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Kenya
More Starvation Cult Dead
The number of dead bodies found connected to a starvation cult in Kenya continues to grow, with authorities placing the current count of confirmed dead at 133. Police announced a significant number of exhumed victims were found to have internal organs missing during their autopsies. This would indicate the Good News International Church, of which they were all members, may have been engaged in organ trafficking. Autopsies also revealed that not all of the victims died of starvation, but were beaten or suffocated, providing evidence that the group’s leadership was forcing starvation on the secluded group. Police say hundreds of people believed to have been members of the cult are still missing. The primary leader of the group, Paul Mackenzie, is currently in police custody.
This map depicts the locations of mass graves of alleged cult victims in the area of Shakahola, in eastern Kenya. Click on the map to learn more.
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Graphic Source: Barron’s
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Saudi Arabia
Top US Official Meets Saudis
Jake Sullivan, the top security aide to US President Joseph Biden, met with the Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia, Mohammed bin Salman, in the Red Sea port city of Jeddah on Sunday. The meeting comes as Saudi Arabia appears to have adapted its relationships in the MIddle East and around the world. In March, Saudi Arabia resumed formal diplomatic ties with long-time adversary Iran. It was also announced this week the government of Syrian President Bashar Assad would rejoin the Arab League, a cooperative group of Arab-majority states. While supporting Saudi Arabia’s efforts to fight the Iran-backed Houthi insurgency in Yemen for years, the United States’ relations with the Saudi royal family soured over the murder of Washington Post columnist Jamal Khashoggi. However the US has also been making overtures to the Saudis to increase oil production to help reduce Russian economic strength following the invasion of Ukraine.
This map depicts Saudi Arabia and its major cities, including the port city of Jeddah, where a US top security aide met with the Saudi Crown Prince. Click on the map to learn more.
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Greenland
Glacier Melting Rapidly
The recent accelerated melting of Petermann Glacier has drawn concerns about higher levels of sea level rise worldwide. As published this week in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, researchers have discovered warm sea water has been intruding into a cavity beneath the Petermann Glacier far further upstream than was previously believed, causing further thinning of the ice by as much as 250 feet (76 m) a year. The glacier is a major channel for ice to reach the ocean. With its rapid melting and high amounts of ice built up, there is potential for global sea levels to rise by over 1 foot (.3 m). Because sea level projections help predict how other glaciers will respond to warmer oceans and air, current models must now be adjusted to take into account the consequences of the global effects of the Petermann Glacier’s accelerated melting.
This map depicts the melt rates and the limit of viability for the calculation of melt rates for the Petermann Glacier. Click on the map to learn more.
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Q: Standing 10,831 ft (3,301 m) tall, Mt. San Jacinto rises behind what famous desert resort town in California?
A: Palm Springs
Palm Springs is located on the edge of the Coachella Valley in Riverside County, just over 100 miles (160 km) east of Los Angeles. The desert resort city is in the ecological region of the Colorado Desert, and covers 94 sq miles (240 sq km) of land, making it the largest city in Riverside by land area. More than 10 percent of Palm Springs is part of the Agua Caliente Band of Cahuilla Indians reservation. Its close proximity to Los Angeles, Orange, and San Diego counties has made Palm Springs the destination for second homes and vacation rentals in Southern California. The population of Palm Springs is around 45,000, however between the months of November and March, the city’s population size triples. From the desert floor, visitors can travel 8.500 ft (2,590 m) up Mount San Jacinto on the Palm Springs Aerial Tramway, taking in scenic views of the desert meeting the mountainscape. John Muir, the famous mountaineer and naturalist, once proclaimed, “The view from San Jacinto is the most sublime spectacle to be found anywhere on this earth!”
Source
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Q: Biomes consist of biological communities that have formed in response to their physical environments. What is the coldest biome type?
Stay tuned for the answer to today’s question in tomorrow’s DailyGeo.
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