Privateer — a company focused on understanding and tracking space junk — is rolling out and updating tools to accurately visualize the orbital debris problem, the company's chief scientist tells Axios.
Why it matters: Scientists think there are millions of pieces of space junk swirling above our planet speeding in excess of 17,000 mph and threatening functional satellites in orbit.
Australia's government announced a "zero extinctions" drive Tuesday that'll see at least 30% of the country's land mass reserved for conservation in order to protect threatened animals and plants.
Why it matters: "Australia is the mammal extinction capital of the world," said Australian Environment Minister Tanya Plibersek in a statement announcing the 10-year plan to save threatened species including the iconic koala.
Coinciding with his visiton Monday, President Biden announced the administration will provide $60 million to Puerto Rico to help the island shore up protections against future storms.
Driving the news: More than two weeks after Hurricane Fiona hit Puerto Rico, 122,130 customers are still without power as of Monday morning, according to PowerOutage.us.
Hurricane Orlene was downgraded to a tropical storm after making landfall on Mexico's Pacific coastline Monday morning as a Category 1 storm just north of the Nayarit-Sinaloa state border, the National Hurricane Center (NHC) said.
The big picture: The storm was expected to bring dangerous storm surge along the coast of mainland Mexico and heavy rain in the southwest through Tuesday, raising the risk of flash flooding and possible landslides.
Days after Hurricane Ian swept through, central Florida communities are facing sewage concerns and rising floodwaters that the National Weather Service warns will persist "well into this week" — as rescue efforts continue across the state.
Details: The city of Orlando urged residents on Sunday night to "limit water usage" after Ian's "unprecedented rainfall" damaged the sewer system, while the nearby central city of St. Cloud issued a voluntary evacuation order due to rising floodwaters.
