On January 1, 2002  the monetary unit of the European Union, the Euro, was introduced with the issuance of both currency and coins, and by March 2002 it was the sole legal tender of participating member states.

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A last-minute news update (posted 6:30 PM Pacific Time, Sunday, December 31, 2023): MAJOR X-CLASS SOLAR FLARE: Earth-orbiting satellites have just detected a major X5-class solar flare. It is the strongest flare of Solar Cycle 25 (so far) and the most powerful eruption the sun has produced since the great storms of Sept. 2017. The underlying sunspot is a giant, and it is turning toward Earth with more flares in the offing. Follow this story @ Spaceweather.com. Perhaps it is time to throw most of your crucial electronics in Faraday cans?

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Today’s feature article is a review written by SurvivalBlog Field Gear Editor Tom Christianson.