Axios

While the U.S. awaits the consequences of a breakdown in the polar vortex, Australia has been sizzling through an unrelenting series of heatwaves that have shattered all-time records.

Why it matters: Heat waves are one of the clearest manifestations of global warming, and extended episodes can be particularly deadly and costly. In Australia, they also heighten the risk of wildfires.

Relativity Space, a venture-backed rocket company, has won Air Force approval to launch from Cape Canaveral in Florida in an agreement announced Thursday.

Why it matters: Relativity Space differs from its competitors in that it relies on automated manufacturing to build its launch vehicles, which it hopes will dramatically lower the cost of access to space. It also puts Relativity Space in the company of NASA, SpaceX, United Launch Alliance and Blue Origin for coveted Cape Canaveral real estate.

The polar vortex, which typically keeps the coldest air in the Northern Hemisphere effectively locked up in the Arctic, has split into three pieces. Now, Arctic air is poised to blast across the Canadian border and into the Midwest and East Coast, along with a major winter storm.

Why it matters: A coast-to-coast storm during the next several days could deposit feet of snow in parts of the West and Northeast, while ushering in the coldest air of the season. This will yield travel headaches and economic impacts — and the storm won't be the last of this event.