Bakeries to Invade Space Soon

A worker moves a loaf of bread before being packaged at the
Bread Factory on August 5, 2008 in London, England. Many bakeries are
feeling the pinch with the rising cost of wheat being a major factor/
SOPHIE ROSE/GETTY IMAGES
A worker moves a loaf of bread before being packaged at the Bread Factory on August 5, 2008 in London, England. Many bakeries are feeling the pinch with the rising cost of wheat being a major factor/ SOPHIE ROSE/GETTY IMAGES
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Bakeries to Invade Space Soon

A worker moves a loaf of bread before being packaged at the
Bread Factory on August 5, 2008 in London, England. Many bakeries are
feeling the pinch with the rising cost of wheat being a major factor/
SOPHIE ROSE/GETTY IMAGES
A worker moves a loaf of bread before being packaged at the Bread Factory on August 5, 2008 in London, England. Many bakeries are feeling the pinch with the rising cost of wheat being a major factor/ SOPHIE ROSE/GETTY IMAGES

Just to make sure, he flattens the roll halves with his hand, with no crumbs at all. Food technician Malte Gerken is cutting a bread roll in half, and still no crumb has fallen on the cutting board, according to the German news agency (DPA).

That's important. You can't tell by looking at it, but the roll is special…It's a space roll.

Gerken is part of a team aiming to provide astronauts on the International Space Station (ISS) with freshly baked rolls, which looks an imaginary idea till now. Behind the plans to leave space travelers’ freeze-dried meals with a touch of home is a startup called Bake in Space, based in Bremen, Germany.

The company's ultimate goal is to recreate the entire value chain, from growing the grain to baking the final product, in microgravity, with an eye to future manned missions to the moon and Mars. For starters, though, ISS astronauts will simply be able to warm up rolls pre-baked on Earth - itself a major challenge since the bread can't shed any crumbs.

Sebastian Marcu, managing director of Bake in Space said: “That would be a safety risk,” noting that crumbs floating around in the near-weightlessness of the station could damage equipment, or the astronauts could inhale them and choke.

So Bake in Space has enlisted food experts from the Technology Transfer Centre (TTZ) in Bremerhaven - a research institution in the fields of food, health and the environment - to come up with absolutely crumb-free rolls.

Florian Stukenborg, who is in charge of developing the recipe said: “We're working on the basis of a perfectly normal pretzel-type dough.” His team has already tested about 30 different types.
Anyway, the dough will be saltier than is usual. "In space, like on an airplane, things taste different," notes Stukenborg, highlighting the dulled sense of taste that prompts astronauts to ask for food like hot spiced sausages.

Space bread will be designed to keep for at least a half year due to the long intervals between resupply missions to the ISS. And they've got to be nice and soft despite the electricity limits on the oven as well as other constraints.

While an oven on Earth is an ordinary appliance, it's a potential hazard on the ISS. Under no circumstances should it allow heat to escape, which would hang in the air and not disperse throughout the station.
"The astronauts could be injured," says Volker Schmid, mission manager at the German Aerospace Centre (DLR), chief partner of Bake in Space.

They will have to put the rolls into a cold oven and not take them out until the oven has cooled. So the baking time will be much longer than on Earth, and the temperature will be lower.

Matthias Boehme of OHB, a Bremen-headquartered multinational technology corporation with expertise in aerospace explained: “If you don't add moisture on bread, something like twice-baked bread comes out,” He was tasked by Bake in Space to develop a prototype of a space oven, which the food technicians are now using to test their recipes.

It's small, with room for only three rolls. The astronauts won't even be allowed to switch it on themselves, as the entire baking process will be controlled from the ground.

A lot of effort is obviously going into giving them a baked break from their bagged and tinned meals. "It might sound trivial, but it's a quality-of-life boost for the astronauts up there," Schmid says. Launching pre-baked rolls into space may work for an ISS mission, which typically lasts about six months, but wouldn't be practicable for longer ones, for example to the moon or Mars.

Schmid said: "You can't maintain a supply chain from Earth to Mars. So we're trying to develop closed loops."

This is precisely what Bake in Space has in mind too, and it plans to use the ISS as a testing platform. The next step is to have the astronauts make their own dough in space, and later to grow their own grain and grind it to flour there.

"All this is technically possible," says Schmid, adding that the problem at present is a financial one.

Marcu estimates the total cost of bringing fresh rolls to the ISS at between 1.5 million and 3 million euros (about $3.5 million). Although they were supposed to be delivered along with the oven next year, the ambitious timetable can't be met.

Bake in Space, founded this past spring, and hasn’t yet been able to raise all of the money needed.



Vietnam Capital Dims Street Lights to Save Energy During Heat Wave 

People go fishing during sunset at West Lake, a popular destination to escape the high temperatures in Hanoi, Vietnam, 17 May 2023. (EPA)
People go fishing during sunset at West Lake, a popular destination to escape the high temperatures in Hanoi, Vietnam, 17 May 2023. (EPA)
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Vietnam Capital Dims Street Lights to Save Energy During Heat Wave 

People go fishing during sunset at West Lake, a popular destination to escape the high temperatures in Hanoi, Vietnam, 17 May 2023. (EPA)
People go fishing during sunset at West Lake, a popular destination to escape the high temperatures in Hanoi, Vietnam, 17 May 2023. (EPA)

Authorities in Vietnam's capital of Hanoi are turning off street lights to keep the national power system running amid record temperatures bringing a surge in demand in some parts of the Southeast Asian nation.

As weather officials warn the heat wave could run into June, several cities have cut back on public lighting after state utility EVN said rising demand for air conditioning could burden the national grid further.

"It's so harsh and hot outside that people have to wear protective clothing to cool down and not get burned," said Hanoi resident Tran Van Hung, 67.

Temperatures this week are expected to range between 26 and 38 degrees Celsius (78.8 and 100.4 degrees F), weather officials say.

To deal with the problem, Hanoi turns on its public lighting half an hour later than usual, and switches it off half an hour sooner, while halving illumination on some major roads and in public parks.

"If people all save energy, all will have enough electricity to use, but if not, there will be a partial electrical overload that will put the power grid at risk," said Luong Minh Quan, an electrician with EVN in Hanoi.

Last week Vietnam called for electrical devices to be turned off when not in use, and for air-conditioning to be kept above 26 degrees C (78.8°F).

Some chose to cool off at a waterpark, though experts say activity in extreme heat can cause dehydration and exhaustion.

"The water can help overcome the heat, as there are no other immediate solutions," said Tran Minh Trung, 48.


China Launches Shenzhou-16 Mission to Chinese Space Station 

Long March-2F rocket, carrying the Shenzhou-16 Manned Space Flight Mission, lifts off from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Centre in China's northwestern Gansu province, on May 30, 2023, heading to the Tiangong space station. (AFP)
Long March-2F rocket, carrying the Shenzhou-16 Manned Space Flight Mission, lifts off from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Centre in China's northwestern Gansu province, on May 30, 2023, heading to the Tiangong space station. (AFP)
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China Launches Shenzhou-16 Mission to Chinese Space Station 

Long March-2F rocket, carrying the Shenzhou-16 Manned Space Flight Mission, lifts off from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Centre in China's northwestern Gansu province, on May 30, 2023, heading to the Tiangong space station. (AFP)
Long March-2F rocket, carrying the Shenzhou-16 Manned Space Flight Mission, lifts off from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Centre in China's northwestern Gansu province, on May 30, 2023, heading to the Tiangong space station. (AFP)

China sent three astronauts to its now fully operational space station as part of crew rotation on Tuesday in the fifth manned mission to the Chinese space outpost since 2021, state media reported.

The spacecraft, Shenzhou-16, or "Divine Vessel", and its three passengers lifted off atop a Long March-2F rocket from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Centre in the Gobi Desert in northwest China at 9:31 a.m. (0131 GMT).

The astronauts on Shenzhou-16 will replace the three-member crew of the Shenzhou-15, who arrived at the space station late in November.

The station, comprising three modules, was completed at the end of last year after 11 crewed and uncrewed missions since April 2021, beginning with the launch of the first and biggest module - the station's main living quarters.

China has already announced plans to expand its permanently inhabited space outpost, with the next module slated to dock with the current T-shaped space station to create a cross-shaped structure.

Leading the Shenzhou-16 mission was Jing Haipeng, 56, a senior spacecraft pilot from China's first batch of astronaut trainees in the late 1990s. He had travelled to space three times before, including two trips as mission commander.

Jing flew with Zhu Yangzhu and Gui Haichao, both 36 and part of China's third batch of astronauts. The mission is Zhu's and Gui's first spaceflight.

Former military university professor Zhu will serve as spaceflight engineer while Gui, a professor at Beihang University, will serve as the payload specialist on the mission, managing science experiments at the space station.

Beijing is expected to launch one more crewed mission to the orbiting outpost this year.

Also by the end of 2023, China is due to a launch space telescope the size of a large bus.

Known as Xuntian, or "Surveying the Heavens" in Chinese, the orbital telescope will boast a field of view 350 times wider than that of the Hubble Space Telescope, which was launched 33 years ago.


Saudi Astronauts on Board ISS Conduct Interactive Experiment with School Students

Saudi astronauts Rayyanah Barnawi and Ali Al-Qarni carry out an interactive scientific experiment on heat transfer with high school students in the Kingdom. (SPA)
Saudi astronauts Rayyanah Barnawi and Ali Al-Qarni carry out an interactive scientific experiment on heat transfer with high school students in the Kingdom. (SPA)
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Saudi Astronauts on Board ISS Conduct Interactive Experiment with School Students

Saudi astronauts Rayyanah Barnawi and Ali Al-Qarni carry out an interactive scientific experiment on heat transfer with high school students in the Kingdom. (SPA)
Saudi astronauts Rayyanah Barnawi and Ali Al-Qarni carry out an interactive scientific experiment on heat transfer with high school students in the Kingdom. (SPA)

Saudi astronauts Rayyanah Barnawi and Ali Al-Qarni have conducted an interactive scientific experiment on heat transfer with high school students in the Kingdom via satellite from the International Space Station (ISS).

 

The experiment allowed students to communicate with the two astronauts for questions and to compare results in microgravity environment with results on Earth. The astronauts, along with the students, were able to measure the variation in the speed of heat transfer in the microgravity environment compared to that on Earth. The results showed that heat travels at a slower speed through space than on Earth.

 

The experiment aims to motivate a new generation of Saudi leaders, explorers and scientists and achieve the goals of Saudi Vision 2030 by building human resources and promoting a culture of research, development and innovation.

 

Such experiments seek to heighten the students' interest in the fields of science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) and grow human capital by attracting talent and developing the necessary skills. This will boost the Kingdom's role in developing the space sector, become an important part of the global community in space science research and invest in research, in the service of humanity.

 

The experiments are being organized by the Saudi Space Commission (SSC) in partnership with the Communications, Space and Technology Commission (CST), and in cooperation with the Ministry of Education, the King Abdulaziz and His Companions Foundation for Giftedness and Creativity (Mawhiba), and Riyadh and Misk schools.


Interior Ministry Issues Special Stamp to Commemorate Saudi Crew’s Mission to ISS

Saudis watch the Axiom Mission 2 (Ax-2) launch of a SpaceX Falcon 9 and Dragon capsule, carrying four astronauts, two of whom are Saudi nationals, to the International Space Station, from Kennedy Space Center, Florida, US, in an event organized to celebrate the first Saudi woman into Space in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia May 22, 2023. (Reuters)
Saudis watch the Axiom Mission 2 (Ax-2) launch of a SpaceX Falcon 9 and Dragon capsule, carrying four astronauts, two of whom are Saudi nationals, to the International Space Station, from Kennedy Space Center, Florida, US, in an event organized to celebrate the first Saudi woman into Space in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia May 22, 2023. (Reuters)
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Interior Ministry Issues Special Stamp to Commemorate Saudi Crew’s Mission to ISS

Saudis watch the Axiom Mission 2 (Ax-2) launch of a SpaceX Falcon 9 and Dragon capsule, carrying four astronauts, two of whom are Saudi nationals, to the International Space Station, from Kennedy Space Center, Florida, US, in an event organized to celebrate the first Saudi woman into Space in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia May 22, 2023. (Reuters)
Saudis watch the Axiom Mission 2 (Ax-2) launch of a SpaceX Falcon 9 and Dragon capsule, carrying four astronauts, two of whom are Saudi nationals, to the International Space Station, from Kennedy Space Center, Florida, US, in an event organized to celebrate the first Saudi woman into Space in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia May 22, 2023. (Reuters)

The Saudi General Directorate of Passports issued a special stamp in commemoration of the launch of the Saudi astronauts’ mission to the International Space Station, reported the Saudi Press Agency on Monday.

The stamp, "Saudi Arabia Toward Space", was issued in cooperation with the Saudi Space Commission.

It will be made available to travelers at Jeddah’s King Abdulaziz International Airport, Riyadh’s King Khalid International Airport, and Dammam’s King Fahd International Airport.

The Saudi Space Commission launched the "Saudi Arabia Toward Space" campaign to boost the Kingdom's global position in the field of space, its contribution to international space activities, and promote its efforts to achieve the goals of Saudi Vision 2030.


China Prepares to Send First Civilian into Space 

A member of People's Liberation Army (PLA) runs on the site of Shenzhou-16 manned space flight mission on the eve of launching in Jiuquan, Gansu province, China, 29 May 2023. (EPA)
A member of People's Liberation Army (PLA) runs on the site of Shenzhou-16 manned space flight mission on the eve of launching in Jiuquan, Gansu province, China, 29 May 2023. (EPA)
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China Prepares to Send First Civilian into Space 

A member of People's Liberation Army (PLA) runs on the site of Shenzhou-16 manned space flight mission on the eve of launching in Jiuquan, Gansu province, China, 29 May 2023. (EPA)
A member of People's Liberation Army (PLA) runs on the site of Shenzhou-16 manned space flight mission on the eve of launching in Jiuquan, Gansu province, China, 29 May 2023. (EPA)

China will send its first civilian astronaut into space as part of a crewed mission to the Tiangong space station on Tuesday as it pursues its ambitious plans for a manned lunar landing by 2030.

The world's second-largest economy has invested billions of dollars in its military-run space program, trying to catch up with the United States and Russia after years of belatedly matching their milestones.

Until now, all Chinese astronauts sent into space have been part of the People's Liberation Army.

Gui Haichao is a professor at Beijing's Beihang University, and will manage scientific experiments on the station during the mission, China Manned Space Agency (CMSA) spokesperson Lin Xiqiang told reporters on Monday.

His mission will "carry out large-scale, in-orbit experiments... in the study of novel quantum phenomena, high-precision space time-frequency systems, the verification of general relativity, and the origin of life," Lin said.

"I've always had this dream," Gui told a press conference on Monday.

His university said he hailed from an "ordinary family" in the southwest province of Yunnan.

He had "first felt the attraction of aerospace" listening to the news of China's first man in space, Yang Liwei, on campus radio in 2003, the institution said in a post on social media.

Gui's addition is "particularly significant", independent analyst Chen Lan told AFP, given previous missions only carried astronauts trained as pilots responsible for more technical tasks and not specialist scientists.

"It means that, from this mission on, China will open the door to space for ordinary people," he said.

Gui is set to take off onboard the Shenzhou-16 spacecraft from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in northwest China on Tuesday at 9:31 am (0131 GMT), the CMSA said.

The commander is Jing Haipeng -- on his fourth mission into space, according to state media -- and the third crew member is engineer Zhu Yangzhu.

Jing said he hadn't gone home for nearly four years because of fears travel could disrupt his training.

"As astronauts going into space... our main responsibility and mission is striving for glory for our country," he said at a press conference on Monday.

The three will stay in Earth's orbit for around five months.

'Space dream'

Under President Xi Jinping, plans for China's "space dream" have been put into overdrive.

China is planning to build a base on the Moon, and CMSA spokesman Lin on Monday reaffirmed Beijing's plan to land a manned mission there by 2030.

"The overall goal is to achieve China's first manned landing on the Moon by 2030 and carry out lunar scientific exploration and related technological experiments," he said.

The final module of the T-shaped Tiangong -- whose name means "heavenly palace" -- successfully docked with the core structure last year.

The station carries a number of pieces of cutting-edge scientific equipment, state news agency Xinhua reported, including "the world's first space-based cold atomic clock system".

The Tiangong is expected to remain in low Earth orbit at between 400 and 450 kilometers (250 and 280 miles) above the planet for at least 10 years.

It is constantly crewed by rotating teams of three astronauts.

While China does not plan to use Tiangong for global cooperation on the scale of the International Space Station, Beijing has said it is open to foreign collaboration.

China "is looking forward to and welcomes the participation of foreign astronauts in the country's space station flight missions," Lin said Monday.

China has been effectively excluded from the International Space Station since 2011, when the United States banned NASA from engaging with the country.


City Walk Jeddah’s Carnival...a Place for Fun, Enjoyment

The Carnival entertainment zone embodies excitement and challenge, including kinetic game - SPA
The Carnival entertainment zone embodies excitement and challenge, including kinetic game - SPA
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City Walk Jeddah’s Carnival...a Place for Fun, Enjoyment

The Carnival entertainment zone embodies excitement and challenge, including kinetic game - SPA
The Carnival entertainment zone embodies excitement and challenge, including kinetic game - SPA

The "Carnival" zone at City Walk is offering a number of events within the Jeddah Events Calendar 2023, the Saudi Press Agency reported.

The Carnival entertainment zone, which embodies excitement and challenge, including kinetic games, also comprises various games for different ages.

The City Walk zone offers a variety of options for visitors, as it features a unique atmosphere for ten different sub-zones, offering its distinctive experiences, many other daily shows, watching entertainment events, experiencing adventures and exciting shows, and various games.


Eastern Canada’s Halifax Declares Emergency Over Wildfire 

Thick plumes of heavy smoke fill the Halifax sky as an out-of-control fire in a suburban community quickly spread, engulfing multiple homes and forcing the evacuation of local residents, in Halifax, Nova Scotia, on Sunday May 28, 2023. (The Canadian Press via AP) 
Thick plumes of heavy smoke fill the Halifax sky as an out-of-control fire in a suburban community quickly spread, engulfing multiple homes and forcing the evacuation of local residents, in Halifax, Nova Scotia, on Sunday May 28, 2023. (The Canadian Press via AP) 
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Eastern Canada’s Halifax Declares Emergency Over Wildfire 

Thick plumes of heavy smoke fill the Halifax sky as an out-of-control fire in a suburban community quickly spread, engulfing multiple homes and forcing the evacuation of local residents, in Halifax, Nova Scotia, on Sunday May 28, 2023. (The Canadian Press via AP) 
Thick plumes of heavy smoke fill the Halifax sky as an out-of-control fire in a suburban community quickly spread, engulfing multiple homes and forcing the evacuation of local residents, in Halifax, Nova Scotia, on Sunday May 28, 2023. (The Canadian Press via AP) 

The eastern Canadian city of Halifax declared a state of local emergency late on Sunday after a wildfire caused evacuations and power outages.

"Emergency responders are working around the clock to keep people safe and reduce the threats posed by the fires," the municipal authority in the capital of Nova Scotia province said in a press release.

The fire sent a huge pall of smoke over the port city.

The state of emergency would be in effect for seven days, unless lifted or extended, the municipality said.

Nova Scotia Power had temporarily disconnected power in the affected area, it said on Twitter.

Telecommunications firms including Rogers and Bell Canada's Bell Aliant said in posts on Twitter that some customers in communities evacuated due to wildfires may experience services disruption.

This month, the western province of Alberta declared a provincial state of emergency after tens of thousands of people were forced from their homes as unprecedented wildfires raged.


Venice’s Waters Turn Fluorescent Green Near Rialto Bridge

Gondolas navigate by the Rialto Bridge on Venice's historical Grand Canal as a patch of phosphorescent green liquid spreads in it, Sunday, May 28, 2023. (AP)
Gondolas navigate by the Rialto Bridge on Venice's historical Grand Canal as a patch of phosphorescent green liquid spreads in it, Sunday, May 28, 2023. (AP)
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Venice’s Waters Turn Fluorescent Green Near Rialto Bridge

Gondolas navigate by the Rialto Bridge on Venice's historical Grand Canal as a patch of phosphorescent green liquid spreads in it, Sunday, May 28, 2023. (AP)
Gondolas navigate by the Rialto Bridge on Venice's historical Grand Canal as a patch of phosphorescent green liquid spreads in it, Sunday, May 28, 2023. (AP)

The waters in Venice's main canal turned fluorescent green on Sunday in the area near the Rialto bridge and authorities are seeking to trace the cause, Italy's fire department said.

The regional environmental protection agency has received samples of the altered waters and is working to identify the substance that changed their color, the department said in a tweet.

The Venice prefect has called an emergency meeting of police forces to understand what happened and study possible countermeasures, the Ansa news agency reported.

The incident echoes recent episodes in Italy where environmental groups have been coloring monuments, including using vegetable charcoal to turn the waters of Rome's Trevi fountain black in a protest against fossil fuels.

However, unlike previous cases, no activist group has come forward to claim responsibility for what happened in Venice.


70 Years after First Summit, Everest Keeps Giving

In this photograph taken on May 20, 2023, a painting of late mountaineer Sherpa Tenzing Norgay's Everest summit is on display at the Himalayan Mountaineering Institute museum, in Darjeeling. (AFP)
In this photograph taken on May 20, 2023, a painting of late mountaineer Sherpa Tenzing Norgay's Everest summit is on display at the Himalayan Mountaineering Institute museum, in Darjeeling. (AFP)
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70 Years after First Summit, Everest Keeps Giving

In this photograph taken on May 20, 2023, a painting of late mountaineer Sherpa Tenzing Norgay's Everest summit is on display at the Himalayan Mountaineering Institute museum, in Darjeeling. (AFP)
In this photograph taken on May 20, 2023, a painting of late mountaineer Sherpa Tenzing Norgay's Everest summit is on display at the Himalayan Mountaineering Institute museum, in Darjeeling. (AFP)

When Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay Sherpa first climbed Everest 70 years ago, they paved the way for thousands of foreign climbers to try to follow in their footsteps.

The eight-day trek to the Everest base camp is among the most popular multi-day hikes in Nepal, with tens of thousands of tourists making the journey every year.

What were small agrarian villages when the British expedition passed through in 1953 have since been transformed into tourist hubs with hotels, tea houses and equipment shops, boosting the livelihoods of local communities.

In many homes, three generations have found employment in mountaineering -- a far more lucrative occupation than farming or yak-herding.

The work is hazardous by definition, but in a climbing season of about three months, an experienced guide can make up to $10,000 -- several times the country's average annual income.

And other Sherpas and Himalayan community members have opened restaurants and guesthouses that line Everest's money trail.

Veteran mountain guide Phurba Tashi Sherpa was born and raised in Khumjung, a village about 10 kilometers (6.2 miles) from base camp.

He grew up watching his father and uncles go to the mountains for work, and soon joined them on expeditions, eventually climbing Everest 21 times before he retired.

"There would be just a few expeditions before but now there are so many every year," he said.

"That means an increase in income. It has helped improve the lifestyle here. A lot has changed."

Since the first British teams set their sights on summiting Everest in the 1920s, Nepali climbers -- mostly from the Sherpa ethnic group -- have been by their side.

"Sherpa" became synonymous with high-altitude guiding as they became the backbone of the multimillion-dollar industry, bearing huge risks to carry equipment and food, fix ropes and repair ladders.

Now local expedition groups -- instead of playing second fiddle to foreign climbing agencies -- bring the bulk of paying clients into Nepal.

And a younger generation of Nepali climbers is slowly being recognized in their own right.

Renowned Italian climber Reinhold Messner told AFP in a 2021 interview that it was a well-deserved climb up the ladder.

"It is an evolution," he said. "And this is also important for the future economy of the country."

'Gift of the mountains'

The first ascent of Everest brought Nepal to the world's attention and its mountains have since captivated adventurers and tourists alike.

That has played a crucial role for Nepal's branding as a destination, according to tourism writer Lisa Choegyal.

"Through Covid and earthquakes and all the other setbacks, the insurgency even, that Nepal has suffered over the decades, mountaineering has really endured," she said.

The Khumbu region welcomes more than 50,000 trekkers a year.

"It is a gift of the mountains and we have to thank the first summit for opening this region to tourism," said Mingma Chhiri Sherpa, chairman of the local municipality.

"Education and modern amenities have come here because of it."

Driven to help the community he worked with, Hillary funded the region's first school in Khumjung and is said to have hauled timber himself to help build it.

One of its first students, Ang Tsering Sherpa, now owns an expedition company.

"It is because of mountaineering that the young Sherpas today have higher education," he said. "It has brought a wave of economic prosperity."

More than 10 percent of Nepalis are employed in tourism and the government this year collected over $5 million in Everest permit fees alone as a record number of summit hopefuls arrived.

Tenzing Chogyal Sherpa, 30, whose grandfather Kancha Sherpa was part of the 1953 expedition, is a glaciologist and said that education had opened up options for Sherpa youths.

"A Sherpa can now be a doctor, engineer or a businessman, anything they want to be. That is very good," he said.

"And if they want to be a mountaineer, they can."


Indian Official Suspended after He Drains Reservoir to Retrieve Phone He Dropped While Taking Selfie

Indian villagers collect water for drinking from a well running dry at Padal village of the district of Samba on June 2, 2019. (AFP/Getty Images)
Indian villagers collect water for drinking from a well running dry at Padal village of the district of Samba on June 2, 2019. (AFP/Getty Images)
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Indian Official Suspended after He Drains Reservoir to Retrieve Phone He Dropped While Taking Selfie

Indian villagers collect water for drinking from a well running dry at Padal village of the district of Samba on June 2, 2019. (AFP/Getty Images)
Indian villagers collect water for drinking from a well running dry at Padal village of the district of Samba on June 2, 2019. (AFP/Getty Images)

A government official in India has been suspended from his job after he ordered a water reservoir to be drained so he could retrieve his smartphone, which he had dropped while taking a selfie.

Food inspector Rajesh Vishwas dropped his Samsung smartphone in Kherkatta dam in the central Indian state of Chhattisgarh last week, The Times of India newspaper reported.

Vishwas first asked local divers to jump into the reservoir to find the device, claiming it contained sensitive government data. But after the initial efforts to retrieve his smartphone failed, he asked for the reservoir to be emptied using diesel pumps.

Over the next three days, more than 2 million liters of water were pumped out from the reservoir, which is enough to irrigate at least 1,500 acres of land during India’s scorching summer, local media reported.

In videos that went viral on social media, Vishwas is seen sitting under a red umbrella as diesel pumps run to drain water from the reservoir.

Vishwas told local media the water in the reservoir was unusable for irrigation and that he had received permission from a senior official to drain it.

The smartphone was eventually retrieved but wouldn’t even start because it was waterlogged.

Authorities later suspended Vishwas after he was widely criticized for wasting water resources.

India is one of the most water-stressed countries and extreme temperatures had led to severe water scarcity, causing crop losses, forest fires and cuts to power.