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Switzerland
Hormuz Partly Shut During Talks
The Islamic Republic of Iran caused a shutdown of maritime traffic in the Strait of Hormuz yesterday by holding live-fire military drills, as their diplomats held indirect talks in Geneva with negotiators from the United States. This was the first time Iran has shut down the waterway, which sees the transit of 20% of the world’s oil and gas from the Persian Gulf to the world beyond via the Gulf of Oman and the Arabian Sea. The U.S. military has been building up forces in the Gulf region to put pressure on Iran over its nuclear weapons programs, with the aircraft carrier U.S.S. Gerald R. Ford setting sail from the Caribbean last week to eventually join the U.S.S. Abraham Lincoln’s strike group in the Middle East. The talks in Geneva have now concluded with no apparent breakthrough.
This map depicts maritime traffic through the Strait of Hormuz, a critical waterway that Iran has threatened to close amidst disagreement with the United States government over Iran’s nuclear programs. Click on the map to learn more.
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Graphic Source: RTE
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Ukraine
Ukraine Retakes Territory
Ukraine’s military regained around 78 square miles (201 km sq) of territory from Russian forces between last Wednesday and Sunday, marking the largest amount of land retaken in such a short period since Kyiv’s counteroffensive in June 2023. Most of the territory retaken is located east of Zaporizhzhia, an area where Russian forces have advanced considerably since mid-2025. The gains follow a recent move by U.S. company SpaceX to limit Russian forces’ access to the Starlink satellite communication system, reportedly disrupting battlefield communications and command operations. Russian drones had previously used Starlink to bypass electronic jamming and carry out more precise strikes. Russia currently controls about 19.5% of Ukraine’s territory, up from roughly 18.6% a year ago, but the Russian army has taken large losses in manpower and resources to make these marginal gains.
This map depicts territorial control in Ukraine’s Zaporizhzhia Oblast in the Russia-Ukraine war as of February 16, 2026. Click on the map to learn more.
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Spain
Evidence of Hannibal’s Elephants
Archaeologists claim they’ve discovered proof of Carthaginian General Hannibal’s war elephants with the discovery of a 2,200-year-old bone fragment unearthed in an Iron Age dig near Cordoba, Spain. The bone matches that of an elephant, which is not native to Spain and was not otherwise known to have been transported widely from Africa during that time. The elephant died at a site possibly connected to a nearby battle. Scientists believe this evidence supports the long-told story that Hannibal’s army brought elephants from Carthage, in Northern Africa, through Spain and France to invade Italy by crossing the Alps in 218 BC during the second Punic War. Archaeologists found the bones on a site called Colina de los Quemados. This would be the first physical evidence of the battle elephants used during his campaign to take control of the Mediterranean.
This map depicts the location of the 2,200-year-old elephant bone discovered in southern Spain. Click on the map to learn more.
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Q: Since the year 1500, about one-third of the Earth’s total lava flow has poured out of what country’s volcanoes?
A: Iceland
Iceland has 32 active volcano systems. The island nation sits over what is known as the Mid-Atlantic Ridge, the boundary between two of the largest tectonic plates on the planet, and a powerful mantle plume creating a hot spot on the surface. Together, they produce large amounts of magma, filling the gaps in the crust made by the spreading plates, resulting in frequent eruptions along the rift zone. Since the year 1500, Iceland released one-third of the lava flow on Earth. As much as 25% of the land area of Iceland is covered with volcanoes. Iceland derives 30% of its electricity from geothermal sources that use underground heat to drive turbines and produce power.
Source
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Q: The Argentina–Brazil border runs through the Devil’s Throat canyon, which is part of which waterfall system?
Stay tuned for the answer to today’s question in tomorrow’s DailyGeo.
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