Slashdot reader DeanonymizedCoward writes: Reuters reports that the US Military is disabling ad tracking on devices, to prevent adversaries from buying publicly-available tracking data to assist in targeting troops. Military officials say that they have disabled trackers on a variety of computers and mobile devices, according to letters released on Friday by Sen. Ron Wyden, and following reports that commercially-available tracking data has been used to target troops in the Middle East....


Wyden said in a statement that it was clear that the military's efforts "have not been effective at neutralizing this threat." U.S. Representative Pat Harrigan, a North Carolina Republican, said that U.S. enemies "should not be able to pull out a credit card and buy information that helps them track American troops." Rep. Harrigan remains silent as to the larger question of whether the general public should be able to pull out a credit card and buy information that helps them track anyone they please.

"The Pentagon said in an email it would respond to the lawmakers directly," Reuters reports:

The Army said in a statement that advertising IDs had been blocked on Windows computers "since before 2021" but that Android and Apple mobile devices had only had it disabled by default "since at least February 2026...." The effort to reduce the location data generated by smartphones comes as military officials weigh increasingly strict restrictions on phone use overall. In July, Reuters reported that some deployed personnel in the Middle East could be ordered to surrender their phones amid concerns that mobile videos they were posting to the internet were helping Iran target American bases in the region.

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A new study published Friday in AGU Advances "depicts the most advanced picture yet of how a rare but massive solar storm could affect some US industries and electric systems more than others," reports CNN.

"During a 250-year solar storm, the East Coast would have widespread potential for grid failure."

Researchers modeled what a Carrington Event — a 1-in-150-year geomagnetic storm or even rarer — could mean for the modern day. They estimate the US economy would lose about $1.5 billion to $2 billion per day from direct and indirect costs, as millions of people face power outages. The findings show the most vulnerable areas are the Northeast and the Northern Plains, especially locations at higher latitudes.
No one knows when the next big storm will hit. While the most severe geomagnetic storms are labeled as once-in-a-century or rarer, these events don't follow a fixed schedule. "That timing only averages out on very long timescales," said Anna Kelbert, a geophysicist at the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics, who was not involved in the study but previously studied solar storm effects on power grids. "The event can occur at any time, as soon as a week from now, or centuries later...." [Shawn Dahl, service coordinator at the Space Weather Prediction Center operated by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration in Boulder, Colorado], said the sun is now coming down from a period of heightened activity, which is also when some of the biggest storms to hit Earth have occurred in the past. "We still need a lot of work to be ready...."

"We haven't really seen events like this size in the modern era, where we've had all of this high technology and we've had the power grid of this size," said Ed Oughton, researcher at George Mason University and lead author of the new study... Because the US grid's actual structure is proprietary for security reasons, the team used engineering models to create various network and transformer setups including the 10,464 substations and 16,256 transmission lines found across the country... The grid structure also contributes to higher risk in some areas. For instance, the eastern US is linked together in a single grid interconnection. A voltage issue in Maine, if not isolated early, could cascade through the grid to Washington, DC. The West works similarly, whereas the Texas interconnection operates mostly within the state...

Power is restored over time depending on any alternative electrical paths that could bypass the substation or availabilities of spare transformers, for instance. "This nationwide analysis shows that we are currently ill-prepared to face a major magnetic storm, and that the societal impacts would be catastrophic," Kelbert said.

"The study estimates power disruptions for 5.1 million people and 135,000 businesses," according to the article, and "The outages could last from hours to days to weeks depending on the damage and resources available to get back online, said Oughton."

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Silhouetted church at dusk on the island of Santorini, Greece, 2008

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the SQUARE
東京で雨
FEEL THE EARTH
© ajpscs

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date stamped on slide, March 1977. From a tray of slides titled "Tony Field's Round Up"

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Na 25 jaar neemt redacteur Paul Luttikhuis afscheid als klimaatredacteur. We spreken hem over de belangrijkste lessen die hij in die tijd heeft geleerd.

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A single-car JR East GV-E400 series local makes its way along the Gonō Line through the lush summer landscape of northern Japan.
Introduced to the Gonō Line in December 2020, the GV-E400 represents a major change from the familiar KiHa 40 and KiHa 48 diesel railcars that worked local services here for decades. Although it still carries a diesel engine, the GV-E400 uses a diesel-electric system—the engine generates electricity, while electric traction motors actually drive the wheels.
The modern silver-and-blue train makes an interesting contrast with the surroundings: a narrow single-track railway, thick vegetation, weathered buildings pressed close to the line, and the quiet rural landscape that gives the Gonō Line so much of its character.

Iwasaki Village, Aomori Prefecture, Japan
June 2023

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MAAGDENBURG (ANP) - De radicaalrechtse partij Alternative für Deutschland (AfD) heeft bij de verkiezingen in de Duitse deelstaat Saksen-Anhalt net geen absolute meerderheid behaald. Uit de voorlopige resultaten blijkt dat AfD 43,8 procent van de stemmen kreeg. Dat is twee keer zo veel als tijdens de verkiezingen van 2021.

Eerdere prognoses gaven al aan dat AfD de grootste partij zou worden in de oostelijke deelstaat. Rond 03.00 uur waren alle stemmen geteld. De christendemocraten (CDU) hebben met 17,2 procent van de stemmen de tweede plek. De SPD behaalde 9,3 procent van de stemmen, de Groenen 8,9 procent en Die Linke 8,6 procent. De zeer linkse partij BSW behaalde met 5,3 procent net de kiesdrempel en komt dus ook in het parlement.

Zelenskyy says after talks with Witkoff and Kushner that Kyiv seeking ‘serious volumes’ of US support for winter defences. What we know on day 1,657

US envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner have held “encouraging” talks with Volodymyr Zelenskyy in Kyiv in their first official visit to Ukraine but made no breakthrough towards ending the war with Russia. The envoys’ trip followed talks with Vladimir Putin in Moscow on Saturday which a Kremlin aide said were “highly useful” while also giving no indication of a breakthrough. Zelenskyy said at a news conference that his talks with the envoys on Sunday covered air defence needs – including Patriot systems – and a “winter package” of support covering both air defence and energy infrastructure before the colder months. He said Kyiv was seeking “serious volumes” of American support on that front, with backing from European partners as well. It appeared the war would continue into winter, he also said.

Zelenskyy said Russia had intensified strikes on Ukrainian cities before Russia’s State Duma election later this month, calling the attacks deliberate “terror” against civilians. Ukraine was working with 67 domestic companies developing systems to shoot down Russia’s jet-powered drones at scale. He said the sides agreed to hold a follow-up meeting involving Ukraine, the US and Europe, with a location still to be set.

The US envoys brought new and “more effective” proposals to Ukraine on ending the war with Russia, according to one senior Ukrainian presidential official. “It’s not the same as it was before. This one now is more effective,” the unnamed offical told Agence France-Presse after the talks with Zelenskyy. “They’re still talking. This is actually the most important part. There are three of them now.” Ukraine’s rail operator announced the envoys’ departure from Kyiv early on Monday.

Witkoff said earlier that both sides would need to compromise, adding: “We think we have the ingredients to get to that place … and we look forward to continuing this as long as it takes.” Kushner said: “Hopefully this trip has come out with some new ways to advance forward. I think we’ve learned a lot from the trip.”

In Moscow the US envoys had “discussed substantive plans which will be announced in the coming weeks”, a White House official said. The Kremlin said the Americans had “put forward a number of ideas on possible routes to a settlement”, without elaborating. Witkoff said he was hopeful a new round of US-mediated Ukraine-Russia talks would be announced “in short order”. Putin has repeatedly said Moscow intends to seize the rest of eastern Ukraine while Zelenskyy insists Russia should not be rewarded for its aggression.

A girl ⁠was killed and three ⁠other people ⁠were wounded ​in a Ukraine ⁠drone attack on the Russia-held Black ⁠Sea port ​city ‌of Sevastopol ‌late on ‌Sunday, the city’s Moscow-appointed governor, Mikhail Razvozhayev, said on Telegram.

Russian forces ⁠struck ​a ‌Ukrainian ‌cargo vessel in ‌the Black Sea which was carrying ​military equipment supplied to ⁠the Ukrainian ​army by ​western ​countries, Russian ​news ‌agencies ​reported the defence ministry as saying on ​Sunday.

Kyiv’s forces struck the Ryazan oil refinery – about 480km (300 miles) inside Russia – causing a fire, Ukraine said on Sunday.

Russia’s foreign minister said Germany’s accusation that Moscow was involved in a ⁠drone incident near a Ukrainian cargo plane at Germany’s Leipzig airport were, “by and large, the ⁠start of a real war”, state news ​agency Tass ‌reported. “He is, in effect, declaring war on us,” Sergei Lavrov said of the German chancellor, Friedrich Merz. Berlin has ordered a series of measures in ​response to the attack attempt.

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Volcanic ash from the eruption of Anak Krakatau delays more than 1,500 flights, including in the capital Jakarta

About 170,000 passengers were left stranded on Sunday as Indonesia closed its main international airport and seven others, cancelling hundreds of flights after Mount Anak Krakatau spewed a plume of volcanic ash and lava from more than 150km away.

Schools across Jakarta were also affected with classes moving online on Monday, the city said in a statement, without specifying how long the measure would be in place.

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Mining has claimed more than 800 lives over the years at Broken Hill, and the dramatic Line of Lode Miner's Memorial, overlooking the city, is a poignant monument to them all. The Line of Lode is one of the world's largest bodies of ore, containing the silver, lead and zinc that made fortunes in this remote outback city. The striking architecturally designed memorial, which was opened in 2001, has the name of each miner who perished etched…

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For a demolition company