usatoday24, Author at usatoday24

The countries of northern Europe are full of offshore wind. So they’ve started to steal the wind from each other

December 13, 2025 by usatoday24

The world has thrown itself into the arms of renewables to meet the goals of decarbonization. Each country is developing its strategy And, if in some the photovoltaic takes the lead, in others it is the wind that splits the cod. The problem is the commitments: fill the plate field implies that crops receive less sunlight. And fill the world with wind turbines – apart from visual impact, for fishing and for the birds-, is causing something as curious as it is problematic. Countries that are stealing the wind from their neighbors. Wake effect. When the wind hits the wind turbine bladesthese rotate, generating kinetic energy and electricity. The wind continues its path, but after passing through a wind turbine, it does so with less force. Multiply that by fields full of these mills and we have what is known as the ‘wake effect‘ or ‘wake effect’. This air that has already passed through a wind turbine station does so with a lower speed and greater turbulence. And if this is important, it is because the wind takes time to recover: the wakes can extend more than 100 kilometers after crossing a field of windmills. wind thieves. These facilities are usually far from each other to better take advantage of the currents, but if under certain circumstances they extend tens of kilometers, and up to the aforementioned hundred, imagine the consequences for the wind turbines that remain behind that installation that receives the first “hit” of wind. It is not an assumption: there is measurements by SAR satellite that confirm that, if a wind farm is built upwind of another, the wind speed it receives is 9% lower, causing it to have a reduction between 10% and 20% compared to that first installation. This is what is known as “wind theft,” a colloquial term for something that is easy to understand, but not so easy to fix. This GIF of The Telegraph illustrates it perfectly: Princess Elisabeth. As we read in BBCthe lawyer Eirik Finseras, specialized in offshore wind energy, “is a somewhat misleading term because you cannot steal something that you cannot own. Nobody owns the wind” – del Sol, yes, a Galician -. But of course, the fact that no one owns the wind does not exempt that park on the windward side from suffering the effects of the park built on the leeward side. In the North Sea, this is already becoming a problembecause the denser and larger the wind farm, the more intense the wake effect will be. Belgium is building Princess Elisabeth, a huge park that will add a whopping 3.5 GW of offshore wind capacity to the country’s accounts. It is a really huge offshore facilitybut although it will allow the addition of those 3.5 GW, it will also affect the existing Belgian parks due to a wake that will extend 55 kilometers beyond the installation. According to the accounts of the University of Leuven, the oldest Belgian facilities located to the east will experience: An 8.5% reduction in annual electricity production. Losses of up to 15% on very windy days. Impact. That in Belgian parks, but of course, it is also an international problem because the wind does not understand borders. By 2030, it is estimated that the current capacity of offshore wind energy in the North Sea will triple. This implies that thousands of turbines will be erected in a very short time with Belgium, Germany, Denmark and the Netherlands willing to obtain, in total, 65 GW of offshore wind energy. The problem is knowing what will happen to these trails, since it is estimated that the 1,400 MW installation in the Dutch area of Borssele will cause a reduction of 2.7% on average in some Belgian wind farms. It is a very clear case of how the Netherlands is “stealing” the wind from Belgium. It is logical to understand the interest in offshore wind Bigger blades. In a report by BBCPablo Ouro, a civil engineering researcher at the University of Manchester, points out that they have been seeing wake effects for years, but that “the problem is that, to achieve emissions neutrality, we will need to triple offshore wind capacity and some of these new turbines will operate very close to those already in operation. There will be more and more crowds and the wake effects will have a greater impact.” And it is no longer a question of the number of mills, but of their dimensions. In the North Sea we are seeing efforts to achieve both greater heights for the mills themselves (to take advantage of other currents that are not being taken advantage of right now, such as larger blades that receive even more force from the wind. They are imposing mega-constructions that will also affect this wake effect, aggravating the problem. Solutions? Different countries are doing calculations. For example, in the United States, esteem that the planned offshore wind farms will produce a devastating wake effect: losses in the annual electricity production of other farms by up to 48.5 TWh per year. And there are already accusations: the Netherlands says that Belgium takes advantage of its wind, Germany says that the Netherlands is harming them… and the United Kingdom’s offshore parks stealing wind each other. The solution? Nothing simple, especially when many of these parks have either already been built or are under construction, but even so, research is being carried out to optimize the facilities. For example, adjusting turbine angles and optimizing the space between them, manufacturing higher power turbines to produce more with less or creating buffer zones between parks And, perhaps, the most difficult thing: that countries cooperate to carry out joint studies to place their facilities in the most efficient way for everyone. Images | ESMAP, G B_NZ In Xataka | In the great battle for wind turbines, Spain goes against Europe: it wants them further away than ever

the incredible secrecy with which the first iPhone was manufactured

December 13, 2025 by usatoday24

What was it like working on the iPhone original? The question has surely been on the mind of every technology enthusiast: after all, we are talking about one of the greatest advances in technological consumption of the 21st century. And it is one that has an answer. It was given by Terry LambertApple engineer, a few years ago on Quora. Lambert was part of ‘Project Purple’, a top secret project in which it was only possible to work if one accepted not only endless days, but also an environment in which secrecy was absolute. So much so that Lambert had to sign a confidentiality agreement (NDA) not only to guarantee that he would not tell anything about that project: he signed it to be able to know the name of the key project. That was just the first of obsessive security measures who managed to protect that secret until the end. Lambert was responsible for about 6% (in number of lines) of the core code of OS The first thing he said is that when he was offered to work on that project, they took him to an area of the headquarters where everyone dressed in black: that in itself was an unmistakable sign that something top secret was being worked on. Working blind, almost literally In fact, Lambert joked that if you wanted to create a cute Apple Halloween costume, all you had to do was put on a black sheet, cut out a couple of holes for the eyes, and go “secret project“. During that project he never saw the iPhone for which he was programming and debugging code: “I could only see the machine that did the remote debugging, not the actual device, but it was obviously a system based on ARM architecture.” After signing the NDA that allowed him to know the code name of the project – and of course he couldn’t discuss anything with anyone, including his family – he would end up working on something that he wasn’t even sure what it was, especially since Apple maintained completely independent groups in which they worked on small objectives that They did not allow us to know what they were working on on the whole. Another thing Apple does is give different code names for different groups. Or what is the same: you could be working on the same project as another person or group without knowing it. Neither debate it nor comment on it. Another engineer named Jerry Wang who also answered that question on Quora indicated how in fact he, who also worked on the documentation of that device and worked with the operators that launched the iPhone in the United States, did not know the project as ‘Project Purple’, but as ‘M68’. From that moment on he had access to a “secret laboratory” that was inside the main laboratory. Only a select few had access to that secret lab, but “you never got to see the design of the product, because when you’re doing that initial work, it’s all Plexiglas prototypes.” A curious detail: Lambert confessed how the cables used to “talk” to those pre-production units were, indeed, purple. In Xataka | In 2007, Steve Jobs went on stage with an iPhone that barely worked: he was saved by a script that did not allow even a detour Image | Xataka

Immediately afterwards, Intel and AMD ended up being sued

December 13, 2025 by usatoday24

The inside of a missile says much more than it seems at first glance. Beyond its military function, it is also the result of a design, manufacturing and distribution chain that crosses borders. In several analyzes carried out in Ukrainetechnicians have identified foreign components integrated into Russian weapons. That information, by itself, does not explain how they got there, but it does open an investigation that begins in the technical field and ends up connecting with international trade and the courts. In this way, that clue is transferred to the judicial field. Several civil lawsuits were filed this week in Texas state court in Dallas on behalf of dozens of Ukrainian citizens against Intel, AMD and Texas Instruments, as well as Mouser Electronics, a large components distributor linked to Berkshire Hathaway. The plaintiffs maintain that these companies did not prevent restricted chips from being resold to Russia through third parties, despite the sanctions in force. The chosen location is not coincidental, since the aforementioned companies have an operational presence in that state. The accusation in a sentence. As Bloomberg reports, The lawsuits maintain that the companies incurred what lawyers describe as “willful ignorance”, a deliberate ignorance regarding the diversion of chips to Russia through foreseeable intermediaries. According to the plaintiffs, there were sufficient signs that components from these companies were being resold in violation of US sanctions, but they allege that controls were not strengthened to prevent this. That omission is the basis of a broader accusation of corporate negligence in export control and diversion prevention. So how do the chips arrive? The background of the litigation links to investigations that have long pointed to the presence of foreign technology in Russian weapons. Vladyslav Vlasiuk, Ukrainian presidential commissioner for sanctions policy, he explained to CNN in September that many of these components are dual-use and that their entry into military programs usually occurs through intermediaries and front companies. The demands are not based only on a general approach, but on specific episodes. The writings cite five attacks that occurred between 2023 and 2025 that killed or injured civilians in Ukraine. According to the documentation presented, one of those attacks would have involved Iranian-made drones, while others are attributed to KH-101 cruise missiles and Russian-produced Iskander ballistic missiles. In several cases, the plaintiffs claim that the systems used incorporated electronic components associated with the aforementioned companies. The focus of the lawsuits is not limited to the manufacturers. Named in court documents is Mouser Electronics, a large components distributor based in Mansfield, Texas, and owned by Berkshire Hathaway since 2007, when it acquired parent company TTI. The plaintiffs allege that Mouser facilitated chip transfers to shell companies controlled by intermediaries with ties to Russia, and that its logistics decisions and operations were a relevant domestic component of the alleged conduct. Mouser and Berkshire Hathaway also did not immediately respond to requests for comment. Position of the companies and sanctions. The companies mentioned have not made public comments on the matter. In the past, however, they have said that they comply with sanctions requirements, that they ceased their activity in Russia when the war began, and that they maintain strict policies to monitor compliance. Since the start of the war, the United States has tightened controls on the export of semiconductors and other electronic components, but the results have been mixed. a report of the Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations concluded last year that components manufactured in the United States continue to appear in Russian weapons. As we can see, sanctions and export controls do not seem to be preventing Western chips from ending up in the hands of companies linked to the Russian military complex. From now on, the course of the case will depend on when the court processes the lawsuits and they become publicly visible in the judicial record. From there, the judges will decide if the litigation moves forward and with what schedule. Beyond the result, the case focuses on a question that is difficult to resolve with simple rules, how far the responsibility goes when a component is resold over and over again and ends up in a prohibited end use, with human consequences far from its point of origin. Images | Vitaly V. Kuzmin (CC BY-SA 4.0) | Rubaitul Azad In Xataka | The US has joined the “party” of China, Russia and Japan in the Pacific: with its nuclear bombers

20 years after Dolly we still haven’t cloned humans, but stopping aging is feasible: Crossover 1×32

December 13, 2025 by usatoday24

In the summer of 1996, a Scottish laboratory made a breakthrough that would forever alter our understanding of genetics and ignite intense debates about the ethics and the possibilities of cloning. That day Dolly was bornthe first mammal cloned from an adult somatic cell. This milestone, achieved by researchers at the Roslin Institute, opened a new era in genetic engineering and shattered the belief that only embryonic cells possess the potential for the complete development of a new individual. Since then there has been debate about the possibility of cloning human beings, but we have not done it and it does not seem that we will ever do it. Serezade, molecular biologist, researcher and scientific communicator, talks to us about that and many other things this week. But we also discussed with her another fascinating topic: how the latest advances seem to be achieving something long sought after: slow aging. There is a lot of fabric to cut here, and for example the environment, culture and habits shape our DNA. But there are also risks, ethics and genetic privacy intertwined. And all this raises a key question: does it make sense to be immortal? On YouTube | Crossover In Xataka | The promise of 120 years is dismantled: biology sets a life ceiling that is quite difficult to break

dealers doubt 20 days after its application

December 13, 2025 by usatoday24

It was presented on December 4 and promises to be active on January 2, 2026. That day, if everything goes ahead, we will be able to go to the dealership, commit our electric car and see a discount on the final bill. That, at least, is what was promised the day the Auto+ Plan was presented. The last to doubt this: the dealers. The presentation. It’s been eight days since The Auto+ Plan was presenteda purchase assistance program framed within the Auto Plan 2030a transversal strategy to promote the electric car and general improvements in the mobility of our country. The star measure: direct discounts on the purchase of electric cars. It is a decision that meets the demands of buyers and manufacturers who have been asking for this measure for years to encourage the expansion of this type of vehicles. And it is that, with the MOVES III Plan and in all previous editions, the delivery of aid was delayed in some cases by up to 18 months. many doubts. Despite the announcement, many doubts remained floating in the air: It is not known how much aid for electric cars will amount to. It is not known if the aid will also cover the purchase of plug-in hybrids. It is not known if the aid will have to be declared in the income tax return, although if it is applied as a discount to the purchase it is likely that this will not be the case. It has been announced that Aid from the MOVES III Plan will be covered that have not been entered but it has not been clarified how long we are talking about. To be restless. When this Auto+ Plan was announced we could expect that all agents were aware and had agreed. Much more so if we take into account that there are 20 days left until the new purchase aid is available. But the truth is that dealers are revealing their doubts. According to The Economistthe concessionaires are negotiating with the Ministry of Industry the delivery of the aid but they have a red line: they will not advance the aid. From Xataka We have contacted Faconauto, the dealer association in Spain, but they have refused to comment on the matter. The problem, they point out from the media, is that the concessionaires do not have sufficient financial health to advance the money if the State extends its subsequent income. According to data from Facoauto itself, the profitability of the sector is only 1.38% and three out of every ten dealerships are in losses. The Valencian case. One of the proposals that had been put on the table was to act the same as with the Restart Auto+ Plan when Up to 10,000 euros in aid were offered for buyers of an electric car after the DANA in Valencia. The objective was to take advantage of the forced renewal of the automobile fleet with the delivery of electric cars. Then we worked with the idea that the aid money would be deducted from the total payment for the vehicle. However, the bureaucracy made an appearance again to the point that some dealers advanced aid to customers with a discount on the purchase at the expense of their request being later approved but without prior acceptance through. In The Economist They point out that the dealers remember that this way of acting was only carried out by some brands, delivering the car before having approval for help. Furthermore, they remember that the Valencian case was exceptional and that it is difficult for something similar to be applied on a state level if they do not have the State’s commitment to deliver aid in a short period of time. 20 days left. Now, with this position of the concessionaires in front of us, the Government has less than three weeks to negotiate aid that was announced for January 2, 2026. A complex situation that is reminiscent of the last extensions of the MOVES III Plan. It must be remembered that in February 2024the Government has already promised to provide aid for the purchase of electric cars with a discount on the contract. Throughout that year, this possibility was delayed until the renewal of the MOVES III Plan arrived with the same conditions as always. That same aid program fell when meeting within the Omnibus Decree lying by the Congress of Deputies despite being announced and active. Months later, in April 2025, the MOVES III Plan came back… with the same problems as always. That is, with a management that left the client at the expense of collecting the aid until 18 months had passed in some cases. Photo | Robin Le Mee and Mohamed B. In Xataka | The best time to buy a “cheap electric car” will be never: at least that’s what Skoda thinks

For years, TV ads have been louder without violating any laws. Spain has decided that this is over

December 13, 2025 by usatoday24

A common experience among millions of viewers: you are watching your favorite series at a comfortable volume when an advertising block bursts in, forcing you to rush headlong towards the remote control. This calculated shock could have its days numbered in Spain thanks to quantifiable technical criteria to monitor the sound level of advertisements. The law. The National Markets and Competition Commission has established for the first time a series of criteria so that the sound level of the advertising blocks does not exceed that of the programs, according to the agreement INF/DTSA/083/25 published on November 20, 2025. The regulations extend the regulation that from summer 2025 DTT governs the entire audiovisual ecosystem: video streaming platforms such as YouTube and on-demand services, music applications such as Spotify, pay television and conventional and digital radio stations. The regulator warns that non-compliance constitutes a minor infraction with penalties that can reach 200,000 euros in serious cases. The technical deception: dB vs. LUFS. The advertising industry has for decades exploited a fissure in the traditional measurement of sound. Conventional decibels record the electrical amplitude of the signal, but ignore a crucial factor: how the human brain processes that sound information. Two recordings may register identical values on a traditional peak meter, and yet one is perceived as noticeably louder than the other. The secret is in the frequency composition. Our auditory system responds unevenly depending on the pitch: mid frequencies (especially between 1 and 4 kHz, where the human voice is concentrated) are much more audible to us than deep bass or extreme treble. This physiological characteristic allows advertisers to create messages that sound louder without violating technical decibel limits. The birth of the LUFS. The solution came when the International Telecommunication Union published the ITU-R BS.1770 standardadopted in August 2010 by the European Broadcasting Union. This system introduces the LUFS (Loudness Units relative to Full Scale), which integrate a weighting filter K that mathematically replicates the sensitivity of the ear. The result: a measurement that reflects actual perception, not just electrical power. Spain aligns itself with Europe. He Royal Decree 250/2025approved in March, established for the first time an objective parameter for Spanish DTT: -23.0 LUFS with a tolerance of ±1.0 LU (Loudness Unit). This figure is not arbitrary, but coincides exactly with the normalized value that the European Broadcasting Union has been recommending since 2010. The CNMC has now taken the next step and has extended these criteria beyond traditional television. Implementation. The Spanish regulator has opted for a gradual approach. The CNMC does not require platforms to reencode millions of hours of historical content immediately. The document allows operators to adopt “technical criteria that offer an equivalent level of protection”, a flexible formula that recognizes the characteristics of each medium. But implementation faces complex obstacles. While traditional television networks control every second of broadcast from a production room, the streaming It works with distributed architectures where advertising is dynamically inserted through programmatic systems. YouTube, for example, hosts content generated by millions of users with disparate equipment, from professional studios to smartphones. Technically monitoring each ad inserted in real time in this tangle becomes a considerable logistical challenge. Photo of Vadim Babenko in Unsplash / Elyas Pasban in Unsplash

The EU already has a date to charge Chinese platforms at least three euros per package. Temu had been preparing for a long time

December 13, 2025 by usatoday24

Buying something cheap online has become an almost automatic gesture for many. A pair of t-shirts, a mobile accessory or a small gadget that costs little more than a coffee arrives at home in a few days, often from platforms such as Shein, AliExpress or Temu. It is not an isolated perception. The compliance reports themselves under the Digital Services Law They show the extent to which these platforms have been integrated into the day-to-day life of digital consumption in the Old Continent. This change in habits has a very concrete translation in figures and logistics. In 2024, the European Union received 4.6 billion low-value shipments, equivalent to more than twelve million a day. According to the European Commission91% of these shipments came from China, a constant flow that has not only grown exponentially in recent years, but has put customs and control systems, designed for another volume and another reality of international trade, under unprecedented pressure. What changes come and when. Brussels’ response to this scenario has a calendar and concrete measures. It has been agreed to apply a fixed tariff of three euros to items contained in small shipments that enter the European Union and have a value of less than 150 euros. We are facing a transitional solution that will begin to be applied on July 1, 2026 and that will serve as a bridge until the entry into operation of the new European customs systemwith a large data node to centralize information and improve risk management, and with a community authority to coordinate and homogenize the application of the rules. The EU has been working for some time on a structural reform of its customs union to unify data, streamline procedures and strengthen supervision at community level. The creation of a common information system and a European customs authority seeks to correct the fragmentation between Member States, a problem that the massive increase in small shipments has made evident. Faced with increasingly atomized and low-value trade, Brussels aspires to a different model, with more coordination and a more homogeneous application of the rules throughout the internal market. Behind the scenes of the measure. The political impulse behind this reform responds to several fronts open at the same time. On the one hand, European authorities have been warning for years about undervaluation practices that distort competition and penalize businesses that do comply with the rules. Added to this are “risks to the health and safety of consumers, high levels of fraud and environmental concerns.” When is the fee paid? The key to this measure is the moment in which the tax is activated. The three-euro tariff is applied when the merchandise enters the European Union, that is, at the time of importation. This implies a fundamental difference for our purchases. If the product is shipped directly from outside the EU, the shipping is subject to that rate. Things change when the order leaves a warehouse located within the single market, the package does not cross a customs border again and the tax is not activated in this case because the import should have occurred earlier. The document approved by the EU does not say at any time that the consumer will pay this tariff directly. The rule is limited to establishing that the tax will be applied to the goods at the time of their importation. From there, the logic of the market suggests that it will be the platforms, sellers or logistics operators who manage the payment before the customs authority and then decide how to integrate that cost. In practice, the most common thing is that it ends up being reflected in the final price or in the costs of the order, that is, we would see it reflected at the time of “checkout” of our purchase. Three euros per product or per item? The Council document is precise in one key nuance. The tariff is defined as a fixed charge of three euros on items contained in small shipments, and not as a flat rate per package or as a surcharge for each individual unit. This choice of words indicates that the calculation is linked to the declared content of the shipment, and not only to the box in which it travels. In the absence of a more detailed operational guide from the authorities, and following the usual logic of customs, this allows us to interpret that several identical products would be grouped under the same item. For example, if an order includes three pairs of sneakers and three watches, the tax would not be applied six times, but rather once for the sneakers and once for the watches. That is, three euros for each type of product included in the shipment, and not for each unit purchased. Temu anticipates the change. Faced with this new scenario, Temu has been adjusting its model in Europe for some time. The platform has reinforced agreements with local logistics operators to expand delivery options and support its local seller program, with a bid to serve more orders from within the community market. In its official communications, the company notes that it expects local sellers and logistical compliance within the EU represent up to 80% of its European sales, a strategy that seeks to gain agility, shorten deadlines and adapt to a more demanding regulatory environment. The key question is whether this model pays off. Centralizing stock in the EU provides control and speed, but requires better selection of which products are offered and in what quantities. The calendar, in any case, is already defined and the countdown for the changes in the community customs system to come into force is underway. At the same time, e-commerce platforms are starting to respond. Everything indicates that part of this adjustment will end up being reflected in higher prices for some products from China, although its real scope will depend on how logistics is reorganized in the coming months. Images | Xataka with Grok | Olga Nayda In Xataka … Read more

We thought only marijuana growers were stealing electricity. Now it turns out that supermarkets too

December 12, 2025 by usatoday24

While the city slows down and most businesses close, some supermarkets continue to operate normally. They open at dawn, keep the lights on and the cold rooms running. For years, this constant consumption barely attracted attention. Until last December 2, a joint action by the Civil Guard, the National Police and the Urban Police revealed that several supermarkets in Barcelona were obtaining electricity through illegal connections to the grid. Under the magnifying glass. It was not a specific case or a single neighborhood. The inspections were distributed across Nou Barris, Sant Andreu, Sant Martí, Gràcia, Eixample and Ciutat Vella. In total, 26 supermarkets, and in 24 of them the electricity did not go through the meter. The Civil Guard opened proceedings against 26 people, of Pakistani and Bangladeshi nationality, for an alleged crime of electricity fraud. They were not small isolated businesses. Most operated as franchise supermarkets, some open 24 hours a day and belonging to well-known chains, according to The Newspaper. The performance, named Nihariwas carried out with the collaboration of Endesa technicians and Labor and Social Security inspectors, and ended with the immediate cutting off of supply in the establishments, as reported by the Urban Guard. Electricity tapped into the network. The investigation began after a complaint filed by Endesa before the Civil Guard, as pointed out The Vanguard. The electricity company had detected a suspicious pattern: businesses that, due to their activity and schedules, recorded anomalous or non-existent consumption in their contracts. Once inside the premises, the technicians verified that the electricity was obtained through illegal connections directly to the general network or public lighting. Manipulations without any type of protection or technical review, designed to avoid paying the energy bill. The fraud amounts to 2.85 million kilowatts, a figure equivalent to the annual consumption of 814 homes. A crime with risk of fire. The Civil Guard remembers, as collected The Newspaperthat illegal connections lack safety systems, adequate insulation and protection against overloads, which significantly increases the possibility of short circuits and fires. The danger is aggravated by the location of many of these supermarkets: commercial basements of residential buildings, with a large influx of people and proximity to garages, storage rooms and common areas. In this sense, the Urban Guard emphasizes that electrical fraud It is not only a crime against the energy system, but also a citizen security problem. Much more than light. The operation uncovered a wide catalog of irregularities. During the inspections, the National Police identified 59 people. Of them, five have been considered victims of labor exploitation and another five are in an irregular administrative situation. In addition, the Barcelona Urban Guard drew up 87 minutes for administrative infractions related to safety, hygiene and regulatory compliance. Among them, blocked emergency exits, absence of fire extinguishers, impractical bathrooms, lack of mandatory signs, sale of expired or spoiled food, and carrying out the activity without a license. For its part, the Civil Guard opened 16 cases due to smuggling, incorrect labeling of products, unmarked surveillance cameras, sales receipts without the businessman’s data and manipulation of scales, with a weighing favorable to the merchant. The absence of a food handling card was also detected in some workers. The same fraud, another showcase. What was previously detected in boarded-up floors and linked industrial warehouses to illegal marijuana cultivation It now appears in all-night supermarkets. The investigation confirm that electrical fraud has ceased to be a strictly clandestine phenomenon and has become established, in some cases, in apparently normal activities facing the public. The scenario changes, but not the crime. And neither are the risks. Image | Release and freepik Xataka | Spain lights up for Christmas, but an uncomfortable doubt arises on some rooftops

where, how and when to enjoy the December meteor shower

December 12, 2025 by usatoday24

The year is ending, and the last great astronomical event is here. It is about the Geminidswhich comes every mid-December to put a final touch on the year, and rejoice in our preparations for Christmas. It is the last great meteor shower of this 2025. And we are going to tell you where, how and when you can enjoy this meteor showerso that if you want to do it you don’t have problems. We are going to tell you in a simple and summarized way. It is a fairly intense meteor shower, with up to 150 meteors per hour expected. When are the Geminids 2025 The Geminids of this 2025 will visit us December 13 and 14. Its moment of maximum splendor will be at 2:30 in the morning on December 14 in Spanish peninsular time, 1:30 in the Canary Islands. The time of its maximum splendor is due to the fact that it will be when the sky is without a moon, and with only a strip of 28% of illumination. However, you can also see them at other times of those days, as well as on previous and subsequent days as well, although in this case with less intensity. How and where to see the Geminids You can see the Geminids anywhere on the peninsulaas well as in the Canary Islands. As for where to look, it is advisable to place your center of vision about 30 degrees away from the radiant (near the stars Castor and Pollux in Gemini), with the constellations of Taurus, Orion and Canis Major being the most suitable. The only requirement to be able to see them clearly is to go to an elevated area with a clear sky. It is also important to have as little light pollution as possible, which is why it is advisable to stay away from cities and urban centres. In Xataka | Meteor showers, planetary alignments and lunar phases: all the astronomical events that we have in view

The US has joined the “party” of China, Russia and Japan in the Pacific: with its nuclear bombers

December 12, 2025 by usatoday24

As if it were an air parade of an air force planetarythe sky of the Asia-Pacific has become a scene of military exhibitions that have rarely been seen outside of a major war conflict. It happens that these fireworks can lead with a single spark into something very different. The improvised aerial party. As we said, the sky of Asia is a tour de force where every time it hides lessand where you patrol, joint exercises and strategic flights function as political messages in broad daylight. Russia and China have been setting the pace with bombers and fighters over disputed seas, Japan responds by raising the profile of its air defense and, now, the United States has decided to join visibly to this choreography of power, incorporating its strategic bombers into a dynamic that reflects the extent to which the region has become one of the epicenters of global rivalry. Bombers Made in USA. The joint flight of two American B-52s with Japanese fighters over the Sea of Japan represents a qualitative leap in the signal sent from Washington, not so much because of its technical novelty as because of its symbolic load. The presence of bombers capable of carry nuclear weapons escorted by Japanese F-35s and F-15s, publicly reinforces the idea that the alliance between both countries is not rhetorical, but operational, and that the United States is willing to support Tokyo with strategic assets at a time of maximum friction with Beijing. The background. This show of force does not arise in a vacuum, but in the midst of an accelerated deterioration of relations between China and Japan that we have been telling, fed by the statements from Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi on a possible conflict scenario around Taiwan. Beijing considers these words a direct provocation and has responded combining diplomatic pressure, economic threats and a notable increase in military activity near Japanese airspace and disputed islands, raising the risk of unwanted incidents. Russia enters the scene. The previous presence of russian bombers Flying alongside Chinese aircraft near Japan and South Korea adds an additional layer of complexity to the scenario, projecting an image of strategic coordination against US allies in the region. For Tokyo, these joint patrols are not routine exercises, but a clear sign of directed pressure, which explains why the Japanese response has involved reinforcing its coordination with Washington and unambiguously accept the presence of high-profile American assets. Washington balances muscle. Although the White House has tried to reduce the drama of these flights, pointing out that they were planned in advance, the regional context gives them meaning. hard to ignore. The United States tries to maintain a delicate balance: show military commitment to Japan and deter China without completely breaking the channels of dialogue with Beijing, especially at a time when Washington continues to seek commercial stability and avoid an open escalation in the Pacific. An increasingly charged sky. With fighters blocking radarsstrategic bombers crossing disputed seas and joint exercises Happening at an almost routine pace, the airspace of East Asia has become a board where each flight counts as a political statement. The explicit input of the United States in this aerial “party” confirms that the fight between China and Japan is no longer just bilateral, but a broader reflection of the competition between great powers, one in which bombers and fighters seem to speak louder (and clearer) than diplomatic communications. Image | Japan’s Ministry of Defense In Xataka | That Chinese and Russian bombers patrol together is not surprising. That they do it against Japan and South Korea has had an immediate response In Xataka | If the question is how far the tension between China and Japan has escalated, the answer is disturbing: they are targeting each other.

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