Only 12 people have walked on the Moon — but in a new era of commercial space exploration, a nonprofit dedicated to safeguarding treasured sites is warning about threats to historic Moon landing locations.
The big picture: The World Monuments Fund listed an at-risk site beyond the Earth's surface for the first time in this year's World Monuments Watch, a nomination-based list released biennially to raise awareness of heritage sites in need of preservation.
Jeff Bezos' Blue Origin launched its massive new rocket into space Thursday, successfully reaching orbit on its very first test flight.
Why it matters: The successful launch of the New Glenn rocket came after several delays and marks an important milestone for the company, which had previously only flown suborbital flights.
Colossal Biosciences, the "de-extinction" company known for its work on the woolly mammoth and dodo, raised $200 million in Series C funding from Mark Walters' TWG Global at a $10.2 billion post-money valuation.
Why it matters: This gives the pre-revenue company more runway to sign contracts with governments that are seeking to protect or replenish their biodiversity, while also letting it expand its de-extinction efforts into more species.
The U.S. needs more options to disrupt or destroy space tech deployed by other countries, namely China and Russia, according to Air Force Secretary Frank Kendall.
Why it matters: Counter-space weaponry is seemingly taboo to talk about. Rarely will an official discuss hunting spacecraft.
At least two wildfires ignited in Southern California during critical fire weather and triggered fresh evacuations on Tuesday, one week after deadly blazes first erupted across Los Angeles County.
The big picture: The fires have killed at least 25 people and the "Particularly Dangerous Situation Red Flag Warning" that the National Weather Service's L.A. office issued remains in effect until Wednesday afternoon.
Some of the most destructive wildfires in California's history have killed at least 25 people in Los Angeles County, caused hundreds of thousands to evacuate and choked air quality across the region for the past week.
The big picture: The fires erupted in extremely dry conditions last Tuesday as powerful Santa Ana winds struck. As some assess damage in what's set to be among the most costly wildfire disasters ever in the U.S., parts of L.A. and Ventura counties face a "Particularly Dangerous Situation" red flag warning into Wednesday.
