Kauai Vacation Blog

Kauai has a lot more going on than one of the most beautiful vacation spots in the world…there’s some government activity that you might find interesting. Below is an article by the Associated Press found on NPR.org’s website.

__________________________________
HONOLULU July 31, 2009, 03:19 am ET
The latest U.S. missile defense test, conducted Thursday evening in Hawaii waters, was deemed a success as tensions continue with North Korea over that country’s missile program.

A short-range ballistic missile was fired from the Pacific Missile Range Facility on the island of Kauai and then was shot down by a three-stage interceptor missile from a destroyer, the USS Hopper.

The test, conducted by the Navy and the Department of Defense’s Missile Defense Agency, marked the 23rd firing by ships equipped with the Aegis ballistic missile defense system. With the latest test, there have been 19 successes, including the shooting down of a dead U.S. spy satellite last year.

On July 4, North Korea violated U.N. Security Council resolutions by sending seven ballistic missiles into waters off its east coast. There had been speculation North Korea would launch a missile toward Hawaii — about 4,500 miles away — to coincide with the Independence Day holiday in the U.S.

Two other Navy ships participated in Thursday’s test, dubbed “Stellar Avenger.”

According to a Missile Defense Agency statement, the Hopper fired and guided an SM-3 Block IA missile that intercepted the target missile about 100 miles above the Pacific Ocean. Meanwhile, the USS O’Kane simulated an engagement and the USS Lake Erie detected and tracked the target, the agency said.

The statement said the Hopper’s weapons system guided its missile to a “direct body to body hit, approximately two minutes after leaving the ship.”

The Lake Erie used an advanced version of the Aegis system in a simulation to evaluate how it would function with a SM-3 Block IB missile. Next year, the ship is to use the system to fire a new SM-3 Block IB, which features an improved propulsion system, signal processor and warhead seeker.

http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=111403617

posted by Sealodge from Hestara @ 4:06 PM 0 Comments

Kauai condo prices rise, sales stay flat, Pacific Business News

Great news shown in today’s Pacific Business News article for Kauai condo owners. Median prices are up by 21%. See full article below.
_________________________________________________
Wednesday, August 5, 2009, 9:50am HAST
Kauai condo prices rise, sales stay flat, Pacific Business News (Honolulu)

The median price of a condominium on Kauai rose last month on flat sales, while single-family home sales and prices dipped.

While the number of condominium sales stayed flat at 15 in July, compared to the same month in 2008, the median price rose to $525,000, up 21 percent from $435,000 last year, according to Hawaii Information Service.

The number of single-family home sales on Kauai dipped to 27, down from 31 in July 2008. The median price of a single-family home was $450,000, down 22 percent from $575,000 last year.

Year-to-date, sales of single-family homes numbered 130, down 27 percent from 179 in 2008. The median price of a single-family home for the first seven months of the year was $470,000, down 28 percent from $650,000 during the same period in 2008.

Sales of condos from January to July fell 34 percent to 85 units, down from 129 units during the same period in 2008. The year-to-date median price for a Kauai condo was $360,000, down 37 percent from $570,000 during the same period last year.

http://pacific.bizjournals.com/pacific/stories/2009/08/03/daily35.html?surround=lfn