The Omicron variant has morphed into more than half a dozen different strains—the latest of which include BQ.1.1 and XBB.1, and XBB.1.5. Combined, these variants and their close relatives now account for nearly 90% of new COVID-19 infections in the U.S.
But so far, no COVID-19 vaccine directly targets them. Instead, the latest bivalent formulation of the booster (and the only one cu…
Read moreIf you’re a Virginian concerned about the environment—particularly the role power plants play in exacerbating climate change—the last three years have been good ones for you.
Yes, your energy bill has gone up—a little—by $2.39 per month, according to Dominion Energy, the state’s largest power producer. At the same time though, the Environmental Protect…
Read moreHistory does not record who the weeping woman was who joined the giant crowd at the Griffith Observatory in Los Angeles on Feb. 4, 1962. But she was inconsolable.
“I know it’s silly to carry on this way,” she said with a hitching breath to a reporter from the Griffith Observer magazine. “But I can’t help myself.” The cause of her profound distre…
Read moreSpaceX has never been reluctant to brag, especially when it comes to its celebrated Falcon 9 rocket. Since 2010, as a company toteboard shows, 217 Falcon 9s have flown, with 61 launches in 2022 alone, making it the workhorse of the current global space fleet. So what’s not to like? Plenty, actually—at least if you care about the environment.
The Falcon 9 uses a fuel …
Read morePublic-health officials have for weeks been urging Americans to avoid gathering for Thanksgiving this year, lest the holiday turn into a national super-spreading event. But for those who still plan on getting together, experts say an outdoor get-together is far safer than prolonged time indoors, where it’s easier for the virus that causes COVID-19 to spread. Whether an outdoor Thanksgivin…
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