The English House

Mark Thomas Vande Hei made history by spending 355 days aboard the International Space Station (ISS) and this is the longest single spaceflight in history. He broke the record held by astronaut Scott Kelly who had spent 340 days in space in 2016. Mark Thomas Vande Hei is an astronaut with NASA and it was in his second spaceflight that he set this record. In his first flight in 2017 he had spent 168 days in space. In April 2021, he was launched into space for the second time and returned to earth on March 30, 2022 spending 355 days aboard the ISS, the longest ever single spaceflight. In this second mission he completed around 5680 orbits around the earth; the distance travelled about is equivalent to 312 round trips to the Moon. In total (first and second flights together) he has spent 523 earth days in space.

Every year June Solstice, World Music Day, International Yoga Day and World Hydrography Day are observed on 21st June. On June 21 every year the Sun will be on the Tropic of Cancer and the northern hemisphere will experience the longest day and shortest day night of the year. This is called the June Solstice. In comparison to the Earth's position, the Sun will start its southward movement the next day. The World Music Day is observed to promote music on an international level and is a way to establish global harmony through music. World Hydrography Day is observed every year to increase public awareness about hydrography science. Every year the International Hydrographic Organisation (IHO) and its international members celebrate this day. International Yoga day is celebrated to raise awareness about yoga in life and to make people aware of the benefits of yoga. International Yoga Day was declared by the call of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi when he addressed United Nations General Assembly on 27 September, 2014.

June 15 is a special day for two reasons.
1. Every year World Wind day is observed on 15 June globally. It is a day for discovering wind energy, its power and the possibilities it holds to reshape our energy systems, decarbonise our economies and boost jobs and growth. It is organised by WindEurope (European Wind Energy Association – EWEA) and Global Wind Energy Council (GWEC). This was first observed in 2007 as 'Wind Day' by EWEA.
2. World Elder Abuse Awareness Day (WEAAD) was launched on June 15, 2006 by the International Network for the Prevention of Elder. The purpose of WEAAD is to provide an opportunity for communities around the world to promote a better understanding of abuse and neglect of older persons by raising awareness of the cultural, social, economic and demographic processes affecting elder abuse and neglect. It was officially recognized by the United Nations General Assembly in December 2011. (Please remember: the World Senior Citizen's Day is celebrated on 21 August).

World Blood Donor Day (WBDD) is observed on June 14 each year. The event was first organised in 2005 jointly by the World Health Organization (WHO) and the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies. Raising awareness of the need for safe blood and blood products, and thanking blood donors for their voluntary, life-saving gifts of blood is the purpose of observing WBDD. Transfusion of blood and blood products helps and save millions of lives every year.
June 14 is the birthday anniversary of Karl Landsteiner who discovered the ABO blood group system. Karl Landsteiner was awarded the Nobel Prize for Medicine in 1930 for this discovery. 'Blood donation is an act of solidarity. Join the effort and save lives' is the theme for this year’s WBDD celebrations. This year, this global event is hosted by Mexico.
WBDD is one of 11 official global public health campaigns marked by the World Health Organization (WHO). The other campaigns organized by WHO are World Health Day (April 7), World Chagas Disease Day (April 14), World Tuberculosis Day (March 24), World Immunization Week (last week of April), World Patient Safety Day (September 17), World Malaria Day (April 25), World No To***co Day (May 31), World Hepatitis Day (July 28), World Antimicrobial Awareness Week (November 18 – 24) and World AIDS Day (December 1).

Japanese researchers at the National Institute of Information and Communications Technology (NICT) have, recently, demonstrated a speed of 1.02 petabit per second in a multi-core fibre (MCF).
With this new achievement, we are now closer to using the internet 100,000 times faster than current speeds. Petabit (PB), is equivalent to 1,000,000 Gigabytes (GB). At this speed 10 million channels of 8K broadcasting could be transmitted at a time. This will help get rid of all lags and snags we currently often experience on HD channels and live video calls.

A 'Banana Republic' is a small, poor country, often solely depended on a single export or limited resource and governed by an authoritarian regime. It is characterized by corruption and economic exploitation by foreign corporations conspiring with local government officials. Any exploitative government that functions poorly for its citizenry while disproportionately benefiting a corrupt elite group or individual can be called a banana republic. The American writer O. Henry (William Sydney Porter) coined the term banana republic to describe the fictional Republic of Anchuria in the book 'Cabbages and Kings' (1904)

Ramsar Convention is an intergovernmental environmental treaty, signed in 1971. This convention was signed in Ramsar, Iran and hence it is known as Ramsar Convention. Ramsar convention provides the framework for national action and international cooperation for the conservation and wise use of wetlands and their resources. Ramsar site is a wetland area designated to be of international importance under this convention. Currently 49 sites from India have been included in the Ramsar Convention list. Since India is celebrating its 75th year of Independence, it is being proposed to add 26 more sites to this list this year so that the total Ramsar Sites in the country will be 75. Khijadia Wildlife Sanctuary in Gujarat and Bakhira Wildlife Sanctuary in Uttar Pradesh are the latest additions to the Ramsar Sites List in India. Chilika Lake (Orissa) and Keoladeo National Park (Rajasthan) were recognized as the first Ramsar Sites of India. Sundarbans (West Bengal) is the largest and Renuka Wetland (Himachal Pradesh) is the smallest Ramsar Sites of India. Currently Uttar Pradesh has the most number (10) of Ramsar Sites in India.
The 26 wetlands proposed to be designated as Ramsar sites comprise 13 from Tamil Nadu, four from Odisha, three from Madhya Pradesh, two from Jammu & Kashmir and one each from Maharashtra, Mizoram, Karnataka and Goa. Bird sanctuaries in Chitrangudi, Koonthankulam, Vaduvur, Vellode, Kanjirakulam, Vedanthangal and Karikili, the wetland complexes in Suchindram Theroor and Vembannur, Pichavaram Mangrove, Pallikaranai Marsh and the Gulf of Mannar Marine Biosphere Reserve in Tamail Nadu; the Satkosia Gorge, Tampara Lake, Hirakud Reservoir and Ansupa lake in Odisha; Sirpur wetland, Sakhya Sagar and Yashwant Sagar in Madhya Pradesh; the wetland conservation reserves in Hygam and Shallbugh in J&K, Thane creek in Maharashtra; Nanda lake in Goa; Pala wetland in Mizoram; and Ranganathituu Bird Sanctuary in Karnataka are the sites proposed by India to be designated as Ramsar sites.

The United Nations established ‘World Food Safety Day’ in 2018 to raise awareness of food safety. The World Health Organization (WHO) and the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) jointly facilitate the observance of World Food Safety Day on June 7 every year. The theme for this year’s World Food Safety Day is ‘Safer food, better health’. Remember, World Food Day is observed on 16th October.
An estimated 420000 people around the world die every year after eating contaminated food and children under 5 years of age carry 40% of the foodborne disease burden, with 125000 deaths every year. Over 200 diseases are caused by eating food contaminated with bacteria, viruses, parasites or chemical substances such as heavy metals. One in ten people worldwide fall ill from contaminated food each year. It affects all countries.
Antimicrobial resistant microbes can be transmitted through the food chain, via direct contact between animals and humans or through the environment. Each year, an estimated 700000 people die around the globe because of antimicrobial resistant infections.
Safe and nutritious foods benefit child growth and development by improving intellectual and physical potential, as well as increasing school performance and work productivity in adult life. Adopting a holistic One Health approach to food safety will deliver a better food safety system.

'Alamgirnamah' is the court history of the first ten year period of Emperor Aurangzeb (from 1658 to 1668) written by Mirza Muhammad Kazim. 'Maasir-i-Alamgiri' is an account of Emperor Aurangzeb's reign from 1620-1707 composed by Saqi Mustad Khan.
Alamgirnama was written under the orders of Aurangazed. Mirza Kazim wrote the history up to the tenth year of the reign of Aurangzeb (1668), but the emperor forbade him to continue the work after this period. The chronology as found in the Alamgirnamah is trustworthy, and the book ranks high among the historical literature of the Mughal period. Maasir-i-Alamgiri was composed after the death of the emperor. It was composed at the behest of the emperor's last secretary Inayetullah Khan Kashmiri,
Aurangzeb was the sixth emperor of the Mughal Empire. Under his emperorship, the Mughals reached their greatest extent with their territory spanning nearly the entire South Asia He adopted 'Alamgir' as his reignal title which means 'conqueror of the world'. He is generally considered to be one of the greatest emperors of the Mughals. However he has been criticized for his political executions and demolition of Hindu temples. His Islamization of the region, introduction of the Jizya tax and abandonment of un-Islamic practices caused resentment among non-Muslims.
The Alamgirnamah and Maasir-i-Alamgiri was recently in news due to the controversy surrounding the court case related to Gyanvyapi Mosque and the demolition of Kashi Vishwanath Temple.

Power of Siberia (Sila Sibiri) is a Gazprom-operated pipeline that transports natural gas from Siberian Russia to China. It is the China–Russia East-Route Natural Gas pipeline.
Gazprom is Russia's national gas company. The proposed western gas route from Russia to China is known as Power of Siberia 2. The Gas pipeline from Russia to Germany through the Baltic Sea is called the Nord Stream 1 and Nord Stream 2 pipelines.
The Power of Siberia pipeline helps China diversify its energy supply as the country domestically produces only about two-thirds of its gas needs. Russia is the world’s largest exporter of natural gas, primarily by pipeline.

Towards the close of the summer season in Kerala, Karnataka and some parts of Tamil Nadu in South India, pre-monsoon showers are common. These rains help in the early ripening of mangoes. So these rains are often referred to as "Mango showers."
Mango showers are crucial for the mango cultivation in these regions. They prevent the mangoes from dropping prematurely from trees. These showers usually occur in the end of April or at the beginning of May when it is summer in the Peninsular India. In the Douth-Western parts of India the major rainy season is the South-West Monsoon which usually arrives in the first week of June. The rains which come prior to this monsoon is referred to as 'mango showers'.