D Gukesh crowned world champion

 

Chess greats, including Viswanathan Anand, Garry Kasparov and the Polgar sisters, were amongst the many who congratulated D Gukesh for his World Championship triumph. Gukesh defeated China's Ding Liren in the title match in Singapore.

In Short

D Gukesh defeated Ding Liren to become the 18th world chess champion

Viswanathan Anand led the tribute to the youngest-ever world champion

Garry Kasparov urged India to build on its recent success in chess

India’s D Gukesh became the toast of the chess world after his monumental achievement on Thursday, December 12. The 18-year-old became the first teenager to win the World Chess Championship after beating China’s Ding Liren 7.5-6.5 in a closely fought title clash. Gukesh also became only the second Indian after the legendary Viswanathan Anand to win the prestigious title.

After the victory, Gukesh was overwhelmed as he cried tears of joy. His composure and humility shone through when he sat back to arrange the pieces on the board and applauded his opponent later in the day.

PSLV XL Proba-3 Launch

 PSLV XL Proba-3 Launch: ISRO successfully launches ESA’s mission to study sun’s corona

The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) successfully launched the European Space Agency's (ESA) Proba-3 mission aboard its trusted PSLV-C59 rocket on Thursday, a major milestone in international space collaboration.

The Proba-3 mission consists of two satellites, Coronagraph (310 kg) and Occulter (240 kg), designed to study the Sun’s corona, the outermost layer of its atmosphere.

S. Somanath, the chairman of ISRO, acknowledged that the mission has been accomplished successfully.

The satellites will operate as one system, flying in precise formation 150 meters apart to enable advanced solar observation.

PSLV-C59, undertaking its 61st flight, will place the satellites into a highly elliptical orbit 18 minutes after lift-off.

Once operational, the Occulter satellite will block the Sun’s disk, allowing the Coronagraph to study the surrounding atmosphere, where space weather originates.


The mission aims to explore the corona, which is significantly hotter than the Sun’s surface and a critical area for understanding solar activity.

India win 5th junior Asia Cup title

 

Muscat, Dec 4: Araijeet Singh Hundal slammed four goals as defending champions India defeated arch-rivals Pakistan 5-3 in the summit clash to win a hat-trick of titles in the men’s junior Asia Cup here on Wednesday.

This was India’s fifth title in the continental tournament, having previously won the crown in 2004, 2008, 2015 and 2023.
The tournament was not held in 2021 due to COVID-19 pandemic.
Araijeet converted three penalty corners in the fourth, 18th and 54th minutes besides finding the net from a field effort in the 47th minute. Dilraj Singh (19th) was the other goal getter for India.
For Pakistan, Sufyan Khan (30th, 39th) converted two penalty corners, while Hannan Shahid scored from field play in the third minute.
Japan defeated Malaysia 2-1 to claim the third spot earlier in the day.
There was hardly anything to differentiate between the two sides as both India and Pakistan fought hard for ball possession in the first quarter.
The highlight of the first quarter was ariel passes employed by both the teams.
But Pakistan had the first laugh, striking as early as the third minute through a field goal from Shahid.
India didn’t sit back and secured their first penalty corner seconds later, and Araijeet stepped up to draw level with a powerful drag-flick to the right of Pakistan goalkeeper.
India upped their game in the second quarter and secured their second penalty corner in the 18th minute and Araijeet struck again with another powerful flick.
A minute later, a fine field goal by Dilraj extended India’s lead to 3-1.
Pakistan, however, reduced the margin in the 30th minute through a penalty corner conversion by Sufyan.
Pakistan were the better side on display after the change of ends and they drew level in the 39th minute through another penalty corner conversion by Sufyan.
India secured their third penalty corner in the 47th minute, but Araijeet’s effort was saved by Pakistan goalkeeper Muhammad Janjua.
Araijeet, however, was not to be denied his hat-trick as he found the net from a field effort seconds later to hand India the lead again.
India pressed hard on the Pakistan citadel in the final 10 minutes and secured a few more penalty corners and Araijeet found the net again from a fine variation to make the scoreline 5-3

About Rafael Nadal tennis player

 Rafael Nadal Parera (born 3 June 1986 in Manacor, Majorca, Spain) is a Spanish professional tennis player who has won 22 Grand Slam singles titles; fourteen at the French Open, four at the US Open, two at Wimbledon and two at the Australian Open. He has been ranked number one in the world for 209 weeks. He plays very well on clay courts, and many people regard Nadal as the greatest clay-court tennis player in history. He plays tennis with his left hand.

Nadal has won 36 ATP Masters Series titles and the 2008 Olympic gold medal in singles. He is a part of the Spain Davis Cup team and has won the cup four times, in 2004, 2008, 2009, and 2011.

Nadal is often known simply as Rafa. He has rivalries against Roger Federer, Novak Djokovic and Andy Murray. Nadal is agnostic.

Tennis Player Rafael Nadal Retirement

 

Rafael Nadal Retirement: Rafael Nadal's glorious career ended on a bittersweet note as Spain lost their quarter-finals to the Netherlands in Mallaga on Tuesday. Nadal lost the last match of his professional career, but only after showcasing glimpses of his famous fighting spirit.

In Short

Rafael Nadal played his last professional tennis match on Tuesday

True to his famous never-say-die attitude, Nadal fought valiantly in his last match

Nadal reflected on his career with characteristic humility while addressing fans

Like a gladiator bidding farewell to the arena, Rafael Nadal was overcome with emotion as the final chapter of his extraordinary tennis saga unfolded.

The tennis great played the final match of his professional career on Tuesday, November 19. In front of a packed crowd at his home in Málaga, the Spaniard brought the curtain down on one of the most inspiring sporting journeys in history. Nadal lost his last singles match while representing Spain in the Davis Cup Finals quarter-final against the Netherlands. His hopes of an extended farewell were dashed as Spain fell 2-1 in the tie.

Nadal’s reddened eyes brimmed with tears as he stepped onto the court to address the thousands of fans for one last time. Chants of "Rafa, Rafa" reverberated across the venue as Nadal expressed his gratitude for the fortune and success that defined his career.

Earlier this year, Nadal had announced his retirement, confirming he would hang up his boots at the conclusion of the Davis Cup Finals.

"The titles, the numbers—they’re there, and people probably know that. What I’d like to be remembered for more is as a good person from a small village in Mallorca," he said, prompting thunderous applause from the crowd.

7 continents of the world

 7 continents of the world

The widely recognized all the 7 continents are listed by size below, from biggest to smallest.

Asia includes 50 countries, and it is the most populated continent, the 60% of the total population of the Earth live here.

Africa comprises 54 countries. It is the hottest continent and home of the world's largest desert, the Sahara, occupying the 25% of the total area of Africa.

North America includes 23 countries led by the USA as the largest economy in the world.

South America comprises 12 countries. Here is located the largest forest, the Amazon rainforest, which covers 30% of the South America total area.

Antarctica is the coldest continent in the world, completely covered with ice. There are no permanent inhabitants, except of scientists maintaining research stations in Antarctica.

Europe comprises 51 countries. It is the most developed economically continent with the European Union as the biggest economic and political union in the world.

Australia includes 14 countries. It is the least populated continent after Antarctica, only 0.2% of the total Earth population live here.

Continents by population from largest to smallest

#	Continent	PopulationApril 2024	Population Prospects2050
1	Asia	4,785,060,100	5,292,947,600
2	Africa	1,494,993,900	2,485,135,500
3	Europe	741,651,800	703,007,500
4	North America	608,160,000	679,488,000
5	South America	442,860,800	491,078,600
6	Australia	46,109,200	57,834,400
7	Antarctica	no permanent population	no data

Continents by area from largest to smallest

#	Continent	Area (km2)	Area (mi2)
1	Asia	44,579,000	17,212,000
2	Africa	30,370,000	11,726,000
3	North America	24,709,000	9,540,000
4	South America	17,840,000	6,890,000
5	Antarctica	14,000,000	5,405,000
6	Europe	10,180,000	3,930,000
7	Australia	8,600,000	3,320,000

Top countries by per capita income

 Gross Domestic Product (GDP) per capita shows a country's GDP divided by its total population. The table below lists countries in the world ranked by GDP at Purchasing Power Parity (PPP) per capita, along with the Nominal GDP per capita. PPP takes into account the relative cost of living, rather than using only exchange rates, therefore providing a more accurate picture of the real differences in income.

Country	GDP (PPP) per capita (2022)	GDP (nominal) per capita (2022)	vs. World PPP GDP per capita ($20,645)
1	Luxembourg	$142,214	$125,935	689%
2	Singapore	$127,565	$82,619	618%
3	Ireland	$126,905	$103,570	615%
4	Norway	$114,899	$106,155	557%
5	Qatar	$114,648	$82,040	555%
6	United Arab Emirates	$87,729	$49,554	425%
7	Switzerland	$83,598	$91,866	405%
8	United States	$76,399	$74,554	370%
9	Denmark	$74,005	$66,985	358%
10	Netherlands	$69,577	$55,356	337%

Top 10 Countries ranked area

#	Country	Tot. Area (Km²)	Tot. Area (mi²)	Land Area (Km²)	Land Area (mi²)	% of world landmass
1	Russia	17,098,242	6,601,665	16,376,870	6,323,142	11.0 %
2	Canada	9,984,670	3,855,101	9,093,510	3,511,022	6.1 %
3	China	9,706,961	3,747,877	9,388,211	3,624,807	6.3 %
4	United States	9,372,610	3,618,783	9,147,420	3,531,837	6.1 %
5	Brazil	8,515,767	3,287,955	8,358,140	3,227,095	5.6 %
6	Australia	7,692,024	2,969,906	7,682,300	2,966,151	5.2 %
7	India	3,287,590	1,269,345	2,973,190	1,147,955	2.0 %
8	Argentina	2,780,400	1,073,518	2,736,690	1,056,641	1.8 %
9	Kazakhstan	2,724,900	1,052,089	2,699,700	1,042,360	1.8 %
10	Algeria	2,381,741	919,595	2,381,740	919,595	1.6 %

Total Area = land area + water bodies (lakes, reservoirs, and rivers) Km² = square kilometers | mi² = square miles

Top 8 Countries by Population

 The top 8 countries by population in 2024 are: 

• India: 1,450,935,791 
• China: 1,419,321,278 
• United States: 345,426,571 
• Indonesia: 283,487,931 
• Pakistan: 252,363,571 
• Turkey: Population grew by more than 12% from 2013 to 2023 
• Iran: Population has steadily grown for decades, rising by nearly 50% since 1993 
• Vietnam: Population grew by nearly 10% from 2013 to 2023 

Organizations like the UN Population Division use data sources like censuses, surveys, and birth and death records to calculate population estimates. 

The world's population distribution is changing rapidly. Countries like India and Nigeria are experiencing significant growth due to high birth rates and youthful demographics. In contrast, nations like China and Russia face challenges related to ageing populations and declining birth rates.