Millions of people in the US looked to the skies on Monday in the hope of seeing the total solar eclipse.
While not visible across the entire country, people in 15 US states were able to view the phenomenon, which first became visible from Mexico's Pacific coast.
In the city of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, where residents could witness a near total solar eclipse, the spectacle was the talk of the town.
News outlets were focused on the weather, with regular bulletins – and to the disappointment of many, the forecast was cloudy.
At Salem’s Market and Grill in the city’s historic Hill District, advertisements taped to a wall near the entrance touted events around the eclipse.
Abdullah Salem, owner of the grocery shop, said his children’s school closed for the event.
“I won’t be watching it, though – I work seven days a week,” he told The National.
Hundreds of people descended on the hills of Pittsburgh’s Riverview Park before the skies the north-eastern US began to darken.
The Pittsburgh Parks Conservancy ran out of glasses to give to people, but said many came with their own and shared with one another.
Matthew Leman, director of operations and visitor engagement for the Pittsburgh Parks Conservancy, said Riverview Park welcomed up to 500 people to view the eclipse.
“People have come from all over,” he said. "[What] we're here to do is to get people back outside again, back out and experiencing the parks.”
People of all ages looked to the sky and took photos, despite the cloudy weather.
It was an upbeat atmosphere, with music blaring from a solar-powered music system set up by Jerome Jones II of Zero Fossil, which offers event services powered by solar energy.
“Here in Pittsburgh, we're only at 98 per cent [totality], so we still get sun and solar power – so we're good,” he told The National.
Other residents were hoping for a break in the clouds when they gathered at eclipse parties across the city, including at Pittsburgh’s Allegheny Observatory and Carnegie Science Centre.
At the University of Pittsburgh in the city’s Oakland area, eclipse viewing glasses were handed out to students and staff.
Alexandra Weiner, who teaches mathematics, said she knew a lot of people who travelled north to Ohio to watch the total eclipse.
“I might go to Mount Washington later to watch it happen over Pittsburgh.”
The National spoke with Yao and Bernard, who were selling solar eclipse glasses at Schenley Plaza – and they said business was “awesome”.
“The weather is not perfect,” said Yao, but she expressed excitement at being part of something that won't happen again for many years.
More than 30 million people live in the path of the total eclipse, with millions more who travelled to cities such as Pittsburgh as well as Austin, Texas, and Indianapolis, Indiana, to witness the spectacular cosmic event.
Cities across Mexico, the US and Canada host more than 110,000 active short-term rental listings on the eclipse’s path.
Searches on Airbnb for stays along the route surged 1,000 per cent ahead of the event, the company said.
Airbnb added that almost 90 per cent of its listings have been booked.
Jefferson, Vermont, is the town with the highest occupancy rate, at 99.2 per cent, for its 512 short-term listings.
The eclipse is expected to generate $6 billion in economic impact, including $1.6 billion in spending by visitors, according to The Perryman Group consultancy.
The economic benefit in Texas, where 12 million residents live on the eclipse’s path, will reach nearly $1.4 billion.
Kyle Fitzgerald contributed to this report from Washington
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More from Neighbourhood Watch:
Red flags
- Promises of high, fixed or 'guaranteed' returns.
- Unregulated structured products or complex investments often used to bypass traditional safeguards.
- Lack of clear information, vague language, no access to audited financials.
- Overseas companies targeting investors in other jurisdictions - this can make legal recovery difficult.
- Hard-selling tactics - creating urgency, offering 'exclusive' deals.
Courtesy: Carol Glynn, founder of Conscious Finance Coaching
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Student Of The Year 2
Director: Punit Malhotra
Stars: Tiger Shroff, Tara Sutaria, Ananya Pandey, Aditya Seal
1.5 stars
The specs
Engine: 4.0-litre V8 twin-turbocharged and three electric motors
Power: Combined output 920hp
Torque: 730Nm at 4,000-7,000rpm
Transmission: 8-speed dual-clutch automatic
Fuel consumption: 11.2L/100km
On sale: Now, deliveries expected later in 2025
Price: expected to start at Dh1,432,000
Company Fact Box
Company name/date started: Abwaab Technologies / September 2019
Founders: Hamdi Tabbaa, co-founder and CEO. Hussein Alsarabi, co-founder and CTO
Based: Amman, Jordan
Sector: Education Technology
Size (employees/revenue): Total team size: 65. Full-time employees: 25. Revenue undisclosed
Stage: early-stage startup
Investors: Adam Tech Ventures, Endure Capital, Equitrust, the World Bank-backed Innovative Startups SMEs Fund, a London investment fund, a number of former and current executives from Uber and Netflix, among others.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
MATCH INFO
Champions League quarter-final, first leg
Ajax v Juventus, Wednesday, 11pm (UAE)
Match on BeIN Sports
Iraq negotiating over Iran sanctions impact
- US sanctions on Iran’s energy industry and exports took effect on Monday, November 5.
- Washington issued formal waivers to eight buyers of Iranian oil, allowing them to continue limited imports. Iraq did not receive a waiver.
- Iraq’s government is cooperating with the US to contain Iranian influence in the country, and increased Iraqi oil production is helping to make up for Iranian crude that sanctions are blocking from markets, US officials say.
- Iraq, the second-biggest producer in the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries, pumped last month at a record 4.78 million barrels a day, former Oil Minister Jabbar Al-Luaibi said on Oct. 20. Iraq exported 3.83 million barrels a day last month, according to tanker tracking and data from port agents.
- Iraq has been working to restore production at its northern Kirkuk oil field. Kirkuk could add 200,000 barrels a day of oil to Iraq’s total output, Hook said.
- The country stopped trucking Kirkuk oil to Iran about three weeks ago, in line with U.S. sanctions, according to four people with knowledge of the matter who asked not to be identified because they aren’t allowed to speak to media.
- Oil exports from Iran, OPEC’s third-largest supplier, have slumped since President Donald Trump announced in May that he’d reimpose sanctions. Iran shipped about 1.76 million barrels a day in October out of 3.42 million in total production, data compiled by Bloomberg show.
- Benchmark Brent crude fell 47 cents to $72.70 a barrel in London trading at 7:26 a.m. local time. U.S. West Texas Intermediate was 25 cents lower at $62.85 a barrel in New York. WTI held near the lowest level in seven months as concerns of a tightening market eased after the U.S. granted its waivers to buyers of Iranian crude.
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Tearful appearance
Chancellor Rachel Reeves set markets on edge as she appeared visibly distraught in parliament on Wednesday.
Legislative setbacks for the government have blown a new hole in the budgetary calculations at a time when the deficit is stubbornly large and the economy is struggling to grow.
She appeared with Keir Starmer on Thursday and the pair embraced, but he had failed to give her his backing as she cried a day earlier.
A spokesman said her upset demeanour was due to a personal matter.
KILLING OF QASSEM SULEIMANI
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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Tips for job-seekers
- Do not submit your application through the Easy Apply button on LinkedIn. Employers receive between 600 and 800 replies for each job advert on the platform. If you are the right fit for a job, connect to a relevant person in the company on LinkedIn and send them a direct message.
- Make sure you are an exact fit for the job advertised. If you are an HR manager with five years’ experience in retail and the job requires a similar candidate with five years’ experience in consumer, you should apply. But if you have no experience in HR, do not apply for the job.
David Mackenzie, founder of recruitment agency Mackenzie Jones Middle East
'Gold'
Director:Anthony Hayes
Stars:Zaf Efron, Anthony Hayes
Rating:3/5
The specs
Engine: 3.0-litre six-cylinder turbo
Power: 398hp from 5,250rpm
Torque: 580Nm at 1,900-4,800rpm
Transmission: Eight-speed auto
Fuel economy, combined: 6.5L/100km
On sale: December
Price: From Dh330,000 (estimate)
The details
Colette
Director: Wash Westmoreland
Starring: Keira Knightley, Dominic West
Our take: 3/5
The Pope's itinerary
Sunday, February 3, 2019 - Rome to Abu Dhabi
1pm: departure by plane from Rome / Fiumicino to Abu Dhabi
10pm: arrival at Abu Dhabi Presidential Airport
Monday, February 4
12pm: welcome ceremony at the main entrance of the Presidential Palace
12.20pm: visit Abu Dhabi Crown Prince at Presidential Palace
5pm: private meeting with Muslim Council of Elders at Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque
6.10pm: Inter-religious in the Founder's Memorial
Tuesday, February 5 - Abu Dhabi to Rome
9.15am: private visit to undisclosed cathedral
10.30am: public mass at Zayed Sports City – with a homily by Pope Francis
12.40pm: farewell at Abu Dhabi Presidential Airport
1pm: departure by plane to Rome
5pm: arrival at the Rome / Ciampino International Airport
The Bio
Hometown: Bogota, Colombia
Favourite place to relax in UAE: the desert around Al Mleiha in Sharjah or the eastern mangroves in Abu Dhabi
The one book everyone should read: 100 Years of Solitude by Gabriel Garcia Marquez. It will make your mind fly
Favourite documentary: Chasing Coral by Jeff Orlowski. It's a good reality check about one of the most valued ecosystems for humanity
The National's picks
4.35pm: Tilal Al Khalediah
5.10pm: Continous
5.45pm: Raging Torrent
6.20pm: West Acre
7pm: Flood Zone
7.40pm: Straight No Chaser
8.15pm: Romantic Warrior
8.50pm: Calandogan
9.30pm: Forever Young
RedCrow Intelligence Company Profile
Started: 2016
Founders: Hussein Nasser Eddin, Laila Akel, Tayeb Akel
Based: Ramallah, Palestine
Sector: Technology, Security
# of staff: 13
Investment: $745,000
Investors: Palestine’s Ibtikar Fund, Abu Dhabi’s Gothams and angel investors
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