Leatherback sea turtle

Leatherbacks are the biggest sea turtles on Earth, with some weighing in at more than 2,000 pounds (907 kilograms). "They can be the size of your kitchen table," says Lisa Bailey of Conservation International. They're also ancient—leatherbacks have lived on Earth for about 100 million years.

But today they're in trouble. At sea, turtles can get tangled in fishing nets or suffocate on drifting plastic bags, which they mistake for jellyfish. On the beach, bright lights from hotels and houses sometimes confuse both adult females coming ashore to lay their eggs and hatchlings trying to find their way to the ocean.

These and other problems have caused Pacific leatherback sea turtle populations to drop by 90 percent over the past 20 years. "If we don't do something, they'll be gone in ten years," said Bullis Charter School student Talliya Smith, 11. Smith helped release hatchlings and excavate leatherback nests with her classmates at Playa Grande in Costa Rica.

The migrating leatherbacks swim more than 750 miles (1,207 kilometers) south to the waters around the Galápagos. Some go even farther south to the colder waters off Chile. Cruising at a rate of more than 43 miles (70 kilometers) per day, they make the trip in about two or three weeks. Once they arrive, the turtles dive to depths of more than 3,280 feet (1,000 meters) in search of jellyfish and other food. In four years, when the turtles are ready to nest again, they'll return to Costa Rica, says sea turtle expert James Spotila.
Source :http://kids.nationalgeographic.com

Are you a star gazer?...watch the skies for some nice view.....

Greetings, fellow SkyWatchers! As the summer heats up for the northern hemisphere and the winter cools down the southern, we're in for interesting celestial scenery over the next few days. No special equipment is needed - only your eyes and the knowledge of knowing where and when to look….Get out your binoculars and have a look. Even the youngest SkyWatcher will easily be able to find Mars!


During the evenings of July 9 through 11, watch how the faster-moving Mars closely interacts with the much slower Saturn. Despite the difference in brightness, they still should make for a rather eye-catching pair in the western twilight glow about an hour after sundown. On July 9, Mars is situated about one degree below Saturn. On the 10th, they are closest together, separated by 0.7 degree; Mars now appears just below and to the left of Saturn. On the 11th, Mars has moved noticeably farther away to Saturn's left.




On the universal date of Sunday, June 8, 2008 the Red Planet - Mars - and the Moon had made a splendid showing for all. For most of us, Mars and the earthshine Moon will only be separated by about a degree, but for lucky observers in New Zealand, this was an occultation event! While the Phoenix mission is still making big news, use this opportunity to do some public astronomy outreach. Point the pair out in the sky to someone and tell what you know. Around 40 years has elapsed since humankind has first visited one - and then the other. How did our original expeditions to the Moon lead scientists to develop ever better instruments for remote study? How has our exploratory spacecraft evolved?

If you think that's cool… Then stay tuned when the Moon, Saturn and Regulus team up in the night sky. To the unaided eye, the trio will make a lovely triangle with the Ringed Planet and the Little King situated to the north of Selene. Again, it's a great time to do some public outreach! Point a telescope Saturn's way. Titan - Saturn's largest moon - is visibly bright and can be seen in even small telescopes. Explain how our original fly-bys and landings on our own Moon led us on to explore a moon on a distant world! What did we find on Titan? How can it compare to what we discovered on the Moon and Mars?

Don't forget Regulus, either. The light you see from it on this night would have left roughly in 1931 - long before expeditions to the Moon, Saturn and Mars were even dreamed of. At about three and a half times more massive than our own Sol, Regulus is one hot customer when it comes to spin rate. Revolving completely on its axis in a little less than 16 hours, oblate Regulus would fly apart if it were moving any faster! Even though it's been around for a few million years, Regulus isn't alone, either. The "Little King" is a multiple star system composed of a hot, bright, bluish-white star with a pair of small, faint companions.

Interestingly, when we combine the motions of Earth, Mars and Saturn, we find that the interval between conjunctions of Mars and Saturn average about every 2 years and 20 days. The last time Mars and Saturn got together was June 17, 2006. Their next meeting is set for July 30, 2010.

Even if you only use your eyes, the next few days are a great opportunity to share what you love and know with others… Enjoy!

Moon Occulting Mars Image - Credit: Ron Dantowitz, Clay Center Observatory at Dexter and Southfield Schools. Saturn and Titan - Credit: Casinni/NASA. Regulus vs. the Sun - Wenjin Huang, space.com/graphics


source: http://www.universetoday.com/

Thoda Pyaar Thoda Magic

A new Bollywood film for kids

It is the story of four naughty kids who are put up in Ranvir’s (Saif Ali) house when their parents are killed in an accident due to carelessness of Ranvir. The court gives a verdict of being the guardian of the four orphans of the dead couple and he is asked to take care of them until the youngest of them becomes an adult.


Children don’t like Ranvir, nor does Ranvir like the kids. The children are unhappy and pray to God for help. The good God(Rishi Kapoor) takes himself the trouble of sending his favorite fairy, Geeta (Rani Mukerjee), to go to the world and make peace between children and Ranvir.


She comes down on earth, cycling on a rainbow and makes friendship between Ranvir and kids. There are some interesting scenes where fairy turns the boring National Museum into a magical, living theatre of history and also the scenes where Geeta surprises children with her magic.

‘Thoda Pyaar Thoda Magic’ is the movie for kids who love the world of magic.

Turtle at Juhu Beach in Mumbai

was found wounded and was rescued by Society for prevention of Cruelty. Its front limb was bitten off by a fish and it lay on the beach for at least a couple of days... it is now recovering.....after being given antibiotics and multivitamins.

Source:epaper.hindisthantimes.com

Seasons...A story

There was an Indian Chief who had four sons.He wanted his sons to learn not to judge things too quickly.So he sent them each on a quest, in turn,to go and look at a pear tree that was a great distance away.


The first son went in the Winter, the second in the Spring,the third in Summer, and the youngest son in the Fall.


When they had all gone and come back, he called them together to describe what they had seen.


The first son said that the tree was ugly, bent, and twisted.


The second son said no, it was covered with green buds and full of promise.


The third son disagreed; he said it was laden with blossoms that smelled so sweet
and looked so beautiful, it was the most graceful thing he had ever seen.


The last son disagreed with all of them; he said it was ripe and drooping with fruit,
full of life and fulfillment.


The Chief then explained to his sons that they were all right, because they had each seen but only one season in the tree's life.


He told them that you cannot judge a tree, or a person, by only one season.


And that the essence of who they are and the pleasure, joy, and love that come from that life can only be measured at the end, when all the seasons are up.


If you give up when it's Winter,you will miss the promise of Spring, the beauty of Summer,and the fulfillment of Fall.

Moral of the story:
Don't let the pain of one season destroy the joy of all the rest.

How Mullah Nasruddin Won The Bet?

On a frigid and snowy winter day Mullah Nasruddin was having a chat with some of his friends in the local coffee house. Mullah Nasruddin said that cold weather did not bother him, and in fact, he could stay, if necessary, all night without any heat.

"We'll take you up on that, Mullah Nasruddin" they said. "If you stand all night in the village square without warming yourself by any external means, each of us will treat you to a sumptuous meal. But if you fail to do so, you will treat us all to dinner." "All right it's a bet," Mullah Nasruddin said.

That very night, Mullah Nasruddin stood in the village square till morning despite the bitter cold. In the morning, he ran triumphantly to his friends and told them that they should be ready to fulfill their promise.

"But as a matter of fact you lost the bet, Mullah Nasruddin," said one of them. "At about midnight, just before I went to sleep, I saw a candle burning a window about three hundred yards away from where you were standing. That certainly means that you warmed yourself by it."

"That's ridiculous," Mullah Nasruddin argued. "How can a candle behind a window warm a person three hundred yards away?" All his protestations were to no avail, and it was decided that Mullah Nasruddin had lost the bet.

Mullah Nasruddin accepted the verdict and invited all of them to a dinner that night at his home. They all arrived on time, laughing and joking; anticipating the delicious meal Mullah Nasruddin was going to serve them. But dinner was not ready. Mullah Nasruddin told them that it would be ready in a short time, and left the room to prepare the meal.

A long time passed, and still no dinner was served. Finally, getting impatient and very hungry, they went into the kitchen to see if there was any food cooking at all. What they saw, they could not believe. Mullah Nasruddin was standing by a huge cauldron, suspended from the ceiling. There was a lighted candle under the cauldron.

"Be patient my friends," Mullah Nasruddin told them. "Dinner will be ready soon. You see it is cooking." "Are you out of your mind, Mullah Nasruddin?" they shouted. How could you with such a tiny flame boil such a large pot?

"Your ignorance of such matters amuses me," Mullah Nasruddin said. "If the flame of a candle behind a window three hundred yards away can warm a person, surely the same flame will boil this pot which is only three inches away."

The friend's understood what Mullah meant and accepting their treachery the friends declared Mullah as the winner of the bet and treated him with a sumptuous meal.

Source: (Mullah Nasruddin Stories): http://living.oneindia.in/

Good Night

By Pushpa Moorjani


(Sing to the tune of
"I am little teapot, short and stout)

I want to go to sleep at night
Please don’t disturb me
Just put off the lights
If I sleep well
Then, I am fine
I’ll get up in the morning
Fresh and bright

I will dress tomorrow in colors bright
And go to school in a trendy style
Just let me rest
You, too, sleep well tonight
It is quite late,come on, kiss me
‘Goodnight’.