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Coropuna is a dormant volcano with several perennially snowbound conical summits in the Andes mountains of southern Peru. The highest peak of the compound volcano reaches an altitude of 6,377 metres (20,922 feet) above sea level, making the Coropuna complex the third-highest in Peru. Its thick ice cap is the most extensive in Earth's tropical zone, with several outlet glaciers stretching out to lower altitudes. Below an elevation of 5,000 metres (16,000 feet), the vegetation belts include trees, peat bogs and grasses, as well as agricultural areas and pastures. The Coropuna complex consists of several stratovolcanos composed chiefly of ignimbrites and lava flows, on a basement formed by similar material from the Middle Miocene. The complex has been active for at least five million years. Current activity occurs exclusively in the form of hot springs. The Inca archaeological site of Mawk'allaqta is on the volcano's slopes. (Full article...)

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A shoe mirror

... that shoe-mirrors were reportedly banned (example pictured) at Brigham Young University?
... that Nebraska once sued a gremlin?
... that Cyril Croker was a member of the Suicide Squad?
... that on this day in 1966, California radio stations KAHR and KVIP switched frequencies, leading to "mass confusion"?
... that Caesar studied German forests before turning to politics?
... that a NASA essay collection said ancient carvings "might have been made by aliens"?
... that Thanos served in the army, while Thanos was a police officer?
... that an Elvin man sang Poems and Songs of Middle Earth?
... that a common way to travel to another world is to be hit by a truck?
... that Darth Vader's anal shield has a "pronounced bell shape"?

In the news

Jack Dongarra

Jack Dongarra (pictured) wins the Turing Award for his contributions to high-performance computing.
Scientists announce the discovery of Earendel, the farthest known individual star at 12.9 billion light-years away from Earth.
CODA wins Best Picture and Dune wins in six categories at the Academy Awards.
The Labour Party, led by Robert Abela, wins the most seats in the Maltese general election.

On this day

April 1: Iranian Islamic Republic Day (1979)

Two men marrying in Amsterdam, 1 April 2001

1293 – Robert Winchelsey left England for Rome to be consecrated Archbishop of Canterbury, but a papal vacancy delayed the ceremony.
1833 – Mexican Texans met at San Felipe de Austin to begin the Convention of 1833.
1941 – Soviet border guards opened fire on civilians attempting to cross the border from the Soviet Union to Romania near Fântâna Albă, killing between 44 and 3,000 people.
2001 – Same-sex marriage in the Netherlands was legalised (wedding pictured), with the country becoming the first to do so.

Franz Egon von Fürstenberg-Heiligenberg (d. 1682)
Frederick Denison Maurice (d. 1872)
Anne McCaffrey (b. 1926)

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Micronesian imperial pigeon

There are 34 species of birds that have been recorded living in the wild on Nauru, a small atoll in the Pacific Ocean with an equatorial climate. One species is endemic to the island, two were introduced by humans, and one, the zebra finch, is now locally extinct on Nauru. Out of the 25 species of birds that have been confirmed to occur natively on Nauru, 18 are non-breeding visitors. Only two land birds, the Micronesian imperial pigeon (example pictured) and the Nauru reed warbler, breed on Nauru. The island's environment has been described as one of the world's most modified due to surface mining for phosphate, bombing during World War II, and rapid urbanisation. Habitat destruction has most likely caused a decline in the numbers of some species, such as the Micronesian imperial pigeon and the black noddy. (Full list...)

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A ha-ha is a recessed landscape design element that creates a vertical barrier while preserving an uninterrupted view of the landscape beyond. The design includes a turfed incline that slopes downward to a sharply vertical face, typically a masonry retaining wall. Ha-has are used in landscape design to prevent access to a garden, such as by grazing livestock, without obstructing views. In security design, they are used to deter vehicular access to a site while minimizing visual obstruction. The name ha-ha is thought to have stemmed from the exclamations of surprise by those coming across them, as the walls were intentionally designed so as not to be visible on the plane of the landscape. This picture shows a ha-ha at Hopetoun House in West Lothian, Scotland, which keeps animals off the lawn while remaining unseen from the main house, visible here in the background. The wall disappears from view as it curves away to the left of the photograph.

Photograph credit: Andrew Shiva

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