Author: rpnadmin

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. — The spacecraft rushing to the rescue of an aging and sinking NASA telescope has run into its own problem. Katalyst Space Technologies said Tuesday that its Link satellite is experiencing thruster problems and has gone into an uncontrollable spin that is disrupting communication. The trouble struck over the weekend, three weeks after the three-armed robotic spacecraft blasted into orbit. The startup company said it’s working nonstop to get Link back in action so it can capture Swift and boost the telescope to a higher orbit. Swift will crash back to Earth this fall without help. NASA…

Federal Reserve policymakers are losing patience with inflation, but they may not be ready to turn their frustration into action — not this week anyway. Meeting in Washington Tuesday and Wednesday, the Fed is expected to keep its benchmark interest rate unchanged. Members of the central bank’s rate-setting committee may not be so reluctant to act when they gather again next Sept. 15-16. Inflation has been stuck above the Fed’s 2% target for more than five years. New Fed Chair Kevin Warsh told Congress earlier this month that he had “no tolerance’’ for elevated inflation. Warsh is presiding over his…

WASHINGTON — A White House teleprompter operator who was put on unpaid leave after news reports he had used inside knowledge to make bets about President Donald Trump’s speeches on the online prediction market Kalshi is no longer in his post, according to a White House official. The official, who was not authorized to comment publicly about the personnel matter and spoke on condition of anonymity, said on Tuesday that teleprompter operator, Gabriel Perez, “no longer works in the federal government.” The official would not say whether he resigned or was fired. The White House confirmed earlier this month that…

First responders searched homes and buildings on Tuesday for possible victims, a day after a powerful tornado touched down in northeastern Wisconsin, hollowing out homes and toppling power lines as it remained on the ground for more than 20 minutes. The Fox Cities region, which is home to more than 100,000 people in the cities of Appleton, Menasha and Neenah, was left in shambles by Monday’s twister, with homes leveled, cars flipped, and power lines and trees toppled. Despite widespread damage, the timing of the storm could be why there have been no reported deaths. The tornado arrived in the…

LAS VEGAS — A Nevada judge ruled on Tuesday that the recording of an interview the man accused of killing Tupac Shakur gave to police in 2008 could be used at his upcoming trial. Judge Carli Kierny found that the interview is admissible in Duane “Keffe D” Davis’ trial, which is scheduled to start Aug. 10. Davis, 63, is charged with murder in Shakur’s 1996 killing and faces life in prison without parole if convicted. Shakur’s death is considered one of the most notorious unsolved murders in the United States. The case went cold until Davis began making public statements…

NEW YORK — A Harvard-educated former managing director at Citigroup Inc. who blamed autism for his actions was sentenced Tuesday to 30 years in prison for sex crimes that prosecutors say occurred over a 10-year period. Edward Gene Smith, 50, was sentenced in Manhattan federal court by Judge Paul A. Engelmayer after he pleaded guilty to sex crimes, receiving child pornography and obstructing justice. His lawyers wrote in a presentencing submission to the judge that autism spectrum disorder was the “primary driver” of his crimes. The lawyers said Smith has been “devastated to learn that his understanding of his relationships…

WASHINGTON — The Pentagon said a new, separate category was created in its official casualty system to account for those killed and wounded in the renewed U.S.-Iran fighting because “Operation Epic Fury,” the military’s name for combat operations against Tehran, has ended. The Defense Casualty Analysis System, or DCAS, has removed the four soldiers killed and dozens of troops wounded in the latest exchange of fire from its official Iran war tally and placed them in a new category called “Overseas Operations.” The overall total of wounded from the conflict now stands at 642 troops, between the figures listed under…

NEW YORK — A school district in a rural corner of upstate New York is hitting pause on plans to deploy an AI-powered, humanoid robot in the classroom after state education officials, teachers and local residents raised concerns, including the maker’s ties to a company that produces hyper-realistic sex bots. The Salamanca City Central School District’s board approved the nearly $60,000 purchase from Realbotix with visions that “Sally,” as the stationary robot with long dark hair has already been nicknamed, would enhance the education of high school students studying robotics and technology fields. “Having a difficult time programming an Arduino…

The Federal Aviation Administration is considering inspections for 453 Boeing aircraft over concerns that seat assemblies might be bolted on incorrectly. The airworthiness directive, proposed Monday according to a listing in the Federal Register, was created after the agency received reports that “certain passenger seat assemblies were not correctly installed in the seat tracks” and are therefore unsafe. Specifically, the FAA said that it received word that shear plungers — pins with springs that help fasten a track-mounted seat assembly to the floor of the plane’s cabin — were not correctly lowered.  Seat assemblies with improperly installed plungers could then…

President Trump said Monday he plans to invite a 16-year-old California lifeguard to the White House after video of the teenager battling powerful surf to save a drowning boy went viral, saying the teen would receive what he called a “High Civilian Honor.” Mr. Trump did not specify which formal award — such as the Presidential Medal of Freedom or a Congressional Gold Medal — might ultimately be presented, and the White House had not detailed specifics as of publication. “We’re going to bring this heroic young man, and his family, into the White House with, perhaps, the boy he…