how long can a solar flare knock out power

According to a study by Metatech corporation, a storm with a strength comparable to that of 1921 would destroy more than 300 transformers and leave over 130 million people without power in the United States, costing several trillion dollars.[27] The Daily Mail even claims that a massive solar flare could knock out electric power for months, but[28] these predictions are contradicted by a NERC report that concludes that a geomagnetic storm would cause temporary grid instability but no widespread destruction of high-voltage transformers. The report points out that the widely quoted Quebec grid collapse was not caused by overheating transformers but by the near-simultaneous tripping of seven relays.[29]

Geomagnetic storm

A geomagnetic storm (commonly referred to as a solar storm) is a temporary disturbance of the Earth's magnetosphere caused by a solar wind shock wave and/or cloud of magnetic field that interacts with the Earth's magnetic field. The increase in the solar wind pressure initially compresses the magnetosphere. The solar wind's magnetic field interacts with the Earthâ€™s magnetic field and transfers an increased energy into the magnetosphere. Both interactions cause an increase in plasma movement through the magnetosphere (driven by increased electric fields inside the magnetosphere) and an increase in electric current in the magnetosphere and ionosphere.

During the main phase of a geomagnetic storm, electric current in the magnetosphere creates a magnetic force that pushes out the boundary between the magnetosphere and the solar wind. The disturbance in the interplanetary medium that drives the storm may be due to a solar coronal mass ejection (CME) or a high speed stream (co-rotating interaction region or CIR)[1] of the solar wind originating from a region of weak magnetic field on the Sun's surface. The frequency of geomagnetic storms increases and decreases with the sunspot cycle. CME driven storms are more common during the maximum of the solar cycle, while CIR driven storms are more common during the minimum of the solar cycle.

Several space weather phenomena tend to be associated with or are caused by a geomagnetic storm. These include solar energetic particle (SEP) events, geomagnetically induced currents (GIC), ionospheric disturbances that cause radio and radar scintillation, disruption of navigation by magnetic compass and auroral displays at much lower latitudes than normal. In 1989, a geomagnetic storm energized ground induced currents that disrupted electric power distribution throughout most of the province of Quebec[2] and caused aurorae as far south as Texas.[3]

In 1931, Sydney Chapman and Vincenzo C. A. Ferraro wrote an article, A New Theory of Magnetic Storms, that sought to explain the phenomenon.[4] They argued that whenever the Sun emits a solar flare it also emits a plasma cloud, now known as a coronal mass ejection. They wrote that this plasma travels at a velocity such that it reaches Earth within 113 days, though we now know this journey takes 1 to 5 days. They wrote that the cloud then compresses the Earth's magnetic field and thus increases this field at the Earth's surface.[5]

A geomagnetic storm is defined[6] by changes in the Dst[7] (disturbance – storm time) index. The Dst index estimates the globally averaged change of the horizontal component of the Earth’s magnetic field at the magnetic equator based on measurements from a few magnetometer stations. Dst is computed once per hour and reported in near-real-time.[8] During quiet times, Dst is between +20 and −20 nano-Tesla (nT).

A geomagnetic storm has three phases:[6] initial, main and recovery. The initial phase is characterized by Dst (or its one-minute component SYM-H) increasing by 20 to 50 nT in tens of minutes. The initial phase is also referred to as a storm sudden commencement (SSC). However, not all geomagnetic storms have an initial phase and not all sudden increases in Dst or SYM-H are followed by a geomagnetic storm. The main phase of a geomagnetic storm is defined by Dst decreasing to less than −50 nT. The selection of −50 nT to define a storm is somewhat arbitrary. The minimum value during a storm will be between -50 and approximately -600 nT. The duration of the main phase is typically 2–8 hours. The recovery phase is when Dst changes from its minimum value to its quiet time value. The recovery phase may last as short as 8 hours or as long as 7 days.

The size of a geomagnetic storm is classified as moderate (−50 nT > minimum of Dst > −100 nT), intense (−100 nT > minimum Dst > −250 nT) or super-storm (minimum of Dst < −250 nT).[9]

The first scientific observation of the effects of a geomagnetic storm occurred early in the 19th century: From May 1806 until June 1807, Alexander von Humboldt recorded the bearing of a magnetic compass in Berlin. On 21 December 1806, he noticed that his compass had become erratic during a bright auroral event.[10]

On September 1–2, 1859, the largest recorded geomagnetic storm occurred. From August 28 until September 2, 1859, numerous sunspots and solar flares were observed on the Sun, with the largest flare on September 1. This is referred to as the Solar storm of 1859 or the Carrington Event. It can be assumed that a massive coronal mass ejection (CME) was launched from the Sun and reached the Earth within eighteen hours—a trip that normally takes three to four days. The horizontal field was reduced by 1600 nT as recorded by the Colaba Observatory. It is estimated that Dst would have been approximately −1760 nT.[11] Telegraph wires in both the United States and Europe experienced induced voltage increases (emf), in some cases even delivering shocks to telegraph operators and igniting fires. Aurorae were seen as far south as Hawaii, Mexico, Cuba and Italy—phenomena that are usually only visible in polar regions. Ice cores show evidence that events of similar intensity recur at an average rate of approximately once per 500 years.

Since 1859, less severe storms have occurred, notably the aurora of November 17, 1882 and the May 1921 geomagnetic storm, both with disruption of telegraph service and initiation of fires, and 1960, when widespread radio disruption was reported.[12]

The March 1989 geomagnetic storm caused the collapse of the Hydro-Québec power grid in seconds as equipment protection relays tripped in a cascading sequence.[2][14] Six million people were left without power for nine hours. The storm caused auroras as far south as Texas.[3] The storm causing this event was the result of a coronal mass ejected from the Sun on March 9, 1989.[15] The minimum of Dst was −589 nT.

On July 14, 2000, an X5 class flare erupted (known as the Bastille Day event) and a coronal mass was launched directly at the Earth. A geomagnetic super storm occurred on July 15–17; the minimum of the Dst index was -301 nT. Despite the storm's strength, no power distribution failures were reported.[16] The Bastille Day event was observed by Voyager 1 and Voyager 2,[17] thus it is the farthest out in the Solar System that a solar storm has been observed.

Seventeen major flares erupted on the Sun between 19 October and 5 November 2003, including perhaps the most intense flare ever measured on the GOES XRS sensor—a huge X28 flare,[18] resulting in an extreme radio blackout, on 4 November. These flares were associated with CME events that caused three geomagnetic storms between 29 October and 2 November, during which the second and third storms were initiated before the previous storm period had fully recovered. The minimum Dst values were −151, −353 and −383 nT. Another storm in this sequence occurred on 4–5 November with a minimum Dst of −69 nT. The last geomagnetic storm was weaker than the preceding storms, because the active region on the Sun had rotated beyond the meridian where the central portion CME created during the flare event passed to the side of the Earth. The whole sequence became known as the Halloween Solar Storm.[19] The Wide Area Augmentation System (WAAS) operated by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) was offline for approximately 30 hours due to the storm.[20] The Japanese ADEOS-2 satellite was severely damaged and the operation of many other satellites were interrupted due to the storm.[21]

The solar wind also carries with it the Sun's magnetic field. This field will have either a North or South orientation. If the solar wind has energetic bursts, contracting and expanding the magnetosphere, or if the solar wind takes a southward polarization, geomagnetic storms can be expected. The southward field causes magnetic reconnection of the dayside magnetopause, rapidly injecting magnetic and particle energy into the Earth's magnetosphere.

During a geomagnetic storm, the ionosphere's F2 layer becomes unstable, fragments, and may even disappear. In the northern and southern pole regions of the Earth, auroras are observable.

Magnetometers monitor the auroral zone as well as the equatorial region. Two types of radar, coherent scatter and incoherent scatter, are used to probe the auroral ionosphere. By bouncing signals off ionospheric irregularities, which move with the field lines, one can trace their motion and infer magnetospheric convection.

Spacecraft instruments include:

Computers have made it possible to bring together decades of isolated magnetic observations and extract average patterns of electrical currents and average responses to interplanetary variations. They also run simulations of the global magnetosphere and its responses, by solving the equations of magnetohydrodynamics (MHD) on a numerical grid. Appropriate extensions must be added to cover the inner magnetosphere, where magnetic drifts and ionospheric conduction need to be taken into account. So far the results are difficult to interpret, and certain assumptions are needed to cover small-scale phenomena.[citation needed]

It has been suggested that a geomagnetic storm on the scale of the solar storm of 1859 today would cause billions or even trillions of dollars of damage to satellites, power grids and radio communications, and could cause electrical blackouts on a massive scale that might not be repaired for weeks, months, or even years.[20]

When magnetic fields move about in the vicinity of a conductor such as a wire, a geomagnetically induced current is produced in the conductor. This happens on a grand scale during geomagnetic storms (the same mechanism also influenced telephone and telegraph lines before fiber optics, see above) on all long transmission lines. Long transmission lines (many kilometers in length) are thus subject to damage by this effect. Notably, this chiefly includes operators in China, North America, and Australia, especially in modern high-voltage, low-resistance lines. The European grid consists mainly of shorter transmission circuits, which are less vulnerable to damage.[23][24]

The (nearly direct) currents induced in these lines from geomagnetic storms are harmful to electrical transmission equipment, especially transformersâ€”inducing core saturation, constraining their performance (as well as tripping various safety devices), and causing coils and cores to heat up. In extreme cases, this heat can disable or destroy them, even inducing a chain reaction that can overload transformers.[25][26] Most generators are connected to the grid via transformers, isolating them from the induced currents on the grid, making them much less susceptible to damage due to geomagnetically induced current. However, a transformer that is subjected to this will act as an unbalanced load to the generator, causing negative sequence current in the stator and consequently rotor heating.

Besides the transformers being vulnerable to the effects of a geomagnetic storm, electricity companies can also be affected indirectly by the geomagnetic storm. For instance, internet service providers may go down during geomagnetic storms (and/or remain non-operational long after). Electricity companies may have equipment requiring a working internet connection to function, so during the period the internet service provider is down, the electricity too may not be distributed.[30]

By receiving geomagnetic storm alerts and warnings (e.g. by the Space Weather prediction Center; via Space Weather satellites as SOHO or ACE), power companies can minimize damage to power transmission equipment, by momentarily disconnecting transformers or by inducing temporary blackouts. Preventative measures also exist, including preventing the inflow of GICs into the grid through the neutral-to-ground connection.[23]

High frequency (3–30 MHz) communication systems use the ionosphere to reflect radio signals over long distances. Ionospheric storms can affect radio communication at all latitudes. Some frequencies are absorbed and others are reflected, leading to rapidly fluctuating signals and unexpected propagation paths. TV and commercial radio stations are little affected by solar activity, but ground-to-air, ship-to-shore, shortwave broadcast and amateur radio (mostly the bands below 30 MHz) are frequently disrupted. Radio operators using HF bands rely upon solar and geomagnetic alerts to keep their communication circuits up and running.

Military detection or early warning systems operating in the high frequency range are also affected by solar activity. The over-the-horizon radar bounces signals off the ionosphere to monitor the launch of aircraft and missiles from long distances. During geomagnetic storms, this system can be severely hampered by radio clutter. Also some submarine detection systems use the magnetic signatures of submarines as one input to their locating schemes. Geomagnetic storms can mask and distort these signals.

The Federal Aviation Administration routinely receives alerts of solar radio bursts so that they can recognize communication problems and avoid unnecessary maintenance. When an aircraft and a ground station are aligned with the Sun, high levels of noise can occur on air-control radio frequencies.[citation needed] This can also happen on UHF and SHF satellite communications, when an Earth station, a satellite and the Sun are in alignment. In order to prevent unnecessary maintenance on satellite communications systems aboard aircraft AirSatOne provides a live feed for geophysical events from NOAA's Space Weather Prediction Center. AirSatOne's live feed[31] allows users to view observed and predicted space storms. Geophysical Alerts are important to flight crews and maintenance personnel to determine if any upcoming activity or history has or will have an effect on satellite communications, GPS navigation and HF Communications.

Telegraph lines in the past were affected by geomagnetic storms. Telegraphs used a single long wire for the data line, stretching for many miles, using the ground as the return wire and fed with DC power from a battery; this made them (together with the power lines mentioned below) susceptible to being influenced by the fluctuations caused by the ring current. The voltage/current induced by the geomagnetic storm could have diminished the signal, when subtracted from the battery polarity, or to overly strong and spurious signals when added to it; some operators learned to disconnect the battery and rely on the induced current as their power source. In extreme cases the induced current was so high the coils at the receiving side burst in flames, or the operators received electric shocks. Geomagnetic storms affect also long-haul telephone lines, including undersea cables unless they are fiber optic.[32]

Damage to communications satellites can disrupt non-terrestrial telephone, television, radio and Internet links.[33] The National Academy of Sciences reported in 2008 on possible scenarios of widespread disruption in the 2012â€“2013 solar peak.[34]

Systems such as GPS, LORAN and the now-defunct OMEGA are adversely affected when solar activity disrupts their signal propagation. The OMEGA system consisted of eight transmitters located throughout the world. Airplanes and ships used the very low frequency signals from these transmitters to determine their positions. During solar events and geomagnetic storms, the system gave navigators information that was inaccurate by as much as several miles. If navigators had been alerted that a proton event or geomagnetic storm was in progress, they could have switched to a backup system.

GPS signals are affected when solar activity causes sudden variations in the density of the ionosphere, causing the GPS signals to scintillate (like a twinkling star). The scintillation of satellite signals during ionospheric disturbances is studied at HAARP during ionospheric modification experiments. It has also been studied at the Jicamarca Radio Observatory.

One technology used to allow GPS receivers to continue to operate in the presence of some confusing signals is Receiver Autonomous Integrity Monitoring (RAIM). However, RAIM is predicated on the assumption that a majority of the GPS constellation is operating properly, and so it is much less useful when the entire constellation is perturbed by global influences such as geomagnetic storms. Even if RAIM detects a loss of integrity in these cases, it may not be able to provide a useful, reliable signal.

Geomagnetic storms and increased solar ultraviolet emission heat Earth's upper atmosphere, causing it to expand. The heated air rises, and the density at the orbit of satellites up to about 1,000 km (621 mi) increases significantly. This results in increased drag, causing satellites to slow and change orbit slightly. Low Earth Orbit satellites that are not repeatedly boosted to higher orbits slowly fall and eventually burn up.

Skylab's 1979 destruction is an example of a spacecraft reentering Earth's atmosphere prematurely as a result of higher-than-expected solar activity. During the great geomagnetic storm of March 1989, four of the Navy's navigational satellites had to be taken out of service for up to a week, the U.S. Space Command had to post new orbital elements for over 1000 objects affected and the Solar Maximum Mission satellite fell out of orbit in December the same year.[citation needed]

The vulnerability of the satellites depends on their position as well. The South Atlantic Anomaly is a perilous place for a satellite to pass through.

As technology has allowed spacecraft components to become smaller, their miniaturized systems have become increasingly vulnerable to the more energetic solar particles. These particles can physically damage microchips and can change software commands in satellite-borne computers.[citation needed]

Another problem for satellite operators is differential charging. During geomagnetic storms, the number and energy of electrons and ions increase. When a satellite travels through this energized environment, the charged particles striking the spacecraft differentially charge portions of the spacecraft. Discharges can arc across spacecraft components, harming and possibly disabling them.[citation needed]

Bulk charging (also called deep charging) occurs when energetic particles, primarily electrons, penetrate the outer covering of a satellite and deposit their charge in its internal parts. If sufficient charge accumulates in any one component, it may attempt to neutralize by discharging to other components. This discharge is potentially hazardous to the satellite's electronic systems.[citation needed]

Earth's magnetic field is used by geologists to determine subterranean rock structures. For the most part, these geodetic surveyors are searching for oil, gas or mineral deposits. They can accomplish this only when Earth's field is quiet, so that true magnetic signatures can be detected. Other geophysicists prefer to work during geomagnetic storms, when strong variations in the Earth's normal subsurface electric currents allow them to sense subsurface oil or mineral structures. This technique is called magnetotellurics. For these reasons, many surveyors use geomagnetic alerts and predictions to schedule their mapping activities.[citation needed]

Rapidly fluctuating geomagnetic fields can produce geomagnetically induced currents in pipelines. This can cause multiple problems for pipeline engineers. Pipeline flow meters can transmit erroneous flow information and the corrosion rate of the pipeline is dramatically increased.[35][36] If engineers incorrectly attempt to balance the current during a geomagnetic storm, corrosion rates may increase even more[citation needed]. Pipeline managers thus receive space weather alerts and warnings to allow them to implement defensive measures.

Intense solar flares release very-high-energy particles that can cause radiation poisoning to humans (and mammals in general).[citation needed]

Earth's atmosphere and magnetosphere allow adequate protection at ground level, but astronauts are subject to potentially lethal doses of radiation. The penetration of high-energy particles into living cells can cause chromosome damage, cancer and other health problems. Large doses can be immediately fatal.

Solar protons with energies greater than 30 MeV are particularly hazardous.[37] In October 1989, the Sun produced enough energetic particles that, an astronaut standing on the Moon at the time, wearing only a space suit, would probably have died; the expected dose would be about 7000 rem.[citation needed]

Solar proton events can also produce elevated radiation aboard aircraft flying at high altitudes. Although these risks are small, monitoring of solar proton events by satellite instrumentation allows the occasional exposure to be monitored and evaluated and eventually flight paths and altitudes adjusted in order to lower the absorbed dose of the flight crews.[38][39][40]

Scientists are still studying whether or not animals are effected by this, some suggesting this is why whales beach themselves. [41] [42]Some have stated the possibility that other migrating animals including birds and honey bees, might be effected since they also use magnetoreception to navigate, and geomagnetic storms alter the Earth's magnetic fields temporarily. [43]


when did pokemon omega ruby and alpha sapphire come out

Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire were released in Japan, North America, and Australia on November 21, 2014, exactly twelve years after the release date of the original Ruby and Sapphire, while the European release was one week later on November 28, 2014.

Pokémon Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire

Pokémon Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire (ポケットモンスター オメガルビー&アルファサファイア, Poketto Monsutā Omega Rubī & Arufa Safaia) are two 2014 role-playing video games developed by Game Freak, published by The Pokémon Company and distributed by Nintendo for the Nintendo 3DS family of systems. They are part of the sixth generation of the Pokémon series, serving as enhanced remakes of the 2002 Game Boy Advance titles Pokémon Ruby and Sapphire.[1] The games were announced on May 7, 2014, in a teaser trailer released by Nintendo.[2][3] As with Pokémon X and Y, the games include all official translations, unlike previous generations where each game contained only a single language.[4][5]

Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire retain most of the features of Pokémon X and Y, such as Mega Evolution and Super Training. The games introduced new features including Primal Reversion for Groudon and Kyogre, as well as using Latios or Latias to fly around Hoenn.

The plot and setting of Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire are mostly the same as the original Ruby and Sapphire games. The game begins as the player is seen riding in the back of a moving truck. The player character starts by moving to the Hoenn Region from the Johto Region with his/her mother, as their father Norman has been hired as the leader of the Petalburg City Gym. The player arrives with their parents at the family's new home in the village of Littleroot Town, on the southern edge of the main island. The player character begins their Pokémon Trainer journey by saving Professor Birch, the leading scientist in the Hoenn region, from a wild Pokémon, choosing either Treecko, Torchic, or Mudkip to defend him. Following the defeat of the wild Pokémon, the player receives the chosen Pokémon as their starter. They then travel around the Hoenn Region to complete their Pokédex and battle the eight Gym Leaders of the Hoenn Pokémon League. Along the way, the player character encounters the antagonist group Team Magma in Omega Ruby or Team Aqua in Alpha Sapphire who wish to use the power of the Legendary Pokémon, Primal Kyogre in Alpha Sapphire and Primal Groudon in Omega Ruby, to change the world to suit their desires. Team Magma wants to use Groudon to dry up the oceans to make the world a haven for land Pokémon while Team Aqua wishes to summon Kyogre to flood the lands to suit Water Pokémon. With the help of Hoenn League Champion Steven Stone and the Gym Leader Wallace, the player defeats their respective team and then either captures or defeats the Legendary Pokémon to prevent a global drought/flooding, and thus ensuring the teams' mutual reformation. The player then advances on to the Pokémon League, challenging the Elite Four and then Steven to become the new Hoenn Pokémon League Champion. The player also has the option of participating in the various Pokémon Contests throughout Hoenn, using their Pokémon to put on a performance for an audience and judges. Aside from the gameplay, 20 new Mega Evolutions were added since Pokémon X and Y to enhance gameplay. A new side quest featured in Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire is called the Delta Episode.[6] The player character must work with the new character Zinnia, Steven, and Professor Cozmo to find a way to stop a meteor from crashing into the planet, which requires capturing the Legendary Pokémon Rayquaza in order to stop the meteor which contains the Mythical Pokémon Deoxys.

Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire have received positive reviews from video game critics.[7][8] GameSpot's Peter Brown praised the 3D visuals and the super training mechanic, but believed the game failed to fully resolve general issues in the game formula.[16] IGN's Kallie Plagge also praised the game's 3D reinvention of Hoenn and online functionality. Plagge was critical of the over-abundance of HMs needed to play the game as well as the perceived imbalance favoring Water-type PokÃ©mon (she played Alpha Sapphire which features Team Aqua as the villains) and the reliance on water-based routes. She remarked that while the Dive feature was novel in the original release, it had since become tedious.[17]

The games sold 3,040,000 copies in their first three days of sale. Of the total sales, 1,534,593 copies were sold in Japan, the rest were sold in North America and Australia.[18] Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire had the biggest launch in the series history in the United Kingdom, beating the previous record held by Pokémon Black and White.[19] By the end of 2014, the games had sold 2.4 million copies in Japan.[20] As of December 31, 2017, the games have sold 13.94 million copies worldwide.[21]


who wrote the book justified is based on

Among his best-known works are Get Shorty, Out of Sight, Swag, Hombre, Mr. Majestyk, and Rum Punch (adapted as the movie Jackie Brown). Leonard's writings include short stories that became the films 3:10 to Yuma and The Tall T, as well as the FX television series Justified.

Elmore Leonard

Elmore John Leonard Jr. (October 11, 1925 – August 20, 2013) was an American novelist, short story writer, and screenwriter. His earliest novels, published in the 1950s, were Westerns, but he went on to specialize in crime fiction and suspense thrillers, many of which have been adapted into motion pictures.

Leonard was born in New Orleans, Louisiana, the son of Flora Amelia (nÃ©e Rive) and Elmore John Leonard, Sr.[3] Because his father worked as a site locator for General Motors, the family moved frequently for several years. In 1934, the family settled in Detroit.

He graduated from the University of Detroit Jesuit High School in 1943 and, after being rejected for the Marines for weak eyesight, immediately joined the Navy, where he served with the Seabees for three years in the South Pacific (gaining the nickname "Dutch", after pitcher Dutch Leonard).[4] Enrolling at the University of Detroit in 1946, he pursued writing more seriously, entering his work in short story contests and sending it off to magazines. He graduated in 1950[5] with a bachelor's degree in English and philosophy. A year before he graduated, he got a job as a copy writer with Campbell-Ewald Advertising Agency, a position he kept for several years, writing on the side.[5]

Leonard got his first break in the fiction market during the 1950s, regularly publishing pulp Western novels. Leonard had his first success in 1951 when Argosy published the short story "Trail of the Apaches".[6]:29 During the 1950s and early 1960s, he continued writing Westerns, publishing more than 30 short stories. He wrote his first novel, The Bounty Hunters, in 1953 and followed this with four other novels. Five of his westerns were turned into major movies before 1972:[7] The Tall T[8] (Randolph Scott), 3:10 to Yuma[9] (Glenn Ford), Hombre[10] (Paul Newman), Valdez Is Coming[11] (Burt Lancaster), and Joe Kidd[12] (Clint Eastwood).

He went on to write seventeen novels and stories in the mystery, crime, and more topical genres which were made into movies between 1969 and 2013.[citation needed]

In 1985, his breakout novel, Glitz was published. At the time of his death he had sold tens of millions of copies of his novels.[13]

Among his later movies are Jackie Brown (starring Pam Grier, directed by Quentin Tarantino) which is a "homage to the authorâ€™s trademark rhythm and pace";[13] Get Shorty (1995, John Travolta and Gene Hackman); and Out of Sight (1998, George Clooney and Jennifer Lopez, directed by Steven Soderbergh).[14]

He married Beverly Clare Cline in 1949, and they had five children together—three daughters and two sons[15]—before divorcing in 1977. His second marriage in 1979, to Joan Leanne Lancaster (aka Joan Shepard), ended with her death in 1993. Later that same year, he married Christine Kent, and they divorced in 2012.[16][17][18]

Leonard spent the last years of his life with his family in Oakland County, Michigan. He suffered a stroke on July 29, 2013. Initial reports stated that Leonard was recovering,[19] but on August 20, 2013, Leonard died at his home in the Detroit suburb of Bloomfield Hills of stroke complications.[20] He was 87 years old.[16] Leonard is survived by his five children, 13 grandchildren, and five great-grandchildren.[17]

Commended by critics for his gritty realism and strong dialogue, Leonard sometimes took liberties with grammar in the interest of speeding the story along.[21] In his essay "Elmore Leonard's Ten Rules of Writing" he said: "My most important rule is one that sums up the 10: If it sounds like writing, I rewrite it." He also hinted: "I try to leave out the parts that readers tend to skip."[21]

Elmore Leonard has been called "the Dickens of Detroit" because of his intimate portraits of people from that city, though he said, "If I lived in Buffalo, I'd write about Buffalo."[6]: 90 His favourite epithet was one given by Britain's New Musical Express: "the poet laureate of wild assholes with revolvers".[22] His ear for dialogue has been praised by writers such as Saul Bellow, Martin Amis, and Stephen King. "Your prose makes Raymond Chandler look clumsy," Amis told Leonard at a Writers Guild event in Beverly Hills in 1998.[23] Stephen King has called him "the great American writer."[24] According to Charles Rzepka of Boston University, Leonard's mastery of free indirect discourse, a third-person narrative technique that gives the illusion of immediate access to a character's thoughts, "is unsurpassed in our time, and among the surest of all time, even if we include Jane Austen, Gustave Flaubert, and Hemingway in the mix." [25]

Leonard often cited Ernest Hemingway as perhaps his single most important influence, but at the same time criticized Hemingway for his lack of humor and for taking himself too seriously.[26] Still, it was Leonard's affection for Hemingway, as well as George V. Higgins, that led him to will his personal papers to the University of South Carolina, where many of Hemingway's and Higgins' papers are archived. Leonard's papers reside at the university's Irvin Department of Rare Books and Special Collections.[27][28][29]

Leonard also contributed one chapter (the twelfth of thirteen) to the 1996 Miami Herald parody serial novel Naked Came the Manatee (ISBNÂ 0-449-00124-5).

Twenty-six of Leonard's novels and short stories have been adapted for the screen (19 as motion pictures and another seven as television programs).

Aside from the short stories already noted, a number of Leonard's novels have been adapted as films, including Get Shorty (1990 novel, 1995 film), Out of Sight (1996 novel, 1998 film), and Rum Punch (1992 novel, 1997 film Jackie Brown). 52 Pick-Up (1986 film) was first adapted very loosely into the 1984 film The Ambassador (1984), starring Robert Mitchum and, two years later, under its original title starring Roy Scheider. Leonard has also written several screenplays based on his novels, plus original screenplays such as Joe Kidd (1972).

The film Hombre (1967), starring Paul Newman, was an adaptation of Leonard's 1961 novel of the same name.

His short story "Three-Ten to Yuma" (March 1953) and novels The Big Bounce (1969) and 52 Pick-Up have each been filmed twice.

Other novels filmed include:

Quentin Tarantino has optioned the right to adapt Leonard's novel Forty Lashes Less One (1972).[35][36]


where does cancer of the larynx spread to

Laryngeal cancer may spread by direct extension to adjacent structures, by metastasis to regional cervical lymph nodes, or more distantly, through the blood stream. Distant metastases to the lung are most common. In 2013 it resulted in 88,000 deaths up from 76,000 deaths in 1990.[1] Five year survival rates in the United States are 60%.[2]

Laryngeal cancer

Laryngeal cancer, also known as cancer of the larynx or laryngeal carcinoma, are mostly squamous cell carcinomas, reflecting their origin from the skin of the larynx.

Cancer can develop in any part of the larynx, but the cure rate is affected by the location of the tumour. For the purposes of tumour staging, the larynx is divided into three anatomical regions: the glottis (true vocal cords, anterior and posterior commissures); the supraglottis (epiglottis, arytenoids and aryepiglottic folds, and false cords); and the subglottis.

Most laryngeal cancers originate in the glottis. Supraglottic cancers are less common, and subglottic tumours are least frequent.

The symptoms of laryngeal cancer depend on the size and location of the tumour. Symptoms may include the following:[3][4]

Treatment effects can include post-operative changes in appearance, difficulty eating, or loss of voice that may require learning alternate methods of speaking.[5]

Smoking is the most important risk factor for laryngeal cancer. Death from laryngeal cancer is 20 times more likely for heaviest smokers than for nonsmokers.[6] Heavy chronic consumption of alcohol, particularly alcoholic spirits, is also significant. When combined, these two factors appear to have a synergistic effect. Some other quoted risk factors are likely, in part, to be related to prolonged alcohol and tobacco consumption. These include low socioeconomic status, male sex, and age greater than 55 years.

People with a history of head and neck cancer are known to be at higher risk (about 25%) of developing a second cancer of the head, neck, or lung. This is mainly because in a significant proportion of these patients, the aerodigestive tract and lung epithelium have been exposed chronically to the carcinogenic effects of alcohol and tobacco. In this situation, a field change effect may occur, where the epithelial tissues start to become diffusely dysplastic with a reduced threshold for malignant change. This risk may be reduced by quitting alcohol and tobacco.

Diagnosis is made by the doctor on the basis of a medical history, physical examination, and special investigations which may include a chest x-ray, CT or MRI scans, and tissue biopsy. The examination of the larynx requires some expertise, which may require specialist referral.

The physical exam includes a systematic examination of the whole patient to assess general health and to look for signs of associated conditions and metastatic disease. The neck and supraclavicular fossa are palpated to feel for cervical adenopathy, other masses, and laryngeal crepitus. The oral cavity and oropharynx are examined under direct vision. The larynx may be examined by indirect laryngoscopy using a small angled mirror with a long handle (akin to a dentist's mirror) and a strong light. Indirect laryngoscopy can be highly effective, but requires skill and practice for consistent results. For this reason, many specialist clinics now use fibre-optic nasal endoscopy where a thin and flexible endoscope, inserted through the nostril, is used to clearly visualise the entire pharynx and larynx. Nasal endoscopy is a quick and easy procedure performed in clinic. Local anaesthetic spray may be used.

If there is a suspicion of cancer, biopsy is performed, usually under general anaesthetic. This provides histological proof of cancer type and grade. If the lesion appears to be small and well localised, the surgeon may undertake excision biopsy, where an attempt is made to completely remove the tumour at the time of first biopsy. In this situation, the pathologist will not only be able to confirm the diagnosis, but can also comment on the completeness of excision, i.e., whether the tumour has been completely removed. A full endoscopic examination of the larynx, trachea, and esophagus is often performed at the time of biopsy.

For small glottic tumours further imaging may be unnecessary. In most cases, tumour staging is completed by scanning the head and neck region to assess the local extent of the tumour and any pathologically enlarged cervical lymph nodes.

The final management plan will depend on the site, stage (tumour size, nodal spread, distant metastasis), and histological type. The overall health and wishes of the patient must also be taken into account. A prognostic multigene classifier has been shown to be potentially useful for the distinction of laryngeal cancer of low or high risk of recurrence and might influence the treatment choice in future.[7]

Epithelial tumors are classified according to the guidelines set by the International Union Against Cancer (UICC) (3,4).

The T2 classification represents the extent of the primary tumor.

T2 â€“ Tumor invades the vocal cord without fixation of the larynx.

Glottis T2 â€“ Tumor extends to supraglottis and/or subglottis, and/or with impaired vocal cord mobility.

The N classification represents spreading to regional lymph nodes on the neck. The widest diameter is measured. N0 – no regional lymph node metastases N1 – single ipsilateral lymph node metastasis ≤ 3 cm a – single ipsilateral lymph node metastasis > 3 cm ≤ 6 cm b – multiple ipsilateral lymph node metastases ≤ 6 cm c – bilateral or contralateral lymph node metastases ≤ 6 cm

The M classification represents distant metastases. M0 – no distance metastases M1 – distant metastases

External link showing illustrations of the different stages.

Specific treatment depends on the location, type, and stage of the tumour. Treatment may involve surgery, radiotherapy, or chemotherapy, alone or in combination. This is a specialised area which requires the coordinated expertise of ear, nose and throat (ENT) surgeons (Otorhinolaryngologists) and Oncologists. A severely affected patient may require a laryngectomy, the complete or partial removal of the vocal cords.[8]

Incidence is five in 100,000 (12,500 new cases per year) in the USA.[9] The American Cancer Society estimated that 9,510 men and women (7,700 men and 1,810 women) would be diagnosed with and 3,740 men and women would die of laryngeal cancer in 2006.

Laryngeal cancer is listed as a "rare disease" by the Office of Rare Diseases (ORD) of the National Institutes of Health (NIH). This means that laryngeal cancer affects fewer than 200,000 people in the U.S.[10]


where is the border between mexico and us

The total length of the continental border is 1,954 miles (3,145 km). From the Gulf of Mexico, it follows the course of the Rio Grande (Río Bravo del Norte) to the border crossing at Ciudad Juárez, Chihuahua, and El Paso, Texas. Westward from El Paso–Juárez, it crosses vast tracts of the Chihuahuan and Sonoran deserts to the Colorado River Delta and San Diego–Tijuana, before reaching the Pacific Ocean.[5]

Mexico–United States border

The Mexico–United States border (Spanish: frontera México–Estados Unidos) is an international border separating Mexico and the United States, extending from the Pacific Ocean to the west and Gulf of Mexico to the east. The border traverses a variety of terrains, ranging from major urban areas to uninhabitable deserts. Approximately 350 million documented crossings occur annually,[1][2] and is the most frequently crossed border in the world.[3][1][4]

Along this border are 23 U.S. counties and 39 Mexican municipalities.

Following the Boundary Treaty of 1970 between Mexico and the United States that settled all the pending boundary disputes and uncertainties related to the Rio Grande (Río Bravo del Norte) border, the national continental border extends 1,954 miles (3,145 km), excluding the maritime boundaries of 18 miles (29 km) in the Pacific Ocean and 12 miles (19 km) in the Gulf of Mexico.[6][7]

According to the International Boundary and Water Commission,[8] this continental border follows the middle of the Rio Grande—according to the 1848 Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo between the two nations, "along the deepest channel" (also known as the thalweg)—from its mouth on the Gulf of Mexico a distance of 1,255 miles (2,020 km) to a point just upstream of El Paso and Ciudad Juárez.[9] It then follows an alignment westward overland and it is marked by monuments for a distance of 534 miles (859 km) to the Colorado River, when it reaches its highest elevation at the intersection with the Continental Divide. It then follows the middle of that river toward the north with a distance of 24 miles (39 km), and ultimately follows an alignment overland toward the west and marked by monuments with a distance of 141 miles (227 km) to the Pacific Ocean.

Per the La Paz Agreement,[10] the official "border area" extends "100 kilometers [62.5 miles] on either side of the inland and maritime boundaries" from the Gulf of Mexico west into the Pacific Ocean. There is also a 100-mile Border Zone.

The region is characterized by deserts, rugged hills, abundant sunshine, and two major rivers—the Colorado and the Rio Grande (Río Bravo del Norte)—which provide life-giving water to the largely arid but fertile lands along the rivers in both countries.

The Rio Grande frequently meanders along the Texasâ€“Mexico border. As a result, the United States and Mexico have a treaty by which the Rio Grande is maintained as the border, with new cut-offs and islands being transferred to the other nation as necessary.

Border Patrol patrolling the Rio Grande in an airboat in Laredo, Texas

The start of the border fence in the state of New Mexicoâ€”just west of El Paso, Texas

U.S. Border Patrol helicopter along El Camino del Diablo, Arizonaâ€“Sonora border, 2004

Border between Nogales, Arizona, on the left, and Nogales, Sonora, on the right

On the left: Nogales, Arizona; on the right, Nogales, Sonora

Beach in Tijuana at the border

A CBP Border Patrol vehicle sitting near Mexico-U.S. border

The U.S. states along the border, from west to east, are California, Arizona, New Mexico, and Texas. The Mexican states along the border are Baja California, Sonora, Chihuahua, Coahuila, Nuevo León, and Tamaulipas.

Among the U.S. states, Texas has the longest stretch of the border with Mexico, while California has the shortest. Among the states in Mexico, Chihuahua has the longest border with the United States, while Nuevo León has the shortest.

Texas borders four Mexican states—Tamaulipas, Nuevo León, Coahuila, and Chihuahua—the most of any U.S. states. New Mexico and Arizona each borders two Mexican states (Chihuahua and Sonora; Sonora and Baja California, respectively). California borders only Baja California.

Three Mexican states border two U.S. states each: Baja California borders California and Arizona; Sonora borders Arizona and New Mexico; and Chihuahua borders New Mexico and Texas. Tamaulipas, Nuevo LeÃ³n, and Coahuila each borders only one U.S. state: Texas.

The border separating Mexico and the United States is the most frequently crossed international boundary in the world,[3][1][4] with approximately 350 million legal crossings taking place annually.[1][2][11]

There are 48 U.S.–Mexico border crossings, with 330 ports of entry. At these points of entry, people trying to get into the U.S. are required to open their bags for inspection.[12] Border crossings take place by roads, pedestrian walkways, railroads and ferries. From west to east, below is a list of the border city "twinnings"; cross-border municipalities connected by one or more legal border crossings.

The total population of the borderlands—defined as those counties and municipios lining the border on either side—stands at some 12 million people.

In the mid-16th century, with the discovery of silver, settlers from a various countries and backgrounds began to arrive in the area. This period of sparse settlement included colonizers from different backgrounds. The area was part of New Spain, but due to the lack of population and the diverse citizenry it had, it did not seem to belong to any country. This period lasted until the early 19th century, at which point the United States bought the lands known as the Louisiana Purchase from France and began to expand steadily (militarily) westward in its pursuit of Manifest Destiny.[13]

The border itself was not clearly defined and remained so until the Mexican colony became independent from Spain and entered a period of political instability. Mexico attempted to create a buffer zone at the border that would prevent possible invasion from the North. The Mexican government encouraged thousands of their own citizens to settle in the region that is now known as Texas and even offered inexpensive land to settlers from the United States in exchange for populating the area. The influx of people did not provide the defense that Mexico had hoped for and instead Texas declared its independence in 1836, which lasted until 1845 when the U.S. annexed it.

The constant conflicts in the Texas region in the mid-19th century eventually led to the Mexican–American War, which began in 1846 and ended in 1848 with the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo. In the terms of the peace treaty, Mexico lost more than 960,000 square miles (2,500,000 km2) of land, 55%[14] of its territory, including what is today California, Arizona, New Mexico, Utah, Nevada and parts of Colorado, Wyoming, Kansas, and Oklahoma. In addition, all disputes over Texas and the disputed territory between Rio Grande and Rio Nueces were abandoned. Five years later the Gadsden Purchase completed the creation of the current United States–Mexico border. The purchase was initially to accommodate a planned railway right-of-way. These purchases left approximately 300,000 people living in the once disputed lands, many of whom were Mexican nationals. Following the establishment of the current border a number of towns sprang up along this boundary and many of the Mexican citizens were given free land in the northern regions of Mexico in exchange for returning and repopulating the area.[15]

The Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo and another treaty in 1884 were the agreements originally responsible for the settlement of the international border, both of which specified that the middle of Rio Grande was the border—irrespective of any alterations in the channels or banks. The Rio Grande shifted south between 1852 and 1868, with the most radical shift in the river occurring after a flood in 1864. By 1873 the moving river-center border had cut off approximately 600 acres (2.4 km2) of Mexican territory in the El Paso-Juarez area, in effect transferring the land to the United States. By a treaty negotiated in 1963, Mexico regained most of this land in what became known as the Chamizal dispute and transferred 264 acres (1.07 km2) in return to the United States. Border treaties are jointly administered by the International Boundary and Water Commission (IBWC), which was established in 1889 to maintain the border, allocate river waters between the two nations, and provide for flood control and water sanitation. Once viewed as a model of international cooperation, in recent decades the IBWC has been heavily criticized as an institutional anachronism, by-passed by modern social, environmental and political issues.[7]

The economic development of the border region on the Mexican side of the border depended largely on its proximity to the United States, due to its remoteness from commercial centers in Mexico. During the years of Mexican President Porfirio Díaz, between 1876 and 1910, the border communities boomed, due mostly to close ties to the United States, and the Mexican government's support for financial investments from the United States.[16] Railroads were built that connected the northern Mexican states more to the United States than to Mexico and the population grew tremendously. The mining industry also developed, as did the United States’ control of it. By the early 20th century companies from the United States controlled 81% of the mining industry and had invested five hundred million dollars in the Mexican economy overall, twenty-five percent of it in the border regions.[17]

The Mexican Revolution, caused at least partially by animosity toward foreign ownership of Mexican properties, began in 1910. The Revolution increased the political instability in Mexico, but did not significantly slow United States investment. It did reduce economic development within Mexico, however, and the border regions reflected this. As the infrastructure of communities on the United States side continued to improve, the Mexican side began to fall behind in the construction and maintenance of important transportation networks and systems necessary to municipal development.[17]

In the first decade of the 21st century, "illegal border crossers" caused, or impacted the extinguishing of, several wildfires near the border in Arizona.[18]

Data from the United States Border Patrol Agency's (USBP) 2010 annual report shows that among the total number of border crossings without documentation from various countries into the United States, 90 percent were from Mexico alone. In addition, there are more than 6 million undocumented Mexican nationals residing in the United States.[19] The border, with its 1,951 miles (3,140Â km) in length, has a very high rate of documented and undocumented migrant crossings every year. With such a high rate of people crossing annually to the United States, the country has invested in several distinct security measures.

In 2010, due to insecurity and instability at the southern border of the U.S. President Barack Obama signed an appropriation bill, which gave the Customs and Border Protection, specifically the Border Patrol, 600 million dollars to implement and improve security. The U.S. government has invested many millions of dollars on border security, although this has not stopped undocumented immigration in the United States.[20] In June 2018, the U.S. government announced installation of facial recognition system for monitoring the immigrant's activities.[21]

While the Border Patrol has changed a lot since its inception in 1924, its primary mission remains unchanged: to detect and prevent the illegal entry of immigrants into the United States. Together with other law enforcement officers, the Border Patrol helps maintain borders that work â€“ facilitating the flow of legal immigration and goods while preventing the illegal trafficking of people and contraband. In 2012, Border Patrol agents made over 364,000 arrests of people illegally entering the country. Considerable success has been achieved in restoring integrity and safety to the Southwest border, by putting in place a border-control strategy. These include Operation Gatekeeper in San Diego, CA, Operation Hold the Line in El Paso, TX, Operation Rio Grande in McAllen, TX, Operation Safeguard in Tucson, AZ, and the Arizona Border Control Initiative (ABCI) along the Arizona border.[22][23][24] The border has the highest number of registered legal crossings of any land border in the world.[3] Over five million cars and trucks travel through the border annually.[25]

According to Vulliamy, one in five Mexican nationals will visit or work in the United States at one point in their lifetime.[25] As of 2010, the border is guarded by more than twenty thousand Border Patrol agents, more than at any time in its history.[26] However, they only have "effective control" of less than 700 miles (1,100 km) of the 1,954 miles (3,145 km) of total border,[27] with an ability to actually prevent or stop illegal entries along 129 miles (208 km) of that border.[28] The border is paralleled by United States Border Patrol interior checkpoints on major roads generally between 25 and 75 miles (40 and 121 km) from the U.S. side of the border, and garitas generally within 50 km of the border on the Mexican side.[29][30][31]

There are an estimated half a million illegal entries into the United States each year.[32] Border Patrol activity is concentrated around border cities such as San Diego and El Paso which have extensive border fencing. This means that the flow of illegal immigrants is diverted into rural mountainous and desert areas, leading to several hundred migrant deaths along the Mexico–U.S. border of those attempting to cross into the United States from Mexico illegally and vice versa.[32] Undocumented labor contributes $395 billion to the economy every year. While the U.S. is in favor of immigration, the increase in undocumented immigration has given border-crossing a negative image. There are around 11.5 million undocumented workers in the U.S. today, and 87% of undocumented immigrants have been living in the U.S. for more than 7 years.[22] Local economies that develop on the Mexican side capitalize not only on available skills but also on available, usually discarded, materials. Small businesses trade in clothes that are purchased by the pound and cardboard from the United States. Some items, like the used tires found everywhere along the border, are made into certain items that support local economies and define a border.[23]

The Secure Fence Act of 2006 was passed providing for the construction of 700 miles (1,100 km) of high-security fencing. Attempts to complete the construction of the Mexico–United States barrier have been challenged by the Mexican government and various U.S.–based organizations.

In January 2013, the Government Accountability Office released a report stating that the United States Border Patrol only intercepted sixty-one percent of individuals illegally crossing the border in 2011, which translated to 208,813 individuals not apprehended.[33] 85,827 of the 208,813 would go on to illegally enter the United States, while the rest returned to Mexico and other Central American countries.[33] The report also showed that the number of illegal border crossings has dropped.[33]

The apprehensions per (fiscal) year are shown in the graph; they reached a maximum of over 1.643 million in the year 2000.[34] Similar numbers had been reached in 1986 with over 1,615 million. Since 2010, the numbers have consistently remained beneath half a million.[34]

According to the U.S. Border Patrol, in the fiscal year of 2006, there were twenty-nine confirmed border incursions by Mexican government officials, of which seventeen were by armed individuals. Since 1996 there have been 253 incursions by Mexican government officials.[35][36][37] In 2014 the U.S. Department of Homeland Security informed California Representative Duncan D. Hunter that since 2004, there have been 300 documented border incursions, which resulted in 131 individuals being detained.[38]

The Washington Times has reported that on Sunday, August 3, 2008, Mexican military personnel who crossed into Arizona from Mexico encountered a U.S. Border Patrol agent, whom they held at gunpoint. The soldiers later returned to Mexico, as backup Border Patrol agents came to investigate.[39]

Proponents of greater spending on the border argue that continuing the buildup is necessary due to increased violence and drug trafficking[when?] from Mexico spilling into the United States.[40] However, critics such as the Washington Office on Latin America (WOLA) have argued that the diminishing number of border crossings can only be partially attributed to U.S. security measures. Unintentional factors, such as a weakened U.S. economy in the wake of the 2008 financial crisis and increased violence in northern Mexico have made attempting illegal border crossings more risky and less rewarding.[41]

In 2016, Donald Trump, then the Republican presidential nominee in the then forthcoming U.S. election repeatedly stated that he wanted to build a wall along the border, for the purpose of immigration control. He declared that Mexico would be forced to pay for the entire wall.[42][43] Following his Inauguration on January 20, 2017, on January 25 President Trump signed Executive Order 13767 to enable the building of the wall.[44] Shortly afterwards, the Mexican President stated that Mexico will not pay for the wall.[45] Trump had planned to meet Mexican President Enrique Peña Nieto on January 27 in Washington, D.C. to discuss topics including border security. The meeting was cancelled by Peña Nieto, and shortly after, Trump announced that he intended to impose a 20% tariff on Mexican goods to effectively pay for the wall.[46]

As of the end of 2017, Mexico had not entered into any agreement to pay for any amount of the wall, and no new tariffs on Mexican goods had been considered by the U.S. Congress.[47] Also the U.S. Congress had not appropriated funding for a wall, and no further wall construction has started beyond what was already planned during the Obama administration.[47]

On September 20, 2017, California Attorney General Becerra filed a lawsuit alleging that the Trump administration has overstepped its powers in expediting construction of a border wall.[48][49]

In June 2018, the Trump administration put in place a policy of separating illegal immigrant at the Mexican border. Also in June, media reported that those presenting themselves at an official port of entry into the US in order to ask for asylum were "being turned away and told thereâ€™s no room for them now".[50]

Some work on building a wall prototype was started. According to United States Customs and Border Protection agency, four major construction companies will bid for the contract. These companies will first produce prototypes of the wall within a month prior to receiving a full contract. The cost of each prototype is estimated at $400,000 to $500,000, and the Customs and Border Protection agency will have $20 million to use to produce these prototypes. President Trump has asked the Congress to assign $1.6 billion to build the wall this year but Congress has only approved $341 million to maintain the existing wall along the border and yet to approve a budget for the newly proposed wall.[51]

The exact cost of the newly proposed wall is not clear yet many experts on the issue predicted that it would cost a lot. There are differing opinions and cost estimates of building the wall. The Trump administration has estimated the cost of the wall at $12 billion, but the Department of Homeland Security estimated the cost at $21.6 billion. According to one report, the proposed wall would cost up to $70 billion[citation needed], a significant difference. There is also no decision made on the actual structure of the wall but according to the Department of Homeland Security, the wall would be between 18 and 30 ft (5.5 and 9.1 m) high and as deep as 6 ft (1.8 m) underground to deter drug traffickers from building tunnels.[52]

Among the diversity of humanitarian assistance along the U.S.â€“Mexico border, there are groups who take on a more hands-on approach. The Humane Borders, No More Deaths, and Samaritans are all humanitarian groups that provide water in order to reduce deaths of immigrants who are journeying through the Arizona desert.[53] Despite having a common goal, a policy passed in 2010 by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife federal agency allowed water drums with 55 gallons of water to be placed in roads of disturbed areas, which supports method of Humane Borders and counters the methods of No More Deaths and Samaritans who place one-gallon jugs of water hanging from trees.[53]

In contrast, there are other humanitarian groups whose goal is create healthier communities along the U.S.â€“Mexico border. Due to an incidence rate of HIV and tuberculosis being higher in border towns such as El Paso, Texas and Ciudad Juarez, Sonora than at the national level in both countries, the Nuestra Casa Initiative, developed with the help of Project Concern International, the US Agency for International Development, the Alliance of Border Collaborative, Dr. Eva Moya and Damien Schumman, tried to counter the health disparities by using a cross-border strategy that moved around an exhibit prominent in various Museums and universities.[54][55] Similarly, Special Action Groups as part of the Border Health Strategic Initiative created by the University of Arizona with other groups helped create a healthier Hispanic community in Arizona border towns by creating policy and infrastructure changes both in the public and private factor.[56] These groups provided humanitarian assistance to counter the prominence of Type 2 diabetes among the Hispanic community since they acquired a block grant for new walking trails and encouraged public elementary schools to provide healthier food choices for students.[56]

Not only do these Hispanic communities faced health inequalities, but political inequalities as well.[citation needed] The need for political change was so huge that it has encouraged Hispanic women to engage in activism at a local level. The Neighborhood Action Group in Chula Vista, California is one of the groups of the attracted the help of local Hispanic women to implement a feminist perspective in activism in spite of the social and economic obstacles as well as Assembly Bill No. 775, 2005 that prohibited children being used as interpreters.[57] These humanitarian groups have implemented various strategies to pursue their goals that ultimately try to counter the number of immigrant deaths and abuses in immigrant detention even if it means the criminalization and higher levels of discrimination against them.[58]
In regards to the Humanitarian assistance along the U.S.–Mexico border on the Mexico side, most humanitarian groups focus on assisting the deportees. As rates of deportation continue to drastically increase, “the deportation of many individuals is becoming more and more notable” in the streets of Mexico cities.[59] As a result, many humanitarian groups have form along the Mexico cities where undocumented individuals are deported such as Nogales, Mexico. The humanitarian groups consist of faith-based communities and primarily non-profit organizations that assist the exhausted deportees. Not only are the deportees exhausted, but also many of them do not have any resources with them such as money, food, or family information that can help them. This oftentimes leads them to be homeless and go days without eating. They often go homeless because they "do not know where to turn to receive a meal, find shelter and to make a phone call".[60] Along with them arriving without those resources, many immigrants "find themselves in distress" due to the fact that they arrive to Mexico emotionally and psychologically devastated.[61] Contributing factors that might have caused them to be devastated can either be that they were separated from "their family members or the inability to work legally in the United States".[62] Therefore, the primary purpose of the humanitarian groups on the Mexico side of the border is to create a pathway for transitional support such as providing the deportees food, shelter, clothing, legal help and social services.[59] In addition, there are humanitarian groups that provides meals and shelter to deportees according to their deportation documents. Humanitarian groups along the border in Mexico are El Comedor, Nazareth House, Camino Juntos, La 72, and FM4: Paso Libre.

A National Border Patrol Strategic Plan was first developed in 1994 to deal with the fact that borders were being overrun by illegal immigrants and drug dealers. It was then updated in 2004 and 2012. In 2004 the updated strategy focused on command structures, intelligence and surveillance, enforcement and deployment of U.S. Border Patrol agents to better respond to threats at the border. The strategic planning led to broader policy development for the Department of Homeland Security which led to the Secure Border Initiative (SBI) in 2005 to secure U.S. borders and reduce illegal migration. The main components of SBI dealt with staffing concerns, removal capacity, surveillance and tactical infrastructure and interior enforcement.[63]

An additional component was “high consequence enforcement”, which was not the subject of a formal public policy document. There was the allowance, historically, for voluntary returns of individuals apprehended at the border by Border Patrol agents. These voluntary returns, after the SBI of 2005, were limited to three “high consequence outcomes”.[63]

One "high consequence outcome" was formal removal, which meant the individual would be deemed ineligible for a visa for at least five years and subject to criminal charges if caught re-entering illegally. The Immigration and Nationality Act permitted aliens to be formally removed with “limited judicial processing” known as expedited removal. The Department of Homeland Security has expanded between 2002 and 2006, expedited removal for “certain aliens that entered within previous two weeks and were apprehended within 100 miles (160 km) of the border”.[63]

Another “high consequence outcome” is the increase in criminal charges. Department of Homeland Security has also worked with the Department of Justice to increase the number of apprehended individuals crossing the border illegally who are charged with criminal offenses. Most of these cases are prosecuted under Operation Streamline.[63] The third “high consequence outcome” is known as remote repatriation. This is the return of apprehended Mexicans to remote locations by Border Patrol rather than the nearest Mexican port of entry.[63]

Regulations establishing the 100-mile (160 km) zone were adopted by the U.S. Department of Justice as the result of an interpretation of the Immigration and Nationality Act in 1953.[64] Customs and Border Protection’s (CBP) officials have authority for stop and search within this 100 miles (160 km) from any external boundary. This allows for CBP officials to enter private property without a warrant within 25 miles (40 km) of the border as well as the operation of checkpoints.[65]

The 100-mile zone along all U.S. borders houses two-thirds of the U.S. population.[66]

The Fourth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution protects against unreasonable search and seizure; however the border search exception means this does not fully apply at borders or border crossings (also known as ports of entry). This means that much of the U.S. population is subject to CBP regulations for stop and search. The 100 Mile Border Zone includes two thirds of the population, a majority of the largest cities in the U.S. and several entire states (namely Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Hawaii, Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, New Hampshire, and New Jersey).[64]

There are some limits to CBP officials ability to stop and search. For instance CBP officials are not allowed to pull anyone over without a reasonable suspicion of immigration violation or crime, or search vehicles without warrant or probable cause. The ACLU, however, found that CBP officials routinely ignore or misunderstand the limits of authority, and this is compounded by inadequate training, lack of oversight and failure to hold officials accountable for abuseâ€”incidence of abuse is common.[64]

Operation Streamline refers collectively to zero-tolerance policies implemented at the Mexicoâ€“U.S. border that seek to remove undocumented immigrants through an expedited process if they have arrived with missing or fraudulent identification or have previously been convicted for an immigration crime.[67]

Operation Streamline was first implemented in Del Rio, Texas, in 2005.[68] The program has since expanded to four out of the five federal judicial districts on the U.S.â€“Mexico border: Yuma, Arizona; Laredo, Texas; Tucson, Arizona; and Rio Grande Valley, Texas.[67][69]

Previously, immigrants apprehended at the border were either given the option to voluntarily return to their home country or they were placed in civil immigration proceedings.[67] After Operation Streamline was implemented, nearly all people apprehended at the border who are suspected of having crossed illegally are subject to criminal prosecution.[69] Defendants who are charged with crossing into the U.S. illegally are tried en masse to determine their guilt.[68] Defense attorneys often are responsible for representing anywhere from six to forty immigrants at once.[68] Around 99% of defendants in Operation Streamline proceedings plead guilty.[67] The defendants are charged with a misdemeanor if convicted of crossing the border illegally for the first time, and a felony if it is a repeat offense.[68]

In December 2009, it was decided in United States v. Roblero-Solis that en masse judicial proceedings like those in Operation Streamline violated Rule 11 in the Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure. Rule 11 states that the court must determine that a guilty plea is voluntarily made by addressing the defendant personally in court. The Roblero-Solis case determined that “personally” means that the judge must address the defendant in a person-to-person manner. Though many courts have changed their procedures to adapt to the ruling, there are still forms of en masse trials practiced at the border.[68]

Proponents of Operation Streamline claim that the harsher prosecution has been an important factor in deterring immigrants from crossing the border illegally. Apprehensions have decreased in certain sectors after 2005, which is seen as a sign of success. For example, the Del Rio, Texas, sector saw a decline from 2005 to 2009 of 75% (from 68,510 to 17,082). Similarly, apprehensions declined in Yuma, Arizona, by 95% (from 138,438 to 6,951) from 2006 to 2009.[69]

Criticisms of Operation Streamline point to the program’s heavy use of federal court and enforcement resources as a negative aspect.[69] In addition, the prosecution of all illegal border crossings takes the focus away from prosecuting more serious crimes.[69] They claim that the program’s cost is too high for the effectiveness of the work it is accomplishing.[68] In response to the claim that Operation Streamline is an effective deterrent, critics of the program claim that the incentives to cross the border in order to work or be with family are much stronger.[68]

The Agreement on Cooperation for the Protection and Improvement of the Environment in the Border Area, known as the La Paz Agreement, was signed into law on August 14, 1983, and became enforceable on February 16, 1984.[70] This agreement to protect the environment is the political foundation between the U.S. and Mexico for 4 subsequent programs. Each program has addressed environmental destruction in the border region resulting from the rise of the maquiladora industries, those who migrated to Northern Mexico to work in the industries, the lack of infrastructure to accommodate the people, Mexico's lax regulations concerning all these factors, the resulting spillover into the U.S., and the U.S.'s own environmentally destructive tendencies. The programs were: IBEP (1992), Border XXI (1996), Border 2012 (2003) and Border 2020 (2012).[71]

In 2006, during the presidency of George W. Bush, Congress approved Secure Fence Act which allowed the Department of Homeland Security to erect a border fence along the United State and Mexico border. A total of $2.2 billion was allocated to building this wall in five different areas of the border. Congress also approved a different law called the REAL ID Act which gave the Department of Homeland Security the approval to build the wall without taking into consideration the environmental and legal issues related to the wall. The United States Congress insisted that the act was passed for the sake of national security of the United States.[72]

According to a delegation of Arizona park and refuge managers, wildlife biologists, and conservationists who studied the United State and Mexico border concluded that building a wall along the Mexico border will also have negative impacts on the natural environment in the region. They argued that the border wall will negatively affect the wildlife in the Sonoran Desert including plants and animals. Naturally, animals do not tend to stay in one place and instead, they expedite to various places for water, plants, and other means in order to survive. The wall would restrict animals to a specific territory and would reduce their chances of survival. According to Brian Segee, a staff attorney with Wildlife Activists says that except high flying birds, the rest of the animals would not be able to move to other places due to the wall along the border. For instance, participants in this study argued that some of the animal kinds such as javelinas, ocelots, and Sonoran pronghorn would not be able to freely move along the border areas. It would also restrict the movement of jaguars from Sierra Madre Occidental forests to the southwestern parts of the United States. According to Brian Nowicki, a conservation biologist at the Center for Biological Diversity, there are 30 animal species living in the Arizona and Sonora that face danger and their movement to find new habitat and sources of survival would be restricted by the border wall.[72]

In late 2006, the United States Department of Homeland Security (DHS) announced a rule regarding new identification requirements for U.S. citizens and international travelers entering the United States implemented on January 23, 2007. This final rule and first phase of the WHTI specifies nine forms of identification, one of which is required to enter the United States by air: a valid passport; a passport card; a state enhanced driver's license or state enhanced non-driver ID card (available in Michigan, New York, Vermont, and Washington[73]) approved by the Secretary of Homeland Security; a trusted traveler program card (NEXUS, FAST, or SENTRI); an enhanced tribal identification card; a Native American Tribal Photo Identification Card;
Form I-872 – American Indian Card; a valid Merchant Mariner Document when traveling in conjunction with official maritime business; or a valid U.S. military identification card when traveling on official orders.[74][75][76][77]

The Mexicoâ€“United States border is the world's busiest border, specifically the crossing at San Diego, California, to Tijuana, Baja California (15.6 miles between the cities), known as the San Ysidro Port of Entry.[78] In the U.S., Interstate 5 crosses directly to Tijuana, and the highway's southern terminus is this crossing. In 2005, more than 17 million vehicles and 50 million people entered the U.S. through San Ysidro.[79][80][81][82] Among those who enter the United States through San Ysidro are transfronterizos, American citizens who live in Mexico and attend school in the United States.[83]

Along the coast of Baja California, there are neighborhoods of Americans living in Tijuana, Rosarito Beach, and Ensenada, whose residents commute to the United States daily to work.[84] Additionally, many Mexicans also enter the United States to commute daily to work.[85] In 1999, 7.6% of the labor force of Tijuana was employed in San Diego.[86]

The U.S. government had plans in 2006, during the Bush administration, to erect a border fence along the Mexico–U.S. border. The controversial proposal included creating many individual fences. Almost 600 miles (970 km) of fence was constructed, with each of the individual fences composed of steel and concrete.[25] In between these fences are infrared cameras and sensors, National Guard soldiers, and SWAT teams on alert, giving rise to the term "virtual fence".[25] Construction on the fence began in 2006, with each mile costing the U.S. government about $2.8 million.[12] In 2010, the initiative was terminated due to costs, after having completed 640 miles (1,030 km) of either barrier fence or vehicle barriers, that were either new or had been rebuilt over older, inferior fencing. The Boeing-built SBI-net systems of using radar, watchtowers, and sensors (without a fence or physical barrier) were scrapped for being over budget, full of glitches, and far behind schedule.[87]

The U.S.â€“Mexico border fence near El Paso, Texas

Portion of border near Jacumba, California, in 2003

Portion of border near Jacumba, California, in 2009 with enhanced security

When animals are imported from one country to another, there is the possibility that diseases and parasites can move with them. Thus, most countries impose animal health regulations on the import of animals. Most animals imported to the United States must be accompanied by import permits obtained in advance from the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) and/or health certification papers from the country of origin.

Veterinary inspections are often required, and are available only at designated ports;[88] advance contact with port veterinarians is recommended.[89] Animals crossing the United Statesâ€“Mexico border may have a country of origin other than the country where they present for inspection. Such animals include those from the U.S. that cross to Mexico and return, and animals from other countries that travel overland through Mexico or the U.S. before crossing the border.

APHIS imposes precautions to keep out several equine diseases, including glanders, dourine, equine infectious anemia (EIA), equine piroplasmosis (EP), Venezuelan equine encephalitis (VEE), and contagious equine metritis (CEM).[90] APHIS also checks horses to prevent the introduction of ticks and other parasites. In the Lower Rio Grande Valley, U.S. Department of Agriculture inspectors look for horses and livestock that stray across the border carrying ticks. These animals are often called wetstock, and the inspectors are referred to as tickriders.[91]

Per APHIS, horses originating from Canada can enter the United States with a Canadian government veterinary health certificate and a negative test for EIA.[90] Horses from Mexico must have a health certificate; pass negative tests for EIA, dourine, glanders, and EP at a USDA import center; and undergo precautionary treatments for external parasites at the port of entry. Horses from other Western Hemisphere countries must have the same tests as those from Mexico and, except for horses from Argentina, must be held in quarantine for at least seven days as a check for VEE.

APHIS imposes similar testing and certification requirements on horses from other parts of the world but without the quarantine for VEE. These horses are held in quarantine—usually three days—or until tests are completed. Because the disease equine piroplasmosis (equine babesiosis) is endemic in Mexico but not established in the United States,[92] transportation of horses from Mexico to the United States requires evaluation of horses for the presence of this disease.

Transportation of horses from Mexico to the United States normally requires at least three days in quarantine, which is incompatible with most recreational equestrian travel across the border. A leading exception to this rule is the special waiver obtained by riders participating in the Cabalgata Binacional Villista (see cavalcade).

Import from the United States to Mexico requires evidence within the prior 45 days of freedom from equine infectious anemia, among other requirements.[93] In August 2015, Mexico began enforcing a rule that all foreign citizens that plan to stay in the country for more than seven days or are travelling on business will have to pay a 330 peso (21 dollar) fee and show their passport.[94][95][96]


who is the blue character in guardians of the galaxy

Yondu in Earth-691 is depicted as a blue-skinned male with a large red fin protruding from the back of his head and back; he is a spiritual warrior who can control his killing arrows via sound waves, most commonly by whistling. Yondu joined Vance Astro and other survivors of the Badoon attack on Earth's solar system in the 31st Century, who became known as the Guardians of the Galaxy. As part of the Guardians, Yondu traveled to present-day Earth and became an honorary member of the Avengers. The original Yondu never starred as a solo character in any Marvel Comic books, but was a core member of the team in the Guardians of the Galaxy comic that ran from 1990 to 1995.

Yondu

Yondu Udonta, or simply Yondu, is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The original version of the character is depicted as the last survivor of his species in the 31st century, and is a founding member of the original Guardians of the Galaxy team from the Marvel Multiverse alternate reality known as Earth-691.

A second version of Yondu was first introduced into the Marvel Cinematic Universe in the 2014 Marvel Studios film Guardians of the Galaxy, portrayed by Michael Rooker, where the character is instead depicted as a space pirate living in the present. He also appears in the film's 2017 sequel, Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2. After the release of the first film, Marvel Comics introduced a comic book version of that character to the Earth-616 comic book continuity, where he is a space pirate leading a group of pirates known as "The Ravagers". The present day Yondu character has appeared both in the Guardians of the Galaxy animated show as well as being a playable character in Disney Infinity: Marvel Super Heroes as well as in Marvel Future Fight.

The Earth-691 version of Yondu first appeared in Marvel Super-Heroes #18 (January 1969). According to Roy Thomas, all of the original Guardians of the Galaxy were created in a conference between Arnold Drake and Stan Lee, but it remains uncertain whether each individual character was created by Drake, Lee, or both.[1]

Yondu appeared along with the rest of the original Guardians of the Galaxy team in the 2014 series Guardians 3000. Writer Dan Abnett described him as "the instinct" of the team.[2]

The Earth-616 version of Yondu first appeared in Star-Lord #2 and was created by Sam Humphries and Javier Garron.

Yondu Udonta is a member of the Zatoan tribe, primitive beings native to Centauri IV. He functions as a hunter. His homeworld was the first planet to be colonized by humans that was outside Earth's solar system. Yondu is born in the late thirtieth century. Yondu's people had fled from contact with overwhelming Earth colonizers who had begun arriving in 2940 A.D.

In 3006 A.D., Vance Astro, an astronaut from Earth, lands on Yondu's planet with an antiquated propulsion ship. Vance encounters Yondu during the latter's trial of manhood. Yondu attacks him, but is repelled by Vance's powers. Vance keeps this secret as Yondu's action was illegal. Yondu works with Vance when the Badoon, an alien race, overtakes the planet later that year. All the other Centaurians are believed to have been slaughtered. Vance and Yondu escape in his ship to fetch help but the Badoon capture them easily. The duo are taken to Earth which, by 3007 A.D., has also been conquered. When questioned, Vance pretends to be unfriendly with Yondu. They later escape and team up with Charlie-27 of the Jupiter colony and Martinex of the Pluto colony, forming the Guardians of the Galaxy to fight the Badoon.[3]

For the next seven years, the four survivors attack the Badoon's outposts in the solar system. In 3014 A.D., the Guardians team with the time-traveling Thing, Captain America, and Sharon Carter to retake New York City from the Badoon forces.[4] In 3015 A.D., the Guardians time-travel to the 20th Century[5] and return to 3015 A.D. with the Defenders and later meet Starhawk.[6] After humanity defeats the Brotherhood of Badoon occupiers, the Sisterhood of Badoon arrive and remove the males from Earth.[7]

Yondu and the Guardians team with the time-traveling Thor, and battled Korvac and his Minions of Menace.[8] Yondu travels to the present alongside his fellow Guardians, and assists the Avengers against Korvac.[9] In 3017 A.D., Yondu and the Guardians go on a quest to find the lost shield of Captain America. They battle Taserface and the Stark, and defeat the Stark.[10] Yondu's right hand is later destroyed by Interface, and replaced by Martinex with a bionic appendage.[11] Yondu later leaves the team when it is revealed that a small enclave of his people have survived on Centauri IV.[12] These Kikaahe (“cave dwellers”) escaped death at the hands of the Badoon because the walls of the cavern where they lived contained the mineral trillite (“yaka”) which blocks radio waves, thereby shielding them from sensors. Since his newfound people will not accept his bionic weapon-hand, Yondu allows the Guardians to use their advanced medical technology to restore his flesh-and-blood hand. During their farewells, Vance apologizes for what he had thought was unacceptable treatment of Yondu during their earlier adventurers.[13]

The Earth-616 version of Yondu has been identified by writer Sam Humphries as "the great, great, great, great, great, great, great grandfather of the Yondu in the original Guardians of the Galaxy and 'Guardians 3000'."[14] On this Earth, Yondu is the leader of the Ravagers, a group of Space Pirates. Yondu finds Peter Quill when his ship malfunctions and strands him on Earth.[15] The Ravagers rescue him as Peter tries to steal his ship, managing to outsmart every member of the crew and capturing Yondu. After Yondu frees himself from his restraints and attacks Peter, he gives him a choice between letting himself be released into space without more trouble or execution. Peter instead asks to join his crew. Yondu is initially skeptical of this idea, but after he learns Peter, like him, is a homeless orphan, Yondu allows him to stay on the ship with the Ravagers as their cleaning boy. Peter uses the opportunity to learn everything he can from space.[16] Star-Lord does the cleaning boy job for the Ravagers until Yondu makes him an official Ravager.[17]

As a member of the marsupial alien race of the planet Centauri IV, Yondu possesses an intuitive mystical "sixth sense" perception that permits him limited empathic relationships with other lifeforms. The higher the lifeform, the more limited is his empathic potential. Additionally, Yondu possesses an intuitive rapport with nature, particularly with his own world, but also with any world that still possesses natural wildlife. With this rapport, he can sense incongruous elements (foreign bodies or substances) or focus on specific elements within the whole (such as the location of a given plant). He is also sensitive to mystical beings and forces and is able to detect their presence and activities without effort. By going into a trance, Yondu is able to replenish his own inner strength by communing with natural forces.

Yondu is an above average physical specimen of his race. He has slightly more strength and endurance than the average human male. As a hunter, Yondu is an expert in the use of bow and arrow. His ability to whistle with a range of four octaves aids his archery (see Weapons, below). The native Centaurian language is a system of grunts, clicks, and whistles, but Yondu has managed to master the English language, although it is painful for him to speak for too long without resting his throat. He is an excellent hand-to-hand combatant, and a highly skilled hunter and tracker. He has extensive knowledge of the social and religious customs of the natives of Centauri IV.

Yondu uses a 5-foot (1.5 m) single curve bow and a quiver of arrows composed of yaka, a special sound-sensitive metal found only on Centauri IV. A yaka arrow can actually change its direction (but not speed) in response to certain high-octave whistle-sounds some Centaurians can produce. Yondu is so skillful at controlling his arrows, he can cause an arrow to return to his hand or weave its way through a crowd of people without touching them. Yondu's arrows are 15 inches (38 cm) in length and are very flexible. He carries about 20 of them at one time. In Secret Wars, Yondu utilizes his expertise in archery by shooting "drone-arrows" to give the Guardians an eye in the sky.[volume & issue needed]

Yondu's right hand is replaced for a time by a bionic device called a weapons concealment appendage, a metal cup replacing his right hand.[11] Thus, he could no longer practice archery nor perform functions requiring him to grasp with his right hand. The device can release from within itself a number of weapons, including a mace, a hatchet, a scythe, a barbed spear, and others; when not in use the weapons are concealed within the appendage at a reduced size, until enlarged by Pym particles. Yondu's bionic weapon-hand is later replaced with a duplicate of his original hand.[13]

Yondu appears in the Guardians of the Galaxy TV series, voiced by James Arnold Taylor.[18][19]