kitty litter genie
This image provided by the European Space Agency shows a pair of probes creating an artificial total solar eclipse through formation flying. AP-Yonhap A pair of European satellites rocketed into orbit Thursday on the first mission to create artificial solar eclipses through fancy formation flying in space. Each fake eclipse should last six hours once operations begin next year. That's considerably longer than the few minutes of totality offered by a natural eclipse here on Earth, allowing for prolonged study of the sun's corona, or outer atmosphere. The launch took place from India. “We are a very happy science team here” in India, the European Space Agency's mission scientist Joe Zender said via email. Billed as a tech demo, the two satellites will separate in a month or so and fly 150 meters apart once reaching their destination high above Earth, lining up with the sun so that one spacecraft casts a shadow on the other. This will require extreme precision, within just one millimeter, equivalent to a fingernail's thickness, according to the European Space Agency. To maintain their position, the satellites will rely on GPS, star trackers, lasers and radio links, flying autonomously. Each cube-shaped spacecraft is less than 1.5 meters across. The shadow-casting satellite holds a disk to block the sun from the telescope on the other satellite. This disk will mimic the moon in a natural total solar eclipse, with the darkened satellite posing as Earth. “This has a huge scientific relevance” in addition to testing high-precision formation flying,” said the European Space Agency’s technology and engineering director Dietmar Pilz. Scientists need the glaring face of the sun completely blocked in order to scrutinize the wispy crown-like corona encircling it, getting an especially good look close to the solar rim on this mission. They're particularly interested to learn why the corona is hotter than the surface of the sun, and also want to better understand coronal mass ejections, eruptions of billions of tons of plasma with magnetic fields out into space. The resulting geomagnetic storms can disrupt power and communication on Earth and in orbit. Such outbursts can also produce stunning auroras in unexpected places. With a lopsided orbit stretching from 600 kilometers to 60,000 kilometers away, the satellites will take nearly 20 hours to circle the world. Six of those hours — at the farther end of certain orbits — will be spent generating an eclipse. Other orbits will be strictly for formation flying experiments, according to the European Space Agency. The first eclipse results should be available in March, following checkout of both craft. Zender said eclipses will be created at least twice a week, with six hours of totality each time for corona observations. The frequency will depend on solar activity, he noted, and prove a boon for scientists who now must travel across the world for a mere three to five minutes of totality during the occasional eclipse. The $210 million mission, dubbed Proba-3, is aiming for at least 1,000 hours of “on demand” totality during its two-year operation. Once their job is done, both satellites will gradually drop lower until they burn up in the atmosphere, likely within five years. Liftoff was delayed a day by a last-minute issue with the backup propulsion system of one of the satellites, crucial for precision formation flying. The European Space Agency said engineers relied on a computer software fix. (AP) To remove this article -
West Ham show support for hospitalized Antonio before Premier League matchNoneThe suspect in the high-profile killing of a health insurance CEO that has gripped the United States graduated from an Ivy League university, reportedly hails from a wealthy family, and wrote social media posts brimming with cerebral musings. Luigi Mangione, 26, was thrust into the spotlight Monday after police revealed his identity as their person of interest, crediting his arrest to a tip from a McDonald's worker. He has been connected by police to the fatal shooting of United Healthcare CEO Brian Thompson last week in broad daylight, in a case that has laid bare deep frustrations and anger with the nation's privatized medical system. News of his capture triggered an explosion of online activity, with Mangione quickly amassing new followers on social media as citizen sleuths and US media try to understand who he is. While some lauded him as a hero and lamented his arrest, others analyzed his intellectual takes in search of ideological clues. A photo on one of his social media accounts includes an X-ray of an apparently injured spine, though no explicit political affiliation has emerged. Meanwhile, memes and jokes proliferated, many riffing on his first name and comparing him to the "Mario Bros." character Luigi, sometimes depicted in AI-altered images wielding a gun or holding a Big Mac. "Godspeed. Please know that we all hear you," wrote one user on Facebook. "I want to donate to your defense fund," added another. According to Mangione's LinkedIn profile, he is employed as a data engineer at TrueCar, a California-based online auto marketplace. A company spokesperson told AFP Mangione "has not been an employee of our company since 2023." Although he had been living in Hawaii ahead of the killing, he originally hails from Towson, Maryland, near Baltimore. He comes from a prominent and wealthy Italian-American family, according to the Baltimore Banner. The family owns local businesses, including the Hayfields Country Club, per the club's website. A standout student, Mangione graduated at the top of his high school class in 2016. In an interview with his local paper at the time, he praised his teachers for fostering a passion for learning beyond grades and encouraging intellectual curiosity. He went on to attend the prestigious University of Pennsylvania, where he completed both a bachelor's and master's degree in computer science by 2020, according to a university spokesperson. While at Penn, Mangione co-led a group of 60 undergraduates who collaborated on video game projects, as noted in a now-deleted university webpage, archived on the Wayback Machine. On Instagram, where his following has skyrocketed from hundreds to tens of thousands, Mangione shared snapshots of his travels in Mexico, Puerto Rico and Hawaii. He also posted shirtless photos flaunting a six-pack and appeared in celebratory posts with fellow members of the Phi Kappa Psi fraternity. However, it is on X (formerly Twitter) that users have scoured Mangione's posts for potential motives. His header photo -- an X-ray of a spine with bolts -- remains cryptic, with no public explanation. Finding a coherent political ideology has also proved elusive. Mangione has linked approvingly to posts criticizing secularism as a harmful consequence of Christianity's decline. In April, he wrote, "Horror vacui (nature abhors a vacuum)." The following month, he posted an essay he wrote in high school titled "How Christianity Prospered by Appealing to the Lower Classes of Ancient Rome." In another post from April, he speculated that Japan's low birthrate stems from societal disconnection, adding that "fleshlights" and other vaginal-replica sex toys should be banned. ia/nro
Solana formed a bullish cup and handle pattern, testing a crucial supply zone. Strong technical indicators and social dominance suggested a higher likelihood of a bullish breakout. Solana [SOL] was building a strong bullish setup with a textbook cup and handle pattern forming on the weekly chart, hinting at a potential breakout. At press time, SOL traded at $238.32, up 1.08% in the last 24 hours. The price is now testing a critical supply zone, and a successful breakout here could trigger a significant upward rally. Traders and investors are eager to see if SOL can maintain its momentum and push through this resistance. Is SOL on the verge of a breakout? Solana's weekly chart clearly displays a classic cup and handle formation, a bullish pattern that suggests a potential upward movement. The price is nearing a strong supply zone, a crucial resistance point. A breakout above this zone would likely bring in more buyers, driving SOL higher. However, a rejection would result in a pullback. Therefore, traders... Erastus Chami
There’s easy way to solve NFL’s dumb MVP debate. Call it Saquon Barkley Trophy. | Commentary
Stock market today: Rising tech stocks pull Wall Street to another recordUkraine must be placed in the “strongest possible position for negotiations” to end the war with Russia, Sir Keir Starmer will signal. The Prime Minister will insist the UK will back Ukraine “for as long as it takes” as he makes a speech at the Lord Mayor’s Banquet in London , but for the first time will acknowledge the conflict could move towards a negotiated end. Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky has in recent weeks suggested he is open to a possible ceasefire with Vladimir Putin’s Russia. Kyiv and its European allies meanwhile fear the advent of Donald Trump’s return to the White House could result in American aid being halted. President-elect Trump has said he would prefer to move towards a peace deal, and has claimed he could end the conflict on “day one” of his time in power. In his speech at London’s Guildhall, Sir Keir will say there is “no question it is right we support Ukraine”, as the UK’s aid to Kyiv is “deeply in our self-interest”. Allowing Russia to win the war would mean “other autocrats would believe they can follow Putin’s example”, he will warn. The Prime Minister will add: “So we must continue to back Ukraine and do what it takes to support their self-defence for as long as it takes. “To put Ukraine in the strongest possible position for negotiations so they can secure a just and lasting peace on their terms that guarantees their security, independence, and right to choose their own future.” Ukrainian leader Mr Zelensky told Sky News over the weekend he would be open to speaking with Mr Putin, but branded the Russian president a “terrorist”. He also suggested Ukrainian territory under his control should be taken under the “Nato umbrella” to try and stop the “hot stage” of the war with Russia. In a banquet speech focused on foreign affairs, the Prime Minister also will say “Britain is back” on the world stage, and will speak of the importance of close relations with both Europe and the United States. He will say it is “plain wrong” to suggest the UK must choose between its allies, adding: “I reject it utterly. “(Clement) Attlee did not choose between allies. (Winston) Churchill did not choose. “The national interest demands that we work with both.” Sir Keir will reveal he told Mr Trump during their meeting in New York in September that the UK “will invest more deeply than ever in this transatlantic bond with our American friends in the years to come”. He also repeated his commitment to “rebuild our ties with Europe too”. The Prime Minister will say he wants Britain’s role in the world to be that of “a constant and responsible actor in turbulent times”. He will add: “To be the soundest ally and to be determined, always, in everything we do. “Every exchange we have with other nations, every agreement we enter into to deliver for the British people and show, beyond doubt, that Britain is back.”Trump calls for immediate ceasefire in Ukraine and says a US withdrawal from NATO is possible
Republican Rep. Virginia Foxx has reached her final hours as the conference's leader on education policy. For 20 years, Foxx has served on the House Education and the Workforce Committee. For the last two terms while Republicans were in the majority in the House, she's held the coveted position of chairwoman and was ranking member when Democrats were in control from 2019 until 2021. In fact, the 81-year-old congresswoman was granted a waiver to lead the committee for the 118th Congress because Republicans limit their top committee position to six years. The Republican Steering Committee will elect the next chair on Thursday. Foxx told ABC News that her top priority this session was reducing college costs through reauthorizing the Higher Education Act. Many of the K-12 topics on the former college instructor and community college president's legislative agenda became winning issues for Republicans. Parents' rights, protecting women and girls in sports, and school choice policies -- issues that reached the national stage on the campaign trail this year -- were widely supported by Republicans under Foxx's leadership. Foxx is known for foiling the Biden administration's signature higher education policies, including his student loan forgiveness program. She's been called a "hero" by staffers and a "force of nature" by House Speaker Mike Johnson. "She has been a very faithful friend to me and a good model for all of us," Johnson recalled in an interview with ABC News. "Her work ethic is incredible. She is so passionate about what she does. She is a force of nature, but she also has a way to balance it with humility," Johnson said. Dedication to education Foxx's dedication to education was exhibited by her committee's crackdown on alleged antisemitism engulfing college campuses over the last year. She spearheaded the collecting of more than 400,000 pages of documents, historic subpoenas for documents and internal communications, and hearings that led to the resignations of Ivy League presidents who failed to protect Jewish students at U.S. universities, according to the committee's wide-reaching report . "Our goal was and is to make sure that Jewish students are safe on campus," Foxx told ABC News, adding, "All students should be safe on campus, but it was the Jewish students who were being threatened and harassed and, at times, assaulted." House Republican Conference Chair Elise Stefanik has worked alongside Foxx for the last decade on the committee. Stefanik credits Foxx with being the driving force pushing education to the top of the House's agenda as Johnson took up the antisemitism issue earlier this spring. "The great thing about Virginia is she's not going to slow down, and I think she will have other great chapters in Congress, but it's been great to be on the committee with her, and I'm very proud of her, and she is someone that so many people look up to," Stefanik told ABC News. Foxx's work ethic can be traced back to her humble beginning in Avery County, North Carolina, in Appalachia. She told ABC News that she grew up very poor. "I just never imagined, in my wildest dreams, being in Congress or having a portrait," Foxx said when asked this fall about the painting of her that now hangs in the Education Committee's hearing room on Capitol Hill. "I grew up in a town with no electricity and no running water." Foxx is now a mentor to her colleagues, including Stefanik and Utah's Burgess Owens. "She's a bulldog when it comes down to what she wants to get accomplished and that's what we've needed to actually bring education to the forefront," Rep. Owens told ABC News. A former NFL player, Owens said he admires Foxx's ability to build a team and compared the chairwoman to his legendary head coach Al Davis. "I see what Dr. Foxx is doing with education in the same way," Owens said. "I think for the first time, education is becoming a priority, not only for those of us who have a passion for it, but for Americans across the country who just took it for granted," he said. Who will be the next chair? A relative newcomer to the committee, Owens wants to follow in Foxx's footsteps. He is challenging Rep. Tim Walberg, R-Michigan, to succeed Foxx as chair. Owens told ABC News he's feeling anxious about winning over his colleagues on the committee. Meanwhile, Walberg and Rep. G.T. Thompson of Pennsylvania are the second-longest serving Republicans on the committee behind Foxx. After 16 years, Walberg said he believes he deserves the top position. Foxx said she has loved chairing the committee, but it's just one of many highlights during her time on the Hill. "My greatest achievement comes every day when we help another constituent, so my life isn't just tied up in the committee," she said.
- Previous: genie song
- Next: litter genie
