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Russia has retrieved its Arctic Sea shipping vessel that was hijacked and charged the offenders. The story doesn’t end there, though, as reports continue to surface alleging the “hijacking” were Israeli operatives sent to intercept missiles headed to Iran.. Other reports indicate the Russians staged their own hijacking after being notified of the ship’s contents by Israel. Regardless of who the hijackers were, they have thwarted a shipment of weapons that would have raised the stakes in the region for Israel and possibly even provoked military conflict. On July 24, the Arctic Sea was hijacked by eight individuals while it...

For the past month, Emma Ramirez has been sleeping with her late husband. Each night, she tucks the urn full of his ashes into the bed they shared and talks to him in her dreams. Saying goodbye is harder than she imagined. But when her grief wanes, the Tucson woman plans to have her mate buried at sea as a tribute to his years of Navy service. "I know he would be honored," Ramirez, 58, said of her husband, Francisco M. Ramirez, a retired chief petty officer who died on May 15 at age 99. The Ramirezes are among a...

Just a few weeks ago I suggested that we should just give the pirates our ships - bullets first, ARRGH!. The notion was that there is no particular reason that American sailors on US flagged ships should have to leave the same guns they carry hunting and while shopping at the mall at home just because they are going to sea through say, pirate infested waters off Somalia. And now comes a Washington Times Editorial entitled "Arming sailors Gun-free zones are dangerous at sea." Quoting Richard Phillips, the heroic captain of the crew that fought off pirates on the Maersk...

Witnesses on ground reporting booms and flames from on engine...

The United States Senate may vote very soon on one of the most far-reaching and dangerous treaties our government has ever considered for ratification: the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (also known as the Law of the Sea Treaty, or LOST). The treaty, which has simmered on the back burners of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee for decades, would give the United Nations control and jurisdiction over the world's oceans, nearly three-quarters of the surface of our planet. According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), oceans cover 71 percent of the Earth's surface and...

Bush Signs Off on New U.S. Arctic Policy The White House on Monday released a long-awaited document broadly laying out U.S. policy toward the Arctic, a region whose potential for oil, gas, and mineral exploitation is for the first time being unlocked by a historic ice melt driven by climate change. The presidential directive was issued with just over a week to go in the Bush administration, but the policy review behind it lasted about two years. The last such review was completed in 1994. "The United States is an Arctic nation, with varied and compelling interests in the region,"...

A romantic marriage proposal on the Oregon coast turned deadly for the bride-to-be when a wave swept her out to sea. Scott Napper had taken 22-year-old Leafil Alforque to Proposal Rock near Neskowin Beach to pop the question at a place that got its name from couples ready to marry. Napper and Alforque had been dating since they met on the Internet in 2005. But Alforque had arrived in Oregon on a visa from the Philippines just three days before the fateful trip to the coast. Napper said the tide had receded around Proposal Rock on Saturday when the couple...

Aug. 4, 2008 -- Jets of searingly hot water spewing up from the ocean floor have been discovered in a far-northern zone of the Arctic Ocean, Swiss-based scientists announced Monday. The so-called "black smokers" were found 73 degrees north, on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge between Greenland and Norway, in the coldest waters yet for a phenomenon first observed around the Galagapos islands in 1977.The earth's plumbing system of hydrothermal vents contain their own, unique ecosystems given the absence of sunlight at depths, in this case, of 7,874 feet, with vinegar-like water attaining temperatures of up to 752 degrees Fahrenheit.A team from...

Rising sea levels threaten citiesBY ROSSLYN BEEBY SCIENCE AND ENVIRONMENT REPORTER 10/06/2008 7:22:00 AM Sea-level rise caused by global warning is already tracking above the global average along Australia's northern and western coastline, leading scientists have warned. Scenarios outlined in more than 40 submissions to a recent federal inquiry into environmental impacts of climate change on coastal communities included that the risk of storm surges and tidal damage to four of Australia's coastal capitals Darwin, Brisbane, Sydney and Melbourne had increased at least fourfold. And Cairns ''is particularly at risk'' from flooding with potential for a disaster similar to that...

The president of the low-lying Pacific atoll nation of Kiribati said Thursday his country may already be doomed because of climate change. President Anote Tong said communities had already been resettled and crops destroyed by seawater in some parts of the country, made up of 33 coral atolls straddling the equator. Although scientists are still debating the extent of rising sea levels and their cause, Tong told a press conference marking World Environment Day that changes were obvious in his country of 92,000 people. "I am not a scientist but what I know is that things are happening we did...

Sea Stallion steps back in historyRichard Collins on a remarkable Danish replica ship. AT three o’clock next Thursday afternoon Dubliners will be treated to an extraordinary spectacle. The Viking ship Sea Stallion, which has been on display at the National Museum in Collins Barracks, will be lifted 50 metres into the air by a giant crane. Then the huge vessel will be swung out over the three-storey museum building and deposited in the nearby Croppy’s Acre. In the middle of the night it will be moved to the River Liffey, prior to its long sea journey back to Denmark. The...

Six federally protected sea lions were apparently shot to death on the Columbia River as they lay in open traps put out to ensnare the animals, which eat endangered salmon. State and federal authorities are investigating. The discovery came one day after three elephant seals were found shot to death at a breeding ground in central California. Trapping will be suspended during the investigation, said Rick Hargrave, a spokesman for the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife who was at the scene Sunday.

Windmill With A Twist Can Provide Fresh Water From Seawater DirectlyThe first prototype has been built and is already working at a location near the A13 motorway near Delft. This prototype is to be dismantled and transported to Curaçao the first week of March. There the concept will be tested on seawater. (Credit: Image courtesy of Delft University of Technology) ScienceDaily (Mar. 3, 2008) — A traditional windmill which drives a pump: that is the simple concept behind the combination of windmill/reverse osmosis developed by the Delft University of Technology (TU Delft) in The Netherlands. In this case, it involves...

Mystery ‘mound’ to be saved from the sea Gavin Morgan 26 January, 2008 ARCHAEOLOGISTS plan to save a fine example of a Bronze Age burnt mound from disappearing into the sea in a unique £70,000 removal operation on Shetland this coming summer. Historic Scotland has given permission for the site at Cruister, on Bressay, to be shifted to the islands’ heritage centre. The unprecedented project will see the prehistoric version of a water heater, a third of which has already been eroded by the sea, dismantled and rebuilt in fully functional order. Barbara Anderson, of Bressay Heritage Centre, said it...

WASHINGTON, Nov. 30, 2007 – Ask Master Chief Petty Officer Bruce “Skip” Binda why he joined the Navy nearly three decades ago and he’ll tell you it was a matter of pride. At 19, Binda had spent all of his tuition money on beer and eight-track music cassettes and was too proud to ask his father for the $200 he needed to return to college. Along came a Navy commercial proffering $1,500 to join, and Binda took the bait “hook, line and sinker,” he said. Since joining in 1980, he has served on one submarine and 10 ships and served...

Ancient jade study sheds light on sea trade Mon Nov 19, 2007 10:07pm GMTBy Tan Ee Lyn HONG KONG (Reuters) - Over 100 ancient jade artifacts in museums across southeast Asia have been traced back to Taiwan, shedding new light on sea trade patterns dating back 5,000 years, researchers said. Using X-ray spectrometers, the international team of scientists analyzed 144 jade ornaments dating from 3,000 BC to 500 AD and found that at least 116 originated from Fengtian in eastern Taiwan. "The chemical composition of jade reveals its origin and ... their analysis determined the relative amounts of iron, magnesium,...

Coast villages to be sacrificed to the sea By Melissa Kite and Richard Gray Last Updated: 4:11am GMT 11/11/2007 Whole villages and swathes of agricultural land will be surrendered to the sea because the Government is unwilling to spend billions of pounds on flood defences. In pictures: Readers' pictures of the storm surge Ministers have admitted privately that they are preparing to evacuate settlements on the east coast within the next 30 years because it is not "cost effective" to save them. A Walcott place sign stands in sea water Thousands of acres of farmland will be allowed to flood,...

Senate Panel Backs Sea Treaty By JIM ABRAMS – 3 hours ago WASHINGTON (AP) — The Reagan-era "Law of the Sea" treaty was primed for its first-ever Senate vote, boosted by strong support from the Bush administration and an emphatic vote of approval Wednesday by the Foreign Relations Committee. With Senate ratification, the United States would join 155 nations that are party to a convention that sets rules and settles disputes over navigation, fishing and economic development of the open seas and establishes environmental standards. Treaty supporters, after making little headway for years, have gained momentum recently with concerns that...

Culinary Specialist Seaman Vannessa Robertson, Naval Mobile Construction Battalion-40 Detachment Horn of Africa culinary specialist, sprinkles seasoning on fish before putting it in the oven. U.S. Navy photo by Petty Officer 1st Class Mary Popejoy U.S. Navy Seaman Vannessa Robertson Culinary Specialist Serves up Food and Smiles By Petty Officer 1st Class Mary Popejoy CJTF-HOA Public Affairs CHARICHCHO, Ethiopia, Oct. 16, 2007 — Far away from the dining facility of Camp Lemonier, Djibouti, the Soldiers and Sailors of Forward Operating Location Charichcho look to Culinary Specialist Seaman Vannessa Robertson to serve up tasty treats that keep their bellies full...

The Arctic sea ice extent continues to decline, and is now at a record low of 4.42 million square kilometers (1.70 million square miles), according to the National Snow and Ice Data Center. This puts the sea ice extent yet further below the record absolute minimum of 5.32 million square kilometers (2.05 million square miles) that occurred on September 20–21, 2005. Updated map of sea ice extent for September 3, 2007; the magenta line shows the median September extent based on data from 1979 to 2000. Source: National Snow and Ice Data Center Between the NSIDC report on 3 September...

Flatter oceans may have caused 1920s sea rise 17:53 24 August 2007 NewScientist.com news service Catherine Brahic The movement of a colossal "mounds" of water in the North Atlantic and Pacific oceans may have caused sea levels to suddenly begin rising more quickly in the 1920s, researchers say. Their analysis presents a more complex picture of sea-level change and suggests that the rate of change has been more dramatic than previously thought. Data collected using tidal gauges dotted along the Atlantic and Pacific coastlines during the late 19th and 20th centuries suggest that sea levels suddenly began rising more quickly...

Ballard Chases History Again In The Black SeaExcavation of shipwreck part of 3-leg research trip By Katie Warchut Published on 8/14/2007 It's a painfully slow process, watching a robotic arm brush, inch-by-inch, the sediment off a 900-year-old shipwreck 400 feet underwater in the Black Sea. But when the dust settles, Robert Ballard, president of the Institute for Exploration at Mystic Aquarium, and his team hope to have a better look into a time capsule of early human history. About 6 miles off the coast of Ukraine, Ballard watched from a NATO research vessel Monday on a high-definition plasma television screen....

WASHINGTON, Aug. 10, 2007 – While working as a nuclear repair mechanic for the Navy, Caleb Duke traded sea for sand when he volunteered to take on an Army position that took him to Afghanistan. Navy Petty Officer 1st Class Caleb S. Duke is an eight year veteran of the United States Navy and is currently serving as part of the Why We Serve speakers program. Defense Dept. photo  (Click photo for screen-resolution image);high-resolution image available. In 1998, at the age 20, Scranton, Pa., native Caleb Duke enlisted in the Navy. “I wanted to be a part of something bigger...

JERUSALEM - An 8-year-old Israeli boy spent six hours floating in the Dead Sea alone at night after his father left him there by accident during a family trip, police said Sunday. They said they would not press charges against the errant parent. The Dead Sea, the lowest point on earth and one of Israel’s most popular tourist attractions, has an abnormally high salt concentration that allows swimmers to float on the surface.

<p>A Northwest Airlines flight bound for Memphis was forced to return to Seattle-Tacoma International Airport on Wednesday because of a bomb threat, though authorities did not believe the bomb was on board the plane, an airport spokeswoman said.</p> <p>Airport police were questioning a man who told a gate agent there was a bomb on Northwest Flight 980 shortly after the plane left Seattle around 12:33 p.m., airport spokeswoman Terri-Ann Betancourt said.</p>

In this reporter's opinion that we are witnessing the undermining of our Constitution, and our accepted government procedures by a new maneuver, "stealth government." The president and his New World globalist cronies, through national emergencies and other means, rm their ideology down our throats without congressional approval or oversight. The president and his New World globalist cronies, through national emergencies and other means, ram their ideology down our throats without congressional approval or oversight. This procedure became obvious in Georgw W. Bush's determination to invade Iraq. Those closest to Bush label the president "obsessive, arrogant, bullheaded, stubborn, and inflexible." They...

Deep-six the Law of the Sea by Phyllis Schlafly Posted: 05/21/2007 Borrowing the famous words of Gen. Douglas MacArthur, "Old soldiers never die, they just fade away," we can now see that old treaties never die, they can be resurrected years or even decades after taking what we thought was a knockout punch. President George W. Bush is scheduled to announce any day that he will breathe new life into the old United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, which President Ronald Reagan rejected in 1982. Bush's National Security Adviser Stephen Hadley has asked Senate Foreign Relations Committee...

A strange ugly sea monster was cast ashore in Guinea.

Sea lions, dolphins and birds are being slowly poisoned off the California coast, despite efforts by volunteers to save them. So far, 50 stricken mammals have been brought ashore alive but nearly all have died or have had to be put down. Whales are also thought to have been affected.

Lost world warning from North Sea By Sean Coughlan BBC News education How a homestead might have looked in the flooded area Archaeologists are uncovering a huge prehistoric "lost country" hidden below the North Sea. This lost landscape, where hunter gatherer communities once lived, was swallowed by rising water levels at the end of the last ice age. University of Birmingham researchers are heralding "stunning" findings as they map the "best-preserved prehistoric landscape in Europe". This large plain had disappeared below the water more than 8,000 years ago. Scientists at the University of Birmingham have been using oil exploration technology...

(IsraelNN.com) At a conference entitled "The Sea as an Economic Resource," Shimon Peres says Israel should stop investing in Jude and Samaria and build artificial islands in the Mediterranean instead. The conference, which opened yesterday (Wednesday) in the seaside town of Mikhmoret, north of Netanya, deals with "opportunities and threats presented by the sea." Topics on the agenda include pollution of the sea and coasts, the economic potential of the sea for Israel, and more. The conference is sponsored by the Ruppin Academic Center. In his remarks, Vice Premier Shimon Peres said, "The State of Israel has a narrow waistline...

Kazakhs get loan to save Aral Sea By Natalya Antelava BBC News, Aral Sea The sea's retreat spells disaster for local people The Kazakhstan government has secured a multi-million dollar loan from the World Bank to help save the Aral Sea. The money will be used to implement the second stage of a project aimed at saving the northern part of the sea. The United Nations has said the disappearance of the Aral is the worst man-made environmental disaster. But this new project could mean that at least part of the Aral - once the world's fourth largest inland body...

Ice sheet complexity leaves sea level rise uncertain 13:41 16 March 2007 NewScientist.com news service Catherine Brahic Ice shed from the giant sheets covering Antarctica and Greenland is responsible for just 12% of the current rate of global sea level rise, according to a new review. The authors emphasise that it is now clear that the ice caps are losing ice faster than it is being replenished by snowfall. But exactly why this is happening remains unknown, making it difficult to predict the extent of future sea level rises. The remaining 88% of the current rise is due to the...

Deep Sea, Arctic May Hold World's Largest Fuel Supply, Experts Say Richard A. Lovett for National Geographic News March 7, 2007 The energy source of the future may lie beneath the ocean floor and under Arctic permafrost, scientists say. Both places are sources of gas hydrates, strange icelike substances that trap methane—the primary component of natural gas. "It's not frozen gas," explained Timothy Collett of the U.S. Geological Survey in Denver. "It's [formed] from the interaction of gas and water." The hydrates were discovered in 1983, and no one knows how many of them exist. But there appear to be...

CHINA has the technology to build an aircraft carrier, said the spokesman of the country's top national defense research and development body in Beijing yesterday, China Radio International reported. China has the capability of building an aircraft carrier, but it is still unknown when one will be built, Huang Qiang, the spokesman, said at the press conference. Besides accomplishing the development of high-tech weapons and equipment, China's national defense industry will also further develop military and civilian technologies this year, which includes technologies for information security, new energies, anti-terrorism equipment and man-made satellites, according to Huang. China's national defense sector...

Four explosives went off almost simultaneously in Bangkok, injuring at least 20 people as the city people have just started to celebrate the New Year's eve. One person was dead at the Big C supermarket, Sapan Kwai branch, where witness saw a man dropped a grenade from a pedestrian bridge, police said. At least 20 were injured at the Victory Monument when a powerful bomb went off near a bus station. At the Klong Toei area near the Na Ranong intersection, a bomb hidden in a trash can near a Chinese spirit shrine exploded and injured two bypassers. The explosion...

BREMEN, Germany – Putting a harness on ocean winds, a German shipping company plans to unfurl a giant high-tech kite over a cargo ship next year to boost the vessel's propulsion and conserve fuel. The "SkySail," a 191-square-yard kite tethered to a mast, has successfully undergone years of trial runs, and Bremen ship owner Beluga Shipping believes it will help its vessels cut fuel use by 15 percent to 20 percent. The MV Beluga SkySails, now being built and fitted with a paraglider-shaped sail and a "smart" central steerage unit, will make its maiden voyage in early 2007. "I got...

Tourists flock to Fisherman's Wharf... Now a series of sea-lion attacks on people in recent months has led experts to warn that the animals are not as cute and cuddly as they appear. In the most frightening of the recent episodes, a rogue sea lion bit 14 swimmers this month and chased 10 more out of the water at San Francisco's Aquatic Park, a sheltered lagoon near the bay. At least one victim suffered puncture wounds... In Southern California in June, a sea lion charged several people on Manhattan Beach and bit a man before waddling into the water and...

THE SEA PEOPLES All at once, they were on the move, scattered in war. They laid their hands upon the lands to the very circuit of the earth, their hearts confident and trusting; Our plans will succeed... " (Ramesses III). The name "Peoples of the Sea" comes directly from the Egyptian records, describing the Sea Peoples' exploits. As their collective name tells us, they were tribes who had developed a life style almost totally dependent upon the sea. They perfected boats, sailing and navigational techniques for fishing offshore as well as long distance travel and explored much of the Atlantic...

Frustrated by their government's position on the environment, climate change and stem cell research, a group of US scientists have decided to take matters into their own hands and actively promote the election of a president in 2008 who is more receptive to science.

SAN DIEGO (NNS) -- The Navy paraded ships and aircraft through San Diego Bay Oct. 1 to kick-off San Diego’s Fleet Week celebration. Nearly 100,000 San Diegans and visitors from neighboring towns watched ships, including USS Nimitz (CVN 68), USS John Paul Jones (DDG 53), USS Ogden (LPD 5) and USS Princeton (CG 59) sail through San Diego Bay. People also lined up for ship tours immediately following the procession. “The Sea and Air Parade is one of the largest salutes to our Navy that we do here in San Diego,” said Executive Director of San Diego Fleet Week Foundation,...

Gassy Bugs: Microbes may produce propane under the sea Julie Rehmeyer For decades, scientists have been puzzled by periodic findings of ethane and propane in sediments that they've pulled from deep below the ocean floor. As far as they knew, these gases could be produced only as petroleum is—by great heat applied to ancient, buried organic matter. But sometimes, ethane and propane turn up in areas where that process seems unlikely. A new report suggests a different source: microbes. Bacteria and archaea within underwater sediments could chew up buried organic material and spew out ethane and propane as waste products,...

For sale: A beer-drinking wolf! The sign on a winding road leading from Montenegro's capital to the spectacular Adriatic Sea coastline illustrates how just about everything has its price in the world's newest country. Since 2001, close to 80 percent of Montenegro's state assets have been sold, mostly to foreigners. Two telecommunications companies, a shipyard, an aluminum factory, the only brewery, most of the hotels, capital markets, and the oil import and distribution industries are already in private hands. Outsiders, particularly from Britain, are snapping up prime seaside properties, sending real estate prices soaring. The embrace of foreign investment comes...

Only an excerpt, because the full article is heavily linked, and posting just the text here doesn't present it accurately. "An alternative approach to the problem is a formal 'detection and attribution' analysis which seeks to establish the role of a potentially forced signal in the midst of climate 'noise'. This is where the new Santer et al paper comes in. Here, the authors examine the model simulations for the 20th Century that were coordinated for the IPCC AR4 and which now form a very valuable database that can be used in addressing issues such as those which concern us...

Plan accordingly. We have many folks who vacation in Canada, Mexico and the Carribean. Please note, travel to these countries will require passports in the future. More detailed information on the requirements for each country and how to get a passport can be found at the State Dept website: http://travel.state.gov/index.html . New Requirements for Travelers The Intelligence Reform and Terrorism Prevention Act of 2004 requires that by January 1, 2008, travelers to and from the Caribbean, Bermuda, Panama, Mexico and Canada have a passport or other secure, accepted document to enter or re-enter the United States. In order to facilitate...

Ancient gold treasures unearthed in Thracian tomb near Black Sea The Associated Press Published: September 4, 2006 SOFIA, Bulgaria A 2,200-year-old set of gold jewelry was unearthed from a Thracian burial mound on Bulgaria's Black Sea coast, the archaeologist who led the excavations said Monday. Daniela Agre said her team in late August found dozens of tiny jewelry pieces in the tomb of a woman, most likely a Thracian priestess, near the resort of Sinemorets, about 500 kilometers (310 miles) southeast of the capital, Sofia. The discovery included two earrings, crafted like miniature chariots, as well as parts of gold...

'100 Tigers killed' in sea battle with Sri Lankan navy By Michael Hirst (Filed: 03/09/2006) Sri lanka's navy claimed to have sunk 12 Tamil Tiger boats during a six-hour sea battle yesterday that killed up to 100 rebels. The fighting started late on Friday when about 20 Tiger vessels, including five suicide boats packed with explosives, attempted to attack a naval base at Kankasanthurai, a key port on the northern Jaffna peninsula. A patrol, including fast-attack gun boats, drove the Tigers into open water where the battle continued until dawn yesterday. TamilNet, a pro-rebel website, claimed that two navy vessels...

Polynesian sailing myth all at sea Judy Skatssoon ABC Science Online Wednesday, 30 August 2006 Archaeolgists believe structures like the Tevaitau fort reflect hostility between population groups competing for resources (Image: Douglas Kennett) The Polynesians had trouble reaching remote South Pacific islands, according to a new study that dents their reputation as great seafarers. An archaeological study shows they settled Rapa, an island southeast of Tahiti, more recently than anyone thought. Professor Atholl Anderson, of the Australian National University, and international colleagues publish their research in the current issue of the journal Antiquity. Dating of charcoal from archaeological sites on...

USS MOUNT WHITNEY, Eastern Mediterranean, Aug. 27, 2006 – Navy Vice Adm. J. “Boomer” Stufflebeem, commander of Joint Task Force Lebanon, assigned two task force commanders to lead critical elements of his newly formed organization as part of assuming authority for U.S. military operations here on Aug. 23, officials here announced today. Air Force Col. Brad Webb will command Task Force “Alpha,” consisting of air and land components, while Navy Capt. John Nowell will lead Task Force “Bravo,” consisting of maritime assets in the joint operating area. “These task force commanders have responsibility for the air, land and sea support...

MOSCOW (Reuters) - International concerns over Iran's nuclear programme do not warrant any discussion at the moment of sanctions against Tehran, Russian Defense Minister Sergei Ivanov said on Friday. "I know of no instances in world practice and previous experience in which sanctions have achieved their aim and proved effective," Ivanov, shown on NTV television, told reporters in Russia's far east. "Moreover, I believe that the question is not so serious at the moment for the U.N. Security Council or the group of six to consider any introduction of sanctions. Russia stands for further political and diplomatic efforts to settle...