Apr 6, 2017

Jeff Bezos will sell $1 billion in Amazon stock per year to fund spaceflight firm

Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos told reporters at the U.S. Space Symposium in Colorado Springs that he plans to sell $1 billion in Amazon stock every year and funnel the proceeds into his spaceflight company Blue Origin, CNBC reports. Blue Origin aims to start test flights with company pilots and engineers either this year or next, with a goal towards offering 11-minute commercial flights that enable passengers to experience weightlessness and see the curvature of the earth.

Why it matters: America's brightest entrepreneurial minds like Bezos and Elon Musk are investing enormous time and money into space flight. Musk's company SpaceX says it will fly private citizens around the moon next year, and both believe we can send a human to Mars within a decade and should ultimately aim to build a human colony there.

Go deeper

Ursula Perano

What we know: Deadly Storm Dennis whips at England, Wales and Ireland

Photo: OLI SCARFF/AFP via Getty Images.

At least two deaths are being attributed to Storm Dennis on Monday as it continues to strike at parts of England, Wales and Ireland, per AccuWeather.

The big picture: Dennis is the second-strongest nontropical storm ever recorded in the North Atlantic Ocean. Its hurricane-force winds and heavy rains have caused widespread flooding across the United Kingdom. The army has been deployed in the U.K. to help with flood relief.

Go deeper18 mins ago - Science

Axios

Coronavirus cases rise as 14 American evacuees infected

Data: The Center for Systems Science and Engineering at Johns Hopkins, the CDC, and China's NHC; Note: China refers to mainland China and the Diamond Princess is the cruise ship offshore Yokohama, Japan. Map: Danielle Alberti/Axios

14 Americans evacuated from the Diamond Princess cruise ship tested positive for the novel coronavirus before being flown in a "specialist containment" on a plane repatriating U.S. citizens back home, the U.S. government said early Monday.

The big picture: COVID-19 has now killed at least 1,775 people and infected more than 70,000 others. Most cases and all but five of the deaths have occurred in mainland China.

Go deeperUpdated 2 hours ago - Health

Jim VandeHei, Margaret Talev

The cost of going after Bloomberg

Illustration: Eniola Odetunde/Axios

Here's the growing dilemma for 2020 Democrats vying for a one-on-one showdown with frontrunner Bernie Sanders: Do they have the guts — and the money — to first stop Mike Bloomberg?

Why it matters: Joe Biden, Pete Buttigieg, Amy Klobuchar and Elizabeth Warren all must weigh the costs of punching Bloomberg where he looks most vulnerable: stop-and-frisk, charges of sexism, billionaire entitlement. The more zealous the attacks, the greater the risk he turns his campaign ATM against them.

Go deeper7 hours ago - Politics & Policy