The Big Picture

The Big Picture http://www.boston.com/bigpicture/ News Stories in Photographs from the Boston Globe en Copyright 2009 Fri, 20 Nov 2009 11:10:05 -0500 http://www.sixapart.com/movabletype/ http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/tech/rss Large Hadron Collider ready to restart The European Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN) says it expects to restart the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) by this weekend after more than a year of repairs. The 27 km (17 mi) particle accelerator was launched last year, but suffered a failure from a faulty electrical connection, damaging 53 of the smasher's 9,300 superconducting magnets. Repairs are now completed, and the plan is to begin injecting protons into the LHC this weekend, on the path to search for particles such as predicted-yet-unobserved Higgs Boson. Collected below are some photographs of the repairs, and of the LHC and some of its experiments in various stages of construction. (30 photos total)

Combining two major ATLAS inner detector components. The semiconductor tracker is inserted into the transition radiation tracker for the ATLAS experiment at the LHC. These make up two of the three major components of the inner detector. They will work together to measure the trajectories produced in the proton-proton collisions at the centre of the detector when the LHC is switched on. Photo taken on February 22nd, 2006. (Maximilien Brice, © CERN)

]]> http://feeds.boston.com/click.phdo?i=5c492a52e49f820b3c45f050ac353a7b http://www.boston.com/bigpicture/2009/11/large_hadron_collider_ready_to.html http://www.boston.com/bigpicture/2009/11/large_hadron_collider_ready_to.html Fri, 20 Nov 2009 11:10:05 -0500 On the shoreline We humans are drawn to the shore, with some 40% of the world's population living within 100 kilometers of a coast. Coastal areas have made recent news with the arrival of several storms, concerns about rising sea levels and other environmental and conservation efforts. Collected here are a handful of photographs from around the world of people and animals at the shoreline, playing, working, struggling or relaxing on the border between land and sea. (36 photos total)

A beach-goer enjoys a day at the beach as the sun goes down over the Spanish coastal city of Marbella on September 1, 2009. The temperatures remain over 30 degrees Celsius at the southern Spanish coast. (SASCHA SCHUERMANN/AFP/Getty Images)

]]> http://feeds.boston.com/click.phdo?i=5080c0790591eba3535de2d4c7b4ba06 http://www.boston.com/bigpicture/2009/11/on_the_shoreline.html http://www.boston.com/bigpicture/2009/11/on_the_shoreline.html Wed, 18 Nov 2009 10:41:01 -0500 Watching the H1N1 flu pandemic Health officials around the world are stepping up vaccination efforts and are closely tracking the progress of the H1N1/09 virus (often referred to as "swine flu" in the media). World Health Organization officials recently noted that the virus has spread to virtually every country in the world, reaching as far as remote tribes in Venezuela and aboriginal populations in Australia. Although the number of deaths attributed to H1N1 this year (over 7,000 to date) remains low compared to a normal seasonal flu outbreak of several hundred thousand deaths in a year, health officials remain concerned because of the instability of H1N1/09 combined with its tendency to affect younger healthier people. Collected here are photos of people around the world preparing for and dealing with the current H1N1 pandemic. (37 photos total)

A medic prepares to give students of a university an injection of the H1N1 flu vaccine in Russia's far eastern city of Vladivostok on November 9, 2009. Russia launched a vaccination campaign against the H1N1 flu disease on Monday, local media reported. (REUTERS/Yuri Maltsev)

]]> http://feeds.boston.com/click.phdo?i=c60b230b7b315818a2ef2ca1c6db9b7c http://www.boston.com/bigpicture/2009/11/watching_the_h1n1_flu_pandemic.html http://www.boston.com/bigpicture/2009/11/watching_the_h1n1_flu_pandemic.html Mon, 16 Nov 2009 09:58:28 -0500 Armistice Day Remembrances Last Wednesday was Armistice Day, when on the "eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month", in 1918, the armistice was signed for the cessation of hostilities on the Western Front at the end of World War I. The date is now observed by many of the allied nations from that era as Veterans Day, Armistice Day, Remembrance Day or Poppy Day - a day set aside to commemorate the sacrifices made by those in the armed forces and their families. Collected here are photos of Veterans and Remembrance Day from the United States and several Commonwealth nations. (37 photos total)

Remembrance crosses for servicemen killed in the current conflict in Afghanistan sit outside Westminster Abbey after the Remembrance Sunday service at the Cenotaph on November 8, 2009 in London, England. This year marks the 70th anniversary of the start of the Second World War and on Remembrance Sunday the country honours its veterans with the commemorations paying particular focus to the troops who have lost their lives in current conflicts. (Dan Kitwood/Getty Images)

]]> http://feeds.boston.com/click.phdo?i=9ce70abc4f3a70a92d4f5df2e3995bc6 http://www.boston.com/bigpicture/2009/11/armistice_day_remembrances.html http://www.boston.com/bigpicture/2009/11/armistice_day_remembrances.html Fri, 13 Nov 2009 12:06:46 -0500 Scenes from Havana Havana, the capital city of the island nation of Cuba is home to nearly 4 million people - 20% of the entire population of Cuba. On November 16th the city will celebrate its 490th anniversary, being founded by the Spanish in 1519. Havana is also the seat of the state-run economy, one that has been faltering more and more in recent years. President Raul Castro has even gone so far as to warn Cubans that their socialist system must change - and to invite (limited) criticism of the state. Cuba's economic woes are compounded by the 50-year-old trade embargo imposed by the United States, a practice recently condemned (again) by the United Nations with a vote of 187-3. Collected here are recent photos from in and around Havana, Cuba. (35 photos total)

A man walks along Havana's seafront boulevard "El Malecon" July 31, 2009. (REUTERS/Desmond Boylan)

]]> http://feeds.boston.com/click.phdo?i=5daa1dbd640a0e995a23cf7554a3ddce http://www.boston.com/bigpicture/2009/11/scenes_from_havana.html http://www.boston.com/bigpicture/2009/11/scenes_from_havana.html Wed, 11 Nov 2009 12:06:35 -0500 The Berlin Wall, 20 years gone Twenty years ago, on the night of November 9, 1989, following weeks of pro-democracy protests, East German authorities suddenly opened their border to West Germany. After 28 years as prisoners of their own country, euphoric East Germans streamed to checkpoints and rushed past bewildered guards, many falling tearfully into the arms of West Germans welcoming them on the other side. Thousands of Germans and world leaders gathered in Berlin yesterday to celebrate the "Mauerfall" - the dismantling of the Berlin Wall and German reunification - and to remember the approximately 100-200 who died attempting to cross the border over the years. Collected here are photographs both historic and recent, from the fall of the Berlin Wall. Be sure to pause on photos 12 - 15, and click them to see a fade effect from before to after. (38 photos total)

Smoke from fireworks surrounds the Brandenburg Gate quadriga in Berlin at the end of the official ceremony to mark the anniversary of the reunificiation of Germany, on November 9, 2009. (LEON NEAL/AFP/Getty Images)

]]> http://feeds.boston.com/click.phdo?i=ba24f47e6ee6c5ee81bd28ae2b59f6ba http://www.boston.com/bigpicture/2009/11/the_berlin_wall_20_years_gone.html http://www.boston.com/bigpicture/2009/11/the_berlin_wall_20_years_gone.html Tue, 10 Nov 2009 11:56:46 -0500 Kazakhstan's radioactive legacy Sixty years ago, the Soviet Union detonated its first nuclear weapon, nicknamed "First Lightning", at a test facility on the steppe of northeast Kazakhstan (formerly the Kazakh SSR). The test site, named the Semipalatinsk Polygon, would go on to host 456 atomic explosions over its 40-year existence. Residents in the surrounding area became unwitting guinea pigs, exposed to the aftereffects of the bombs both intentionally and unintentionally. The radiation has silently devastated three generations of people in Kazakhstan - the total number affected is thought to be more than one million - creating health problems ranging from thyroid diseases, cancer, birth defects, deformities, premature aging, and cardiovascular diseases. Life expectancy in the area is seven years less than the national average of Kazakhstan. Photographer Ed Ou has graciously shared with us these photos from the area, with thanks to the excellent Reportage by Getty Images. (25 photos total)

Nurse Larissa Soboleva holds two-year-old Adil Zhilyaev in an orphanage in Semey, Kazakhstan November 24, 2008. Adil was born blind and afflicted with Infantile Cereberal Paralysis (ICP) and hydrocephalia, as a result of his mothers exposure to radiation during years of Soviet weapons testing during the Cold War. He was abandoned by his parents, and is now cared for in an orphanage. (Ed Ou/Reportage by Getty Images)

]]> http://feeds.boston.com/click.phdo?i=88d702d47f05bed304214f21ef64aedf http://www.boston.com/bigpicture/2009/11/kazakhstans_radioactive_legacy.html http://www.boston.com/bigpicture/2009/11/kazakhstans_radioactive_legacy.html Mon, 09 Nov 2009 09:31:43 -0500 Martian landscapes Since 2006, NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO) has been orbiting Mars, currently circling approximately 300 km (187 mi) above the Martian surface. On board the MRO is HiRISE, the High Resolution Imaging Science Experiment camera, which has been photographing the planet for several years now at resolutions as fine as mere inches per pixel. Collected here is a group of images from HiRISE over the past few years, in either false color or grayscale, showing intricate details of landscapes both familiar and alien, from the surface of our neighboring planet, Mars. I invite you to take your time looking through these, imagining the settings - very cold, dry and distant, yet real. (35 photos total)

Intersecting swirling trails left by the earlier passage of dust devils across sand dunes, as they lifted lighter reddish-pink dust and exposed the darker material below. Also visible are darker slope streaks along dune edges, formed by a process which is still under investigation. More, or see location on Google Mars. (NASA/JPL/University of Arizona)

]]> http://feeds.boston.com/click.phdo?i=b0940788eb9eee18734b78acd831c3e8 http://www.boston.com/bigpicture/2009/11/martian_landscapes.html http://www.boston.com/bigpicture/2009/11/martian_landscapes.html Fri, 06 Nov 2009 11:28:25 -0500 Pushkar Mela Pushkar Mela (or Pushkar Fair) is an annual five-day camel and livestock fair, held in the town of Pushkar in the state of Rajasthan, India, where over 25,000 camels are traded each year. The fair draws thousands of tourists, camels, camel traders, racers, locals and Hindu faithful who come to bathe in the sanctified Lake Pushkar - until the final day, Kartik Poornima, a Hindu holy day celebrated on the full moon day of the month of Kartik. Collected here are a handful of photographs from Associated Press photographer Kevin Frayer, from his trip to this year's Pushkar Mela. (30 photos total)

A camel herder carries a budle of leaves for camel feed at the Pushkar Mela in Pushkar, Rajasthan, India, Wednesday, Oct. 28, 2009. (AP Photo/Kevin Frayer)

]]> http://feeds.boston.com/click.phdo?i=2d3dcea9572cc351316414beb6627829 http://www.boston.com/bigpicture/2009/11/pushkar_mela.html http://www.boston.com/bigpicture/2009/11/pushkar_mela.html Wed, 04 Nov 2009 10:33:58 -0500 Days of the Dead From October 31st through November 2nd, a number of festivals, holidays and solemnities take place, all loosely related and revolving around remembrance of the dead. Halloween, Samhain, All Saints' Day, All Souls' Day, the Day of the Dead and other festivals trace their origins back to Celtic, Aztec, Roman and Christian traditions. Halloween is largely a secular observation these days, All Souls and All Saints remain mainly Catholic observations, and the Day of the Dead is still largely a Latin American tradition, its roots in Mexico's Aztec heritage. Collected here are photographs over the past week from the varied observations of the Days of the Dead around the world. (37 photos total)

A skull covered in marigolds rests in front of a wall of graves during preparations for a massive altar in the San Fernando Cemetery in Mexico City, Tuesday, Oct. 27, 2009. Workers added thousands of marigolds, known in Mexico as "cempasuchil," to giant skull images Tuesday as they prepare to observe the of Day of the Dead. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull)

]]> http://feeds.boston.com/click.phdo?i=5fc75e95e70fe8d98f24b72c714f9209 http://www.boston.com/bigpicture/2009/11/days_of_the_dead.html http://www.boston.com/bigpicture/2009/11/days_of_the_dead.html Mon, 02 Nov 2009 11:03:20 -0500 Launch of the Ares I-X On Wednesday, October 28th, NASA launched its Ares I-X prototype vehicle, the first launch from Kennedy's pads of a vehicle other than the space shuttle since the Apollo Program's Saturn rockets were retired. NASA's Constellation Program's 327-foot-tall rocket produced 2.96 million pounds of thrust at liftoff and reached a speed of 100 mph in eight seconds. The two-minute sub-orbital test flight encountered a few problems along the way, as the launch pad was slightly damaged, a planned stage separation did not go quite according to plan, and a possible parachute failure led to a hard splashdown for its first stage. The Constellation program is under pressure as a recent committee report depicted it as overly expensive. The Obama administration is set to make a decision in the next several months about the near-term direction of U.S. Space Policy. (28 photos total)

Smoke engulfs Launch Pad 39B as the Ares I-X test rocket takes off from NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida at 11:30 a.m. EDT Oct. 28. (NASA/ Sandra Joseph and Kevin O'Connell)

]]> http://feeds.boston.com/click.phdo?i=55914a26a9372fc3d6d97d601a1cd912 http://www.boston.com/bigpicture/2009/10/launch_of_the_ares_ix.html http://www.boston.com/bigpicture/2009/10/launch_of_the_ares_ix.html Fri, 30 Oct 2009 12:38:15 -0500 Conflict in Pakistan After recent Pakistani military operations in Pakistan's own Swat Valley to push out Taliban insurgents who had taken control of the region, its operations are now more focused on the Taliban strongholds in the South Waziristan region. Pakistani troops and Taliban militants have been locked in intense clashes recently in the tribal area which has killed more than 150 people. Relief workers say that more than 120,000 people have been displaced by the fighting. Insurgent responses to the increased military pressure have included numerous bombings and suicide attacks, killing and injuring scores across Pakistan in recent weeks. Just today a car bomb in a busy marketplace in Peshawar killed more than 93 people, as U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton made an official visit - announcing the latest in a series of U.S. aid packages to Pakistan. (36 photos total)

A man stands near the scene of an explosion in Peshawar, Pakistan on Wednesday Oct. 28, 2009. A car bomb has torn through a busy marketplace in northwestern Pakistan, collapsing several buildings, setting fires and killing at least 93 people including 60 women and children, mere hours after U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton arrived in the country on an official visit. (AP Photo/Mohammad Iqbal)

]]> http://feeds.boston.com/click.phdo?i=50b72d051052674eebc97e1d55f7f8ed http://www.boston.com/bigpicture/2009/10/conflict_in_pakistan.html http://www.boston.com/bigpicture/2009/10/conflict_in_pakistan.html Wed, 28 Oct 2009 12:50:40 -0500 Afghanistan, October, 2009 Over the past month in Afghanistan it became clear that a Presidential runoff vote between President Hamid Karzai and challenger Abdullah Abdullah would need to take place. The Obama administration continued to deliberate on whether to commit further troops to the conflict, and at least 46 U.S. service members were killed, including 14 in two separate helicopter crashes today. A recent U.N. report recorded 1,500 Afghan civilian deaths in the first six months of 2009 alone, describing this as the deadliest year for civilians in Afghanistan since the start of the U.S.-led war against Taliban eight years ago. Collected here are some images of the country and conflict over the past month, part of an ongoing monthly series on Afghanistan. (43 photos total)

An Afghan carpenter holds his prayer beads in front of his shop in Kabul October 19, 2009. (REUTERS/Ahmad Masood)

]]> http://feeds.boston.com/click.phdo?i=157517d1af0612506d2be57714996010 http://www.boston.com/bigpicture/2009/10/afghanistan_october_2009.html http://www.boston.com/bigpicture/2009/10/afghanistan_october_2009.html Mon, 26 Oct 2009 11:52:09 -0500 Diwali 2009 October 17th marked the celebration of Diwali among Hindus and other groups around the world. Diwali is also known as the "Festival of Lights" (the name translates as "row of lamps" in Sanskrit). The festival marks the homecoming of Hindu God Rama to Ayodhya after a 14-year exile in the forest following his victory over Ravana, and signifies the victory of good over evil, of light over darkness. Celebrants observe Diwali with fireworks, colorful lanterns, lamps, garlands, sweet treats and worship. Collected here are a handful of photographs of Diwali this year. (33 photos total)

Schoolgirl Bhargavi, 7, arranges garlands made from marigold flowers at a roadside stall on the eve of the Hindu festival of Diwali in the southern Indian city of Hyderabad October 16, 2009. Flowers are offered to Hindu gods and goddesses on the occasion of Diwali, the annual festival of lights that was celebrated across the country on Saturday, October 17th. (REUTERS/Krishnendu Halder)

]]> http://feeds.boston.com/click.phdo?i=c7a138e5bae14263987edd37f1bfde94 http://www.boston.com/bigpicture/2009/10/diwali_2009.html http://www.boston.com/bigpicture/2009/10/diwali_2009.html Fri, 23 Oct 2009 11:45:06 -0500 2009 UN World Drug report The 2009 United Nations World Drug report, released earlier this year, notes that 2009 marks "the end of the first century of drug control (it all started in Shanghai in 1909)", and that the illicit drug market worldwide has now become a $320 billion-per-year industry. As drug-related violence in Mexico appears to continue unabated, and crackdowns in Afghanistan are being made against its massive opium crops, new efforts are also being made worldwide in methods of enforcement and treatment of recovering addicts. Collected here are a handful of recent images from the rough world of illegal drugs across the globe. (37 photos total)

Heroin addict Ganamgul complains that his body is in pain going through withdrawal on the second day of the detox program, after 17 years of addiction, at the Kabul Drug Treatment and Rehabilitation Center September 28, 2009 in Kabul, Afghanistan. Since the center opened in May 2009 it has rehabilitated over 400 addicts in its 100 bed facility with temporary funding from International Organization of Migration (IOM) and help from the Ministry of Public Health (MoPH). The program lasts for 45 days combining both detox and rehabilitation. The center houses the 2 leading organizations that offer detox programs, Wadan and Nejat. A US Department of State report 2009 states that there are an estimated two million drug users in the country with at least 50-60,000 drug addicts in Kabul alone. (Paula Bronstein/Getty Images)

]]> http://feeds.boston.com/click.phdo?i=b98491acac2d7cc08c36d43d97a74bac http://www.boston.com/bigpicture/2009/10/2009_un_world_drug_report.html http://www.boston.com/bigpicture/2009/10/2009_un_world_drug_report.html Wed, 21 Oct 2009 13:03:36 -0500