Cape Canaveral The moon is about to get walloped by 3 tons of space junk, a punch that will carve out a crater that could fit several semitractor-trailers.
The leftover rocket will smash into the far side of the moon at 5,800 mph (9,300 kph) on March 4, away from telescopes’ prying eyes.
It may take weeks, even months, to confirm the impact through satellite images.
It’s been tumbling haphazardly through space, experts believe, since China launched it nearly a decade ago. But Chinese officials are dubious it’s theirs.
No matter whose it is, scientists expect the object to carve out a hole 33 feet to 66 feet (10 to 20 metres) across and send moon dust flying hundreds of miles (kilometres) across the barren, pockmarked surface.
Low-orbiting space junk is relatively easy to track.
Objects launching deeper into space are unlikely to hit anything and these far-flung pieces are usually soon forgotten, except by a handful of observers who enjoy playing celestial detective on the side.
SpaceX originally took the rap for the upcoming lunar litter after asteroid tracker Bill Gray identified the collision course in January. He corrected himself a month later, saying the “mystery” object was not a SpaceX Falcon rocket upper stage from the 2015 launch of a deep space climate observatory for NASA.
Mr. Gray said it was likely the third stage of a Chinese rocket that sent a test sample capsule to the moon and back in 2014. But Chinese ministry officials said the upper stage had reentered Earth’s atmosphere and burned up.
But there were two Chinese missions with similar designations — the test flight and 2020’s lunar sample return mission — and U.S. observers believe the two are getting mixed up.
The U.S. Space Command, which tracks lower space junk, confirmed on Tuesday that the Chinese upper stage from the 2014 lunar mission never deorbited, as previously indicated in its database. But it could not confirm the country of origin for the object about to strike the moon.
*************************************
Restaurants and Cafes in Kuwait are still suffering consequences of the coronavirus pandemic despite a gap of two years, stated President of Kuwaiti Federation of Restaurants , Cafes and Catering Fahd Al-Arbash.
He stated that the restaurant sector in Kuwait may suffer for about 5 yrs unless the state moves in to support the local economy and open up tourism and employment.
*************************************
Health authorities are planning to cancel PCR tests for above 16 yrs old university students and teachers and return back to normalcy adhering to precautionary health measures to reduce the spread of infection among students and authorities in school/universities.
*************************************
Schools in Kashmir wear a festive look on reopening day
As schools in Kashmir reopen after a being closed for 31 months, teachers and students share a warm reunion
Decorated with buntings and balloons, schools in Kashmir wore a festive look on Wednesday as children donned uniforms after a gap of over 900 days. Most educational institutes, by and large, remained closed in the Valley from August 5, 2019, when the Centre ended Jammu and Kashmir’s special constitutional position, and then due to the subsequent twin waves of Coronavirus in 2020 and 2021.
The staff at the Kothi Bagh Girls Higher Secondary School, Srinagar, put up decorations and offered chocolates to students. “It felt like a family reunion today. It was heart-warming to meet the students again. I must admit that a class room setting cannot be replaced by the online platforms,” a teacher, at the school, said. It was a day of pep talks at the Government Boys Higher Secondary, Nawakadal, in the old city. The students were asked to narrate COVID-related experiences. “Narrating personal stories helped them to unburden emotionally.
The staff dedicated the first day to motivational speeches. Teachers will have to put in extra efforts to ensure that students return to the classroom setting sooner,” Qural-ul-Ain Qureshi, a teacher at the Nawakadal higher secondary, said. An official said the Directorate of School Education, Kashmir, has asked the teachers “to break the ice with the students in the first week and focus more on playful and fun activities”. The Kashmir valley has around 10,851 schools, including 5,710 primary and 3,894 middle schools.
With around 6.5 lakh students admitted in schools, Kashmir did see a dip of around two percent in school enrolment due to the pandemic. The prolonged closure also resulted in the laying off the staff, including teachers and drivers. “School drivers have suffered the most in the past 31 months. They were without salaries,” Private Schools Association of J&K president G.N. Var said. Mr. Var said the schools saw emotional scenes on day one. “Both students as well as teachers could not hold their tears. Deserted classrooms have gotten a new lease of life with students. The schools have decided to evaluate and address psychological, behavioural and attitudinal issues of the students in the first phase,” Mr. Var said. The J&K government has made it mandatory for the staff and the students above 12 years to get vaccinated.’‘
*************************************
The Meteorologists department stated that the country is experiencing instability in weather conditions starting from Thursday morning, as southerly winds with speeds exceeding 60 kilometers per hour will be active.
The winds will cause dust with visibility decreasing to less than 1000 meters in some areas leading to sea waves rising to seven feet. By Friday evening things will get back to normal.
Meanwhile Kuwait saw development after its independence on all levels, the scientific field in the country had a prominent boost to follow up on the international standards, especially in the weather forecast field. Weather forecast plays a big role in the daily lives of people, making the Kuwait Meteorological Department of the Directorate General of Civil Aviation one of the most important bodies in the country, supervisor of telecommunication and information in the department, Engineer Salah Al-Ansari told KUNA on Wednesday.
*************************************
PCR negative certificate for unvaccinated teachers and students who are 16 and above is mandatory when schools resume from Sunday.
They will have to submit a negative certificate to allow them to enter the schools unless the health ministry recommends cancelling the decision reports Al Anba.
Meanwhile MP Dr. Hamad Al Matar called upon Dr. Ali Fahd Al-Mudhaf, Minister of Education and Minister of Higher Education to cancel PCR tests immediately and return back to school
*************************************
The political situation in Europe has affected travelling to some destinations from Kuwait during this past national holiday season, which also witnessed varying price ranges for flights to some popular destinations. “We had many reservations to Russia that were canceled due to the present situation,” a travel agent told Kuwait Times. “Also, few tickets to Poland and Romania were canceled. On the other hand, there is no demand to Ukraine.”
Meanwhile, the price of some airlines’ tickets hiked to triple from the regular range during the national holidays. The ticket to Turkey for instance reached over KD 250. On the other hand, tickets to some destinations, such as the Philippines, dropped to almost their regular prices before the pandemic.
According to different local travel agencies, travelling is getting back to normal, but it is still yet to reach pre-pandemic levels. “If I compare the bookings in February 2022 to February 2019, the rate reached about 70 percent. After lifting most of the health precautions especially allowing unvaccinated Kuwaiti citizens to travel, and the opening of many destinations that were closed to tourists has helped refresh the travel sector,” Hani from Viano travel agency told Kuwait Times.
“The price of tickets hiked by about 300 percent for some popular destinations during these holidays. The most popular destinations are Turkey and Dubai, as those are suitable for short holidays. On the other hand, some destinations such as the United States is only popular in summer, as people travel there to spend at least a month or more,” he added.
*************************************
Celebrating National and Liberation Days is a joy for kids and adults in Kuwait. People are used to going on parades on the Gulf Road and at the Khairan and chalet areas. Since the 1980s, children were used to spraying white foam on each other, and few celebrated by spraying water.
A few years ago, the government banned using foam spray during the celebrations, so celebrators added another item to their celebration gear: water balloons. Added to a rise in using water guns in recent years, this kind of celebration caused huge consumption of water, which lead the government to advise people to abstain from celebrating in this way.
While the Ministry of Interior announced banning spraying water from water guns and throwing balloons during the national celebrations, police were seen allowing children to play with water guns and throw balloons at gatherings and parades on the Gulf Road. Meanwhile, the Ministry of Electricity and Water announced launching an awareness campaign against wasting water during national celebrations. Yet, it seems that people did not take the campaign seriously, as the celebrators used thousands of balloons filled with water during the holiday.
For the past two years, there were no celebrations due to the pandemic and banning of gathering. So, kids were very excited to join the celebrations this year. They expressed their excitement by throwing hundreds of water balloons on people and vehicles at the parade. While the throwing of balloons was expected by those who drove or walked on the Gulf Road, this practice was not expected in other areas where the damp celebrations spilled over.
Several people complained of being attacked by children in different neighborhoods far from the seaside and the Gulf Road. These incidents are even more dangerous since people in these places are not expecting such attack. A man in Hawally was seriously injured after being attacked by a balloon thrown directly to his eye. Another lady also complained of being a victim of a water balloon attack in Salmiya.
Head of the Al-Bahar Eye Center, Dr Abdullah Al-Baghli, said that throwing balloons filled with water on the face and eyes may cause serious injuries. “Such negative behavior should stop as it’s harmful for the health and waste of water,” he said in statements published by Al-Qabas daily.
“The emergency department at the Center received 92 cases of injuries in two days only (25th and 26th of February). These cases include 75 corneal abrasions or cuts, six hits near the eye, one cut wound to the eyelid, a blow around the eye that led to an orbital bone fracture, internal bleeding in the eye, a case of bleeding and external wound in the eye, and six other cases of injuries caused by throwing balloons,” added Baghli, saying the number of injuries in general this year was lower than the previous years before the pandemic.
*************************************
The World Bank Group commended on Tuesday the efforts made by Kuwait and 22 other countries over the last year to empower women economically. In its latest annual Women, Business and the Law (WBL) report, the World Bank said, “Despite the disproportionate effect on women’s lives and livelihood from the global pandemic, 23 countries reformed their laws in 2021 to take much-needed steps towards advancing women’s economic inclusion.” Globally, the highest number of reforms were made in the Parenthood, Pay, and Workplace indicators, according to the WBL 2022 report.
The Middle East and North Africa and Sub-Saharan Africa regions showed the largest improvements in the WBL Index in 2021. Dealing with Middle East and North Africa, the report said the region improved its laws the most due to reforms in five economies. “Kuwait prohibited gender discrimination in employment. Bahrain, Egypt, Lebanon, and Oman improved their laws,” it pointed out.
*************************************
Namaste Kuwait Festival
The curtain came down on the weeklong cultural festival ‘Namaste Kuwait’ on Monday which was organized by the Indian Embassy, Kuwait to celebrate Kuwait national days. The celebration brought alive the cultural heritage of India through music, dance, yoga and films.
The event also marked the 60th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between Kuwait and India and the 75th anniversary of India’s independence. The festival also coincided with the birth anniversary of the renowned Indian physicist and Nobel laureate Sir C V Raman.
“We had a very eventful week in Kuwait. We have seen a lot of Indians joining hands with our Kuwaiti friends to celebrate the week-long National Day celebrations,” Indian Ambassador Sibi George said in his opening remarks. He conveyed greetings to the leadership, the government and the people of Kuwait on the joyous occasion of the National Days.
Appreciating the strong people-to-people contact between India and Kuwait, the ambassador highlighted the richness of Indian culture and civilization. “Through this celebration, we have demonstrated again to our Kuwaiti friends the beauty of India, a land of continuous civilization and varied cultural heritage,” he added.
“We have a forward-looking action plan in place to broaden our engagement with Kuwait for 2022. We will have an exciting year with more political, economic and cultural engagement. I invite you all to be partners in our endeavor to celebrate India in Kuwait and further strengthen our long-standing dynamic partnership,” he said.
“When I look back to 2021, I am happy that despite the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic, we had an excellent year in our bilateral relations and also in our engagement with our Kuwaiti friends and our Indian community. We celebrated the 60th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations in a befitting manner. At the same time, we made it a point that those Indians who need our support always get it. Together, we were able to fight challenges thrown at us by the pandemic. Better consular services and the welfare of our community always remain our priorities,” he mentioned in his remarks.
On the concluding day of ‘Namaste Kuwait’, the ambassador thanked all the Indian associations, community members and artists and children who joined hands in this effort to showcase Indian culture and heritage. The event was live-streamed on the embassy’s social media platforms.
*************************************
World’s largest cruise ship
The World’s largest cruise ship — Royal Caribbean’s Wonder of the Seas — will finally welcome passengers as it is ready to begin its maiden journey in early March.
The cruise ship, which has been in the making for the last three years, is undergoing finishing touches before it sets off from Fort Lauderdale, Florida to the Caribbean on its first journey on March 4, 2022.
Built at the Chantiers de l’Atlantique shipyard in Saint-Nazaire, France, it is an 18-deck cruise ship and has a capacity for 6,988 guests and 2,300 crew members. With more than 20 dining venues and 11 bars available for passengers, it weighs 236, 857 gross tonnes, and is 362 meters long and 64 meters wide.
“From planning to delivery, we’ve utilized our expertise across Royal Caribbean, as well as incorporating our guest’s suggestions and travel partner feedback to create something truly awe-inspiring,” he added.
According to the cruise line, it offers “eight unique neighbourhoods, including the all-new Suite Neighbourhood”. Additionally, it also houses The Mason Jar – a new southern restaurant and bar, Wonder Playscape – an interactive outdoor play area, The Ultimate Abyss – the tallest slide at sea, the Flowrider – surf simulator, aqua theatre, rock climbing walls and the Central Park neighbourhood lined with more than 20,000 real plants.
The cruise ship will begin operating five to seven-night cruises from Fort Lauderdale, Florida to the Caribbean in March before heading to Barcelona, Spain and Rome in May.
The wonder of the Seas was originally slated for delivery in 2021. However, it was delayed due to the pandemic as the cruise line industry faced constant disruption in the last couple of years as a result of Covid-19.
*************************************
India’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations T.S. Tirumurti said that India’s evacuation efforts had been hampered by the events at the Ukraine border
As the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) met in a special session to vote on a resolution calling for Russia’s withdrawal from Ukraine, the U.N. Security Council (UNSC) met to discuss the humanitarian crisis that is developing in the region.
Expressing concern about the unfolding humanitarian crisis in Ukraine, India’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations (UNPR) T.S. Tirumurti said that India’s evacuation efforts had been hampered by the events at the Ukraine border. Mr. Tirumurti also offered evacuation assistance to citizens of developing countries and India’s neighbours whose nationals were stranded in Ukraine.
“Our evacuation efforts have been adversely impacted by the developments on the ground at the border crossings,” he said, informing the Security Council of the Government’s decision to send Ministers to oversee evacuation efforts in neighbouring European countries.
Mr. Tirumurti informed the Security Council that the Government was sending humanitarian aid to Ukraine on March 1 and had senior Ministers visiting Ukraine’s neighbours to discuss the arrival of Indian citizens in these countries. Earlier in the day, on Feb. 28, Ministry of External Affairs Spokesperson Arindam Bagchi had announced medical and other aid to Ukraine, when he announced that several Ministers were also travelling to Europe to oversee efforts.
Just under 1,400 Indian nationals have been brought back to India on six evacuation flights, Mr. Bagchi had said on Monday.
*************************************
The Ministry of Interior stated that Kuwait will implement collection of traffic violations registered in any of the GCC countries from travelers immediately before exiting their host country.
The General Traffic department is completing its final touches for an appropriate mechanism to collect traffic fines through the GCC traffic network system. The implementation date will be announced soon.
*************************************
The Ministry of Interior had earlier warned about spraying water and throwing water balloons, but unfortunately, some parents allowed their children to create this undisciplined behavior which caused quarrels during the national day celebrations.
Major General Faraj Al Zoubi called upon parents to educate their children and warn them that this violating behavior reflects negatively on celebration resulting in fights. This type of behavior generally results in injury and damages eyesight, reports Al Rai. He stated that showing patriotism is not by spraying water or destroying public property and attacking others.
One of such negative behavior went too far where one woman insulted the national flag by tying it around an animal. The law clearly states that if anyone insults the national flag or the flag of a friendly country, either by destroying or degrading is punishable by three years imprisonment and a fine not exceeding KD 250 either one or both penalties.
Major General Faraj Al Zoubi called upon parents to bring awareness and warn their children about such behaviors which are alien to Kuwait society and are rejected by everyone as they are offensive to the people of Kuwait.
*************************************
The Public Authority of Civil Information issued a warning to Kuwaiti citizens and expats not to respond to text messages that send links requesting for data. PACI does not send links requesting data.
There have been urls(links) sent by impersonators who use PACI logo stating expiring of Civil ID and to click and update personal and financial info .
*************************************
Air India’s second evacuation flight from Romanian capital Bucharest carrying 250 Indian nationals who were stranded in Ukraine landed at the Delhi airport in the early hours of February 27, Government officials said.
Civil Aviation Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia welcomed the evacuees at the airport by handing out roses to them.
India on Feb. 27 began the evacuation of its stranded citizens amid the Russian military offensive in Ukraine, with the first evacuation flight, AI1944, bringing back 219 people from Bucharest to Mumbai in the evening.
The second evacuation flight, AI1942, carrying 250 Indian citizens landed at the Delhi airport around 2.45 a.m. on Feb. 27, the officials said.
Air India’s third evacuation flight, AI1940, which will depart from Hungarian capital Budapest, is also scheduled to return with evacuees to Delhi on Sunday, they said.
The Ukrainian airspace has been closed for civil aircraft operations since February 24 morning when the Russian military offensive began. Therefore, the Indian evacuation flights are operating out of Bucharest and Budapest.
Indian nationals who reached the Ukraine-Romania border and Ukraine-Hungary border were taken to Bucharest and Budapest, respectively, by road with the assistance of Indian government officials so that they could be evacuated in these Air India flights, the officials said.
The Government is not charging the rescued citizens for the evacuation flights, they said.
Air India shared on Twitter photos of Mr. Scindia receiving the evacuees at the airport.
*************************************
Restaurants in Kuwait
After a period of stagnant business during the pandemic, people have started coming back to restaurants to dine in great numbers after all rules were suspended, this was confirmed by one of the partners of an Indian restaurant chain in Kuwait, Mughal Mahal, Ashok Kalra. He congratulated Kuwait on the occasion of the national holidays, as well as for the success of its efforts in controlling the epidemic and returning to normal life.
Abdullah, one of the restaurant managers in Salmiya area, said the crowd has returned back as it was during pre pre-pandemic era, but are suffering due to shortage of labor as many of their employees were unable to return back to Kuwait after the pandemic ended.
One of the citizens decided to give rest to his domestic workers and take them along with their children to dine in a restaurant for lunch stating they need rest. She stated the best way to celebrate national holidays is to go outside and enjoy beautiful weather all day.
Ahmed Al Hariri said we are used to eating in restaurants throughout the year but during holidays our visits are more frequent, reports Al Rai. They had lunch at another restaurant and for dessert they came to this restaurant as they have a large selection of desserts. In turn Hashem Al Eidan said his family prefers to spend the day in the garden and prefers to take them to garden restaurants where crowds are limited.
*************************************
Coronavirus Vaccination Kuwait
Spokesman of Kuwait’s Ministry of Health unveiled on Saturday the new schedules of work at coronavirus vaccination centers during the celebrations marking the country’s National Day and Independence Day, from February 27 to March 3.
Kuwait Vaccination Center at Mishref Fairground will be open for people aged above 40 from 9:00 am to 2:00 pm without the requirement of prior appointment, Dr. Abdullah Al-Sanad said in a press release tonight.
The primary healthcare centers, namely the centers of Al-She’b, Salwa, Omariya, Masayel and Al-Na’iem, will be open between 3:00 pm and 9:00 pm, he added
*************************************
Kuwait's Paralympic team
The Kuwaiti national Paralympic team returned to the homeland, Sunday, with a total of 34 medals, following participation in third West Asia Paralympic games taking place in Bahrain.
The team scored third place in terms of number of medals with 16 gold medals, 11 silver and seven bronze. Participating in the tournament, launched in February 20 and lasted seven days, are 11 countries and more than 700 athletes.
Vice chairman of the Olympic committee Mohammad Jafar commended the great achievement of the players upon their arrival. He stated to the press that the committee is proud of such achievements and aspires for even greater ones.
On his part, chairman of the Paralympic committee Nasser Al-Ajmi stated that this an unprecedented accomplishment, achieved through the combined efforts of the delegation members.
Al-Ajmi affirmed that the committee is keen on continuously developing the sporting scene and cooperating with various sporting clubs that are concerned with a spectrum of disabilities.
National wheelchair basketball team coach and gold medalist Husam Abbas stated that the competition was fierce but the blue team proved itself formidable by winning the first place for the second time in a row.
Ping-Pong gold medalist Malak Al-Enzi, with a bronze medal in discus throwing, expressed her joy at having attained two medals for her country.
The Iraqi national team was awarded first place, followed by the Emirati team in second.
*************************************
Kuwait's 31st Liberation Day
People of Kuwait recall the country’s liberation from the Iraqi occupation on the occasion of the country’s 31st Liberation Day. They remember the great sacrifices made by the patriots for freedom of the homeland. Although, Kuwait’s invasion on August 2, 1990, was quite a brutal one, the Kuwaiti people rebuffed the aggression affirming their solidarity with the legitimate leadership that had been headed by the late Amir Sheikh Jaber Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah for defending the homeland’s sovereignty and freedom.
The late Amir, despite enormous challenges at the time, masterminded a national campaign to rally international support for the just Kuwaiti cause. In his historic address to the United Nations, Sheikh Jaber had stated, “I have come with a message from people who love and have worked for peace, aiding those in need and reconciling adversaries.” Their security and stability have been jeopardized due to their belief in the ideal message of our religion Islam that is also stipulated by international charters.” I came with a message of people whose territories were a minaret for peaceful co-existence and brotherhood and nowadays they lost their land but refused to surrender to the occupation no matter how brutal and repressive it may be.”
Sheikh Jaber had succeeded in drawing solidarity from various states and organizations, namely the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), that proved to be the core for diplomatic efforts against the aggression, demanding unconditional withdrawal of the occupiers. GCC foreign ministers held an emergency meeting in Cairo on August 3, 1990, and lobbied for holding an extraordinary Arab summit in the Egyptian capital on August 10.
Thanks to efforts by GCC countries, other brotherly and friendly states, the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) issued a series of resolution namely resolution 660 that condemned the aggression demanding unconditional pullout of the occupiers and resolution 678 that supported necessary means to implement the relevant resolutions, restore regional security and peace in addition to several others that called for wiping out the repercussions of the aggression.
Moreover, the brotherly and friendly countries put military and material resources at the disposal of liberating Kuwait. Worth recalling was also the crucial role played by late Father Amir Sheikh Saad Al-Abdullah Al-Salem Al-Sabah who commanded the liberation heroes and facilitated settlement of the Amir Sheikh Jaber in Saudi Arabia where he set up a government in exile securing honorable livelihood for Kuwaitis in and outside Kuwait as well as supporting the national resistance.
For his part, the late Amir Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah employed his diplomatic expertise for securing international sympathy that led to driving the aggressors out of the country. Furthermore, the Kuwaitis recall, on the occasion, the pivotal role played by the late Saudi King Fahad Bin Abdulaziz who hosted the Kuwaitis in his country and contributed with material and military support. Other GCC states had followed suit supporting the Kuwaitis during the hard times and rejecting the flagrant aggression on their homeland.
The late US President George Bush senior had instantly declared siding with Kuwait in the face of the aggression and Washington lobbied for holding an emergency session of the UNSC during which resolution 660 was adopted, demanding withdrawal of the aggressors from Kuwait. On January 19, 1990, Bush persuaded the US Senate of the necessity to employ military force for liberating Kuwait, declaring a war on the Iraqi occupiers and the commitment to free the country.
Although the Kuwaiti people were deeply bruised with the aggression, a campaign was launched in 1993 to aid the Iraqi people. The Kuwaiti Red Crescent Society (KRCS) upon instructions by the late Amir Sheikh Jaber Al-Ahmad dispatched aid to the Iraqi refugees in Iran as of April 1995, choosing to side with the stricken Iraqi people from humanitarian considerations and sentiments. Additionally, Kuwait in the wake of the fall of the defunct Iraqi regime provided relief supplies, in 2003, to the Iraqi refugees and the displaced elsewhere.
In July 2016, Kuwait pledged $176 million worth of aid for Iraq at an international donors’ conference. Kuwait, after it was designated as “the center for humanitarian action” by the UN, hosted, in February 2018, an international convention for supporting Iraq’s reconstruction. Stakeholders pledged $30 billion in aid to help the Iraqis who had suffered from a series of wars. The late Amir Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad visited Iraq on June 19, 2019, seeking to preserve brotherly ties and fold files of sticking issues, an approach maintained by the current Amir, His Highness Sheikh Nawaf Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah. – KUNA
*************************************
