Meanwhile in ... Albania, new life will be breathed into an old airfield
In Kucova, Albania, new life will be breathed into an old airfield. When Albania was under Communist rule, the airbase at Kucova was home to a fleet of Soviet- and Chinese-made MIGs. But those planes were all retired in 2007, according to Reuters, and the air base became a “graveyard.” Now it has been announced that NATO will turn Kucova into its first air base in the region. “A NATO base there will boost the country’s defence capacities, and foreign investors will have more confidence in Albania. It will also be good for employment in the area,” retired air force Cmdr. Klement Alikaj told Reuters.
In the Pitcairn islands, this is the 180th anniversary of women’s right to vote. In 1838, the tiny South Pacific islands became the first territory in the world to grant women the right to vote. Today the Pitcairn Islands are best known for being one of the least populated territories. The British overseas territory has only about 50 residents.
In Chengdu, China, there’s a plan to replace street lights with an artificial moon. According to the People’s Daily, the city will launch an illumination satellite in 2020. The light of the satellite will be eight times that of the moon. The origins of the idea are being credited to a French artist who wanted to hang a “necklace made of mirrors above the earth” to shine on Paris year-round. In China, concerns have been raised about the effect of such a light on nocturnal animals. But according to Kang Weimin, director of the Institute of Optics at Harbin Institute of Technology’s School of Aerospace, the light of the satellite is similar to “a dusk-like glow,” which should not have an adverse effect on animals.
