Globe Trotting: Connect to geysers with new app
Morning fog engulfed a village outside Izbasesti, Romania, on Tuesday. The severe fog, which affected large areas of Romania, created a unique visual effect for photographers, but caused traffic disruptions for motorists.
Connect to geysers with new app
YELLOWSTONE NATIONAL PARK, Wyo. » Yellowstone National Park fans can get a heads-up on when Old Faithful and five other geysers are set to erupt thanks to a new app available for smartphones and tablets.
Yellowstone has the largest concentration of active geysers in the world.
The geyser app also features a link to a webcam so people can view live eruptions of Old Faithful and other nearby geysers.
There’s also a FAQ section that provides answers to frequently asked questions that explain how a few geysers can be predicted and other details about Yellowstone’s geysers.
The National Park Service geysers app is available in the Google Play and Apple app stores.
Find fastest route across border
BUFFALO, N.Y. » People entering the United States from Canada or Mexico have a new tool to avoid long waits at the border.
Customs and Border Protection Commissioner R. Gil Kerlikowske on Wednesday demonstrated a new border wait time app developed by the agency to help travelers better choose when and where to enter the country.
The application lets travelers locate three ports of entry closest to their location and then map the best route based on wait times and open inspection lanes.
Kerlikowske demonstrated the app at the Peace Bridge in Buffalo, the busiest passenger crossing and second-busiest commercial crossing on the northern border. He says it’s meant to help keep traffic flowing for the sake of the economy and security.
Users don’t have to register or provide personal information.
Third airport planned for Beijing
BEIJING » China has green-lighted a third airport for Beijing in a bid to reduce congestion and chronic delays, state media reported Wednesday.
The massive new airport will be 29 miles south of the city center and take five years to build, according to the China Daily newspaper and other outlets.
When completed, it will handle 72 million passengers per year, taking the pressure off Beijing Capital International Airport in the city’s northeast, which is the world’s second busiest, handling more than 83 million passengers last year.
A second airport, Nanyuan, is a former military airfield with limited capacity.
The airport will be connected to Beijing by a 41-mile light rail line with travel times under 30 minutes.
China’s fast-growing air travel market is the world’s second biggest, but the heavy air traffic and tight control of airspace by the military have given it the world’s worst record for flight delays.
