NASA's LCROSS Impacts Confirm Water in Lunar Crater   MOFFETT FIELD, California — Preliminary data from NASA's Lunar Crater Observation and Sensing Satellite, or LCROSS, indicates the mission successfully uncovered water in a permanently shadowed lunar crater. The discovery opens a new chapter in our understanding of the moon.

November 13, 2009: NASA has reported that the experiment launched last month to search for water on the moon was a success.  The finding is believed to be significant in that relatively large amounts of the polar solvent were found on the lunar surface.

The experiment in October involved the collision of the two ton rocket Centaur with the lunar crater Cabeus, located at the southern pole.  Spectroscopic measurements of the debris thrown up during the impact revealed the presence of both ice and water vapor.  Ultraviolet analysis revealed the presence of the hydroxyl radical, which is most probably formed during the solar photodegradation of water vapor.  Scientists estimated that over 200 pounds, or around 100 kg, of water was present in the debris thrown up by the impact.  The rocket is estimated to have made a hole of about 60 to 70 feed in diameter.

November 12, 2009: Some industries are immune to an economic downturn; gambling may be one of them.  Bookmaker Paddy Power announced that it will create 250 new jobs at its headquarters in Tallaght, Dublin.  The new employees will bring the headcount to over 900 people.  The company has entered into an agreement to assist the state controlled horse-race betting system, PMU, in France.   PMU will also enter the online gambling market.  The agreement with PMU is for a term of five years.

November 12, 2009: An eleventh person in Northern Ireland has died as a result of contracting swine flu.  The unnamed person is believed to have had an underlying health condition.  The Department of Health indicated that the rate of infections has slowed.

November 12, 2009: Plans to reduce councils in Northern Ireland from the current number of twenty-six to eleven are on the verge of collapse; the news was obtained in a letter leaked to the BBC.  The Environment Minister reported that time is rapidly running out to reach agreement on the structure of the new councils, leading to a collapse of the entire local government reform plan.