U.S. aerospace manufacturer Rocket Lab launched four satellites into orbit on Monday, among them a geodesic sphere that the company claims will be the "brightest object in the night sky," according to Quartz.
Why it matters: The "Humanity Star," as its known, is made up of 65 reflective panels that will create a flashing effect in the sky as the object orbits Earth every 90 minutes. Rocket Lab CEO Peter Beck views the project as more than just a publicity stunt, claiming in a statement that it symbolizes the need to "make big decisions in the context of humanity as a whole."
All U.S. tsunami watches on the West Coast have been canceled following a 7.9 magnitude earthquake in the Gulf of Alaska early Tuesday morning, although advisories remain for Alaska, The Weather Network reports. Tsunami warnings for British Columbia in Canada have ended, but all clears are not yet issued for some areas.
Why it matters: “The first wave may not be the largest,” per The Weather Channel. Tsunami warnings and watches are frequently upgraded or downgraded as more observations come in.
Two weeks after the loss of a multi-billion dollar satellite, the U.S. Air Force has decided to let Elon Musk's SpaceX keep its certification for military missions, Bloomberg reports. The Air Force echoed SpaceX's statement that its Falcon 9 rocket “did everything correctly” on the classified mission that led to the satellite's disappearance.
The big picture: SpaceX gets to keep its contracts with the government, which totaled $70 billion and continues through 2030, per Bloomberg.
