Amazon's first internet satellites are on their way to orbit. United Launch Alliance's Atlas rocket blasted off Monday from Florida. It's carrying 27 of Amazon's Project Kuiper satellites. It's the latest entry in the mega constellation market currently dominated by SpaceX's Starlinks. Amazon launched two test satellites in 2023. These upgraded new ones are coated with mirror film to scatter reflecting sunlight in an attempt to accommodate astronomers. Stargazers oppose these fast-growing satellite constellations, saying it spoils their observations. Amazon aims to put more than 3,200 of these satellites into orbit to provide fast, affordable broadband service around the globe.

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Behind the remains of a town scorched by fire, the foothills are lush with new green and filled with birdsong.

The National Weather Service will resume translating its products for non-English speakers.

Hundreds of university researchers in the U.S. have had their National Science Foundation funding abruptly canceled to comply with President Donald Trump’s directive to end support of research on diversity, equity and inclusion, as well as the study of misinformation. The loss of funding has roiled academic laboratories that rely on NSF grants to conduct basic research. While some expected the cuts after making it onto on Sen. Ted Cruz's target list of “woke DEI” projects last year, others said their work was only tangentially related to misinformation or encouraging more diversity in the study of science and engineering.