In The NEWS

Corporation for Public Broadcasting says it will shut down.

The CPB subsidizes over 1,500 local media stations, including those affiliated with PBS and NPR; it was created by Congress in 1967 (see timeline of history). CPB announced Friday it will begin shutting down operations and cut the majority of its staff by Sept. 30. The move follows Congress' decision last month to claw back nearly $8B in previously authorized funding for foreign aid programs and $1.1B in funding for the CPB over the next two years.



"Fire clouds" over Arizona and Utah wildfires create their own climate.

Wildfires in the Grand Canyon and Monroe, Utah, are creating pyrocumulus and pyrocumulonimbus "fire clouds," which can generate their own dangerous weather, including strong winds that threaten to spread the fires rapidly. Pyrocumulus clouds are smoke- and ash-filled clouds formed by rising hot air from fires; if conditions allow, they grow into pyrocumulonimbus clouds, which are intense fire-driven thunderstorm clouds. The clouds have been observed for several days, with some producing fire tornadoes (see overview) and contributing to the hazardous conditions amid ongoing drought and extreme heat.



South African rhino horns turned radioactive to curb poaching.

The Rhisotope Project in South Africa has developed a safe method to embed low-level radioactive isotopes into rhino horns to combat poaching. The horns are detectable by radiation scanners at borders and ports worldwide, including through 40-foot shipping containers. The project aims to deter illegal wildlife trafficking by offering a tool to protect endangered rhino populations. Last year, 420 rhinos were killed in South Africa; see poaching stats here.



Pre-Incan tomb with 1,000-year-old remains unearthed in Peru.

Utility workers expanding underground gas networks in Lima, Peru, uncovered two pre-Incan tombs, one empty and the other containing the 1,000-year-old remains of an individual along with four clay vessels and three pumpkin shell artifacts. The discovery adds to over 2,200 archaeological findings made during more than 20 years of similar excavation work by the gas company, Cálidda, in a city known for having more than 400 archaeological sites from the Inca era or earlier periods.



Ghislaine Maxwell moved from Florida federal prison to Texas.

Maxwell, convicted of sex trafficking minors tied to late financier Jeffrey Epstein, has been transferred from a Florida federal prison to a minimum-security facility in Texas. The move comes as Maxwell pursues a deal to lessen her sentence or obtain a pardon, reportedly negotiating with the Justice Department for potential revelations about Epstein and his associates.

SOURCE:  1440 NEWS