Every President Tries It. It Never Works.
What’s really behind all these attempts to revive American industry?
‘The Drama’ Review: Her Secret Is His Crisis
Zendaya and Robert Pattinson play a couple upended when one confesses to coming close to committing a horrific crime.
Rapid Snow Melt-Off In American West Stuns Scientists
Scientists say extreme March heat caused an unusually rapid collapse of snowpack across the American West that's leaving major basins at record or near-record lows. "This year is on a whole other level," said Dr Russ Schumacher, a Colorado State University climatologist. "Seeing this year so far below any of the other years we have data for is very concerning." The Guardian reports: [...] The issue is extremely widespread. Data from a branch of the US Department of Agriculture (USDA), which logs averages based on levels between 1991 and 2020, shows states across the south-west and intermountain west with eye-popping lows. The Great Basin had only 16% of average on Monday and the lower Colorado region, which includes most of Arizona and parts of Nevada, was at 10%. The Rio Grande, which covers parts of New Mexico, Texas and Colorado, was at 8%. "This year has the potential of being way worse than any of the years we have analogues for in the past," Schumacher said.
Even with near-normal precipitation across most of the west, every major river basin across the region was grappling with snow drought when March began, according to federal analysts. Roughly 91% of stations reported below-median snow water equivalent, according to the last federal snow drought update compiled on March 8. Water managers and climate experts had been hopeful for a March miracle -- a strong cold storm that could set the region on the right track. Instead, a blistering heatwave unlike any recorded for this time of year baked the region and spurred a rapid melt-off. "March is often a big month for snowstorms," Schumacher said. "Instead of getting snow we would normally expect we got this unprecedented, way-off-the-scale warmth."
More than 1,500 monthly high temperature records were broken in March and hundreds more tied. The event was "likely among the most statistically anomalous extreme heat events ever observed in the American south-west," climate scientist Daniel Swain said in an analysis posted this week. "Beyond the conspicuous 'weirdness' of it all," Swain added, "the most consequential impact of our record-shattering March heat will likely be the decimation of the water year 2025-26 snowpack across nearly all of the American west." Calling the toll left by the heat "nothing short of shocking," Swain noted that California was tied for its worst mountain snowpack value on record. While the highest elevations are still coated in white, "lower slopes are now completely bare nearly statewide."
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The Only Thing Trump Is Missing in Cuba Is a Plan
Starving Cubans does nothing to advance American interests.
Artemis II Completes First Day of Its NASA Lunar Mission
The crew, three Americans and a Canadian, are the first humans to travel to the moon in more than 50 years. They will not land on the surface, but the mission will pave the way for future visits.
The Artemis II Toilet Had a Problem
The Universal Waste Management System aboard the Orion capsule is an innovation in deep space toiletry (it seems to be fixed now).
China’s Aiming for the Moon, and NASA Is Looking Over Its Shoulder
The U.S. space agency launched a lunar flyby Wednesday, but Beijing is pursuing its own space program with formidable focus. Here’s what we know about it, in photos and videos.
Iran War Showcases Strength of South Korean Defense Sector
Missile interceptors made by the South Korean firm LIG Nex1 are said to be performing well, at a small fraction of the cost of U.S. interceptors.
Texas Man Charged With Manslaughter in Connection With Cold Case
Prosecutors in Galveston County say that in the 1980s, a man killed a teenager and helped hide the remains of a woman, two of the dozens of bodies found on land known as the Texas Killing Fields.
SpaceX Files To Go Public
Reuters reports that SpaceX has confidentially filed for a U.S. IPO, reportedly targeting a valuation above $1.75 trillion. Reuters reports: SpaceX puts more rockets in space than any other company and promises a chance to invest in humanity's return to the moon and attempt to colonize Mars. The company aspires to put artificial intelligence data centers in space, while running a lucrative satellite communications system that opens up much of the earth to the internet and is increasingly used in war. [...]
A public listing at a potential valuation of more than $1.75 trillion comes after SpaceX merged with Musk's artificial intelligence startup xAI in a deal that valued the rocket company at $1 trillion and the developer of the Grok chatbot at $250 billion. SpaceX is hosting an analyst day on April 21, encouraging research analysts to attend in person, [...]. The company is also offering analysts an optional visit to xAI's "Macrohard" data center site in Memphis, Tennessee, on April 23, and plans to hold a virtual session on May 4 to discuss financial models with banks' research analysts, the source said.
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Trump Initially Laid Out Five Goals for the Iran War. Here’s Where They Stand.
The United States and Israel have done significant damage to Iran’s military capabilities. But Iran still fires missiles, has nuclear material and coordinates with militias in the region.
Iran Is Skeptical About Diplomacy, U.S. Intelligence Says
Any decision by Iran to keep fighting would complicate President Trump’s stated goal of trying to end the war within weeks.
Judge Finds Border Officials Violated Previous Order on Warrantless Arrests
A federal judge in California ordered agents to thoroughly document any future stops in an area spanning 34 counties.
Migrating American Woodcocks Set Off a Birding Frenzy in NYC’s Bryant Park
American woodcocks, also known as timberdoodles, are bopping and shimmying through the park, charming visitors during a pit stop on their northerly migration.
Tennessee Library Director Luanne James Fired Over L.G.B.T.Q. Books
The director, Luanne James, was fired at a board meeting for the Rutherford County Library System on Monday after she refused to move certain books to the adult section.
DNA Confirms Ted Bundy Killed Utah Teen in 1974, Investigators Say
Mr. Bundy had confessed to killing Laura Ann Aime before he was executed in 1989. Investigators said DNA testing provided conclusive proof.
Lawsuits Are the New Trump Tactic in the Fight to Overhaul Education
Trump officials have faced dozens of lawsuits over their aggressive efforts to force change in universities and school districts. Now Trump lawyers are taking schools to court.
Syracuse Drops 84 Programs Including Classics, Ceramics and Italian
In all, 93 of the 460 academic programs at the university will be closed or paused. No students were majoring in 55 of the programs that are ending.
Five Takeaways From the Supreme Court’s Birthright Citizenship Case
The justices grappled with questions about domiciles and foundlings, avoided policy debates and mused about the sweep of possible rulings.
Medical Examiner Rules That a Rohingya Refugee’s Death Was a Homicide
An autopsy showed that the man suffered dehydration and hypothermia after Border Patrol agents dropped him off on a cold night in Buffalo. Gov. Kathy Hochul condemned their actions as cruel and inhumane.