One flight closer to space tourism Virgin Galactic is one flight closer to becoming a commercial "spaceline." The company's passenger spacecraft, SpaceShipTwo, completed its first rocket-powered flight Monday morning above the Mojave Desert in California. More
U.S. plans to drop gray wolves from endangered list The planned ruling would eliminate protection for the top predators, but scientists and conservationists say the proposal is flawed. Federal authorities intend to remove endangered species protections for all gray wolves in the Lower 48 states, carving out an a exception for a small pocket of about 75 Mexican wolves in the wild in Arizona and New Mexico, according to a draft document obtained by The Times. More
New calls to rename Higgs boson One of the scientists who developed the theory of the Higgs boson says the particle should be renamed to acknowledge the contributions of others involved in the work. More
OTD In Space Italian astronomer Giovanni Cassini discovered Rhea, Saturn’s second-largest moon. Rhea is made up of rock and ice and is covered in craters. Rhea is also the only moon discovered to have an oxygen ... 12/23/2024 - 5:13 am | View Link
How Many Moons Does Saturn Have? In recent years, Saturn has overtaken Jupiter as the planet with the most satellites in our solar system. How many moons does Saturn have? 12/21/2024 - 2:01 am | View Link
There's a weird, disappearing dark spot on Saturn's moon Enceladus Thus, when studying Enceladus, every detail really matters — which brings us to a new, very strange detail that scientists have their eye on: A weird, disappearing dark spot on this ice-capped moon. 12/14/2024 - 10:00 pm | View Link
What planet is close to the Moon tonight? Celestial events happening in December 2024 What planet appears close to the moon? It depends on the night, but throughout the year each of the five closest planets will be visible near the moon. 12/8/2024 - 11:36 pm | View Link
Stargazing in December: The moons of Jupiter Four tiny specks of light close by the giant planet are the biggest of the Jupiter’s 95 moons, Nigel Henbest writes ... 12/6/2024 - 1:29 am | View Link
Narges Mohammadi picked up Margaret Atwood’s The Handmaid ‘s Tale while in prison. The activist had been sentenced to 16 years for challenging Iran’s enforcement of what Mohammadi terms gender apartheid—a system of dress codes, sexual subjugation, and coercive control enforced, as in Atwood’s book, by men who have taken power as a theocracy.
For the first time since 2005, the first night of Hanukkah will fall on the same day as Christmas.
The two winter holidays converge an average of five times a century, according to Rabbi Joseph Potasnik, Executive Vice President of the New York Board of Rabbis.
Since 1900, the first night of Hanukkah has fallen on December 25 five times: 1910, 1921, 1959, 2005, and now 2024.
(WEST PALM BEACH, Fla.) — First it was Canada, then the Panama Canal. Now, Donald Trump again wants Greenland.
The President-elect is renewing unsuccessful calls he made during his first term for the U. S. to buy Greenland from Denmark, adding to the list of allied countries with which he’s picking fights even before taking office on Jan.
(BETHLEHEM, West Bank) — The Nativity Store in Manger Square has sold handmade olive wood carvings and religious items to people visiting the traditional birthplace of Jesus since 1927. But as Bethlehem prepares to mark its second Christmas under the shadow of the war in Gaza, there are almost no tourists, leaving the Nativity Store and other businesses unsure of how much longer they can hold on.
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For the second straight year, Bethlehem’s Christmas celebrations will be somber and muted, in deference to ongoing war in Gaza.
The Philippines is known for its monthslong Christmas celebrations starting in September. The heavily Catholic country of nearly 120 million people is serious about the festive season. However, this time of year has recently taken a much more somber tone for many Filipino families.
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Estrella Pagarigan had decorated her home with recycled bamboo and plastic bottle parols for the holidays, but in early November, the house where she, her husband, and three children have lived for years was flattened overnight.