STEM Scene: May 2

Elon Musk’s SpaceX Starship rocket exploded on April 20 minutes after its launch above the Gulf of Mexico. In an attempt to send the world’s most powerful rocket to outer space, SpaceX planned to send the spacecraft on an unmanned test flight around the world starting from Texas. The rocket experienced engine malfunctions that caused it to automatically self-destruct, according to AP News. It re...

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) announced on April 19 that citizens over 65 or with compromised immune systems can take a new bivalent COVID-19 booster shot in the spring. Senior citizens are eligible to receive an updated booster from Pfizer or Moderna four months after their first booster shot, and immunocompromised individuals can receive the shot two months after their first one, accor...

Twitter removed its blue verification badges from thousands of public figures on April 20, and the social media platform is now charging $8 per month for users to keep their checkmarks in a subscription service called Twitter Blue. The new policy intends to minimize the number of fake accounts with verification checks, although any user can still pay to have their account verified and potentially i...

U.S. President Joe Biden promised $500 million towards limiting deforestation in the Amazon rainforest on April 20, and he plans to spend over $1 billion to help foreign countries adopt renewable energy sources. The money will be donated to a conservation project called the Amazon Fund over a period of five years, and it will contribute to Brazil’s goal of eliminating all Amazon deforestation by 2030. However, the pledge still needs t...

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) released a forecast on April 20 suggesting warmer temperatures for California in the months of May and June. According to the forecast, weather in the following months will most likely match that in past years across California and Nevada. Forecasters warn that warmer temperatures may result in the rapid melting of snow accumulated after powe...