A super-sharp Earth-imaging satellite that can detail an area the size of a baseball diamond's home plate from space is successfully blasted into orbit Saturday from California's central coast.

Ward Charcoal Oven State Park features beehive-shaped monuments to Nevada's mining past. Illustration by Mike Miller/Review-Journal

GREEN BAY In an offseason filled with challenges, changes and distractions, Mike McCarthy faced the monumental task of getting a new quarterback ready to start for the Green Bay Packers…

RAPAPORT... Diamond exploration company Tawana Resources placed a parcel of 222.71 carats of diamonds from its Kareevlei project on tender to better assess the value of the stones. The diamonds…

RAPAPORT... South Africa’s gold production fell 10.4 percent to 56,933 kilograms in the second quarter of 2008 as the country’s electricity crisis continues to impact the sector. The Chamber of…

RAPAPORT... CARLSBAD, CALIF. – Sept. 5, 2008: The Gemological Institute of America (GIA) Alumni Association will hold its GemFest Hong Kong 2008 during the Hong Kong Jewellery & Watch Fair…

RAPAPORT... Bangkok , Thailand - September 6, 2008: The Thai Gem and Jewelry Association (TGJTA) has announced it will be promoting its new service, the Online Sourcing Project (OSP), at…

According to world jewellery trade circles, it costs only $2 billion to extract about 120 million carats of rough diamonds every year. The producers sell this to traders for about…

Mining corporations have stripped tons of valuable minerals from indigenous communities around the world, leaving a legacy of destruction.

ESA's comet chaser, Rosetta, last night flew by a small body in the main asteroid belt, asteroid Steins, collecting a wealth of information about this rare type of minor Solar…

Ten International Stocks That Will Set You Up For The Long Haul

RAPAPORT... Movado Group sales for three months ending July 31, 2008, fell 7 percent to $129.7 million. Cost of sales fell 18 percent to $45.8 million, but selling and general…

RAPAPORT...  The 42nd edition of the  Bangkok Gems and Jewelry Fair will kick  off next week in Thailand. The show runs from September 11 to 15. www.bangkokgemsfair.com  Somchai Phornchindarak, the…

DIAMOND miner Trans Hex has approached De Beers Consolidated Mining with the possibility of making an offer on De Beers' struggling Namaqualand Mines.

Harare - Misheck Muhwehwesa, the Mutare–based diamond baron who was arrested after he was found in possession of 262 pieces of the precious stones, walked out of the magistrates’ court…

There is a glimmer of light for gold bulls as there are indications that the metal price may have bottomed even though oil is continuing its downward path.

A combination of low prices, weddings, Eid and Diwali are likely to give the physical market substantial support throughout much of September - the question is whether purchasers are buying more, or earlier, or both?

The outcome of the platinum party currently underway will determine the path of the sector for the next 50 years.

Media reports say Lonmin, Aquarius, Mvela could merge in a move to try and fight off hostile bid from Xstrata.

Amid market turmoil, good mentions go to Forsys Metals, Extract Resources, Kalahari Minerals, Summit Resources and Hathor Exploration.

BHP Billiton began restarting its Australian iron ore mines after shutting down operations after two miners died in separate incidents, but the Yandi mine remains shut as investigations continue.

Mark Mobius, manager of the Templeton Emerging Markets investment trust, said strong economic growth and low inflation continue to support the outlook for emerging markets.

Research by broker Wins suggests Lowland Investment trust may struggle to retain its premium rating given manager James Henderson's dip in relative performance this year.

Franklin Templeton has opened its Luxembourg-registered Templeton Emerging Markets Smaller Companies SICAV to UK investors with a sterling-denominated share class.

The exposure of Shires Income investment trust to preference shares led to a fall in net asset value over the first six months of the year.

Ahead of his resumption of work today, President Umaru Musa Yar'Adua played host to Vice-President Goodluck Jonathan, Senate President David Mark and some state governors at the Presidential Villa in Abuja last night.

The Catholic bishops here have clarified that statements by individuals, whether laity or religious, calling for the establishment of a war crimes court for Liberia are not the official position of the Church.

NFF president, Sani Lulu says Saturday's win over South Africa's Bafana Bafana is mission accomplished.

Liberian President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf and her Ghanaian counterpart, John Koufour, were among participants discussing Aid and its effectiveness toward development assistance.

UMARU Yar Adua has always taken a resigned and stoical view on the question of his health: he once said, in response to concerns about the state of his health, "my life is in the hands of God."

THE Sankwalla mountains like the letter C almost encircles Busi 2, the village where the Beechcraft 1900D crashed. The mountains did not fully encircle the village otherwise we would not have found our way into the village.

DAKAR Wednesday, September 03, 2008 (IRIN) - Experts say many of the right conditions are in place across West Africa to make cash distributions work in the current global food price crisis.

ACCRA Wednesday, September 03, 2008 (IRIN) - Environmental experts warn gas flaring by the Nigerian oil industry in the southern Delta region causes acid rain, respiratory infections, skins diseases and land degradation in dozens of local communities, but some environmentalists defend the country’s right to continue flaring.

COTONOU Wednesday, September 03, 2008 (IRIN) - The World Health Organization (WHO) estimates 500,000 people are at risk of additional flooding in Benin. WHO says expected storms, the number of people living in and near recently-flooded areas, coupled with people’s unwillingness to relocate could convulse the country in more flood chaos if there is not a forced evacuation plan.

DAKAR Tuesday, September 02, 2008 (IRIN) - The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) has launched a nutritional feeding programme at the main prison in Abidjan after the incidence of beriberi, a sickness linked to vitamin deficiency, reached epidemic levels.

Commercial threat to Nigerian spirit-god festival

Benin join giants Nigeria and Cameroon in the last phase of African qualifiers for the 2010 World Cup finals.

African immigrants react with anger in southern Spain after a Senegalese man is stabbed to death in a street.

Condoleezza Rice is expected to discuss the so-called war on terror in Morocco.

Zimbabwe opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai challenges President Mugabe to hold new polls if he will not share power.

Angola's ruling MPLA party is heading for a landslide win in parliamentary polls, preliminary results show.

Zambia`s vice president has beaten 18 others to become the presidential candidate for the ruling Movement for Multi-party Democracy (MMD). The National Executive Committee of MMD gave Rupiah Banda the nod at a meeting held at Mulungulushi International Conference Centre in Lusaka on Friday. Banda polled 43 votes as against his main rival Ngandu Magande,…

Four opposition parties in Angola want fresh polls held after chaos erupted in some parts of the country during Friday`s Parliamentary elections - the nation`s first in 16 years. They contend that ballot control was inadequate and many people were prevented from voting. Polls have officially closed. Turn out was impressive as most Angolans were voting…

Cameroon's ministry of the Urban development and the housing has commissioned experts to draft a social development plan in favour of the most vulnerable groups in the cities of Yaounde and Douala. The development plan will have to plan the actions, programs and projects to be implemented, to improve the access of the populations to water, electrical…

Malawian girls are too short in height to feature in one of Africa`s top talent search shows according to media reports. The scouting session for the M-Net Face of Africa began on Wednesday but the contestants did not meet the specified minimum height of 1.72 metres and a maximum hip measurement of 96cm. The judges for the sessions said they were looking…

Malawian girls are too short in height to feature in one of Africa`s top talent search shows according to media reports. The scouting session for the M-Net Face of Africa began on Wednesday but the contestants did not meet the specified minimum height of 1.72 metres and a maximum hip measurement of 96cm. The judges for the sessions said they were looking…

Pirates have hijacked another ship on the waters of Somalia today, two days after the same incident occurred to a French yacht with two people on board. Government officials say the gunmen have taken both vessels to, Eyl, a stronghold of bandits 835 kilometers northeast of the capital, Mogadishu. The Minister for Minerals in Puntland region, Hassan…

An oil deal has been reached between South Africa and Venezuela. The South Americans are to supply crude oil to the Southern African country as part of a new agreement to strengthen their cooperation. Petro SA based in South Africa will process the supply for consumption. When Hugo Chavez of Venezuela visited Thabo Mbeki of South Africa this week he…

Ghana and Switzerland have signed a 13-million dollar financial agreement on Wednesday. It is to improve energy distribution and good financial governance. Under the deal, 12 million dollars will be used to implement structural changes in the electricity sector. The Minister of State for finance and Economic Planning, Anthony Akoto-Osei signed for…

Donors have renewed their commitment to help the private sector grow in order to play its role effectively as a partner in Ghana's economy, the Danish Minister for Development Assistance, Ulla Tornaes said on Wednesday. She was speaking at a photo exhibition mounted by five Business Sector Advocacy Challenge (BUSAC) Fund beneficiaries in Accra.…

The American company, H.B. Fuller, has acquired majority of the assets of Egymelt, manufacturer and marketer of hot metals and special water-based adhesives in Cairo, Egypt. The Minnesota-based company announced on Wednesday that the deal opens more opportunity for them in a fast growing region. Under the terms of the deal, H.B. Fuller purchased the…

South Africa was no longer one of the world’s top 10 performing housing markets according to a UK-based property group, Knight Frank. It said that according to the latest global house price index, South Africa has moved down to 19th position in the second quarter of 2008. A year earlier it was 7th on the list. The index shows the southern…

Australia has topped the United Kingdom as the most popular destination for executives leaving South Africa according to Human Capital at Deloitte. The firm said that the average executive turnover for Africa’s powerhouse between August 1 2007 and July 31 2008 increased to 13.5 percent from 10.5 percent during the previous period. Executives…

The bodies of 30 Egyptian soldiers believed killed in the 1967 Arab-Israeli War have been found in a mass grave in the Sinai desert close to the Israeli border

Five Burundian rebels have been killed and three soldiers wounded in the worst fighting since a 2006 ceasefire

A measles epidemic in the northern Nigerian city of Kano has killed over 200 children since the start of December 2007, health workers said

Zimbabwe police chief Augustine Chihuri has warned his force will not tolerate violence in the country's elections in March