International nonprofit wants to protect moon sites from space tourism
For the first time ever, the World Monuments Fund, whose mission is to preserve cultural heritage sites around the globe, is now setting its sights beyond Earth. The organization, founded in 1996, announced on Wednesday, Jan. 15, that the moon is among 25 at-risk sites, with the expectation that trips to the lunar surface will become the norm in the not-so-distant future.
The WMF warns that moon tourism could someday threaten more than 90 lunar landing and impact sites, including Tranquility Base, where U.S. astronaut Neil Armstrong took his first steps on the moon.
WMF officials said they fear the lunar landscape may be victim to looters looking for souvenirs and private lunar exploration, potentially destroying iconic footprints and tracks that are part of human history if something isn’t done to protect them now.
The organization is urging international collaboration to preserve the moon, but currently no such organization exists, and no one country can lay claim to the Earth’s only natural satellite.
The WMF creates the at-risk list to raise awareness and spur action to preserve important artifacts and sites around the world, and now space.
House Republicans block release of Matt Gaetz ethics report
Republicans block efforts by their Democratic colleagues to release the House Ethics Committee’s report on its investigation into former Congressman Matt Gaetz. And the manhunt continues for the gunman in the killing of the UnitedHealthcare CEO. These stories and more highlight your Unbiased Updates for Friday, Dec. 6, 2024.
House Republicans block release of Matt Gaetz ethics report
The House Ethics Committee’s report on its investigation into former Congressman Matt Gaetz will not be made public — at least for now. Thursday, Dec. 5, House Republicans blocked two separate Democratic resolutions to release the report, voting to refer the matter back to the committee.
Lawmakers voted along almost entirely party lines to table an effort from Rep. Sean Casten (D-IL) to force the report’s immediate release, saying the former Florida congressman is no longer under the House’s jurisdiction because he resigned.
Gaetz left Congress last month after President-elect Donald Trump announced he was nominating the Republican lawmaker to become the nation’s next attorney general. That all happened just days before the ethics report was supposed to be released.
Gaetz later withdrew from consideration for the job after it became clear he would not get the Senate support needed to win confirmation, amid allegations of sexual misconduct with a minor and illicit drug use. He’s also denied those allegations.
Another effort by Democratic Congressman Steve Cohen of Tennessee was also blocked.
Casten blasted the House’s decision in a statement after the vote, saying, “Today, the majority of the House of Representatives took the easy way out. They could have ensured a vote on whether or not former members should be held accountable when they face serious and credible allegations of sexual misconduct — including having sex with minors. Instead, the House voted to sweep these allegations under the rug and set an unfortunate precedent that, if you are ever facing scrutiny, resigning from Congress can make your problems go away.”
Casten added he will continue to try to get the report released.
Tonight the House of Representatives voted to sweep credible allegations of sexual misconduct under the rug.
I retain options to pursue the release of the Gaetz Report.
Congressman Michael Guest (R-MS), the committee chairman, said there no longer is the same urgency to release the report because Gaetz has left Congress and stepped aside as Trump’s choice to head the Justice Department.
Elon Musk spent more than $250 million getting Trump re-elected
Billionaire Elon Musk spent almost a quarter of a billion dollars in supporting Donald Trump’s reelection, according to Federal Election Commission filings released late Thursday, Dec. 5. While that accounts for just a fraction of Musk’s wealth as the richest man in the world, it’s a massive amount to come from just one single donor.
Musk donated most of that money to his America PAC, making three donations of $25 million each in the final weeks of the race. Over the course of the campaign, he gave America PAC a total of $239 million in cash and in-kind contributions.
Musk also spent more than $40 million on checks to voters in swing states who signed a petition in support of the Constitution.
According to the filings, Musk also put $20 million into a PAC named after the late liberal Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg. That PAC was behind political ads claiming Trump does not support a federal abortion ban and he and Ginsburg had that in common.
New images released as manhunt continues in UnitedHealthcare CEO killing
Police have released new information about the suspect in the killing of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson as the manhunt continues for the gunman. Investigators released new images Thursday of a hooded man who they say is “a person of interest” wanted for questioning in the slaying of the health insurance executive.
Police sources confirmed to multiple news outlets the images were taken from a surveillance camera inside a hostel on Manhattan’s Upper West Side. Officials said the man used a fake New Jersey ID to check into the hostel.
The sources said the suspect is believed to have traveled from Atlanta to New York City on a Greyhound bus the Sunday before Thanksgiving, Nov. 24, then later checked in to the hostel. Greyhound is reportedly cooperating with the investigation.
The gunman shot Thompson multiple times at point-blank range as he was walking into a New York City Hilton hotel. He was taken to a nearby hospital where he was pronounced dead. Authorities said the shooting was “premeditated” and a “brazen, targeted attack.”
According to multiple reports, the bullet casings located at the scene had the words “deny,” “defend” and “depose” written on them. The gun used in the shooting has not been recovered.
Police are still searching for a motive in the deadly shooting.
Aftershocks rock California after magnitude 7 earthquake
Dozens of aftershocks have been reported in California after a powerful 7.0 magnitude earthquake rattled a large part of the west coast Thursday. The epicenter of the earthquake was around 50 miles southwest of the northern port city Eureka in the Pacific Ocean.
A tsunami warning briefly went into effect from Oregon down to central California, but that has since been canceled. Evacuation orders have also been lifted.
California’s governor signed a state of emergency and said damage assessments are underway. So far, only minor damage and no injuries have been reported.
NASA delays next two manned moon missions
We’ve waited decades to see an astronaut walk on the moon again, and now, we’ll have to wait a little longer.
NASA announced Thursday it is delaying its next two Artemis moon missions to address an issue with the Orion crew capsule that will be housing the astronauts and its heat shield. The agency said the Artemis II mission that will fly a crew around the moon has been pushed from September of this year to no earlier than April of 2026.
The Artemis III mission, which will see the first moon landing in more than 50 years, set for 2026 will now happen no earlier than mid-2027.
Taylor Swift’s recording-breaking Eras tour ends this weekend
The tour kicked off in March of last year with Swift putting on the 3.5-hour concert more than 150 times in front of sold-out crowds across five continents.
NASA delays Artemis missions until 2026 and 2027 after heat shield problem
NASA’s efforts to put astronauts back on the moon for the first time in more than 50 years are being pushed back. The space agency announced on Thursday, Dec. 5, it found problems with the heat shield on the Orion spacecraft, which will eventually take humans back to the moon as part of its Artemis program.
A NASA investigation revealed the heat shield’s outer layer cracked and charred, with material coming loose. It was apparently caused by an issue with ventilation, causing gas to build up during Orion’s uncrewed mission.
NASA officials say they know what needs to be done to fix the issue, but it will require a change in the trajectory of the spacecraft to safely reenter Earth’s atmosphere, and that means the agency will need more time.
Now, NASA says the Artemis II mission, which involves the crew orbiting the moon but not landing on the lunar surface won’t happen until April 2026 at the earliest, and Artemis III, which will see humans on the moon for the first time since 1972, won’t launch until 2027.
The announcement is another bump in the road for an effort that saw its first uncrewed Artemis mission scheduled for 2016 delayed until 2022. However, NASA Administrator Bill Nelson says the delays are all in the name of safety.
Nelson posted on X, “We are committed to ensuring that when we go, we go safely. That’s what today’s decision is about—that’s how Artemis succeeds.”
US winning in one category when it comes to space race with China
The United States and China have ambitious plans for space exploration in the future. In order to achieve these goals, both nations will need to lean heavily on international support, and as reported on Wednesday, Oct. 30, the U.S. has taken the lead over Beijing.
The two adversaries are getting as many nations on board with their plans to explore space as they can. The American-led effort known as NASA’s Artemis program aims to send astronauts back to the moon by 2026. However the ultimate goal is building a lunar space station and launching missions to Mars and beyond.
However, the United States is currently notching more wins with Chile, the Dominican Republic, Estonia and Cyprus recently joining its coalition. The U.S. now has 47 nations working together on the mission.
Beijing is behind the U.S. in that respect, touting 13 nations as members of its international agreement with Senegal the latest to join in September. However, experts note, there are still many countries up for grabs to join each country’s respective partnerships.
NASA’s Deputy Administrator Pam Melroy said despite setbacks with the Artemis program, like being overbudget, the diplomatic efforts will continue. The agency sees diplomacy and international cooperation as the key to the future of space exploration.
Axiom Space and Prada reveal spacesuit for Artemis III
Axiom Space and luxury brand Prada have revealed the spacesuit design that NASA astronauts will wear during the Artemis III mission to the moon. The suit debuted the week of Oct. 13 at the International Astronautical Congress in Milan, Italy.
Axiom and Prada collaborated to create the next-generation suit, blending high-performance materials and cutting-edge technology with Prada’s expertise in design and textiles.
The mostly white suit, designed to reflect heat, offers improved mobility and durability to protect astronauts from extreme temperatures and lunar dust.
Prada’s involvement extended beyond aesthetics, as the fashion house played a critical role in developing the materials and sewing techniques used in the suit, bridging the gap between functionality and style.
Axiom Space President Michal Suffredini said the collaboration has “broken the mold” for spacesuit design, setting a new standard for cross-industry partnerships. The suit is designed to withstand the harsh conditions of the lunar surface, allowing astronauts to space walk for up to eight hours at a time.
In addition to its advanced design, the suit includes state-of-the-art safety systems and enhanced tools for lunar exploration. The suit has been in development for more than two years, undergoing extensive testing with NASA and SpaceX.
NASA’s Artemis project is not yet in the final stages of development, with more crewed tests scheduled before NASA’s Artemis II mission in 2026. The mission aims to land astronauts on the moon, including the first woman to set foot on the lunar surface.
Prada’s Chief Marketing Officer Lorenzo Bertelli said the collaboration marks the beginning of a new era, suggesting that space travel could soon become affordable for more people.
Harris, Trump turn to PA with 3 weeks to go until Election Day
With exactly three weeks until Election Day, both candidates have their sights set on Pennsylvania. And NASA has launched its ambitious plan to visit the largest planet in our solar system in hopes of making a new discovery. These stories and more highlight your Unbiased Updates for Tuesday, Oct. 15, 2024.
Harris, Trump turn to PA with 3 weeks to go until Election Day
With just three weeks until Election Day, the 2024 presidential candidates are focusing on the key battleground states — and none may be as important as Pennsylvania and its 19 electoral votes. Both Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump took their message once again to the Keystone State on Monday, Oct. 14, each believing that if they win Pennsylvania, they will win the election.
Harris held a rally in the northwestern city of Erie, where Trump visited a few weeks ago. The vice president painted her opponent as a threat to American democracy, warning her supporters of what she calls the dangers of another Trump presidency.
“I believe so strongly that a second Trump term would be a huge risk for America and dangerous,” she said. “Donald Trump is increasingly unstable and unhinged, and he is out for unchecked power. That’s what he’s looking for.”
Harris also urged Pennsylvanians to get out to vote early as mail-in voting is now underway in the state.
Also Monday, former President Trump spoke during a town hall in Oaks, Pennsylvania, a suburb of Philadelphia. He touched on claims he’s a threat to democracy.
“When they talk about a threat to democracy, how about where they take a candidate who won fair and square, they throw them out and they put up a woman who failed, was the first one to drop out of a field of 22 and got no votes?” he said. “And this is the person we’re running against. And she is not a smart woman. That’s true. And we cannot — we’ve had that for four years. We’re not going to have it for another four years.”
Trump cut his town hall short after two attendees required medical attention, with both the former president and moderator South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem commenting on the heat in the venue. Trump then requested music be played for the remainder of the event.
Trump will be back in Georgia on Tuesday as the focus on the battleground states intensifies.
Along with rallies, the candidates are continuing their media tour to reach voters. The vice president will take part in a town hall Tuesday, Oct. 15, hosted by the radio program “The Breakfast Club” and then she will appear on Fox News on Wednesday, Oct. 16.
The group of pro-Palestinian demonstrators staged a sit-in demanding an end to U.S. support for Israel’s war against Hamas. While none of the protesters got into the stock exchange, dozens did cross the security fence put in place by police.
A New York Police Department spokesperson said officers arrested 206 people.
Since the war in Gaza started just over a year ago, more than 42,000 Palestinians have been killed and almost the entire population has been displaced, according to Gaza health officials.
North Carolina man arrested for allegedly threatening FEMA workers
Investigators in North Carolina arrested and charged a man with threatening to harm FEMA workers who were helping parts of the state devastated by Hurricane Helene.
According to the Rutherford County Sheriff’s Office, William Parsons, 44, is charged with “going armed to the terror of the public” — a misdemeanor.
In a statement, the sheriff said while initial reports indicated there was a group of armed militia members threatening FEMA workers, they found Parsons acted alone. Officials said he did have a handgun and a rifle in his possession when arrested.
The arrest followed misinformation and disinformation being spread about FEMA in the wake of the natural disaster and caused FEMA to change the way it was working to help people impacted by Helene because of concerns over workers’ safety.
NASA launches mission to find signs of life on Jupiter moon
The mission, dubbed Europa Clipper, started its long journey to Jupiter’s fourth largest moon on Monday. It’s expected to enter the planet’s orbit in 2030 after a flight of 1.8 billion miles.
Pair of giant pandas set to arrive at the National Zoo
Eleven months after the National Zoo in Washington, D.C. Said goodbye to its giant pandas, two new ones are on their way. The pair of giant pandas have officially left a research facility in China and are set to be flown to D.C., according to Chinese officials.
It’s not yet clear when they’ll arrive. The zoo’s website still says new pandas will be coming by the end of the year, however, on Monday, the Zoo did announce it will be closed Tuesday for the safety of the pandas and staff.
The return of panda diplomacy between China and the U.S. has already seen a pair delivered to the San Diego Zoo with another promised to San Francisco.
2,471-pound pumpkin wins world championship
A 2,471-pound pumpkin won the 51st World Championship Pumpkin Weigh-off Monday in Half Moon Bay, California, south of San Francisco, defeating its closest competitor by six pounds.
US sending troops, anti-missile system to Israel as war escalates
The United States is sending troops and an anti-missile system to Israel. And an incredible landing has SpaceX cheering and thinking about future missions. These stories and more highlight your Unbiased Updates for Monday, Oct. 14, 2024.
US sending troops, anti-missile system to Israel as war escalates
Iran has now warned Washington to keep American military forces out of Israel.
“While we have made tremendous efforts in recent days to contain an all-out war in our region, I say it clearly that we have no red lines in defending our people and interests,” Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi posted on X.
This comes as Israel said at least four of its soldiers were killed in a drone attack by the Iran-backed militant group Hezbollah Sunday, Oct. 13. At least 60 other people were injured in the attack on an army base in central Israel, including seven soldiers.
http://twitter.com/IDF/status/1845719319449145830
Hezbollah said the attack was in response to Israeli strikes on Beirut last week that left 22 people dead.
An attack this deadly in Israel is unusual. Its advanced air defense systems usually spot a threat well beforehand. Israel has said it’s investigating how the drone entered the country without triggering an alert.
Meanwhile, Israeli strikes left at least 40 people dead in Gaza Sunday, including 13 children, according to local officials. One of those strikes was at a hospital in central Gaza, where thousands of displaced Palestinians were sheltering.
The Israeli military said it was a precise strike on a Hamas command center “embedded inside a compound that previously served as the ‘Shuhadah Al-Aqsa’ hospital.” Israel’s military also said it took steps to limit harm to civilians in the attack.
Authorities said the Nevada man had a shotgun, a loaded handgun, ammunition and several fake passports with him when he was stopped near where the rally was being held in Coachella.
Deputies assigned to the rally said they stopped the 49-year-old suspect as he was driving an unregistered vehicle with a “homemade” license plate. They said the man claimed to be a journalist.
The man passed an outer security boundary before being stopped at an inner perimeter, patrolled by local deputies. Authorities said former President Trump was not yet at the rally when the arrest happened, and he was “not in any danger.”
The suspect has since been released on $5,000 bail. Court records show his next appearance is scheduled for Jan. 2.
Biden approves $612 million to support Florida’s hurricane-ravaged communities
As hundreds of thousands remain without power and flooding continues to be an issue, President Biden visited Florida on Sunday for the second time in less than a week. This time it was to get a firsthand look at communities ravaged by Hurricane Milton.
On Saturday, Biden approved a disaster declaration to give federal funding to people affected by Milton, including grants for temporary housing, home repairs and loans. Biden said more than 250,000 Floridians have already registered for help, which he said was “the most in a single day ever in the history of this country.”
Trial begins in mysterious murders of 2 Indiana teenagers
Investigators arrested Allen in 2022 in connection to the deaths of 14-year-old Libby German and 13-year-old Abby Williams, five years after the girls disappeared while walking on a trail in the town of Delphi near an abandoned bridge. Searchers found their bodies a day later.
SpaceX pulled off an incredible feat on Sunday, successfully launching its fifth test flight of its unmanned Starship spacecraft. However, it was the return of the Super Heavy rocket booster that wowed the crowd, as well as SpaceX CEO Elon Musk.
For the first time, after breaking off from the Starship, the 232-foot-tall booster returned to Earth but didn’t land in the ocean like the spacecraft would. Instead, it returned to the Texas launch pad, caught by two mechanical arms which SpaceX calls “chopsticks.”
Elon Musk called the moment a “big step towards making life multiplanetary.”
SpaceX is hoping its Starship system will one day take people to the moon and Mars — with plans to use the capsule to transport NASA astronauts to the moon as soon as 2026.
‘Game of Thrones’ Iron Throne sells for $1.49 million
One “Game of Thrones” fan is sitting pretty, or at least powerfully, after taking the iconic “Iron Throne.” Unlike the characters in the HBO drama, the winner didn’t have to go through eight seasons of fighting, just a six-minute bidding war and $1.5 million.
This 310-pound plastic version of the throne was used during promotional and touring events for the series.
In total, Heritage auctions said its three-day auction in Dallas raked in more than $21 million dollars, making it the company’s second biggest entertainment event ever — behind the $22.8 million record set in 2011 by the Debbie Reynolds sale.
Does Jupiter’s moon Europa support life? NASA mission aims to find out
NASA is just weeks away from its first mission designed to explore Jupiter’s massive moon Europa. Ahead of the historic launch, the agency started releasing videos on Monday, Sept. 23, offering a behind-the-scenes look at what’s going into the Europa Clipper Mission.
NASA is highlighting the efforts of five engineers each week leading up to the launch window of mission, which is starts on Oct. 10. The engineers are working on the giant spacecraft that will explore Jupiter’s moon in search of a “global saltwater ocean beneath its icy shell.”
The spacecraft will orbit Jupiter, and it will collect data with nine instruments and conduct an experiment using telecommunications to gather gravity data on the unforgiving radiation environment of Jupiter.
The length of a basketball court, the Europe Probe is the largest spacecraft ever to be developed for a planetary mission. If NASA finds that Europa is a habitable world, a second Europa mission will return, this time landing there to further study signs of life.
“At the time of launch, I will have been working on the Europa Clipper for a dozen years,” said Dipak Srinivasan, the lead communications systems engineer. “You know, seeing it from its infancy, literal napkin designs of what this spacecraft could look like, to actual realized hardware, to get it on its journey to Europa. It’s just going to be a wonderful feeling.”
Partial lunar eclipse to be visible Tuesday night into Wednesday
A partial lunar eclipse is expected to create a spectacular sight in the skies on Tuesday into Wednesday. The earth will pass between the sun and the moon overnight Sept. 17 into Sept. 18.
In addition, experts say the moon will be closer than usual to the Earth and will appear bigger in the sky, creating a Supermoon. NASA said eclipses only happen about four to seven times a year because the Earth, moon and sun have to line up in unique fashion.
Experts said, in this case, the Earth will darken a slight part of the moon, almost as if it is taking a bite out of it. Sky watchers can see the eclipse in North America and South America on Tuesday night, then in Africa and Europe on Wednesday morning.
Back in April, many people stopped what they were doing for a few hours and watched a total solar eclipse, as various cities plunged into darkness across North America. People bought special eclipse glasses to enhance their viewing and protect their eyes.
This time, no special eye protection is needed to view the partial lunar eclipse. Viewers can stare at the moon or use binoculars and telescopes. After Tuesday night’s viewing, the next total lunar eclipse is expected in March of 2025, as the Earth’s shadow is likely to cover up the moon.
SpaceX under fire for environmental breaches at Texas launch site
SpaceX is currently facing scrutiny for environmental violations at its Starbase facility in south Texas. According to a CNBC report, the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) have issued notices to SpaceX for unauthorized releases of industrial wastewater during rocket launches.
Documents obtained by CNBC indicate that an August 2023 complaint led TCEQ to uncover several instances where SpaceX operated without the necessary wastewater management approvals.
By March 2024, the EPA found that SpaceX had violated the Clean Water Act, intensifying scrutiny of its environmental practices.
SpaceX disputed these claims, calling them “factually inaccurate” in a post on X and asserting that its launch operations are safe. The company highlighted the use of potable water and measures to prevent contamination, asserting compliance with TCEQ’s general permit for its water deluge system.
In response to these regulatory concerns, SpaceX said it has actively engaged with regulatory bodies. After discussions, the company stated that the EPA has permitted ongoing operations while it seeks an individual permit for future expansions.
CNBC also reported concerns from environmental experts about potential mercury contamination and its risks to local wildlife and ecosystems. SpaceX refuted the claims, citing test results showing no detectable harmful substances.
SpaceX is continuing its Starship program, aiming to send people to the moon and eventually Mars. It is working to secure the necessary environmental approvals critical to maintaining its launch schedule while under close regulatory and public scrutiny.
