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Papua New Guinea
Pay Error Leads to Rioting
At least 15 people are dead from rioting and looting across Papua New Guinea after a cut in pay to police and civil servants led them to walk off the job on Wednesday. The Prime Minister, James Marape, has declared a two-week state of emergency in the capital of Port Moresby and suspended the national chief of police and the heads of the government’s finance, treasury, and personnel management departments. The crisis began after police and other government employees protested paychecks that had been reduced by up to 50%. Marape said the pay cut was not intentional but due to a computer error and would be corrected next month. Between the absence of police and false claims on social media that the government was planning to raise income taxes, some civilians took advantage of the unrest to loot businesses and engage in arson and vandalism.
This map depicts travel warnings issued by the Australian government for Papua New Guinea after the riots occurred. Click on the map to learn more.
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Graphic Source: Canberra Times
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India
New Sea Bridge in Mumbai
Prime Minister Narenda Modi is set to inaugurate India’s longest bridge tomorrow as part of his five-year $1 trillion infrastructure push. A key part of his pitch for re-election ahead of this year’s vote, this series of public infrastructure investments aims to boost jobs and keep up with China and other modernizing economies. The $2.2 billion, 14-mile (22 km) Mumbai Trans Harbour Link (MTHL) informally called the Atal Setu, will cut travel time from 2 hours to 20 minutes between central Mumbai, India’s financial hub, and Navi Mumbai, a rapidly growing commercial hub across the Arabian Sea. Navi Mumbai is home to one of India’s biggest ports, new hospitals and universities, and an international airport set to open this year.
This map depicts key near term infrastructure projects in Mumbai, including the Atal Setu sea bridge, also known as the Mumbai Trans Harbour Link, which is set to open tomorrow. Click on the map to learn more.
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Graphic Source: Reuters
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Space
Peregrine Moon Lander Fails
The world’s first private lunar mission and the first American lunar lander mission in 50 years has failed only a day after launch. The Peregrine One mission, launched by private company Astrobotic, has developed a leak in its propulsion system, meaning it doesn’t have enough propellant to maintain course to the Moon. The launch unit is set to run out of fuel today. The lander unit successfully separated from its Vulcan rocket and entered orbit around the Earth as planned shortly after launch, but the craft couldn’t keep its solar panels pointed at the Sun and briefly went offline. Once Astrobotic regained communications with the craft, the leak in the propulsion system was discovered. In addition to five instruments being carried by the lander for NASA, the lander held the cremated remains of 60 people whose families paid for them to be deposited on the Moon, including the remains of the creator of Star Trek. Astrobotic says the lander will be sent to get as close to the Moon as possible and will collect data for further analysis before the batteries die.
This map depicts the flight path of the failed lunar landing mission Peregrine One. Click on the map to learn more.
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Q: In the 14th century, what important trading city was home to the largest library in Africa since the Library of Alexandria?
A: Timbuktu, Mali
A seasonal trading post established in 1100 CE, Timbuktu is located where the Sahara Desert and the Niger Delta meet, in a belt of dry tropical savanna. This city served as a meeting ground for West African kingdoms and the pastoralist Tuaregs of the Southern Sahara. The Tuaregs passed along the Islamic religion through trade, facilitating connections between Arab-Islamic and West African peoples. Under Mansa Musa I, leader of the Mali Empire, Timbuktu transformed into a center of commerce and scholarship. It was home to the 25,000-student Sankore University and other centers of learning that supported the spread of Islam throughout Africa from the 13th to 16th centuries. Sankore University is the oldest continuously operating university in Sub-Saharan Africa, and by the early 14th century, it boasted the largest book and manuscript collection in Africa since the Library of Alexandria.
Source
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Q: In what rocky country did the first known prehistoric marble sculpture work emerge in the Late Neolithic era (5300-4500 BC)?
Stay tuned for the answer to today’s question in tomorrow’s DailyGeo.
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