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United States
Baby Formula Shortage Worsens
The infant formula shortage that has impacted families across the country is projected to continue, as both short and long term challenges affect the top U.S. brands. Ongoing supply chain issues that began during the Covid-19 pandemic squeezed inventory among manufacturers and retailers. A federal investigation at an Abbott Nutrition plant in Sturgis, Michigan in late 2021 for unsafe equipment and practices at the facility led to a recall in February 2022 that wiped out a large segment of the market. Millions of babies in the U.S. rely on formula for basic nutrition, as 60% of mothers report ceasing breastfeeding sooner than they planned, according to the CDC. Despite federal interventions and the ramping up of imports, the scarcity is expected to persist for several more months as industry-wide issues constrain supply.
This interactive map depicts infant formula out-of-stock rates in states across the U.S., averaging 43% for the week ending May 8th. Click on the map to learn more.
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Graphic Source: Bloomberg
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Australia
Torrential Rain Causes Flooding
Amid heavy rain and widespread flooding in Queensland, Australia, hundreds of residents were asked to evacuate their homes this week. In some areas, the amount of precipitation within 48 hours exceeded 10 inches (260 mm). At least one individual has been killed by the flooding after being swept away by floodwaters in their vehicle. Australia has already seen multiple major flooding events this year, with this latest event coming only three months after a flooding killed 13 people and inundated more than 20,000 homes in February.
This map depicts the location of heavy rainfall in Queensland, Australia, resulting in widespread flooding and evacuations. Click on the map to learn more.
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World
Milky Way Black Hole
The first ever image of the Milky Way’s supermassive black hole, Sagittarius A*, was captured on Thursday by an international team of scientists called the Event Horizon Telescope (EHT) Collaboration. The image was created by using eight radio telescopes located around the world, acting as one observatory. This is the first visual confirmation of this invisible object, located about 27,000 light years away and 4 million times larger than the sun. Sagittarius A* is completely dark, but a glowing ring around the dark center was identified as the black hole’s shadow. The EHT Collaboration in 2019 was the first to produce an image of a black hole, located in the Messier 87 galaxy, called M87*.
This map depicts the network of telescopes, called the Event Horizon Telescope Collaboration, used to produce the first image of the black hole at the center of the Milky Way. Click on the map to learn more.
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Q: The world’s coldest year-round average temperature can be found at a defunct Soviet research station in Antarctica named for what geographical term of remoteness?
A: The Pole of Inaccessibility
At Полюс недоступности, or Antarctica’s “Pole of Inaccessiblity,” the Soviet Union established a small base in 1958 for taking weather measurements, with a bust of Vladimir Lenin no less, that has only rarely been visited by people. A Pole of Inaccessibility, as opposed to a magnetic pole or a geographical pole, is the furthest place within a body of water or land from the opposite. The World Ocean’s Pole of Inaccessibility, the point in the Southern Pacific farthest from any land mass, known as Point Nemo, was highlighted in a previous GeoQuestion. A continent’s Pole of Inaccessibility, like Antarctica’s, is the furthest point from any ocean coastline in any direction.
Source
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Q: At more than 4 million miles (6.58 million km) long, which country is known for the longest road network in the world?
Stay tuned for the answer to today’s question in Monday’s DailyGeo.
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