Ariane-5 rocket blasted off from the European Space Agency's launch center in Kourou

The Ariane-5 rocket blasted off from the European Space Agency’s launch center in Kourou, French Guiana on the northeast coast of South America at 6.41 p.m. (2141 GMT).Originally slated for launch on Wednesday, countdown was halted seconds before lift-off when a technical problem was detected.A second launch attempt on Thursday was also halted because of technical problems.Twenty-six minutes after lift-off the Arabsat-5A satellite separated from the rocket.

Arabsat is designed for telecommunications throughout the Middle East and north Africa for Riyadh-based Arabsat.The satellite weighed 4.9 metric tones at launch and was built by a consortium led by EADS-Astrium and Thales Alenia Space.

“The Riyadh station is going to pick up the satellite within a few minutes and there will be a partial deployment of the solar panels,” Arabsat satellite manager Ahmad Al-Shraideh said.Six minutes later the South Korean COMS satellite separated from the rocket.COMS will provide weather forecasting, ocean monitoring and telecommunications for South Korea’s Aerospace Research Institute (Kari).

“After separation of COMS our satellite will be managed by Astrium in Toulouse (France),” Koonha Yang of Kari said.”Then our Kari ground station in Korea will take over COMS and perform in-orbit tests,” he said.COMS weighed 2.4 metric tones and was also built by EADS-Astrium.Saturday’s launch was the 37th consecutive successful launch of an Ariane rocket.

Two Bell 222 helicopter collided face to face aka "crash" in the air

Two helicopters collided face to face aka “crash” in the air. Incidents in the southwestern region of Colombia, as written Oana, Wednesday (21/4/2010), killing six passengers. The death toll is that all military members. “There were also five people injured,” military sources said.

One type Bell 222 helicopter is owned by private airlines Vertical Aviation. The other is the type of Huey’s Armed Forces of Colombia. “Initially, members of the military death toll to attend a military ceremony at the headquarters of Tolima,” said the soldier.

Among the dead there is Brigadier General Fernando Joya Duarte. He is a military commander in southern Tolima.Parties of the armed forces has sent a special team to investigate the incident.

Hillary Clinton flies to Latin America on Sunday, working to buff a lackluster U.S. image in a region where Brazil is emerging as a regional power with global aspirations

WASHINGTON  Secretary of State Hillary Clinton flies to Latin America on Sunday, working to buff a lackluster U.S. image in a region where Brazil is emerging as a regional power with global aspirations.The trip, featuring Clinton’s first stops in South America as secretary of state, includes a visit to Chile on Tuesday, although officials said they were assessing the situation after Saturday’s 8.8 magnitude earthquake rocked the country.Brazil is the centerpiece of Clinton’s five-day visit and she will use her March 3 stop there to seek support for the drive on the U.N. Security Council to put new sanctions on Iran over its nuclear program.Brazil  a non-permanent member of the council  has been reluctant to get tough on Iran and analysts say Clinton faces a diplomatic test as she seeks to bring President Inacio Lula da Silva on board in the final weeks before U.N. diplomats unveil the sanctions strategy in New York.But the trip also marks a fresh U.S. start in Latin America, which saw early hopes for better ties with the Obama administration fade amid disputes over last year’s Honduras coup and the continued U.S. embargo on communist-ruled Cuba.That disappointment was underscored this week when the “Rio Group” including Mexico and Brazil agreed to form a new regional bloc that explicitly leaves out the United States  a thumbed nose at a power many feel is still too cavalier in its dealings with its southern neighbors.”Their early expectations were very large, and probably impossible to meet,” said Peter DeShazo, director of the Americas program at the Washington-based Center for Strategic and International Studies.

“There has been a lot more continuity in policy than people expected.”Latin America-watchers say Clinton’s itinerary speaks volumes. The first two stops on the trip, Uruguay and Chile, have both recently held smooth elections and are regarded as models of moderate, market-oriented economies.She winds up with stops in Costa Rica, another stable longtime U.S. ally, and Guatemala, which has seen its strategic importance skyrocket as a major new front in the battle against international drug traffickers.”She is making the right stops,” said Roberto Izurieta, head of the Latin America Department at The George Washington University’s Graduate School of Political Management.”She is supporting moderate economic policies and democratic principles. It is the right message.”

TOUGH SELL ON IRAN

Despite the Latin America focus, Iran will top the agenda as the United States and other veto-wielding permanent members of the U.N. Security Council, along with Germany, seek to agree on a resolution calling for new sanctions on Tehran.Russia has sounded more positive about possible sanctions over Iran’s nuclear program, which Tehran says is for peaceful purposes but which western powers fear is a cover for building atomic weapons.But China has called for more talks, and Brazil which hosted Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad in November is also reluctant, a position Clinton may not be able to change.

Julia Sweig, director of the Latin American program at the Council on Foreign Relations, said Brazil’s own experience with both nuclear energy and democratic transformation made it leery of U.S. saber-rattling over Iran’s current crisis.”They see themselves as having had an experience both in shifting toward a peaceful nuclear program and in shifting to democracy that Iran might have the potential to undergo right now,” Sweig said.

“They are still insisting on not isolating Iran, though I don’t know how long they will be able to play that out.”Brazil has also pushed for a change in U.S. isolation of Cuba Lula payed an “emotional” visit to the island last week and those calls are likely to be repeated during Clinton’s two stops in Central America.While the Obama administration resumed migration talks with Cuba that had been suspended by former President George W. Bush in 2004, it has been cautious on any broader policy change despite repeated prodding by its Latin American neighbors.

Clinton is also likely to be pressed on Honduras, which is struggling to return to stability and legitimacy after a coup last year toppled President Manuel Zelaya.The United States helped to broker new democratic elections in November that brought President Porfirio Lobo to power. But Washington was widely accused of failing to take a strong enough line on Zelaya’s ouster  raising bitter memories of U.S. support for past military coups in the region.”She’s got to make up for lost time, especially over Honduras,” Sweig said. “American credibility has really taken a hit.”(Reuters)

Chile Quake Victims Increase So 78 People

Santiago, The death toll from an earthquake measuring 8.8 Richter scale in Chile is expected to continue to grow. According to a statement issued last Chilean President Michele Bachelet, a victim through the numbers at least 78 people. earthquake that occurred at 3:34 local time or 13:34 pm at the knock down buildings and cracked roads. Reported similar large tsunami waves hit the region in the Robinson Crusoe Islands, 660 kilometers from the coast of Chile.Previously had issued a tsunami warning for regions of South America, Hawaii, Australia, New Zealand, Japan, Philippines, Russia, and several islands in the Pacific.Severe damage to President Bachelet declared a state of disaster in Chile. Still, he called on citizens not to panic and avoid travel due to dark conditions following turn off the  electricity.

The massive earthquake that struck near the coast of central Chile has prompted the National Weather Service to issue a tsunami advisory for Southern and Central California. People are being told to avoid local beaches.Forecasters said widespread inundation is not expected, and officials don’t believe there is a major threat of damage.The NWS urged residents to stay away from the ocean waters though the early afternoon as a precaution, though forecasters stressed they don’t expect any damage. “Wave fluctuation” of 2 feet or less is possible at Santa Monica Pier around 12:25 p.m.
“The Coast Guard strongly encourages waterfront users to take extra precautions in preparation for the possibility of a surge, to include securing vessel mooring arrangements and possible sources of pollution,” according to a U.S. Geological Survey. statement.

The advisory was issued following an 8.8 magnitude earthquake that struck about 200 miles southwest of Santiago, Chile according to the U.S. Geological Survey.

Here is the advisory from NWS:

A MINOR TSUNAMI MAY BE RECORDED IN SOME AREAS OF THE COAST WHICH COULD PRODUCE DANGEROUS CURRENTS AND SURGES IN HARBORS AND BAYS.

PEOPLE ARE ADVISED TO STAY AWAY FROM THE BEACHES AND MARINAS. WAVE HEIGHTS AND CURRENTS ARE AMPLIFIED BY IRREGULAR SHORELINES AND ARE DIFFICULT TO PREDICT.

MINOR WAVE FLUCTUATIONS TWO FEET OR LESS ARE EXPECTED TO BEGIN WITHIN 30 MINUTES OF THE ESTIMATED ARRIVAL TIMES LISTED BELOW: PORT SAN LUIS HARBOR…AT 1235 PM PST. SANTA BARBARA HARBOR…AT 1231 PM PST. SANTA MONICA HARBOR….AT 1225 PM PST. SAN PEDRO HARBOR…….AT 1215 PM PST.

THESE MINOR WAVE FLUCTUATIONS COULD CONTINUE FOR SEVERAL HOURS. THE INITIAL WAVE MAY NOT BE THE LARGEST. MARINERS IN WATER DEEPER THAN 600 FEET SHOULD NOT BE AFFECTED BY THE TSUNAMI.

WASHINGTON A tsunami was generated on Saturday that could cause damage along the coasts of all the Hawaiian islands

WASHINGTON A tsunami was generated on Saturday that could cause damage along the coasts of all the Hawaiian islands, the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center said. “Urgent action should be taken to protect lives and property,” the center said in a bulletin. “All shores are at risk no matter which direction they face.”Earlier, the center had issued a Pacific-wide tsunami warning that included Hawaii and stretched across the ocean from South America to the Pacific Rim.The warnings followed a massive earthquake in Chile that killed at least 76 people and triggered tsunamis up and down the coast of the earthquake-prone country.The center estimated the first tsunami wave would hit Hawaii at 11:19 a.m. Hawaii time (4 a.m. EST). Waves up to 16 feet could hit the coast, center officials said.”A tsunami is a series of long ocean waves. A wave crest can last 5 to 15 minutes or more and extensively flood coastal areas,” the center said.(Reuters)

earthquake on the coast of Chile has killed at least 52 people

A massive earthquake on the coast of Chile has killed at least 52 people, flattening buildings and triggering a tsunami. The 8.8-magnitude quake, the country’s largest in 25 years, shook the capital Santiago for a minute and half at 3:34am (0634 GMT) today. A tsunami warning has been extended across the Pacific rim, including most of Central and South America and as far as Australia and Antarctica. The wave has already caused serious damage to the sparsely populated Juan Fernandez islands, off the Santiago coast, local radio reported.

Carmen Fernandez, the head of Chile’s emergency services, said at least 52 people died. President Michelle Bachelet has declared a “state of catastrophe” in the country. The quake hit near the town of Maule, 200 miles southwest of Santiago, at a depth of 22 miles underground. The epicentre was just 70 miles from Concepcion, Chile’s second-largest city, where more than 200,000 people live along the Bio Bio river. In Santiago buildings collapsed and phone lines and electricity were brought down, but the full extent of the damage is still being determined.

Santiago resident Simon Shalders said: “There was a lot of movement. The houses were really shaking, walls were moving backwards and forwards, and doors were swinging open. “The power is still out here. There’s quite a few choppers flying around in Santiago I suppose checking out the worst-affected areas.” In the coastal city of Vina del Mar, the earthquake struck just as people were leaving a disco, Julio Alvarez told a local radio station. “It was very bad, people were screaming, some people were running, others appeared paralyzed. I was one of them.”

Several big aftershocks later hit the south-central region, including ones measuring 6.9, 6.2 and 5.6. The Pacific Tsunami Warning Center issued a warning for Chile and Peru, and a less-urgent tsunami watch for Ecuador, Colombia, Panama, Costa Rica and Antarctica. A spokesman said: “Sea level readings indicate a tsunami was generated. “It may have been destructive along coasts near the earthquake epicentre and could also be a threat to more distant coasts.”

The Joint Australian Tsunami Warning Center issued also warned of a “potential tsunami threat; to New South Wales state, Queensland state, Lord Howe Island and Norfolk Island”. Any potential wave would not hit Australia until Sunday morning local time, it added. Earthquakes are relatively common in Chile, which is part of the pacific “ring-of-fire” tectonic-plate boundary, and many buildings are built to withstand tremors. The largest earthquake ever recorded struck the same region on May 22, 1960. The magnitude-9.5 quake killed 1,655 people and left two million homeless. The tsunami that it caused killed people in Hawaii, Japan and the Philippines and caused damage to the US West Coast.

Three accused al-Qaida associates have been arrested in Africa and brought to New York

drugs terrorism

WASHINGTON Three accused al-Qaida associates have been arrested in Africa and brought to New York on charges they conspired to support terrorism by smuggling drugs bound for Europe, authorities said Friday.The arrests mark the first time U.S. authorities have captured and charged al-Qaida suspects in a drug trafficking plot in Africa, in a case officials say demonstrates the spread of the terror network into global criminal activity.The three suspects – believed to be in their 30’s and originally from Mali – were arrested in Ghana earlier this week and arrived in the United States early Friday morning, according to law enforcement officials speaking on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss the case.

The three suspects are expected to appear Friday in federal court in New York on charges stemming from a months-long undercover investigation by the Drug Enforcement Administration.

Authorities say the men are members of al-Qaida’s North African branch, and told DEA informants that al-Qaida could protect major shipments of cocaine in the region.A criminal complaint unsealed Friday charges that Oumar Issa, Harouna Toure, and Idriss Abdelrahman worked with al-Qaida in the Islamic Magreb.

Oumar Issa

Harouna Toure

The three face narcoterrorism conspiracy charges, as well as conspiracy to provide material support to terrorists.Court papers say the DEA infiltrated the al-Qaida offshoot in western Africa by using informants posing as supporters of Columbia’s rebel army, the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, or FARC, which the U.S. government considers a terrorist organization.

In recent years, drug networks in South America are increasingly using Africa to funnel cocaine into Europe, according to U.S. officials.The three suspects allegedly claimed to be associated with al-Qaida in the Islamic Magreb, and said they had been moving shipments of drugs in Africa.During the negotiations, according to law enforcement officials, the al-Qaida suspects offered to move cocaine from west Africa to north Africa for about 3,000 euros – roughly $4,200 – per kilogram.

The criminal complaint claims that when the informant asked how their drug shipments could be protected, “Issa confirmed that the protection would come from al-Qaida and the people that would protect the load would be very well armed.”

The DEA has long seen close ties between Afghanistan terrorists and the booming drug trade there, but the African case marks an expansion of both al-Qaida’s illegal activities around the globe and U.S. efforts to stop the type of black market deals that generate money for terror operations.

Al-Qaida in the Islamic Magreb is an Algeria-based group that joined Osama bin Laden’s terrorist network in 2006 and conducts dozens of bombings or ambushes each month.It operates mainly in Algeria but is suspected of crossing the country’s porous desert borders to spread violence in the rest of northwestern Africa.

Atlantis Astronauts Make 1st Spacewalk of Mission

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla.A pair of astronauts ventured out on the first spacewalk of their shuttle mission Thursday to tackle some antenna and cable work at the International Space Station.The linked shuttle-station was soaring over South America when Michael Foreman and Dr. Robert Satcher Jr. emerged from the hatch.Satcher, the first orthopedic surgeon in space, was awed by the view 220 miles below. “Beautiful,” he murmured. His partner, a veteran spacewalker, couldn’t resist poking a little fun.”Hard to believe, Bobby, I think your feet look bigger from space,” Foreman joked.Two more spacewalks are planned in coming days to perform space station maintenance and get the orbiting outpost ready for the next shuttle visitors.Atlantis will remain at the space station until Wednesday.

Already, the 12 space travelers have unloaded several tons of pumps, tanks and other big spare parts that came up on Atlantis. They took care of that just hours after the shuttle docked at the station Wednesday.All the gear should keep the space station operating well past next fall’s shuttle retirement.The shuttle is the only craft large enough to haul these oversize pieces for the space station. That’s why NASA is so keen on flying the parts now, long before they’re needed.NASA plans to keep the outpost running until at least 2015.Five more shuttle missions remain, all devoted to space station work.Astronaut Nicole Stott, who’s winding up a nearly three-month space mission, celebrated her 47th birthday Thursday. She’ll have to wait until the shuttle brings her back at the end of next week to blow out her candles. Flames are verboten in orbit.

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