Russian uranium to Japan & France[ 444 ]

Russia signs contracts to supply uranium to Japan, France

MOSCOW, October 2 (RIA Novosti) -02/10/2009, 17:27-

Russia's state-run corporation Rosatom has signed contracts worth $3 billion in total to supply low-enriched uranium to Japan and France, Russian civil nuclear power corporation Atomenergoprom said on Friday.

"By the end of 2009 other deals, worth up to $2 billion in total, could be signed," Atomenergoprom's press service said.

A source at Techsnabexport, a company affiliated with Atomenergoprom, told RIA Novosti it had plans within the next few months to sign one or two new contracts with the United States for the provision of "high-tech enrichment services."

Russia shipped a batch of low-enriched uranium to the United States in mid-September, bringing to 11,000 tons the total exported under a 1993 bilateral agreement.

The Megatons to Megawatts agreement (also known as the HEU-LEU agreement) aims to convert 500 metric tons of high-enriched uranium (HEU), the equivalent of approximately 20,000 nuclear warheads, from dismantled Russian nuclear weapons into low-enriched uranium (LEU), which is then converted into nuclear fuel for use in U.S. commercial reactors.

Piza Tower..in planet Saturn....[ 443 ]

Scientists Discover Tower of Pisa on Saturn Ring

Technologies and discoveries

PRAVDA.Ru-17-8-08

Planet Saturn has a prominent system of rings, consisting mostly of ice particles with a smaller amount of rocky debris and dust. NASA’s Cassini spacecraft has recently discovered new objects and strange shadows on the rings.

The unusual objects were detected due to a sharp angle of sunlight cast on the rings. Cassini captured the object shaped as a tower on the outside edge of the F ring.

Cassini is a joint robotic spacecraft mission currently studying planet Saturn and its moons.

The shadow cast by the object implies that it is protruding upwards for about 2 kilometers. The object is a little bit inclined that’s why the scientists called it the Tower of Pisa.

However, the object has nothing in common with real towers. By the astronomers’ opinion, the object appeared after a cosmic body, an asteroid or a big meteorite, passed through the ring.

The ‘tower’ can be clearly visible with the aided eye now, due to the advantageous sunlight. This happens once in 15 years. Moreover, this object is not unique. The scientists spotted similar objects on other rings.

Earlier Cassini captured a strange shadow cast on the Saturn rings, though quickly found the source. The shadow was cast by the inner moon of Saturn, Mimas (about 396 kilometers in diameter), NASA said.

Ιρλανδία - ΕΕ, Φαβορί το «ναι»...[ 442a ]

Στο Δουβλίνο στρέφει το βλέμμα της η Ευρώπη γιά το μέλλον της Συνθήκης της Λισαβόνας

Οι Ιρλανδοί ψηφίζουν, η Ευρώπη περιμένει

Δουβλίνο(In.Gr)-2/10/09 20:21

Το ιρλανδικό δημοψήφισμα θα κρίνει την κατάληξη του «τεχνητού κώματος» στο οποίο έχει πέσει η Συνθήκη της Λισαβόνας, που θα κάνει την Ευρώπη περισσότερο ομοσπονδία παρά διασυνοριακή ένωση. Οι Ιρλανδοί, που είχαν απορρίψει τη συνθήκη την πρώτη φορά, αναμένεται να ψηφίσουν υπέρ, με την οικονομία τους να χειροτερεύει. Τα τρία εκατομμύρια των Ιρλανδών ψηφοφόρων δεν είχαν δείξει ιδιαίτερη ζέση κατά την «ύψιστη άσκηση» δημοκρατίας για το δημοψήφισμα μέχρι το απόγευμα, όταν μόλις το 20%-25% του σώματος είχε προσέλθει στις κάλπες. Οι Αρχές της χώρας όμως περιμένουν αύξηση της προσέλευσης προς το τέλος της διαδικασίας, όταν οι Ιρλανδοί θα γυρίζουν από τις δουλειές τους για να φύγουν για το Σαββατοκύριακο. «Προς το παρόν φαίνεται ότι το αποτέλεσμα θα είναι θετικό, αλλά ο κόσμος πρέπει να έρθει να ψηφίσει» ανέφερε ο Ιρλανδός υπουργός Ευρωπαϊκών Υποθέσεων, Ντικ Ρος. Όλα τα κοινοβουλευτικά κόμματα έχουν καλέσει τους ψηφοφόρους να υπερψηφίσουν τη Συνθήκη της Λισαβόνας, και το αποτέλεσμα θα γίνει γνωστό το Σάββατο. Στο πρώτο δημοψήφισμα για τη Συνθήκη, οι Ιρλανδοί είχαν ταχθεί εναντίον, αλλά από τότε έχουν αλλάξει πολλά: Η ιρλανδική οικονομία έχει πληγεί σημαντικά από την οικονομική κρίση, και πολλοί φοβούνται ότι δεύτερη απόρριψη θα απομονώσει τη χώρα --τρίτη Λισαβόνα δεν πρόκειται να υπάρξει. H Συνθήκη σκόνταψε το 2008 στο ιρλανδικό «όχι», το οποίο ακολούθησαν κάποιες παραχωρήσεις στο Δουβλίνο: Η «δεύτερη», αναθεωρημένη Λισαβόνα επανεπιβεβαιώνει την στρατιωτική ουδετερότητα της Ιρλανδίας, αλλά και υποχωρεί στο σχέδιό της να μικρύνει την Κομισιόν, που μάλλον θα κόστιζε μία ιρλανδική έδρα από τον εκτελεστικό βραχίονα της ΕΕ. Αυτή η έκδοση όμως είναι η τελευταία, και αν οι Ιρλανδοί ψηφίσουν και πάλι «εναντίον», η Λισαβόνα θα εγκαταληφθεί οριστικά. Η διαφορά απόδοσης μεταξύ του ιρλανδικού δεκαετούς ομολογιακού δανείου και του αντίστοιχου γερμανικού, ενδεικτική για την πορεία της οικονομίας μίας χώρας της ζώνης του ευρώ, είναι μεγάλη και αρκετοί φοβούνται ότι ένα «όχι» θα την διευρύνει ακόμη περισσότερο. Το δημοψήφισμα είναι στοίχημα και για τον πρωθυπουργό της χώρας, Μπράιαν Κόουεν, που πρέπει να αντιμετωπίσει την υψηλή ανεργία και θα αναγκαστεί να προχωρήσει σε περικοπές των δημόσιων δαπανών. Η Συνθήκη της Λισαβόνας θα δώσει στην Ευρώπη πρόεδρο και συγκροτημένη εξωτερική πολιτική, αλλά για να γίνει αυτό πρέπει να κυρωθεί και από τα 27 κράτη μέλη. Αν η Ιρλανδία πει το «ναι», η απόφαση θα περάσει πλέον στην Πολωνία και την Τσεχία. Ο Πολωνός πρόεδρος έχει δηλώσει ότι θα προχωρήσει τη συνθήκη, αν οι Ιρλανδοί την επικυρώσουν. Newsroom ΔΟΛ, με πληροφορίες από Associated Press

Brazil for the 2016 Olympics [ 441 ]

Rio de Janeiro to host 2016 Olympics

• VIDEO

COPENHAGEN, Denmark (CNN) -2/10/09 ,,1o min ego...-

Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, will host the 2016 Summer Olympic Games, the International Olympic Committee announced Friday.

Confetti flies in Rio de Janeiro after the IOC announces the city will host the 2016 Games.

The announcement brought tears to Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, who dabbed his eyes with a handkerchief several times in a news conference afterward.

"Our hour has arrived," he said. "It has arrived."

In Rio, jubilation erupted at the world-famous Copacabana beach, where thousands of people gathered to hear the announcement.

Rio organizers promised to start working immediately to make the Games a success.

"Maybe some of the people tomorrow can rest," said Rio 2016 President Carlos Nuzman. "I'm not [resting]."

Rio beat out Madrid, Spain, in the final round. Chicago, Illinois, and Tokyo, Japan, were eliminated in earlier rounds.

For Rio, a major appeal was bringing the Olympics to South America for the first time.

IOC President Jacques Rogge said in the news conference afterward that in addition to its excellent bid, Rio had the "extra-added value of going for the first time to a continent that's never had the Games."

He also noted that Brazil helped its chances this year when it did not get the 2012 Games awarded four years ago.

"Rio remained humble," he said. "They wanted to listen, to repair their shortcomings."

More than half of Rio's Olympic venues are built, including state-of-the-art facilities constructed for the 2007 Pan and Parapan American Games: the magnificent Joao Havelange Stadium (the proposed 2016 venue for athletics), the Maria Lenk Aquatic Center, the Rio Olympic Arena (which will host gymnastics and wheelchair basketball), the Rio Olympic Velodrome, the National Equestrian Center and its close neighbor, the National Shooting Center.

Rio will hold the Games from August 5-21 and its theme will "Live your passion." Watch Brazil delegation celebrate as Rio is announced as winner »

According to Rio's bid, the Games will be held in four zones with varying socio-economic characteristics:

• Barra, the heart of the Games, is an expanding area of Rio that will require "considerable infrastructure and accommodation development." It will house the Olympic and media villages and some venues.

• Copacabana, a world-famous beach and major tourist attraction, will host outdoor sports in temporary venues.

• Maracana, the most densely populated of the zones, will contain an athletic stadium and the Maracana Stadium, which will host the opening and closing ceremonies. Major redevelopment is planned for the zone.

• Deodoro has little infrastructure but the highest proportion of young people. It will require construction of Olympic venues. The city's bid was helped by a strong economy and guaranteed funding. Brazil's economy is now the 10th largest in the world -- and predicted to be fifth by 2016.

Brazil told the IOC its commitment to the Olympics could be seen in the investment already under way in Rio. Maracana Stadium will close next year for two years of refurbishment.

The areas around it will be renovated, with improved access and transportation links. The entire neighborhood will reborn, the Rio committee said, to host the final of the 2014 FIFA World Cup.

Work is already under way on the ongoing development of the Olympic Training Center, which includes many of the state-of-the-art venues built for the 2007 Pan and Parapan American Games.

This was Madrid's third attempt at hosting the Olympic and Paralympic Summer Games.

Madrid presented a "very capable" bid, with good transportation infrastructure and a number of venues already in place, said Ed Hula, editor of the Olympics Web site Around the Rings. Watch Madrid celebrate making it to final round »

Madrid's chances might have been hampered, however, by a recent tradition that consecutive Summer Olympics aren't staged on the same continent. The London 2012 Olympics will have happened just four years before 2016.

"Although there's no rule against it, the IOC has yet to award consecutive Summer Games to the same continent since 1952 in Helsinki," Hula said.

Chicago was the first city to be eliminated. The announcement -- unexpected by many -- came just hours after President Barack Obama and his wife, Michelle, delivered personal pleas to the Olympic committee praising the virtues of their home city. Watch Obama makes his pitch to IOC »

"I'm totally stunned. I thought we had a great opportunity," former NBA great Michael Jordan told CNN. Jordan, who led the Chicago Bulls to six NBA titles, said the city would have been "perfect for the world to explore." He said Chicago is "deserving of an event of that magnitude" and hopes it will try again.

U.S. Rep. Danny Davis, a Chicago Democrat, said the loss is "kind of heartbreaking. ... A tremendous amount of effort has been put into trying to win the bid."

The response around the city was not all negative, however. Many residents are "almost glad the distraction of the Olympics" won't be there, noted CNN's Ali Velshi, who was in downtown Chicago when the news was announced.

Many residents feel it will allow local political and business leaders to "focus attention back on what Chicago needs to do," Velshi said.

Obama, the first U.S. president to make an Olympic bid in person, was flying back to Washington when the announcement was made. He was disappointed with the outcome but not sorry he made the trip to Copenhagen, White House spokesman Robert Gibbs said.

The heads of state for the other three finalists also made personal pitches.

Spain's King Juan Carlos and Queen Sofia and Spanish President Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero pushed the case for Madrid.

Recently elected Japanese Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama made a bid for Tokyo.

And Brazilian President Lula was joined by soccer legend and Brazilian native Pelé as they advertised the benefits of a Rio Games.

An animated Lula, surrounded by Rio supporters, said at a news conference after the announcement that Brazil was due to get the Olympics.

"Among the 10 major economies of the world, Brazil was the only country that had not received the Olympic and Paralympic Games," he said. "For us, it will hardly be our last Olympics. For us, it will be an opportunity to be equal. It will increase self-esteem for Brazilians, will consolidate recent conquests and stimulate new advances."

Indonesia quakes, UN official report[ 440 ]

At least 1,100 dead from Indonesia quakes, UN official says

October 1, 2009 -- Updated 2050 GMT (0450 HKT)

• VIDEO
• MAP

JAKARTA, Indonesia (CNN) -- At least 1,100 people are dead in Indonesia as a result of two large earthquakes in as many days, United Nations humanitarian chief John Holmes told reporters Thursday.

Family members mourn in front of a collapsed school in Padang on Thursday.

Hundreds more are believed to be injured, Holmes said. "These numbers, I fear, will rise as more information becomes available," he said. "It's still feared that thousands of people are trapped under damaged houses and many buildings."

Telecommunications are difficult into the region, roads are cut off and the hardest-hit area, including the city of Padang, lacks power and other services, Holmes said. Heavy rainfall also has hindered search and rescue efforts.

Corpses lay stacked outside hospitals in Padang as night fell Thursday, casting nearly the entire city in darkness.

The 6.6 magnitude quake Thursday hit South Sumatra (9:52 p.m. Wednesday ET), about 100 miles (160 km) from Bengkulu, the U.S. Geological Survey said. An earlier quake Wednesday had a magnitude of 7.6.

Worst hit was the West Sumatran capital of Padang, where officials estimate 376 people perished.

Rustam Pakaya, the head of the Ministry of Health's crisis center, said thousands of people may be trapped by collapsed buildings and houses.

Officials say casualties could surpass those of the massive Yogyakarta earthquake three years ago, given the intensity and the spread of the damage this week. The second set of tremors Thursday only magnified the scope of the disaster.

In May 2006, a 6.3 magnitude quake centered in the central Java city of Yogyakarta killed more than 5,000 people and triggered fears of an eruption of a nearby volcano.

On Thursday, many people were wandering the streets of Padang "stunned and dazed," said CNN's Mark Phillips. Some were searching the rubble for survivors, he said, but "there's also a feeling that there aren't that many survivors left."

Wednesday's quake reduced buildings to rubble in Padang, a city of nearly 1 million. People used hammers, chisels and bare hands to dig through debris. Staff at a local hospital treated the injured outside the semi-collapsed building as bodies lay in makeshift morgues.

The earthquakes caused widespread power and phone outages, making it difficult for authorities and aid organizations to evaluate damage.

Thursday evening, the only light came from generators at Padang's hospital and airport. Several of the hospital's buildings were severely damaged, said CNN's Dan Rivers. Damage in the town itself was spotty; some buildings remained intact near others in ruins.

In Padang, thousands of people slept outside Wednesday night for fear of more tremors, said Yenni Suryani of Catholic Relief Services. She said rain fell Wednesday night and people are in desperate need of adequate shelter.

Amelia Merrick, the operations director for World Vision Indonesia, described the situation as "quite devastating."

"Bridges have gone down, phone lines are in total disrepair," she said. "It's difficult for us to assess the situation."

Wayne Ulrich, the Red Cross disaster management coordinator in Indonesia, said hundreds of houses were damaged, the extent still unclear.

Padang

• Low-lying coastal city of 900,000 on Sumatra island
  
• Capital city of Western Sumatra province
  
• Known for distinctive cuisine
  
• An important port to trade raw materials such as coffee, copper, rubber and cement
  
• Runs along the fault line of the Eurasian and Pacific tectonic plates -- the same fault line that triggered 2004 tsunami of Aceh province
  
  Sources: Indonesian government, Lonely Planet and Reuters

"We have concerns that a hospital has been partially damaged; a market has caught on fire; the airport was closed down for inspection because of the fear if they landed any planes" it might cause problems, Ulrich said.

He said access to the impacted areas was obstructed in parts.

It's "blocked by all kinds of problems: frightened people out in the streets, cars and people trying to get out of the city." Watch Ulrich discuss rescue efforts »

Wednesday's quake was felt in nearby cities including Medan and Bengkulu, where people panicked and ran outside in search of higher ground, fearing a tsunami. But it was also felt as far away as Singapore and Malaysia.

"I did feel the tremor in the office today somewhere between 5 and 6 p.m.," said Ratna Osman, who works in a single-story office building in Petaling Jaya, just outside Malaysia's capital Kuala Lumpur. "I asked [a co-worker] if there's an earthquake somewhere -- either that or I was hallucinating.

"At first, I thought the chair I was sitting on had a screw loose or something," Osman said.

The region is accustomed to earthquakes, and locals have been taught to identify safe places in case of a tsunami, according to Sean Granville-Ross, the Mercy Corps country director for Indonesia.

"We hope that preparation is now paying off," he said.

Earlier this month, an earthquake in West Java killed 57 people.

The Web site for one of Indonesia's main newspapers, The Jakarta Globe, crashed for a while, partly as a result of the heavy traffic from people trying to find out about the quake, the paper said in a Twitter post.

Aid agencies kicked into gear to help those in need.

"We had aid ready because this area of Indonesia is susceptible to this type of tragedy," said Jane Cocking, humanitarian director for Oxfam. "Communications with the quake-zone are difficult, and we are hoping for the best but having to plan for the worst."

CNN's Andy Saputra in Jakarta, Indonesia, and Tricia Escobedo in Atlanta, Georgia, contributed to this report.