World War 2 Trivia

1.) The heaviest tank ever built was the German Maus II-which weighed 192 tons. However, by the end of the war it had never reached an operational state.

2.) The Soviet Red Army once tried dogs to destroy enemy tanks. Dogs were trained to associate the underside of tanks with food and were fitted with 26lbs [...]

Airline Passenger Pre-screening Expected in 2009

A long-delayed government program designed to more accurately pre-screen the names of airline passengers against terror watch lists is expected to begin early next year.
Homeland Security Sec. Michael Chertoff announced the final rule of the program, Secure Flight, which would validate air traveler’s information so there’s less chance a person could be mistaken for someone [...]

Today in History: American Revolution; British naval fleet attacks Norfolk, Virginia

October 24, 1775 – Lord John Murray Dunmore, orders a British naval fleet of six ships to sail up the James River and into Hampton Creek to attack Patriot troops and destroy the town of Norfolk, Virginia. British Capt. Matthew Squire led the six ships into Hampton Creek and began bombarding the town with artillery [...]

Space Tourist Gets His Money’s Worth

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. – The world’s latest space tourist, a computer game wizard and astronaut’s son who paid $30 million to fly to the space station, said Monday from orbit that he’s gotten his money’s worth.
With his 12-day adventure winding down this week, Richard Garriott said he felt fulfilled even before he rocketed away on [...]

NASA Approves Hubble Plan

NASA is going ahead with a plan to restart the flow of science data from Hubble Space Telescope by routing around circuitry that failed a little more than two weeks ago. The unprecedented switchover is due to begin early Wednesday and if all goes well, the telescope would be beaming imagery back down to Earth [...]

4 Killed in Helicopter Crash in Chicago Suburb

AURORA, Illinois – A medical helicopter crashed in a Chicago suburb, killing three crew members and a 13-month-old patient.
The transport helicopter was headed to the Children’s Memorial Hospital in Chicago from Valley West Hospital in Sandwich when it went down minutes before midnight, said Aurora police spokesman Sgt. Robb Wallers.
Children Memorial’s Hospital spokeswoman Julie Pesch [...]

Houston TV Station Helicopter Crashes

CONROE, Texas – A Pilot and television camera operator died Monday October 13, when their helicopter crashed near Houston on the way to cover a news story, 2 dead.
KTRK, an affiliate of ABC, reported the helicopter it had leased was flying to the scene of a shooting when it crashed in a state forest near [...]

NASA to Push through Mars Lab Launch

NASA will push ahead with its plan for an October 2009 launch for the already over-budget Mars Science Laboratory despite ongoing technical and schedule difficulties all but certain to push the cost of the mission past $2 billion.
Officials in charge of NASA’s Mars program made the announcement Friday following a meeting with NASA Administrator Mike [...]

Plane Crash in Nepal Kills 18

KATMANDU, Nepal – A small airplane crashed and caught fire on Wednesday as it tried to land in foggy weather at a tiny mountain airport near Mount Everest killing 18 people, including 16 tourists from Germany, Australia and Nepal.
The 19-seat Yeti Airlines DeHavilland DHC-6 Twin Otter, which had taken off from Katmandu, snagged its wheels [...]

India’s First Moon Mission

M. Annadurai, project head of India’s first unmanned mission said India will launch a locally built rocket for the country’s first unmanned mission to the moon on October 22. If there is any further delay of the launch, it will be because of the weather; otherwise, there are no technical difficulties, added Annadurai.
Originally, the launch [...]