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☆ Texas town approves plans for new building to replace school shooting site
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-17 | by ( Tyler Clifford | Steve Gorman | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Nov 17 (Reuters) - The Uvalde school board in Texas has approved plans to replace Robb Elementary School months after the town decided to demolish the building where a teenaged gunman killed 19 children and two teachers in May. The school district did not immediately respond to a request for further details. Board members also agreed to install an interim leader of the school district's police department. In the past, he worked with Patterson at another Texas school district. Texas Department of Public Safety Director Steven McCraw said the response was "an abject failure," adding that officers at the scene lacked sufficient training.

A White House statement accused House Republicans of planning to go after Biden "with politically motivated attacks chock full of long-debunked conspiracy theories." Hunter Biden never held a position in the White House or on his father's campaign. The House Republicans' probe will begin to unfold next year, as the U.S. political calendar heads toward the 2024 presidential election, in which Biden said he currently intends to seek re-election. More than a dozen House Republicans appeared alongside Comer at a Wednesday press conference, many of them staunch allies of Trump, who announced his own 2024 White House run on Tuesday. The looming House Oversight investigation of Biden will coincide with a House Judiciary Committee probe into allegations of political influence at the Justice Department under Biden.

The attorney, Terrence Connors, said the defendant, Peyton Gendron, would enter a guilty plea on Monday to all 25 counts against him in a state indictment at a 2 p.m. hearing in Erie County Court in Buffalo. He initially pleaded not guilty to all counts in June. The guilty plea would mean that the case against Gendron, who is from Conklin, New York, will not go to trial. He could face life in prison or the death penalty on the state charges. Gendron also faces 27 federal hate crime and firearms charges, to which he pleaded not guilty to in January.

About 90 minutes later, the rocket's upper stage propelled the Orion capsule out of Earth orbit and on its trajectory to the moon, NASA said. And it was quite a sight," Artemis mission manager Mike Sarafin told a post-launch NASA briefing, using words from biblical scripture. LAUNCH PAD HEROICSWednesday's launch was not without its own drama. [1/2] NASA's next-generation moon rocket, the Space Launch System (SLS) rocket with the Orion crew capsule, lifts off from launch complex 39-B on the unmanned Artemis 1 mission to the moon, seen from Sebastian, Florida, U.S. November 16, 2022. It was so bright, so loud, you could feel it," said NASA astronaut Jessica Meir, an Artemis crew candidate.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla., Nov 15 (Reuters) - Ground teams at Kennedy Space Center prepared on Tuesday for a third try at launching NASA's towering, next-generation moon rocket, the debut flight of the U.S. space agency's Artemis lunar program, 50 years after Apollo's last moon mission. NASA flight-readiness crews were eager for success after 10 weeks beset by engineering difficulties, two hurricanes and two trips from the spacecraft's hangar to its launch pad. Two previous launch attempts, on Aug. 29 and Sept. 3, were aborted because of fuel line leaks and other technical problems that NASA has since resolved. While moored to its launch pad last week, the rocket endured fierce winds and rains from Hurricane Nicole, forcing a two-day flight postponement. NASA defends the program as a boon to space exploration that has generated tens of thousands of jobs and billions of dollars in commerce.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla., Nov 16 (Reuters) - NASA's towering next-generation moon rocket blasted off from Florida early on Wednesday on its debut flight, a crewless voyage inaugurating the U.S. space agency's Artemis exploration program 50 years after the final Apollo moon mission. [1/3] NASA's next-generation moon rocket, the Space Launch System (SLS) rocket with the Orion crew capsule, lifts off from launch complex 39-B on the unmanned Artemis1 mission to the moon at Cape Canaveral, Florida, U.S. November 16, 2022. REUTERS/Joe Skipper 1 2 3Addressing mission control moments after liftoff, Artemis launch director Charlie Blackwell-Thompson saluted the hard work of her colleagues. SPACEFLIGHT STRESS TESTGetting the SLS-Orion spacecraft off the ground was a key hurdle for the ambitious Artemis program. NASA's Office of Inspector General has projected total Artemis costs at $93 billion by 2025.

☆ Hurricane Nicole barrels into Florida's Atlantic coast
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-10 | by ( Brian Ellsworth | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

Nicole was upgraded from a tropical storm to a Category 1 hurricane as it thrashed the Bahamas on Wednesday. It was packing sustained winds of up to 75 mph (120 kph) as it made landfall along the east coast of Florida north of Miami, according to the National Hurricane Center. read moreThe hurricane center also issued storm-surge advisories for much of Florida's Atlantic coast, warning that wind-driven waves would wash over beaches and rush inland to flood low-lying areas well beyond the shore. Nicole is expected to pack less punch at landfall than Ian, which struck Florida as a major Category 4 storm. 'LAST OPPORTUNITY'[1/5] A car drives by a flooded street ahead of the expected arrival of Hurricane Nicole, in Daytona Beach, Florida, U.S., November 9, 2022.

☆ Hurricane Nicole bears down on Florida's Atlantic coast
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-10 | by ( Brian Ellsworth | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

[1/5] A car drives by a flooded street ahead of the expected arrival of Hurricane Nicole, in Daytona Beach, Florida, U.S., November 9, 2022. REUTERS/Marco BelloMIAMI, Nov 10 (Reuters) - Hurricane Nicole closed in on Florida's Atlantic shoreline early on Thursday with a brew of heavy downpours, fierce winds and a treacherous surge of ocean surf that threatened coastal areas still reeling from the last major storm six weeks ago. Nicole is expected to pack less punch at landfall than Ian, which struck Florida as a major Category 4 storm. Authorities warned, however, that Nicole still posed a formidable threat, especially to structures and coastal foundations weakened by Ian. "We have had a lot of flooding within the last couple of storms," Leanne Hansard, 53, a Daytona Beach resident, said as she was boarding up windows to her family's insurance office.

Nicole, newly classified as a hurricane, was packing sustained winds of up 75 miles per hour (120 km per hour) as it made landfall on Grand Bahama Island, the Miami-based National Hurricane Center reported. Grand Bahama, Bimini and the Berry Islands in the northwest corner of the island nation remained under a hurricane warning. As the storm closed in earlier in the day, some Bahamas residents fled their homes amid fierce winds and flooding. Storm surge caused widespread devastation to Florida's Gulf Coast when the last major storm, Hurricane Ian, crashed ashore there on Sept. 28, causing an estimated $60 billion in damage and claiming more than 140 lives. Several counties along the Florida coast issued mandatory orders and voluntary evacuation advisories for homes near the shore and on barrier islands.

☆ Factbox: 'Beaver blood moon' offers world's last total lunar eclipse until 2025
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-08 | by ( Steve Gorman | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Nov 7 (Reuters) - Nighttime skywatchers from East Asia to North America will be treated to the rare spectacle of a "Beaver blood moon" on Tuesday, weather permitting, as the Earth, moon and sun align to produce a total lunar eclipse for the last time until 2025. WHAT'S HAPPENINGA total lunar eclipse occurs when the Earth casts its shadow completely over a full moon, blocking reflection of all direct sunlight from the lunar orb and dimming the color of the moon to a reddish hue, hence the term "blood moon." This is only possible when the orbits of the Earth, moon and sun align so that the moon is directly behind Earth relative to the sun. Tuesday's event will mark the second blood moon this year, following one in mid-May. When combined with the phenomena of a total lunar eclipse, it is widely referred to as a "Beaver blood moon" in the United States.

☆ Colorado police officers charged with leaving handcuffed woman in car struck by train
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-08 | by ( Keith Coffman | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

DENVER, Nov 7 (Reuters) - Two Colorado police officers were charged on Monday with leaving a handcuffed woman in a patrol car parked on railroad tracks, where it was struck by a freight train, seriously injuring her. The woman was charged with felony menacing over an alleged road-rage incident that led to her arrest in a traffic stop, the Weld County District Attorney's Office said in a statement. Officers from multiple agencies responded to the incident, and Rios-Gonzalez was stopped, handcuffed and placed in the back of a patrol vehicle that was parked straddling the train tracks, police said. Rios-Gonzalez suffered nine broken ribs, a broken arm and leg, broken teeth and other injuries, said her lawyer, Paul Wilkinson. Wilkinson said he was told last week that Rios-Gonzalez would be charged, which he called disappointing.

☆ Pelosi says attack on her husband will affect decision whether to retire
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-08 | by ( Steve Gorman | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

[1/3] U.S. Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) holds a press conference at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, U.S., September 30, 2022. REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque/Nov 7 (Reuters) - U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said on Monday the recent attack on her husband by a hammer-wielding intruder in their home was especially painful to her knowing she was "the target" and would factor into her decision about when to retire from Congress. However, she told him, "I have to say, my decision will be affected by what happened the last week or two." Pressed by Cooper if she was referring to the attack on her husband, the speaker replied, "Yes." Paul Pelosi managed to place an emergency-911 call, and police arrived just in time to witness the intruder club the real estate and venture capitalist over the head with a hammer, according to court documents.

☆ Storm Nicole churns toward Bahamas en route to Florida and hurricane status
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-08 | by ( Brian Ellsworth | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

[1/2] Beachgoers are shown as tropical storm Nicole approaches the state in Miami Beach, Florida, U.S., November 8, 2022. A hurricane warning was posted for Grand Bahama Island, Bimini, the Berry Islands and the Abacos in the northwestern corner of the West Indies archipelago nation, the Miami-based National Hurricane Center (NHC) said. A 240-mile expanse of Florida's Atlantic shoreline from Boca Raton north to around Flagler Beach was likewise placed under a hurricane warning. "It's going to take more than a Category 1 hurricane or so to really move stuff and have them flying around." Forecasters said Nicole would likely sweep across central and northern Florida into southern Georgia on Thursday.

☆ Security threat prompts shutdown of Kari Lake campaign headquarters in Phoenix
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-06 | by ( Steve Gorman | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

The disruption came at a critical moment for the Lake campaign, locked in a tight race for governor with the Democratic nominee, Katie Hobbs, currently serving as Arizona's secretary of state. "Just two days before Election Day, our campaign headquarters remains shut down," the Lake campaign statement said. The FBI's field office in Phoenix said its agents and local law enforcement responded on Sunday morning to "a report of suspicious letters" at the location of the Phoenix campaign headquarters. Neither the FBI statement, nor the Phoenix police, referred to Lake or her campaign by name. The incident came nearly two weeks after a burglary of Hobbs' campaign headquarters.

☆ Latest U.S. defense-intelligence report on UFOs to be made public soon
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-04 | by ( Steve Gorman | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

Nov 3 (Reuters) - A declassified version of the latest U.S. defense-intelligence report on UFOs - rebranded in official government parlance as "unidentified aerial phenomena" - is expected to be made public in the coming days. "We are collecting as much data as we can, following the data where it leads, and will share our findings whenever possible." The first such defense-intelligence UAP report to Congress in June 2021 looked at 144 sightings by U.S. military aviators dating back to 2004, most of them documented with multiple instruments. "We are working to mitigate these shortfalls for the future and to ensure we have sufficient data for our analysis." The forthcoming release of the latest Pentagon assessment comes after a first-of-its-kind panel organized by NASA opened a separate, parallel study on Oct. 24 of unclassified UFO sightings data from civilian government and commercial sectors.

☆ Pelosi hammer attack suspect was in U.S. illegally, immigration officials say
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-03 | by ( Ted Hesson | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

The U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agency said it had issued a "detainer" notice with San Francisco authorities seeking custody of David Wayne DePape once criminal proceedings against him are completed. Nancy Pelosi, a Democrat who is second in the line of succession to the presidency, was in Washington at the time. The attack left Paul Pelosi, 82, with a fractured skull and injuries to his arms and hands for which he underwent surgery, according to the speaker's office. CNN, citing unnamed sources, reported on Thursday that the real estate and venture capital executive has been released from Zuckerberg San Francisco General Hospital and was back home resting six days after the attack. The detainer is a request to another law enforcement agency to notify ICE before any deportable individual is released from detention so immigration officials "can take custody of that person in a safe and secure setting," the agency says.

☆ U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's husband released from hospital after hammer attack
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-03 | by ( Ted Hesson | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

WASHINGTON, Nov 3 (Reuters) - U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's husband has been released from the San Francisco hospital where he underwent surgery for injuries suffered when attacked by a hammer-wielding intruder at the couple's home six days ago, she said on Thursday. Nancy Pelosi, a Democrat who is second in the line of succession to the presidency, was in Washington at the time. The attack left Paul Pelosi, with a fractured skull and injuries to his arms and hands for which he underwent surgery, according to the speaker's office. Federal prosecutors have charged DePape separately with assault and attempted kidnapping charges punishable by up to 50 years in prison. The detainer is a request to another law enforcement agency to notify ICE before any deportable individual is released from detention so immigration officials "can take custody of that person in a safe and secure setting," the agency says.

SAN FRANCISCO, Oct 29 (Reuters) - A man who clubbed U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's husband over the head with a hammer, shouting, "Where is Nancy? ", faced charges of attempted murder and other felonies a day after the violent break-in at the couple's San Francisco home. She flew to San Francisco to be with her husband. Police identified the man arrested at the scene by officers who intervened in the attack as David Depape, 42. Formal charges were expected to be filed by the San Francisco district attorney's office.

☆ NASA instrument detects dozens of methane super-emitters from space
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-26 | by ( Steve Gorman | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

The device, called an imaging spectrometer, has identified more than 50 methane "super-emitters" in Central Asia, the Middle East and the Southwestern United States since it was installed in July aboard the International Space Station, NASA said on Tuesday. The newly measured methane hotspots - some previously known and others just discovered - include sprawling oil and gas facilities and large landfills. "Some of the (methane) plumes EMIT detected are among the largest ever seen - unlike anything that has ever been observed from space," said Andrew Thorpe, a JPL research technologist leading the methane studies. Examples of newly imaged methane super-emitters showcased by JPL on Tuesday included a cluster of 12 plumes from oil and gas infrastructure in Turkmenistan, some plumes stretching more than 20 miles (32 km). EMIT, one of 25 Earth science instruments in orbit, could potentially find hundreds of methane super-emitters before its year-long mission ends, NASA said.

☆ NASA's UFO panel convenes to study unclassified sightings
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-25 | by ( Steve Gorman | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Oct 24 (Reuters) - A first-of-its-kind panel organized by NASA opened a study on Monday of what the government calls "unidentified aerial phenomena," commonly termed UFOs, bringing together experts from scientific fields ranging from physics to astrobiology. The 16-member panel, convened with little fanfare, will focus its inquiry entirely on unclassified sightings and other data collected from civilian government and commercial sectors, according to NASA. The team's inquiry is separate from a newly formalized Pentagon-based investigation of unidentified aerial phenomena, or UAPs, reported by military aviators and analyzed by U.S. defense and intelligence officials. Announcing the formation of its panel in June, NASA said: "There is no evidence UAPs are extraterrestrial in origin." "Understanding the data we have surrounding unidentified aerial phenomena is critical to helping us draw scientific conclusions about what's happening in our skies," said Thomas Zurbuchen, associate NASA administrator.

☆ Comic actor Leslie Jordan, 67, killed in Hollywood car accident
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-24 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Jordan apparently suffered an unspecified "medical issue" at the wheel of his car, and the vehicle struck the side of a building on his way to the Warner Bros studio set of the Fox television series "Call Me Kat," according to his agent, Don LeClair. He became famous to a younger generation of fans with a series of video Instagram posts that went viral during the pandemic. "The world is definitely a much darker place today without the love and light of Leslie Jordan," his agent said in a statement. What he lacked in height he made up for in generosity and greatness as a son, brother, artist, comedian, partner and human being." Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com RegisterReporting in Los Angeles by Steve Gorman; Editing by Will DunhamOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Ex-classmate convicted of murdering long-missing California student Kristin Smart
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-18 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Oct 18 (Reuters) - A former classmate of Kristin Smart, the California college freshman whose 1996 disappearance long stood as one of the state's most sensational unsolved crimes, was found guilty on Tuesday of murdering her, prosecutors said. The guilty verdict against Paul Flores, who was arrested and charged with Smart's death in April 2021, almost a quarter-century after she vanished, was returned by a jury in Monterey County Superior Court. A separate jury found his elderly father, Ruben Flores, not guilty on a charge of helping to hide Smart's body. Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com RegisterThe murder verdict was announced on the Facebook page of the San Luis Obispo County district Attorney, Dan Dow. The trials were moved from San Luis Obispo County in a change of venue requested by defense lawyers because of intense pretrial publicity surrounding the investigation.

☆ Garter snake causes stir aboard United Airlines jet in New Jersey
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-18 | by ( Steve Gorman | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Oct 18 (Reuters) - The unexpected appearance of a live snake on a plane caused some turbulence among business-class passengers aboard a United Airlines jet at the end of a flight from Florida to New Jersey. The reptile stowaway, identified as a harmless garter snake, turned up on United Airlines Flight 2038 from Tampa shortly after landing Monday afternoon at Newark Liberty International Airport, according to the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey. There were no injuries, no impact to airport operations, and the plane later departed Newark, she said. No mention was made by any of the parties involved as to how the snake might have gotten aboard a commercial airline flight. Monday's incident was not the first real-life instance of a serpentine creature hitching a ride aboard a commercial jet.

Actor Cuba Gooding Jr. appears in New York Criminal Court for his sentencing hearing after he pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor count of forcibly touching a woman at a New York nightclub in 2018, in Manhattan in New York City, New York, U.S., October 13, 2022. REUTERS/Mike SegarOct 13 (Reuters) - Actor Cuba Gooding Jr. pleaded guilty on Thursday to a single count of harassment under an agreement with prosecutors sparing him any jail time while disposing of a criminal case that stemmed from allegations by several women of sexual misconduct. One of Gooding's lawyers, Frank Rothman, told Reuters that Gooding's harassment plea in Manhattan benefits his client by avoiding a criminal record as well as sparing him further jail time. Charges relating to two out of the three were dismissed outright, and the third ended up in a plea to harassment as a violation," Rothman said. "I've waited three years for the opportunity to speak about the injustice of Cuba Gooding Jr.

☆ SpaceX capsule splashes down, returning 4 astronauts from Space Station
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-14 | by ( Steve Gorman | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Oct 14 (Reuters) - The fourth long-duration astronaut team launched by SpaceX to the International Space Station (ISS) safely returned to Earth on Friday, splashing down in the Atlantic Ocean off Florida after nearly six months of research aboard the orbital outpost. The SpaceX Crew Dragon capsule dubbed Freedom, carrying three U.S. NASA astronauts and an Italian crewmate from the European Space Agency, parachuted into the sea at the conclusion of a five-hour autonomous flight home from the ISS. Camera shots from inside the crew compartment showed the four strapped in their seats, garbed in helmeted white-and-black spacesuits. Applause from the SpaceX flight control center in suburban Los Angeles was heard over the webcast. During their 170 days aboard the space station, the crew orbited Earth 2,720 times - about once every 90 minutes - to log some 72 million miles (116 million km) in space, according to NASA.

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