Thursday, January 16, 2025

SpaceX loses Starship rocket minutes after liftoff from Texas launchpad

A view of a SpaceX rocket taking off from a launchpad in Texas.

A SpaceX Starship rocket broke up in space minutes after launching from Texas on Thursday, forcing airline flights over the Gulf of Mexico to alter course to avoid falling debris and setting back Elon Musk's flagship rocket program.



source https://www.cbc.ca/news/world/spacex-starship-explosion-1.7434001?cmp=rss

Texas truck driver pleads guilty in smuggling attempt that left 53 migrants dead

Bird's-eye view looking down at a truck parked on a road, with a train passing on tracks nearby.

A Texas truck driver charged in the deaths of 53 migrants who rode in a sweltering tractor-trailer with no air conditioning pleaded guilty Thursday over the 2022 tragedy that became the nation's deadliest smuggling attempt across the U.S.-Mexico border.



source https://www.cbc.ca/news/world/texas-truck-driver-guilty-plea-migrants-1.7433920?cmp=rss

IN PHOTOS | Pomp and preparation ahead of Trump inauguration

Five people standing on the steps of the Capitol Hill review troops marching by ahead of the U.S. inauguration.

Here's a look at the rehearsals and preparations underway in recent days before the inauguration of U.S. president-elect Donald Trump and vice-president-elect J.D. Vance on Jan. 20.



source https://www.cbc.ca/news/world/photos/in-photos-pomp-and-preparation-ahead-of-trump-inauguration-1.7431647?cmp=rss

What is the pink powder fire crews are dropping on L.A., and how does it work?

Five firefighters wearing yellow uniforms make their way up a grassy hill that is covered in a pink substance. They are proceeding in a horizontal line, poking at the ground with tools. Beyond them, trees are covered in pink as well, and a street with houses is also pink.

Some of the visuals coming out of Los Angeles County over the past week show a vivid pink substance coating streets, cars and plants. This is fire retardant, dropped by aerial firefighting tankers in massive plumes of red or pink to slow down fires. But how does it work, and is it safe?



source https://www.cbc.ca/news/science/fire-retardant-explained-1.7432157?cmp=rss