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Typhoon Paka was the last tropical cyclone in the 1997 Pacific hurricane and typhoon season, and was among the strongest Pacific typhoons in the month of December. Paka developed on November 28 from a trough well to the southwest of Hawaii. The storm tracked generally westward for much of its duration, and on December 7 it crossed into the western Pacific Ocean. On December 16 Paka struck Guam and Rota with winds of 230 km/h (145 mph), and it strengthened further to reach peak winds on December 18 over open waters. Subsequently, it underwent a steady weakening trend, and on December 23 Paka dissipated. Typhoon Paka first impacted the Marshall Islands, where it dropped heavy rainfall and left $80 million in damage (1997 USD, $100 million 2007 USD). Later, it passed just north of Guam, where strong winds destroyed about 1,500 buildings and damaged 10,000 more; 5,000 people were left homeless, and the island experienced a complete power outage following the typhoon. Damage on the island totaled $500 million (1997 USD, $645 million 2007 USD), which warranted the retirement of its name. Paka also caused light damage in the Northern Marianas Islands, and overall the typhoon caused no reported fatalities. (more...)

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Weekend cross-strait charter flights (pictured) between Taiwan and Mainland China resume after 59 years.
Íngrid Betancourt and 14 other hostages are rescued by the Colombian government after being held captive by FARC guerillas.
A Palestinian man drives a front-end loader into several vehicles in Jerusalem, killing three before being shot dead.
A four-day state of emergency is declared in Mongolia after violent protests follow the legislative elections.
Thousands of Chinese riot in Guizhou, targeting local government buildings and officials over an alleged police cover-up of the death of a teenage girl.
Robert Mugabe is sworn in for his sixth term as President of Zimbabwe after a controversial run-off presidential election in which opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai withdrew his candidacy due to election-related violence.

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On this day...

July 5: Independence Day in Venezuela (1811), Algeria (1962) and Cape Verde (1975); Saints Cyril and Methodius Day in the Czech Republic and Slovakia; Tynwald Day on the Isle of Man

1687 – Philosophiae Naturalis Principia Mathematica by Isaac Newton (pictured) was first published, describing his laws of motion and his law of universal gravitation.
1946 – Named after Bikini Atoll, the site of the nuclear weapons test Operation Crossroads in the Marshall Islands, the modern bikini was introduced at a fashion show in Paris.
1950 – The Israeli Knesset enacted the Law of Return, granting Jews around the world the right to migrate to and settle in Israel and gain citizenship.
1977 – General Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq overthrew Prime Minister Zulfikar Ali Bhutto of Pakistan in a military coup d'état.
2004 – Indonesia held its first direct presidential elections in its history; Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono would later be elected president during the second round of the elections on September 20.

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Today's featured picture

The American Robin (Turdus migratorius) is a migratory songbird of the thrush family. The similarity between the orange-red coloring of its breast to that of the smaller and unrelated European Robin (Erithacus rubecula) led to its common name. It is widely distributed throughout North America, wintering south of Canada from Florida to central Mexico and along the Pacific Coast.

Photo credit: Mdf

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