Monday, August 21, 2017

Spain identifies driver of Barcelona rampage van as hunt continues

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Spain identifies driver of Barcelona rampage van as hunt continues

Spain identifies driver of Barcelona rampage van as hunt continuesSpanish police said Monday they had identified the driver of a van that mowed down pedestrians in Barcelona, killing 13, as an international manhunt for the suspect believed to be a Moroccan national deepened. The 22-year-old Moroccan is believed to be the last remaining member of a 12-person cell still at large in Spain or abroad, with the others killed by police or detained over last week's twin attacks in Barcelona and the seaside resort of Cambrils. Investigators have honed in on an imam, Abdelbaki Es Satty, aged in his 40s, who is among the suspects and is believed to have radicalised youths in Ripoll, a small town at the foot of the Pyrenees.


How high is air pollution in your city and how does it compare to the most polluted cities in the world?

How high is air pollution in your city and how does it compare to the most polluted cities in the world?Pollution is a greater global threat than Ebola and HIV, according to warnings by the World Health Organisation.  According to its recent report, one in four deaths among children aged under five are now due to environmental hazards such as air pollution and contaminated water. Previously this year, air pollution levels in London were worse than those in Beijing for a brief period - with the UK capital's pollutants frequently breaking UK limits.  Now, the UK Government plans to tackle such dangers by banning diesel and petrol cars by 2040. But how bad is air pollution in other areas of the UK? Search for your postcode to see how bad air pollution is in your area How high is air pollution in your area? How does the UK compare to the world? According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), London is just a mid-table city when it comes to the international league table of polluted places. London only ranked 1,389th out of the nearly  3,000 cities and towns around the world monitored in the WHO's database of annual air pollution readings. Which cities have the worst air pollution levels? WHO guidelines state that cities should aim to have an annual average of no more than 10 micrograms of PM2.5 (very fine particulate matter) for every cubic metre of air. London had an annual PM2.5 average of 15 μg/m3 in 2013, far lower than Beijing's average of 85.2 μg/m3. These particles are very small in diameter and are classed as carcinogenic by leading health organisations. Thousands of deaths a year are attributable to air pollution in the UK. London pollution - what causes it and how can you stay safe? 01:33 Which cities have the highest air pollution levels worldwide? According to the WHO, the most polluted city in the world is Zabol in Iran. Zabol's PM2.5 measurements were found to average a massive 217 μg/m3 for the latest available year - more than 20 times higher than the recommended level. The next two entries on the list are both located in India (Gwalior and Allahabad) while the first non-Asian city on the list is Bamenda in Cameroon which came in eighth place.  Tetovo in Macedonia was the most polluted European city in the database, followed by Tuzla in  Bosnia and Herzegovina. The most polluted city in the UK isn't actually London. Glasgow topped that list, followed by Scunthorpe and Leeds with London in sixth place. However, given that these rankings are based on figures taken in 2013, the situation may have changed since. London may also experience greater peaks in air pollution but these figures are all annual averages. Table - The 100 most air polluted cities in the world Asian cities tend to be more polluted The WHO's database is by no means a comprehensive list of every city in the world - many places will simply not be able to provide air pollution figures of sufficient quality to be included. However, from the figures available, Asian cities were the likeliest to exceed the 10 μg/m3 guideline for PM2.5. Just four of the 632 Asian locations included in the data were found to be below this level, meaning that the equivalent of 99.4 per cent of Asian cities exceeded it. African cities were the next most likely to annually exceed their recommended levels of air pollution while towns and cities in Oceania were the least likely.


Total solar eclipse: When is it, where is it happening and how to watch in the UK

Total solar eclipse: When is it, where is it happening and how to watch in the UKWhat's happening? Today, all of North America will witness an eclipse of the sun for the first time in 99 years, where the Moon will pass in front of the Sun casting darkness across swathes of the Earth's surface. Dubbed the Great American Eclipse, the moment will see the Sun, the Moon and the Earth become perfectly aligned in a once-in-a-lifetime celestial spectacle seen from the Pacific Ocean to the Atlantic Ocean. Although we won't see a perfect alignment in the UK, we will be able to see a partial eclipse (where the moon covers only a part of the sun). 10 amazing places in America to watch the 2017 solar eclipse Who will see it? Everyone in North America, parts of South America, Africa and Europe - including the UK - will see at least a partial solar eclipse, where the moon covers only a part of the sun. However, 14 states across the United States will experience a total solar eclipse with more than two minutes of darkness descending in the middle of the day over the course of 100 minutes. More than 12 million Americans live inside the path of totality and more than half of the nation live within 400 miles of it. Millions more are expected to travel to cities along the path to witness the phenomenon.  Where and when to see the eclipse What causes an eclipse? The diameter of the Sun is 400 times that of the Moon but it lies 400 times further away - which means if you are in exactly the right alignment on the surface of the Earth at the right time, you will see the two celestial bodies overlap exactly. What creates a total solar eclipse Where can I see the eclipse in the UK? Sadly Brits won't get a total eclipse like our friends across the pond, but we will be treated to a slight partial eclipse which will still be worth watching.  It will be visible in parts of England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland from around 19:35 on August 21 - but make sure you're in a spot where there's no cloud.  UK eclipse circumstances for August 21 2017 What areas will see total blackout? Anyone within the path of totality will see the sky become dark for several minutes as the moon completely covers the sun. The path is relatively thin, around 70 miles wide, and stretches from Salem, Oregon to Charleston, South Carolina. It will first be seen at Lincoln Beach, Oregon at 9:05 PDT, with totality beginning at 10:16 PDT. Over the next 90 minutes, it will cross through Oregon, Idaho, Wyoming, Montana, Nebraska, Iowa, Kansas, Missouri, Illinois, Kentucky, Tennessee, Georgia, and North and end near Charleston, South Carolina at 14:28 EDT. The lunar shadow will leave the US at 04:09 EDT. Its longest duration will be near Carbondale, Illinois, where the sun will be completely covered for two minutes and 40 seconds. What time can I see the total eclipse? Here are the mid-eclipse times for some of the major towns and cities along the path of totality, according to Nasa. All times are local.  Where to see it | The Great American solar eclipse Will there be a live stream? Yes - Nasa will host an Eclipse Megacast for four hours during the eclipse which will be picked up by local, national and international TV stations. You can also follow all the action via the Telegraph. How can I see it safely? Never look directly at the Sun, even through sunglasses or dark material such as a bin liner or photographic negative. Makeshift filters may not screen out the harmful infrared radiation that can burn the retina of the eye risking permanent eye damage and blindness. Also, viewers must never use binoculars or a telescope. Wear special eclipse viewing glasses - not ordinary sunglasses - or construct a simple pinhole camera which projects an image of the Sun onto a blank piece of paper. Solar eclipse: how to watch the eclipse safely When will Britain next see a solar eclipse? There was a pretty spectacular eclipse in Britain in March 2015, but the last total eclipse in the UK was in August 1999. You might be waiting a while for the next decent one too - it won't take place until August 12, 2026. On that date up to 95 per cent of the Sun will be obscured. Britain will not see a total solar eclipse until September 23, 2090. How we watched the 1999 solar eclipse - in 90 seconds 01:42 Total solar eclipses in history Eclipses have both fascinated and terrified civilisations for centuries. When King Henry I of England, the son of William the Conqueror, died in 1133, his death happened to coincide with a total solar eclipse plummeting the nation into darkness for four minutes and 38 seconds. Historian William of Malmesbury wrote in 1140 that "the darkness was so great that people at first thought the world was ending."


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