Free Republic

[Video] A camera at the Mauna Kea Observatory in Hawaii has captured an object as it burned up on re-entering Earth's atmosphere on 8 February. The Subaru-Asahi Star Camera, owned by the National Astronomical Observatory of Japan, recorded a time-lapse of the fireball blazing across the night sky, followed by smaller glowing streaks.

United States exporters of thermal coal earned more than $5 billion in 2023 as they shipped out more than 32.5 million metric tons ... The thermal coal export earnings were the second-highest since 2017, following 2022's $5.7 billion. The total volumes were the highest since 2018 and came as U.S. power producers cut the amount of coal used in electricity generation to the lowest this century, ... The diverging trends between shrinking domestic coal use and robust coal exports open the United States to charges of hypocrisy .... Between 2013 and 2023, U.S. coal-fired power generation dropped by 57.5% from...

"There have been racial barriers, and it has been challenging to be accepted as Japanese." That's what a tearful Carolina Shiino said in impeccable Japanese after she was crowned Miss Japan on Monday. The 26-year-old model, who was born in Ukraine, moved to Japan at the age of five and was raised in Nagoya. She is the first naturalised Japanese citizen to win the pageant, but her victory has re-ignited a debate on what it means to be Japanese. While some recognised her victory as a "sign of the times", others have said she does not look like a "Miss...

A 70-YEAR-OLD man revealed to cops on his deathbed that he was one of Japan's most wanted fugitives before he died. The man claimed to be Satoshi Kirishima, a radical extremist behind bombings in the capital who had been on the run for 49 years.

The North’s second known launch event of the year adds to a provocative run of weapons tests in the face of deepening nuclear tensions with the U.S., South Korea and Japan. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ SEOUL, South Korea — South Korea’s military says North Korea fired several cruise missiles into waters off its western coast, adding to a provocative run of weapons demonstrations in the face of deepening nuclear tensions with the United States, South Korea and Japan. South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff said Wednesday that the U.S. and South Korean militaries were analyzing the launches. It did not immediately confirm the...

Electric vehicles will never dominate the market, Toyota Chairman Akio Toyoda has said, in the latest sign that car companies are backing away from the troubled technology. The Telegraph has more. Battery-powered electric vehicles will only ever capture 30% of global market share, the Chairman of Toyota has predicted, raising concerns about consumers’ willingness to align with Net Zero goals. Akio Toyoda said that traditional fuel-burning cars, as well as hybrids and hydrogen fuel cell vehicles would make up the rest of the market. The grandson of the founder of the world’s largest car manufacturer said shifting towards electric vehicles...

Washington, January 20./TASS/. In November, Russia cut its holdings of the US sovereign debt, from $31 min month-on-month to $28 min, according to the latest data published by the US Treasury... Japan remained he biggest holder of the US state debt in November 2023, as its increased its holdings to $1.127 trin from $1.09 trln in October, followed by China with $782 bln and the United Kingdom with $716.2 bln.

TOKYO and SEOUL -- North Korea launched a suspected ballistic missile on Sunday afternoon, Japan and South Korea said. The launch appeared to have been a shorter-range ballistic missile than those recently tested based on its flight time, Japan's Defense Ministry said. South Korean officials said the missile was launched from the Pyongyang area into the East Sea just before 3 p.m. local time.

A Boeing 737 plane in Japan was forced to return to its point of departure on Saturday after a crack appeared in the window of the plane’s cockpit. The All Nippon Airways (ANA) domestic flight had left the city of Sapporo en route to Toyama, before turning around for an emergency landing. No one onboard was injured, a spokesperson for the airline said. John Strickland, an expert aviation consultant said that although the crack was in the outermost of the four-layered window, cracks like it “can be pretty dangerous if not fixed,” according to the BBC. “The crack was not...

American foreign policy experts have long argued that China has been laying the groundwork for a permanent rise as a major global power, and U.S. politicians (particularly on the Republican side) have certainly counted the ways in which China is clearly our No. 1 geopolitical foe. However, China's ascendency isn't without its setbacks, and at times it seems possible that China is closer to declining than rising. Their economy hasn't recovered since COVID-19, and Chinese President Xi Jinping has been dealing with more internal struggles than were previously let on. One such problem for the leader of the Chinese Communist...

What is is about airline disasters turned miracles, and for that matter, tsunamis, happening around this time of year? Japan got both in the last two days, but the latter story appears to be truly miraculous: Take a look at this video and imagine the odds of anyone on it surviving:blockquote> #BREAKING | Japan Airlines aircraft in flames after collision with coast guard plane on Tokyo airport's runway#Japan #JapanAirlines #TokyoAirport #Haneda #TokyoHanedaAirport #Airplane #Airplanecrash #Tokyo #Breaking #Airplane #JapanEarthquake #JapanTsunami pic.twitter.com/Y7uDzUpdio — Neha Bisht (@neha_bisht12) January 2, 2024 All 400 crews and passengers on board have evacuated according to NHK news....

A devastating earthquake hit central Japan today with a preliminary magnitude of 7.6, prompting mass evacuations, sparking fires and leaving residents trapped under the rubble of their homes as others scrambled for higher ground amid warnings of a tsunami. A total of 21 quakes above 4.0 magnitude rang out shortly after 4pm local time (7am UK time), and videos shared on social media and broadcast on Japanese TV showed how buildings collapsed in Suzu, a city close to the epicentre of the largest quake, with thick cracks appearing in roads. The tremors triggered a huge fire in Wajima city, in...

(Excuse me for printing his words. I wanted you to see what the left is saying now.) This is infuriating. This clod deserves no respect. Bill Maher called Sarah Palin a “dumb twat” on his comedy show last night. His far left audience loved it. The Daily Caller reported: On Friday night’s airing of the show, host Bill Maher took a shot at one of the left’s favorite targets, former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, by contemplating her reaction to the tragic events that have unfolded in Japan over the past nine days. (h/t Real Clear Politics Video) “Did you hear...

President Joe Biden believes “serious scrutiny” is warranted for the planned acquisition of U.S. Steel by Japan’s Nippon Steel, the White House said Thursday after days of silence on a transaction that has drawn alarm from the steelworkers union.Lael Brainard, the director of National Economic Council, indicated the deal would be reviewed by the secretive Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States, which includes economic and national security agency representatives to investigate national security risks from foreign investments in American firms. She said in a statement that Biden “believes the purchase of this iconic American-owned company by a foreign...

Former Marine Catherine Arnett, who spent 113 days in the brig and was eventually discharged for refusing to take the COVID-19 vaccine in 2022, was arrested earlier this month for attempting to return to her duty station in Japan, according to Stars and Stripes. Arnett's case became a cause célèbre when she refused to take the COVID-19 vaccine in 2022, citing religious objections to the fact that the vaccine was developed using research that involved fetal tissue cells. Arnett's request for a religious exemption was denied. The Marine Corps notified Arnett that she faced administrative separation due to this decision,...

Republican presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy battled with CNN host Kaitlan Collins on her show Monday night after she aired a brief clip of him speaking about Taiwan. "Guess what, we’ll put a gun in every Taiwanese household, train them how to use it, that is how you make Xi Jinping think twice," Ramaswamy said in a clip taken from a speech he gave in Iowa. "Do you really think that would be a sufficient plan to deter a Chinese invasion, if it includes long-range missiles, ground troops, an aerial blockade, a naval blockade, all of the different measures here?" Collins...

WASHINGTON — Chinese President Xi Jinping bluntly told President Joe Biden during their recent summit in San Francisco that Beijing will reunify Taiwan with mainland China but the timing has not yet been decided, according to three current and former U.S. officials. Xi told Biden in a group meeting attended by a dozen American and Chinese officials that China’s preference is to take Taiwan peacefully, not by force, the officials said

Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Gen. Charles Q. Brown Jr., expressed concern about the potential invasion of Taiwan by communist China, stating that Americans "should be worried."When asked about the possibility of such an invasion during an interview at the Reagan National Defense Forum on Dec. 2, Gen. Brown pointed to Hong Kong as an example, stating: "Just think about what happened in Hong Kong. ... We all should be worried whether it's going to happen or not. And part of the reason why deterrence is so important is so that conflict does not occur."Since Beijing enacted the...

Far from an idealistic crusade for democracy, America’s interest in Taiwan involves economic security, alliances, great power politics, and military deterrence.This month, Chinese military flights near Taiwan reached an all-time high. In a single day in September, aircraft from the People’s Liberation Army crossed into Taiwan’s Air Defense Identification Zone more than 100 times. As China’s campaign of military intimidation toward the self-governing island reaches new heights, it’s important to remember why U.S. support for the island nation is more vital than ever.Deterring China from launching an invasion of Taiwan and dominating the world’s largest market zone is a vital...

Chinese President Xi Jinping warned President Biden last month that he intends to end Taiwan’s decades-long de facto independence — peacefully, if possible. Xi told the 81-year-old commander-in-chief that “Beijing will reunify Taiwan with mainland China but that the timing has not yet been decided,” NBC News reported Wednesday, citing three current and former US officials briefed on the meeting. The White House didn’t deny the exchange, which occurred during a Nov. 15 summit outside San Francisco that was attended by a dozen US and Chinese officials. “I’m not gonna get into the specifics of the discussion between the two...