Q&A: Sudan's Darfur conflict
The prosecutor at the International Criminal Court has asked judges to issue an arrest warrant against Sudan's President Omar al-Bashir for alleged war crimes during the conflict in Darfur.
What are the charges against President al-Bashir?
The chief prosecutor Luis Moreno-Ocampo has alleged that “there are reasonable grounds to believe that Omar Hassan Ahmad al-Bashir bears criminal responsibility in relation to 10 counts of genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes."
The president is alleged to have "masterminded and implemented a plan to destroy in substantial part the Fur, Masalit and Zaghawa groups, on account of their ethnicity. His motives were largely political. His alibi was a 'counterinsurgency.' His intent was genocide."
What happens now?
The request for an arrest warrant will be considered by a panel of three ICC judges. They are expected to take several months to give their opinion. If they issue the warrant, Sudan is supposed to hand over the president, since the court has a mandate from the Security Council, even though Sudan is not party to the ICC treaty.
What has been Sudan's reaction?
It has rejected the court's jurisdiction, indicating that it would not hand over the president if the warrant was issued. Sudan is hoping to get enough votes on the Security Council to postpone any warrant but such a move would have to get the agreement of the United States, Britain and France, all of which hold a veto in the Council.
How did the conflict start?
The conflict began in the arid and impoverished region early in 2003 after a rebel group began attacking government targets, saying the region was being neglected by Khartoum.
The rebels say the government is oppressing black Africans in favour of Arabs.
Darfur, which means land of the Fur, has faced many years of tension over land and grazing rights between the mostly nomadic Arabs, and farmers from the Fur, Massaleet and Zagawa communities.
There are two main rebel groups, the Sudan Liberation Army (SLA) and the Justice and Equality Movement (Jem), although both groups have split, some along ethnic lines.
There are now more than a dozen rebel groups - making peace talks extremely difficult.
What is the government doing?
It admits mobilising "self-defence militias" following rebel attacks but denies any links to the Janjaweed, accused of trying to "cleanse" black Africans from large swathes of territory.
Refugees from Darfur say that following air raids by government aircraft, the Janjaweed ride into villages on horses and camels, slaughtering men, raping women and stealing whatever they can find.
Many women report being abducted by the Janjaweed and held as sex slaves for more than a week before being released.
The US and some human rights groups say that genocide is taking place - though a UN investigation team sent to Sudan said that while war crimes had been committed, there had been no intent to commit genocide.
Sudan's government denies being in control of the Janjaweed and President Bashir has called them "thieves and gangsters".
After strong international pressure and the threat of sanctions, the government promised to disarm the Janjaweed. But so far there is little evidence this has happened.
Trials have been announced in Khartoum of some members of the security forces suspected of abuses - but this is viewed as part of a campaign against UN-backed attempts to get some 50 key suspects tried at the International Criminal Court in The Hague.
What has happened to Darfur's civilians?
Millions have fled their destroyed villages, with some two million in camps near Darfur's main towns.
The Janjaweed patrol outside the camps and Darfuris say the men are killed and the women raped if they venture too far in search of firewood or water.
Some 200,000 have also sought safety in neighbouring Chad, but many of these are camped along a 600km (372-mile) stretch of the border and remain vulnerable to attacks from Sudan.
The refugees are also threatened by the diplomatic fall-out between Chad and Sudan, as the neighbours accuse one another of supporting each other's rebel groups.
Chad's eastern areas have a similar ethnic make-up to Darfur and the violence has spilled over the border area. Both capitals have also been attacked this year by rebel groups.
Many aid agencies are working in Darfur but they are unable to get access to vast areas because of the fighting.
How many have died?
With much of Darfur inaccessible to aid workers and researchers, calculating how many deaths there have been in the past three years is impossible.
What researchers have done is to estimate the deaths based on surveys in areas they can reach.
The latest research published in September 2006 in the journal Science puts the numbers of deaths above and beyond those that would normally die in this inhospitable area at "no fewer than 200,000".
They have made no distinction between those dying as a result of violence and those dying as a result of starvation or disease in refugee camps.
UN officials say they believe the figure is now about 300,000.
Accurate figures are crucial in determining whether the deaths in Darfur are genocide or - as the Sudanese government says - the situation is being exaggerated.
Have there been previous peace talks?
Lots.
The leader of one SLA faction, Minni Minnawi, who signed a peace deal in 2006 after long-running talks in Nigeria, was given a large budget and became a presidential adviser.
But his fighters have been accused by Amnesty International of abuses against people in areas opposed to the peace deal.
Amid international threats of sanctions for those refusing to attend, many rebel groups briefly attended preliminary talks with the government in Libya in October 2007 - but there is little hope of a quick breakthrough.
Is anyone trying to stop the fighting?
The joint African Union-UN peacekeeping mission, Unamid, has about 9,000 troops in Darfur. It is due to be increased to about 26,000.
Some say even this new 26,000 force will not be enough to cover such a large, remote area - the size of France.
Others point out that peacekeepers cannot do much unless there is a peace to keep.
They say the fighting can only end through a deal agreed by all sides, which has yet to materialise.
Monday, July 21, 2008
Sunday, July 13, 2008
NATIONAL TERRITORY
Article 1: National Territory
The national territory comprises the Philippine archipelago, with all the islands and waters embraced therein, and all other territories over which the Philippines has sovereignty or jurisdiction, consisting of its terrestrial, fluvial, and aerial domains, including its territorial sea, the seabed, the subsoil, the insular shelves, and other submarine areas. The waters around, between, and connecting the islands of the archipelago, regardless of their breadth and dimensions, form part of the internal waters of the Philippines.
The national territory comprises the Philippine archipelago, with all the islands and waters embraced therein, and all other territories over which the Philippines has sovereignty or jurisdiction, consisting of its terrestrial, fluvial, and aerial domains, including its territorial sea, the seabed, the subsoil, the insular shelves, and other submarine areas. The waters around, between, and connecting the islands of the archipelago, regardless of their breadth and dimensions, form part of the internal waters of the Philippines.
ARCHIPELAGIC DOCTRINE
Committee studies bill defining country’s archipelagic baselines
Committee Source: FOREIGN AFFAIRS
A LEGISLATIVE proposal seeking to define the archipelagic baselines of the Philippines to conform with the provisions of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) is now under consideration by the Committee on Foreign Affairs headed by Representative Antonio Cuenco (2nd District, Cebu City).The proposal, embodied in House Bill 1973 and authored by the Committee chair, in effect, will amend Republic Act 3046 or the law which earlier defined the baselines of the territorial sea of the Philippines, as amended by RA 5446.The UNCLOS, which took effect on November 4, 1994, provides that an archipelagic state is a “group of islands including parts of islands, interconnecting waters and other natural features which are so closely interrelated that such islands, waters and other natural features form an intrinsic geographical, economic and political entity, or which historically have been regarded as such.”In his explanatory note, Rep. Cuenco stressed the necessity to establish a new baseline law to serve as a basis for drawing the 12-mile nautical territorial sea, the 24 mile contiguous zone and the 200 mile Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) as provided under the UNCLOS.Likewise, he pointed out that the proposed law shall also serve as the official notification to all States on the extent of the limits of the maritime zone of the Philippine archipelago and thus avert any unnecessary dispute with vessels of foreign States entering Philippine maritime territory without permission.The Committee chair added that RA 3046 was enacted in 1961 and was amended by RA 5446 in 1968 long before the effectivity of the UNCLOS and the recognition of the archipelagic doctrine. He further mentioned that the bill seeks to include the Kalayaan Island Group (KIG) into the country’s archipelagic baseline by virtue of historic right and legal title. The KIG consists of about 75 islands, cays, shoals and bank reefs with a total area of 68,807 nautical square miles. During the meeting of the Committee on the bill, Rep. Antonio Alvarez (1st District, Palawan) suggested that a provision be included in the proposed law in order to accommodate the jurisdictional claims of local government units (LGUs) over natural resources which will be affected by the new baselines.He also informed the body that he is filing a bill creating a national committee that will focus on the Philippines’ claim to an extended continental shelf (ECS) of 200 nautical miles under the 1982 UNCLOS or UNCLOS III to cover its territorial claim to the KIG, the part of the disputed Spratlys on which it has staked ownership.According to reports, there is a compelling possibility that the country has unexploited reserves estimated to be between 2 to 28 billion barrels of oil which are believed to be deposited in the disputed KIG into which the country’s continental shelf – a shallow, underwater continuation of the Palawan Island, is believed to extend. To get its hand on this rich natural resource, Manila must prove before the UN, using geologic evidence, the Philippines’ rights over the area.Ambassador Alberto Encomienda of the Department of Foreign Affairs’ (DFA) Maritime and Ocean Affairs Center (MOAC), however, said that the UNCLOS defines “continental shelf” under a juridical concept, that is, a coastal state like the Philippines is automatically recognized to have a continental shelf 200 NM from its baseline or land borders. Thus, he said if a country believes its continental shelf extends beyond 200 NM, it has to prove this claim based on the technical and scientific guidelines set by the UN Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf.“In the case of the Philippines, the extended continental shelf shall be valid only in the Pacific shore because we are expected to have therein a boundary with a so-called sea bed authority,” he said. He added that under the UNCLOS, a claim to an overlapping extended continental shelf can be resolved by negotiation. Department of National Defense (DND) Undersecretary Ariston delos Reyes, meanwhile, commented that the proposed bill is silent on the definition of internal waters. He maintained that territorial waters should not extend more than 12 nautical miles beyond archipelagic baselines nor should contiguous waters go beyond 24 nautical miles from the baseline. Neither should EEZs extend beyond 200 nautical miles from such baseline,” he added. The same view was shared by Philippine Navy (PN) Lt. Col. Jose Johriel Cenabre.From the National Security Council, Clarissa Ruote-Garcio, a national security specialist, opined that the interest of the country must always be considered in defining the country’s baselines. Department of Energy (DOE) Undersecretary Guillermo Balce expressed support for the bill saying that it will not prejudice the claim of the local government of Palawan in the Malampaya oil and gas fields.Meanwhile, Rep. Cuenco gave four options regarding the delineation of the baselines for consideration by the Committee.The first option encloses the Philippine archipelago and Scarborough shoal with 135 baselines, four of which are long baselines. The KIG will be declared under the regime of islands. The second option encloses the Philippine archipelago with 111 baselines, three of which are long baselines. The KIG and Scarborough shoals are under the regime of islands.The third option encloses the Philippine archipelago and KIG with 102 baselines, three of which are long baselines, while the last option encloses the Philippine archipelago, Scarborough shoals and KIG with 134 baselines, four of which are long baselines.Encomienda said the third and fourth options are not feasible because dealing with the KIG issue may not be timely. “We feel that establishing the baselines by amending RA 3046 and 5546 to conform to the UN laws is safer and easier,” he said. Similarly, Commodore Henry Catapang and Department of Justice (DOJ) Assistant Chief State Counsel Ruben Fondevilla chose the first option because it is less contentious. Fondevilla added that the other options carry a lot of implications particularly on the issue of the KIG with regard to rival country claimants. Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) Lt. Cmdr. Ramon Rebnora, for his part, expressed support for the measure saying that PCG’s mandate calls for maritime environmental protection. He also preferred the first option because it conforms with the UNCLOS. Dr. Antonio Socrates, a representative of the governor and vice-governor of Palawan, however, favored the third and fourth options. The Committee is scheduled to hold an executive meeting to finally decide on the best option regarding the delineation of the country’s archipelagic baselines.
Source: Committee Administrative Support Service, Committee Affairs Department
Committee Source: FOREIGN AFFAIRS
A LEGISLATIVE proposal seeking to define the archipelagic baselines of the Philippines to conform with the provisions of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) is now under consideration by the Committee on Foreign Affairs headed by Representative Antonio Cuenco (2nd District, Cebu City).The proposal, embodied in House Bill 1973 and authored by the Committee chair, in effect, will amend Republic Act 3046 or the law which earlier defined the baselines of the territorial sea of the Philippines, as amended by RA 5446.The UNCLOS, which took effect on November 4, 1994, provides that an archipelagic state is a “group of islands including parts of islands, interconnecting waters and other natural features which are so closely interrelated that such islands, waters and other natural features form an intrinsic geographical, economic and political entity, or which historically have been regarded as such.”In his explanatory note, Rep. Cuenco stressed the necessity to establish a new baseline law to serve as a basis for drawing the 12-mile nautical territorial sea, the 24 mile contiguous zone and the 200 mile Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) as provided under the UNCLOS.Likewise, he pointed out that the proposed law shall also serve as the official notification to all States on the extent of the limits of the maritime zone of the Philippine archipelago and thus avert any unnecessary dispute with vessels of foreign States entering Philippine maritime territory without permission.The Committee chair added that RA 3046 was enacted in 1961 and was amended by RA 5446 in 1968 long before the effectivity of the UNCLOS and the recognition of the archipelagic doctrine. He further mentioned that the bill seeks to include the Kalayaan Island Group (KIG) into the country’s archipelagic baseline by virtue of historic right and legal title. The KIG consists of about 75 islands, cays, shoals and bank reefs with a total area of 68,807 nautical square miles. During the meeting of the Committee on the bill, Rep. Antonio Alvarez (1st District, Palawan) suggested that a provision be included in the proposed law in order to accommodate the jurisdictional claims of local government units (LGUs) over natural resources which will be affected by the new baselines.He also informed the body that he is filing a bill creating a national committee that will focus on the Philippines’ claim to an extended continental shelf (ECS) of 200 nautical miles under the 1982 UNCLOS or UNCLOS III to cover its territorial claim to the KIG, the part of the disputed Spratlys on which it has staked ownership.According to reports, there is a compelling possibility that the country has unexploited reserves estimated to be between 2 to 28 billion barrels of oil which are believed to be deposited in the disputed KIG into which the country’s continental shelf – a shallow, underwater continuation of the Palawan Island, is believed to extend. To get its hand on this rich natural resource, Manila must prove before the UN, using geologic evidence, the Philippines’ rights over the area.Ambassador Alberto Encomienda of the Department of Foreign Affairs’ (DFA) Maritime and Ocean Affairs Center (MOAC), however, said that the UNCLOS defines “continental shelf” under a juridical concept, that is, a coastal state like the Philippines is automatically recognized to have a continental shelf 200 NM from its baseline or land borders. Thus, he said if a country believes its continental shelf extends beyond 200 NM, it has to prove this claim based on the technical and scientific guidelines set by the UN Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf.“In the case of the Philippines, the extended continental shelf shall be valid only in the Pacific shore because we are expected to have therein a boundary with a so-called sea bed authority,” he said. He added that under the UNCLOS, a claim to an overlapping extended continental shelf can be resolved by negotiation. Department of National Defense (DND) Undersecretary Ariston delos Reyes, meanwhile, commented that the proposed bill is silent on the definition of internal waters. He maintained that territorial waters should not extend more than 12 nautical miles beyond archipelagic baselines nor should contiguous waters go beyond 24 nautical miles from the baseline. Neither should EEZs extend beyond 200 nautical miles from such baseline,” he added. The same view was shared by Philippine Navy (PN) Lt. Col. Jose Johriel Cenabre.From the National Security Council, Clarissa Ruote-Garcio, a national security specialist, opined that the interest of the country must always be considered in defining the country’s baselines. Department of Energy (DOE) Undersecretary Guillermo Balce expressed support for the bill saying that it will not prejudice the claim of the local government of Palawan in the Malampaya oil and gas fields.Meanwhile, Rep. Cuenco gave four options regarding the delineation of the baselines for consideration by the Committee.The first option encloses the Philippine archipelago and Scarborough shoal with 135 baselines, four of which are long baselines. The KIG will be declared under the regime of islands. The second option encloses the Philippine archipelago with 111 baselines, three of which are long baselines. The KIG and Scarborough shoals are under the regime of islands.The third option encloses the Philippine archipelago and KIG with 102 baselines, three of which are long baselines, while the last option encloses the Philippine archipelago, Scarborough shoals and KIG with 134 baselines, four of which are long baselines.Encomienda said the third and fourth options are not feasible because dealing with the KIG issue may not be timely. “We feel that establishing the baselines by amending RA 3046 and 5546 to conform to the UN laws is safer and easier,” he said. Similarly, Commodore Henry Catapang and Department of Justice (DOJ) Assistant Chief State Counsel Ruben Fondevilla chose the first option because it is less contentious. Fondevilla added that the other options carry a lot of implications particularly on the issue of the KIG with regard to rival country claimants. Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) Lt. Cmdr. Ramon Rebnora, for his part, expressed support for the measure saying that PCG’s mandate calls for maritime environmental protection. He also preferred the first option because it conforms with the UNCLOS. Dr. Antonio Socrates, a representative of the governor and vice-governor of Palawan, however, favored the third and fourth options. The Committee is scheduled to hold an executive meeting to finally decide on the best option regarding the delineation of the country’s archipelagic baselines.
Source: Committee Administrative Support Service, Committee Affairs Department
TREATY OF PARIS
The Philippine-American War
The Treaty of Paris
TREATY OF PEACEof December Tenth Eighteen Hundred Ninety Eight
The United States of America and Her Majesty The Queen Regent of Spain, in the name of her august son Don Alfonso XIII, desiring to end the state of war now existing between the two countries, have for that purpose appointed as plenipotentiaries:
The President of the United States,
William R. Day, Cushman K. Davis, William P. Frye, George Gray, and Whitelaw Reid, citizens of the United States;
And her Majesty the Queen Regent of Spain,
Don Eugenio Montero Rios, president of the Senate, Don Buenaventura de Abarzuza, senator of the Kingdom and ex-minister of the Crown; Don Jose de Garnica, deputy to the Cortes and associate justice of the supreme court. Don Wenceslao Ramirez de Villa Urrutia, envoy extraordinary and minister plenipotentiary at Brussels,and Don Rafael Cerero, General of Division;
Who, having assembled in Paris, and having exchanged their full powers, which were found to be in due and proper form, after discussion of the matters before them, agreed upon the following articles:
ARTICLE I
Spain relinquishes all claim of sovereignty over the title to Cuba, And as the Island is, upon its evacuation by Spain will, so long as such occupation shall last, assume and discharge the obligation that may under international law result from the fact of its for the protection of life and property.
ARTICLE II
Spain cedes to the United States the Island of Porto Rico, and other islands now under Spanish sovereignty in the West Indies, and the Island of Guam in the Marianas or Ladrones.
ARTICLE III
Spain cedes to the United States the archipelago known as the Philippines Islands, and comprehending the islands lying within the following line:
A line running from west to east along or near the twentieth parallel of north latitude, and through the middle of the navigable channel of Bacchi, from the one hundred and eighteenth to the one hundred and eighteenth to the one hundred and twenty-seventh degree meridian of longitude east of Greenwich, thence along the parallel and forty-five minutes north latitude to its intersection with the meridian of longitude one hundred and nineteen degrees and thirty-five minutes east of Greenwich to the parallel of latitude seven degrees and forty minutes north to its intersection with the one hundred and sixteenth degree meridian of longitude east of Greenwich, and thence along the one hundred and eighteenth degree meridian of longitude east of Greenwich to the point of beginning.
The United States will pay to Spain the sum of twenty million dollars, within three months after the exchange of the ratifications of the present treaty.
ARTICLE IV
The United States will, for the term of ten years from the date of the exchange of the ratifications of the present treaty, admit Spanish ships and merchandise to the ports of the Philippine Islands on the same terms as ships and merchandise of the United States.
ARTICLE V
The United States will, upon the signature of the present treaty, send back to Spain, at its own cost, the Spanish soldiers taken as prisoners of war on the capture of Manila by the American forces. The arms of the soldiers in question shall be restored to them.
Spain will, upon the exchange of the ratification of the present treaty, proceed to evacuate the Philippines as well as the Island of Guam, on terms similar to those agreed upon by the Commissioners appointed to arrange for the evacuation of Porto Rico and other Island in the West Indies, under the protocol of August twelfth, eighteen hundred and ninety-eight, which is to continue in force till its provisions are completely executed.
The time within which the evacuation of the Philippine Islands and Guam shall be completed shall be fixed by the two Governments. Stands of colors, uncaptured war vessels, small arms, guns of all calibers, with their carriages and accessories, powder, ammunition, live stock, and materials and supplies of all kinds, belonging to the land and naval forces of Spain in the Philippines and Guam, remain the property of Spain.
Pieces of heavy ordinance, exclusive of filled artillery, in the fortifications and coast defenses, shall remain in their emplacements for the term of six months, to be reckoned from the exchange of ratifications of the treaty, and the United States may, in a satisfactory agreement between the two governments on the subject shall be reached.
ARTICLE VI
Spain will, upon the signature of the present treaty, release all prisoners of war, and all persons detained or imprisoned for political offenses, in connection with the insurrections in Cuba and the Philippines and the war with the United States.
Reciprocally, the United States will release all persons made prisoners of war by the American forces, and will undertake to obtain the release of all Spanish prisoners in the hands of the insurgents in Cuba and the Philippines.
The Government of the United States will, at its own cost, return to Spain and the Government of Spain, at its own cost, return to the United States, Cuba, Porto Rico, and the Philippines, according to the situation of their respective homes, prisoners released or caused to be released by them, respectively, under this article.
ARTICLE VII
The United States and Spain mutually relinquish all claims for indemnity, national and individual, of every kind, of either Government, or of its citizens or subjects, against the other late insurrection in Cuba and prior to the exchange of ratifications of the present treaty, including all claims for indemnity for the cost of the war.
The United States will adjudicate and settle the claims of its citizens against Spain relinquished in this article.
ARTICLE VIII
In conformity with the provisions of Articles One, Two, and Three of this Treaty, Spain relinquishes in Cuba, and cedes in Porto Rico and other islands of the West Indies, in the Island of Guam, and in the Philippine Archipelago, all the buildings, wharves, public which, in conformity with law, belong to the public domain, and as such belong to the Crown of Spain.
And it is hereby declared that the relinquishment or cession, as the case may be, to which the preceding paragraph refers, can not in any respects impair the property of rights which law belong to the peaceful procession of property of all kinds, of provinces, municipalities, public or private establishments, ecclesiastical or civil bodies, or any other associations, having legal capacity to acquire and possess property in the aforesaid whatsoever nationality such individuals may be.
The aforesaid relinquishment of cession, as the case may be, includes all documents exclusively referring to the sovereignty relinquished or ceded that may exist in the archives of the Peninsula. Where any document in such archives only in part relates to said sovereignty, a copy of such part will be furnished whenever it shall be requested. Like rules shall be reciprocally observed in favor of Spain in respects of documents in the archives ot the islands above referred to.
In the aforesaid relinquishment or cession, as the case mat be, are also included such rights as the Crown of Spain and its authorities possess in respect of the official archives and records, executive as well as judicial, in the islands above referred to, which relate to said islands or the rights and property of their inhabitants. Such archives and records shall be carefully preserved, and private persons shall without distinction have the right to require, in accordance with law, authenticated copies of the contracts, wills, and other instruments forming part of notarial protocols or files, or which may be contained in executive or judicial archives, be the latter in Spain or in the islands aforesaid.
ARTICLE IX
Spanish subject, natives of the Peninsula, residing in the territory over which Spain by the present treaty relinquishes or cedes her sovereignty, may remain in such territory or may remove therefrom, retaining in either event all their rights of property, including the rights to sell or dispose of such property or of its proceeds; and they shall also have the right to carry on their industry, commerce, and professions, being subject in respect thereof to such laws as are applicable to other foreigners. In case they remain in the territory they may preserve their allegiance to the Crown of Spain by making, before a court of record, within a year from the date of the exchange of ratifications of this treaty, a declaration of their decision to preserve such allegiance; in default of which declaration they shall be held to have renounced it and to have adopted the nationality of the territory in which they may reside.
The civil rights and political status of the native inhabitants of the territories hereby ceded to the United States shall be determined by Congress.
ARTICLE X
The inhabitants of the territories over which Spain relinquishes or cedes her sovereignty shall be secured in the free exercise of their religion.
ARTICLE XI
The Spaniards residing in the territories over which Spain by this treaty cedes or relinquishes her sovereignty shall be subject in matters civil as criminal to the jurisdiction of the courts of the country wherein they reside, pursuant to the ordinary laws governing the same, and they shall have the right to appear before such courts; and to pursue the same course as citizens of the country to which the courts belong.
ARTICLE XII
Judicial proceedings pending at the time of the exchange of ratifications of this treaty in the territories over which Spain relinquishes or cedes her sovereignty shall been determined according to the following rules.
Judgments rendered either in civil suits between private individuals, or in criminal matters, before the date mentioned, and with respect to which there is no recourse or right of review under the Spanish law, shall deemed to be final, and shall be executed in due from by competent authority in the territory within which such judgments should be carried out.
Civil suits between private individuals which may on the date mentioned be undetermined shall be prosecuted to judgment before the court in which they maythen be pending or in the court that may be substituted therefor.
Criminal actions pending on the date mentioned before the supreme court of Spain against citizens of the territory which by this treaty ceases to be Spanish shall continue under its jurisdiction until final judgment; but such judgment having been rendered, the execution thereof shall be committed to the competent authority of the place in which the arose.
ARTICLE XIII
The rights of property secured by copyrights and patents acquired by Spaniards in the Island of Cuba, and in Porto Rico, the Philippines, and other ceded territories, at the time of the exchange of the ratifications of this treaty, shall continue to be respected. Spanish scientific, literary and artistic works, not subversive of public order in the territories in question, shall continue to be admitted free of duty into such territories, for the period of ten years, to be reckoned from the date of exchange of the ratifications of this treaty.
ARTICLE XIV
Spain shall have the power to establish consular officers in the ports and places of the territories, the sovereignty over which has been either relinquished or ceded by the present treaty.
ARTICLE XV
The Government of each country will, for the term of ten years, accord to the merchant vessels of the other country the same treatment in respect of all port charges, including entrance and clearance due, lights dues, and tonnage duties as it accords to its own merchant vessels, not engaged in the coastwise trade.
This article may at any time be terminated on six months' notice given by either Government to the other.
ARTICLE XVI
It is understood that any obligations assumed in this treaty by the United States, with respect to Cuba are limited to the time of its occupancy, advise any Government established in the island to assume the same obligations.
ARTICLE XVII
The present treaty shall be ratified by the President of the United States, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate thereof, and by Her majesty, the Queen Regent of Spain; and the ratifications shall be exchanged at Washington within six months from the date hereof, or earlier if possible.
In faith whereof, we, the respective plenipotentiaries, have signed this treaty and have hereunto affixed our seals. One in duplicate at Paris, the tenth day of December, in the year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and ninety-eight.
(Seal) William R. Day. (Seal) Cushman K. Davis. (Seal) William P. Fyre. (Seal) George Gray. (Seal) Whitelaw Reid. (Seal) Eugenio Montero Rios. (Seal) B. De Abarzuza. (Seal) J. de Garnica. (Seal) W. R. De Villa Urrutia. (Seal) Rafael Cerero.
Source : Appendix C. MALOLOS: The Crisis of the Republic. Teodoro A Agoncillo
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The Treaty of Paris
TREATY OF PEACEof December Tenth Eighteen Hundred Ninety Eight
The United States of America and Her Majesty The Queen Regent of Spain, in the name of her august son Don Alfonso XIII, desiring to end the state of war now existing between the two countries, have for that purpose appointed as plenipotentiaries:
The President of the United States,
William R. Day, Cushman K. Davis, William P. Frye, George Gray, and Whitelaw Reid, citizens of the United States;
And her Majesty the Queen Regent of Spain,
Don Eugenio Montero Rios, president of the Senate, Don Buenaventura de Abarzuza, senator of the Kingdom and ex-minister of the Crown; Don Jose de Garnica, deputy to the Cortes and associate justice of the supreme court. Don Wenceslao Ramirez de Villa Urrutia, envoy extraordinary and minister plenipotentiary at Brussels,and Don Rafael Cerero, General of Division;
Who, having assembled in Paris, and having exchanged their full powers, which were found to be in due and proper form, after discussion of the matters before them, agreed upon the following articles:
ARTICLE I
Spain relinquishes all claim of sovereignty over the title to Cuba, And as the Island is, upon its evacuation by Spain will, so long as such occupation shall last, assume and discharge the obligation that may under international law result from the fact of its for the protection of life and property.
ARTICLE II
Spain cedes to the United States the Island of Porto Rico, and other islands now under Spanish sovereignty in the West Indies, and the Island of Guam in the Marianas or Ladrones.
ARTICLE III
Spain cedes to the United States the archipelago known as the Philippines Islands, and comprehending the islands lying within the following line:
A line running from west to east along or near the twentieth parallel of north latitude, and through the middle of the navigable channel of Bacchi, from the one hundred and eighteenth to the one hundred and eighteenth to the one hundred and twenty-seventh degree meridian of longitude east of Greenwich, thence along the parallel and forty-five minutes north latitude to its intersection with the meridian of longitude one hundred and nineteen degrees and thirty-five minutes east of Greenwich to the parallel of latitude seven degrees and forty minutes north to its intersection with the one hundred and sixteenth degree meridian of longitude east of Greenwich, and thence along the one hundred and eighteenth degree meridian of longitude east of Greenwich to the point of beginning.
The United States will pay to Spain the sum of twenty million dollars, within three months after the exchange of the ratifications of the present treaty.
ARTICLE IV
The United States will, for the term of ten years from the date of the exchange of the ratifications of the present treaty, admit Spanish ships and merchandise to the ports of the Philippine Islands on the same terms as ships and merchandise of the United States.
ARTICLE V
The United States will, upon the signature of the present treaty, send back to Spain, at its own cost, the Spanish soldiers taken as prisoners of war on the capture of Manila by the American forces. The arms of the soldiers in question shall be restored to them.
Spain will, upon the exchange of the ratification of the present treaty, proceed to evacuate the Philippines as well as the Island of Guam, on terms similar to those agreed upon by the Commissioners appointed to arrange for the evacuation of Porto Rico and other Island in the West Indies, under the protocol of August twelfth, eighteen hundred and ninety-eight, which is to continue in force till its provisions are completely executed.
The time within which the evacuation of the Philippine Islands and Guam shall be completed shall be fixed by the two Governments. Stands of colors, uncaptured war vessels, small arms, guns of all calibers, with their carriages and accessories, powder, ammunition, live stock, and materials and supplies of all kinds, belonging to the land and naval forces of Spain in the Philippines and Guam, remain the property of Spain.
Pieces of heavy ordinance, exclusive of filled artillery, in the fortifications and coast defenses, shall remain in their emplacements for the term of six months, to be reckoned from the exchange of ratifications of the treaty, and the United States may, in a satisfactory agreement between the two governments on the subject shall be reached.
ARTICLE VI
Spain will, upon the signature of the present treaty, release all prisoners of war, and all persons detained or imprisoned for political offenses, in connection with the insurrections in Cuba and the Philippines and the war with the United States.
Reciprocally, the United States will release all persons made prisoners of war by the American forces, and will undertake to obtain the release of all Spanish prisoners in the hands of the insurgents in Cuba and the Philippines.
The Government of the United States will, at its own cost, return to Spain and the Government of Spain, at its own cost, return to the United States, Cuba, Porto Rico, and the Philippines, according to the situation of their respective homes, prisoners released or caused to be released by them, respectively, under this article.
ARTICLE VII
The United States and Spain mutually relinquish all claims for indemnity, national and individual, of every kind, of either Government, or of its citizens or subjects, against the other late insurrection in Cuba and prior to the exchange of ratifications of the present treaty, including all claims for indemnity for the cost of the war.
The United States will adjudicate and settle the claims of its citizens against Spain relinquished in this article.
ARTICLE VIII
In conformity with the provisions of Articles One, Two, and Three of this Treaty, Spain relinquishes in Cuba, and cedes in Porto Rico and other islands of the West Indies, in the Island of Guam, and in the Philippine Archipelago, all the buildings, wharves, public which, in conformity with law, belong to the public domain, and as such belong to the Crown of Spain.
And it is hereby declared that the relinquishment or cession, as the case may be, to which the preceding paragraph refers, can not in any respects impair the property of rights which law belong to the peaceful procession of property of all kinds, of provinces, municipalities, public or private establishments, ecclesiastical or civil bodies, or any other associations, having legal capacity to acquire and possess property in the aforesaid whatsoever nationality such individuals may be.
The aforesaid relinquishment of cession, as the case may be, includes all documents exclusively referring to the sovereignty relinquished or ceded that may exist in the archives of the Peninsula. Where any document in such archives only in part relates to said sovereignty, a copy of such part will be furnished whenever it shall be requested. Like rules shall be reciprocally observed in favor of Spain in respects of documents in the archives ot the islands above referred to.
In the aforesaid relinquishment or cession, as the case mat be, are also included such rights as the Crown of Spain and its authorities possess in respect of the official archives and records, executive as well as judicial, in the islands above referred to, which relate to said islands or the rights and property of their inhabitants. Such archives and records shall be carefully preserved, and private persons shall without distinction have the right to require, in accordance with law, authenticated copies of the contracts, wills, and other instruments forming part of notarial protocols or files, or which may be contained in executive or judicial archives, be the latter in Spain or in the islands aforesaid.
ARTICLE IX
Spanish subject, natives of the Peninsula, residing in the territory over which Spain by the present treaty relinquishes or cedes her sovereignty, may remain in such territory or may remove therefrom, retaining in either event all their rights of property, including the rights to sell or dispose of such property or of its proceeds; and they shall also have the right to carry on their industry, commerce, and professions, being subject in respect thereof to such laws as are applicable to other foreigners. In case they remain in the territory they may preserve their allegiance to the Crown of Spain by making, before a court of record, within a year from the date of the exchange of ratifications of this treaty, a declaration of their decision to preserve such allegiance; in default of which declaration they shall be held to have renounced it and to have adopted the nationality of the territory in which they may reside.
The civil rights and political status of the native inhabitants of the territories hereby ceded to the United States shall be determined by Congress.
ARTICLE X
The inhabitants of the territories over which Spain relinquishes or cedes her sovereignty shall be secured in the free exercise of their religion.
ARTICLE XI
The Spaniards residing in the territories over which Spain by this treaty cedes or relinquishes her sovereignty shall be subject in matters civil as criminal to the jurisdiction of the courts of the country wherein they reside, pursuant to the ordinary laws governing the same, and they shall have the right to appear before such courts; and to pursue the same course as citizens of the country to which the courts belong.
ARTICLE XII
Judicial proceedings pending at the time of the exchange of ratifications of this treaty in the territories over which Spain relinquishes or cedes her sovereignty shall been determined according to the following rules.
Judgments rendered either in civil suits between private individuals, or in criminal matters, before the date mentioned, and with respect to which there is no recourse or right of review under the Spanish law, shall deemed to be final, and shall be executed in due from by competent authority in the territory within which such judgments should be carried out.
Civil suits between private individuals which may on the date mentioned be undetermined shall be prosecuted to judgment before the court in which they maythen be pending or in the court that may be substituted therefor.
Criminal actions pending on the date mentioned before the supreme court of Spain against citizens of the territory which by this treaty ceases to be Spanish shall continue under its jurisdiction until final judgment; but such judgment having been rendered, the execution thereof shall be committed to the competent authority of the place in which the arose.
ARTICLE XIII
The rights of property secured by copyrights and patents acquired by Spaniards in the Island of Cuba, and in Porto Rico, the Philippines, and other ceded territories, at the time of the exchange of the ratifications of this treaty, shall continue to be respected. Spanish scientific, literary and artistic works, not subversive of public order in the territories in question, shall continue to be admitted free of duty into such territories, for the period of ten years, to be reckoned from the date of exchange of the ratifications of this treaty.
ARTICLE XIV
Spain shall have the power to establish consular officers in the ports and places of the territories, the sovereignty over which has been either relinquished or ceded by the present treaty.
ARTICLE XV
The Government of each country will, for the term of ten years, accord to the merchant vessels of the other country the same treatment in respect of all port charges, including entrance and clearance due, lights dues, and tonnage duties as it accords to its own merchant vessels, not engaged in the coastwise trade.
This article may at any time be terminated on six months' notice given by either Government to the other.
ARTICLE XVI
It is understood that any obligations assumed in this treaty by the United States, with respect to Cuba are limited to the time of its occupancy, advise any Government established in the island to assume the same obligations.
ARTICLE XVII
The present treaty shall be ratified by the President of the United States, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate thereof, and by Her majesty, the Queen Regent of Spain; and the ratifications shall be exchanged at Washington within six months from the date hereof, or earlier if possible.
In faith whereof, we, the respective plenipotentiaries, have signed this treaty and have hereunto affixed our seals. One in duplicate at Paris, the tenth day of December, in the year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and ninety-eight.
(Seal) William R. Day. (Seal) Cushman K. Davis. (Seal) William P. Fyre. (Seal) George Gray. (Seal) Whitelaw Reid. (Seal) Eugenio Montero Rios. (Seal) B. De Abarzuza. (Seal) J. de Garnica. (Seal) W. R. De Villa Urrutia. (Seal) Rafael Cerero.
Source : Appendix C. MALOLOS: The Crisis of the Republic. Teodoro A Agoncillo
Centennial Site designed by MSC Communications Technologies, Inc.. Hosted by MSC Computer Training Center. Updated 01/02/1999
SEA
Sea
A sea is either a large expanse of saline water connected with an ocean, or a large, usually saline, lake that lacks a natural outlet such as the Caspian Sea and the Dead Sea. Colloquially, the term is used synonymous with ocean. Large lakes, such as the Great Lakes, are sometimes referred to as inland seas. Marginal seas are those that have currents caused by ocean winds, and mediterranean seas are those in which currents are caused by differentials in salinity and temperature.
Contents
1 International Hydrographic Organization
2 List of seas
2.1 Atlantic Ocean
2.2 Arctic Ocean
2.3 Indian Ocean
2.4 Pacific Ocean
2.5 Southern Ocean
2.6 Landlocked seas
3 Nomenclature
4 Extraterrestrial seas
5 Science
6 See also
7 References
International Hydrographic Organization
The International Hydrographic Organization (IHO) is the international authority that sets forth nomenclature and definition of bodies of water.[1] The IHO's Limits of Oceans and Seas was first published in 1928, with its current working document the third edition published in 1953.[2] A fourth draft edition was proposed in 1986 but has yet to be ratified due to outstanding issues such as the Sea of Japan naming dispute.
List of seas
Atlantic Ocean
Adriatic Sea
Aegean Sea
Alboran Sea
Argentine Sea
Bay of Biscay
Bay of Bothnia
Bay of Campeche
Bay of Fundy
Baltic Sea
Black Sea
Bothnian Sea
Caribbean Sea
Celtic Sea
Central Baltic Sea
Chesapeake Bay
English Channel
Gulf of Bothnia
Gulf of Guinea
Gulf of Finland
Gulf of Mexico
Gulf of Sidra
Gulf of St. Lawrence
Gulf of Venezuela
Ionian Sea
Ligurian Sea
Irish Sea
Marmara Sea
Mediterranean Sea
Mirtoon Sea
North Sea
Sea of Azov
Sea of Crete
Sea of the Hebrides
Sargasso Sea
Tampa Bay
Thracian Sea
Tyrrhenian Sea
Arctic Ocean
Amundsen Gulf
Baffin Bay
Barents Sea
Beaufort Sea
Bering Sea
Cambridge Bay
Chukchi Sea
Cold Bay
Davis Strait
Denmark Strait
East Siberian Sea
Greenland Sea
Hudson Bay
James Bay
Kara Sea
Kara Strait
Labrador Sea
Laptev Sea
Lincoln Sea
Norwegian Sea
White Sea
Indian Ocean
Arafura Sea
Andaman Sea
Arabian Sea
Bay of Bengal
Gulf of Aden
Gulf of Oman
Mozambique Channel
Persian Gulf
Red Sea
Timor Sea
Pacific Ocean
Arafura Sea
Banda Sea
Bering Sea
Bismarck Sea
Bohai Sea
Bohol Sea (Mindanao Sea)
Camotes Sea
Celebes Sea
Ceram Sea
Chilean Sea
Coral Sea
East China Sea
Flores Sea
Gulf of Alaska
Gulf of California (Sea of Cortés)
Gulf of Carpentaria
Gulf of Thailand
Halmahera Sea
Java Sea
Koro Sea
Molucca Sea
Philippine Sea
Savu Sea
Sea of Japan
Sea of Okhotsk
Seto Inland Sea
Solomon Sea
South China Sea
Sulu Sea
Tasman Sea
Timor Sea
Yellow Sea
Southern Ocean
Amundsen Sea
Bass Strait
Bellingshausen Sea
Davis Sea
Great Australian Bight
Gulf Saint Vincent
Ross Sea
Scotia Sea
Spencer Gulf
Weddell Sea
Landlocked seas
Aral Sea
Caspian Sea
Dead Sea
Sea of Galilee
Salton Sea
Great Salt Lake
† Not listed in IHO S-23 4th ed. (There are 113 Seas on Earth.)
Nomenclature
Some bodies of water that are called "seas" are not actually seas; there are also some seas that are not called "seas". The following is an incomplete list of such potentially confusing names.
The Sea of Galilee is a small freshwater lake with a natural outlet, which is properly called Lake Tiberias or Lake Kinneret on modern Israeli maps, but its original name remains in use.
The Sea of Cortés is more commonly known as the Gulf of California.
The Persian Gulf is a sea.
The Dead Sea is actually a lake, as is the Caspian Sea.
Extraterrestrial seas
See also Extraterrestrial liquid water
Lunar maria are vast basaltic plains on the Moon that were thought to be bodies of water by early astronomers, who referred to them as "seas".
Liquid water may have existed on the surface of Mars in the distant past, and several basins on Mars have been proposed as dry sea beds. The largest is Vastitas Borealis; others include Hellas Planitia and Argyre Planitia.
Liquid water is thought to be present under the surface of several moons, most notably Europa.
Liquid hydrocarbons are thought to be present on the surface of Titan, though it may be more accurate to describe them as "lakes" rather than "seas".
Science
The term "sea" has also been used in quantum physics. Dirac sea is an interpretation of the negative energy states that comprises the vacuum.
See also
Wikimedia Commons has media related to:
Seas
Look up maritime in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.
Look up sea in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.
Oceanography
Inlet
International Maritime Organization
List of places on land with elevations below sea level
Pole of inaccessibility: the locations farthest from any coastline
Marine debris
Sea level
Sea level rise
Sea salt
Seven Seas
References
1. ^ "IHO Background Information". International Hydrographic Organization (25 August 2004). Retrieved on 2008-05-17.
2. ^ International Hydrographic Conference of 1952 (1953). "Limits of Oceans and Seas: Special publication S-23" (.PDF). Third edition. International Hydrographic Organization. Retrieved on 2008-05-17
A sea is either a large expanse of saline water connected with an ocean, or a large, usually saline, lake that lacks a natural outlet such as the Caspian Sea and the Dead Sea. Colloquially, the term is used synonymous with ocean. Large lakes, such as the Great Lakes, are sometimes referred to as inland seas. Marginal seas are those that have currents caused by ocean winds, and mediterranean seas are those in which currents are caused by differentials in salinity and temperature.
Contents
1 International Hydrographic Organization
2 List of seas
2.1 Atlantic Ocean
2.2 Arctic Ocean
2.3 Indian Ocean
2.4 Pacific Ocean
2.5 Southern Ocean
2.6 Landlocked seas
3 Nomenclature
4 Extraterrestrial seas
5 Science
6 See also
7 References
International Hydrographic Organization
The International Hydrographic Organization (IHO) is the international authority that sets forth nomenclature and definition of bodies of water.[1] The IHO's Limits of Oceans and Seas was first published in 1928, with its current working document the third edition published in 1953.[2] A fourth draft edition was proposed in 1986 but has yet to be ratified due to outstanding issues such as the Sea of Japan naming dispute.
List of seas
Atlantic Ocean
Adriatic Sea
Aegean Sea
Alboran Sea
Argentine Sea
Bay of Biscay
Bay of Bothnia
Bay of Campeche
Bay of Fundy
Baltic Sea
Black Sea
Bothnian Sea
Caribbean Sea
Celtic Sea
Central Baltic Sea
Chesapeake Bay
English Channel
Gulf of Bothnia
Gulf of Guinea
Gulf of Finland
Gulf of Mexico
Gulf of Sidra
Gulf of St. Lawrence
Gulf of Venezuela
Ionian Sea
Ligurian Sea
Irish Sea
Marmara Sea
Mediterranean Sea
Mirtoon Sea
North Sea
Sea of Azov
Sea of Crete
Sea of the Hebrides
Sargasso Sea
Tampa Bay
Thracian Sea
Tyrrhenian Sea
Arctic Ocean
Amundsen Gulf
Baffin Bay
Barents Sea
Beaufort Sea
Bering Sea
Cambridge Bay
Chukchi Sea
Cold Bay
Davis Strait
Denmark Strait
East Siberian Sea
Greenland Sea
Hudson Bay
James Bay
Kara Sea
Kara Strait
Labrador Sea
Laptev Sea
Lincoln Sea
Norwegian Sea
White Sea
Indian Ocean
Arafura Sea
Andaman Sea
Arabian Sea
Bay of Bengal
Gulf of Aden
Gulf of Oman
Mozambique Channel
Persian Gulf
Red Sea
Timor Sea
Pacific Ocean
Arafura Sea
Banda Sea
Bering Sea
Bismarck Sea
Bohai Sea
Bohol Sea (Mindanao Sea)
Camotes Sea
Celebes Sea
Ceram Sea
Chilean Sea
Coral Sea
East China Sea
Flores Sea
Gulf of Alaska
Gulf of California (Sea of Cortés)
Gulf of Carpentaria
Gulf of Thailand
Halmahera Sea
Java Sea
Koro Sea
Molucca Sea
Philippine Sea
Savu Sea
Sea of Japan
Sea of Okhotsk
Seto Inland Sea
Solomon Sea
South China Sea
Sulu Sea
Tasman Sea
Timor Sea
Yellow Sea
Southern Ocean
Amundsen Sea
Bass Strait
Bellingshausen Sea
Davis Sea
Great Australian Bight
Gulf Saint Vincent
Ross Sea
Scotia Sea
Spencer Gulf
Weddell Sea
Landlocked seas
Aral Sea
Caspian Sea
Dead Sea
Sea of Galilee
Salton Sea
Great Salt Lake
† Not listed in IHO S-23 4th ed. (There are 113 Seas on Earth.)
Nomenclature
Some bodies of water that are called "seas" are not actually seas; there are also some seas that are not called "seas". The following is an incomplete list of such potentially confusing names.
The Sea of Galilee is a small freshwater lake with a natural outlet, which is properly called Lake Tiberias or Lake Kinneret on modern Israeli maps, but its original name remains in use.
The Sea of Cortés is more commonly known as the Gulf of California.
The Persian Gulf is a sea.
The Dead Sea is actually a lake, as is the Caspian Sea.
Extraterrestrial seas
See also Extraterrestrial liquid water
Lunar maria are vast basaltic plains on the Moon that were thought to be bodies of water by early astronomers, who referred to them as "seas".
Liquid water may have existed on the surface of Mars in the distant past, and several basins on Mars have been proposed as dry sea beds. The largest is Vastitas Borealis; others include Hellas Planitia and Argyre Planitia.
Liquid water is thought to be present under the surface of several moons, most notably Europa.
Liquid hydrocarbons are thought to be present on the surface of Titan, though it may be more accurate to describe them as "lakes" rather than "seas".
Science
The term "sea" has also been used in quantum physics. Dirac sea is an interpretation of the negative energy states that comprises the vacuum.
See also
Wikimedia Commons has media related to:
Seas
Look up maritime in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.
Look up sea in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.
Oceanography
Inlet
International Maritime Organization
List of places on land with elevations below sea level
Pole of inaccessibility: the locations farthest from any coastline
Marine debris
Sea level
Sea level rise
Sea salt
Seven Seas
References
1. ^ "IHO Background Information". International Hydrographic Organization (25 August 2004). Retrieved on 2008-05-17.
2. ^ International Hydrographic Conference of 1952 (1953). "Limits of Oceans and Seas: Special publication S-23" (.PDF). Third edition. International Hydrographic Organization. Retrieved on 2008-05-17
OUTER SPACE
Outer space
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Jump to: navigation, search
Outer space, often simply called space, refers to the relatively empty regions of the universe outside the atmospheres of celestial bodies. Outer space is used to distinguish it from airspace (and terrestrial locations). Contrary to popular understanding, outer space is not completely empty (i.e. a perfect vacuum) but contains a low density of particles, predominantly hydrogen plasma, as well as electromagnetic radiation. Hypothetically, it also contains dark matter and dark energy.
The term "outer space" was first recorded by H. G. Wells in 1901.[1] The shorter term space is actually older, being first used to mean the region beyond Earth's sky in John Milton's Paradise Lost in 1667.[2]
Contents[hide]
1 Environment
2 Space versus orbit
3 Regions
3.1 Geospace
3.2 Interplanetary
3.3 Interstellar
3.4 Intergalactic
4 Milestones
5 See also
6 References
7 External links
Environment
Outer space is not a perfect vacuum, but a tenuous plasma awash with charged particles, electromagnetic fields, and the occasional star.
Outer space is the closest physical approximation of a perfect vacuum. It has effectively no friction, allowing stars, planets and moons to move freely along ideal gravitational trajectories. But no vacuum is truly perfect, not even in intergalactic space where there are still a few hydrogen atoms per cubic centimeter. (For comparison, the air we breathe contains about 1019 molecules per cubic centimeter.) The deep vacuum of space could make it an attractive environment for certain industrial processes, for instance those that require ultraclean surfaces; however, it is currently much less costly to create an equivalent vacuum on Earth than to leave the Earth's gravity well.
Stars, planets, asteroids, and moons keep their atmospheres by gravitational attraction, and as such, atmospheres have no clearly delineated boundary: the density of atmospheric gas simply decreases with distance from the object. The Earth's atmospheric pressure drops to about 1 Pa (10-3 Torr) at 100 km of altitude, the Kármán line which is a common definition of the boundary with outer space. Beyond this line, isotropic gas pressure rapidly becomes insignificant when compared to radiation pressure from the sun and the dynamic pressure of the solar wind, so the definition of pressure becomes difficult to interpret. The thermosphere in this range has large gradients of pressure, temperature and composition, and varies greatly due to space weather. Astrophysicists prefer to use number density to describe these environments, in units of particles per cubic centimetre.
But although it meets the definition of outer space, the atmospheric density within the first few hundred kilometers above the Kármán line is still sufficient to produce significant drag on satellites. Most artificial satellites operate in this region called low earth orbit and must fire their engines every few days to maintain orbit. The drag here is low enough that it could theoretically be overcome by radiation pressure on solar sails, a proposed propulsion system for interplanetary travel. Planets are too massive for their trajectories to be affected by these forces, although their atmospheres are eroded by the solar winds.
All of the observable universe is filled with large numbers of photons, the so-called cosmic background radiation, and quite likely a correspondingly large number of neutrinos. The current temperature of this radiation is about 3 K, or −270 °C (−454.00 °F).
Contrary to popular belief,[3] a person suddenly exposed to the vacuum would not explode, freeze to death or die from boiling blood, but would take a short while to die by asphyxiation (suffocation). Air would immediately leave the lungs due to the enormous pressure gradient. Any oxygen dissolved in the blood would empty into the lungs to try to equalize the partial pressure gradient. Once the deoxygenated blood arrived at the brain, death would quickly follow.
Humans and animals exposed to vacuum will lose consciousness after a few seconds and die of hypoxia within minutes. Blood and other body fluids do boil when their pressure drops below 6.3 kPa, (47 Torr,) the vapor pressure of water at body temperature.[4] This condition is called ebullism. The steam may bloat the body to twice its normal size and slow circulation, but tissues are elastic and porous enough to prevent rupture. Ebullism is slowed by the pressure containment of blood vessels, so some blood remains liquid.[5][6] Swelling and ebullism can be reduced by containment in a flight suit. Shuttle astronauts wear a fitted elastic garment called the Crew Altitude Protection Suit (CAPS) which prevents ebullism at pressures as low as 2 kPa (15 Torr).[7] Water vapor would also rapidly evaporate off from exposed areas such as the lungs, cornea of the eye and mouth, cooling the body. Rapid evaporative cooling of the skin will create frost, particularly in the mouth, but this is not a significant hazard. Space may be cold, but it's mostly vacuum and can hardly transfer heat, so the main temperature worry for space suits is how to get rid of naturally generated body heat.
Cold or oxygen-rich atmospheres can sustain life at pressures much lower than atmospheric, as long as the density of oxygen is similar to that of standard sea-level atmosphere. The colder air temperatures found at altitudes of up to 3 km generally compensate for the lower pressures there.[4] Above this altitude, oxygen enrichment is necessary to prevent altitude sickness, and spacesuits are necessary to prevent ebullism above 19 km.[4] Most spacesuits use only 20 kPa (150 Torr) of pure oxygen, just enough to sustain full consciousness. This pressure is high enough to prevent ebullism, but simple evaporation of blood can still cause decompression sickness and gas embolisms if not managed.
Rapid decompression can be much more dangerous than vacuum exposure itself. Even if the victim does not hold his breath, venting through the windpipe may be too slow to prevent the fatal rupture of the delicate alveoli of the lungs.[4] Eardrums and sinuses may be ruptured by rapid decompression, soft tissues may bruise and seep blood, and the stress of shock will accelerate oxygen consumption leading to hypoxia.[8] Injuries caused by rapid decompression are called barotrauma. A pressure drop as small as 100 Torr, (13 kPa,) which produces no symptoms if it is gradual, may be fatal if occurs suddenly.[4]
[edit] Space versus orbit
To perform an orbital spaceflight, a spacecraft must travel faster than it must for a sub-orbital spaceflight. A spacecraft has not entered orbit until it is traveling with a sufficiently great horizontal velocity such that the acceleration due to gravity on the spacecraft is less than or equal to the centripetal acceleration being caused by its horizontal velocity (see circular motion). So to enter orbit, a spacecraft must not only reach space, but must also achieve a sufficient orbital speed (angular velocity). For a low-Earth orbit, this is about 7.9 km/s (18,000 mph); by contrast, the fastest airplane speed ever achieved (excluding speeds achieved by deorbiting spacecraft) was 2.02 km/s (4,520 mph) in 1967 by the North American X-15[9]. Konstantin Tsiolkovsky was the first person to realize that, given the energy available from any available chemical fuel, a several-stage rocket would be required. The escape velocity to pull free of Earth's gravitational field altogether and move into interplanetary space is about 40,000 km/h (25,000 mph or 11,000 m/s). The energy required to reach velocity for low Earth orbit (32 MJ/kg) is about twenty times the energy required simply to climb to the corresponding altitude (10 kJ/(km·kg)).
There is a major difference between sub-orbital and orbital spaceflights. The minimum altitude for a stable orbit around Earth (that is, one without significant atmospheric drag) begins at around 350 km (220 miles) above mean sea level. A common misunderstanding about the boundary to space is that orbit occurs simply by reaching this altitude. Achieving orbital speed can theoretically occur at any altitude, although atmospheric drag precludes an orbit that is too low. At sufficient speed, an airplane would need a way to keep it from flying off into space, but at present, this speed is several times greater than anything within reasonable technology.
[edit] Regions
Space being not a perfect vacuum, its different regions are defined by the various atmospheres and "winds" that dominate within them, and extend to the point at which those winds give way to those beyond. Geospace extends from Earth's atmosphere to the outer reaches of Earth's magnetic field, whereupon it gives way to the solar wind of interplanetary space. Interplanetary space extends to the heliopause, whereupon the solar wind gives way to the winds of the interstellar medium. Interstellar space then continues to the edges of the galaxy, where it fades into the intergalactic void.
[edit] Geospace
Geospace (dark blue).
In the context of space weather, geospace is the region of outer space near the Earth. Geospace includes the upper region of the atmosphere, as well as the ionosphere and magnetosphere. The Van Allen radiation belts also lie within the geospace.
There is no clear boundary between Earth's atmosphere and space as the density of the atmosphere gradually decreases as the altitude increases. Nevertheless, the Fédération Aéronautique Internationale has established the Kármán line at an altitude of 100 km (62 miles) as a working definition for the boundary between aeronautics and astronautics. This is used because above an altitude of roughly 100 km, as Theodore von Kármán calculated, a vehicle would have to travel faster than orbital velocity in order to derive sufficient aerodynamic lift from the atmosphere to support itself. The United States designates people who travel above an altitude of 80 km (50 statute miles) as astronauts. During re-entry, roughly 120 km (75 miles) marks the boundary where atmospheric drag becomes noticeable, depending on the ballistic coefficient of the vehicle.
Geospace is populated at very low densities by electrically charged particles, whose motions are controlled by the Earth's magnetic field. These plasmas form a medium from which storm-like disturbances powered by the solar wind can drive electrical currents into the Earth’s upper atmosphere.
During geomagnetic storms two regions of geospace, the radiation belts and the ionosphere, can become strongly disturbed. These disturbances interfere with the functioning of satellite communications and navigation (GPS) technologies. These storms increase fluxes of energetic electrons that can permanently damage satellite electronics, and can also be a hazard to astronauts, even in low-Earth orbit.
A common misconception is that people in orbit are outside Earth's gravity because they are "floating". They are floating because they are in "free fall": they are accelerating toward Earth, along with their spacecraft, but are simultaneously moving sideways fast enough that the "fall" away from a straight-line path merely keeps them in orbit at a constant distance above Earth's surface. Earth's gravity reaches out far past the Van Allen belt and keeps the Moon in orbit at an average distance of 384,403 km (238,857 miles).
Geospace contains material left over from previous manned and unmanned launches that are a potential hazard to spacecraft. Some of this debris re-enters Earth's atmosphere periodically.
The absence of air makes geospace (and the surface of the Moon) ideal locations for astronomy at all wavelengths of the electromagnetic spectrum, as evidenced by the spectacular pictures sent back by the Hubble Space Telescope, allowing light from about 13.7 billion years ago — almost to the time of the Big Bang — to be observed.
The outer boundary of geospace is the interface between the magnetosphere and the solar wind. The inner boundary is the ionosphere.[10] Alternately, geospace is the region of space between the Earth’s upper atmosphere and the outermost reaches of the Earth’s magnetic field.[11] The region between Earth's atmosphere and the Moon is sometimes referred to as cis-Lunar space.
[edit] Interplanetary
Main article: Interplanetary medium
Outer space within the solar system is called interplanetary space, which passes over into interstellar space at the heliopause. The vacuum of outer space is not really empty; it is sparsely filled with cosmic rays, which include ionized atomic nuclei and various subatomic particles. There is also gas, plasma and dust, small meteors, and several dozen types of organic molecules discovered to date by microwave spectroscopy. Interplanetary space is defined by the solar wind, a continuous stream of charged particles emanating from the Sun that creates a very tenuous atmosphere (the heliosphere) for billions of miles into space. The discovery since 1995 of extrasolar planets means that other stars must possess their own interplanetary media.
[edit] Interstellar
Main article: Interstellar medium
Interstellar space is the physical space within a galaxy not occupied by stars or their planetary systems. The interstellar medium resides – by definition – in interstellar space.
[edit] Intergalactic
Main articles: Intracluster medium and Cosmic microwave background
Intergalactic space is the physical space between galaxies. Generally free of dust and debris, intergalactic space is very close to a total vacuum. Some theories put the average density of the Universe as the equivalent of one hydrogen atom per cubic meter[12][13]. The density of the Universe, however, is clearly not uniform; it ranges from relatively high density in galaxies (including very high density in structures within galaxies, such as planets, stars, and black holes) to conditions in vast voids that have much lower density than the Universe's average. The temperature is only 2.73 Kelvin[14]. NASA's COBE mission (Cosmic Background Explorer) measured the temperature as 2.725 +/- 0.002 K.
[edit] Milestones
Sea level - 101.3 kPa (1 atm; 1.013 bar; 29.92 in Hg; 760 mm Hg; 14.7 lbf/in²) of atmospheric pressure
3.9 km (12,500 ft) (2.4 miles) - FAA requires supplemental oxygen for aircraft pilots in unpressurized aircraft.[15]
5.0 km (16,400 ft) (3.1 miles) - 50 kPa of atmospheric pressure
5.3 km (17,400 ft) (3.3 miles) - Half of the Earth's atmosphere is below this altitude.
8.0 km (26,200 ft) (5 miles) - Death zone for human climbers
8.85 km (29,035 ft) (5.5 miles) - Summit of Mount Everest, the highest mountain on Earth (26 kPa)
16 km (52,500 ft) (9.9 miles) - Pressurized cabin or pressure suit required.
18 km (59,100 ft) (11.2 miles) - Boundary between troposphere and stratosphere
20 km (65,600 ft) (12.4 miles) - Water at room temperature boils without a pressurized container. (The popular notion that bodily fluids would start to boil at this point is false because the body generates enough internal pressure to prevent it.)
24 km (78,700 ft) (14.9 miles) - Regular aircraft pressurization systems no longer function.
32 km (105,000 ft) (19.9 miles) - Turbojets no longer function.
34.7 km (113,740 ft) (21.5 miles) - Altitude record for manned balloon flight
45 km (147,600 ft) (28 miles) - Ramjets no longer function.
50 km (164,000 ft) (31 miles) - Boundary between stratosphere and mesosphere
53 km (174,000 ft) (33 miles) - Altitude record of Balloon.
80.5 km (264,000 ft) (50 miles) - Boundary between mesosphere and thermosphere. USA definition of space flight.
100 km (328,100 ft) (62.1 miles) - Kármán line, defining the limit of outer space according to the Fédération Aéronautique Internationale. Aerodynamic surfaces ineffective due to low atmospheric density. Lift speed generally exceeds orbital velocity. Turbopause.
120 km (393,400 ft) (74.6 miles) - First noticeable atmospheric drag during re-entry from orbit
200 km (124.2 miles) - Lowest possible orbit with short-term stability (stable for a few days)
307 km (190.8 miles) - STS-1 mission orbit
350 km (217.4 miles) - Lowest possible orbit with long-term stability (stable for many years)
360 km (223.7 miles) - ISS average orbit, which still varies due to drag and periodic boosting.
390 km (242.3 miles) - Mir mission orbit
440 km (273.4 miles) - Skylab mission orbit
587 km (364.8 miles) - HST orbit
690 km (428.7 miles) - Boundary between thermosphere and exosphere, start of the inner Van Allen Belt
780 km (484.7 miles) - Iridium orbit
1,374 km (850 miles) - Highest altitude by a manned Earth-orbiting flight (Gemini XI with Agena Target Vehicle)
10,000 km (6,213 miles) - End of the inner Van Allen Belt
19,000 km (11,900 miles) - Start of the outer Van Allen Belt
20,200 km (12,600 miles) - GPS orbit
35,786 km (22,237 miles) - Geostationary orbit height
63,800 km (39,600 miles) - End of the outer Van Allen Belt
320,000 km (200,000 miles) - Lunar gravity exceeds Earth's (at Lagrange point)
348,200 km (238,700 miles) - lunar perigee (closet approach of the Moon)
402,100 km (249,900 miles) - lunar apogee (largest distance between Earth and Moon)
[edit] See also
Astronomy portal
Space portal
Space tourism portal
Spaceflight portal
Astronaut Badge
Extraterrestrial life
Intergalactic space
Interplanetary Internet
Kármán line
NASA
Outer Space Treaty
Private spaceflight
Solar wind
Space and survival
Space colonization
Space exploration
Space science
Space station
Space technology
Spaceflight
Timeline of spaceflight
[edit] References
^ "Etymonline : Outer". Retrieved on 2008-03-24.
^ "Etymonline: Space". Retrieved on 2008-03-24.
^ NASA Human Body in a Vacuum
^ a b c d e Harding, Richard M. (1989), Survival in Space: Medical Problems of Manned Spaceflight, London: Routledge, ISBN 0-415-00253-2 .
^ Billings, Charles E. (1973). "Barometric Pressure", in edited by James F. Parker and Vita R. West: Bioastronautics Data Book, Second Edition, NASA. NASA SP-3006.
^ "Human Exposure to Vacuum". Retrieved on 2006-03-25.
^ Webb P. (1968). "The Space Activity Suit: An Elastic Leotard for Extravehicular Activity". Aerospace Medicine 39: 376–383.
^ Czarnik, Tamarack R.. "EBULLISM AT 1 MILLION FEET: Surviving Rapid/Explosive Decompression". Retrieved on 2006-03-25.
^ Linda Shiner. "X-15 Walkaround: A short guide to the fastest airplane ever.". Air & Space Magazine. Retrieved on 2007-01-19.
^ "Report of the Living With a Star Geospace Mission Definition Team". NASA (September, 2002).
^ "LWS Geospace Missions". NASA.
^ Davidson, Keay & Smoot, George. Wrinkles in Time. New York: Avon, 1993: 158-163
^ Silk, Joseph. Big Bang. New York: Freeman, 1977: 299.
^ NASA COBE website[1]
^ FAR 91.211, http://www.airweb.faa.gov/Regulatory_and_Guidance_Library/rgFAR.nsf/0/ba9afbf96dbc56f0852566cf006798f9!OpenDocument&ExpandSection=-3
[edit] External links
Look up intergalactic inWiktionary, the free dictionary.
Wikiquote has a collection of quotations related to:
space
Wikimedia Commons has media related to:
Space
Wikinews has related news:
Portal:Space
Intergalactic Space, Natural History, Feb 1998
Morgan Freeman's Space Exploration Channel "Our Space" on ClickStar
Profits set to soar in outer space
Newscientist Space.
X PRIZE Foundation.
Images of Earth and space taken from outer space
[hide]
v • d • eElements of Nature
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History of Earth · Earth science · Structure of the Earth · Plate tectonics · Geological history of Earth · Geology
Weather
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Life
Biosphere · Origin of life · Microbe · Flora · Plants · Fungi · Fauna · Animals · Biology · Evolutionary history of life
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From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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Outer space, often simply called space, refers to the relatively empty regions of the universe outside the atmospheres of celestial bodies. Outer space is used to distinguish it from airspace (and terrestrial locations). Contrary to popular understanding, outer space is not completely empty (i.e. a perfect vacuum) but contains a low density of particles, predominantly hydrogen plasma, as well as electromagnetic radiation. Hypothetically, it also contains dark matter and dark energy.
The term "outer space" was first recorded by H. G. Wells in 1901.[1] The shorter term space is actually older, being first used to mean the region beyond Earth's sky in John Milton's Paradise Lost in 1667.[2]
Contents[hide]
1 Environment
2 Space versus orbit
3 Regions
3.1 Geospace
3.2 Interplanetary
3.3 Interstellar
3.4 Intergalactic
4 Milestones
5 See also
6 References
7 External links
Environment
Outer space is not a perfect vacuum, but a tenuous plasma awash with charged particles, electromagnetic fields, and the occasional star.
Outer space is the closest physical approximation of a perfect vacuum. It has effectively no friction, allowing stars, planets and moons to move freely along ideal gravitational trajectories. But no vacuum is truly perfect, not even in intergalactic space where there are still a few hydrogen atoms per cubic centimeter. (For comparison, the air we breathe contains about 1019 molecules per cubic centimeter.) The deep vacuum of space could make it an attractive environment for certain industrial processes, for instance those that require ultraclean surfaces; however, it is currently much less costly to create an equivalent vacuum on Earth than to leave the Earth's gravity well.
Stars, planets, asteroids, and moons keep their atmospheres by gravitational attraction, and as such, atmospheres have no clearly delineated boundary: the density of atmospheric gas simply decreases with distance from the object. The Earth's atmospheric pressure drops to about 1 Pa (10-3 Torr) at 100 km of altitude, the Kármán line which is a common definition of the boundary with outer space. Beyond this line, isotropic gas pressure rapidly becomes insignificant when compared to radiation pressure from the sun and the dynamic pressure of the solar wind, so the definition of pressure becomes difficult to interpret. The thermosphere in this range has large gradients of pressure, temperature and composition, and varies greatly due to space weather. Astrophysicists prefer to use number density to describe these environments, in units of particles per cubic centimetre.
But although it meets the definition of outer space, the atmospheric density within the first few hundred kilometers above the Kármán line is still sufficient to produce significant drag on satellites. Most artificial satellites operate in this region called low earth orbit and must fire their engines every few days to maintain orbit. The drag here is low enough that it could theoretically be overcome by radiation pressure on solar sails, a proposed propulsion system for interplanetary travel. Planets are too massive for their trajectories to be affected by these forces, although their atmospheres are eroded by the solar winds.
All of the observable universe is filled with large numbers of photons, the so-called cosmic background radiation, and quite likely a correspondingly large number of neutrinos. The current temperature of this radiation is about 3 K, or −270 °C (−454.00 °F).
Contrary to popular belief,[3] a person suddenly exposed to the vacuum would not explode, freeze to death or die from boiling blood, but would take a short while to die by asphyxiation (suffocation). Air would immediately leave the lungs due to the enormous pressure gradient. Any oxygen dissolved in the blood would empty into the lungs to try to equalize the partial pressure gradient. Once the deoxygenated blood arrived at the brain, death would quickly follow.
Humans and animals exposed to vacuum will lose consciousness after a few seconds and die of hypoxia within minutes. Blood and other body fluids do boil when their pressure drops below 6.3 kPa, (47 Torr,) the vapor pressure of water at body temperature.[4] This condition is called ebullism. The steam may bloat the body to twice its normal size and slow circulation, but tissues are elastic and porous enough to prevent rupture. Ebullism is slowed by the pressure containment of blood vessels, so some blood remains liquid.[5][6] Swelling and ebullism can be reduced by containment in a flight suit. Shuttle astronauts wear a fitted elastic garment called the Crew Altitude Protection Suit (CAPS) which prevents ebullism at pressures as low as 2 kPa (15 Torr).[7] Water vapor would also rapidly evaporate off from exposed areas such as the lungs, cornea of the eye and mouth, cooling the body. Rapid evaporative cooling of the skin will create frost, particularly in the mouth, but this is not a significant hazard. Space may be cold, but it's mostly vacuum and can hardly transfer heat, so the main temperature worry for space suits is how to get rid of naturally generated body heat.
Cold or oxygen-rich atmospheres can sustain life at pressures much lower than atmospheric, as long as the density of oxygen is similar to that of standard sea-level atmosphere. The colder air temperatures found at altitudes of up to 3 km generally compensate for the lower pressures there.[4] Above this altitude, oxygen enrichment is necessary to prevent altitude sickness, and spacesuits are necessary to prevent ebullism above 19 km.[4] Most spacesuits use only 20 kPa (150 Torr) of pure oxygen, just enough to sustain full consciousness. This pressure is high enough to prevent ebullism, but simple evaporation of blood can still cause decompression sickness and gas embolisms if not managed.
Rapid decompression can be much more dangerous than vacuum exposure itself. Even if the victim does not hold his breath, venting through the windpipe may be too slow to prevent the fatal rupture of the delicate alveoli of the lungs.[4] Eardrums and sinuses may be ruptured by rapid decompression, soft tissues may bruise and seep blood, and the stress of shock will accelerate oxygen consumption leading to hypoxia.[8] Injuries caused by rapid decompression are called barotrauma. A pressure drop as small as 100 Torr, (13 kPa,) which produces no symptoms if it is gradual, may be fatal if occurs suddenly.[4]
[edit] Space versus orbit
To perform an orbital spaceflight, a spacecraft must travel faster than it must for a sub-orbital spaceflight. A spacecraft has not entered orbit until it is traveling with a sufficiently great horizontal velocity such that the acceleration due to gravity on the spacecraft is less than or equal to the centripetal acceleration being caused by its horizontal velocity (see circular motion). So to enter orbit, a spacecraft must not only reach space, but must also achieve a sufficient orbital speed (angular velocity). For a low-Earth orbit, this is about 7.9 km/s (18,000 mph); by contrast, the fastest airplane speed ever achieved (excluding speeds achieved by deorbiting spacecraft) was 2.02 km/s (4,520 mph) in 1967 by the North American X-15[9]. Konstantin Tsiolkovsky was the first person to realize that, given the energy available from any available chemical fuel, a several-stage rocket would be required. The escape velocity to pull free of Earth's gravitational field altogether and move into interplanetary space is about 40,000 km/h (25,000 mph or 11,000 m/s). The energy required to reach velocity for low Earth orbit (32 MJ/kg) is about twenty times the energy required simply to climb to the corresponding altitude (10 kJ/(km·kg)).
There is a major difference between sub-orbital and orbital spaceflights. The minimum altitude for a stable orbit around Earth (that is, one without significant atmospheric drag) begins at around 350 km (220 miles) above mean sea level. A common misunderstanding about the boundary to space is that orbit occurs simply by reaching this altitude. Achieving orbital speed can theoretically occur at any altitude, although atmospheric drag precludes an orbit that is too low. At sufficient speed, an airplane would need a way to keep it from flying off into space, but at present, this speed is several times greater than anything within reasonable technology.
[edit] Regions
Space being not a perfect vacuum, its different regions are defined by the various atmospheres and "winds" that dominate within them, and extend to the point at which those winds give way to those beyond. Geospace extends from Earth's atmosphere to the outer reaches of Earth's magnetic field, whereupon it gives way to the solar wind of interplanetary space. Interplanetary space extends to the heliopause, whereupon the solar wind gives way to the winds of the interstellar medium. Interstellar space then continues to the edges of the galaxy, where it fades into the intergalactic void.
[edit] Geospace
Geospace (dark blue).
In the context of space weather, geospace is the region of outer space near the Earth. Geospace includes the upper region of the atmosphere, as well as the ionosphere and magnetosphere. The Van Allen radiation belts also lie within the geospace.
There is no clear boundary between Earth's atmosphere and space as the density of the atmosphere gradually decreases as the altitude increases. Nevertheless, the Fédération Aéronautique Internationale has established the Kármán line at an altitude of 100 km (62 miles) as a working definition for the boundary between aeronautics and astronautics. This is used because above an altitude of roughly 100 km, as Theodore von Kármán calculated, a vehicle would have to travel faster than orbital velocity in order to derive sufficient aerodynamic lift from the atmosphere to support itself. The United States designates people who travel above an altitude of 80 km (50 statute miles) as astronauts. During re-entry, roughly 120 km (75 miles) marks the boundary where atmospheric drag becomes noticeable, depending on the ballistic coefficient of the vehicle.
Geospace is populated at very low densities by electrically charged particles, whose motions are controlled by the Earth's magnetic field. These plasmas form a medium from which storm-like disturbances powered by the solar wind can drive electrical currents into the Earth’s upper atmosphere.
During geomagnetic storms two regions of geospace, the radiation belts and the ionosphere, can become strongly disturbed. These disturbances interfere with the functioning of satellite communications and navigation (GPS) technologies. These storms increase fluxes of energetic electrons that can permanently damage satellite electronics, and can also be a hazard to astronauts, even in low-Earth orbit.
A common misconception is that people in orbit are outside Earth's gravity because they are "floating". They are floating because they are in "free fall": they are accelerating toward Earth, along with their spacecraft, but are simultaneously moving sideways fast enough that the "fall" away from a straight-line path merely keeps them in orbit at a constant distance above Earth's surface. Earth's gravity reaches out far past the Van Allen belt and keeps the Moon in orbit at an average distance of 384,403 km (238,857 miles).
Geospace contains material left over from previous manned and unmanned launches that are a potential hazard to spacecraft. Some of this debris re-enters Earth's atmosphere periodically.
The absence of air makes geospace (and the surface of the Moon) ideal locations for astronomy at all wavelengths of the electromagnetic spectrum, as evidenced by the spectacular pictures sent back by the Hubble Space Telescope, allowing light from about 13.7 billion years ago — almost to the time of the Big Bang — to be observed.
The outer boundary of geospace is the interface between the magnetosphere and the solar wind. The inner boundary is the ionosphere.[10] Alternately, geospace is the region of space between the Earth’s upper atmosphere and the outermost reaches of the Earth’s magnetic field.[11] The region between Earth's atmosphere and the Moon is sometimes referred to as cis-Lunar space.
[edit] Interplanetary
Main article: Interplanetary medium
Outer space within the solar system is called interplanetary space, which passes over into interstellar space at the heliopause. The vacuum of outer space is not really empty; it is sparsely filled with cosmic rays, which include ionized atomic nuclei and various subatomic particles. There is also gas, plasma and dust, small meteors, and several dozen types of organic molecules discovered to date by microwave spectroscopy. Interplanetary space is defined by the solar wind, a continuous stream of charged particles emanating from the Sun that creates a very tenuous atmosphere (the heliosphere) for billions of miles into space. The discovery since 1995 of extrasolar planets means that other stars must possess their own interplanetary media.
[edit] Interstellar
Main article: Interstellar medium
Interstellar space is the physical space within a galaxy not occupied by stars or their planetary systems. The interstellar medium resides – by definition – in interstellar space.
[edit] Intergalactic
Main articles: Intracluster medium and Cosmic microwave background
Intergalactic space is the physical space between galaxies. Generally free of dust and debris, intergalactic space is very close to a total vacuum. Some theories put the average density of the Universe as the equivalent of one hydrogen atom per cubic meter[12][13]. The density of the Universe, however, is clearly not uniform; it ranges from relatively high density in galaxies (including very high density in structures within galaxies, such as planets, stars, and black holes) to conditions in vast voids that have much lower density than the Universe's average. The temperature is only 2.73 Kelvin[14]. NASA's COBE mission (Cosmic Background Explorer) measured the temperature as 2.725 +/- 0.002 K.
[edit] Milestones
Sea level - 101.3 kPa (1 atm; 1.013 bar; 29.92 in Hg; 760 mm Hg; 14.7 lbf/in²) of atmospheric pressure
3.9 km (12,500 ft) (2.4 miles) - FAA requires supplemental oxygen for aircraft pilots in unpressurized aircraft.[15]
5.0 km (16,400 ft) (3.1 miles) - 50 kPa of atmospheric pressure
5.3 km (17,400 ft) (3.3 miles) - Half of the Earth's atmosphere is below this altitude.
8.0 km (26,200 ft) (5 miles) - Death zone for human climbers
8.85 km (29,035 ft) (5.5 miles) - Summit of Mount Everest, the highest mountain on Earth (26 kPa)
16 km (52,500 ft) (9.9 miles) - Pressurized cabin or pressure suit required.
18 km (59,100 ft) (11.2 miles) - Boundary between troposphere and stratosphere
20 km (65,600 ft) (12.4 miles) - Water at room temperature boils without a pressurized container. (The popular notion that bodily fluids would start to boil at this point is false because the body generates enough internal pressure to prevent it.)
24 km (78,700 ft) (14.9 miles) - Regular aircraft pressurization systems no longer function.
32 km (105,000 ft) (19.9 miles) - Turbojets no longer function.
34.7 km (113,740 ft) (21.5 miles) - Altitude record for manned balloon flight
45 km (147,600 ft) (28 miles) - Ramjets no longer function.
50 km (164,000 ft) (31 miles) - Boundary between stratosphere and mesosphere
53 km (174,000 ft) (33 miles) - Altitude record of Balloon.
80.5 km (264,000 ft) (50 miles) - Boundary between mesosphere and thermosphere. USA definition of space flight.
100 km (328,100 ft) (62.1 miles) - Kármán line, defining the limit of outer space according to the Fédération Aéronautique Internationale. Aerodynamic surfaces ineffective due to low atmospheric density. Lift speed generally exceeds orbital velocity. Turbopause.
120 km (393,400 ft) (74.6 miles) - First noticeable atmospheric drag during re-entry from orbit
200 km (124.2 miles) - Lowest possible orbit with short-term stability (stable for a few days)
307 km (190.8 miles) - STS-1 mission orbit
350 km (217.4 miles) - Lowest possible orbit with long-term stability (stable for many years)
360 km (223.7 miles) - ISS average orbit, which still varies due to drag and periodic boosting.
390 km (242.3 miles) - Mir mission orbit
440 km (273.4 miles) - Skylab mission orbit
587 km (364.8 miles) - HST orbit
690 km (428.7 miles) - Boundary between thermosphere and exosphere, start of the inner Van Allen Belt
780 km (484.7 miles) - Iridium orbit
1,374 km (850 miles) - Highest altitude by a manned Earth-orbiting flight (Gemini XI with Agena Target Vehicle)
10,000 km (6,213 miles) - End of the inner Van Allen Belt
19,000 km (11,900 miles) - Start of the outer Van Allen Belt
20,200 km (12,600 miles) - GPS orbit
35,786 km (22,237 miles) - Geostationary orbit height
63,800 km (39,600 miles) - End of the outer Van Allen Belt
320,000 km (200,000 miles) - Lunar gravity exceeds Earth's (at Lagrange point)
348,200 km (238,700 miles) - lunar perigee (closet approach of the Moon)
402,100 km (249,900 miles) - lunar apogee (largest distance between Earth and Moon)
[edit] See also
Astronomy portal
Space portal
Space tourism portal
Spaceflight portal
Astronaut Badge
Extraterrestrial life
Intergalactic space
Interplanetary Internet
Kármán line
NASA
Outer Space Treaty
Private spaceflight
Solar wind
Space and survival
Space colonization
Space exploration
Space science
Space station
Space technology
Spaceflight
Timeline of spaceflight
[edit] References
^ "Etymonline : Outer". Retrieved on 2008-03-24.
^ "Etymonline: Space". Retrieved on 2008-03-24.
^ NASA Human Body in a Vacuum
^ a b c d e Harding, Richard M. (1989), Survival in Space: Medical Problems of Manned Spaceflight, London: Routledge, ISBN 0-415-00253-2 .
^ Billings, Charles E. (1973). "Barometric Pressure", in edited by James F. Parker and Vita R. West: Bioastronautics Data Book, Second Edition, NASA. NASA SP-3006.
^ "Human Exposure to Vacuum". Retrieved on 2006-03-25.
^ Webb P. (1968). "The Space Activity Suit: An Elastic Leotard for Extravehicular Activity". Aerospace Medicine 39: 376–383.
^ Czarnik, Tamarack R.. "EBULLISM AT 1 MILLION FEET: Surviving Rapid/Explosive Decompression". Retrieved on 2006-03-25.
^ Linda Shiner. "X-15 Walkaround: A short guide to the fastest airplane ever.". Air & Space Magazine. Retrieved on 2007-01-19.
^ "Report of the Living With a Star Geospace Mission Definition Team". NASA (September, 2002).
^ "LWS Geospace Missions". NASA.
^ Davidson, Keay & Smoot, George. Wrinkles in Time. New York: Avon, 1993: 158-163
^ Silk, Joseph. Big Bang. New York: Freeman, 1977: 299.
^ NASA COBE website[1]
^ FAR 91.211, http://www.airweb.faa.gov/Regulatory_and_Guidance_Library/rgFAR.nsf/0/ba9afbf96dbc56f0852566cf006798f9!OpenDocument&ExpandSection=-3
[edit] External links
Look up intergalactic inWiktionary, the free dictionary.
Wikiquote has a collection of quotations related to:
space
Wikimedia Commons has media related to:
Space
Wikinews has related news:
Portal:Space
Intergalactic Space, Natural History, Feb 1998
Morgan Freeman's Space Exploration Channel "Our Space" on ClickStar
Profits set to soar in outer space
Newscientist Space.
X PRIZE Foundation.
Images of Earth and space taken from outer space
[hide]
v • d • eElements of Nature
Earth
History of Earth · Earth science · Structure of the Earth · Plate tectonics · Geological history of Earth · Geology
Weather
Climate · Earth's atmosphere
Life
Biosphere · Origin of life · Microbe · Flora · Plants · Fungi · Fauna · Animals · Biology · Evolutionary history of life
Environment
Wilderness · Ecology · Ecosystem
Universe
Matter · Energy · Outer space
Category · Portal
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