January 23, 2013

The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission is holding what it calls the “Python Challenge 2013,” the state’s first-ever, open-invitation hunting contest. The challenge, which was launched on January 12, is a one-month python hunt in South Florida. Wildlife officials hope the contest will help control the spread of Burmese pythons, which have come to dominate wildlife in the Florida Everglades. Pythons are known to be battling alligators for the position of top predator in Everglades National Park, and native mammals are paying the price, according to a study by two Florida university researchers. The 2012 study was the first to provide evidence linking a sharp decline in populations of medium- and large-sized mammals in the park to an explosion in the number and range of the large and prolific snakes.

The state has set three contest requirements: Contestants must be 18 years of age; contestants must take an online training course; and contestants can only hunt on state land, not in the national park, which is off limits. The hunter who takes the largest snake will receive a prize of $1,000. The hunter who “harvests” the most snakes will be awarded $1,500. Approximately 1,300 people have signed up for the hunt.

Native to Southeast Asia, the python is classified as an invasive species in North America. From 1999 to 2004, pet exporters met a growing American demand for Burmese pythons by shipping more than 144,000 baby snakes to the United States. However, new owners were frequently unprepared or unwilling to care for the grown snakes, which can measure 23 feet (7 meters) in length and weigh 200 pounds (91 kilograms). Many owners dumped their snakes into the wild. Pythons released into the Florida Everglades, a region with a climate similar to that of the snakes’ native habitat, flourished. Pythons also have escaped into the wild during hurricanes.

Additional World Book articles:

• Ecology
• Invasive Species (A Special Report)
• Reptile

April 18, 2012

The U. S. space shuttle Discovery made its final voyage on Tuesday, April 17, hitching a ride aboard a modified Boeing 747 jumbo jet. Discovery was flown from Kennedy Space Center in Florida to Dulles International Airport in Virginia. There, the shuttle is to become an exhibit at the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum annex in Chantilly. Discovery replaced the shuttle prototype Enterprise, which will go on exhibit in New York City.

Columbia was the first space shuttle to be launched into space, in 1981. (Courtesy of NASA)

Discovery first flew into space in August 1984, on a mission to deploy three communications satellites. It was the third shuttle in the fleet, following Columbia and Challenger. Discovery carried the Hubble Space Telescope into space in 1990. After the explosions of Challenger in 1986 and Columbia in 2003, Discovery, along with the shuttles Atlantis and Endeavour, carried on the task of ferrying parts and crew members to build the International Space Station (ISS). Construction of the ISS began in 1998, and the shuttles completed the delivery of major station modules by 2011. Discovery flew 39 missions in all, more than any other shuttle. Since its first flight, Discovery has logged more than 148 million miles (238 million kilometers) and spent a cumulative 365 days in space.

The U.S. fleet of space shuttles was instrumental in building the ISS, a space station program in which 15 nations are involved.  (Courtesy of NASA)

President George W. Bush announced plans in 2004 to end the space shuttle program. By that time, engineers had become concerned about the safety of the aging vehicle–the first reusable spacecraft. The government determined that private contractors would take over the shuttle’s responsibilities at the ISS and that NASA would devote its resources to exploring space. The shuttle Endeavour was slated to be put on exhibit in Los Angeles, while Atlantis was to remain at the Kennedy Space Center. Nearly 2,000 people gathered to see Discovery’s final voyage and to mark the end of an amazing era of space exploration.

Additional World Book articles:

• Thirty Years of Discovery (a special report)
• Seeing the Universe in a Different Light (a special report)
• Space exploration 1981 (Back in Time article)
• Space exploration 1984 (Back in Time article)
• Space exploration 1986 (Back in Time article)
• Space exploration 1990 (Back in Time article)
• Space exploration 2000 (Back in Time article)
• Space exploration 2003 (Back in Time article)
• Space exploration 2011 (Back in Time article)