Pictures of Earth City Lights at Night: Egypt and The Nile

Earthbound folks rarely get the chance to see how the planet's city lights glow from space.

In 2010, author L. Douglas Keeney noticed pictures being tweeted by astronauts on the International Space Station.

The clear images of Earth's city lights were made possible by new camera technology that was able to shoot high-resolution photos even as the station moved at a rapid 17,500 miles an hour some 240 miles above Earth's surface.

Keeney then got to work, pouring through more than 300,000 unmarked NASA photo, choosing 400 of the best images for his book the Lights of Mankind: The Earth at Night as Seen from Space.

Keeney shared seven of his favorite photos with us, which he dubbed the "Seven Wonder of the Nightime World."

Pictures of Earth City Lights at Night from Space

Prostate Cancer Found in 2,000-Year-Old Mummy

A 2150-year-old Egyptian mummy has just revealed small, round lesions—the oldest case of metastatic prostate cancer in ancient Egyptians.

Prostate cancer,‭ ‬one of the most common types of modern malignancies,‭ ‬did affect the ancient Egyptians,‭ ‬according to a radiological investigation of a‭ 2,250‭ ‬year old-mummy.

Kept at the National Archaeology Museum of Lisbon,‭ ‬and catalogued as M1,‭ ‬the unnamed wrapped Ptolemaic mummy‭ (‬c.‭ ‬285‭–‬30‭ ‬BCE‭) ‬was adorned with a cartonnage mask and bib,‭ ‬and boasted an elaborately painted shroud.

The mummy is that of an adult male‭ "a view further justified by the preserved male perineal anatomy and an obvious mummified penis,‭" ‬Carlos Prates,‭ ‬a radiologist at Imagens Médicas Integradas in Lisbon,‭ ‬and colleagues write in a study now in press in the International Journal of Paleopathology.‭

The man,‭ ‬about‭ ‬5ft‭ ‬5in tall,‭ ‬was between‭ ‬51‭ ‬and‭ ‬60‭ ‬years old when he died a slow,‭ ‬painful death.

The researchers subjected the mummy to powerful Multi Detector Computerised Tomography‭ (‬MDCT‭) ‬scans.‭ ‬The specially designed protocol produced‭ "really unusual high quality images,‭" ‬Prates reports.

Digital X-rays showed that M1‭ ‬had been buried with crossed arms‭ (‬a common pose in Ptolemaic mummies,‭ ‬although in the New Kingdom it was often associated with royals‭) ‬and suffered from lumbosacral osteoarthritis,‭ ‬which was probably related to a lower lumbar scoliosis.

Several‭ ‬post-mortem fractures,‭ ‬possibly produced by mishandling when the mummy was transported to Europe,‭ ‬afflicted the body.

But that wasn't all they found.‭ ‬A pattern of round and dense tumors,‭ ‬measuring between‭ ‬0.03‭ ‬and‭ ‬0.59‭ ‬inches,‭ ‬interspersed‭ ‬M1‭’‬s pelvis and lumbar spine.‭

"The bone lesions were considered very suggestive of metastatic prostate cancer,‭" ‬wrote the researchers.

Indeed,‭ ‬prostatic carcinoma typically spreads to the pelvic region,‭ ‬the lumbar spine,‭ ‬the upper arm and leg bones,‭ ‬the ribs,‭ ‬ultimately reaching most of the skeleton.‭

Prates and colleagues‭ ‬considered other diseases as alternatives.‭ ‬But‭ ‬M1‭'‬s sex,‭ ‬age,‭ ‬the‭ ‬distribution pattern of the lesions,‭ ‬their shape and density,‭ ‬strongly argued for prostate cancer.

"It is the oldest known case of prostate cancer in ancient Egypt and the‭ ‬second‭ ‬oldest case in history,‭" ‬Prates said.

The earliest diagnosis of‭ ‬metastasising prostate carcinoma came in‭ ‬2007,‭ ‬when researchers investigated the skeleton of a‭ ‬2,700-year-old Scythian king who died,‭ ‬aged‭ ‬40-50,‭ ‬in the steppe of Southern Siberia,‭ ‬Russia.
‭
"This study shows that cancer did exist in antiquity,‭ ‬for sure in ancient Egypt.‭ ‬The main reason for the scarcity of examples found today might be the lower prevalence of carcinogens and the shorter life expectancy,‭" ‬Paula Veiga,‭ ‬a researcher in Egyptology,‭ ‬said.

Moreover,‭ ‬high-resolution CT scanners,‭ ‬able to detect tiny‭ ‬tumors‭ (‬measuring‭ ‬0.03-0.07‭ ‬inches in diameter‭)‬,‭ ‬became available only in‭ ‬2005.‭ ‬This suggests that earlier researchers might have missed several cases.
‭
"This technology improved significantly the interpretation of data.‭ ‬Radiology,‭ ‬and its latest developments,‭ ‬like high resolution CT scan,‭ ‬is a phenomenal non-destructive tool in many fields of art and archeology,‭"‬ Prates said.

How the Pyramids were Built

Jean-Pierre Houdin spent a couple of decades working as an independent architect around Paris. Then, his career took a big turn. Working with his father, Houdin tried to crack an ancient mystery — how were the great pyramids of Egypt built?

Throughout the centuries, various theories have been put forth. Herodotus, who visited Egypt around 450 B.C., speculated that some “machines” were involved. Others thought that mounds serving as ramps played a central role in the construction. And still others have guessed that extraterrestrials were the real builders (seriously).

Now Houdin enters into the debate with what Egyptologist Bob Brier calls a “radical new theory.”

Using state-of-the-art 3-D software, Houdin has concluded that the bottom portion of the pyramids were built with an external ramp, and the upper portions with internal ramps. Brier summarizes the theory rather well in this short article.

Houdin’s work has focused particularly on the Great Pyramid of Giza, otherwise known as the Pyramid of Khufu, built circa 2500 B.C. (See image here). And he has gone so far as to create a 3D interactive film that visually documents his hypothesis.

We’ve embedded a good clip above. You can also head to Khufu Reborn to get the full interactive experience. (Note: You’ll need a PC, 3D glasses and some downloadable plugins to make it all work.)

Mars Meteorite Strikes Egypt - 100 years ago

Exactly a century ago, on June 28, 1911, an explosion shook the Nakhla region of Alexandria in Egypt at 9 a.m.

Soon after, around 40 chunks of meteorite debris from the high altitude blast rained down. 22 pounds (10 kilograms) of the bolide were recovered by witnesses of this cosmic event.

The Smithsonian received two samples of the Nakhla meteorite the following August and then acquired a larger 480 gram (one pound) piece in 1962 (pictured top).

By the 1970's, the Smithsonian had collected 650 grams (1.4 pounds) of the meteorite.

The Nakhla meteorite fragments -- dubbed "Nakhlites" -- are now known to originate from Mars.

Even better than that, scientists have been able to narrow down to where on the Martian surface the original meteoroid came from.

Nakhlites are igneous rocks rich in the mineral augite.

This indicates the original rock formed as a basaltic magma approximately 1.3 billion years ago, when Mars was volcanically active.

Through careful analysis of the rock's crystalisation ages and crater-count chronology of different regions on Mars, the Nakhla meteorite most likely formed in the ancient volcanic regions of Tharsis, Elysium or Syrtis Major Planum, according to the Smithsonian website.

NASA MODIS Images: Dust over Egypt, Libya, and the Mediterranean Sea

Just a few days after dust plumes blew off the coast of Libya, another dust storm spread over Egypt, Libya, and the Mediterranean Sea.

The Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) on NASA’s Aqua satellite captured this natural-color image on October 1, 2010.

The dust is thickest over central Libya, where the dust takes on a rippled pattern. Thinner but still discernible dust appears in Egypt.

Over the Mediterranean Sea, dust and clouds form a massive arc that extends eastward toward Cyprus. A fairly thick plume of dust skirts the southwestern edge of that island.

Source points for the dust aren’t obvious in this image. Individual lines of dust in Libya may result from shifting wind patterns at higher latitudes.

What appear to be source points for dust plumes in Egypt are actually features on the land surface partially obscured by a thin veil of dust.

Even though source points are not obvious, the dust likely arose from the massive sand seas that sprawl over Libya and Egypt.

Egypt eyes U.S. missiles, equipment

The U.S. Defense Security Cooperation Agency has signaled its intent to consider a rash of foreign military sales to Egypt, including the transfer of anti-tank missiles.

The government of Egypt has also requested anti-ship missiles, engine upgrades for its fleet of F-16 jet fighters and Fast Missile Crafts worth an estimated $1.18 billion.

The proposed sale is expected to "contribute to the foreign police and national security objectives of the United States by helping to improve the security of a friendly country which has been and continues to be an important force for political stability and economic progress in the Middle East," the U.S. Defense agency said.

Among Egypt's grab-bag of requests: 450 AGM-114K3A Hellfire II air-to-surface anti-armor missiles, along with associated parts, equipment training and logistical support. This package alone is estimated at $51 million.

Experts say Egypt requires the particular missiles to defend its own borders and to remain militarily viable in the contentious region. Still, the experts maintain, the purchase will not adversely affect the military balance in the region.

Egypt also wants to procure 20 RGM-84L/3 Harpoon Block III anti-ship cruise missiles, 4 Harpoon shipboard command launch control systems, including all consoles, software and shipboard canister launcher units.

The potential sale would also feature support equipment, personnel training and training equipment -- all estimated at $145 million.

Should the deal go through, the principle contractor will be U.S-based Boeing company.

Another export opportunity includes Egypt's request for upgraded F-110-GE-100 engines that power its fleet of F-16 jet fighters. The proposed upgrades will be spread out over six or seven years, in increments of approximately 24 upgraded engines per year, local media reported.

This contract would amount to a value of approximately $750 million and would be carried out by General Electric Aviation, the Defense Professionals Web site reported.

The proposed sales, however, have triggered sharp criticism by Middle East experts who fear the fresh dispatch of arms to Egypt could end up in hostile hands.

"These U.S. arms are likely to fall into the hands of the Islamists, who would be more inclined to immediate aggression," wrote the Examiner. "Egypt needs means of neutralizing the Islamists within. It does not have enemies threatening assault on it with modern armies."

News of Egypt's arms requests follows similar bids from Kuwait, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.

Saudi Arabia recently disclosed that its intent to buy wire-guided radio frequency missiles was aimed at supporting the kingdom's efforts to modernize its national guard.

Egypt: Twin Archaeoligists discover lost Army

In 525 B.C., the Persian Emperor Cambyses dispatched 50,000 of his soldiers to lay waste to an oasis temple in the Sahara because their oracle had spoken ill of his plans for world domination.

The punitive expedition proved to be one of antiquity's most dramatic episodes of imperial overreach.

One morning, while the army was having breakfast, writes the ancient historian Herodotus in The Histories, it was set upon by "a violent southern wind, bringing with it piles of sand, which buried them." The Greek continues, "Thus it was that they utterly disappeared."

For centuries, this little anecdote — like many others in Herodotus's famous text — seemed to be a myth. The Histories is lined with rumors and fantastical hearsay of ants that dig for gold, rings that make their bearers invisible and winged serpents that patrol remote mountain passes.

Until now, recent excavations in western Egypt by a team of Italian archaeologists may have unearthed traces of this long-lost army, entombed in the desert for some 2,500 years.

The team, led by a veteran pair of twin brothers, Alfredo and Angelo Castiglioni, put forward what they claim is the first physical evidence of the army's remains. More than a decade of digs and explorations have turned up earthenware pots, fragments of weaponry dating to the 6th century B.C. and hundreds of human bones.

An earring seen as similar to equivalent ancient Achaemenid, or Persian, jewelry has also been recovered. "We are talking of small items," said Alfredo Castiglioni to reporters this week. "But they are extremely important as they are the first Achaemenid objects ... dating to Cambyses' time, which have emerged from the desert sands."

Over the years the twins have shown a knack for finding ancient glories thought lost. In 1989, they uncovered the ruins of the legendary Egyptian city of Berenike Panchrysos, a desert town once allegedly paved with gold.

The first breakthrough in the hunt for Cambyses' army came in 1996, when the Castiglioni brothers ran across a cache of Persian arrow tips and dagger blades beneath a rock outcrop not far from the oasis of Siwa — near the modern-day Egyptian border with Libya and the site of the sacred Amon temple, whose oracle was worshipped by Greeks and Egyptians alike. Cambyses' army had set out from the city of Thebes to reach Siwa and plunder its temple, but never made it.

Many adventurers, particularly in the 19th century, sought to find proof of their passing, plying the traditional caravan routes through the desert in the hope that the Persians had succumbed to the sandstorm and perished somewhere along the way.

In the 1930s, the most famous man who searched for the army was László Almásy, a Hungarian aristocrat who, in his wanderings, claimed to find the mythical oasis of Zerzura — "the oasis of little birds" — and became the subject of Michael Ondaatje's best-selling novel, The English Patient.

Private Motive for Egypt’s Public Embrace of a Jewish Past

CAIRO — Egyptians generally do not make any distinction between Jewish people and Israelis. Israelis are seen as the enemy, so Jews are, too.

Khalid is pretty typical in that regard, living in a neighborhood of winding, rutted roads in Old Cairo, selling snacks from a kiosk while listening to the Koran on the radio.

Asked his feelings about Jews, he replied matter-of-factly. “We hate them for everything they have done to us,” Mr. Badr said, in apracticed way and as casually as if he had been asked the time.

But Mr. Badr’s ideas have recently been challenged, by hos own government. He has had to confront the reality that his neighbourhood was once filled with Jews — Egyptian Jews — and that his nation’s history is interwoven with Jewish history.

Not far from his shop, down another narrow, winding alley once called the Alley of the Jews, the government is busy renovating an abandoned, dilapidated synagogue.

In fact, the government is not just renovating the crumbling, flooded old building. It is publicly embracing its Jewish past — not the kind of thing you ordinarily hear from Egyptian officials.

“If you don’t restore the Jewish synagogues, you lose a part of your history,” said Zahi Hawass, general secretary of the Supreme Council of Antiquities, who in the past has written negatively about Jews because of the clash between Israel and the Palestinians. “It is part of our heritage.”

Egypt has slowly, quietly been working to restore its synagogues for several years. It has completed two projects and plans to restore about eight more. But because of the perception on the street — the anger toward Israel and the deep, widespread anti-Semitism — the government initially insisted that its activities remain secret.

“They told us ‘We are doing these things, but you can’t tell anybody about it,’ ” said Rabbi Andrew Baker, director of international Jewish affairs for the American Jewish Committee.

“This was such a reverse of what we experience in Eastern Europe, where governments don’t do much but want to present the picture they are doing things. In Egypt they were doing things, but, ‘Shhh, don’t let anybody know!’ ”

So why the sudden public display of affection for Egypt’s Jewish past? Clearly politics is at play and not street politics, but global politics.

Egypt’s minister of culture, Farouk Hosny, wants to be the next director general of Unesco, the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization. In the context of this conservative Islamic society, Mr. Hosny, 71, is quite liberal, running afoul of Islamists when he criticised the popularity of women wearing head scarves, for example.

But to appease — or please — his local constituency, he said in 2008 he would burn any Israeli book found in the nation’s premier library in Alexandria. He has apologised, but that has done little to end the attacks on his candidacy to lead an organisation dedicated to promoting cultural diversity.

So his subordinates have increased the rate of the restoration process. After a year of study, the work began in June. They pitched a blue tent, and held a news conference — two, in fact — right inside the old synagogue around the corner from Mr. Badr’s shop. Mr. Badr said that was when he realized that the building with no roof and cemented-over windows was a synagogue.

It is a historic one, actually, named after Rabbi Moses Ben Maimon, a physician and philosopher who is considered among the most important rabbinic scholars in Jewish history. He was born in Córdoba, Spain, in 1135, moved to Alexandria and eventually to Cairo.

He is known in the West as Moses Maimonides, he worked and studied in the temple until his death. Mr. Hawass said it was last used in 1960 and then was allowed to crumble, even as a new mosque was built right next door.

But the news conference only seems to have stoked more skepticism, as charges arose that the work was ordered, only to silence Mr. Hosny’s critics.