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Israel
Israel Seizes Rafah Crossing
Israeli forces have seized the Gaza side of the Rafah Crossing, halting a crucial flow of aid to millions of displaced Gazans. The move comes as Israel continues a campaign into Rafah described as targeted strikes against “terrorist infrastructures” in the southern city. On Monday, thousands of Palestinians sheltering in Eastern neighbourhoods of Rafah were asked to evacuate to an expanded humanitarian zone in the north west of the territory. The incursion appears to be short of the full-scale ground offensive into Rafah originally planned by Israel, however it is unclear whether it will be expanded. The move come as a new round of indirect talks commence in Cairo between Hamas and Israel. While Hamas accepted a proposed ceasefire deal on Monday, Israel maintains Hamas has not met their core demands. President Biden urged Prime Minister Netanyahu to not go ahead with a full-scale ground operation in Rafah in a phone call on Monday, expressing concern for Palestinian civilians.
This map depicts the locations of new Israeli evacuation orders in Rafah as well as the expanded humanitarian zone to the north west of Gaza. Click on the map to learn more.
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Graphic Source: BBC
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United States
Tornadoes Kill 1 in Oklahoma
A series of tornadoes across the Great Plains and Midwest have killed one person and injured at least five in Northeast Oklahoma. The small town of Barnsdall was hit the hardest, where around 40 homes were damaged and one person died. The injuries to five people were reported from the neighboring town of Bartlesville. Across Oklahoma, around 16,000 buildings were left without power. The National Weather Service reported 17 tornadoes hit the region overnight while around two million people remained on tornado watch.
This map depicts reported locations of tornadoes across the Plains region over the last day. Click on the map to learn more.
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Graphic Source: New York Times
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Moon
China Mission to Moon’s Far Side
On May 3, the China National Space Administration successfully launched the Chang’e-6 lunar mission onboard a Long March 5 rocket. Chang’e-6 was originally built as a fallback in the event of the failure of the Chang’e-5 lunar mission to the Moon’s near side. With that mission’s success, Chang’e-6 was upgraded with the goal of gathering soil and rock samples from the Moon’s far side and returning them to Earth. The lander, which is believed to also include a small rover, will attempt touchdown in the Apollo Basin near the Moon’s south polar region. Before the lander goes to the surface, the spacecraft will release an orbiter to hold a position on the Moon above the landing site, and that orbiter will then be a way station for a sample return module which will later be launched to the Earth. This is the first attempt by any lunar mission to retrieve and return rock samples from the Moon’s far side. From launch to landing of the samples on Earth, the mission is planned to take a total of 53 days.
This map depicts the planned landing site of China’s Chang’e-6 mission to the Apollo Basin near the south polar region of the far side of the Moon. Click on the map to learn more.
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Q: Where in the world will you find the world’s most powerful whirlpool?
A: Norway
Whirlpools are formed when two opposite currents meet each other and start to swirl, creating a body of rotating water. The swirling water acts as a vortex that can pull things downward. The largest whirlpool in the world is the Saltstraumen whirlpool in Knaplundsøya, Norway. The reason the strait here is so strong is because of an elevation change. The current dispenses around 110 billion US gallons (400 million cubic meters) of seawater through the strait every six hours, forming multiple whirlpools up to 33 feet (10 meters) across and 16 feet (5 meters) long. The fastest the current has ever been recorded was around 25 miles per hour (40 kph).
Source
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Q: Where was the Scottish colony whose failure was a decisive factor for their union with England in 1707?
Stay tuned for the answer to today’s question in tomorrow’s DailyGeo.
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