ads by Clixsense

Thursday, February 18, 2021

'A real mess': More winter storm misery in store

Another winter storm targets the United States, NASA's Perseverance to touchdown on Mars and more things to know Thursday. ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌  ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌  ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌  ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ 
usatoday.com

Daily Briefing
 
Thursday, February 18
Icicles hang from a ceiling fan in Dallas, Texas, amid a historic cold snap in February.
'A real mess': More winter storm misery in store
Another winter storm targets the United States, NASA's Perseverance to touchdown on Mars and more things to know Thursday.

Good morning, Daily Briefing readers. We're not done with the brutal winter weather, unfortunately. It's Jane, with Thursday's news. 

More than 100 million people, some already without electricity, are in the path of yes, another winter storm. Life expectancy for Americans dropped to its lowest level in 15 years during the first half of the pandemic, a new study reveals. The CEOs of Reddit and Robinhood will testify before Congress after last month's stock trading frenzy. And, it's a fine day for a sci-fi fix: NASA's Perseverance rover will finally touch down on Mars after a 293-million-mile journey on its epic quest from Cape Canaveral.

🎧 On today's 5 Things podcast, hear what scientists say about how climate change plays into the extreme cold weather we're seeing right now. A reminder: you can listen to the podcast every day on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or on your smart speaker.

Here's today's news:

Another winter storm targets the South, Midwest and Northeast

A new brutal winter storm will rampage across the United States over the next couple of days, with more than 100 million Americans in its path  as it tracks from the southern Plains to the East Coast. From Minnesota to Texas, utility companies have implemented rolling blackouts to ease the burden on power grids straining to meet extreme demand for heat and electricity as record low temperatures were reported in city after city. More than 30 people have died because of the intense cold and a series of storms that moved from coast to coast since the weekend. The next winter storm will bring more snow and ice and "just a real mess" to many areas of the country, including the South, Midwest and Northeast, AccuWeather meteorologist Bernie Rayno said. And as the storm advances to the northeast through Friday, snow is forecast to fall along a 2,000-mile-long swath from northwestern and north-central Texas to northern Maine, AccuWeather said. 

Record cold, intense storms and tornadoes amid global warming: Could there be a connection?
Icicles hanging from a ceiling fan, a frosted cactus: Texas is frozen in surreal photos
Gas prices to rise as winter storm rages, shutting refineries, stores and delaying shipments. Is $3 fuel coming?
Texas mayor who wrote 'only the strong will survive' amid deadly winter storm says he has resigned

COVID-19 pandemic: Life expectancy in the US is at its lowest in 15 years

Life expectancy in the United States dropped to its lowest level in 15 years – and even lower for Black Americans and Latinos – during the first half of the coronavirus pandemic, a new study released Thursday finds. Data through June 2020 shows life expectancy at birth for the total U.S. population fell from 2019 by a year to 77.8 years , the lowest since 2006, according to researchers at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's National Center for Health Statistics. Life expectancy for Black populations declined the most from 2019 – by 2.7 years, to 72 years – the lowest level since 2001. Latinos experienced the second-biggest decline, falling 1.9 years since 2019 to a life expectancy of 79.9 years, lower than when it was first recorded in 2006. 

Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine weaker against South African variant, study says. Latest COVID-19 updates
'Somewhere in there, the vaccine got overpromised': How the COVID-19 vaccination process turned chaotic and confusing
Want a worry-free Fourth of July? COVID-19 vaccinations need to speed up – and fast
'Just not equal at all': Vaccine rollout in Chicago a microcosm of racial disparities nationwide

Here's what to expect as Robinhood, Reddit CEOs testify before Congress

Some of the biggest players in last month's GameStop trading frenzy will face a congressional hearing Thursday as the House Financial Services Committee looks into whether market manipulation was involved. The chief executives of Reddit, Robinhood, electronic-trading firm Citadel Securities and hedge fund Melvin Capital will attend. Also at the hearing will be the investor who spearheaded the GameStop buying frenzy on the r/WallStreetBets Reddit forum, Keith Gill. Despite the uproar, there likely won't be significant legislation following the hearing, experts say. "But there could be some rulemaking that comes out of this from the regulatory agencies," said Daniel Smith, a partner at ACA Compliance Group, an advisory firm for financial services. 

'Looking down their nose at you': GameStop frenzy showed a fresh contempt for hedge funds. Why do Americans hate them?

NASA's Perseverance to touchdown on Mars after nearly 300 million miles

After a 293-million-mile trek since its July 2020 launch from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station, NASA's Perseverance is slated to land on Mars at 3:55 p.m. EST Thursday . The target? Jezero Crater, a harsh surface feature that was likely once a deep lake fed by rivers of running water. The mission? Find signs of life. But before it can begin roving its targeted landing site at a breakneck 0.1 mph, Perseverance has to pull off a series of risky landing maneuvers all by itself. The $2.4 billion rover must slow down from thousands of miles an hour to a soft 1.7 mph at landing. This seven-minute process – from 3:48 p.m. to 3:55 p.m. – is known as the "seven minutes of terror." Because signals take 11 minutes to reach Earth, human input in the event of a mishap is impossible. Perseverance is on her own. 

Mars rover landing will be a nerve-wracking 'seven minutes of terror.' Here's how it works
NASA holds a virtual briefing on its latest mission to Mars
Krispy Kreme launches Mars Doughnut Thursday in honor of NASA Perseverance Rover's Martian landing
Reviewed: Stellar space toys to celebrate the Mars landing 
Mars Perseverance rover in augmented reality
Mars Perseverance rover in augmented reality
USA TODAY

More news you need to know:

Naomi Osaka defeats Serena Williams to advance to Australian Open final
'Too early to say': Donald Trump stays mum on 2024 campaign (but promotes his polls)
'Righting wrongs': Congress is taking another look at reparations for slavery
'A true American legend': Donald Trump, Bill O'Reilly, more mourn Rush Limbaugh's death
Do Lincoln, Washington deserve statues? Chicago flags 41 controversial monuments for scrutiny
Tim Tebow announces retirement from baseball
IRS says all stimulus payments have been distributed, but some checks may still be in the mail

The 2021 SheBelieves Cup opens with Brazil vs. Argentina, USA vs. Canada

The SheBelieves Cup begins Thursday at Exploria Stadium in Orlando, Florida, where the U.S. women's national soccer team will face Canada at 7 p.m. ET . Brazil and Argentina will open the four-team tournament earlier Thursday, with a 4 p.m. ET kickoff. The U.S. women have played just three games since last March, and this is only their fourth training camp. This will be the 61st time that the USWNT has played Canada, the most of any opponent. Fans can watch the SheBelieves Cup on FS1 – or TUDN for the Spanish-language broadcast. 

COVID-19 recovery: Alex Morgan back with US team for SheBelieves Cup

And finally: Runner makes stunning comeback from last place

This is why you never give up. University of Michigan athlete Ziyah Holman made a remarkable comeback as she helped her team win a 4×400-meter relay race. Check out what happened in this Sportskind video.

 
FOLLOW US
FB TW IG

Problem viewing email? View in browser

Unsubscribe Manage Newsletters Terms of Service Privacy Policy/Your California Privacy Rights Privacy Notice Do Not Sell My Info/Cookie Policy Feedback

No comments:

Post a Comment