Islanders can expect to see 80 to 100 meteors an hour on the nights of Aug. 11 and 12, peaking from about midnight to 3 a.m. Prolific Perseid meteor showers
can be seen in isles Aug. 11-12That's the prediction for this year's Perseid meteor showers from Ken Miller, director, Bishop Museum Center for Space Education.
The phenomenon occurs each year when the earth passes through the remnants of expired Comet Swift-Tuttle.
"Within a night or so of this date (Aug. 11), we should see many more meteors per hour than usual," Miller reports in the Bishop Museum planetarium's August SkyWatch.
It's best to look for the meteors after midnight, away from bright lights in urban areas, when Hawaii is turned into the direction of Earth's travel around the sun, he said.
Meteors have been observed in August since Chinese sightings in 36 A.D., and by 1866, Giovanni Virginio Schiaparelli realized the dead comet and periodic August meteors were linked, Miller said.
"The celestial trash left behind by Comet Swift-Tuttle was the cause of the Perseid meteors. The earth smashes through this debris, and the small bits of dust and sand, traveling at thousands of miles per hour through our atmosphere, burn themselves up, giving us a brief flash of light."
Also on Aug. 11, at 1:08 a.m., the moon will be lined up precisely with the sun, resulting in a total solar eclipse.
That will be spectacular for solar corona viewing by day and meteor viewing at night, Miller said.
But the eclipse won't be visible from Hawaii.
People may see it if they're traveling through Europe, from the southern tip of England to north of Paris; through Stuttgart, Germany; and into northern Turkey.
More information is available on the Internet at http://sunearth. gsfc.nasa.gov/eclipse/.
Akaka pushes for
By Pete Pichaske
economic education
Phillips News ServiceWASHINGTON -- Sen. Daniel Akaka thinks too many Americans don't know the law of supply and demand from the law of gravity, and he means to help teach them.
Hawaii's junior senator this week introduced a bill that would increase federal funding for economic education in elementary and high schools.
The bill would funnel money to the National Council on Economic Education and to state centers for such things as training teachers and disseminating information for school districts that want to add economics classes.
The NCEE is a coalition of business, education and labor groups which works to combat "economic illiteracy."
"We must work to ensure that all Americans can make informed economic and financial decisions," said Akaka in a statement. "Fighting economic illiteracy is essential to ensuring a well-educated citizenry."
Four visitors caught using Sacred Falls trail
Four California visitors were cited Tuesday for illegally using the Sacred Falls Park trail, which was closed after the May 9 fatal rockslide."We are asking the public's kokua to stay out of the valley and not to try to enter the area," said Gary Moniz, acting administrator for the state's Division of Conservation and Resources Enforcement.
"There continues to be a potential danger, and our foremost concern is to prevent any further injury. This includes injury to the public, emergency workers and law enforcement officers who may be called to respond to illegal entries."
Sacred Falls state park remains closed indefinitely. The May 9 rockslide killed eight people and injured numerous others.
An area resident reported Tuesday's violation to state officials.
A Department of Land and Natural Resources officer hiked up the trail and escorted the Sacramento residents out of the area.
Arraignment of the four hikers is scheduled for Aug. 27 at 8:30 a.m. at Kaneohe District Court. The penalty for entering a closed area is a fine of up to $500 and up to 30 days in jail.
Friends of the Library to donate $90,000
The 52nd Annual Book Sale at the McKinley High School cafeteria raised $124,000, up from $117,000 last year. An art auction earned another $14,000. After taxes and expenses, the Friends of the Library expects to donate $90,000 to the library system for new books, library materials, equipment and educational programs in the year 2000.
SO the first telephone service was recorded in 1878 -- in Maui, linking shopkeeper Charles H. Dickey's store with his home. First phone book
Could the telephone directory, then, be far behind?
Though number listings were available as early as 1886, it wasn't until 1894 that Hawaii's first official phone book debuted, according to "Firsts and Almost Firsts in Hawaii" by Robert Schmitt.
That's the year Hawaiian Bell merged with Mutual Telephone Co., launching the "Mutual Telephone Co. Official Directory, May, 1894." The directory's total Oahu listings then: 1,100.
It took 20 more years for the "Yellow Pages" to ring in. According to Schmitt, that was in the "Telephone Directory, Honolulu, April 1914," which included a "Classified Business List."
Japan's health industry is forum topic tomorrow
The commercial counselor from the U.S. Embassy in Japan will speak at a forum here tomorrow on market needs and trends relating to the medical and health industry.Craig Allen, with the U.S. & Foreign Commercial Service in Tokyo, will provide advice on how Hawaii medical and health care professionals can promote their services and expertise.
The forum, "The Best Prospects for the Export of Medical and Health Services to Japan," will be from 7:30 to 9 a.m. at the Plaza Club, 900 Fort Street Mall.
Its purpose is to help Hawaii firms take advantage of the Japan market, said Seiji Naya, director of the state Department of Business, Economic Development & Tourism.
"Japan presents a tremendous opportunity for Hawaii health care professionals in medical specialties, especially in niche areas that have strong export potential," he said.
The cost of the event is $15.
900 volunteers needed for AUW annual event
Aloha United Way needs 900 volunteers for its annual community service event on Aug. 25 from 7:45 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.."A Day of Caring" is an opportunity for the public see first-hand how the nonprofit organization uses its contributions.
Painting a youth shelter, gardening at a group home and sorting through donations at a thrift shop are some of the volunteer opportunities.
Call Piilani Pang at 536-1951 for more information.
Clarification
The July 31 letter to the editor written by Roy Westlake on the topic of campaign spending was not written by Roy J. Westlake, who lives on Bishop Street.
Correction
Police, Fire, Courts
By Star-Bulletin staffHonolulu Police Department Crimestoppers
Burglar proposes marriage to her female victim
Honolulu police say a 40-year-old woman returned to her Aiea Heights Drive home at 4:40 p.m. and found an unknown woman inside her home.When the resident asked the woman what she was doing, the suspect replied, "I want to marry you," according to a police report.
The suspect, 33, then left the home and was later apprehended in the area. She was booked for first-degree burglary.
Woman, 75, joins husband in death from car accident
LIHUE -- Eva Dickens, 75, of Lawai died last night at Wilcox Memorial Hospital of injuries she received in a two-car accident Tuesday morning, Kauai police said today.She was a passenger in a car driven by her husband, Alfred Dickens, 80, who died in the crash. Officers said Dickens pulled off a side road into the path of an oncoming pickup truck on Kaumualii Highway. The other driver received only minor injuries.
Pearl City woman critical after crashing into tree
A 26-year-old Pearl City woman was critically injured last night when the car she was driving crashed into a coconut tree on Kailua Road near Hanale Place.The woman is in Queen's Hospital with head and chest injuries.
