2021年9月19日日曜日

at 14:00 (JST), September 19

https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/upld/medias/en/radio/news/20210919200000_english_1.mp3


Key words : spacex
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20210919_08/

A SpaceX Crew Dragon capsule carrying the first all-civilian crew launched into orbit has safely returned to Earth.

Jared Isaacman, founder of a US technology firm, planned the flight, dubbed Inspiration4, to raise funds for a children's hospital.

The capsule carrying Isaacman and three others blasted off atop a Falcon 9 rocket from Florida on Wednesday and orbited the Earth for about three days.

While in space, the crew gazed at the Earth through the capsule's observation window and chatted with patients of the children's hospital.

On Saturday, the capsule reentered Earth's atmosphere after firing the engine for the last time before it parachuted into the Atlantic off Florida's coast before sunset on Saturday.

A recovery ship retrieved the capsule. The crew of four exited through the hatch one by one to cheers from people on the ship.

This is the first all-civilian mission not crewed by astronauts from NASA, or the military, to orbit the Earth. The successful launch has heightened expectations for more civilian space travel to come.


Key words : white flags
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20210919_07/

An exhibition of more than 600,000 white flags honoring Americans who have died of COVID-19 opened Friday at Washington's National Mall in the United States.

The tally by Johns Hopkins University shows that the US has the world's highest number of COVID-19 deaths. The number topped 672,000 on Friday.

Artist Suzanne Brennan Firstenberg created the installation. One flag represents one person in the US who had died from the disease.

The flags cover 80,000 square meters of green fields.

Visitors can write messages on the flags. One message said, "If we knew the last time we saw you would be the last time we would have hugged you longer."

One visitor said the field of flags looked like a sea of sorrow and that such a large number of people should not have died. She said two friends died of the disease and the loss has been very painful.

The highly transmissible Delta variant is spreading fast in the US where more than 2,000 daily deaths have been recorded in recent days. The vaccination rate is not happening fast enough to combat growing COVID-19 infections.


Key words : rally capitol
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20210919_04/

Several hundred people have rallied near the US Capitol in support of those charged in connection with the deadly assault on the congressional building on January 6.

Heavy security was in place for the rally in Washington D.C. on Saturday. But the gathering ended without major confusion in about two-and-a-half hours.

The participants included supporters of former President Donald Trump. They called the defendants in the January riot "patriots" who merely exercised their constitutional rights to assembly.

One of them said most people who stormed the Capitol building were not involved in the violence, and that only a few were responsible.

About 600 people have been charged over the riot, staged by an agitated mob disputing Trump's election loss. Five people died, including a Capitol police officer.


Key words : kabul drone apology
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20210919_03/

An Afghan man who lost family members in an erroneous US air strike has told an American media outlet that he wants those responsible to face punishment.

Emal Ahmadi said in an interview with Associated Press on Saturday that it was not enough for the US "to say sorry." His 3-year-old daughter was among the 10 civilians killed in the drone attack in Kabul on August 29.

A missile hit a car carrying Ahmadi's older brother. The US military had said it targeted a vehicle believed to be carrying a member of a local affiliate of the Islamic State militant group.

The head of the US Central Command offered an apology on Friday, acknowledging that the strike was a "tragic mistake."

Ahmadi said an apology won't bring back his family members, and called for an investigation.

He is quoted as saying that the US could "see that there were innocent children near the car and in the car." He said, "Whoever did this should be punished."

Ahmadi also urged the US government to compensate his family.


Key words : cup noodle
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20210919_11/

Saturday marked the 50th anniversary of Nissin Foods' Cup Noodle.

On September 18, 1971, Japan's leading instant noodle maker launched a product that could be eaten three minutes after adding hot water. The ease of preparation invited competition from many other food companies.

Domestic production of cup-type instant noodles has become about 1,000 times larger over the past half century. The flavors have been changed over the years to meet the needs of the times.

New products have recently been put on the market as consumers become increasingly health conscious.

Noodles that are rich in protein and low in carbohydrates have been introduced.

There are also low-sodium noodles and others with as much dietary fiber as a whole lettuce.

More food manufacturers are switching from plastic to paper containers to respond to greater environmental awareness among consumers.

Nissin's brand manager, Shirakawa Tsutomu, says his company hopes to introduce new products that meet the demand created by changing lifestyles.


Key words : german election
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20210919_06/

Voters in Germany will elect a new parliament next week. The result of the September 26 election will decide who succeeds Chancellor Angela Merkel, who has led the country for 16 years.

In addition to determining the next chancellor, the main issues in the election are economic policy dealing with the effects of the pandemic and measures against climate change.

According to the latest opinion poll by public broadcaster ZDF, the center-left Social Democratic Party, or SPD, leads the race with 25 percent support.

Its coalition partner, the center-right Christian Democratic Union and its Bavarian sister party the Christian Social Union, follows with 22 percent. Merkel was the head of the CDU/CSU alliance in the parliament.

The Greens have 16 percent, with support rising as the environment becomes an increasingly important issue for voters.

As for candidates to be the next chancellor, Finance Minister Olaf Scholz of the SPD is considered the favorite. Armin Laschet of the CDU/CSU alliance, who has Merkel's backing, and Annalena Baerbock of the Greens are also among the contenders.

Merkel is set to retire from politics after the election. She has steered Germany through various challenges, including an influx of migrants and the pandemic, and has assumed a leadership role in the European Union.


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