DON'T Try this at Home: Drivers from the Red Bull Formula 1 team yesterday showed off their “auto acrobatics” for a crowd near La Sabana park, on the western edge of San José. The event, organized by the Roadway Safety Council (CONSEVI), aimed to teach young people the importance of responsible, safe driving.

The U.S. National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) plans to make Costa Rica its base of operations for research on the impact of tropical clouds on global warming.

Korean Film Festival
“Por Puro Amor,” today; “Area de Seguridad Compartida,” tomorrow; “Camino a Casa ,” Wednesday; “Casándose con la Mafia,” Thursday; “Bienvenido a Dongmakgol,” Friday; “El Rey y el Comerciante,” Saturday; all at 6 p.m., Calderón Guardia Museum, Barrio Escalante, San José. Info: 222-6392.

Sneak Preview of “The Night of the Iguana”
Play in English at the Little Theatre Group's Open House, 7 p.m., Blanche Brown Theatre, Bello Horizonte, Escazú, west of San José. Info: 355-1623.

Citing the steady showers that have fallen during the past few days and reports that the rainy season will soon be in full effect, President Oscar Arias Friday announced that the country's hydroelectric plants have been at least partially refueled and power rationing is no longer necessary.

Arias told this good news to a country that has been dealing with power rationing for the past couple of weeks during the inauguration of a new hydroelectric plant at San Miguel de Sarapiquí, in north-central Costa Rica.

At his side, Costa Rican Electricity Institute (ICE) president Pedro Pablo Quirós said that a recent helicopter flight over the country's main dams confirmed that they have sufficient water to produce their share of the country's electricity without rationing, according to a statement from Casa Presidencial. Additionally, the National Meteorological Institute (IMN) is predicting more rains to come.

“The power outages have hurt Costa Ricans and the national economy a lot; however, Pedro Pablo Quirós tells us that if the rains continue everything will normalize; hopefully, that's how God wants it,” Arias said.

Costa Ricans have been making due with an inconsistent energy supply since April 19. The Chamber of Industries last week estimated that the country's businesses lost $20 million because of the blackouts (TT, May 4).

The President's welcome announcement was made during the inauguration of the new Cariblanco hydroelectric plant in San Miguel de Sarapiquí, which will provide energy to 110,000 homes. It will produce 82 megawatts, upping the country's total energy-producing capacity to 2,176 megawatts, the statement said. The $170 million project was completed six months ahead of schedule.

-Tico Times

What started out as a regular afternoon with his friends at the northern Caribbean Río Tortuguero turned out to be the last for 13-year-old Breydi Escorcia, who was killed by a crocodile in the river Friday, according to the daily La Nación.

A crocodile measuring about six meters grabbed Escorica's foot and pulled him under water. His friend Luis Wilson said that the boy, knowing his death was near, cried out a final farewell to his brother and told him to say goodbye to their father. He managed to warn his friends to never swim in the river again.

Escorcia, who often played in the river, had apparently been attacked by the crocodile, known in the community as Juancho, on two previous occasions, his friends told La Nación. Both times, he had managed to escape.

Members of the San Francisco de Tortuguero community began searching for his body Friday and continued searching Saturday and yesterday. At press time yesterday, there were no reports of his body being found. Some in the community have said they also want to find and kill the crocodile.

Community members say Escorcia's death marked the first time a crocodile in Río Tortuguero has killed a human being; in the past, these reptiles have killed pigs, dogs and other domestic animals.

-Tico Times

The U.S. National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) plans to make Costa Rica its base of operations for research on the impact of tropical clouds on global warming.

The research will take place during July and August, when three NASA airplanes circle the skies above Costa Rica and Panama, collecting atmospheric data, according to the daily La Nación.

Representatives of the National Center for High Technology (CENAT) and NASA signed an agreement this week that will allow these planes to be operated from a NASA hanger at Juan Santamaría International Airport, just northwest of San José.

CENAT director Pedro León told the daily this will be the largest mission carried out by NASA outside the United States. Along with the airplanes, 230 NASA scientists and technicians will work on the mission, which will cost an estimated $20 million.

They will be observing descending and ascending air currents along the coasts of Costa Rica and the Gulf of Panama to investigate how these currents could contribute to global warming.

Additionally, they will research cirrus clouds to find out how their ice crystals affect heat escaping the earth's surface.