender Matters

Seattle WA (SPX) May 26, 2006 - A study aimed at assessing perspectives about privacy in a public place - particularly when surveillance is not related to security - suggests women are more concerned than men, both as watcher and the watched.

ENERGY TECH

+ Sweet Success For Pioneering Hydrogen Energy Project

Birmingham, UK (SPX) May 26, 2006 - In a feasibility study funded by the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council, bioscientists at the University of Birmingham have demonstrated that these bacteria give off hydrogen gas as they consume high-sugar waste produced by the confectionery industry.

+ Better Distillation Curve Apparatus Built

CIVIL NUCLEAR

+ Radioactive Tritium Pollutes Groundwater

Chicago (UPI) May 26, 2006 - Officials at Illinois' Braidwood nuclear plant have reportedly been ordered to begin cleaning up groundwater contaminated with radioactive tritium. The preliminary injunction obtained by state and local officials also orders the plant's operator, the Exelon Corp., to monitor nearby private wells for contamination, The Chicago Sun-Times reported Thursday.

DISASTER MANAGEMENT

+ Ocean Useful In Hurricane Disaster Relief

Clemson SC (UPI) May 26, 2006 - U.S. scientists say the ocean might provide an important highway for use in a hurricane disaster. "The ocean is a natural highway, essentially unaffected by hurricane destruction," said Clemson University Emeritus Professor Clinton Whitehurs Jr., lead author of a study entitled "Hurricane Relief from the Sea.

FLORA AND FAUNA

+ Live Via Satellite: Scientists To Track Caspian Sea Sturgeons

Atyrau, Kazakhstan (SPX) May 26, 2006 - Scientists working in the Ural River, Kazakhstan, have successfully attached Pop-up Archival Transmitting (PAT) tags to four sturgeons and have released the animals into the Caspian Sea, hoping to get a clear picture of Caspian Sea sturgeon movement and behavior never before available.

FROTH AND BUBBLE

+ Managing Indian E-Waste

New Delhi (UPI) May 26, 2006 - A combination of greater affordability and a constant turnover in new computer technology is contributing to an e-waste problem never before encountered in India, leading to some serious thinking on how to manage a solution, say experts.

SUPERPOWERS

+ Chinese And US Scientists To Cooperate

Beijing (UPI) May 26, 2006 - The U.S. National Science Foundation opened an office in Beijing Wednesday, aimed at encouraging greater collaboration between Chinese and U.S. scientists. The office hopes to stimulate ideas and programs in areas including physics, bioscience and information science, said the foundation's director, Arden L Bement.

+ China's Defense Challenge

NUKEWARS

+ 'Nukes breed nukes,' ElBaradei warns

Washington (AFP) May 25, 2006 - The head of the UN atomic watchdog warned Thursday that world powers must renounce nuclear arms or accept that more and more countries will manage to secure their own bombs.

+ World powers foreign ministers to meet on Iran next week: US
+ Blair: we don't want conflict with Iran, we're too busy
+ US lawmakers want Pakistan to reopen probe on illicit nuclear network
+ US envoy rules out new incentives to draw North Korea back to talks
+ Gulf States Fear Iran War
+ Qatar pours cold water on Gulf initiative on Iran

NANO TECH

+ Invisibility Through Nano

New York (UPI) May 26, 2006 - Invisibility cloaks that bend light might develop using nanotechnology, experts tell UPI's Nano World. "There are probably quite a number of useful things you could do with stealth for the military," said researcher John Pendry, a physicist at Imperial College London.

EPIDEMICS

+ Iran Bird Flu On UN Agenda

United Nations (UPI) May 24, 2006 - U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan called on Vietnam to share knowledge gained in a successful campaign against bird flu, but warned the country to not let its guard down in the continuing fight against the disease.

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TERRA DAILY EXPRESS - MAY 29, 2006
http://www.terradaily.com
24/7 Coverage Of Earth in the 21st Century

DISASTER MANAGEMENT

+ Indonesia quake teams using tsunami experience, says UN chief

Washington (AFP) May 28, 2006 - International rescue teams helping victims of the Indonesia earthquake, which has killed over 4,600 people, gained valuable experience in the operation after the 2004 tsunami disaster, UN aid coordinator Jan Egeland said Sunday.

+ Hospitals overwhelmed in Indonesian quake zone

SHAKE AND BLOW

+ More quakes show power of Pacific 'Ring of Fire'

Jakarta (AFP) May 28, 2006 - The Pacific's volatile "Ring of Fire" unleashed two more earthquakes Sunday, a day after a temblor in Indonesia left more than 3,300 dead in one of the world's most seismically active regions.

+ Earthquakes and volcanoes, Indonesia's twin nightmares
+ Pacific 'Ring of Fire' unleashes another disaster
+ Earthquake in ocean near Tonga
+ Earthquake jolts northern Philippines, no damage or injuries
+ Strong earthquake hits Papua New Guinea

DISASTER MANAGEMENT

+ New Orleans again vulnerable as new hurricane season opens

New Orleans, Louisiana (AFP) May 28, 2006 - With a new storm season looming ominously, New Orleans remains vulnerable eight months after Hurricane Katrina wrecked thousands of homes and left much of the city under water.

WATER WORLD

+ Drought order leaves British clowns high and dry

London (AFP) May 27, 2006 - Circus clowns have fallen foul of a drought order granted to a British utility because of diminishing stocks of water, a number of newspapers reported Saturday.

WOOD PILE

+ Indonesia promises this year will be less hazy

Kuala Lumpur (AFP) May 28, 2006 - Indonesia has said the choking haze that annually blankets parts of Southeast Asia will be reduced this year as it cracks down on oil palm plantations that clear land by burning.

MONSOON SEASON

+ Monsoon hits India's south coast six days early, cheers farmers

Thiruvananthapuram, India (AFP) May 26, 2006 - India's annual monsoon rains hit India's southern state of Kerala on Friday, six days ahead of schedule, bringing cheer to farmers in the agriculture-dependent nation.

ENERGY TECH

+ US oil and gas industry heads into hurricane season still weak

New Orleans, Louisiana (AFP) May 28, 2006 - With exploration and production still struggling to catch up to last year's levels, the US's crucial Gulf of Mexico oil and gas industry is gearing up for what could be another dangerous hurricane season.

+ Oil giants turn to Arctic promised land
+ Oil prices firmer on Iran, US demand concerns
+ Strategic Russian pipeline to be re-routed 400 kilometres from Baikal
+ Bush hails House bill opening Alaska wildlife refuge to drilling

UNITED NATIONS

+ Japan makes UN pitch to Pacific islands

Nago, Japan (AFP) May 26, 2006 - Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi made a pitch Friday to leaders of Pacific nations to support Japan's bid for the UN Security Council, a goal China has been working hard to block.

+ Search for sushi draining Mediterranean's red tuna stocks

CIVIL NUCLEAR

+ India admits more work to be done on nuclear deal with US

New Delhi (AFP) May 26, 2006 - More work has to be done on the landmark Indo-US nuclear deal before it goes through Congress, according to New Delhi's top diplomat.

TERRA DAILY EXPRESS - MAY 30, 2006
http://www.terradaily.com
24/7 Coverage Of Earth in the 21st Century


TODAY'S NEWS IN BRIEF

BLUE SKY

+ Faster Warming In Subtropics Pushes Jet Streams Toward Poles

Tacoma WA (SPX) May 30, 2006
The atmosphere is warming faster in subtropical areas, around 30 degrees north and south latitude, than it is elsewhere, University of Washington-led research shows. But scientists examining more than 25 years of satellite data also found that each hemisphere's jet stream has moved toward the pole by about 1 degree of latitude, or 70 miles.

DISASTER MANAGEMENT

+ Indonesia races to cope with quake survivors

Bantul, Indonesia (AFP) May 29, 2006
Indonesia raced to cope with thousands of injured and homeless earthquake survivors Monday as the United Nations vowed help would come faster than after the 2004 Asian tsunami. As the death toll from Saturday's powerful quake jumped to more than 5,100 people, relief officials urged nations to rush in badly needed field hospitals, medicines, tents and supplies.

+ UN says Indonesia quake aid faster than post-tsunami
+ Hospitals, tents must be raced to Indonesia quake victims: UN
+ Aid flies in for Indonesia quake victims

SHAKE AND BLOW

+ Volcano near Indonesian quake zone shows increased activity

Mount Merapi, Indonesia (AFP) May 29, 2006
Indonesia's Mount Merapi volcano, located near the epicentre of a strong weekend earthquake, showed increased activity Monday, belching more lava and heat clouds, scientists said.

+ Villagers see Indonesia quake as warning
+ Study Outlines Eruption At Undersea Volcano
+ Lava bubbles in Comoros volcano, little risk seen

INNER EARTH

+ Minerals Go Dark Near Core Of Earth

Washington DC (SPX) May 30, 2006
Minerals crunched by intense pressure near the Earth's core lose much of their ability to conduct infrared light, according to a new study from the Carnegie Institution's Geophysical Laboratory.

WATER WORLD

+ What Lies On The Gulf Floor

Baton Rouge LO (SPX) May 30, 2006
When most people think of Louisiana as being unique, they think of Mardi Gras, crawfish and Cajun culture. Few realize that what lies beneath the Gulf of Mexico along Louisiana's coast is also unique, from the terrain and habitat to the animals living there. And two LSU researchers are diving down some 3,000 meters to explore it.

CLIMATE SCIENCE

+ Cutting Energy Waste Crucial To Forestalling Climate Change

Roskilde, Denmark (SPX) May 30, 2006
With world energy prices and climate-altering greenhouse gas emissions ballooning in tandem with a surge in energy demand from the hot economies of China, India and Brazil, the world has a major stake in the success of energy reduction efforts, particularly in those three countries, warn experts concluding a four-year international project.

ENERGY TECH

+ For The Future Hydrogen Economy, A Tiny, Self-Powered Sensor

Gainesville FL (SPX) May 30, 2006
Hydrogen has been called "the fuel of the future." But the gas is invisible, odorless and explosive at high concentrations, posing a safety problem for hydrogen-powered cars, filling stations and other aspects of the so-called hydrogen economy.

+ EU offers tips on cutting greenhouse gases
+ Amid tension, Japan, China talk about energy-saving
+ GE to invest 50 mln dlrs in environment-related R and D in China

EPIDEMICS

+ UAB Researchers Discover HIV-1 Originated in Wild Chimpanzees

Birmingham AL (SPX) May 30, 2006
An international team of scientists, led by researchers at the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB), has discovered a crucial missing link in the search for the origin of HIV-1, the virus responsible for human AIDS. That missing link is the natural reservoir of the virus, which the team has found in wild-living chimpanzees in southern Cameroon.

+ World must do more to provide drugs for children with AIDS: report
+ UN conference to assess HIV-AIDS programs worldwide

FLORA AND FAUNA

+ Overfishing Puts Southern California Kelp Forest Ecosystems At Risk

Santa Barbara CA (SPX) May 30, 2006
Kelp forest ecosystems that span the West Coast -- from Alaska to Mexico's Baja Peninsula -- are at greater risk from overfishing than from the effects of run-off from fertilizers or sewage on the shore, say scientists at the University of California, Santa Barbara. The findings have important implications for the design of California's Marine Protected Areas.

+ Super-Sized Cassava Plants May Help Fight Hunger In Africa

EARTH OBSERVATION

+ Commercial Remote Sensing Satellite Market Stabilizing

Newtown CN (SPX) May 30, 2006
In a new study, "The Market for Civil & Commercial Remote Sensing Satellites," Forecast International is projecting deliveries of approximately 139 imaging satellites worth $16.3 billion over the next 10 years. The first half of the period will be more active than the second, with 97 spacecraft slated for production within the next five years.

+ Digital Globe and Getty Images To Supply Satellite Images To News Media
+ Intermap Technologies Receives Radar Mapping Contract
+ Smiths Detection To Supply Next-Gen Meteorological System

UAV NEWS

+ UAV Development Will Drive Advanced Aerospace Technologies

London UK, (SPX) May 30, 2006
In 2000, the world market for UAVs represented only approximately $2.4 billion, but in the next decade, that figure is expected to top $15 billion, according to a new visiongain report.

+ LM Wins USAF Contract To Upgrade Sniper
+ Delivery Of The First Contractual Step Of The nEUROn Program

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SPACE DAILY EXPRESS - May 30, 2006
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24/7 Coverage Of Space in the 21st Century
MARSDAILY

+ Spirit Continues Studies of Martian Winter Haven

Pasadena CA (JPL) May 30, 2006
Spirit continued to collect images for the 360-degree panorama, now under construction, of the rover's "Winter Haven" on Mars.

+ Study Shows Similar Solar Effects On Earth And Mars

ECLIPLES

+ Two APL-built Instruments Observe Recent Total Solar Eclipse

Laurel MD (SPX) May 30, 2006
Space scientists from the Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory (APL), in Laurel, Md., got a first-hand look at what happens to Earth's atmosphere when the sun was abruptly "turned off" during the March 29, 2006, total solar eclipse.

EARTH OBSERVATION

+ Commercial Remote Sensing Satellite Market Stabilizing

Newtown CN (SPX) May 30, 2006
In a new study, "The Market for Civil & Commercial Remote Sensing Satellites," Forecast International is projecting deliveries of approximately 139 imaging satellites worth $16.3 billion over the next 10 years. The first half of the period will be more active than the second, with 97 spacecraft slated for production within the next five years.

+ Digital Globe and Getty Images To Supply Satellite Images To News Media
+ Intermap Technologies Receives Radar Mapping Contract
+ Smiths Detection To Supply Next-Gen Meteorological System

GPS NEWS

+ Satelinx To Equip Seniors With Location Base Devices

Montreal, Canada (SPX) May 29, 2006
Satelinx announced Monday it will supply 2,000 personal tracking units to GPS Guardian under a $500,000 contract to help keep track of the elderly and disabled, as well as provide training support services and tracking and dispatching software.

LAUNCH PAD

+ Volvo Aero Components Powering Large Number Of Ariane 5 Launches

Stockholm, Sweden (SPX) May 29, 2006
Volvo Aero's components have helped to lift the Ariane 5 ECA into space on two successful launches in 2006 – including last Saturday's record-breaking satellite payload.

EXO LIFE

+ Astrobiologist Meet In Sweden

Moffett Field CA (SPX) May 30, 2006
In early May, astrobiologists gathered in Sweden to sample smorgasbord and to discuss planetary, space, and life sciences.

SPACEMART

+ AGS To Supply Services For FTI-SAT Program

Washington DC (SPX) May 29, 2006
Americom Government Services announced Monday it is partnering with prime contractor Harris Corp. to support the FTI Satellite program on behalf of the Federal Aviation Administration.

+ Comtech Wins US Govt. Contract For Satcom Products
+ ND SatCom Introduces New 2.4m Transportable Ground Terminals
+ Carbon-Based Quantum Dots Could Mean 'Greener,' Safer Technology

MILPLEX

+ Pentagon seeking non-nuclear submarine missile: report

New York (AFP) May 29, 2006
The Pentagon is pressing Congress to approve the development of a new weapon that would enable the United States to carry out non-nuclear missile strikes against distant targets within an hour, The New York Times reported in its Monday edition.

+ NATO Lacks Muscle To Help US
+ EADS And Terma Join Forces In Defence Business
+ SOSTAR-X Released To Service As Test Campaign Starts
+ Rafael Selected For Short-Range Ballistic Missile Interceptor
+ Lockheed Martin Demonstrates Revolutionary Tactical Vehicle Armor
+ Foster-Miller Receives Large Contract For Military Robot Parts And Service

UAV NEWS

+ UAV Development Will Drive Advanced Aerospace Technologies

London UK, (SPX) May 30, 2006
In 2000, the world market for UAVs represented only approximately $2.4 billion, but in the next decade, that figure is expected to top $15 billion, according to a new visiongain report.

+ Lockheed Receives USAF Contract To Upgrade Sniper
+ Delivery Of The First Contractual Step Of The nEUROn Program

NUKEWARS

+ Russia to remove enriched uranium from satellite states by 2013

Moscow (AFP) May 29, 2006
Russia announced on Monday that it would repatriate by 2013 the enriched uranium from reactors the USSR set up in 17 countries, as part of the Global Threat Reduction Inititative (GTRI).

+ World powers weigh nuclear 'guarantee' for Iran
+ US, Japan prepare for controversial smuggling drill
+ US, allies hold WMD-seizing drills in Mediterranean

BLUE SKY

+ Faster Warming In Subtropics Pushes Jet Streams Toward Poles

Tacoma WA (SPX) May 30, 2006
The atmosphere is warming faster in subtropical areas, around 30 degrees north and south latitude, than it is elsewhere, University of Washington-led research shows. But scientists examining more than 25 years of satellite data also found that each hemisphere's jet stream has moved toward the pole by about 1 degree of latitude, or 70 miles.

SHAKE AND BLOW

+ Indonesia races to cope with quake survivors

Bantul, Indonesia (AFP) May 29, 2006
Indonesia raced to cope with thousands of injured and homeless earthquake survivors Monday as the United Nations vowed help would come faster than after the 2004 Asian tsunami. As the death toll from Saturday's powerful quake jumped to more than 5,100 people, relief officials urged nations to rush in badly needed field hospitals, medicines, tents and supplies.

+ UN says Indonesia quake aid faster than post-tsunami
+ Hospitals, tents must be raced to Indonesia quake victims: UN
+ Aid flies in for Indonesia quake victims
+ Volcano near Indonesian quake zone shows increased activity
+ Villagers see Indonesia quake as warning
+ Study Outlines Eruption At Undersea Volcano
+ Lava bubbles in Comoros volcano, little risk seen

INNER EARTH

+ Minerals Go Dark Near Core Of Earth

Washington DC (SPX) May 30, 2006
Minerals crunched by intense pressure near the Earth's core lose much of their ability to conduct infrared light, according to a new study from the Carnegie Institution's Geophysical Laboratory.

WATER WORLD

+ What Lies On The Gulf Floor

Baton Rouge LO (SPX) May 30, 2006
When most people think of Louisiana as being unique, they think of Mardi Gras, crawfish and Cajun culture. Few realize that what lies beneath the Gulf of Mexico along Louisiana's coast is also unique, from the terrain and habitat to the animals living there. And two LSU researchers are diving down some 3,000 meters to explore it.

CLIMATE SCIENCE

+ Cutting Energy Waste Crucial To Forestalling Climate Change

Roskilde, Denmark (SPX) May 30, 2006
With world energy prices and climate-altering greenhouse gas emissions ballooning in tandem with a surge in energy demand from the hot economies of China, India and Brazil, the world has a major stake in the success of energy reduction efforts, particularly in those three countries, warn experts concluding a four-year international project.

+ For The Future Hydrogen Economy, A Tiny, Self-Powered Sensor
+ GE to invest 50 mln dlrs in environment-related R and D in China
+ Amid tension, Japan, China talk about energy-saving
+ EU offers tips on cutting greenhouse gases

TERRA DAILY EXPRESS - MAY 31, 2006
http://www.terradaily.com
24/7 Coverage Of Earth in the 21st Century
FROTH AND BUBBLE

+ China growth unsustainable on all counts, must change: economist

Beijing (AFP) May 30, 2006
China's growth model, based on the West's economic model with its massive appetite for resources and increasing environmental degradation is unsustainable and will have to change, a leading environmentalist said Tuesday.

+ Pollution turning China's Yangtze river "cancerous"
+ 'Mercury Sponge' Technology Goes From Lab To Market

DISASTER MANAGEMENT

+ Indonesia quake death toll nearly 5,700: official

Jakarta (AFP) May 30, 2006
The death toll from the earthquake that rocked Indonesia's main island of Java at the weekend has risen to at least 5,698, the social affairs ministry said late Tuesday.

+ Deaths Mount In Indonesia

SHAKE AND BLOW

+ Geologists warn Indonesia quake could awaken nearby volcano

Jakarta (AFP) May 30, 2006
Geologists warned Tuesday that simmering Mount Merapi volcano could blow its top in the wake of the powerful quake that devastated swathes of Indonesia's main island of Java.

+ Indonesia's Merapi spews heat clouds and lava
+ Comoros on alert as volcano simmers

FLOOD CONTROL

+ Netherlands must boost flood defences: forecasts

The Hague (AFP) May 30, 2006
Dutch authorities will have to boost their already significant flood protection measures to cope with increasingly warmer, wetter winters and summer droughts, according to forecasts released Tuesday.

+ Monsoon leads to flooding, rough seas in south India

CLIMATE SCIENCE

+ Sea-Surface Warming Linked to Worse Tropical Storms Activity

Washington DC (SPX) May 31, 2006
Climate researchers said Tuesday they may have found a connection between rising sea-surface temperatures over the past 40 years and more intense tropical storm activity across the globe.

+ China, neighbours vow to tackle sandstorm menace

WATER WORLD

+ Historic Colorado River Streamflows Reconstructed Back To 1490

Tuscon AZ (SPX) May 31, 2006
A new tree-ring-based reconstruction of 508 years of Colorado River streamflow confirms that droughts more severe than the 2000-2004 drought occurred before stream gages were installed on the river.

+ Algeria can expect regular water in summer: ministry

EARTH OBSERVATION

+ Ancient City Reveals Life In Desert 2,200 Years Ago

Urumqi, China (XNA) May 31, 2006
Chinese and French archaeologists claim to have discovered the ruins of an ancient city which disappeared in the desert in Northwest China more than 2,200 years ago.

WOOD PILE

+ Tropical Forests Reveal Improvements in Sustainable Management

Mexico City (SPX) May 31, 2006
The most comprehensive analysis of the status of tropical forest management ever conducted has documented a significant increase in the "sustainable management" of tropical forests worldwide since 1988.

EPIDEMICS

+ Microbe Labs Proposed For California

Livermore CA (UPI) May 31, 2006
The University of California and Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory are pushing for approval of two California research centers to study virulent diseases. Opponents of the laboratories say research centers that study fatal diseases should not be located near a high population center like San Francisco.

+ Malaria, Potato Famine Pathogen Share Surprising Trait

WHALES AHOY

+ Australia lobbies Pacific states amid new push for commercial whaling

Sydney (AFP) May 30, 2006
Australia's environment minister began a last-minute lobbying tour of Pacific island states Tuesday in hopes of halting a bid by Japan and other whaling states to end a 20-year ban on commercial whaling.

ABOUT US

+ Ancient Etruscans Unlikely Ancestors Of Modern Tuscans

Stanford CA (SPX) May 31, 2006
For the first time, Stanford researchers have used novel statistical computer modeling to simulate demographic processes affecting the population of Tuscany over a 2,500-year time span. Rigorous tests used by the researchers have ruled out a genetic link between ancient Etruscans, the early inhabitants of central Italy, and the region's modern day residents.

TERRA DAILY EXPRESS - June 1, 2006
http://www.terradaily.com
24/7 Coverage Of Earth in the 21st Century

VOLCANIC NEWS

+ Indonesia's Merapi spews longer trails of lava

Jakarta (AFP) May 31, 2006 - Indonesia's Mount Merapi volcano maintained a high level of activity for a fifth consecutive day Wednesday, spewing heat clouds and longer trails of lava down its slopes, geologists said.

DISASTER MANAGEMENT

+ Indonesia quake survivors face another wet night outside

Yogyakarta, Indonesia (AFP) May 30, 2006 - Tens of thousands of homeless earthquake survivors in central Indonesia faced another wet night in the open, with rain beginning to fall over the zone at dusk on Wednesday.

+ Pleas for help as Indonesia defends quake aid

SHAKE AND BLOW

+ US weather experts forecast above-normal hurricane threat

Miami (AFP) May 31, 2006 - Caribbean and US coastlines are under greater threat in this year's tropical storm season with five out of nine projected hurricanes expected to rank as intense storms, US climatologists said Wednesday.

+ Powerful hurricane season looms in Atlantic
+ Saffir-Simpson scale ranks hurricane intensity
+ US develops hurricane evacuation plans for pets
+ Subsidence in New Orleans abetted hurricane disaster: study
+ Sprint Nextel Network Strengthened As Hurricane Season Looms

CLIMATE SCIENCE

+ Climate change: Arctic went from greenhouse to icehouse

Paris (AFP) May 31, 2006 - Dramatic shifts in Earth's climate system drove the sea at the North Pole from sub-tropical temperatures to icy chill in the relatively brief span of 10 million years, a series of studies published on Thursday says.


+ Climate change could fuel fiercer hurricane cycles: researchers

Washington (AFP) May 31, 2006 - Human-induced climate change could be fueling increasingly active and deadly hurricane cycles, US researchers said, a day ahead of the official Atlantic hurricane season's start on Thursday.

WHALES AHOY

+ Australia frustrated in bid to woo Pacific nations to anti-whaling side

Sydney (AFP) May 31, 2006 - A senior Australian delegation lobbying Pacific island nations not to back Japan's campaign to resume commercial whaling has failed to get any guarantees from the tiny states, officials said Wednesday.

FARM NEWS

+ Duck-And-Goose Lock-Up

Le Bugue, France (UPI) Jun 01, 2006 - The Périgord pastures are strangely empty this year. In this corner of South West France, devoted almost exclusively to the goose and duck liver trade, the view along the roadside fields usually presents a wing-to-wing waddle of earthbound birds.


CIVIL NUCLEAR

+ Iran Calls For Tenders On Two New Reactors

Washington (UPI) Jun 01, 2006 - The deputy chief Iran's Organization for Atomic Energy, Mohammad Saeedi, announced on May 30 that Iran intends to build two new nuclear reactors.

+ Ex-French nuclear chief charged over Chernobyl cover-up

ICE WORLD

+ Belgium to build biosphere in Antarctic

Brussels (AFP) May 31, 2006 - Belgium unveiled plans Wednesday to build the first eco-friendly scientific base in Antarctica, as part of an internationally-organized year of polar activity.

ENERGY TECH

+ Oil prices retreat as US offers talks with Iran

New York (AFP) May 31, 2006 - Crude oil futures fell on global markets Wednesday after the United States offered to hold direct talks with Iran over the Islamic republic's disputed nuclear program.

+ Bottom Line: Shot Commodities

FLORA AND FAUNA

+ Marauding monkeys wreak havoc on Zanzibar isle

Zanzibar, Tanzania (AFP) May 31, 2006 - Thousands of rampaging monkeys are wreaking havoc on an island in Tanzania's Zanzibar archipelago where locals have appealed for help to exterminate the simians, officials said Wednesday.

EPIDEMICS

+ UN Reports AIDS Progress, But

United Nations (UPI) Jun 01, 2006 - As the AIDS pandemic enters its 25th year, a United Nations report issued this year sees important progress in HIV prevention and treatment in fighting the epidemic. However, the U.N. calls for a significant acceleration of the AIDS response it says continues to be outpaced by the disease.

APPLIED SPACE TECHNOLOGIES

+ Gilat Provides Cellular Backhaul Infrastructure for Angola Telecom

Petah Tikva, Israel (SPX) Jun 01, 2006
Jun 01, 2006--Gilat Satellite Networks Ltd. has announced that it will provide communications equipment and services to Angola Telecom, one of the largest operators in Sub-Saharan Africa.

+ Mobile Satellite Ventures Awarded Two New US Patents
+ QinetiQ Joins Galileo Development

.

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VOLCANIC NEWS

+ Indonesian volcano active for sixth day

Jakarta (AFP) Jun 1, 2006
Indonesia's Mount Merapi volcano spilled lava and heat clouds for a sixth consecutive day Thursday, sending trails of molten rock down its western slope for the first time, scientists said.

DISASTER MANAGEMENT

+ Indonesia quake toll soars as hospitals strained

Bantul, Indonesia (AFP) Jun 1, 2006
The number of casualties from the Indonesian quake soared Thursday as the United Nations said hospitals were overcrowded and still lacked basic supplies to treat the mass of injured.

+ VP wants quake relief delivered monthly, not daily

MONSOON SEASON

+ Storms kill 36 in India, wreak havoc in financial capital

Mumbai (AFP) Jun 1, 2006
Lightning storms and monsoon rains lashing parts of India have killed at least 36 people and wrought havoc in the country's commercial capital Mumbai, officials and witnesses said Thursday.

ENERGY TECH

+ Physicists Persevere In Quest For Inexhaustible Energy Source

Madison WI (SPX) Jun 02, 2006
As gas prices soar and greenhouse gases continue to blanket the atmosphere, the need for a clean, safe and cheap source of energy has never seemed more pressing. Scientists have long worked to meet that need, exploring alternative energy technologies such as wind and solar power.

+ Biodiversity Key To Sustainable Biofuel
+ Ditch the tie, Japan tells workers as "Cool Biz" drive begins

WHALES AHOY

+ Japan to call for separate forum on whaling outside IWC

Tokyo (AFP) Jun 1, 2006
Japan will propose a separate forum to the International Whaling Commission annual meeting to try to sideline "hardliners" opposed to an end to the ban on commercial whaling, officials said Thursday.

+ Marshall Islands undecided on whaling ban

SHAKE AND BLOW

+ US wary as Atlantic hurricane season starts

New Orleans (AFP) Jun 1, 2006
The Atlantic hurricane season started Thursday with experts predicting more storm misery on Caribbean and US coasts while New Orleans is still battling to get over the devastation of Hurricane Katrina.

ABC SOLAR

+ Market heats up for solar in Europe

Paris (AFP) Jun 1, 2006
The market for solar water heaters in Europe grew by 18 percent in 2005 compared with 2004 measured by installed equipment, according to provisional figures published on Thursday by Tecsol, a French consultancy that monitors the solar energy market.

FLORA AND FAUNA

+ Hebrew University Researchers Uncover Eight Previously Unknown Species

In cave near Ramle (SPX) Jun 02, 2006
Discovery of eight previously unknown, ancient animal species within "a new and unique underground ecosystem" in Israel was revealed today by Hebrew University of Jerusalem researchers.

+ It Takes Energy To Make A Species

NUKEWARS

+ World powers agree breakthrough on Iran nuclear program

Vienna (AFP) Jun 1, 2006 - A day after the United States said it could join talks on Iran's disputed nuclear program, world powers agreed Thursday on a breakthrough package of incentives and sanctions to get Iran to suspend nuclear fuel work that has raised fears of weapons development.

+ Iran will not negotiate nuclear program with US: minister
+ Text of British foreign secretary's statement on Iran's nuclear program

KOREAN NUKES

+ US pours cold water on North Korean invite for direct talks

Washington (AFP) Jun 1, 2006
The United States poured cold water Thursday on a proposal by North Korea for direct talks to end a nuclear standoff.

+ US rejects North Korean overture
+ Blix commission cautions against regime change in Iran, N. Korea

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TECTONIC FORCES

+ Scientists say no big Indonesia quake again soon

Yogyakarta, Indonesia (AFP) Jun 4, 2006
There is little danger of another strong earthquake on Indonesia's Java island in the near future, scientists said Sunday, as jittery survivors endured more aftershocks.

+ Red alert still in effect at Indonesian volcano

+ Volcano fears? Indonesians turn to rice cakes

SHAKE AND BLOW

+ Indonesia to make community grants for quake reconstruction

Jakarta (AFP) Jun 4, 2006
The Indonesian government will disburse reconstruction aid to quake survivors in the form of community grants to encourage collective rebuilding, reports said here Sunday.

+ Injured and alone, disabled quake survivor returns home

+ Tough start for Indonesia's quake babies

DISASTER MANAGEMENT

+ Future Hurricane Disasters May Become More Costly

Cullowhee NC (SPX) Jun 05, 2006 - As the 2006 hurricane season gets under way, nationally known hurricane impact researcher Rob Young, associate professor of geosciences at Western Carolina University in Cullowhee, N.C, says the manner in which the federal government responded to last year's hurricane disasters will make future disasters even more costly.

+ Sinking Levees

+ Climate Change Responsible For Increased Hurricanes

MONSOON NEWS

+ Early monsoon death toll tops 100 in India

New Delhi (AFP) Jun 3, 2006
The death toll from lightning strikes and powerful storms rose to 105 Saturday as annual summer monsoon rains tore through India earlier than usual, authorities said.

+ 29 dead, 100,000 evacuated as rains drench southern China
+ Pakistan to relocate 55,000 earthquake survivors

DEEP IMPACT

+ Possible Extinction Crater Found Under Antarctica

Columbus OH (SPX) Jun 3, 2006
Planetary scientists have found evidence of a meteor impact much larger and earlier than the one thought to have killed the dinosaurs - an impact they think caused the biggest mass extinction in Earth's history.

ENERGY TECH

+ Ultrasonics Boosts Release Rates Of Corn Sugars For Ethanol Production

Ames IO (SPX) Jun 05, 2006
David Grewell flipped a switch and one of the ultrasonic machines in his Iowa State University laboratory pumped out high-frequency sound waves.

+ Turning Corn Fiber Into Ethanol
+ New US fuel standards give hope to diesel industry
+ China looks to harness wind power
+ Air pollution rife in India's villages: report

DARWIN TODAY

+ Electric Fish May Be A Species Diverging

Ithaca NY (UPI) Jun 05, 2006 - U.S. scientists say some electric fish in Africa might be living examples of a species diverging into separate species.

+ In cod we trust -- with a little help from the lab

AFRICA NEWS

+ China given monopoly to work Gabon's untapped iron ore resources

Libreville (AFP) Jun 2, 2006
Gabon has granted China sole rights to exploit huge untapped iron ore reserves and build costly rail links needed to reach them in the tropical forest, a government statement announced on Friday.

PILLAGING PIRATES

+ India ready to help protect Malacca Strait

Singapore (AFP) Jun 3, 2006
India is ready to do its part to ensure peace and stability in East Asia including helping protect the busy Strait of Malacca, Defence Minister Pranab Mukherjee said Saturday.

FLORA AND FAUNA

+ Fourth Slovenian bear released in Pyrenees

Bagneres-De-Luchon, France (AFP) Jun 2, 2006
A fourth brown bear from Slovenia was released in France's southern Pyrenees mountains Friday as part of a programme to ensure the species' survival, the environment ministry said.

WHALES AHOY

+ Finland, Sweden urge Norway to lower whaling quota

Helsinki (AFP) Jun 2, 2006
Finland and Sweden on Friday urged Norway to reduce its whaling quota for this year, arguing that Oslo's annual quota hikes could hurt chances of finding a solution to an international dispute over its whale hunt practice.

FROTH AND BUBBLE

+ Air pollution rife in India's villages: report

New Delhi (AFP) Jun 3, 2006
India's cities are among some of the world's most polluted, but an environmental report released Saturday found its rural areas are also suffering.

SUPERPOWERS

+ Rumsfeld urges China to come clean on military spending

Singapore (AFP) Jun 3, 2006
US Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld urged China Saturday to explain its increased military spending to the world, saying it was in its interest to demystify actions that others find potentially threatening.

+ Moscow Facing A Complex Chinese Challenge
+ G8, China, India and others pledge to boost education standards
+ US scientist, once suspected China spy, settles lawsuits

NUKEWARS

+ India Pulls The Plug On The Agni 3 ICBM Project

Washington (UPI) Jun 05, 2006
The Agni III ICBM, the pride of India's strategic deterrent force, has been shot down before it could even conduct its first test flight. Why did the Indian government pull the plug?


+ Iran Intransigence Threat To NPT

Washington (UPI) Jun 05, 2006
A top State Department official said if the international community fails convince Iran to give up its uranium enrichment program, it will dramatically undermine the 40-year-old Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, an international agreement credited with preventing new states from developing nuclear weapons.

+ Iran will not discuss its right to enrichment: Ahmadinejad
+ Iran's supreme leader stands by nuclear programme
+ Rice brushes aside Iran threat on oil supplies
+ Rumsfeld plays down Ahmadinejad statement on nuclear proposal
+ US echoes Gulf fears of pollution from Iran's nuclear program
+ US sweetens offer to Iran: diplomats
+ What About Israel And Iran

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FARM NEWS

+ Waxing And Waning Over Better Tasting Cows

Le Bugue, France (UPI) Jun 06, 2006
A key figure in the farmers markets that move daily around villages and towns of the Dordogne in southwest France is a butcher known fondly and with respect as Monsieur Le Boucher Bio.

+ Towards A Cleaner And Greener Rice Industry

CLIMATE SCIENCE

+ Global Greenhouse Cooked Up A Hot Stew Of Life

Newcastle upon Tyne, UK (SPX) Jun 06, 2006
New scientific results for the Late Cretaceous greenhouse indicate radically different climatic mechanisms operating about 75-90 million years ago compared to the ones that control today's climate.

+ Researcher Offers Insights On Development Of Arid Semiarid Landscapes

FROTH AND BUBBLE

+ Decades Of Acid Rain Is Causing Loss Of Valuable Northeast Sugar Maples

Ithaca NY (SPX) Jun 06, 2006
Acid rain, the environmental consequence of burning fossil fuels, running factories and driving cars, has altered soils and reduced the number of sugar maple trees growing in the Northeast, according to a new study led by Cornell University researchers.

ENERGY TECH

+ UW-Madison Professor To Coordinate US Fusion Science Effort

Madison WI (SPX) Jun 06, 2006
A University of Wisconsin-Madison professor will be the liaison between United States plasma and fusion science researchers and a group that is building the U.S. share of ITER, an international fusion experiment that eventually could lead to an abundant, economical and environmentally benign energy source.


+ Wind Energy Research Reaps Rewards

+ Iran To Build Oil Refinery In Venezuela

+ Security And The Energy End Game

+ Global Clean Water Scarcity A Failure Of Public Policy

ROBO SPACE

+ A Better Wetware Interface

Martinsried, Germany (SPX) Jun 06, 2006
For the first time, scientists at the Max-Planck Institute for Biochemistry in Martinsried near Munich coupled living brain tissue to a chip equivalent to the chips that run computers. The researchers under Peter Fromherz have reported this news in the online edition of the Journal of Neurophysiology (May 10, 2006).

+ IEDs Influencing Robotic Warfare Concepts
RESOURCE WARS

+ Global Clean Water Scarcity A Failure Of Public Policy

Albuquerque NM (SPX) Jun 06, 2006 - Now is the time to address the devastating effects of increasing water scarcity and declining water quality around the world, according to a recently released white paper written jointly by Sandia National Laboratories and the Washington think tank Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS).


+ Security And The Energy End Game

POLITICAL ECONOMY

+ South Korea US Face FTA Showdown

Seoul (UPI) Jun 06, 2006
With the opening of formal free trade talks with the United States on Monday, South Korean officials expressed hopes that a free trade deal with the world's biggest economy would help the country jump on the free trade bandwagon that could ensure great benefits to its export-driven economy.

FLORA AND FAUNA

+ How Does A Lowly Member Of The Bacterium World Sense Its Environment

Ithaca NY (SPX) Jun 06, 2006
When humans taste or smell, receptors unique to each nerve cell detect the chemical and send signals to the brain, where many cells process the message to understand what we are smelling or tasting. But a bacterium is just a single cell, and it must use many different receptors to sense and interpret everything around it.

IRAQ WARS

+ Southern Iraq Marshes Show Progress Toward Recovery

Washington DC (SPX) Jun 06, 2006
Reflooding of Iraq's destroyed Mesopotamian marshes since 2003 has resulted in a "remarkable rate of reestablishment" of native invertebrates, plants, fish, and birds, according to an article in the June issue of BioScience.

TIME AND SPACE

+ 666 On A Fake Calendar Causes Confusion Across Datelines

Buffalo NY (SPX) Jun 06, 2006
The number 666 -- the "number of the beast," according to the Book of Revelation -- conjures devilish images for many, so forecasts of evil, even doom, are rampant regarding dates or places where the number occurs, including this Tuesday, June 6, or 6-6-06.

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SHAKE AND BLOW

+ Aid Effort Hits Full Tilt In Java As Eruption Fears Grow

Yogyakarta, Indonesia (AFP) Jun 07, 2006
Relief operations launched after the Java earthquake have hit full stride, UN officials said Tuesday, but fears grew of an impending volcanic eruption on the Indonesian island. Simmering Mount Merapi was put on red alert on May 13 and looms over a plain already devastated by the quake which hit two weeks later, killing nearly 5,800 people and leaving 340,000 people homeless.

+ Indonesian Farmers Devastated By Earthquake
+ Thousands More Evacuate As Merapi Menaces Tectonic Battered Indonesia
SINO DAILY

+ Environment Across China Getting Worse

Beijing (AFP) Jun 07, 2006
China's environmental woes are steadily growing and costing the economy around 200 billion dollars each year, the government said Monday. "The trend of increasing environmental degradation has not been effectively controlled," the State Environmental Protection Administration said in its first China Ecological Protection report.

EPIDEMICS

+ Plant Diseases Threaten Chocolate Production Worldwide

St Paul MN (SPX) Jun 07, 2006
Chocolate lovers, beware. Each year 20 percent of the cacao beans that are used to make chocolate are lost to plant diseases, but even greater losses would occur if important diseases spread.
ENERGY-TECH

+ New China Mega Dam Avoids Building 50 Nuclear Reactors

Beijing (AFP) Jun 07, 2006
China has given the go-ahead for its third-largest dam, as part of its Herculean endeavor to control the waters of the Yangtze river and generate electricity, state media said Tuesday.

+ China Blasts Away Huge Wall At Three Gorges Dam
CLIMATE SCIENCE

+ Annan Warns Of Poverty And Conflict As Deserts Expand

Algiers (AFP) Jun 07, 2006
UN chief Kofi Annan warned Monday of worsening poverty and conflict if nothing is done quickly to save the world's drylands from desertification, especially in Africa.
DARWIN TODAY

+ Study Shows Our Ancestors Survived Snowball Earth

Seattle WA (SPX) Jun 07, 2006
It has been 2.3 billion years since Earth's atmosphere became infused with enough oxygen to support life as we know it. About the same time, the planet became encased in ice that some scientists speculate was more than a half-mile deep.


+ Same Species Responds Differently To Warming
+ Ancient DNA Sequence Allows New Look At Neandertals Diversity
+ Chaco Canyon: A Place Of Kings And Palaces
+ Beaver Dams Create Healthy Downstream Ecosystems
EARTH OBSERVATION

+ First CloudSat Images Wowing Scientists

Washington DC (SPX) Jun 07, 2006
The first images from NASA's new CloudSat satellite already are revealing never-before-seen 3-D details about clouds. Mission managers tested the flight and ground system performance of the satellite's Cloud-Profiling Radar in late May, and they found it to be working perfectly.

+ UAE To Monitor Construction Sites Via Satellite
NUKEWARS

+ Nuclear Suppliers Group Urges Iran To Cooperate With IAEA

Brasilia (AFP) Jun 07, 2006 - The 45-nation Nuclear Suppliers Group has urged Iran to "cooperate fully" with the UN nuclear watchdog agency IAEA and seek a diplomatic solution to the dispute over its nuclear program. A meeting last week of the NSG, which sets guidelines for the export of nuclear-related equipment, material and technology, focused particularly on Iran, the Brazilian foreign ministry said.

+ Iran Sees Positives In Nuclear Proposal
+ Iranian Response To Nuclear Offer Gives Hope To Major Powers

SUPERPOWERS

+ Growing Sino-India Military Ties

New Delhi (UPI) Jun 07, 2006 - Indian defense minister Pranab Mukherjee's recent visit to Japan, China and Singapore indicates the emergence of a creative regional security strategy that boosts New Delhi's global image, Indian defense analysts said Tuesday.

+ Senior US General Holds Talks With Top Brass Of India Military

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CIVIL NUCLEAR

+ Scientists Tackle Long-Standing Questions About Plutonium

Livermore CA (SPX) Jun 08, 2006
Scientists have gone a long way to solving a question about the nature of plutonium that has remained a mystery since the Manhattan Project. Plutonium behaves like no other element in nature.

CIVIL NUCLEAR

+ Greenpeace Protests Third-Generation Nuclear Plant In Finland

Helsinki (AFP) Jun 08, 2006
Greenpeace activists protested Monday in Helsinki against the construction of a third-generation EPR nuclear power station in Finland as French Prime Minister Dominique de Villepin visited the site.

ENERGY TECH

+ Environment Agency Rejects Gorgon Natural Gas Project

Sydney (AFP) Jun 08, 2006
Western Australia's environment agency on Tuesday rejected plans to develop a massive natural gas field off the country's northwest coast, fearing the project could threaten a rare species of turtle.

TECH SPACE

+ Chemists Look Through Glass To Find Secrets That Are Less Clear

Princeton NJ (SPX) Jun 08, 2006
A new understanding of how glass is formed may assist with our understanding of everything from the design of golf club heads to the structure of the early universe. Princeton chemists have found that the formation of glass -- a familiar substance that nonetheless retains some elusive scientific mysteries -- always occurs differently depending on how quickly a liquid substance is cooled into its solid form.

FARM NEWS

+ More Than Drought Affecting Wheat Yields

Amarillo TX (SPX) Jun 08, 2006
Wheat producers have more than the drought cutting into their yields this year, said two Texas Agricultural Experiment Station researchers.

TRADE WARS

+ UK's Brown Warns Against Protectionism

London (UPI) Jun 08, 2006
British Chancellor of the Exchequer Gordon Brown struck a blow for free trade in a key speech Monday night, warning that the current wave of protectionism sweeping industrialized nations would have devastating consequences for the global economy.

EPIDEMICS

+ H5N1 Signature May Help Detection

Oxford, England (UPI) Jun 08, 2006
Biotechnology research and development company BioWarn LLC this week announced that its SmartSense biological substance detection system can instantly detect the presence of the H5N1 subtype of avian influenza.

SHAKE AND BLOW

+ Indian Bookies Raking In Millions Thanks To Heavy Monsoons

New Delhi (AFP) Jun 08, 2006
Bountiful early monsoon rains are raking in millions of dollars for Indian bookies taking bets on the amount of rain that will drench the country between June and September, a report said Monday.

FROTH AND BUBBLE

+ India Court Allows Toxic Ship Into Territorial Waters

New Delhi (AFP) Jun 08, 2006
India's Supreme Court Monday gave permission for a ship believed laden with asbestos and toxic materials to enter Indian waters but said it could not be broken up until its contents have been accurately determined.

NANO TECH

+ Nano World: Water Harvesting Surfaces

New York (UPI) Jun 08, 2006
Beetles that harvest water from desert air have inspired the creation of printable surfaces that improve on nature with the aid of glass nanoparticles. These surfaces could also help control the flow of microscopic amounts of fluid in labs on microchips, experts tell UPI's Nano World.

WATER WORLD

+ Second Part Of Desalination Plan Completed

Albuquerque NM (UPI) Jun 08, 2006
U.S. government scientists say they will soon release an updated Desalination and Water Purification Roadm U.S. government scientists say they will soon release an updated Desalination and Water Purification Roadmap -- "Roadmap 2."

ABOUT US

+ Ancient Human Fossils Find Modern Virtual Home

Mettmann, Germany (SPX) Jun 08, 2006
First discovered 150 years ago, Neanderthals have been studied more widely than any other form of human. Thanks to a new interactive inventory and online catalogue developed in Europe, scientists worldwide can now probe the secrets of this primitive relative from the comfort of their computer.

FLORA AND FAUNA

+ Endangered Colombian Frogs Found Alive

El Dorado Nature Reserve, Colombia (SPX) Jun 08, 2006
The rediscovery of two frog species feared extinct has made a new Colombian protected area the focal point for efforts to save amphibians from a deadly fungus decimating their populations in Central and South America.

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ABOUT US

+ Evidence Human Activities Have Shaped Large-Scale Ecological Patterns

Las Cruces NM (SPX) Jun 09, 2006
A new study published in the Journal of Biogeography provides some of the first evidence that ecological patterns at large spatial scales have been significantly altered within recent human history suggesting a role for human activities as potential drivers.

ENERGY TECH

+ Producing Bio-Ethanol From Agricultural Waste A Step Closer

Delft, The Netherlands (SPX) Jun 09, 2006
Research conducted by Delft University of Technology has brought the efficient production of the environmentally-friendly fuel bio-ethanol a great deal closer to fruition. The work of Delft researcher Marko Kuyper was an important factor in this. His research in recent years has greatly improved the conversion of certain sugars from agricultural waste to ethanol.

+ Policy Makers Draw Up List Of 'Top 100' Ecological Questions

EPIDEMICS

+ Genomics Project Will Hunt Genes Behind Common Childhood Diseases

Philidelphia PA (SPX) Jun 09, 2006
Children's hospital goals: Use gene knowledge to guide therapy, devise new tests and treatments The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia is launching an ambitious program to identify the genes responsible for common childhood diseases.

VOLCANIC NEWS

+ Indonesia's Merapi Roars Back To Life

Mount Merapi, Indonesia (AFP) Jun 09, 2006
Indonesia's Mount Merapi roared back to life Thursday, belching its largest clouds of hot gas and ash yet and sparking panic among residents already jittery from last month's quake. Television footage showed stunning clouds spewing from the volcano's crater against a clear blue sky just after 9:00 am (0200 GMT).

+ Indonesia's Merapi Shoots Out Largest Cloud Of Volcanic Gas So Far

TECTONIC FORCES

+ New Study Shows Earthquake Shaking Triggers Aftershocks

Santa Cruz CA (SPX) Jun 09, 2006
A new analysis of earthquake data indicates that aftershocks are triggered by the shaking associated with the mainshock, rather than by the added stress on nearby faults resulting from rearrangement of the Earth's crust.

+ Homeless Indonesian Family Not Chickening Out After Quake

FLORA AND FAUNA

+ Brain Region Linked To Fly Slumber

Evanston IL (SPX) Jun 09, 2006
Researchers at Northwestern University have pinpointed a brain area in flies that is crucial to sleep, raising interesting speculation over the purpose of sleep and its possible link with learning and memory.

+ French Farm Offers Hope For Endangered Asian Crocs
+ Female Birds Boost Up Their Eggs When Hearing Sexy Song

FROTH AND BUBBLE

+ Sandia Tool Speeds Up Environmental Cleanup

Livermore CA (SPX) Jun 09, 2006
A software-based tool developed by Sandia National Laboratories for managing the collection, visualization, and analysis of environmental sampling data is now available to potential licensing partners.

DISASTER MANAGEMENT

+ Emergency Communications Service For 2006 Hurricane Season

Germantown MD (SPX) Jun 09, 2006
In anticipation of the upcoming hurricane season, Hughes Network Systems, LLC (HUGHES), announced today that it is making available emergency communications offerings during this hurricane season, designed for rapid service restoral.

EARTH OBSERVATION

+ EarthData Wins 16 Million Contract To Map Papua New Guinea

Frederick MD (SPX) Jun 09, 2006
EarthData International announced Thursday it has been awarded a $16 million contract by the Australian government to produce the first-ever high-resolution image and terrain maps of Papua New Guinea. The Australian government is funding the project under a memorandum of understanding with the government of Papua New Guinea.

+ ESA Picks SSTL To Develop Atmospheric CO2 Detector

SUPERPOWERS

+ China, US Hold Military Talks Following Heated Exchanges

Beijing (AFP) Jun 09, 2006
China and the United States held high-level talks here Thursday aimed at improving military ties, officials said, following recent heated exchanges between the two world powers over defense issues.

NUKEWARS

+ UN Watchdog Says Iran Accelerated Uranium Enrichment

Vienna (AFP) Jun 09, 2006
Iran accelerated uranium enrichment on the same day this week that world powers asked it to halt the work and open talks to guarantee it will not make nuclear weapons, the UN atomic agency said Thursday in a report obtained by AFP.

+ UN Finds Highly Enriched Uranium Traces In Iran
+ SKorean FM 'Deeply Concerned' Over NKorean Missile Activity

NEWS AS OF 12:30 UTC - June 12, 2006

FIRE AND ICE


+ Early Life Was Abundant


<img src="http://www.terradaily.com/images/modern-reef-colonies-sharks-bay-western-australia-sm.jpg" hspace=5 vspace=2 align=right border=1>
Canberra, Australia (SPX) Jun 12, 2006

Life on Earth may well have flourished on Earth 3.43 billion years ago in an environment not too different to the warm little pond that Darwin imagined: a quiet shallow marine environment sandwiched in time between two active volcanic periods.


+ Surviving Snowball Earth

+ Much Of The World Emerged From Last Ice Age Together

VOLCANIC NEWS

+ Merapi Spews Lava As Authorities Remain On Alert

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Mount Merapi, Indonesia (AFP) Jun 12, 2006

Indonesia's Mount Merapi continued to spew lava and searing clouds of gas and ash Sunday as geologists maintained the top danger alert on the smoldering volcano. Despite losing Friday a huge chunk of the lava dome forming at its peak which lessened the danger of a major eruption, geologists said the volcano - whose name means "Mountain of Fire" - still posed a threat.

+ Indonesian Woman Braves Volcano Threat To Make A Living

SHAKE AND BLOW

+ Tropical Depression One Kicks Up In Caribbean Sea

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Miami (AFP) Jun 12, 2006

The first tropical depression of the 2006 Atlantic hurricane season has formed in the northwestern Caribbean Sea, US forecasters said Saturday. They warned of heavy rainfall, potential flash floods and mudslides in western Cuba, the Cayman Islands and western Florida, as the system moves north, then curves east, according to predictions, over the next two days.

+ New Forecast Sees Bad Hurricane Season But Milder Than 2005

DARWIN TODAY

+ Climate Change Driving Evolution Of Animal Species

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Eugene, OR (SPX) Jun 12, 2006

Rapid climate changes over the past several decades have led to heritable, genetic changes in animals as diverse as squirrels, birds and mosquitoes, according to University of Oregon evolutionary geneticists.

+ China Dam Blamed For Surge In Jellyfish

ENERGY TECH

+ Japan To Give Asia Coal Liquefaction Technology

<img src="http://www.terradaily.com/images/china-coal-power-plant-sm.jpg" hspace=5 vspace=2 align=right border=1>
Tokyo (AFP) Jun 12, 2006

Japan plans to provide Asian nations, particularly China, with the technology to liquefy coal as part of a broader effort to reduce global dependence on crude oil, a report said Saturday. In coal liquefaction, petroleum fuels such as gasoline and kerosene are produced from powdered coal by applying heat and pressure.

CIVIL NUCLEAR

+ India And US To Work Out Details Of Nuclear Energy Trade This Week

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New Delhi (AFP) Jun 12, 2006

Diplomats from India and the United States will hold talks this week to outline the practical steps needed under a deal to increase cooperation in civilian nuclear energy, officials said Sunday. A team from the US State and Energy departments and the Nuclear Regulatory Commission will arrive in New Delhi late Sunday, a US embassy spokesman said.

EPIDEMICS

+ US Approves Wild Bird Avian Flu Surveillance Network

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New York NY (SPX) Jun 12, 2006

In an effort to improve the tracking of avian influenza, the United States Agency for International Development has awarded $5 million in support for a new initiative that will monitor wild bird populations for the disease around the globe, according to the New York-based Wildlife Conservation Society.

SPACEWAR

+ How Can Russia Respond To US Military Space Developments

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Moscow (RIAN) Jun 12, 2006

This summer the United States plans to publish its new space doctrine stipulating the deployment of weapons in circumterrestrial space. Colonel Anthony Russo, head of the U.S. Strategic Command's space division, said the new policy would remove any ambiguity about official responsibility for figuring out who was behind any attack on U.S.-owned commercial satellites.

+ The Western Challenge Facing Moscow

+ US To Revise Laws To Boost High-Tech Trade With China

+ Air Force Space Command Delivers Capability For Direct Zarqawi Hit

+ New Ops Planned In Wake Of Zarqawi Hunt

+ Land-Based ABM Market Continues As Most Profitable Sector

+ Ballistic Missile Defense Key To Defending Taiwan

+ Trident 2's Targets

+ India Successfully Test-Fires Nuclear-Capable Missile

+ Iran Strike Easier Than Iraq Mission In 1981

+ Iran Studying Nuclear Proposal But Will Not Compromise Over Nuclear Rights

+ Successful Test Flights Of New Armed UAV

SPACE DAILY

+ NPOESS Findings Leave Questions Unanswered On State of US Weather Satellites

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Washington DC (SPX) Jun 12, 2006

The House Science Committee has heard from agencies involved in the construction of a vital U.S. weather forecasting satellite that has fallen severely behind schedule and is vastly over budget. This is not the first hearing the Committee has held on the National Polar-orbiting Operational Environmental Satellite System (NPOESS) program, and it certainly will not be the last.

+ NASA Firm On Discovery Launch In July

+ JAXA And DLR Conduct Orbit To Ground Optical Communication Experiment

+ Opportunity On The Road Again

+ Stationary Spirit Progressing On Long-Term Experiments

+ Corkscrew Asteroid About To Leave The Local Earth Neighborhood

+ Venus Express Commissioning Phase Completed

Terra Daily Express - June 13, 2006
www.terradaily.com
24/7 Coverage Of Earth in the 21st Century

ENERGY TECH

+ China Moves Ahead For More Yangtze River Hydro Power

Beijing (AFP) Jun 13, 2006
China plans to build a dozen hydroelectric power plants in the next 20 years with an installed capacity totalling 90.2 million kilowatts, state media reported Monday. The projects will be built on the upper reaches of the Yangtze River, known as the Jinsha River, and on two upstream Yangtze River tributaries, known as the Yalong and Dadu Rivers, Xinhua news agency reported.

+ Joint European Strategy For Industrial Biotechnology

SHAKE AND BLOW

+ Activity At Merapi Slows

Mount Merapi, Indonesia (AFP) Jun 13, 2006
Indonesia's Mount Merapi has slowed its threatening activity, spewing less lava and fewer clouds of gas and ash but a top alert on the volcano is being maintained, scientists said Monday.

DISASTER MANAGEMENT

+ Indonesia To Ask Creditors For Yogya Quake Loans

Jakarta (AFP) Jun 13, 2006
Indonesia is expected to ask its main international creditors to redirect loans to help rebuild quake-devastated central Java, the World Bank said Monday. Plans for the reconstruction of the quake zone in the provinces of Yogyakarta and Central Java, will be major topics when Jakarta meets them at the World Bank-chaired Consultative Group for Indonesia (CGI) on Wednesday.

+ Florida Gets First Hurricane Warning Of 2006 Season

WHALES AHOY

+ Japan Tipped To Wrest Control Of Whaling Commission

Washington (AFP) Jun 13, 2006
Japan looks poised this week to seize a dominant grip on the world body frustrating its commercial whaling ambitions, and to deal a sickening blow to the global Green movement.

TIME AND SPACE

+ Physical Laws Are Constantly Changing

Stockholm, Sweden (SPX) Jun 13, 2006
Physical quantities such as the speed of light, the gravitational constant and the electron mass are believed to be the same independent of where and when they appear in the universe.

AFRICA NEWS

+ Migration Can Help Alleviate Poverty In Africa

Wageningen, The Netherlands (SPX) Jun 13, 2006
Poor Africans often choose to move. Households that can afford to send someone to Europe, mostly become wealthier. Households with people who move within Africa, experience less stress because there are less mouths to feed. These are the conclusions of Dutch researcher Fleur Wouterse.

FLORA AND FAUNA

+ Researchers Take the Pulse of a Gene in Living Cells

Bronx NY (SPX) Jun 13, 2006
Scientists at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine of Yeshiva University have observed for the first time that gene expression can occur in the form of discrete "pulses" of gene activity.

+ Germany Establishes First Biodiversity Exploratories
+ Gazelles Shrink Liver And Heart To Reduce Oxygen Consumption During Drought

EARTH OBSERVATION

+ CALIPSO All Set To Collect Most Detailed Atmospheric Data Yet

Seattle WA (SPX) Jun 13, 2006
NASA's Cloud-Aerosol Lidar and Infrared Pathfinder Satellite Observation spacecraft has begun gathering data from the Earth's atmosphere that are expected to become a key tool in unraveling just how much effect the reflectivity of clouds and tiny particles called aerosols are having on the planet's changing climate.

+ NASA Detector Sees Infrared Light In Colors
+ Land Use Mapped In Philippines
+ NASA To Help US Forest Service Test UAV For Wildfire Capabilities

NUKEWARS

+ India And US Hold Talks On Landmark Nuclear Energy Pact

New Delhi (AFP) Jun 12, 2006
Diplomats from India and the United States met in New Delhi Monday for their first high-level talks on the details of a landmark but controversial nuclear cooperation deal. "The talks, which were detailed and comprehensive, are over for the day and now the two sides will meet again on Tuesday," a US embassy official told AFP after Monday's discussions.

+ Iran Will Not Join Shanghai Cooperation Organization
+ North Korea Flexes Missile Muscle To Grab US Attention

MISSILE NEWS

+ RTI Selected Lockheed Martin Team For The Aegis Open Architecture Weapon System

Santa Clara CA (SPX) Jun 13, 2006
Real-Time Innovations, The Real Time Middleware Company, announced today that middleware provided by RTI was selected by a U.S. Navy's Lockheed Martin team to provide the real time data distribution infrastructure for Aegis Open Architecture, the next generation of the Aegis Weapon System. AOA will be deployed by the US Navy beginning in 2008.

+ LockMart Completes Hellfire Flight Test Series on Tiger Helicopter
+ Raytheon Paveway II Wins Contract For Air Force Laser Guided Bomb

MILTECH

+ Elbit Systems 30mm Unmanned Turret Tested Successfully in Finland

Haifa, Israel (SPX) Jun 13, 2006
Elbit Systems recently announced that its 30mm Unmanned Turret system has successfully completed extensive field trials. The tests were conducted in Finland at a firing range belonging to the Finish Armed Forces.

+ Virtual Heavies Key To Northern Edge Simulations
+ Marines Want To Accelerate MV-22 Buy
+ Elbit Systems Adds New UAV System To Skylark Family
+ LM Begins Final Phase Of Integrated Wireless Network Competition

Terra Daily Express - June 14, 2006
www.terradaily.com
24/7 Coverage Of Earth in the 21st Century

HURRICANE ALERT

+ First Tropical Storm Of The Year Hits Western Florida

Miami (AFP) Jun 14, 2006
This year's first Atlantic tropical storm dumped rain on Florida Tuesday, but with memories still fresh of last year's killer storms, locals were relieved that it failed to become a hurricane. The center of Tropical Storm Alberto made landfall at 12:30 pm (1630 GMT) near Adam's Beach, a sparsely inhabited area of western Florida, according to the National Hurricane Center (NHC.)

+ ITT Prepares For US Hurricane Season
+ Iridium Partners Introduce Hurricane Equipment And Service Packages

DISASTER MANAGEMENT

+ Indonesia Quake Reconstruction Cost Put At More Than 3 Billon Dollars

Jakarta (AFP) Jun 14, 2006
Rebuilding Indonesia's quake-hit central Java will cost more than three billion dollars, with the scale of residential destruction rivalling that of the tsunami in Aceh, an official said Tuesday.

+ Indonesia Downgrades Mount Merapi Alert

EARTH OBSERVATION

+ Google Announces Major Update For Google Earth

Mountain View CA (SPX) Jun 14, 2006
Google has announced a series of updates to the company's mapping product suite, further illustrating Google's commitment to creating powerful tools for sharing geographic information. Announced live at Google's first Geo Developer Day, these innovations both connect users to information about the world around them, as well as address the growing needs of the developer community.

+ Harmful Algal Blooms Monitored From Space In Chile

ENERGY TECH

+ Compact tidal generator Lowers Cost Of Producing Electricity

Southampton, UK (SPX) Jun 14, 2006
What happens if you run an electric motor backwards? That is exactly what researchers Dr Steve Turnock and Dr Suleiman Abu-Sharkh from the University of Southampton asked themselves after they had successfully built an electric motor for tethered underwater vehicles, using funding from the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council.

+ Europe Sets Up Task Force for Solar Energy

WHALES AHOY

+ Threat To Humpbacks Fuels Australian Anger Over Japanese Whaling

Sydney (AFP) Jun 14, 2006
The small dorsal fins on the huge, curving backs now regularly parting the winter seas just off Sydney symbolise a new front in the war against Japanese whaling. These are humpbacks on their annual breeding migration from the icy waters of the Antarctic, and Australians call them "our" whales.

+ New Zealand Hopeful Japan Can Be Beaten In Whaling Vote

DARWIN TODAY

+ Evolution Takes A Hot Bath As Archaea Migrate

Athens GA (SPX) Jun 14, 2006
Since their discovery in the late 1970s, microorganisms known as archaea have fascinated scientists with their ability to thrive where no other life can - in conditions that are extremely hot, acidic or salty.

+ Parallel Evolution Found To Exist At Protein Level

INTERNATIONAL SPACE

+ Mitsubishi Heavy To Invest In Next-Generation Rocket

Tokyo, Japan (AFX) Jun 14, 2006
Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Ltd. plans to spend a total of 5 billion yen ($44 million) to prepare facilities for manufacturing the next-generation H-IIB domestic rocket, scheduled for launch in fiscal 2008, The Nihon Keizai Shimbun reported Tuesday.

+ Shanghai Lands Star Role In Satellite Mission
+ Malaysia To Work With India On Space Technology
+ Swales Delivers Final Micro-Satellite For NASA THEMIS Mission
+ Stephen Hawking Calls For Mankind To Reach For Stars
+ SES Americom Wins Long-Term Satellite Contract With Comsat Mexico

NUKEWARS

+ China Deploys New Dong Feng

Washington (UPI) Jun 14, 2006
China's new Dong Feng-31, or CSS-9, road-mobile intercontinental ballistic missile is expected to enter service during 2006, Jane's Intelligence reported on its Web site janes.com on June 9. The DF-31 is expected to be followed by the extended-range DF-31A version in 2007, the Web site said.

+ US Cites Four Chinese Firms For Helping Iran WMDs
+ Japan Has No Knowledge Of Any Imminent NKorean Missile Launch
+ Iran Must Prove Nuclear Work Peaceful Say Nuclear Superpowers

MILPLEX

+ House Panel Backs 427 Billion Dollar Defense Budget

Washington (AFP) Jun 14, 2006
The House of Representatives Appropriations Committee on Tuesday approved a 427-billion-dollar defense spending bill for the 2007 fiscal year, including some 50 billion dollars for the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Terra Daily Express - June 15, 2006
www.terradaily.com
24/7 Coverage Of Earth in the 21st Century

SHAKE AND BLOW

+ Highest Alert Raised Again For Mt Merapi

Mount Merapi, Indonesia (AFP) Jun 15, 2006
Indonesian scientists on Wednesday once again placed Mount Merapi on its highest alert level only a day after the volcano had been downgraded, meaning they believe an eruption is imminent. Potentially deadly heat clouds streaming from Merapi's peak caused panic among some villagers living around the volcano's slopes who had just begun returning to their homes after weeks of uncertainty.

CLIMATE SCIENCE

+ Living With Climate Variability And Change

New York NY (SPX) Jun 15, 2006
Recognizing the urgent need to integrate climate data and forecasting into humanitarian and development strategies, the Living with Climate Variability and Change conference from July 17 to 21, 2006, in Espoo, Finland, will bring together stakeholders from around the world to discuss opportunities and constraints in integrating climate risks and uncertainties into decision-making at international, national and local levels.

WATER WORLD

+ Alarm Bells Sound For European Water Supply As Hot Weather Looms

Paris (AFP) Jun 15, 2006
Summer has still to make its official start in Europe, yet many countries are sweating - and it has less to do with the immediate temperature than out of worry for their water supplies.

DISASTER MANAGEMENT

+ Hurricane Damage Mininized By Sticking To The Rules

Gaithersburg MD (SPX) Jun 15, 2006
Stricter adherence to existing building standards, model building codes and good building practices, and a greater recognition of the risks posed by storm surge, could minimize the kind of structural damage experienced in the Gulf Coast states hit by Hurricanes Katrina and Rita last year, the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) announced on June 9, 2006.

ICE WORLD

+ Arctic Expedition Will Investigate Alien-Like Glacier

Calgary, Canada (SPX) Jun 15, 2006
A scientific expedition to a remote glacier field in Canada's High Arctic may help researchers unlock the secrets about the beginning of life and provide insights for future exploration of our solar system.

FLORA AND FAUNA

+ Living Fossil Captured On Video

Tallahassee FL (SPX) Jun 15, 2006
The first images of a live specimen of a small, furry animal once believed to have gone extinct more than 11 million years ago have been captured during a Southeast Asian expedition led by a retired Florida State University researcher.

EARTH OBSERVATION

+ Cloudsat Flexes Muscles With Alberto

Pasadena CA (SPX) Jun 15, 2006
NASA's new CloudSat satellite captured its first tropical storm, Alberto, as it spun over the Gulf of Mexico the morning of June 12. This image comparison shows how CloudSat can view such storms differently than conventional weather satellites.

EPIDEMICS

+ H5N1 Not In US Migratory Birds

Oxford, England (UPI) Jun 15, 2006
No birds carrying the H5N1 subtype of avian influenza have yet been found in the United States, although monitoring efforts have been stepped up. Thousands of samples collected from live and subsistence-hunted birds across the country have been sent to the National Wildlife Health Center in Madison, Wis., for testing, yet none has shown any signs of carrying the infection it is feared could spark off a deadly pandemic.

FROTH AND BUBBLE

+ Coal Tar Spillage Contaminates Northern Chinese River

Beijing (AFP) Jun 15, 2006
About 60 tons of coal tar has contaminated a river in northern China and is threatening to pollute a reservoir which supplies water to a city of 10 million, state media reported Wednesday. A truck carrying the chemical overturned on Monday afternoon in Shanxi province, causing the sticky liquid to spill into the Dasha River, Xinhua news agency reported.

WHALES AHOY

+ Deja Vu All Over Again For Whale Campaigners

Washington (AFP) Jun 15, 2006
Pardon veterans of the global environmental movement for feeling a sense of deja vu, as they set course on a new mission to "Save the Whales." The fabled campaign of the 1970s and 1980s was credited with saving whales from the verge of extinction, and led to a moratorium on commercial harpooning that has stood for nearly 20 years.

CIVIL NUCLEAR

+ India And US Move Toward Finalising Landmark Nuclear Energy Pact

New Delhi (AFP) Jun 15, 2006
India and the United States have made progress at talks to finalise the details of a landmark but controversial nuclear cooperation deal, officials from both sides said Wednesday. The talks, which began on Monday, were "constructive and positive," US embassy spokesman David Kennedy told AFP.

+ British PM Blair Defends Support For Nuclear Energy

Terra Daily Express - June 16, 2006
www.terradaily.com
24/7 Coverage Of Earth in the 21st Century

FROTH AND BUBBLE

+ Blast At China Chemical Factory Raises Pollution Fears

Beijing (AFP) Jun 16, 2006
Explosions at a chemical plant in eastern China have left two people missing and released large amounts of toxic gas, sparking fears of pollution, state media reported late Thursday. The series of blasts at the Longxin Chemical Plant in Longquan city early on Thursday set two of its factories on fire and released large amounts of harmful gas, Xinhua news agency said, quoting firefighters.

FLORA AND FAUNA

+ Butterfly Farming to Help Save Rain Forest

Warwick UK (SPX) Jun 16, 2006
Researchers at the University of Warwick's plant research arm Warwick HRI have received a 295,000 pound Darwin initiative grant to develop a butterfly farming industry in Guyana that will help support 5000 people in 16 rainforest communities and help save the rainforest itself.

SINO DAILY

+ Chinese Man Beaten After Criticising Regime On German TV

Berlin (AFP) Jun 13, 2006
A Chinese man was severely beaten after criticising, in an interview with German television, the way Chinese authorities dealt with people displaced by the Three Gorges dam, the television station said on Tuesday. German foreign ministry spokesman Martin Jaeger said Berlin was concerned about the report and had asked the German embassy in Beijing to demand an explanation from the Chinese authorities.

FLORA AND FAUNA

+ Early Bird Caught The Fish

Philadelphia, PA (SPX) Jun 16, 2006
Five fossil specimens of a near-modern bird found in the Gansu Province of northwestern China show that early birds likely evolved in an aquatic environment, according to a study reported today in the journal Science. Their findings suggest that these early modern birds were much like the ducks or loons found today.

ENERGY TECH

+ France Boosts Purchase Rates To Spur Renewable Energy

Paris (AFP) Jun 16, 2006
France on Thursday announced major increases in rates for energy from renewable sources that has to be purchased by the state-owned electricity provider, EDF. Since February 2000, Electricite de France has been required to buy power from operators of renewable sources at a price set by the government, under a programme aimed at boosting clean energy.

FLORA AND FAUNA

+ Global Warming Pushes Polar Bears To Cannibalism

Chicago (AFP) Jun 16, 2006
Polar bears are resorting to cannibalism as global warming shrinks the arctic ice cap and makes foraging for food more difficult, a recent study has found. "It really took us by surprise," lead researcher Steven Armstrup of the US Geological Survey said in a telephone interview from his Anchorage, Alaska office.

EPIDEMICS

+ High Virulence Of HIV-1 Might Be An Accident Of Evolution

Ulm, Germany (SPX) Jun 16, 2006
The virulence characteristic of HIV-1--the virus predominantly responsible for human AIDS--might amount to an accident of evolution, new evidence reveals. A gene function lost during the course of viral evolution predisposed HIV-1 to spur the fatal immune system failures that are the hallmarks of AIDS, researchers report in the June 16, 2006 Cell.

FLORA AND FAUNA

+ Recreation Of Butterfly Speciation Event

Panama, Panama (SPX) Jun 16, 2006
In a matter of months, butterflies sporting the yellow and red wing color pattern of a wild species were created through simple laboratory crosses of two other wild species, researchers report in the June 15, 2006 edition of the journal Nature.

ENERGY TECH

+ Rural Kenyan Women On Vanguard Of African Solar Revolution

Kajiado, Kenya (AFP) Jun 16, 2006
Elizabeth Leshom may not know it, but she is among a legion of African women at the vanguard of what many hope will be a "solar revolution" that could empower them and help save the environment.

SHAKE AND BLOW

+ Search For Two Believed Trapped On Indonesian Volcano Suspended

Mount Merapi, Indonesia (AFP) Jun 16, 2006
A search for two people believed trapped in a bunker at Indonesia's Mount Merapi volcano was suspended Thursday as more searing clouds made work too dangerous for rescuers, an official said.
CLIMATE SCIENCE

+ Thawing Permafrost Is A Significant Source Of Carbon

Fairbanks AL (SPX) Jun 16, 2006
Permafrost, permanently frozen soil, isn't staying frozen and a type of soil called loess contained deep within thawing permafrost may be releasing significant, and previously unaccounted for, amounts of carbon into the atmosphere, according to authors of a paper published this week in the journal Science.

ABOUT US

+ To Profit Or Explore Might Be The Meaning Of Life

London, UK (SPX) Jun 16, 2006
People are constantly pulled between profiting from the things they know will reap rewards and exploring new options - but it is exploration that uses high-level regions of the brain, according to a study by UCL (University College London) scientists published in Nature on 15th June.

DISASTER MANAGEMENT

+ UN Launches Campaign For Disaster-Proof Schools

Geneva (AFP) Jun 16, 2006
The United Nations kicked off a new campaign Thursday aiming to reduce the impact on children of disasters like the Asian tsunami, the earthquake in Kashmir or the mudslide which wiped out a school in the Philippines.

SPACE WAR EXPRESS

+ ATK Tests Advanced 155mm Projectile
+ Boost Phase Blues Impact Missile Shield Developments
+ Greece Orders Two Sperwer UAV Systems From Sagem Defense
+ Iran And Syria Sign Defense Agreement
+ Iran Supreme Leader Implicitly Rejects Nuclear Suspension
+ Japan Doubts North Korean Missile Test Imminent
+ New American Non-Nuclear ICBM Creates Global Dangers
+ Raytheon Tests Projectile with Semi-Active Laser Seeker
+ Raytheon To Support US Navy Satellite Communications System
+ Saab Lands Major New Camouflage Technology Deal
+ US And Europe Urge Iran To Heed Nuclear Call
+ US Military Death Toll In Iraq Hits 2500
+ White House Says There Will Be No Permanent Iraq Presence

SPACE DAILY EXPRESS

+ ESA Testing Main Vega Engine
+ Russia Launches New Remote Detection Satellite
+ Steve Cook At Marshall Leads Development Of New Launch Vehicle
+ Sea Launch Begins Galaxy 16 Countdown
+ Teachers To Learn About Mars-Earth Science
+ European Space Parliamentarians Meet In Brussels
+ Three Trojan Asteroids Share Neptune Orbit
+ SOFIA Passes New NASA Review
+ Atmel and u-blox Introduce Low Power Single-Chip GPS Receiver
+ Satellite Services Demand The Future in High Def
+ Hubble Sees Star Birth Gone Wild
+ NASA Spies Lunar Meteoroid Impact
+ Loral Skynet Launches New Satellite Services

Terra Daily Express - June 19, 2006
www.terradaily.com
24/7 Coverage Of Earth in the 21st Century
WHALES AHOY

+ Pro-Whaling Nations Pass Resolution Against Hunting Moratorium

Frigate Bay (AFP) Jun 19, 2006
Pro-whaling nations secured their first victory at world whaling talks Sunday by passing a resolution that labelled the 20-year moratorium on commercial hunts "no longer necessary."

+ Japan Refuses To Back Down At Whale Talks
+ Shadow Of Colonialism And Prejudice Hang Over Whale Meet

SHAKE AND BLOW

+ Residents Run For Cover As Philippine Volcano Spews Ash

Manila (AFP) Jun 19, 2006
One of the most active volcanoes in the Philippines spewed a massive column of ash about two kilometres (more than a mile) into the sky Sunday, sending residents of surrounding areas fleeing for cover, radio reports said.

+ Indonesian Volcano Quietens Down

EARTH OBSERVATION

+ ESA And Spot Image Set Precedence With Data Sharing

Paris, France (ESA) Jun 19, 2006
ESA and Spot Image, the company that distributes data commercially from the French Space Agency's (CNES) Spot satellites, signed a multiyear agreement, which kicked off in January 2006, permitting ESA-accepted Category-1 projects to order more than 10 000 images per year from the Spot 1, 2, 3 and 4 satellites.

+ NASA Missions Help Dissect Sea Level Rise

+ NGOs Using Satellite Imagery To Plan Agriculture Relief Efforts
+ High-Flying Satellites Give Land Managers The Low-Down On Cheatgrass

DISASTER MANAGEMENT

+ US Not Prepared For Catastrophe Finds Official Report

Washington (AFP) Jun 19, 2006
The United States is not prepared to cope with a large-scale terrorist attack or a powerful hurricane, the US Department of Homeland Security said in a report published Friday. The Nationwide Plan Review, ordered by President George W. Bush and Congress, examined whether the emergency plans of cities and states were adequate to manage another tragedy.

ENERGY TECH

+ Looming Energy Crisis Requires New Manhattan Project

Los Angeles (AFP) Jun 19, 2006
The United States urgently needs an effort similar to the Manhattan Project or NASA's moon mission to confront a looming energy crisis, scientists said at a high-level energy conference here.

TECH SPACE

+ Bacterium Takes A Shine To Metals

Los Angeles CA (SPX) Jun 19, 2006
Exposed metal surfaces are highly vulnerable to corrosion, but paint or other protective coatings can interfere with some uses, as well as add significant costs. Now, a comprehensive series of experiments suggests a new form of protection: bacteria.

FLORA AND FAUNA

+ Aromatic World

Moffett Field CA (SPX) Jun 19, 2006
After years of investigation, scientists still struggle to understand how life began on our planet. While there are many hypotheses for life's origin, there is still no compelling evidence that suggests one scenario is more likely than any other.

SUPERPOWERS

+ Shanghai Pact Struts World Stage

Washington (UPI) Jun 19, 2006
When the Shanghai Cooperation Organization was formed on June 15, 2001, almost no one in the U.S. media took any notice of it. But they are starting to pay attention now. On Thursday, the fifth birthday of the SCO, which one of its founders, then-Chinese President Jiang Zemin liked to refer to as "the Shanghai Pact", leaders and senior representatives of more than half the world's population returned to Shanghai, the financial capital of China, for the meeting.

+ Chinese Military Delegation Departs For US War Games

NUKE WARS

+ US Expects North Korea To Return To Nuclear Talks

Washington (AFP) Jun 19, 2006
The United States expects North Korea to renew its moratorium on long-range missile tests and return to six-party talks aimed at ending its nuclear ambitions, the White House said Sunday.

+ NKorea Accuses US Spy Plane Of Incursion
+ Japan Warns North Korea Over Any Missile Attack
+ North Korea Threatens To Wipe Out US Forces In South Korea
+ Iran Rejects Preconditions To Nuclear Talks
+ India Signs Up For UN Convention Against Nuclear Terrorism
+ Aerojet To Develop New ICBM Systems Technologies

SPACE DAILY

+ A Rock Nearly Knocked Off The Chart

Moffett Field CA (SPX) Jun 19, 2006
Researchers are scratching their heads after unearthing a 25-centimeter-wide chondritic meteorite from the 145-million-year-old Morokweng impact crater in South Africa. The team found the meteorite within the crater's impact melt sheet about 770 meters (half a mile) down a drilling borehole.

+ Governments Accounted For Over Half Of New Satellite Business In 2005
+ Satellite Guidance For The Visually Impaired
+ Opportunity Hits Five-Mile Mark
+ Russian Mission To Martian Moon To Launch In 2009
+ NASA Sets Next Shuttle Launch For July 1
+ First ESA Long-Duration Mission Ready To Launch On Next Shuttle
+ First Kazakh Satellite Launched
+ Sea Launch Delivers Galaxy 16 Satellite to Orbit
+ ESA And Spot Image Set Precedence With Data Sharing
+ NASA Missions Help Dissect Sea Level Rise
+ NGOs Using Satellite Imagery To Plan Agriculture Relief Efforts
+ High-Flying Satellites Give Land Managers The Low-Down On Cheatgrass
+ China Satellite Launcher Rejects US Proliferation Accusations
+ The Next Generation Of Yuhangyuans
+ GMV To Provide Planning Software For Lunar Mission

Terra Daily Express - June 20, 2006
www.terradaily.com
24/7 Coverage Of Earth in the 21st Century


FARM NEWS

+ Work On Biodiversity Doomsday Vault Begins In The Arctic

Oslo (AFP) Jun 20, 2006
A "doomsday vault" carved into the permafrost of a remote Arctic mountain will next year house samples of the world's most important seeds, with the goal of providing mankind with a Noah's Ark of food in the event of global catastrophe.

+ A Modern Day Noah Saving The Fruits Of A Green World

DARWIN TODAY

+ Researchers Offer Clues To How Leaves Patterns Are Formed

Alberta, Canada (SPX) Jun 20, 2006
Pick up a leaf and it is hard not to notice the pattern made by the veins. For years, biologists, mathematicians and even poets and philosophers have tried to decipher the rules and regulations behind those varied designs and now new research published in part at the University of Alberta offers a big clue to how those patterns are formed.

WHALES AHOY

+ Japan Takes The Helm At World Whale Talks

Frigate Bay (SPX) Jun 20, 2006
Japan pledged Monday not to use a new power base to destroy the International Whaling Commission (IWC) after pro-hunting states grabbed a majority in the body for the first time in 20 years.

+ Japan Charts Course For Commercial Whaling

DISASTER MANAGEMENT

+ National Guard To Return To New Orleans To Fight Crime

New Orleans (AFP) Jun 20, 2006
The National Guard will return to New Orleans to help control a flood of violent crime, Louisiana's governor said Monday, after the shooting deaths of five teenagers. "The situation is urgent," Governor Kathleen Blanco said in a statement.
AFRICA NEWS

+ China Says No Selfish Interests Behind Latest African Resource Deals

Brazzaville (AFP) Jun 20, 2006
China on Monday signed seven cooperation accords with the Republic of Congo as Chinese Prime Minister Wen Jiabao insisted Beijing had no "selfish interests" in pursing deals in Africa. Wen was in the Congo on the third stop of a seven-nation swing around Africa.

+ Chinese Bank To Support Zimbabwean Recovery Plan

CLIMATE SCIENCE

+ Global Warming And Deserts Are A Double-Edged Sword

Paris (AFP) Jun 20, 2006
The desert is a special word, reflecting our dread and awe at vast, parched regions where a few plants, animals and hardy humans somehow survive in the emptiness. These conflicting emotions find resonance this Saturday in a UN day that celebrates the desert yet curses desertification and points to the impact of climate change on both.

+ Experts Call On World Leaders To Curb Advancing Deserts
+ Global Warming May Warrant New Approaches To Ecosystem Restoration

EPIDEMICS

+ China Reports New Bird Flu Outbreak

Beijing (AFP) Jun 20, 2006
China Monday announced a new bird flu outbreak, at poultry farms in its northern province of Shanxi. Samples taken after the chickens died in Changzi county tested positive for the H5N1 strain, the official Xinhua news agency quoted the agriculture ministry as saying.
SUPERPOWERS

+ Putin Has An Asian Vision For Growth And Cooperation

Moscow (UPI) Jun 20, 2006
In the run-up to the fifth Shanghai summit of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, Chinese, Indian, Pakistani, and Iranian media published Russian President Vladimir Putin's essay on SCO, prompting new thoughts about what Putin had termed as the "Shanghai spirit."

NUKE WARS

+ Iran Prepares Nuclear Counter Proposal

Tehran (AFP) Jun 20, 2006
Iran said Monday it was preparing a counter-offer as officials rejected a key stipulation in a proposal by world powers for the Islamic republic to halt uranium enrichment ahead of nuclear talks.

+ US Policy Becoming Confused Over Iran Says Russia
+ US And Russian Nuclear Weapons Deal Extended
+ North Korea Missile Fueled For Launch
+ North Korea Plays A New Missile Card
+ North Korea Stirs Jitters With Missile Launch Boast
+ Patriot Missile Destroys Drone For Second Straight Hit

Terra Daily Express - June 21, 2006
www.terradaily.com
24/7 Coverage Of Earth in the 21st Century

WEATHER REPORT

+ Monsoon Nears Economic Capital Mumbai As Indian Farmers Await Rains

Mumbai (AFP) Jun 20, 2006
India's annual monsoon rains Tuesday approached the economic capital of Mumbai, hit by devastating floods last year, as farmers in the nation's agricultural belt waited anxiously for a downpour to sow their crops.

+ Goodrich Technology Aboard GOES-N

WHALES AHOY

+ Japan With The Momentum After World Whaling Talks

Frigate Bay (SPX) Jun 21, 2006
Japan will leave annual global whaling talks Tuesday after landing its heaviest ever blows against a 20-year moratorium on commercial whale hunts. Environmentalists and anti-whaling states entered the five days of annual talks in the Caribbean worried that Tokyo would finally wrest control of the International Whaling Commission (IWC).
DISASTER MANAGEMENT

+ Military Police Arrive To Combat Crime In New Orleans

New Orleans (AFP) Jun 21, 2006
Louisiana Governor Kathleen Blanco on Tuesday welcomed 100 military police officers and 60 state police troopers deployed to help New Orleans deal with a flood of violent crime as it struggles to recover from Hurricane Katrina.

+ Carmanah Unveils World's Most Versatile Solar Powered Airfield Light
+ Seismic Shock Absorbers For Woodframe Houses

ENERGY TECH

+ US And French Power Companies Sign MoU For Evolutionary Power Reactor

Baltimore MD (SPX)Jun 20, 2006
Constellation Energy and Electricite de France (EdF) today announced that the two companies have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU). Specifically, EdF and Constellation Energy's subsidiary, Constellation Generation Group, have agreed to work together toward an agreement allowing EdF to provide assistance to Constellation Energy as part of the development of the U.S. Evolutionary Power Reactor (EPR).

+ Innovative, Affordable Solar Energy Solution For Vineyards
+ Finding A Better Way To Make Biodiesel
+ Northwestern Team Develops MRI For Fuel Cells
MERAPI SIMMERS

+ Indonesia Volcano May Be At End Of Current Active Cycle

Mount Merapi (AFP) Jun 21, 2006
A new lava dome which began forming last week at Indonesia's Mount Merapi may signal that heightened activity is ending at the volcano, a scientist said Tuesday. Merapi has been on highest alert for most of the past five weeks, as clouds of hot gas and ash have erupted intermittently from its peak along with burning lava flows.

FLORA AND FAUNA

+ Panda Population Far Higher Than Expected Scientists

London (AFP) Jun 20, 2006
Scientists predicted Tuesday that there were many more giant pandas than previously thought, following a novel study examining the DNA of their faeces.
CAR TECH

+ Self-Powered Sensors To Watch Over Hydrogen Cars

New York (UPI) Jun 21, 2006
Nanotechnological, inexpensive sensors that can detect invisible, odorless hydrogen leaks and sound the alarm wirelessly could help safeguard future vehicles and refueling stations based on the gas, experts told UPI's Nano World.
WATER WORLD

+ Fourteen Die As Pakistan Tribes Clash Over Water

Peshawar, Pakistan (AFP) Jun 20, 2006
Pakistani authorities Tuesday negotiated a temporary truce after at least 14 people died and 35 were wounded in a gunbattle between two tribes over access to water, officials said. The rival groups left their hillside trenches after two days of fighting with assault rifles and rocket launchers near Parachinar, the main town in the Kurram tribal agency bordering Afghanistan, a government statement said.

SOLAR SCIENCE

+ Astronomers Discover Space Is Fizzing

Paris, France (SPX) Jun 21, 2006
Space is fizzing. In a place where Earth's magnetic field meets the constant stream of gas from the Sun, astronomers have found thousands of bubbles of superheated gas constantly growing and popping. The discovery could allow scientists finally to understand the interaction between the solar wind and the Earth's magnetic field.
TIME AND SPACE

+ Astronomers Observe High Energy Particles From Black Hole Jet

New Haven CT (SPX) Jun 21, 2006
An international team of astronomers has captured infrared observations that reveal the nature of high-energy quasar particle jets that originate just outside super-massive black holes at the center of galaxies and radiate across the electromagnetic spectrum, from radio to X-ray wavelengths.
SATURN DAILY

+ Uncovering Rhea

Pasadena CA (SPX) Jun 21, 2006
NASA's Cassini spacecraft has captured two Saturnian moons meeting in the sky: Dione departs after crossing the face of Rhea for several minutes. Dione (1,126 kilometers, or 700 miles across), at right, has a notably smoother-looking surface than Rhea (1,528 kilometers, or 949 miles across), suggesting the former has been modified more recently.



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GPS NEWS

+ Luxembourg Companies To Build Galileo Antenna System

Luxembourg (SPX) Jun 21, 2006
SES ASTRA, an SES GLOBAL company, announced Tuesday its subsidiary SES ASTRA TechCom has been selected for a project of Europe's global satellite navigation system Galileo. Together with its Luxembourg partner, HITEC Luxembourg, SES ASTRA TechCom has been chosen as lead partner to provide two large telemetry, tracking and control antenna systems which will allow the ground control of the Galileo satellite fleet when it is in orbit.

MISSILE DEFENSE

+ US Missile Defenses Likely Activated For North Korean Test

Washington (AFP) Jun 20, 2006
The launch of a long-range North Korean missile would provide the first real test of a US missile defense system that has cost billions of dollars to build and is still in development, analysts said Tuesday. The Washington Times, citing US officials, said the system has been activated in the past two weeks amid signs North Korea is preparing to launch an intercontinental Taepodong-2 missile.

NUKEWARS

+ North Korea Missile Test Not A Sure Thing Says South Korea

Seoul (AFP) Jun 20, 2006