Photo from Wikipedia

The European Space Agency has signed a $103 mil. contract with a Swiss startup ClearSpace. The goal of this contract is to remove a single space debris in 2025. This project seems expensive but involves an orbiting, mouth-like net, which could deal with the continuing pileup of orbiting space junk surrounding the Earth’s atmosphere.

ClearSpace is a spin-off of the Ecole Polytechnique Federale de Lausanne (EPFL). The company will be collaborating with Germany, Czech Republic, Sweden, Poland, among several other European countries.

They are targeting the collection of 247-pound Vega Secondary Payload Adapter (Vespa) that has been orbiting around Earth since 2013. The adapter was part of the Proba-V satellite into space but currently serves no purpose.

While $103 mil. for a single space junk seems expensive, the European Space Agency is betting on it becoming a new commercial sector in an industry that continues to be highlighted as being the “next big thing.”

The net and spacecraft combo needs to capture the adapter which is currently traveling at speeds up to 17,400 miles per hour, and even the slightest miscalculation could cause serious collision. Assuming all goes well, the net will capture the adaptor and the spacecraft can return to Earth, burning the cargo on re-entry.

Currently, European Space Agency estimates that the space debris in orbit being tracked are at about 22,300. As items are added, chances for collision increases making the Earth’s orbit highly dangerous.

The Goal of this mission will be to guarantee the possibility of space travel for generations to come.

According to a state-appointed human rights commission, at least 600 civilians were killed during an attack in Northern Ethiopia in early November, purely due to their ethnicity. Mai-Kadra is a town in Tigray region. On November 9, there was a massacre, where Tigrayan youths, with aid by local officials and police, going door-to-door in killing hundreds of people they identified as “Amharas and Wolkait.”

The human rights commission has accused the local Tigrayan militia, police security, and the Tigrayan youths for committing war crimes and crimes against humanity.  The Tigrayans were noted to destroying and looting homes while also using knives, machetes, hatchets, and ropes to kill victims. Some ethnic Tigrayans saved people by hiding others in their homes, churches, and fields.

So far, the fighting between the government and the Tigrayan forces has resulted in more than 40,000 refugees fleeing into Sudan. Humanitarian organizations are struggling to provide services amid the large influx of refugees.

Unfortunately for Ethiopian government, it cannot necessarily claim clean hands either, as the government forces had been using air strikes and ground offensives against Tigray’s rulers for defiance. There may have been civilian deaths on both sides.

Unfortunately, this news is unverifiable due to the difficulties in communication.

The UN high commissioner for human rights, Michelle Bachelet raised alarm on Tuesday at the knowledge of heavy build up of tanks and artillery around the city of Mekelle in Tigray region.

Both the US and European powers are urging Ethiopia to act in de-escalation.

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Michigan recently began a temporary 3-week shut down, and New York is preparing a shut down of public schools as the COVID cases are on the rise as economic activity begins in times for the holiday season.

As more of the population become exposed to the coronavirus, even small gatherings are becoming dangerous. Virginia’s governor has decreased allowable social gathering population limit from 250-person limit back to 25-person limit. Most of the states are suggesting that people celebrate Thanksgiving in their own homes, to minimize traveling, and to take precautions when celebrating with others.

New York City plans to shut down its public school system on Thursday, indicating that New York City has begun its second wave of the coronavirus. The city reached a 3 percent test positivity rate over a 7-day rolling average, which is the most conservative threshold of any big school district in the country.  The schools were open for in-person instruction for less than 8 weeks.

This is considered to be a major disappointment for Mayor Bill de Blasio, as he was the first to reopen school buildings. The 300,000 students who had been attending in person will now have to be shuffled back to remote learning. Mayor Blasio promised to reopen the schools but explained that it would not take place until next month or later.

New York governor Andrew M. Cuomo equally voiced concerns and a promise that restrictions would be returning to public life; limited indoor dining and gyms have been open for under 2 months. The actual news conference was delayed for 5 hours as officials attempted to confirm the positivity numbers; the numbers had risen to exactly 3 percent.

As the midwest, west, and the south showed a surge in the number of exposures, New York boasted a low infection rate throughout the summer. New York, one of the major hot spots during the first phase of the pandemic, keeps a much more conservative allowable infection rate. Schools themselves are not showing too high of an infection rate, but the state is choosing to close the schools due to the rise in infection rates nonetheless. This is frustrating for parents and public health officials who both desire in-person instruction.

Unlike Western Europe where bars, restaurants, and theaters are closed while keeping schools open, New York has taken the opposite approach: bars, restaurants, and gyms remain open. Mayor Blasio suggested that the continued limited opening of businesses may have to be reassessed.

Those who suffer, unfortunately, are the children of low income families, as due to the nationwide shortage of devices, students cannot often log on, receive instructions, or do the school work necessary to keep in pace with in-person learning.

Coree ILBO/CoreeDaily.com copyright (c) 2013-2020, All rights reserved.

This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed in whole or part with out the express written permission.



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Hurricane Iota made landfall in Nicaragua as a Category 4 major hurricane in Central America. Iota had reached Category 5 strength before making landfall near Haulover, Nicaragua, but became Category 4 with maximum sustained winds near 155 mph as it made landfall.

If Iota was the only hurricane hitting the coast of Nicaragua, it was still quite harmful; however, this area had just been experiencing heavy rainfall and strong wind by Tropical Storm Eta. Iota might have weakened almost immediately once making landfall, but not before releasing heavy flooding rain, catastrophic winds, and mudslides. Swells from the storm will be felt as far north as the Yucatan Peninsula, as far east as Jamacaica, and as far south as Colombia. The landfall was just 15 miles south of Hurricane Eta’s landfall.

As of late Tuesday morning, there were no deaths reported, and the country’s disaster management agency is monitoring several cities in the Rivas region, as well as rivers and placing vulnerable families in shelters, such as those in Rivas and Bilwi. For example, telecommunications have been impacted, and the Bilwi residents have been asked to maintain calm and stay away from dangerous or vulnerable locations.

Although Iota has now downgraded to a tropical storm, it continues to pack winds of 65 mph as of 1 PM EST. The storm is about 105 miles east of Tegucigalpa, which is the Honduran capital. However, the storm is currently projected to dissipate near El Salvador by Wednesday night. Areas such as Hondoruas, Nicaragua, Guatemala, and Belize can expect rain of at least 10 to 30 inches through Thursday, while El Salvador to Panama can expect 4 to 8, with isolated maximums of 12 inches.  The emergency agencies are concerned with swells that could cause life-threatening surf and rip current conditions.

This area has seen severe hurricanes, as Hurricane Eta has only hit a week before as Category 4 storm, causing landslides and flooding, displacing thousands and leaving significant number of people dead or missing.

This is the 13th hurricane of the 2020 Atlantic hurricane season, brining 30 named storms, which is now the most ever. This is also the latest year there had been a Category 5 hurricane in the Atlantic Basin. Strong hurricanes are difficult to cope with as is, but in a year where the coronavirus pandemic has made simple things very difficult, these hurricanes are turning out to be more devastating than before.

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사진: 김서경

스러진 영혼

홍성재

꺼질 듯이 작은

별빛이 모여

이미 살라진 육신이

다시금 붉게 타오른다

불씨는 이미서

몇십 몇백 년 전

사라져 버린

별일지도 모른다

그렇게 스러진 별의

영혼을 그러모아

그대 앞에서

나를 태우노라

나 죽어 부르는

이 노래를 위해

한 줌의 재까지 살라내는

이 불꽃의 의미를

부디 잊지 않기를.

*이미서:사전에는 없는 말로 이미 벌써를 강조하는 합성어로 읽으시면 됩니다.

Coree ILBO/CoreeDaily.com copyright (c) 2013-2020, All rights reserved.

This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed in whole or part with out the express written permission.