A massive blackout affecting Spain, Portugal and parts of France has been blamed on atmospheric conditions. Now engineers face the arduous task of getting the power back on.
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Katy Perry has launched to space with Blue Origin
Katy Perry, Lauren Sánchez, and the four other women on Blue Origin’s NS-31 flight. Jeff Bezos’ Blue Origin has launched pop singer / songwriter Katy Perry into space, along with five other women: former NASA scientists Aisha Bowe and Amanda Nguyễn, journalist Gayle King, journalist and Bezos fiancée Lauren Sánchez, and film producer Kerianne Flynn. Their flight, called NS-31, launched aboard Blue Origin’s New Shepard rocket as its launch window opened at 8:30AM CT / 9:30AM ET. It’s being livestreamed both on YouTube and Blue Origin’s website.
Past New Shepard flights have taken passengers just to the edge of space, where they’re allowed to unbuckle and roam freely for a few minutes inside the capsule before buckling up again for re-entry. The capsule then deploys a parachute and touches back down in west Texas. During the flight, the New Shepard rocket itself returns to its landing pad.
In a video posted to Instagram before the flight, Perry said she plans to make a “special reveal coming to you from zero gravity.” She posted an earlier video touring the capsule that she and the others will be aboard, and said she will probably sing in space.
This is Blue Origin’s 31st New Shepard launch. The rocket’s last flight was in February, and previous tourists aboard New Shepard flights include William Shatner, and 90-year-old Ed Dwight, who was America’s first astronaut candidate, but who never made it to space.
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Katy Perry is going to space with Blue Origin in a few minutes
Katy Perry, Lauren Sánchez, and the four other women on Blue Origin’s NS-31 flight. Jeff Bezos’ Blue Origin is preparing to put pop singer / songwriter Katy Perry into space, along with five other women: former NASA scientists Aisha Bowe and Amanda Nguyen, journalist Gayle King, journalist and Bezos fiancée Lauren Sánchez, and film producer Kerianne Flynn. Their flight, called NS-31, will launch aboard Blue Origin’s New Shepard rocket, with a launch window opening at 8:30AM CT / 9:30AM ET. It’s being livestreamed both on YouTube and Blue Origin’s website.
Past New Shepard flights have taken passengers just to the edge of space, where they’re allowed to unbuckle and roam freely for a few minutes inside the capsule before buckling up again for re-entry. The capsule then deploys a parachute and touches back down in west Texas. During the flight, the New Shepard rocket itself returns to its landing pad.
In a video posted to Instagram before the flight, Perry said she plans to make a “special reveal coming to you from zero gravity.” She posted an earlier video touring the capsule that she and the others will be aboard, and said she will probably sing in space.
This is Blue Origin’s 31st New Shepard launch. The rocket’s last flight was in February, and previous tourists aboard it include William Shatner, and 90-year-old Ed Dwight, who was America’s first astronaut candidate, but who never made it to space.
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DOGE staffers are listed in the FCC directory
Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) has infiltrated the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), an agency that has a say over resources Musk needs or could benefit from for some of his private sector business, The Verge has learned.
Three people who have been identified as DOGE staffers are listed in a public directory called “Finding People at the FCC.” Tarak Makecha, Jordan Wick, and Jacob Altik are all listed in the FCC directory, with email addresses associated with the agency. Each is listed under the office “OCH,” which in other agency documents refers to the Office of the Chairman.
Makecha is a finance executive who, according to LinkedIn, has most recently worked in a drone detection software company and previously worked at Tesla. Makecha has reportedly been involved through DOGE at OPM and the State Department. Wick is a former Waymo engineer who’s reportedly been given access to systems at the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB). Altik is a lawyer who’s reportedly been involved at the Office of Personnel Management (OPM).
Are you a current or former US federal government worker? Reach out securely and anonymously with tips from a non-work device to Lauren Feiner via Signal at laurenfeiner.64.
DOGE has recently expanded into other enforcement agencies, including the Federal Trade Commission, as The Verge reported earlier on Friday. The FCC’s authority over radio, TV, broadband, and satellite intersects with Musk’s businesses, like granting certain permissions for SpaceX’s Starlink operations. Its role as a regulator and enforcer also means it stores information on SpaceX and its competitors in order to make decisions. White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt has previously said that Musk would recuse himself from potential conflicts. The FCC did not immediately respond to a request for comment about what the DOGE staffers’ role will be at the agency or what restrictions there will be on their data access.