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Scientists say they have captured the first direct acoustic evidence of lightning on Mars — tiny crackling electrical discharges triggered by swirling dust devils and storms, picked up by a microphone on NASA’s Perseverance rover. A French-led team reported in the journal Nature that it found 55 episodes of what it calls “mini lightning” — brief, static-like sparks inches long — hidden in 28 hours of rover audio recorded over nearly four Earth years. The faint pops and crackles, barely audible amid howling wind and dust grains pinging the microphone, occurred almost exclusively during the Red Planet’s dustiest, windiest days....

Explanation: NGC 6888, also known as the Crescent Nebula, is a about 25 light-years across, a cosmic bubble blown by winds from its central, massive star. This deep telescopic image includes narrowband image data, to isolate light from hydrogen and oxygen atoms. The oxygen atoms produce the blue-green hue that seems to enshroud the nebula's detailed folds and filaments. Visible within the nebula, NGC 6888's central star is classified as a Wolf-Rayet star (WR 136). The star is shedding its outer envelope in a strong stellar wind, ejecting the equivalent of the Sun's mass every 10,000 years. In fact, the...

The Prohibition Party has qualified for political group recognition in Alaska, allowing state voters to register as members of the party and requiring the Alaska Division of Elections to track its total registrations. Prohibition Party Chair Zack Kusnir confirmed in a November 24 statement to Independent Political Report that the group is now “officially recognized.” He added that the party is awaiting signature verification to apply for “limited political party” status, which, if granted, would give it a ballot line in future presidential elections. The Alaska Division of Elections website also now lists the Prohibition Party alongside other recognized political...

"This thinking is perhaps best represented by Candace Owens and Tucker Carlson, who mix in their shows topics about aliens, the occult, and schemes of ultra-secret agencies To Owens and Carlson’s conspiratorial minds, what officials tell us is never what actually happened. The absence of competing evidence is a point in favor of conspiracy, as are attempts to disprove it—both are seen as signs of a cover-up to suppress the truth. The sickness of the mind that has gone mainstream on the right has its roots at least partially in QAnon, which, nearly a decade ago, was a conspiracy relegated...

Tennessee's 7th congressional district special election Early Vote Via Axios 🔴 Republicans: 46% (+6) 🔵 Democrats: 40%

Two oil tankers, the M/T KAIROS and M/T VIRAT, alleged to be part of the “Russian Shadow Fleet” exploded and caught fire earlier today in the Southern Black Sea, shortly after crossing north through the Bosphorus Strait in Turkey. The tankers, which were enroute to the Russian Port of Novorossiysk from Egypt, are suspected to have been targeted by several uncrewed surface vessels and/or naval mines set by the Armed Forces of Ukraine. The crews aboard both vessels were able to be successfully evacuated, with it expected that the tankers will soon sink in the Black Sea, according to Turkish...

President Donald Trump announced on Friday he is terminating all documents allegedly signed by former President Joe Biden with the autopen. In a Truth Social post, Trump claimed 92% of documents signed during Biden's presidency were done so with the device. "The Autopen is not allowed to be used if approval is not specifically given by the President of the United States," Trump wrote. "The Radical Left Lunatics circling Biden around the beautiful Resolute Desk in the Oval Office took the Presidency away from him." Trump said he is canceling all executive orders and "anything else that was not directly...

GENEVA (Reuters) -U.N. agencies on Friday appealed to Washington to continue allowing asylum seekers access to the country and to be given due process after President Donald Trump vowed to freeze migration from "Third World" countries following an attack near the White House. Asked to respond to Trump's remarks, U.N. human rights office spokesperson Jeremy Laurence told a Geneva press briefing: "They are entitled to protection under international law, and that should be given due process." U.N. refugee agency spokesperson Eujin Byun echoed those remarks. "When people who need protection arrive in their territory, they have to have a due...

SANTIAGO, Chile (AP) — President José Jarí of Peru said his government on Friday would declare a state of emergency along the country’s southern border and deploy more armed forces to the area as a large number of Venezuelan migrants venture north from Chile, where anti-immigrant sentiment has surged during a fraught presidential campaign. Hundreds of thousands of migrants escaping crises in their home countries or seeking better opportunities abroad long have traversed the continent and the Peruvian border to build new lives in Chile, one of Latin America’s most stable and prosperous nations. But scores of people without legal...

Late on the evening of Thanksgiving, President Donald Trump took to Truth Social and X not only to share holiday greetings but to unleash one of his most blistering attacks yet against the state of immigration, Democratic leadership, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, and Rep. Ilhan Omar. Trump began his post with a familiar mix of gratitude and outrage. “A very Happy Thanksgiving salutation to all of our Great American mom Citizens and Patriots who have been so nice in allowing our Country to be divided, disrupted, carved up, murdered, beaten, mugged, and laughed at,” he wrote, before blaming “foolish countries...

A volcano more powerful than Tambora... but no one knows where it is. Dive into a real-life scientific thriller to uncover the eruption that changed the world -- and vanished without a trace. The Lost Supervolcano: Was This the Biggest Eruption in Human History? - Full Documentary | 52:52 Easy Documentary Knowledge | 5.99K subscribers | 274,031 views | April 25, 2025

MADISON, Wis. (WMTV) - Governor Tony Evers announced the theme for the 2025 State Capitol Holiday Tree Wednesday afternoon. The governor said the “Learning Tree” will feature handmade ornaments celebrating and thanking Wisconsinites who “support, educate, empower and inspire” students. The tree’s theme rounds off the governor’s “Year of the Kid” declaration, Evers’ year-long emphasis on Wisconsin students and K-12 schools. A former educator himself, Evers said he could not think of a better way to celebrate the “Year of the Kid” during the holiday season. “‘The Learning Tree’ [is meant] to honor our educators, administrators, custodians, librarians, child care...

Explanation: The tree is not in danger. That's because the comet pictured just above it, Comet C/2025 A6 (Lemmon), is far in the distance, well away from the Earth. Comet Lemmon now continues to brighten as it arcs through the inner Solar System, even though it has passed its nearest to the Sun -- because it is now approaching the Earth. The comet will likely appear brightest when it is at its closest to the Earth next week, then closing to about half the Earth-Sun distance. Comet Lemmon may then be visible to the unaided eye, but it is more...

Airbus, one of the biggest aircraft makers globally, has issued a major warning that the company said could likely ground many passenger jets worldwide. The aeronautics company announced Friday that they have discovered a potential vulnerability in the software on board the Airbus A320 during solar storms, which may hinder pilots from steering or stabilizing the plane while in the air. Airbus issued an Alert Operators Transmission (AOT), a global warning that urges all airlines using the A320 passenger jet to immediately update their software and hardware to better protect against radiation interference. Industry safety experts believe the problem originated...

https://babylonbee.com/news/no-thanks-says-hungry-homeless-man-after-being-offered-marshmallow-jello-salad SAN FRANCISCO, CA — New reports indicated that local homeless man John Brill politely yet firmly refused a passerby's offer of free leftover marshmallow jello salad earlier today, despite having not eaten in several days. According to the individual who attempted to give away the Thanksgiving side dish, Brill's eyes, which had initially lit up at the prospect of finally filling his stomach, were quickly filled with disdain after he saw the colorful marshmallow jello salad. "No, thanks," Brill said, sadly, returning the container to his would-be Good Samaritan. "I'll just take my chances scrounging up something else, I...

The economy is growing fast. The stock market is booming. Interest rates have plunged. The unemployment rate remains very low and few workers are being laid off. Consumers have not entered a holiday season with inflation running this low since before Joe Biden was president.No wonder a record number of Americans say they plan to shop this weekend and sales are expected to grow at a healthy rate.Economists are forecasting that registers will be ringing up sales at a fast pace this year. The National Retail Federation expects sales in November and December to grow between 3.7 percent and 4.2...

A former World Trade Center worker who “narrowly escaped” the Sept. 11, 2001 terror attacks has been beaten to death by three teens — one of whom was just 12 at the time of the attack, according to officials. Long Island native Roger Borkum, 64, was found “severely beaten” just before midnight on Oct. 19 in Downtown Jacksonville, FL., after three teens were seen “kicking and stomping” him, according to an arrest report from the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office. He was found with blood “pooled” around his head — and a “blood trail extending down the sidewalk,” the arrest report said....

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There’s a particular kind of innocence in believing that generosity will be recognized for what it is. A nation opens its doors, offers a warm meal, provides a safe bed, and assumes the visitor understands the privilege. For decades, America set out the banquet, refilled the bowls, and quietly told itself that this time, surely, the guests would take only what they needed. But people who are constantly fed start to forget who stocked the pantry. They come back with friends. Then relatives. Then demands. And the hosts, too polite to object, keep ladling stew while pretending not to notice...

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy announced that head of the office of the president of Ukraine, Andriy Yermak, had written a letter of resignation.