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Friday
October 31, 2003
get hit again! Second gigantic flare erupts from the sun; Expected to arrive on Halloween Just when we thought we were through the worst of it, a second gigantic solar flare has occurred, sending another coronal mass ejection directly towards us which is expected to arrive on Halloween. The X10-class flare was detected by an orbiting GOES satellite at 3:37 p.m. EST and peaked at 3:49 p.m., according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration web site. "It's like the Earth is
looking right down the barrel of a giant gun pointed at us by
the Sun...and it's taken two big shots at us," says John
Kohl, a solar astrophysicist at the Harvard-Smithsonian Center
for Astrophysics (CfA) and principal investigator for the Ultraviolet
Coronagraph Spectrometer on board NASA's Solar and Heliospheric
Observatory (SOHO) spacecraft. - Read
more... Alaska: Lt.
Governor Certifies Senate Vacancy Petition - Based on a decision
by Superior Court Judge Mark Rindner, Lieutenant Governor Loren
Leman on Thursday certified for distribution an initiative petition
entitled: "An Act relating to filling a vacancy in the Office
of United States Senator." If adopted, the initiative to
require a special election to fill a vacancy in the U.S. Senate
would appear on the November 2004 ballot. - Read
more... |
Alaska: New
Rule Would Allow Destruction of Secret Pharmaceutical Pricing
Information; AK Attorney General Joins Other States Urging Withdrawal
- Attorney General Gregg Renkes joined 43 other states, the District
of Columbia, and Puerto Rico in sending a letter to Secretary
of Health and Human Services Secretary Tommy Thompson and Center
for Medicare and Medicaid Services Administrator Thomas A. Scully
urging them to immediately withdraw a new rule that would allow
pharmaceutical companies to destroy crucial drug pricing information
that could interfere with ongoing state litigation and investigations
into drug pricing practices that have allegedly defrauded Medicaid
programs. Massachusetts Attorney General Tom Reilly and New Hampshire
Attorney General Peter W. Heed sponsored the letter. - Read
more... Alaska: Marine
security act finalized, Alaska ports made more secure - The
final rule for the Marine Transportation Security Act was published
in the Code of Federal Register Oct. 22. According the a USCG
news release, these regulations significantly strengthen the
security of our ports by requiring preventative security measures
and plans to deter threats and provide a framework for response
in the event of an attack. The requirements have a wide reaching
affect for Alaska ports, facilities and vessels. - Read
more... Alaska: Wolves In Bullet Proof Vests Protest
Killing from Aircraft -
Wolf-appearing animals
in bullet proof vests will be on display near the State's Board
of Game meeting on Monday to protest the Governor's approval
of aerial wolf killing, according to the Alaska Wildlife Alliance
(AWA). - Read
more... National: Sen.
Murkowski Urges Passage of 'Lucy's Law' To Aid Federal Employees
- Thursday U.S. Sen. Lisa Murkowski urged passage of legislation
- the so-called Lucy's Law - that would provide financial assistance
to the families of currently financially unprotected federal
employees in Alaska who die in the line of duty. - Read
more... Education: Class
size: Counting students can count; Research shows that smaller
classes can improve student performance - As leaders
in local school districts and state legislatures across the country
grapple with class sizes for students, research has shown that
small classes can deliver lasting benefits, especially for minority
and low-income students. Such findings are described in the latest
issue of Research Points, published by the American Educational
Research Association. - Read
more... Go to Sitnews (Front pages - archives) Stories In The News Ketchikan, Alaska |
