A dozen teams nationwide are getting millions in Department of Energy funding to develop batteries for electric regional aircraft, trains and ships.
Why it matters: If any such moonshot is successful and scaleable, it could help curb the massive amounts of carbon emitted from heavy-duty transportation.
The latest ongoing atmospheric river was unleashing heavy rain and thunderstorms, mountain snow and gusty winds over much of the West Coast and parts of the Intermountain West into Wednesday.
The big picture: "Southern California is once again 'under the gun' for numerous instances of flash flooding as the main band of atmospheric river rainfall focuses through the overnight hours there," per a Wednesday morning National Weather Service forecast discussion.
NASA has a new Mars mission: seeking volunteers to spend an entire year living in a simulated version of the red planet.
Why it matters: The surface mission on a 3D-printed habitat, called the Mars Dune Alpha, will help inform the agency's plans for human exploration of the planet, per a statement from NASA.
