Science & Tech

Keep an eye on Venus to help spot the rest of the planet parade in the night sky, astronomers say

Feb. 27, 2025

February ends with a treat for sky-gazers: a parade of seven planets across the night sky, including Mercury, Uranus and Neptune alongside typically bright planets such as Mars, Venus, Jupiter and Saturn. But glimpsing all seven won’t be easy, astronomers say. While the seven planets will all be above the horizon just after sunset, Mercury and Saturn will be more difficult to spot Thursday and Friday evenings. “Mercury and Saturn are particularly close to the sun and will be lost in the sun’s glare, though Mercury will get higher and higher each day and easier to spot,” said Shannon Schmoll, director of the Abrams Planetarium at Michigan State University, in a statement. “To have a chance, you will need a clear view of the western horizon and maybe binoculars to spot them after the sun sets.”

Science & Tech

A young man’s brain turned to glass during the eruption of Mount Vesuvius. Scientists say they have figured out how

Feb. 27, 2025

Glass rarely forms naturally from organic materials. However, in 2020, researchers discovered a black, glassy substance inside the skull of a person killed during the eruption of Italy’s Mount Vesuvius in AD 79. Now, the scientists say they have worked out the sequence of events that likely killed the victim and led to the formation of the unique and puzzling glass, thought essentially to constitute fossilized brain tissue. Recovered from the coastal town of Herculaneum, which along with Pompeii was wiped out by the eruption, the remains belonged to an individual, thought to be a young man, who was found lying face down on a bed buried by volcanic ash.

Science & Tech

Katy Perry and Gayle King are among 6 women headed to space aboard New Shepard

Feb. 27, 2025

Blue Origin’s next crewed flight mission aboard its tourism rocket, expected to lift off this spring, will carry an all-female crew to space. Journalist Gayle King, singer Katy Perry and bioastronautics research scientist Amanda Nguyen are among the six-person crew who will launch on the New Shepard vehicle. They will be joined by Aisha Bowe, a former NASA rocket scientist and CEO of STEMBoard, and Kerianne Flynn, a film producer who has conducted nonprofit work with The Allen-Stevenson School, The High Line and Hudson River Park.

Automotive

Volvo weighs increasing US production, domestic sourcing to offset tariffs

Feb. 27, 2025

Volvo Cars could increase U.S. production and seek out more domestic suppliers to offset higher import duties, especially on batteries for electric vehicles, President and CEO Jim Rowan said on a call with analysts on Feb. 6. Rowan told analysts that Volvo has the capacity to expand domestic production at its plant in Ridgeland, South Carolina, which can manufacture up to 150,000 vehicles annually. At the time of the call, vehicles manufactured in Europe and exported to the U.S. were subject to a 2.5% tariff, he said. However, if that changed, the automaker would deal with the issue at the appropriate time.

Automotive

Canada and Mexico tariffs will take effect March 4, Trump confirms

Feb. 27, 2025

President Donald Trump said tariffs on Canada and Mexico that have been on pause for nearly a month will go into effect March 4, according to a Truth Social post Thursday. The president also said the U.S. will impose an additional 10% tariff on China the same day. The announcement comes a day after Trump indicated in a press briefing that he would soon announce 25% tariffs on imports of cars and other goods from the European Union. He also reiterated that April 2 would be the implementation date for his reciprocal tariff policy, a vow he repeated again Thursday. Trump originally ordered 25% import taxes on Canada and Mexico to go into effect Feb. 4 but delayed implementation following agreements by both countries to address fentanyl trafficking.

Automotive

Stellantis reports 70% decline in net profits in 2024

Feb. 27, 2025

Stellantis reported a 70% drop in net profits in 2024 to 5.5 billion euro ($5.76 billion), as well as a 64% decline in adjusted operating income, the automaker announced in its 2024 financial results Feb. 26. The automaker’s year-over-year net revenue fell 17% to 156.9 billion euro ($164.5 billion), with consolidated shipment volumes falling 12% due to temporary gaps in product offerings and inventory reduction initiatives to clear dealer lots. Stellantis is now focused on improving its performance in 2025, which includes the launch of new electrified models and production of batteries. “While 2024 was a year of stark contrasts for the company, with results falling short of our potential, we achieved important strategic milestones,” said Chairman John Elkann in the release.

Automotive

Safety benefits diminish in larger vehicles: IIHS

Feb. 27, 2025

While the perception among American drivers is that bigger vehicles are safer, that may not necessarily be the case, a new study found. The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety reported that the safety advantage of larger cars has its limits. Safety benefits decline as a vehicle increases in weight past the fleet average, per the study, while safety risks grow for occupants of nearby vehicles, especially in crash situations. “For American drivers, the conventional wisdom is that if bigger is safer, even bigger must be safer still,” IIHS President David Harkey said in a statement. “These results show that isn’t true today.”

Automotive

Uber, Lyft riders choose ride-hailing over transit to save time: study

Feb. 27, 2025

Riders choose ride-hailing services like Uber and Lyft over public transit to save time, a University of Michigan study found. Using data from the city of Chicago, the researchers found that comparable trips by transit take substantially longer than ride-hailing due to waiting time and longer walks to a transit stop. However, the convenience of ride-hailing comes with greater greenhouse gas emissions, air pollution, traffic congestion, crashes and noise, the researchers note. The growth of ride-hailing has contributed to a decline in public transit ridership over the past decade, according to research the University of Michigan study cites.

Entertainment

Gene Hackman's death mourned by Hollywood: Antonio Banderas, Gary Sinise, Francis Ford Coppola remember star

Feb. 27, 2025

"Gene Hackman was my favorite actor, as I think I told him every day we worked together on ‘The Birdcage,’" Nathan Lane told Fox News Digital. "Getting to watch him up close it was easy to see why he was one of our greatest. You could never catch him acting. Simple and true, thoughtful and soulful, with just a hint of danger." Lane continued, "He was as brilliant in comedy as he was in drama and thankfully, his film legacy will live on forever. It was a tremendous privilege to get to share the screen with h

Entertainment

HGTV star Christina Haack regrets not getting prenup, wishes she 'never married' Josh Hall

Feb. 27, 2025

Christina Haack and Josh Hall's messy split just keeps getting messier. On Wednesday's episode of the HGTV show, "The Flip Off," which also stars Haack's ex-husband Tarek El Moussa and his wife Heather El Moussa, Haack told her friend Cassie that Hall continues to make her financial offers and wants to "retire" off of her. "It’s crazy. He wants to retire off me," she said, per People. "Honestly, if I would’ve really understood the repercussions of all of this, I would’ve gotten a prenup or I would’ve never married him."