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Space X Crew Dragon Safely Splashes Down with Crew-1 Astronauts from International Space Station (ISS).

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Four astronauts splashed down safely in the Gulf of Mexico Sunday, completing NASA’s first commercial crew, long-duration mission aboard the International Space Station (ISS). The return comes nearly six months after the crew members arrived at the microgravity laboratory and also marks the longest-duration mission of a crewed American spacecraft to date.

SpaceX’s Crew Dragon, carrying NASA astronauts Michael Hopkins, Victor Glover, and Shannon Walker, and Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency astronaut Soichi Noguchi, returned to Earth in a parachute-assisted splashdown at 2:56 a.m. EDT off the coast of Panama City, Florida. Crews aboard SpaceX recovery vessels successfully recovered the spacecraft and astronauts. After returning to shore, the astronauts will fly back to Houston.

“Welcome home Victor, Michael, Shannon, and Soichi, and congratulations to the teams at NASA and SpaceX who worked so hard to ensure their safe and successful splashdown,” said Sen. Bill Nelson, who was confirmed by the Senate to serve as NASA Administrator on April 29. “We’ve accomplished another incredible spaceflight for America and our commercial and international partners. Safe, reliable transportation to the International Space Station is exactly the vision that NASA had when the agency embarked on the commercial crew program.”

NASA’s SpaceX Crew-1 mission launched Nov. 15, 2020, on a Falcon 9 rocket from the agency’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The astronauts named the spacecraft Resilience, in honor of their families, colleagues, and fellow citizens and highlighting the dedication displayed by the teams involved with the mission and demonstrating that there is no limit to what humans can achieve when they work together. Crew Dragon Resilience docked to the Harmony module’s forward port of the space station Nov. 16, nearly 27 hours after liftoff.

Overall, Hopkins, Glover, Walker, and Noguchi traveled 71,242,199 statute miles during their 168 days in orbit (with 167 days aboard the space station), completing 2,688 orbits around Earth. With splashdown, the crew also broke the American crewed spacecraft mission duration record of 84 days, 1 hour, 15 minutes, set by the final Skylab crew in February 1974.

Crew-1 also is the first night splashdown of a U.S. crewed spacecraft since Apollo 8’s predawn return in the Pacific Ocean on Dec. 27, 1968, with NASA astronauts Frank Borman, Jim Lovell and Bill Anders.

Throughout their mission, the Crew-1 astronauts contributed to scientific investigations and technology demonstrations, in addition to spacewalks and public engagement events, while aboard the orbiting laboratory. From studying protein crystal development to advance new drug discoveries, to demonstrating robotic assistant technologies, their work advances exploration of the universe while bringing benefits back to Earth.

They also grew crops in both the Advanced Plant Habitat and Veggie plant growth facilities, and conducted tests of a new method for producing semiconductor crystals. The astronauts contributed hundreds of pictures of Earth as part of the Crew Earth Observation investigation, one of the longest-running investigations aboard the space station, which contributes to tracking of natural disasters and changes to our home planet. The crew also tested a new tape dispenser, designed and produced by students as part of the High Schools United with NASA to Create Hardware (HUNCH), during the mission.

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President Solih operated on orders from a foreign diplomat: President Muizzu

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President Dr. Mohamed Muizzu alleges that his predecessor, President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih, operated on orders from a foreign diplomat.

In an interview with Public Service Media (PSM) which aired on Thursday night, President Muizzu was asked for a response to criticism from the opposition regarding a recent procurement of military drones.

President Muizzu noted that the main opposition Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP), when it held office from 2018-2023, also held a supermajority in the Parliament.

However, the party failed to protect Maldives’ independence, leaving it in the hands of a foreign country, he said.

He said that President Solih had operated on orders from a foreign ambassador, which resulted in extensive damage.

However, he did not specify which foreign country he was referring to.

“We had lost independence in all sense of the word, including economically. After having done all this, they would naturally not accept our efforts to remedy all this and put the country on a track that the Maldivian people want, towards a ‘Dhiveheenge Raajje’,” he said.

Regarding the cost of the drones, President Muizzu said that while he believes in transparency, such military secrets aren’t disclosed by any country.

“In such matters that is crucial to national security, I am heavily reliant on counsel from our chief of defense force and our generals. Therefore, I will follow their counsel, and I will listen to them,” he said.

President Muizzu said that no value can be attached to the independence of Maldives, and that it is in fact “priceless.”

While the People’s National Congress (PNC) administration accuses the former administration of getting overly dependent on India, the MDP accuses the incumbent administration of ruining age-old ties with India and fostering closer ties with China.

President Muizzu had campaigned on the promise of expelling Indian soldiers stationed in Maldives, which he said was a threat to the country’s national security. The soldiers are now being replaced by Indian civilians.

Source(s): sun.mv

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China’s Shandong province donates 10 civil vehicles to Maldives

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The eastern Chinese province of Shandong has donated 10 civil vehicles to the Maldives.

The donation was handed over by Chinese Ambassador Wang Lixin to the Maldives’ Local Government Minister Adam Shareef Umar on Thursday evening.

Wang wrote on X that she is very pleased to handover the donation.

“I believe those vehicles will help a lot in collecting waste and other public works in different cities, and make Maldives a more beautiful place,” she said.

Meanwhile, Adam Shareef expressed profound gratitude for the generous donation.

“This meaningful gesture symbolizes the supportive friendship between our two nations,” he wrote on X.

Source(s): sun.mv

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Government aims to expand Aasandha service to UAE and Thailand this year

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President Dr. Mohamed Muizzu says his administration aims to expand the services of the public health insurance scheme – Aasandha – to the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Thailand within this year.

In an interview to Public Service Media (PSM) which aired on Thursday night, President Muizzu said that administrative arrangements to expand the services to the two countries are going ahead at a fast pace.

“We therefore have high expectations it can begin this year,” he said.

He did not provide any details.

In a press briefing on January 13, following a state visit to China, President Muizzu said his administration plans to expand Aasandha services to countries that offer better quality medical care services, including the UAE and Thailand.

“In the future, Aasandha will not be restricted to medical facilities in specific countries in a specific region, but will be expanded to countries that offer better services such as UAE and Thailand,” he said, while speaking to reporters from the Velana International Airport.

He also announced plans to provide Aasandha coverage for accommodation as well.

Aasandha services are currently available overseas in select medical facilities in neighboring Sri Lanka and India.

The decision to expand Aasandha comes amid concern over the growing burden on the state budget for the provision of the service. The cost of Aasandha has been growing yearly. On Wednesday, Social and Family Development Minister Dr. Aishath Shiham said the expenditure on Aasandha had increased by 60 percent over the last five years.

She said the administration is studying different models in an effort to switch to one that minimizes wastage.

MVR 1.9 billion is allocation in this year’s budget for Aasandha services.

Source(s): sun.mv

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