# Northern lights might be visible this week, but most of the US won't see them
By **MADDIE BURAKOFF**
July 12, 2023. 7:33 PM EST

---

**NEW YORK (AP)** - The northern lights could put on a show this week - though the audience will be much smaller than some early forecasts had suggested.

The sky spectacle will be fairly typical: Stretches of Canada have a chance to spot the shimmering curtain of the aurora borealis, while a few in the U.S. could see a faint reddish glow on the horizon. Here's what to know about the updated predictions.

## WHO CAN SEE THE LIGHTS THIS WEEK?
An early forecast by the University of Alaska Fairbanks Geophysical Institute, using data from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, suggested that the northern lights could be visible much farther south than usual this week. But that forecast was based on long-term predictions about the solar activity responsible for the display. Forecasts using more current data from NOAA predict nothing special for the U.S.

"For the same reasons that it's hard to predict weather on Earth, it's hard to predict weather in space," said Northeastern University physicist Jonathan Blazek.

In North America, the predictions show a broad stretch of Canada and Alaska could see the northern lights overhead Wednesday and Thursday. Those in small slices of the contiguous U.S. - including parts of Wisconsin, Michigan and Montana - could also get a peek. But for them the aurora will probably be a "faint glow on the horizon," rather than a shimmering green curtain, said Lt. Bryan Brasher, a project manager for NOAA's Space Weather Prediction Center.

For those in range, seeking out clear, dark skies between 9 p.m. and 3 a.m. will give the best chance to see the aurora's colorful glow.

## WHAT CAUSES THE NORTHERN LIGHTS?
The northern lights happen when particles from the sun make their way toward Earth and collide with our planet's atmosphere.

The sun is constantly sending material our way in a stream known as the solar wind. These particles carry an electric charge, and when they bump into gases such as oxygen and nitrogen in the Earth's atmosphere, they transfer some of their energy - "like two billiard balls hitting each other," Brasher said.

This puts the atoms and molecules in an excited state. They shake off some of that energy in the form of light, creating the colorful displays of greens, blues, pinks and reds.

This solar wind is always flowing, but its levels can vary.

"There are solar storms where you get more particles than usual. It's windier than usual," Blazek said. "There's also periods when it's fairly quiet."

It's during those periods of stronger solar wind activity when we tend to see more auroras, Blazek explained. More solar particles can make the northern lights brighter and also push them down toward the equator - giving people farther south a view.

Sometimes, the sun also shoots out huge amounts of plasma in what's known as a coronal mass ejection, Brasher said. If one of these outbursts hits Earth, even in a "glancing blow," it can disturb our planet's magnetic field and also cause shimmering auroras.

## HOW IS IT PREDICTED?
Scientists are constantly monitoring the sun using telescopes on Earth and in space in part because space weather can impact radio communications, satellites, power grids and more, Brasher said.

The sun spins on its axis once every 27 days. So, if scientists notice a spot with high activity, they might get a hint that it could come back around in a few weeks, he said.

But conditions can change by the time the sun makes a full rotation. Even then, there are so many factors at play that it can be hard to be sure about what's to come.

Generally, the sun's activity is "on the up-and-up" as we're heading toward a solar maximum in the next couple of years, Brasher said. So we may be seeing more solar storms soon - which will mean more northern lights.

"Everyone should stay tuned, because we probably have a lot more coming," Brasher said.


# Webb Space Telescope reveals moment of stellar birth, dramatic close-up of 50 baby stars
By **MARCIA DUNN**
July 12, 2023. 6:55 AM EST

---

**CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP)** - The Webb Space Telescope is marking one year of cosmic photographs with one of its best yet: the dramatic close-up of dozens of stars at the moment of birth.

NASA unveiled the latest snapshot Wednesday, revealing 50 baby stars in a cloud complex 390 light-years away. A light-year is nearly 6 trillion miles (9.7 trillion kilometers).

The region is relatively small and quiet yet full of illuminated gases, jets of hydrogen and even dense cocoons of dust with the delicate beginnings of even more stars.

All of the young stars appear to be no bigger than our sun. Scientists said the breathtaking shot provides the best clarity yet of this brief phase of a star's life.

"It's like a glimpse of what our own system would have looked like billions of years ago when it was forming," NASA program scientist Eric Smith told The Associated Press.

Smith pointed out that the starlight visible in the image actually left there 390 years ago. On Earth in 1633, Italian astronomer Galileo Galilei went on trial in Rome for saying that the Earth revolved around the sun. The Vatican in 1992 acknowledged Galileo was wronged.

This cloud complex, known as Rho Ophiuchi, is the closest star-forming region to Earth and is found in the sky near the border of the constellations Ophiuchus and Scorpius, the serpent-bearer and scorpion. With no stars in the foreground of the photo, NASA noted, the details stand out all the more. Some of the stars display shadows indicating possible planets in the making, according to NASA.

It "presents star birth as an impressionistic masterpiece," NASA Administrator Bill Nelson said in a tweet.

Webb - the largest and most powerful astronomical observatory ever launched into space - has been churning out cosmic beauty shots for the past year. The first pictures from the $10 billion infrared telescope were unveiled last July, six months after its liftoff from French Guiana.

It's considered the successor to the Hubble Space Telescope, orbiting Earth for 33 years. A joint NASA-European Space Agency effort, Webb scans the universe from a more distant perch, 1 million miles (1.6 million kilometers) away.

Still ahead for Webb: Astronomers hope to behold the earliest stars and galaxies of the universe while scouring the cosmos for any hints of life on planets outside our solar system.

"We haven't found one of them yet," Smith said. "But we're still only one year into the mission."


# NASA capsule flies over Apollo landing sites, heads home
By **MARCIA DUNN**
December 5, 2022. 2:33 PM EST

---

**CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP)** - NASA's Orion capsule and its test dummies swooped one last time around the moon Monday, flying over a couple Apollo landing sites before heading home.

Orion will aim for a Pacific splashdown Sunday off San Diego, setting the stage for astronauts on the next flight in a couple years.

The capsule passed within 80 miles (130 kilometers) of the far side of the moon, using the lunar gravity as a slingshot for the 237,000-mile (380,000-kilometer) ride back to Earth. It spent a week in a wide, sweeping lunar orbit.

Once emerging from behind the moon and regaining communication with flight controllers in Houston, Orion beamed back photos of a close-up moon and a crescent Earth - Earthrise - in the distance.

"Orion now has its sights set on home," said Mission Control commentator Sandra Jones.

The capsule also passed over the landing sites of Apollo 12 and 14. But at 1,200 miles (1,900 kilometers) up, it was too high to make out the descent stages of the lunar landers or anything else left behind by astronauts more than a half-century ago. During a similar flyover two weeks ago, it was too dark for pictures. This time, it was daylight.

Deputy chief flight director Zebulon Scoville said nearby craters and other geologic features would be visible in any pictures, but little else.

"It will be more of a tip of the hat and a historical nod to the past," Scoville told reporters last week.

The three-week test flight has exceeded expectations so far, according to officials. But the biggest challenge still lies ahead: hitting the atmosphere at more than 30 times the speed of sound and surviving the fiery reentry.

Orion blasted off Nov. 16 on the debut flight of NASA's most powerful rocket ever, the Space Launch System or SLS.

The next flight - as early as 2024 - will attempt to carry four astronauts around the moon. The third mission, targeted for 2025, will feature the first lunar landing by astronauts since the Apollo moon program ended 50 years ago this month.

Apollo 17 rocketed away Dec. 7, 1972, from NASA's Kennedy Space Center, carrying Eugene Cernan, Harrison Schmitt and Ron Evans. Cernan and Schmitt spent three days on the lunar surface, the longest stay of the Apollo era, while Evans orbited the moon. Only Schmitt is still alive.


# 3 Chinese astronauts return to Earth after 6-month mission
December 4, 2022. 8:56 AM EST

---

**BEIJING (AP)** - Three Chinese astronauts landed in a northern desert on Sunday after six months working to complete construction of the Tiangong station, a symbol of the country's ambitious space program, state TV reported.

A capsule carrying commander Chen Dong and astronauts Liu Yang and Cai Xuzhe touched down at a landing site in the Gobi Desert in northern China at approximately 8:10 p.m. (1210 GMT), China Central Television reported.

Prior to departure, they overlapped for almost five days with three colleagues who arrived Wednesday on the Shenzhou-15 mission for their own six-month stay, marking the first time China had six astronauts in space at the same time. The station's third and final module docked with the station this month.

The astronauts were carried out of the capsule by medical workers about 40 minutes after touchdown. They were all smiles, and appeared to be in good condition, waving happily at workers at the landing site.

"I am very fortunate to have witnessed the completion of the basic structure of the Chinese space station after six busy and fulfilling months in space," said Chen, who was the first to exit the capsule. "Like meteors, we returned to the embrace of the motherland."

Liu, another of the astronauts, said that she was moved to see relatives and her fellow compatriots.

The three astronauts were part of the Shenzhou-14 mission, which launched in June. After their arrival at Tiangong, Chen, Liu and Cai oversaw five rendezvous and dockings with various spacecraft including one carrying the third of the station's three modules.

They also performed three spacewalks, beamed down a live science lecture from the station, and conducted a range of experiments.

The Tiangong is part of official Chinese plans for a permanent human presence in orbit.

China built its own station after it was excluded from the International Space Station, largely due to U.S. objections over the Chinese space programs' close ties to the People's Liberation Army, the military wing of the ruling Communist Party.

With the arrival of the Shenzhou-15 mission, the station expanded to its maximum weight of 100 tons.

Without attached spacecraft, the Chinese station weighs about 66 tons - a fraction of the International Space Station, which launched its first module in 1998 and weighs around 465 tons.

With a lifespan of 10 to 15 years, Tiangong could one day be the only space station still up and running if the International Space Station retires by around the end of the decade as expected.

China in 2003 became the third government to send an astronaut into orbit on its own after the former Soviet Union and the United States.

China has also chalked up uncrewed mission successes: Its Yutu 2 rover was the first to explore the little-known far side of the moon. Its Chang'e 5 probe also returned lunar rocks to Earth in December 2020 for the first time since the 1970s, and another Chinese rover is searching for evidence of life on Mars.

Officials are reported to be considering an eventual crewed mission to the moon, although no timeline has been offered.


# Molten lava on Hawaii's Big Island could block main highway
By **AUDREY McAVOY** and **HAVEN DALEY**
December 3, 2022. 2:34 AM EST

---

**HILO, Hawaii (AP)** - Many people on the Big Island of Hawaii are bracing for major upheaval if lava from Mauna Loa volcano slides across a key highway and blocks the quickest route connecting two sides of the island.

The molten rock could make the road impassable and force drivers to find alternate coastal routes in the north and south. That could add hours to commute times, doctor's visits and freight truck deliveries.

"I am very nervous about it being cut off," said Frank Manley, a licensed practical nurse whose commute is already an hour and 45 minutes each way from his home in Hilo to a Kaiser Permanente clinic in Kailua-Kona.

If the highway closes, he anticipates driving two-and-a-half to three hours in each direction. Manley fears he might lose pay if an accident or other traffic disruption along an alternate route delays his arrival.

The lava is oozing slowly at a rate that might reach the road next week. But its path is unpredictable and could change course, or the flow could stop completely and spare the highway.

The slow-moving flow was coursing about 2.7 miles (4.3 kilometers) from the road Friday, U.S. Geological Survey scientists reported.

There are more affordable housing options on the island's east side, home to the county seat, Hilo. But many jobs at beach resorts, in construction and other industries are readily available on the west side, where Kailua-Kona is located. Saddle Road, also known as Route 200 or Daniel K. Inouye Highway, connects the two communities.

The state Department of Transportation took steps Thursday to remove potential traffic obstacles on the northern coastal route by reopening a lane across Nanue Bridge that was closed for repairs.

Hilo also is one of the island's major harbors, where a wide variety of goods arrive by ship before proceeding across the island by truck.

Hawaii County Councilor Susan "Sue" L. K. Lee Loy, who represents Hilo and parts of Puna, said she's concerned about big rigs traveling across aging coastal bridges.

"It's going to take a lot to rethink how we move about on Hawaii Island," she said.

Manley said he would have to get up at 3 a.m. to reach work by 8 a.m. If he left at 5 p.m., he wouldn't get home until 8 p.m. "That drastically reduces my amount of time that I would be able to spend with my family," he said.

Tanya Harrison of Hilo said she would need a full day off work to travel to her doctor in Kona.

There are more than 200,000 Big Island residents. Amidst throngs of tourists, delivery trucks and commuters forced to reroute, Harrison said she couldn't imagine the congestion.

"It might even be quicker just to fly to Honolulu," she said of the hour flight. "There's no line at the Hilo airport. Fly over, see the doctor, come back would actually be quicker than driving."

Outrigger Kona Resort & Spa plans to provide rooms at a Kailua-Kona hotel so its dozen or so Hilo-based employees can avoid the long commute five days per week.

A shutdown could also affect major astronomy research at the summit of Mauna Kea, a 13,803-foot (4,207-meter) peak next to Mauna Loa that is home to some of the world's most advanced telescopes.

The road heading to Mauna Kea's summit is midway between Hilo and Kona. If lava crosses Saddle Road on either side of Mauna Kea Access Road, many telescope workers would be forced to take long, circuitous routes.

Rich Matsuda, associate director for external relations at W.M. Keck Observatory, said telescopes may need to adjust staff schedules and house workers at a facility partway up the mountain for a while so they don't have to commute.

There's also a chance the lava flow may head directly across the lower part of Mauna Kea Access Road, which could block workers from reaching the summit. Matsuda hopes they'll be able to use gravel or other bypass routes if that happens.

The telescopes previously have shut down for multi-day or weeklong winter storms. "So we're prepared to do that if we have to," Matsuda said.

Hilo resident Hayley Hina Barcia worries about the difficulty of reaching west-side surf spots and relatives in different parts of the island.

"A lot of my family is on the Puna side and we have other family in Kona," Barcia said. "We use this road to see each other, especially with the holidays coming up, to spend time, so we're looking to have to go several hours longer to go the south way or taking the north road."

Geologists with the Hawaiian Volcano Observatory said if Mauna Loa follows historical patterns, they expect the eruption, which began Sunday night, to continue for one to two weeks.

Since then, traffic has clogged the road as people try to glimpse the lava. A handful of resulting accidents included a two-vehicle crash that sent two people to the hospital with "not serious injuries," Hawaii Police Department spokesperson Denise Laitinen said.

U.S. Rep. Ed Case and U.S. Rep. Kaiali'i Kahele sent a letter to President Joe Biden saying Hawaii County would need "immediate help" to keep island communities safe if lava flow blocks the highway. The two Hawaii Democrats noted that restricted access could hinder emergency services because one of the island's primary hospitals is on the east side.


# Chinese spaceship with 3 aboard docks with space station
November 30, 2022. 12:35 AM EST

---

**BEIJING (AP)** - Three Chinese astronauts docked early Wednesday with their country's space station, where they will overlap for several days with the three-member crew already onboard and expand the facility to its maximum size.

Docking with the Tiangong station came at 5:42 a.m. Wednesday, about 6 1/2 hours after the Shenzhou-15 spaceship blasted off atop a Long March-2F carrier rocket from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center.

The six-month mission, commanded by Fei Junlong and crewed by Deng Qingming and Zhang Lu, will be the last in the station's construction phase, according to the China Manned Space Agency. The station's third and final module docked earlier this month, one of the last steps in China's effort to maintain a constant crewed presence in orbit.

The crew of the Shenzhou-15 will spend several days working with the existing three-member crew of the Tiangong station, who will return to Earth after their six-month mission.

Fei, 57, is a veteran of the 2005 four-day Shenzhou-6 mission, the second time China sent a human into space. Deng and Zhang are making their first space flights.

The station has now expanded to its maximum size, with three modules and three spacecraft attached for a total mass of nearly 100 tons.

Tiangong can accommodate six astronauts at a time and the handover will take about a week. That marks the station's first in-orbit crew rotation.

China has not yet said what further work is needed to complete the station. Next year, it plans to launch the Xuntian space telescope, which, while not part of Tiangong, will orbit in sequence with the station and can dock occasionally with it for maintenance.

Without the attached spacecraft, the Chinese station weighs about 66 tons - a fraction of the International Space Station, which launched its first module in 1998 and weighs around 465 tons.

With a lifespan of 10 to 15 years, Tiangong could one day be the only space station still up and running if the International Space Station retires in the coming years as planned.

While China's crewed space program is officially three decades old this year, it truly got underway in 2003, when China became only the third country after the U.S. and Russia to put a human into space using its own resources.

The program is run by the ruling Communist Party's military wing, the People's Liberation Army, and has proceeded almost entirely without outside support. The U.S. excluded China from the International Space Station because of its program's military ties, although China has engaged in limited cooperation with other nations' space agencies.

China has also chalked up uncrewed mission successes: Its Yutu 2 rover was the first to explore the little-known far side of the moon.

China's Chang'e 5 probe also returned lunar rocks to Earth in December 2020 for the first time since the 1970s, and another Chinese rover is searching for evidence of life on Mars.

Officials are reporting considering an eventual crewed mission to the moon, although no timeline has been offered, even as NASA presses ahead with its Artemis lunar exploration program that aims to send four astronauts around the moon in 2024 and land humans there as early as 2025.

While proceeding smoothly for the most part, China's space program has also drawn controversy. Beijing brushed off complaints that it has allowed rocket stages to fall to Earth uncontrolled after NASA accused it of "failing to meet responsible standards regarding their space debris." In that case, parts of a Chinese rocket landed in the Indian Ocean.

China is also reportedly developing a highly secret space plane and its increasing space capabilities feature in the latest Pentagon defense strategy, which said the program was a component of China's "holistic approach to joint warfare."


# Biden, Macron ready to talk Ukraine, trade in state visit
By **Aamer Madhani** and **Sylvie Corbet**
November 29, 2022. 8:33 PM EST

---

**WASHINGTON (AP)** - French President Emmanuel Macron arrived in Washington on Tuesday for the first state visit of Joe Biden's presidency - a revival of diplomatic pageantry that had been put on hold because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Biden-Macron relationship had a choppy start. Macron briefly recalled France's ambassador to the United States last year after the White House announced a deal to sell nuclear submarines to Australia, undermining a contract for France to sell diesel-powered submarines.

But the relationship has turned around with Macron emerging as one of Biden's most forward-facing European allies in the Western response to Russia's invasion of Ukraine. This week's visit - it will include Oval Office talks, a glitzy dinner, a news conference and more - comes at a critical moment for both leaders.

The leaders have a long agenda for their Thursday meeting at the White House, including Iran's nuclear program, China's increasing assertiveness in the Indo-Pacific and growing concerns about security and stability in Africa's Sahel region, according to U.S. and French officials. But front and center during their Oval Office meeting will be Russia's war in Ukraine, as both Biden and Macron work to maintain economic and military support for Kyiv as it tries to repel Russian forces.

The visit also comes as both Washington and Paris are keeping an eye on China after protests broke out last weekend in several mainland cities and Hong Kong over Beijing's "zero COVID" strategy. At a red carpet arrival ceremony after landing in Washington on Tuesday evening, Macron ignored a shouted question from a reporter about whether he and Biden planned to discuss the China protests - the biggest show of public dissent in China in decades.

In Washington, Republicans are set to take control of the House, where GOP leader Kevin McCarthy on Tuesday following a meeting with Biden and fellow congressional leaders again vowed that Republicans will not write a "blank check" for Ukraine. Across the Atlantic, Macron's efforts to keep Europe united will be tested by the mounting costs of supporting Ukraine in the nine-month war and as Europe battles rising energy prices that threaten to derail the post-pandemic economic recovery.

White House National Security Council spokesman John Kirby on Monday described Macron as the "dynamic leader" of America's oldest ally while explaining Biden's decision to honor the French president with the first state visit of his presidency.

The U.S. tradition of honoring foreign heads of state dates back to Ulysses S. Grant, who hosted King David Kalakaua of the Kingdom of Hawaii for a more than 20-course White House dinner, but the tradition has been on hold since 2019 because of COVID-19 concerns.

"If you look at what's going on in Ukraine, look at what's going on in the Indo Pacific and the tensions with China, France is really at the center of all those things," Kirby said. "And so the president felt that this was exactly the right and the most appropriate country to start with for state visits."

Macron was also Republican Donald Trump's pick as the first foreign leader to be honored with a state visit during his term. The 2018 state visit included a jaunt by the two leaders to Mount Vernon, the Virginia estate of George Washington, America's founding president.

French government spokesperson Olivier Veran said Tuesday that Macron's second state visit is "a strong symbol of the partnership between France and the United States." It shows "very strong ties" between the countries and comes at a moment where the world is faced with important international issues, including the war in Ukraine, food security, climate and energy, he said.

Veran added that there is a need for "re-synchronizing" the agendas of the European Union and the United States to face crises, especially on energy and rising prices.

Macron has a packed day of meetings and appearances in and around Washington on Wednesday - including a visit to NASA headquarters with Vice President Kamala Harris and talks with Biden administration officials on nuclear energy.

On Thursday, Macron will have his private meeting with Biden followed by a joint news conference and visits to the State Department and Capitol Hill before Macron and his wife, Brigitte Macron, are feted at the state dinner. Grammy winner Jon Batiste is to provide the entertainment. The White House prepared for days for Macron's arrival, setting up a large tent for the festivities on the South Lawn and decorating light poles bordering the White House complex with French flags.

Macron will head to New Orleans on Friday, where he is to announce plans to expand programming to support French language education in U.S. schools, according to French officials.

For all of that, there are still areas of tension in the U.S.-French relationship.

Biden has steered clear of embracing Macron's calls on Ukraine to resume peace talks with Russia, something Biden has repeatedly said is a decision solely in the hands of Ukraine's leadership.

Perhaps more pressing are differences that French and other European Union leaders have raised about Biden's Inflation Reduction Act, sweeping legislation passed in August that includes historic spending on climate and energy initiatives. Macron and other leaders have been rankled by a provision in the bill that provides tax credits to consumers who buy electric vehicles manufactured in North America.

The French president, in making his case against the subsidies, will underscore that it's crucial for "Europe, like the U.S., to come out stronger ... not weaker" as the world emerges from the tumult of the pandemic and Russia's invasion of Ukraine, according to a senior French government official who briefed reporters on the condition of anonymity to preview private talks.

Macron earlier this month said the subsidies could upend the "level playing field" on trade with the EU and called aspects of the Biden legislation "unfriendly."

The White House, meanwhile, plans to counter that the legislation goes a long way in helping the U.S. meet global efforts to curb climate change. The president and aides will also impress on the French that the legislation will also create new opportunities for French companies and others in Europe, according to a senior Biden administration official who briefed reporters on the condition of anonymity to preview the talks.

Macron's visit comes about 14 months after the relationship hit its nadir after the U.S. announced its deal to sell nuclear submarines to Australia.

After the announcement of the deal, which had been negotiated in secret, France briefly recalled its ambassador to Washington. A few weeks later Macron met Biden in Rome ahead of the Group of 20 summit, where the U.S. president sought to patch things up by acknowledging his administration had been "clumsy" in how it handled the issue.

Macron's visit with Harris to NASA headquarters on Wednesday will offer the two countries a chance to spotlight their cooperation on space.

France in June signed the Artemis Accords, a blueprint for space cooperation supporting NASA's plans to return humans to the moon by 2024 and to launch a historic human mission to Mars.

The same month, the U.S. joined a French initiative to develop new tools for adapting to climate change, the Space for Climate Observatory.


# China rocket taking 3 to space station to blast off Tuesday
November 28, 2022. 2:54 AM EST

---

**BEIJING (AP)** - A rocket carrying three astronauts to finish building China's space station will blast off Tuesday amid intensifying competition with the U.S., the government said Monday,

The crew includes a veteran of a 2005 space mission and two first-time astronauts, according to the China Manned Space Agency.

The Shenzhou-15 mission will take off from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center on the edge of the Gobi Desert at 11:08 p.m. Tuesday night, the agency said. A Long March-2F carrier rocket, China's standard workhorse for crewed missions, will be used to sling it into space, it said.

The six-month mission, commanded by Fei Junlong and crewed by Deng Qingming and Zhang Lu, will be the last "in the construction phase of China's space station," agency official Ji Qiming told reporters Monday.

Fei, 57, is a veteran of the 2005 four-day Shenzhou-6 mission, the second time China sent a human into space. Deng and Zhang are making their first space flights.

The station's third and final module docked with the station earlier this month, one of the last steps in China's more than decade-long effort to maintain a constant crewed presence in orbit.

The astronauts will overlap briefly onboard the station, named Tiangong, with the previous crew, who arrived in early June for a six-month stay.

After the Shenzhou-15 spaceship makes an automated docking with the Tianhe core modules' front port, the station will be expanded to its maximum size, with three modules and three spaceships for a total mass of nearly 100 tons, Ji said.

It will also be at maximum capacity for several days. Tiangong has room to accommodate six astronauts at a time and the handover will take about a week. Previous missions to the space station have taken about 13 hours from liftoff to docking.

Next year, China plans to launch the Xuntian space telescope, which, while not part of Tiangong, will orbit in sequence with the station and can dock occasionally with it for maintenance.

No other future additions to the space station have been publicly announced.

The permanent Chinese station weighs about 66 tons - a fraction of the International Space Station, which launched its first module in 1998 and weighs around 465 tons.

With a lifespan of 10 to 15 years, Tiangong could one day find itself the only space station still running if the International Space Station adheres to its 30-year operating plan.

China's crewed space program is officially three decades old this year, but it truly got underway in 2003, when China became only the third country after the U.S. and Russia to put a human into space using its own resources.

The program is run by the ruling Communist Party's military wing, the People's Liberation Army, and has proceeded methodically and almost entirely without outside support. The U.S. excluded China from the International Space Station because of its program's military ties.

China has also chalked up successes with uncrewed missions, and its lunar exploration program generated media buzz last year when its Yutu 2 rover sent back pictures of what was described by some as a "mystery hut" but was most likely only a rock. The rover is the first to be placed on the little-explored far side of the moon.

China's Chang'e 5 probe returned lunar rocks to Earth for the first time since the 1970s in December 2000 and another Chinese rover is searching for evidence of life on Mars. Officials are also considering a crewed mission to the moon.

No timeline has been offered for a crewed lunar mission, even as NASA presses ahead with its Artemis lunar exploration program that aims to send four astronauts around the moon in 2024 and land humans there as early as 2025.

China's space program has also drawn controversy. Beijing brushed off complaints that it has allowed rocket stages to fall to Earth uncontrolled after NASA accused it of "failing to meet responsible standards regarding their space debris" when parts of a Chinese rocket landed in the Indian Ocean.

China's increasing space capabilities also feature in the latest Pentagon defense strategy.

"In addition to expanding its conventional forces, the PLA is rapidly advancing and integrating its space, counterspace, cyber, electronic, and informational warfare capabilities to support its holistic approach to joint warfare," the strategy said.

The U.S. and China are at odds on a range of issues, especially self-governing Taiwan, which Beijing threatens to annex with force.


# NASA's Orion capsule enters far-flung orbit around moon
By **MARCIA DUNN**
November 25, 2022. 6:12 PM EST

---

**CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP)** - NASA's Orion capsule entered an orbit stretching tens of thousands of miles around the moon Friday, as it neared the halfway mark of its test flight.

The capsule and its three test dummies entered lunar orbit more than a week after launching on the $4 billion demo that's meant to pave the way for astronauts. It will remain in this broad but stable orbit for nearly a week, completing just half a lap before heading home.

As of Friday's engine firing, the capsule was 238,000 miles (380,000 kilometers) from Earth. It's expected to reach a maximum distance of almost 270,000 miles (432,000 kilometers) in a few days. That will set a new distance record for a capsule designed to carry people one day.

"It is a statistic, but it's symbolic for what it represents," Jim Geffre, an Orion manager, said in a NASA interview earlier in the week. "It's about challenging ourselves to go farther, stay longer and push beyond the limits of what we've previously explored."

NASA considers this a dress rehearsal for the next moon flyby in 2024, with astronauts. A lunar landing by astronauts could follow as soon as 2025. Astronauts last visited the moon 50 years ago during Apollo 17.

Earlier in the week, Mission Control in Houston lost contact with the capsule for nearly an hour. At the time, controllers were adjusting the communication link between Orion and the Deep Space Network. Officials said the spacecraft remained healthy.


# Company: Leak at Pennsylvania gas storage well plugged
By **MICHAEL BIESECKER**
November 20, 2022. 5:16 PM EST

---

The operator of a natural gas storage well in Western Pennsylvania says workers have successfully plugged a leak that had been spewing massive amounts of planet-warming methane into the atmosphere for two weeks.

Equitrans Midstream said the well at its Rager Mountain storage facility, located in a rural area about 1.5 hours east of Pittsburgh, was sealed shut with concrete on Sunday. The well had been venting about 100 million cubic feet of natural gas per day since Nov. 6, according to initial estimates.

If accurate, that would total more than 1.4 billion cubic feet in methane, equal to the greenhouse gas emissions from burning more than 7,200 tanker trucks of gasoline.

Pennsylvania environmental regulators have issued the company notice of five potential violations of state law.

A written statement provided Sunday by Equitrans says the company had verified a 0% gas reading at and around the well. More than 250 feet of cement was pumped into the wellbore above two plugs to ensure venting does not recur, the company said.

The Rager facility is in Jackson Township, at the heart of the Marcellus Shale formation that has seen a boom in gas production since the introduction of hydraulic fracturing more than a decade ago. Residents living as four miles away from the leak told The Associated Press on Friday they could hear the roar of pressurized gas escaping from the well and smell the fumes.

Methane, the primary component of natural gas, is colorless and odorless. But when the gas is processed for transport and sale, producers add a chemical called mercaptan to give it a distinctive "rotten egg" smell that helps make people aware of leaks.

Methane's Earth-warming power is some 83 times stronger over 20 years than the carbon dioxide that comes from car tailpipes and power plant smokestacks. Oil and gas companies are the top industrial emitters of methane, which, once released into the atmosphere, will be disrupting the climate for decades, contributing to more heat waves, hurricanes, wildfires and floods.

The leak came as the Environmental Protection Agency on Nov. 11 updated proposed new rules intended to cut methane and other harmful emissions from oil and gas operations.

The citations issued against the company by the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection include failures to properly maintain and operate the gas facility, creating a public nuisance and producing a "hazard to public health a safety." The company was also cited for failing to provide state inspectors "free and unrestricted access."


# Boebert switches congressional districts, avoiding a Democratic opponent who has far outraised her
By **JESSE BEDAYN** and **NICHOLAS RICCARDI**
December 27, 2023. 10:23 PM EST

---

**DENVER (AP)** - Republican Rep. Lauren Boebert announced Wednesday she is switching congressional districts, avoiding a likely rematch against a Democrat who has far outraised her and following an embarrassing moment of groping and vaping that shook even loyal supporters.

In a Facebook video Wednesday evening, Boebert announced she would enter the crowded Republican primary in retiring Rep. Ken Buck's seat in the eastern side of the state, leaving the more competitive 3rd District seat she barely won last year - and which she was in peril of losing next year as some in her party have soured on her controversial style.

Boebert implied in the video that her departure from the district would help Republicans retain the seat, saying, "I will not allow dark money that is directed at destroying me personally to steal this seat. It's not fair to the 3rd District and the conservatives there who have fought so hard for our victories."

"The Aspen donors, George Soros and Hollywood actors that are trying to buy this seat, well they can go pound sand," she said.

Boebert called it "a fresh start," acknowledging the rough year following a divorce with her husband and video of her misbehaving with a date at a performance of the musical "Beetlejuice" in Denver. The scandal in September rocked some of her faithful supporters, who saw it as a transgression of conservative, Christian values and for which Boebert apologized at events throughout her district.

She already faced a primary challenge in her district, as well as a general election face-off with Democrat Adam Frisch, a former Aspen city council member who came within a few hundred votes of beating her in 2022. A rematch was expected, with Frisch raising at least $7.7 million to Boebert's $2.4 million.

Instead, if Boebert wins the primary to succeed Buck she will run in the state's most conservative district, which former President Donald Trump won by about 20 percentage points in 2020, in contrast to his margin of about 8 percentage points in her district. While it's not required that a representative live in the congressional district they represent, only the state the district is in, Boebert said she would be moving - a shift from Colorado's western Rocky Mountain peaks and high desert mesas to its eastern expanse of prairie grass and ranching enclaves.

In 2022, Frisch's campaign found support in the conservative district from unaffiliated voters and Republicans who'd defected over Boebert's brash, Trumpian style. In this election, Frisch's campaign had revived the slogan "stop the circus" and framed Frisch as the "pro-normal" alternative to Boebert's more partisan politics.

In a statement after Boebert's announcement, Frisch said he's prepared for whoever will be the Republican candidate.

"From Day 1 of this race, I have been squarely focused on defending rural Colorado's way of life, and offering common sense solutions to the problems facing the families of Colorado's 3rd Congressional District." he said. "My focus will remain the same."

The Republican primary candidate who has raised the second most behind Boebert in the 3rd District, Jeff Hurd, is a more traditional Republican candidate. Hurd has already garnered support from prominent Republicans in the district, first reported by VailDaily.

Boebert rocked the political world by notching a surprise primary win against the incumbent Republican congressman in the 3rd District in 2020 when she ran a gun-themed restaurant in the town of Rifle, Colorado. She then tried to enter the U.S. Capitol carrying a pistol and began to feud with prominent liberal Democrats like Rep. Ilhan Omar and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez.


# US announces new weapons package for Ukraine, as funds dwindle and Congress is stalled on aid bill
By **LOLITA C. BALDOR**
December 27, 2023. 6:51 PM EST

---

**WASHINGTON (AP)** - The U.S. on Wednesday announced what officials say could be the final package of military aid to Ukraine unless Congress approves supplemental funding legislation that is stalled on Capitol Hill.

The weapons, worth up to $250 million, include an array of air munitions and other missiles, artillery, anti-armor systems, ammunition, demolition and medical equipment and parts. The aid, provided through the Presidential Drawdown Authority, will be pulled from Pentagon stockpiles.

In a statement, Marine Lt. Col. Garron Garn, a Pentagon spokesman said there is no more funding to replace the weapons taken from department stocks. And the Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative, which provides long-term funding for future weapons contracts, is also out of money.

As a result, Garn said Wednesday, "Without the supplemental funding, there will be a shortfall in replenishing U.S. military stocks, affecting American military readiness."

President Joe Biden is urging Congress to pass a $110 billion aid package for Ukraine, Israel and other national security needs. It includes $61.4 billion for Ukraine, with about half to replenish Pentagon stocks. It also includes about $14 billion for Israel as it fights Hamas and $14 billion for U.S. border security. Other funds would go for security needs in the Asia-Pacific.

Due to an accounting error that overvalued some of the weapons sent to Ukraine over the past year or more, there is still about $4.2 billion in restored drawdown authority. But since the Pentagon has no money to replenish inventory sent to Kyiv, the department will have to "rigorously assess" any future aid and its implications on the U.S. military's ability to protect America, Garn said.

This is the 54th tranche of military aid taken from department shelves and sent to Ukraine, and it is similar in size and contents to many of the other recent packages.

U.S. defense and government leaders have argued that the weapons are critical for Ukraine to maintain its defense and continue efforts to mount an offensive against Russian forces during the winter months.

In a Pentagon briefing last week, Air Force Maj. Gen. Pat Ryder noted the recent letter that the Defense Department comptroller sent to Congress warning that the U.S. will be using up the last of its replenishment funds by the end of the year.

"Once those funds are obligated, we will have exhausted the funding available for us to provide security assistance to Ukraine," said Ryder, the Pentagon press secretary. "We would, again, continue to urge the passage of the supplemental that we've submitted. ... It is imperative that we have the funds needed to ensure that they get the most urgent battlefield capabilities that they require."

The latest aid package comes as the war in Ukraine drags on into its 22nd month. Russia fired almost 50 Shahed drones at targets in Ukraine and shelled a train station in the southern city of Kherson where more than 100 civilians were gathered to catch a train to Kyiv. And a day earlier, Ukrainian warplanes damaged a Russian ship moored in the Black Sea off Crimea as soldiers on both sides are struggling to make much progress along the front lines.


# How the US keeps funding Ukraine's military - even as it says it's out of money
By **LOLITA C. BALDOR**
December 15, 2023. 1:31 PM EST

---

**WASHINGTON (AP)** - The White House has been increasingly pressuring Congress to pass stalled legislation to support Ukraine's war against Russia, saying that funding has run out.

On Tuesday, however, President Joe Biden touted a new military aid package worth $200 million for Ukraine.

Money is dwindling. But the announcement of more weapons being sent to Kyiv just underscores the complexity of the funding. So has the money run out? Or are there still a few billion dollars floating around?

It's complicated.

## STORE CREDIT ...
In a Nov. 4 letter to Congress, White House budget director Shalanda Young said flatly: "We are out of money to support Ukraine in this fight. This isn't a next year problem. The time to help a democratic Ukraine fight against Russian aggression is right now."

Since then, the U.S. has announced three more aid packages totaling $475 million. That may seem contradictory, but it's due to the complex programs used to send aid to Ukraine.

There are two pots of money for weapons and security assistance set up specifically for the war. One is the Presidential Drawdown Authority, or PDA, under which the U.S. provides weapons already in its stockpile. The other is the Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative, which funds long-term weapons contracts.

Money for USAI has all been spent. That pot is empty.

And money for the PDA also appeared to be gone. But then the Pentagon determined that it had overstated the value of the weapons it had already sent Ukraine, overcharging the Ukraine weapons account by $6.2 billion. That effectively left Ukraine with a store credit that is slowly being whittled down. It now stands at around $4.4 billion.

PDA packages continued to be announced every few weeks. But in recognition of the dwindling money, the latest packages have been smaller - about $200 million or less, compared with previous ones that often totaled $400 million to $500 million.

## ... BUT EMPTY SHELVES
In theory, the Pentagon would have enough equipment to offer these smaller packages for months. But there's a caveat: While the credit exists, there may not be enough stock on the Pentagon shelves. So some weapons may be unavailable.

Congressional funding to buy weapons to replace the ones the U.S. sends to Ukraine is now down to about $1 billion. That dwindling money means the military services are worried they won't be able to buy all the weapons they need to ensure the U.S. military is ready to defend the American homeland.

For example, the 155 mm rounds commonly used by Howitzers are one of the most requested artillery munitions by Kyiv. The demand has been so high that the Army has pressed the Scranton Army Ammunition Plant in Pennsylvania, where the shell casings for the rounds are made, to increase production in order to meet war demands and have enough on hand for American military needs.

On Thursday, Maj. Gen. Pat Ryder, the Pentagon press secretary, told reporters the U.S. could provide the full $4.4 billion in weapons, but with only a quarter of that amount available for replenishment, it's a tough choice. "We have to start to make decisions about our own readiness," he said.

## THE POLITICAL WRANGLING
The U.S. has already sent Ukraine $111 billion in weapons, equipment, humanitarian assistance and other aid since Russian President Vladimir Putin launched his invasion more than 21 months ago. But the latest package is stalled.

Support for Ukraine funding has been waning as some lawmakers see the war taking funding from domestic needs. But the broader problem is a political battle over the southern U.S. border.

President Joe Biden is urging Congress to pass a $110 billion aid package for Ukraine, Israel and other national security needs. It includes $61.4 billion for Ukraine, with about half to replenish Pentagon stocks. It also includes about $14 billion for Israel as it fights Hamas and $14 billion for U.S. border security. Other funds would go for security needs in the Asia-Pacific.

Prospects for compromise remain in doubt, even as Zelenskyy warned in a speech at the National Defense University in Washington on Monday that, "If there's anyone inspired by unresolved issues on Capitol Hill, it's just Putin and his sick clique."

## THE JOBS ARGUMENT
Harkening back to the "all politics is local" idea, the Pentagon and the White House have rolled out maps and statistics to show members of Congress how their own districts and states are reaping benefits from the Ukraine funding.

Charts detail $10 billion in industry contracts for weapons ranging from air defense systems and missiles to a wide array of drones, ammunition and other equipment. And they break out an additional nearly $16.8 billion in contracts to replenish Pentagon stocks.

The maps show contracts benefitting industries and companies in more than 35 different states. And U.S. officials are hoping the local jobs argument will help build support for the funding.

## HOW BIG IS THE NEED?
Winter has set in, so the fighting in Ukraine has leveled off a bit. And along stretches of the battlefront, fighting is somewhat stalemated.

But Ukrainian forces have been taking ground back in some key locations, and Zelenskyy and other leaders have said they want to keep pushing forward. Ukraine does not want to give the Russians weeks or months this winter to reset and further solidify their fighting positions - as they did last winter.

During his visit to Washington this week, Zelenskyy said his forces are making progress, and the White House pointed to newly declassified intelligence that shows Ukraine has inflicted heavy losses on Russia in recent fighting around the eastern city of Avdiivka - including 13,000 casualties and over 220 combat vehicles lost. The Ukrainian holdout in the country's partly occupied east has been the center of some of the fiercest fighting in recent weeks.

Putin on Thursday, however, said his troops are making gains.

"Almost all along the line of contact our armed forces, let's put it modestly, are improving their positions, almost all are in an active stage of action and there is an improvement in the position of our troops all along," he said.


# A Russian drone and artillery attack kills 6 in Ukraine and knocks out power in a major city
By **HANNA ARHIROVA**
December 27, 2023. 3:10 PM EST

---

**KYIV, Ukraine (AP)** - Russia fired almost 50 Shahed drones at targets in Ukraine and shelled a train station where more than 100 civilians were gathered to catch a train to Kyiv, Ukrainian officials said Wednesday. The barrages killed at least five people and knocked out power in most of the southern city of Kherson.

The aerial barrage came a day after Ukrainian warplanes damaged a Russian ship moored in the Black Sea off Crimea as both sides' soldiers struggle to make much progress along the front line of the 22-month war.

Overnight, the Kremlin's forces launched an artillery and drone bombardment of the Kherson region just as some 140 civilians were waiting for a train at the region's capital city of the same name, according to Ukrainian Interior Minister Ihor Klymenko. The shelling killed one policeman and injured two other police officers, as well as two civilians.

More than 100 people who were waiting for the train at the time of the attack arrived in Kyiv on Wednesday morning, national rail operator Ukrzaliznytsia said.

The attack on the Kherson region and its capital hit residential areas and a mall as well as striking the power grid, leaving around 70% of households in Kherson city without electricity during the winter cold, regional Gov. Oleksandr Prokudin said.

It was not immediately possible to estimate when power might be restored, he said.

Targeting energy infrastructure was also a Russian tactic last winter, when it tried to break Ukrainians' spirit by denying them heating and running water.

In Odesa, another major city in southern Ukraine, the drone assault killed two people and wounded three, including a 17-year-old man, regional Gov. Oleh Kiper said.

Ukraine's air force said it intercepted 32 out of the 46 drones that Russia fired overnight.

A Western military assessment, meanwhile, reckoned that Russia's capture this week of a city in eastern Ukraine would not provide it with a springboard for major battlefield gains.

Ukrainian commander-in-chief Gen. Valerii Zaluzhnyi said Tuesday that his troops had retreated to the northern outskirts of the city of Marinka, which sits about 20 kilometers (12 miles) west of Donetsk, the largest city in Russian-held territory.

Zaluzhnyi said his troops had held Marinka for almost two years but Russians "were destroying it street by street, house by house."

The Institute for the Study of War, a think tank, said, "Russian forces are highly unlikely to make rapid operational advances from Marinka."

But it noted that "localized Russian offensive operations are still placing pressure on Ukrainian forces in many places along the front in eastern Ukraine."

Amid concerns that weapons supplies from abroad could diminish as allies become fatigued with the war, Ukraine's minister of strategic industries told a briefing on Wednesday that the defense sector aims to increase production significantly next year and that production was three times higher in 2023 than in the previous year.

Oleksandr Kamyshin said Ukraine is now producing six Bohdana self-propelled artillery units per month. Bohdanas are a strategically important weapon for the Ukrainian defense industry as they are the only Ukrainian-produced self-propelled gun using NATO-standard 155mm rounds instead of the 152mm rounds used by artillery based on Soviet technology.

Kamyshin also said the country next year aims to produce up to 1,000 long-range strike drones - which have a range of about 1,000 kilometers (620 miles) - an increase from only a few dozen a month currently. It is also targeting production of 10,000 middle-range and 1,000 long-range strike drones.


# Trump ballot ban appealed to US Supreme Court by Colorado Republican Party
By **NICHOLAS RICCARDI**
December 27, 2023. 9:24 PM EST

---

**DENVER (AP)** - The Colorado Republican Party on Wednesday appealed that state's supreme court decision that found former President Donald Trump is ineligible for the presidency, the potential first step to a showdown at the nation's highest court over the meaning of a 155-year-old constitutional provision that bans from office those who "engaged in insurrection."

The first impact of the appeal is to extend the stay of the 4-3 ruling from Colorado's highest court, which put its decision on pause until Jan. 4, the day before the state's primary ballots are due at the printer, or until an appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court is finished. Trump himself has said he still plans to appeal the ruling to the nation's highest court as well.

The U.S. Supreme Court has never ruled on Section 3 of the 14th Amendment, which was added after the Civil War to prevent former Confederates from returning to government. It says that anyone who swore an oath to "support" the constitution and then "engaged in insurrection" against it cannot hold government office.

The Colorado high court ruled that applies to Trump in the wake of his role in the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol, intended to stop the certification of President Joe Biden's victory in the 2020 presidential election. It was the first time in history that the provision was used to block a presidential contender's campaign.

"The Colorado Supreme Court has removed the leading Republican candidate from the primary and general ballots, fundamentally changing the course of American democracy," the party's attorneys wrote. The filing was posted on the website of a group run by Jay Sekulow, a former attorney for Trump representing the Colorado Republican Party who announced he was filing the appeal Wednesday. Colorado Republican Party chairman Dave Williams also said the appeal was filed Wednesday.

The attorneys added: "Unless the Colorado Supreme Court's decision is overturned, any voter will have the power to sue to disqualify any political candidate, in Colorado or in any other jurisdiction that follows its lead. This will not only distort the 2024 presidential election but will also mire courts henceforth in political controversies over nebulous accusations of insurrection."

The U.S. Supreme Court is expected to take the case, either after the Colorado GOP's appeal or Trump's own appeal. If Trump ends up off the ballot in Colorado, it would have minimal effect on his campaign because he doesn't need the state, which he lost by 13 percentage points in 2020, to win the Electoral College in the presidential election. But it could open the door to courts or election officials striking him from the ballot in other must-win states.

Sean Grimsley, an attorney for the plaintiffs seeking to disqualify Trump in Colorado, said on a legal podcast last week that he hopes the nation's highest court hurries once it accepts the case, as he expects it will. "We obviously are going to ask for an extremely accelerated timeline because of all the reasons I've stated, we have a primary coming up on Super Tuesday and we need to know the answer," Grimsley said.

More than a dozen states, including Colorado, are scheduled to hold primaries March 5 - Super Tuesday.

To date, no other court has sided with those who have filed dozens of lawsuits to disqualify Trump under Section 3, nor has any election official been willing to remove him from the ballot unilaterally without a court order.

The Colorado case was considered the one with the greatest chance of success, however, because it was filed by a Washington D.C.-based liberal group with ample legal resources. All seven of the Colorado high court justices were appointed by Democrats.

However, the unprecedented constitutional questions in the case haven't split on neatly partisan lines. Several prominent conservative legal theorists are among the most vocal advocates of disqualifying Trump under Section 3. They argue the plain meaning of the constitutional language bars him from running again, just as clearly as if he didn't meet the document's minimum age of 35 for the presidency.

The half-dozen plaintiffs in the Colorado case are all Republican or unaffiliated voters.

Trump has been scathing about the cases, calling them "election interference." He continued that on Wednesday as he cheered a ruling earlier that day by the Michigan Supreme Court leaving him on the ballot, at least for the primary, in that state.

"The Colorado people have embarrassed our nation with what they did," Trump said on Sean Hannity's radio show.


# Pro-Palestinian protesters block airport access roads in New York, Los Angeles
By **JAKE OFFENHARTZ**
December 27, 2023. 7:14 PM EST

---

**NEW YORK (AP)** - Pro-Palestinian protesters briefly blocked entrance roads to airports in New York and Los Angeles on Wednesday, snarling traffic as U.S. airlines contended with a rush of holiday travel.

The demonstrations stopped cars on the outskirts of New York's John F. Kennedy International Airport, where some travelers set off on foot to bypass the jammed roadway, as well as Los Angeles International Airport. A total of 62 people were arrested during the two protests, police said.

In New York, activists locked arms and held banners demanding an end to the Israel-Hamas war and expanded rights for Palestinians, bringing traffic to a standstill on the Van Wyck Expressway leading up to the airport for about 20 minutes.

Video posted to social media showed passengers, some carrying suitcases, leaving vehicles behind and stepping over barriers onto the highway median.

Twenty-six people in the protest were arrested for disorderly conduct and impeding vehicular traffic, and the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey dispatched two buses to help travelers caught in the backup reach the airport, agency spokesperson Steve Burns said.

Around the same time as the New York protest, a major thoroughfare leading to the Los Angeles airport was shut down by another group of pro-Palestinian protesters, who dragged traffic cones, trash bins, scooters and debris into the lanes, according to news helicopter footage.

In a statement, the Los Angeles Police Department accused protesters of throwing a police officer to the ground and "attacking uninvolved passerbys in their vehicles," without providing further details about either incident.

The group appeared to flee when police arrived, though the Los Angeles Police Department said traffic around the airport remained impacted roughly two hours after the demonstration was declared unlawful.

A spokesperson for the LAPD said 35 people were arrested for rioting and one person was arrested for battery of a police officer. No officers were injured, according to the spokesperson. An estimated 215,000 passengers and 87,000 vehicles were expected to pass through the Los Angeles airport on Wednesday.

Since the Israel-Hamas war erupted on Oct. 7, near nightly protests have broken out in cities across the United States. In New York, pro-Palestinian organizers have responded to the growing death toll in Gaza with escalating actions aimed at disrupting some of the city's best-known events, including the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade and the annual tree-lighting ceremony at Rockefeller Center.

At a news conference Tuesday, New York City Mayor Eric Adams criticized some of the protest organizers' tactics and suggested police may need to ramp up their response.

"I don't believe that people should be able to just take over our streets and march in our streets," he said. "I don't believe people should be able to take over our bridges. I just don't believe you can run a city this complex where people can just do whatever they want."


# Danny Masterson sent to state prison to serve sentence for rape convictions, mug shot released
December 27, 2023. 7:04 PM EST

---

**DELANO, Calif. (AP)** - "That '70s Show" actor Danny Masterson has been sent to a California state prison to serve his sentence for two rape convictions.

Authorities said Wednesday that the 47-year-old Masterson has been admitted to North Kern State Prison, and they released his first prison mug shot. The photo shows him wearing orange prison attire, with long hair and a beard.

In June, Masterson was convicted of raping two women in his Los Angeles home in 2003. In September, a judge sentenced him to 30 years to life in prison. His wife, actor Bijou Phillips, filed for divorce in the weeks that followed after a marriage of nearly 12 years.

He had been held in Los Angeles County jail in the months since while post-sentencing hearings were held and issues resolved, including the turnover of all the guns Masterson owned, some of which had to be located.

It will be more than 25 years before Masterson will be eligible for parole.

Masterson's lawyers said they plan to appeal the conviction.


# Argument over Christmas gifts turns deadly as 14-year-old kills his older sister, deputies say
December 27, 2023. 7:01 PM EST

---

**LARGO, Fla. (AP)** - A Florida woman holding her 11-month-old son in a baby carrier was fatally shot by her 14-year-old brother while trying to defuse an argument over Christmas gifts he was having with a 15-year-old brother who also was armed, authorities said.

The 15-year-old brother then shot his 14-year-old brother, though not fatally, for killing their sister on Sunday in Largo, Florida, which is located in the Tampa metro area, the Pinellas County Sheriff's Office said in a news release.

The argument over gifts started while the three siblings were Christmas shopping with their mother and the sister's two sons, ages 6 and 11 months. It continued when they went to their grandmother's house where the sister, 23, told the younger brother to stop arguing with his older brother since it was Christmas Eve. The younger brother then told his sister he was going to shoot her and her infant, and then he shot her in the chest, the sheriff's office said.

The older brother then shot his younger brother outside the home because of what he had done to their sister and he fled the home, tossing his firearm in a nearby yard, authorities said. He was taken to a mental health facility after he was located since he had threatened to harm himself. Once he is released from the mental health facility, he will be taken to a juvenile detention center, the news release said.

The 14-year-old brother was charged with first-degree murder, child abuse and for possessing a firearm as a delinquent. His 15-year-old brother was charged with attempted first-degree murder and tampering with evidence, the sheriff's office said.

There was no court docket available online to indicate whether either of the teens had an attorney who could comment.


# A woman who burned Wyoming's only full-service abortion clinic is ordered to pay $298,000
By **MEAD GRUVER**
December 27, 2023. 2:30 PM EST

---

**CHEYENNE, Wyo. (AP)** - A judge has ordered a woman who set fire to Wyoming's only full-service abortion clinic to pay nearly $300,000 in restitution, the full amount sought by prosecutors.

Lorna Green is serving five years in prison for burning Wellspring Health Access weeks before the clinic was set to open in Casper in 2022. The fire gutted the building while it was being renovated for the new clinic and delayed its opening by almost a year.

After opening this past April, Wellspring is now the only abortion clinic in Wyoming. A clinic in Jackson that provided pill abortions closed Dec. 15 due to rising costs.

On Tuesday, U.S. District Judge Alan Johnson ordered Green, 22, to pay about $298,000 in restitution including $240,000 to Nationwide General Insurance Company, the clinic's insurer.

Green must also pay $33,500 to the building's owner, Christine Lichtenfels, and $24,500 to Julie Burkhart, founder and president of Wellspring Health Access. Burkhart expressed satisfaction with the restitution.

"Not only did we have the emotional struggle and that trauma from the arson but also it was quite challenging for us financially. So I'm glad this is the final piece and it has been put to rest," Burkhart said Wednesday.

The restitution was identical to the amounts sought by prosecutors and unopposed by Green's attorney, Ryan Semerad, who in an emailed statement said Wednesday that Green "looks forward to a productive and peaceful life after her term of incarceration."

Green has expressed remorse for the crime, which she said was driven by anxiety and nightmares about the planned clinic. The Casper College mechanical engineering student had shown no sign of anti-abortion views on social media but told investigators she opposed abortion.

She admitted driving from Laramie to Casper, breaking into the clinic through a door and lighting gasoline she poured in trays and splashed on the floor. After months of little progress, investigators increased the reward to $15,000 and got tips leading to Green's arrest in March.

Green pleaded guilty in June to arson and in September received the minimum prison sentence. She had faced up to 20 years in prison.

The arson and eventual opening of the clinic happened as new laws in Wyoming seek to ban abortion in nearly all cases. The laws, including the nation's first explicit ban on abortion pills, have been put on hold by a judge amid a lawsuit filed by four women and two nonprofits including Wellspring Health Access.

After hearing arguments in the lawsuit Dec. 14, Wyoming District Judge Melissa Owens is weighing whether to rule on the laws. Her decision would likely be appealed, putting Wyoming's abortion laws before the state Supreme Court.


# Students in Indonesia protest the growing numbers of Rohingya refugees in Aceh province
By **YAYAN ZAMZAMI**
December 27, 2023. 10:04 PM EST

---

**BANDA ACEH, Indonesia (AP)** - Students in Indonesia's Aceh province rallied on Wednesday, demanding the government drive away Rohingya refugees who have been arriving by sea in growing numbers. The protest came as police named more suspects in human trafficking of refugees.

Over 1,500 Rohingya - who fled violent attacks in Myanmar to subsequently leave overcrowded refugee camps in neighboring Bangladesh in search of a better life elsewhere - have arrived in Aceh, on the tip of the island of Sumatra, since November. They have faced some hostility from fellow Muslims in Aceh.

About 200 students protested in front of the provincial parliament in Banda Aceh, the capital of Aceh, calling on lawmakers to turn away the Rohingyas, saying their presence would bring social and economic upheaval to the community.

"Get out Rohingya," the protesters chanted. Many criticized the government and the U.N. refugee agency for failing to manage the refugee arrivals. Some protesters burned tires on the street.

"We urged the parliament speaker to immediately take a firm action to remove all Rohingya refugees from Aceh," said Teuku Wariza, one of the protest organizers.

The protesters marched to a local community hall in Banda Aceh, where about 137 Rohingya are taking shelter. The demonstrators threw out clothes and household items belonging to the refugees, forcing authorities to relocate them to another shelter.

Footages obtained by The Associated Press shows a large group of refugees, mostly women and children, crying and screaming as a mob, wearing university green jackets, is seen breaking through a police cordon and forcibly putting the Rohingya on the back of two trucks.

The incident drew an outcry from human rights group and the UNHCR, which said the attack left the refugees shocked and traumatized.

"UNHCR reminds everyone that desperate refugee children, women and men seeking shelter in Indonesia are victims of persecution and conflict, and are survivors of deadly sea journeys," the agency said in a statement released late Wednesday.

The statement called on local authorities to urgently act to protect the refugees and humanitarian workers.

Indonesia had once tolerated the refugees while Thailand and Malaysia pushed them away. But the growing hostility of some Indonesians toward the Rohingya has put pressure on President Joko Widodo's government to take action.

Widodo earlier this month said the government suspected a surge in human trafficking for the increase in Rohingya arrivals.

Also Wednesday, police in Banda Aceh named two more suspected human smugglers from Bangladesh and Myanmar, following the Dec. 10 arrival of another boat with refugees. One of the suspects, the boat's captain, himself a refugee, was charged with trafficking.

"This is not an easy issue, this is an issue with enormous challenges," Foreign Minister Retno Marsudi told reporters.

About 740,000 Rohingya were resettled in Bangladesh after fleeing their homes in Myanmar to escape a brutal counterinsurgency campaign carried out in 2017 by security forces. Accusations of mass rape, murder and the burning of entire villages are well documented, and international courts are considering whether Myanmar authorities committed genocide and other grave human rights abuses.

Efforts to repatriate the Rohingya have failed because of doubts their safety can be assured. The Rohingya are largely denied citizenship rights in Buddhist-majority Myanmar and face widespread social discrimination.


# Denver Broncos bench QB Russell Wilson and will turn to Jarrett Stidham
By **ARNIE MELENDREZ STAPLETON**
December 27, 2023. 7:08 PM EST

---

**ENGLEWOOD, Colo. (AP)** - The Denver Broncos are benching quarterback Russell Wilson in a move that could have major ramifications for both his future and theirs.

Although the move keeps open the team's options next year and could ultimately save the Broncos $37 million, coach Sean Payton on Wednesday called the switch to journeyman Jarrett Stidham more of a football decision than a financial one.

"I understand all the speculation and everything that surrounds a move like that, and I can tell you we're desperately trying to win," Payton said. "Sure, in our game today there are economics and all those other things, but the No. 1 push behind this ... is to get a spark offensively."

The Broncos (7-8) have a narrow path to the playoffs. They'd have to win out and Kansas City (9-5) would have to lose out for Denver to make the playoffs for the first time since the 2015 season.

Payton said the entire offensive operation, himself included, has been deficient and this move isn't meant as an indictment of Wilson alone.

"I can't replace the entire offensive line, I can't bring in five new receivers," Payton said, "and if it continues over a period of time, then there'll be another guy here talking to you, as well."

Payton and Wilson have always been a clash of styles and two weeks ago Payton berated his QB on the sideline while Wilson patiently listened without response.

Going with a journeyman with two NFL starts in his five-year career over a Super Bowl champion who was the fastest QB in league history to 100 wins could backfire on Payton.

"There's always risk but as a head coach you've got to make some tough decisions and they're not always going to be right," Payton said. "So, you trust your instincts and you go by what you feel and those have been good for me over the years."

Stidham will start Sunday when the Broncos host the Los Angeles Chargers (5-10) and in all likelihood start at Las Vegas in the season finale, too.

It's a remarkably similar situation to last year when Stidham started the Raiders' final two games after the team benched Derek Carr in a business decision and sent him home.

This circumstance in Denver differs from the Raiders' situation a year ago because the Broncos will dress Wilson, who could theoretically get into the game Sunday.

If Wilson doesn't play another down this season, however, the Broncos will have kept open their options in 2024 - although his five-year, $242.6 million contract extension that kicks in next season carries massive dead money chargers over the next two years if Denver decides to part ways with Wilson.

Wilson's $39 million salary for next season is already guaranteed but if he's on the roster March 17, his 2025 salary of $37 million also becomes guaranteed. Because injured players cannot be cut, the Broncos would be on the hook for that 2025 salary if Wilson gets hurt and can't pass his spring physical.

That's the reason the Raiders sent Carr home a year ago.

Payton insisted no determination has been made about Wilson's future in Denver, although it will be hard to move on from him because of the salary cap hit the Broncos would absorb.

If the Broncos release Wilson after June 1, they'd owe him his $39 million salary for next season and they'd owe $85 million in dead money spread over two years, which would seriously handicap their roster building and force Payton to find a bargain solution at quarterback, something that could be difficult with a middling group of free agent QBs in 2024.

Trading Wilson before June 1 would leave the Broncos with $68 million in dead money next season unless the acquiring team would pay his $22 million option bonus.

The Broncos, who have traded away three first- and three second-round picks to acquire Wilson and Payton, have just six selections in next April's draft and no second-rounders.

They'll likely be picking in the teens, too, when the four QBs projected as first-rounders - USC's Caleb Williams, North Carolina's Drake Maye, LSU's Jayden Daniels and J.J. McCarthy, should he leave Michigan - figure to be long gone by the time the Broncos are on the clock.

Wilson made a brief appearance at his locker Wednesday, but the team said he won't address his benching until Friday.

After the Broncos lost to the Patriots on Christmas Eve, Wilson was asked about his future in Denver and said, "I came here to win a championship for us and to find a way to do that. I obviously love being here with these guys, these teammates. I'm excited to keep playing ball and playing hard for us."

Wilson has rebounded from an awful 2023 season when he threw a career-low 16 touchdown passes to go with 11 interceptions. This year, his 26 TD throws rank sixth in the league and he has eight interceptions.

Wilson is just 11-19 as Denver's starter since the blockbuster trade brought him over from Seattle last year. The Seahawks are 17-16 since then and reached the NFC playoffs last season behind Wilson's former backup, Geno Smith.

Payton called each QB into his office Wednesday to notify them of the switch. He said Wilson was disappointed but had responded like a true pro.

Stidham, who signed a two-year, $10 million deal with Denver last offseason, worked with the starters Wednesday for the first time save for a handful of snaps he took at Detroit two weeks ago.

"To get a true evaluation and see what he can do, I mean, he needs to play," Payton said. "But I'm hopeful he gives us a spark."


# Amazon Prime ads on movies and TV shows will begin in late January
By **Associated Press**
December 27, 2023. 4:52 PM EST

---

If you are an Amazon Prime Video user, get ready to see ads on movies and TV shows starting next month.

Prime will include ads beginning on Jan. 29, the company said in an email to U.S. members this week, setting a date for an announcement it made back in September. Prime members who want to keep their movies and TV shows ad-free will have to pay an additional $2.99.

Amazon is also planning to include advertisements in its Prime service in the United Kingdom and other European countries, as well as Canada, Mexico and Australia next year.

The tech giant follows other major streamers -- such as Netflix and Disney -- who have embraced a dual model that allows them to earn revenue from ads and also offer subscribers the option to opt out with a higher fee.

Amazon said in its email that it will "aim to have meaningfully fewer ads" than traditional TV and other streaming providers.

The ads, the company said, "will allow us to continue investing in compelling content and keep increasing that investment over a long period of time."


# Kevin Durant has 18th career triple-double, Suns beat Rockets 129-113 to end losing streak
December 27, 2023. 10:43 PM EST

---

**HOUSTON (AP)** - Kevin Durant had 27 points, 10 rebounds and a career-high 16 assists for his 18th career triple-double, helping the Phoenix Suns beat the Houston Rockets 129-113 on Wednesday night to snap a three-game losing streak.

Durant was 9 of 16 from the field and also had two steals and a block in Phoenix's first road victory since Nov. 26. The Suns improved to 15-15.

Eric Gordon matched Durant with 27 points in his first game back in Houston since being traded in February. He scored 17 points in the Suns' 43-point second quarter en route to a 73-55 halftime lead. Devin Booker added 20 points, and Grayson Allen had 16.

Alperen Sengun led Houston with 24 points, and Jalen Green added 23 with a season-high six 3-pointers. The Rockets are 15-14.

Phoenix shot 76% in the second quarter to push its lead to 20, and 12 was the closest the Rockets would get in the second half.

Jabari Smith Jr scored nine points for Houston before leaving in the third quarter because of a sprained left ankle sprain. A night earlier, the Rockets lost Dillon Brooks to an oblique strain, which forced him to miss a game for the first time this season.

## UP NEXT
Suns: Host Charlotte on Friday night.

Rockets: Host Philadelphia on Friday night.


# Shaylee Gonzales makes six 3s, leads No. 5 Texas past Jackson State 97-52
By **MARK ROSNER**
December 27, 2023. 10:31 PM EST

---

**AUSTIN, Texas (AP)** - Shaylee Gonzales matched a career high with six 3-pointers while scoring a season-best 21 points, and No. 5 Texas beat Jackson State 97-52 on Wednesday night while playing without star point guard Rori Harmon and leading scorer Taylor Jones.

Harmon missed the game with an unspecified injury. She sat on the Longhorns' bench and walked with a limp.

Freshman forward Madison Booker took over point guard duties, a role she usually performs as a backup, and finished with 16 points, a season-best nine assists and just one turnover in 32 minutes. Khadija Faye scored 14 points for Texas (13-0), and DeYona Gaston had 13 points and eight rebounds.

Andriana Avent led Jackson State (5-6) with 11 points but was just 2 of 12 from the field. Angel Jackson had eight rebounds.

Gonzales finished 6 of 9 from 3-point range. She also had five assists.

Texas shot 57% from the field, including 9 of 16 on 3s.

Jackson State, which has lost five straight, averages 18 offensive rebounds a game, third best in the country. The Tigers grabbed 24 against Texas, but converted them into only 11 points. They shot 24.2% for the game and committed 17 turnovers.

## HARMON'S IMPACT
Harmon averages 14.1 points, 7.8 assists and 5.6 rebounds. She ranks second nationally in assists and first in assist-to-turnover ratio at 6.64.

Coach Vic Schaefer has advocated repeatedly for Harmon as the top all-around point guard in the country. She provided validation with 27 points, 13 assists and strong defense against UConn star Paige Bueckers during a 80-68 victory against the then-No. 11 Huskies on Dec. 3.

## BIG PICTURE
Jackson State: The Tigers' four defeats before facing Texas also were against Power Five schools: Kansas State, Oregon State, Mississippi State and Miami. Jackson State begins Southwestern Athletic Conference competition in January as the favorite to win the league for the fifth straight season as voted by the coaches and sports information directors.

Texas: Jones, who leads the Longhorns in scoring (16.2 points per game) and rebounding (7.4) and ranks second nationally in field goal percentage (71.3%), missed her second straight game with a hip injury. Schaefer did not have a timetable for her return. The 6-foot-4 junior missed nine games last season with what the team said was a lower-body injury. Jones had shoulder surgery and missed the last 21 games of the 2021-22 season while playing at Oregon State.

## UP NEXT
Jackson State: Hosts Alcorn State on Jan. 6 in its SWAC opener.

Texas: Hosts No. 10 Baylor on Saturday in its Big 12 opener.


# Charlie Coyle scores twice as Bruins beat Sabres 4-1 to end 4-game skid
By **MARK LUDWICZAK**
December 27, 2023. 10:23 PM EST

---

**BUFFALO, N.Y. (AP)** - Charlie Coyle scored twice and Brad Marchand had two assists to lead the Boston Bruins to a 4-1 win over the Buffalo Sabres on Wednesday night.

Mason Lohrei and Morgan Geekie also scored for the Bruins, who ended a four-game losing streak. Jeremy Swayman made 25 saves.

Erik Johnson scored for the Sabres. Devon Levi made 21 saves.

Special teams played a big role in the outcome as the Bruins scored on their first three power-play chances. Meanwhile, the Sabres went 0 for 6 with the man advantage.

Lohrei opened the scoring 4:19 in, sending the rebound of a shot past Levi.

Coyle stretched the lead to two goals, scoring on a power play with 6:18 left in the first period. Jake DeBrusk got the puck behind the Buffalo net and spotted a wide-open Coyle in front of the Buffalo crease. Coyle then buried a one-timer.

Coyle scored his second power-play goal of the game 4:18 into the second, when his shot deflected off Johnson's skate into the net.

Geekie made it 4-0 with 6:16 left in the second on another power-play goal for the Bruins. After Charlie McAvoy's shot bounced off the end boards, Geekie fired the puck toward the net and a sprawling Levi was unable to make the save. It was Geekie's fourth goal in seven games.

Johnson got the Sabres on the board 5:11 into the third, scoring on a slap shot from the right circle.

Tage Thompson, Buffalo's No. 1 center, missed the game due to personal reasons.

## UP NEXT
Bruins: Host the New Jersey Devils on Saturday.

Sabres: Host the Columbus Blue Jackets on Saturday.


# Guentzel, Malkin and Letang lead Penguins surge past Islanders, 7-0
By **SCOTT CHARLES**
December 27, 2023. 10:26 PM EST

---

**NEW YORK (AP)** - Jake Guentzel and Evgeni Malkin each scored twice, Kris Letang had six assists including five in the second period alone, and the Pittsburgh Penguins toppled the New York Islanders 7-0 on Wednesday night.

Tristan Jarry finished with 21 saves for his fourth shutout of the season. Rickard Rakell, Radim Zohorna and Valtteri Puustinen also scored for Pittsburgh and Marcus Pettersson picked up four assists.

Letang became the first defenseman in NHL history to record five points in a period and the first player of any position in Penguins history to do so.

Ilya Sorokin made 19 saves as the Islanders' nine-game point streak on home ice (6-0-3) came to an end. Semyon Varlamov replaced Sorokin to begin the third period and made six saves.

Pittsburgh scored six times within a 10:27 stretch of the second period.

Guentzel scored twice within 12 seconds to give the Penguins a 3-0 lead. He cleverly redirected Letang's shot that was headed wide of the net past Sorokin prior to converting a breakaway.

Letang took advantage of a gap in the Islanders neutral zone coverage and hit Guentzel with a pass in stride behind New York's defense.

Islanders coach Lane Lambert called timeout between Guentzel's goals in an effort to get control of the game, but the Penguins continued to convert on offense and capitalize on the Islanders poor defensive structure.

Malkin extended the lead to four goals when Reilly Smith found him all alone in the slot at 12:48. Malkin struck again later on a pass from Letang, his fourth assist of the period.

Zohorna capped off an explosive six-goal second period with his fourth of the season at 17:13.

Pittsburgh scored six goals in a single period on the road for the first time since March 21, 2000 when they did it against the Islanders.

Islanders defenseman Noah Dobson was on the ice for four goals while Pittsburgh outshot New York 20-7 in the middle period.

Rakell buried a loose puck that squeaked past Sorokin at 6:44 of the second period to kick off the outburst.

Puustinen converted a one-time feed from Letang midway through the third period for his first NHL goal.

## UP NEXT:
Penguins: Host St. Louis Blues Saturday

Islanders: Host Washington Capitals Friday.


# University of Wisconsin system fires chancellor for reputation-damaging behavior
December 27, 2023. 10:17 PM EST

---

**MADISON, Wis. (AP)** - The Universities of Wisconsin Board of Regents decided unanimously Wednesday to fire the chancellor of one of its campuses for unspecified behavior that could damage the school system's reputation.

Joe Gow was fired from his position as chancellor of UW-La Crosse effective immediately, the university announced Wednesday night.

"In recent days, we learned of specific conduct by Dr. Gow that has subjected the university to significant reputational harm. His actions were abhorrent," UW President Jay Rothman said.

As a tenured faculty member, Gow will be placed on paid administrative leave as he transitions into his faculty role, Rothman said.

However, Rothman said he filed a complaint Wednesday evening with interim Chancellor Betsy Morgan asking that Gow's status as a tenured faculty member be reviewed.

An outside law firm has been hired "to undertake a fulsome investigation of the matter," Rothman said.

An email seeking comment was sent to Gow.

UW System Regent President Karen Walsh released a statement saying "Gow has shown a reckless disregard for the role he was entrusted with at UW-La Crosse to serve students, faculty and staff, and the campus community."


# Bus collides head-on with truck in central India, killing at least 13
December 27, 2023. 9:44 PM EST

---

**NEW DELHI (AP)** - A bus caught fire after colliding head-on with a truck on a highway in central India, killing at least 13 people, police said on Thursday.

Twelve bus passengers died in the blaze and the truck driver was killed by the impact of the accident in Guna district in Madhya Pradesh state on Wednesday night, said police officer Anoop Bhargava.

Another 16 people suffered burns or bone fractures and were taken to a hospital, Bhargava said.

The region is nearly 900 kilometers (565 miles) south of New Delhi.

Deadly road accidents are common in India, often due to reckless driving, poorly maintained roads and aging vehicles. More than 110,000 people are killed every year in road accidents across India, according to police.


# Harbaugh, Michigan savor trip to Disneyland after wild journey to CFP Rose Bowl semifinal
By **JOE REEDY**
December 27, 2023. 9:39 PM EST

---

**ANAHEIM, Calif. (AP)** - With a third straight trip to the College Football Playoff semifinals, Michigan can't be considered a Cinderella.

However, as coach Jim Harbaugh and some of his players took in a day at Disneyland before resuming preparations for Monday's Rose Bowl against Alabama, many considered this year's journey a cross between "The Lion King" and a spin on Mr. Toad's Wild Ride.

The top-ranked and 13-0 Wolverines have shown that whatever obstacles are put in their way, it ends up galvanizing them. That included two suspensions to coach Jim Harbaugh that ended up being a total of six games.

Running back Blake Corum already thought Michigan had a strong team mentally going into the season. But it ended getting even stronger with all of the tumult surrounding their coach.

"We've built up a strong callus. Whatever anyone throws at us, we take it on the chin and keep on pushing," he said.

The best example of Michigan using it to their advantage and then punishing its opponent came at Penn State on Nov. 11. One day after Harbaugh was suspended three games by the Big Ten for violating the conference's sportsmanship policy over alleged sign-stealing, the Wolverines ran it on 32 straight plays in a 24-15 victory.

"The more stress you throw at us, it hypes us even more. It gives us purpose to do what we do," senior linebacker Kris Jenkins said. "We are ready to show the world and shock the world."

Even though Harbaugh's suspensions have ended, questions about his future at his alma mater remain. When asked if he would entertain offers from the NFL during the offseason, including one from the Los Angeles Chargers after they fired Brandon Staley on Dec. 14, Harbaugh deflected both questions and said his singular focus is on the upcoming game.

"Just a very one-track mind about this game. Right now having fun with the family, the team and the players. We're at the happiest place on Earth. We're going to enjoy ourselves and then get back to business," Harbaugh said. "We have some good meetings tonight and we'll wake up tomorrow and practice. This is straight out of the Jack Harbaugh playbook, one day at a time."

Jenkins said there aren't any concerns about Harbaugh's future since the questions have come up every year.

"We know at the end of the day Jim loves us to death. He preaches that all the time. At the end of the day if he does what's best for him, we absolutely love and support that," he said.

One difference between the past two Michigan teams that made the CFP and this one is that the preparations leading up to the Rose Bowl have been better.

The Wolverines lost to eventual national champion Georgia in the 2021 Orange Bowl and fell short in a shootout to TCU in last season's Fiesta Bowl.

Harbaugh noted there was no jet lag from the cross-country trip and that the team looked good during a short session on Wednesday.

"Guys have been sharp, very energized, locked in and focused," he said. "It's in a good place, just refining that.

"This is the happiest place on earth. Disneyland. I mean, nailed it with that slogan, Especially as a kid, you know, then once you get to be about 17, 18, 19, or 59, 60, I mean, the happiest place on earth is a winning locker room. We're gonna be at the happiest place on earth today and we got a chance to be in the happiest place on Earth, which will be a winning locker room at the Rose Bowl, on Monday."


# Lakers guard Gabe Vincent has arthroscopic knee surgery, will be out for at least 2 months
December 27, 2023. 9:36 PM EST

---

**EL SEGUNDO, Calif. (AP)** - Los Angeles Lakers guard Gabe Vincent will be out for at least two more months after undergoing arthroscopic surgery on his left knee.

The Lakers announced that Vincent had the surgery Wednesday. He will be re-evaluated by team doctors in eight weeks.

Vincent has appeared in only five games since signing with the Lakers in the offseason to be their backup point guard. He played in the Lakers' first four games of the season in October, but then missed 23 straight with knee pain.

He returned to play 14 minutes against Chicago on Dec. 20, but was quickly shut down again.

Vincent spent his first four NBA seasons with the Miami Heat, scoring a career-high 9.4 points per game last season with 2.5 assists and 33.4% shooting on 3-pointers.

The Lakers have struggled for a consistent rotation at guard due to Vincent's absence, D'Angelo Russell's inconsistency and Max Christie's unimpressive play. They've been forced to try several new rotations and to put the ball in LeBron James' hands as their primary playmaker more frequently.

Los Angeles has lost six of eight since winning the inaugural NBA In-Season Tournament. The Lakers host Charlotte on Thursday night.


# 2 Australians killed in Israeli airstrike in Lebanon, says Australia's acting foreign minister
By **ROD McGUIRK**
December 27, 2023. 9:30 PM EST

---

**CANBERRA, Australia (AP)** - Two Australian citizens including an alleged Hezbollah fighter were killed by an Israeli airstrike in Lebanon, Australia's acting foreign minister said on Thursday.

Ibrahim Bazzi and his brother Ali Bazzi were killed in the airstrike on Tuesday in the town of Bint Jbel in southern Lebanon, Acting Foreign Minister Mark Dreyfus said.

Ibrahim Bazzi had arrived in Lebanon recently from Sydney to accompany his Lebanese wife Shorouq Hammoud to Australia, news media reported. Hammoud, who had recently received an Australian visa, was also killed in the attack.

Their three coffins were draped in the flag of Hezbollah, an ally of the Palestinian Islamist faction Hamas, which is at war with Israel.

Dreyfus said Australia was investigating Hezbollah's claim that Ali Bazzi was one of its fighters.

"Hezbollah is a listed terrorist organization under Australian law. It's an offense for any Australian to cooperate with, to support, let alone to fight with a listed terrorist organization like Hezbollah," Dreyfus told reporters.

Dreyfus said his government had communicated with Israel about the airstrike but declined to disclose what was said.

"In the context of the current conflict, Australia has consistently called for civilian lives to be protected and we have consistently raised our concerns about the risk of this conflict spreading," Dreyfus said.

Dreyfus repeated a government warning for Australians not to travel to Lebanon. Australians already in the country should leave while commercial air services are still available.

The Australian embassy in Beirut was ready to provide consular assistance to the Bazzi family if required, he said.


# Magnitude 3.8 earthquake shakes part of eastern Arkansas
December 27, 2023. 8:34 PM EST

---

**ETOWAH, Ark. (AP)** - A magnitude 3.8 earthquake rattled parts of northeastern Arkansas on Wednesday, according to geologists.

The earthquake occurred shortly before noon near the town of Etowah, the U.S. Geological Survey reported. The rural town, which has a population of about 250 people, is located about 50 miles (80 kilometers) north of Memphis, Tennessee.

The Arkansas Division of Emergency Management said there were no reports from county officials of damage or injuries.

Etowah is near the New Madrid fault line, which has been responsible for numerous small and large earthquakes. Beginning in late 1811, a series of powerful earthquakes occurred along the fault line, including one with an estimated magnitude of 7.7.

Jeremy Brown, who lives near Etowah, told The Arkansas Democrat-Gazette that he "thought an 18 wheeler struck the house for a second."

Some people reported feeling the quake in western Tennessee.

Shianna Wallace of Drummonds, Tennessee, told WREG that she was sitting on her reclining chair when she began to feel a swaying sensation.

"It was just like movement. Maybe like a wave and you're on a raft and it was a wave. It was just kind of weird," she told the station.