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Suborbital space tourism finally arrives | FCC prepares to run public C-band auction | The big four in the U.S. launch industry — United Launch Alliance, SpaceX, Blue Origin and Northrop Grumman — hope to be one of two providers that will receive five-year contracts later this year to launch national security payloads starting in 2022. | China’s launch rate stays high | The International Space Station is the largest ever crewed object in space.

 
Breakthrough proposal would aid drought-stricken Colorado River...
LAS VEGAS (AP) — Arizona, Nevada and California said Monday they’re willing to cut back on their use of the dwindling Colorado River in exchange for money from the federal government — and to avoid forced cuts as drought threatens the key water supply for the U.S. West. The $1.2 billion plan, a potential breakthrough in a year-long stalemate, would conserve an additional 3 million acre-feet of water through 2026, when current guidelines for how the river is shared...

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Green Bay to host NFL draft in...
MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — The NFL draft will be in Green Bay in 2025. The league announced the 2025 draft’s location on Monday during its spring meetings. The draft and related activities will take place inside and around Lambeau Field and Titletown, the collection of shops and restaurants surrounding the stadium. With an expected 250,000 visitors, the draft will be the largest event ever held in Green Bay, which has a population of 107,000. “We’re the smallest market in the...

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What will Metro rail cars look like...
Metro gave a peek at the rail cars of the future on Monday with new features different from what riders of the D.C.-area transit agency have been used to, including train cars that hold slightly fewer passengers. The new color scheme is still mostly blue inside, stainless steel outside, with more squared-off corners. The new 8000 Series trains have a new seating configuration. “We’re going into more horizontal seating versus just front to back seating, so that creates a...

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Michigan governor set to sign state’s new...
LANSING, Mich. (AP) — Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer will give final approval Monday afternoon to a red flag law that aims to keep firearms away from those at risk of harming themselves or others as the state grapples with ways to slow gun violence in the wake of its second mass school shootings. Whitmer plans to sign the legislation just outside of Detroit, with Lt. Gov. Garlin Gilchrist II, Attorney General Dana Nessel and former Congresswoman Gabby Giffords all...

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China tells tech manufacturers to stop using...
BEIJING (AP) — Stepping up a feud with Washington over technology and security, China’s government on Sunday told users of computer equipment deemed sensitive to stop buying products from the biggest U.S. memory chipmaker, Micron Technology Inc. Micron products have unspecified “serious network security risks” that pose hazards to China’s information infrastructure and affect national security, the Cyberspace Administration of China said on its website. Its six-sentence statement gave no details. “Operators of critical information infrastructure in China should...

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‘They’re opposed to government. But now they...
GALLATIN, Tenn. (AP) — Shortly after being sworn in last fall, the new majority of the Sumner County Commission in Tennessee acted to update one of its official documents. The new version said county operations would not only be orderly and efficient, but “most importantly reflective of the Judeo-Christian values inherent in the nation’s founding.” It was an important moment for the 14 commissioners who had campaigned under the banner of the Sumner County Constitutional Republicans. The group had...

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‘Fast X’ speeds to No. 1; knocks...
The 10th installment of the “Fast and Furious” franchise was off to the races this weekend, knocking “Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3” out of first place and easily claiming the No. 1 spot at the box office. “Fast X” earned $67.5 million in ticket sales from 4,046 North American theaters, according to estimates from Universal Pictures on Sunday. It’s on the lower end of openings for the series which peaked with “Furious 7’s” $142.2 million launch, the sole...

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Estonia, Latvia plan joint purchase of German...
HELSINKI (AP) — Estonia and Latvia plan jointly to acquire German air defense systems for the protection of the two NATO nations’ airspace in what would be the biggest defense cooperation deal between the Baltic neighbors that border Russia, the Estonian and Latvian defense ministries said Sunday. According to the provisional deal, deliveries of the medium-range IRIS-T SLM air defense system — manufactured by weapons maker Diehl Defence of Germany — could begin next year and the systems could...

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F-18 fighter jet accident at Zaragoza airbase...
BARCELONA, Spain (AP) — An F-18 fighter jet crashed at an airbase in the Spanish city of Zaragoza but the pilot ejected successfully, the Spanish defense ministry said Saturday. The aircraft landed within the perimeter of the base, the defense ministry said on Twitter. The base, which lies about 10 miles (16 kilometers) outside the city, belongs to the Spanish Air and Space Force. Videos posted on social media showed a plane in flames falling towards the ground. The...

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Venice Architectural Biennale gives overdue voice to...
VENICE, Italy (AP) — Scottish-Ghanaian architect Lesley Lokko is giving a platform to voices that have long been silenced at this year’s Venice Architecture Biennale, which opens Saturday, the first ever curated by an African, featuring a preponderance of work by Africans and the African diaspora. The 18th architectural Biennale, titled “The Laboratory of the Future,” explores decolonization and decarbonization, topics about which Africans have much to say, Lokko said, citing the long exploitation of the continent for both...

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Brittney Griner set for first WNBA game...
LOS ANGELES (AP) — Brittney Griner got a chance to shake off some rust last week when she played a preseason WNBA game for the first time since she was detained in Russia on drug-related charges. That’s all over now. She plays for real Friday night. Griner and the Phoenix Mercury visit the Los Angeles Sparks as part of a four-game slate on the first day of the WNBA season. The 32-year-old center scored 10 points in 17 minutes...

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In Cannes, Harrison Ford bids adieu to...
CANNES, France (AP) — As the Cannes Film Festival crowd stood in rapturous applause, a visibly moved Harrison Ford stood on the stage, trying to keep his emotions in check. The warmth of the audience and a clip reel that had just played had left Ford shaken. “They say that when you’re about to die, you see your life flash before your eyes,” he said. “And I just saw my life flash before my eyes — a great part...

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Zelarayán, Amundsen, Schulte lead Crew over Galaxy...
COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — Lucas Zelarayán and Malte Amundsen scored first-half goals and Patrick Schulte made them stand up as the Columbus Crew blanked the Los Angeles Galaxy 2-0 on Wednesday night. Zelarayán staked Columbus (5-4-3) to a 1-0 lead when he found the net in the 25th minute. Cucho Hernández picked up an assist on Zelarayán’s fifth goal in his 10th appearance this season. The Crew took a 2-0 lead into halftime on defender Amundsen’s first goal of...

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Becky Hammon, Las Vegas Aces coach, denies...
HENDERSON, Nev. (AP) — Las Vegas coach Becky Hammon denied Wednesday that former Aces player Dearica Hamby was bullied on her team for being pregnant, saying any ill feelings between the two came from Hamby being traded. Hammon, one of the league’s marquee figures, said in a video call with reporters she did nothing to warrant discipline from the WNBA, which suspended her for two games without pay Tuesday after a monthslong investigation into Hamby’s allegations. “I’ll take my...

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Garcia extends MLB-best RBI total, Rangers beat...
ARLINGTON, Texas (AP) — Adolis García keeps driving in runs for the Texas Rangers, and the two guys filling in for the AL West leaders’ injured stars keep contributing as well. Dane Dunning was solid again while pitching in the rotation spot of injured ace Jacob deGrom, and fill-in shortstop Ezequiel Duran homered — after García extended his MLB-best RBI total to 44 with a two-run shot — as the Rangers beat the Atlanta Braves 7-4 in a matchup...

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