The Mount Everest plume in winter

Mt. Everest’s summit pyramid is the highest obstacle on earth to the wintertime jet-stream winds. Downwind, in its wake, a visible plume often forms. The meteorology and composition of the plume are unknown. Accordingly, we observed real-time images from a geosynchronous meteorological satellite from November 2020 through March 2021 to identify plumes and collect the corresponding meteorological data. We used the data with a basic meteorological model to show the plumes formed when sufficiently moist air was drawn into the wake. We conclude the plumes were composed initially of either cloud droplets or ice particles depending on the temperature. One plume was observed to glaciate downwind. Thus, Everest plumes may be a source of snowfall formed insitu. The plumes, however, were not composed of resuspended snow.

Buddha Air: The Ace Airline of Nepal

This is a case study of a pioneering airlines company in the Nepalese aviation sector. The airlines came into full operation in 1997 by flying a brand new Beachcraft-1900D for a regular sightseeing to Mount Everest. When the airlines entered the field which was opened for the private sector by the government of Nepal in the early nineties, the country’s nascent aviation sector was in a state of take-off attracting a growing number of airline companies. Despite tough competition, the company expanded its fleet from a single aircraft to seven in number in 10 years of its operation. In 2008, the company purchased two ATR-42 aircrafts under the financial assistance of the International Finance Corporations (IFC/World Bank) and added a 70-seat ATR 72-212 in June 2010. With a range of aircrafts in its fleet, Buddha Air has today spread its wings to 13 destinations, including two international (1 seasonal and 1 charter flight) and 11 domestic destinations. After more than two decades of its service to the country’s civil aviation and tourism sector, Buddha Air was recognized as “the most successful airlines” for its sustained growth as well as for the safety and satisfaction of its customers. However, it had tackled with the price war in the face of higher cost of operations as a result of the increased number of airlines in this sector. Recalling the difficult situation due to the indiscriminate price competition, the Managing Director of the airlines, said that the pricing strategy was challenging and there was a strong urge for an unfair price competition from the rivals. “The low cost strategy as pursued by our competitors was not appropriate for our company as we had relatively higher cost of operation as we owned bigger aircrafts,” he said. While the price war remained a major hurdle in its operation, an attempt to venture into international flights was another challenge it encountered for the sustained growth of the airlines.

Selecting anemona coronaria. The results of intervarietal crossing

Anemone coronaria is a promising flower crop for cultivation with the lowest energy costs in the Black Sea coast of the Caucasus, since it does not require additional heating in winter. The aim of the research was to develop new Anemone coronaria varieties. The paper presents the results of 30 crossing combinations of Anemone coronaria L. Inheritance of ornamental features of a flower (flower diameter, height and strength of peduncle) by seedlings of the first generation was studied. When crossing varieties of the De Caen group, the highest percentage of seedlings with a different perianth diameter was found in the combination Sylphide×The Bride (82.3 %). A high percentage of seedlings inheriting the paternal size of the flower was found in the crosses The Bride×Mr. Fokker (33.3 %) and The Bride×Hollandia (43.5 %). From 2/3 to 4/5 of the studied seedlings did not inherit the parental size of the flower during intravarietal crosses in the De Caen group. In the crosses Hollandia×Hollandia, Sylphide×Sylphide, the propagules were showed an increase in the diameter of the perianth. Having studied the possibility of transferring certain features to the first generation by group of the St. Brigid varieties, the highest percentage of seedlings with a different perianth diameter was found in the combinations Admiral × Mount Everest (65.0 %), Admiral×The Governor (66.2 %) and Lord Lieutenant×Mount Everest (70.6 %). When crossing varieties with a semi-double perianth, the highest percentage of seedlings repeating the size of the mother variety in flower size was observed in the combination the Governor×Mount Everest (47.0 %). The highest percentage of seedlings with a perianth diameter characterized by the parent variety was observed in the combination Moynt Everest×Lord Lieutenant (66.7 %). When varieties with different perianth colors of the De Caen group were crossed, the habitus of the obtained seedlings of the Anemone coronaria was larger and the peduncle strength either remained parental or exceeded it. The peduncle diameter increased by 1-2 mm. The largest number of seedlings with a large perianth and a high, strong peduncle was obtained by hybridizing the following varieties: Sylphide×The Bride, Sylphide×Sylphide, The Governor×The Governor, Hollandia×The Bride, Mr. Fokker×Hollandia, Sylphide×Hollandia, Hollandia×The Governor, Sylphide×Admiral, The Bride×The Governor, Lord Lieutenant×Mount Everest.

Characteristic Analysis of Dual-Polarization Weather Radar Echoes of Convective Precipitation and Snowfall in the Mount Everest Region

This paper introduces the X-band weather radar dual-polarization parameters of isolated convective cell precipitation and meso/microscale snowfall on Mount Everest and presents the first precipitation observations based on dual-polarization weather radar in this area. Compared with the Chengdu Plain, Mount Everest experienced convective precipitation on smaller horizontal and vertical scales with a narrower Zdr probability density spectrum (uniformly distributed around approximately 0). The Zh profile on Mount Everest displayed two peaks, unlike that over the plains, and the precipitation at the strong convective core was denser. Furthermore, during winter snowfall on the northern slope of Mount Everest, when the boundary layer exhibited sufficient water vapor and dynamic uplift, due to the low boundary layer temperature (<0 °C), water vapor produced stratiform clouds in the middle and lower layers (approximately 1.5 km above ground level (AGL)). Water vapor condensation at 1.5–2.5 km AGL led to latent heat release, which increased the temperature of regional stratiform clouds with increasing height. Consequently, the temperature at the stratiform cloud top height (2.5 km AGL) unexpectedly exceeded 0 °C. Additionally, the −20 °C isotherm was at approximately 4 km AGL, indicating that the middle- and upper-layer atmospheric temperatures remained low. Therefore, thermal instability occurred between the stratiform cloud top height and the middle/upper atmosphere, forming convective motion. These findings confirm the occurrence of elevated winter snowfall convection above Mount Everest and may have certain reference value for retrieving raindrop size distributions, quantitatively estimating precipitation, and parameterizing cloud microphysical processes in numerical prediction models for the Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau.

Sustainable Food Support during an Ultra-Endurance and Mindfulness Event: A Case Study in Spain

The present industrial food-production system is not suitably ecological for the environment. Mindful nutrition in sport is a relevant emergent sub-discipline that could help reduce environmental degradation. This case study describes a sustainable support diet during an ultra-endurance running (UR) event called the “Indoor Everest Challenge”. This UR challenge involved attaining the altitude of Mount Everest (8849 m) in a simulated way, in less than 24 h, without using ultra-processed food and without wasting plastics. During this challenge, a male athlete (34 years, weight: 78 kg, and height: 173 cm) wore a SenseWear Armband® (BodyMedia Inc., Pittsburg, PA, USA) accelerometer on his right arm to estimate energy expenditure. To supply his nutritional requirements, the athlete consumed only specially prepared homemade and organic food. All consumption was weighed and recorded in real-time; we determined nutrients using two databases: a food composition software, Dial Alce Ingenieria® (Madrid, Spain), to measure energy and macro- and micro-nutrients, and Phenol Explorer Database® (INRA Institut National de Recherche pour l’Alimentation, Paris, France) precisely to determine polyphenolic content. Most energy intake (up to 96%) came from plant foods. We found that subject consumed 15.8 g/kg−1/d−1 or 1242 g of carbohydrates (CHO), (2.4 g/kg−1/d−1) or 190 g of proteins (P), and 10,692 mL of fluid. The total energy intake (7580 kcal) showed a distribution of 65% CHO, 10% P, and 25% lipids (L). Furthermore, this sustainable diet lead to a high antioxidant intake, specifically vitamin C (1079 mg), vitamin E (57 mg), and total polyphenols (1910 mg). This sustainable approach was suitable for meeting energy, CHO, and P recommendations for UR. Physical and mental training (mindfulness) were integrated from the specific preliminary phase to the day of the challenge. The athlete completed this challenge in 18 h with a low environmental impact. This sports event had an educational component, as it awakened curiosity towards food sustainability.

Bacteria serve up a tasty solution to the global plastic problem

Rattling around on a cold, damp Edinburgh street, a plastic water bottle is a stark reminder of one of the greatest environmental crises facing our planet. In little under 100 years a growing tsunami of plastic waste has contaminated not just our streets but nearly every corner of the natural world – from Mount Everest to the deepest oceans. But this plastic bottle provided the inspiration that could yet turn the tide. Diverted from landfill to the laboratory the bottle soon grabbed the attention of the world’s media by undergoing a remarkable transformation from plastic into vanillin – the main component of vanilla and one of the most in-demand spices in the world. This seemingly impossible act of alchemy was made possible by harnessing the metabolic power of bacteria. Its success has enormous implications. Not only could it meet our insatiable appetite for this rare flavouring, but it could radically change the way we tackle another addiction – the endless stream of single-use and disposable plastics that have become part of everyday life. Yet this only scratches the surface of the potential of this approach. By coaxing microbes to behave as eco-friendly factories that produce useful materials, we could tackle many other global challenges.

Stratospheric Balloons Listen In on Ground Activity

Solar-powered hot-air balloons, floating 2.5 times as high as Mount Everest, detected a buried explosion more clearly than ground-based sensors did.