Looking down on the lights of the aurora from above is something very view people have had the chance to experience.
The intrigue: This photo, taken by an astronaut onboard the International Space Station, gives those of us bound to Earth's surface a taste of what the view from space is like.
China agreed on Tuesday to allow international experts, expected to include Americans, to work on the ground with their scientists on the fast-spreading coronavirus.
Why it matters: Roughly 60 cases are outside mainland China, where the outbreak has infected at least 4,633 people. While China quickly provided global access to the virus genome, the epidemiology of how the virus works is hard to determine from outside China with little public data.
A 7.7-magnitude earthquake struck the northwest coast of Jamaica Tuesday, according the U.S. Geological Survey.
Be smart: The quake could spur tsunami waves as high as a meter along some coasts of Belize, Cuba, Hondura, Mexico, Jamaica and the Cayman Islands, according to the National Tsunami Warning Center.
On Thursday, NASA will shut down the Spitzer Space Telescope, ending a mission that transformed how we understand the invisible machinations of the universe.
Why it matters: While the telescope is still able to function today, NASA made the decision to shut it down, saying $14 million per year is too high a cost for its diminishing science return as the observatory will likely be inoperable soon.
Royal Bank of Canada'soil analysts found that departures from the five largest Chinese airports fell by nearly 800 flights this past weekend compared to the prior one — and air traffic in the five airports closest to Wuhan has dropped by nearly half in recent days.
Why it matters: The analysis, which even included a look at foot traffic, was meant to assess how the coronavirus outbreak in China affected flight traffic within major Asian airports. "We have not observed a change in consumer traffic in the busiest Asian airports outside of China," the bank said in its report.
Some analysts are beginning to wonder if oil markets are overly spooked by the potential for the coronavirus to dent energy demand as travel and economic activity are crimped.
Why it matters: The human health toll is what matters most, with at least 107 people dead so far. But the coronavirus is also rattling markets, and is arriving when the oil market was already awash in supplies and demand growth was modest.
The spread of the coronavirus in China has raised concerns about the pharmaceutical industry's global supply chain, STAT reports.
Between the lines: China produces a large portion of the ingredients used to make drugs. As the coronavirus spreads and sends China increasingly into lockdown, it's causing experts to question whether the supply chain is stable.
Days of heavy rains, floods and landslides in southeast Brazil have killed at least 54 people and displaced 30,000 others, AP reports.
The big picture: Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro said the military had been mobilized to help as over 100 cities had declared a state of emergency, per CNN. While rains were dissipating Monday, they're expected to return later this week in some places, AP notes.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped more than 450 points Monday, as worries about the coronavirus rattled U.S. markets.
Why it matters: The coronavirus could drastically affect markets if consumers refrain from travel. Companies that rely on tourism including airlines and resorts were hit especially hard Monday. The sell-off marked the Dow's first five-day losing streak since August, AP reports. It was also the S&P 500's worst day since October.
The risk of U.S. residents becoming infected by the coronavirus that's devastating China remains low right now, public health officials said Monday, even as there's growing pressure to ramp up U.S. and international pandemic preparedness.
Worry about the Wuhan coronavirus is beginning to have a serious effect on business as new cases are discovered worldwide and China ramps up efforts to contain its spread.
What's happening: China extended its Lunar New Year holiday until Feb. 2 from Jan. 30, to help deal with the outbreak, as the country's death toll rose to 80 and the number of confirmed cases reached upwards of 2,700.
Despite reassurances from public health officials that Americans don't currently need to wear face masks as a precaution against coronavirus, many drug stores are selling out.
Why it matters: While it's not clear how much protection the masks offer, manufacturers are seeing a spike in demand, and the potential spread of the virus in the U.S. is being monitored closely — and spooking out a lot of people.
