Glory, Glory, Another Major F**kup by NASA

Glory mission has failed for the second time

Glory and the launcher probably ended up in the Southern Pacific Ocean: Launch director

Taxpayers observed in agony and despair as another $500 million dollars of their borrowed money sank in the ocean.

An autistic impression of Glory satellite orbiting Earth. Source: NASA

The Taurus XL rocket’s payload fairing failed to separate about 3  minutes into the launch as planned, making the rocket too heavy to reach the correct orbit.

The launch director said the satellite and the launcher had probably fallen in the Southern Pacific Ocean.

The previous Taurus XL launch of the Orbiting Carbon Observatory also ended in a similar abysmal failure in February 2009 when payload fairing separation failed to occur.

NASA SNAFU: Launch video clip of the failed Taurus XL rocket carrying NASA’s Glory satellite

NASA’s Failed Orbiting Carbon Observatory and its Taurus booster. “The fairing is a clamshell structure that encapsulates the satellite as it travels through the atmosphere.” Source: NASA

Corporate Sabotage, or Sheer Incompetence?

It would be difficult to pin down the second failure on the sheer incompetence of NASA teams involved. It would become increasingly clear however that the Glory failure may have been one giant leap toward “necessitating” the  corporate takeover of yet another national institution [See references concerning Googlification of NOAA on this blog.]

Tasman Glacier Ice Break – Satellite Image

New Zealand Earthquake Shakes Ice from Tasman Glacier

The New Zealand earthquake which struck Christchurch  on February 22, 2011, also broke a 27 million ton chunk of ice off the Tasman Glacier. A false-color image of the glacier and surrounding area taken by ASTER on NASA’s Terra satellite on March 2, shows the calved iceberg, which broke into smaller pieces as it fell into the water, at the far end of the lake. Plant-covered land is red. The dirt-covered glacier is dark brown, ditto the exposed rocks. White shows the snow on the mountain tops to the west; the river and lake are silver. Source: NASA-EO. Click image to enlarge.

State of New Zealand Glaciers

Owing to human-induced climate change, triggered by destructive activities like tourism, intensive industrial farming… , Tasman Glacier, New Zealand’s longest glacier, is retreating by about 1 meter per day.

New Zealand’s Southern Alps Glaciers have lost about 15 percent of their volume in the last three decades.

Glaciers in the New Zealand Alps, showing major retreat between 1990 to 2000.  Whereas Tasman Glacier had no terminal lake in 1973,  by 2008 it formed the Tasman Lake measuring 7 km long, 2 km wide and more than 250m deep. Images by NASA.

• Larger image (1990)
• Larger image (2007)

New Zealand Earthquake Update

• http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/4730722/No-big-Wellington-quake-coming-seismologist

• https://feww.wordpress.com/2011/02/24/new-zealand-earthquake-update-feb-24/#comment-12495

• Seven more victims named

“Up to 100 of the victims could be from as many as 20 countries. The collapsed Canterbury TV building contained dozens of foreign language students at the private training school King’s Education.” Source

Related Links:

• NZ quakes calve a 27-million ton iceberg

Global Food Crisis Intensifying

Global food prices at record highs and rising

The UN FAO’s Food Price Index rose 2.2% in February, the highest level since monitoring began in 1990

• FAO Food Price Index (FFPI) rose for the eighth consecutive month, averaging 236 points in February 2011, up 2.2 percent from January.
• FAO Cereal Price Index averaged 254 points in February, up 3.7 percent from January and the highest since July 2008 owing to strong demand and tightening supply.
• FAO Dairy Price Index averaged 230 points in February, up 4 percent from January, but well below its peak in November 2007. [New Zealand earthquake could affect the prices further. FEWW]
• FAO Oils/Fats Price Index rose marginally to 279 points in February, stopping just below the peak recorded in June 2008.
• FAO Meat Price Index averaged 169 points in February, up 2 percent from January.
• FAO Sugar Price Index averaged 418 points in February, slightly below the previous month but still 16 percent higher than this time last year.

The original article mirrored from the FAO website

Tight cereal markets as food prices increase again

Recent oil price surge adds to concerns over high food prices

Global food prices increased for the eighth consecutive month in February, with prices of all commodity groups monitored rising again, except for sugar, FAO said today.

FAO expects a tightening of the global cereal supply and demand balance in 2010/11. In the face of a growing demand and a decline in world cereal production in 2010, global cereal stocks this year are expected to fall sharply because of a decline in inventories of wheat and coarse grains. International cereal prices have increased sharply with export prices of major grains up at least 70 percent from February last year.

“Unexpected oil price spikes could further exacerbate an already precarious situation in food markets,” said David Hallam, Director of FAO’s Trade and Market Division.

“This adds even more uncertainty concerning the price outlook just as plantings for crops in some of the major growing regions are about to start,” he added.

Food Price Index

The FAO Food Price Index averaged 236 points in February, up 2.2 percent from January, the highest record in real and nominal terms, since FAO started monitoring prices in 1990.

The Cereal Price Index, which includes prices of main food staples such as wheat, rice and maize, rose by 3.7 percent in February (254 points), the highest level since July 2008.

The FAO Dairy Price Index averaged 230 points in February, up 4 percent from January, but well below its peak in November 2007.

The FAO Oils/Fats Price Index rose marginally to 279 points in February, a level just below the peak recorded in June 2008.

The FAO Meat Price Index averaged 169 points in February, up 2 percent from January. By contrast, the FAO Sugar Price Index averaged 418 points in February, slightly below the previous month but still 16 percent higher than February 2010.

Charts and other information on this page are sourced from FAO.

Cereal supply and demand

FAO expects winter crops in the northern hemisphere to be generally favourable and forecasts global wheat production to increase by around 3 percent in 2011.This assumes a recovery in wheat production in major producing countries of the Commonwealth of Independent States. So far, conditions of winter crops in those countries are generally favourable.

The latest estimate for the world cereal production in 2010 is 8 million tonnes more than was anticipated in December but still slightly below 2009. This month’s upward revision reflects mostly higher estimates for production in Argentina, China and Ethiopia.

The forecast for world cereal utilization in 2010/11 has been revised up by 18 million tonnes since December. The bulk of the revision reflects adjustments to the feed and industrial utilization of coarse grains. Larger use of maize for ethanol production in the United States and statistical adjustments to China’s historical (since 2006/07) supply and demand balance for maize are the main reasons for the revision.

Go to Global Food Price Monitor, for domestic food price details.

Related Links:

• Food Crisis