Indonesian Digital News Archive

Built in 1986, the Aquarius Reef Base is one of the last remaining underwater stations dedicated to scientific research. Operated by the National Oceanographic and Atmosphere Administration (NOAA), the base is located at the heart of the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary, where it has been used to conduct research on coral reef ecosystems for many years.

On July 16, the base will host a team of researchers and scientists possibly for the last time. Dubbed Mission Aquarius, this team will be led by the legendary Sylvia Earl and will live aboard the station for six days as they conduct research on the nearby Conch Reef. You'll be able to follow that expedition and watch live streaming from the Aquarius itself, on the team's website. The video below includes more information on the base and it's purpose over the past 25+ years.

And for those wonder, the reason this could be the final mission to the reef base is because it has become the victim of budget cuts. It seems NASA isn't the only organization dedicated to exploration that has had to tighten its belt. We need to get this economy going again so we can pay for more programs like this one.

In my first 2012 Tour de France report yesterday I wrote that the riders know they can't win the race in the first week, but they sure as hell can lose it. That theory was put to the test today as the teams took on a 197km (122.4 mile) course that started out flat and ended with a series of tough hills and sharp turns. As a result, Stage 3, which ran from Orchies to Boulogne-sur-Mer, was marred with crashes, mishaps and injuries that sent a few riders home, but fortunately didn't effect any of the big GC contenders.

The challenging climbs at the end of the race, combined with the regular crashes, did result in the peloton being ripped apart once again today. When the pace picked up near the end of the stage, the hills started to take their toll on the riders as well, splitting them into a number of smaller groups. Several of leading riders made attempts at breaking away and claiming the win, including French rider Sylvain Chavanel, who gave it a go on the final climb, but in the end he was reeled back in by a surging peloton. On the final push it was young upstart Peter Sagan of Team Liquigas-Cannondale who beat out his rivals at the line to claim his second stage win of the year in impressive fashion.

As mentioned, the stage had little impact on the overall standings in the General Classification. Fabian Cancellara still leads the race by seven seconds over Bradley Wiggins and Chavanel. Last year's winner Cadel Evans is holding down the 8th spot overall and is in a perfect position for this point of the race. Other possible contenders like Denis Menchov and Ryder Hesjedal are lurking as well.

With no change at the top, Cancellara of stays in Yellow of course. The Green Jersey of the sprinters belongs to Sagan outright now. He actually had claimed it yesterday, when I posted in error that Cancellara had given it to him on loan. At this point the King of the Mountain competition is in the hands of Michael Morkov of Team Saxo Bank-Tinkoff Bank. He'll definitely stay in the Polk Dot Jersey for a few more days, as the next few stages don't feature many climbing points. American Tejay Van Garderen also stays in the White Jersey today as the Tour's best young rider under 25.

Tomorrow's Stage 4 runs between Abbeville and Rouen and covers 214km (133 miles). The profile for the ride is mostly flat with a few minor climbs that will likely have zero impact on the race. Look for one of the fast sprinters to take the day tomorrow as it seems tailor made for a showdown at the end.

A team of researchers are en route to a chain of remote islands in the South Pacific with the hopes of solving one of the great mysteries of the 20th century. Armed with new data, the team hopes to find the remains of Amelia Earhart, the famous aviator who went missing in 1937 while attempting to fly around the world.

The Eiger just might be the most iconic climbing face in all of Europe. Located in the Bernese Alps of Switzerland, it is an intimidating 3970 meters (13,025 ft) in height and has been challenging the world's best climbers for more than 150 years. The BBC made an interesting documentary on the beast and you can watch the entire thing on YouTube. The video is below, so pop some popcorn, get comfortable and find out why this is one of the toughest and most well known climbs in all the world.

Ever wonder what kind of bikes the cyclists in the Tour de France ride? Then you'll want to check out the video below which features a close up look at the bike that Peter Sagan rode to victory in Le Tour yesterday. It is a Cannondale SuperSix EVO tuned specifically for him and it goes by the name of "Tourminator."

I'm drooling here!

Last week South African adventurer Davey du Plessis embarked on an ambitious and challenging expedition that will see him following the iconic Amazon River from source to sea. His journey will cover an estimated 7200km (4474 miles) and last from 4-6 months, as he makes his way across the South American continent on foot, bike and kayak.

A few weeks back I posted a story about Wave Vidmar, the ocean kayaker who was preparing to paddle 3100 nautical miles (5741km) solo from California to Hawaii. At the time, Wave was putting the final touches on his preparation for the start of his journey, which included picking up his custom custom built Seaward Kayak in Vancouver.

Yesterday Vidmar officially launched the expedition, setting out from Horseshoe Cove in Sausalito, not far from the Golden Gate Bridge. He'll now spend the next 45-56 days out on the open ocean, completely solo, as he makes his way across the Pacific to Hawaii.

As far as I can tell there is no live tracking of Wave's progress. There is an official website for the expedition, which can be found here, but it has little in the way of information. Seaward Kayaks is posting updating on their Facebook Page however, so that may be the best place to follow along with the adventure.

It should also be noted, and this was pointed out in the comments section the last time I wrote about Wave and his journey, this isn't the first time someone has attempted this crossing. Back in 1987 Ed Gillet made a similar paddle, successfully completing his California to Hawaii crossing in 64 days. That was 25 years ago this year and Wave is celebrating that anniversary as part of his paddle as well.

Good luck to Wave and be sure to watch for updates.

As most of you no doubt know by now, the Tour de France got underway this past weekend with a Prologue on Saturday and the first two stages yesterday and today. In true Tour fashion, early on there are moment of fireworks between the riders, but there is also a lot of time spent simply holding positions and trying to stay out of trouble. As other, more wiser, Tour observers have said in the past, you can't win the Tour de France in the first week, but you can sure as hell lose it.

With that in mind, the riders took to the streets of Liège, Belgium to ride a short 6.4km (4 mile) Prologue that would determine the standings in the race for the first stage yesterday. That Prologue was won by Fabian Cancellara who has made it a habit of grabbing the Yellow Jersey at the beginning of the Tour over the past few years. Cancellara is an individual time trial specialist who is tough to be on a  one-on-one basis out on the road, but he is no contender for the title in Paris. Still, he will defend that jersey to the best of his ability and will likely hold on to it for at least this week.

Yesterday the riders hit the road for the first time on a 198km (123 mile) ride from Liège to Seraing. The course featured a few rolling hills, which gave the climbers a chance to strut their stuff, while the sprinters had just one opportunity to earn points towards the green jersey. The route featured a tough uphill finish helped to separate the peloton into groups, but none of the GC contenders really struggled or gave up any time. At the end of the day it was talented young rider Peter Sagan of Team Liquigas-Cannondale that pulled of the stage win, with Cancellara close behind.



Today's Stage 2 was much flatter, which allowed the sprinters to take center stage. It ran from Visé to Tournai and covered 207km (128.6 miles) across the Belgian countryside. Because it was so flat, it allowed the top sprinters in the world to go head to head with one another in the final few kilometers and once again it was no surprise that Sky Pro Cycling's Mark Cavendish came out on top. Cavendish has been one of the best sprinters in the world over the past few years and has won his share of Tour stages as well. He was fallowed by André Greipel and Matthew Harley Gross, who finished in second and third.

So as of now, the overall standings have Cancellara in Yellow, just seven seconds ahead of Bradley Wiggins, also of Sky Pro Cycling, and Sylvain Chavanel of Omega Pharma Quickstep. Other GC contenders are lurking in the pack, with Denis Menchov in 6th place overall, defending champ Cadel Evans in 8th and Ryder Hesjedal in 10th. Of course, there is three weeks of racing to go, so those standing will be scrambled a few times before we start to get a clear picture of who will be battling it out in the mountains.

Cancellara also leads in sprint points at the moment, which means he also owns the Green Jersey. He's allowed Peter Sagan to wear it out on the road while he is in Yellow however, and by the time he drops the Yellow Jersey, someone else is likely to already have claimed the Green. There haven't been a lot of climbing points to give out just yet, but Michael Morkov of Team Saxo Bank-Tinkoff Bank wears the Polk Dot Jersey of the King of the Mountains at the moment, while American Tejay Van Garderen of BMC Racing holds the White Jersey for the best rider under 25. Van Garderen is also in the 4th overal position of the GC as well.

Tomorrow's stage will enter France for the first time and will cover 197km (122.4 miles) between Orchies and Boulogne-sur-Mer. The profile starts out flat and easy but builds into some rolling hills late in the stage and will once again feature an uphill finish. That means that the sprinters won't be dueling it out at the end so watch for Cancellara to be up near the front, as he was on Sunday, in an attempt o build a cushion for himself in the days ahead. The stage has some potential for a strong climber to survive a breakaway, but whether or not anyone can actually do it remains to be seen.

Personally, I like the course so far this year. They're mixing things up in the early going to ensure it isn't just the sprinters who get to have some fun. That makes these early stages a bit more interesting and it means the GC riders will have to pay attention at all times or risk giving up precious time.

It was a relatively quiet weekend in Pakistan, where it seems the climbing teams are all in a lull between acclimatization rounds, weather windows and gear carries. But the week ahead looks like it'll be a bit busier as the mountaineers get back to work.

One of those teams is the Mazeno Ridge trio of Sandy Allan, Rick Allen and Cathy O'Dowd, who began their summit push today. Their weather report indicates that the next two weeks will be a mixed bag, with unstable conditions throughout, but nothing too nasty as to prevent them from going up. Their likely to need a good portion of that two weeks to complete the climb, as they'll be forced to negotiate a very long approach that includes eight 7000 meter (22,965 ft) peaks before the take on the crown jewel of the climb, Nanga Parbat, which stands 8126 meters (26,660 ft). Expect regular updates on their progress in the coming days.

Once climber who won't summit Nanga this year is Romanian Torok Zsolt, who posted earlier today that it is with a heavy heart that he has to call it quits on his solo climb this season. Torok waxes poetic about his love for the mountains and his enjoyment of climbing Himalayan peaks alone. But he says that the weather has continued to be bad and that the upper portions of the mountain are unstable and unsafe. He experienced those conditions first hand last week when he climbed above Camp 3 and found himself in some precarious positions. After making it back to BC safely, he now estimates that it will be a minimum of ten days before NP is safe to climb, and he simply doesn't have the time or resources to stay and see the expedition through to the end.

Over on Broad Peak, Al Hancock is celebrating Canada Day in Base Camp with his mates. They've been shuttling gear up the mountain and now have Camps 1 and 2 established now. They'll spend the next few days resting before proceeding up again. If the weather holds, they should have C3 built by the end of the week and they'll start thinking about their summit bid as well. For Al, BP is just a warm-up for K2, which will come later in July if everything stays on plan.

Louis Rousseau's Gasherbrum squad, which includes Annalisa Fioretti, has made steady progress as well. They spent the weekend shuttling gear up to Camp 2 and should most likely be headed back to BC as well after getting their gear ready for the Japanese Couloir. With that work out of the way, they'll  rest up and watch the weather before making their first summit push too. That could come later in the week as well.

It seems the next week or so is going to be very interesting. Stay tuned for more updates.