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An annular solar ‘ring of fire’ eclipse is this weekend: What will it look like from Massachusetts?

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:14:48 GMT

As an annular solar “ring of fire” eclipse crosses the sky in the western half of the U.S. over the weekend, how visible will the astronomical event be from Massachusetts?Unfortunately for local science and space lovers, New England is not in a great spot for this weekend’s alignment of the sun and moon. Also, it could be pretty cloudy with a chance for rain, so that won’t help the view either.If you’re in the Boston-area on midday Saturday, only about 17% of the sun will be covered by the moon at the max of the eclipse. About 83% of the sun will be uncovered, meaning it will still be very bright if it’s not cloudy at the time.“What we’re going to have in Boston is not much,” Talia Sepersky, of the Museum of Science’s Charles Hayden Planetarium, told the Herald ahead of Saturday’s event.“On a perfectly clear day, only 17% of the sun would be covered, so you probably wouldn’t notice,” Sepersky added. ...

UMass faces a tough test at No. 6 Penn State

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:14:48 GMT

The UMass Minutemen can no longer ignore the elephant on the schedule.After falling short in three consecutive home games, UMass (1-6) hits the road to engage the most daunting opponent it will have faced since moving up to FBS in 2012.The Minutemen will reach the two-thirds point on the season when they travel to University Park, Pa., to confront the No. 6 Penn State Nittany Lions (5-0, 3-0) at historic Beaver Stadium, capacity 106,572. Penn State was unranked when it beat UMass 48-8 on Sept., 20, 2014.UMass is coming off an 41-24 home loss to Toledo at McGuirk Stadium while Penn State easily dispatched Northwestern 41-13 at Ryan Field. The UMass game will be the Lions’ tuneup for their Big 10 showdown at No. 3 Ohio State on Oct. 21.UMass played in a big house in its 59-14 loss at Auburn on Sept. 2. But hard experience has taught UMass coach Don Brown that Happy Valley is the loudest and most vitriolic venue in the Northeast. Brown visited Beaver Stadium a few times when he w...

Donald Trump returning to civil trial next week with fixer-turned-foe Michael Cohen set to testify

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:14:48 GMT

NEW YORK (AP) — Donald Trump will back in court next week for his New York civil fraud trial, a person familiar with the former president’s plans told The Associated Press on Thursday, setting up a potential face-to-face showdown with fixer-turned-foe Michael Cohen, who is expected to testify.The 2024 Republican frontrunner voluntarily attended the first three days of the trial last week, turning the Manhattan courthouse into a campaign stop as he watched testimony and complained to TV cameras about the case, which cuts to the heart of his image as a successful businessman and threatens to cost him control of marquee properties such as Trump Tower.Trump is expected to attend the non-jury trial Tuesday through Thursday next week, according to the person who confirmed the plans, which were first reported by news website The Messenger. The person spoke to the AP on condition of anonymity before an official announcement.“It’s been 5 years since we have seen one another,” Cohen sai...

Douglas Clark, convicted murderer and half of the Sunset Strip Killers, dies of natural causes

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:14:48 GMT

SAN QUENTIN, Calif. (AP) — Serial killer Douglas Daniel Clark, who was sentenced to death for six grisly murders in California during the early 1980s, has died of natural causes, officials said Thursday. He was 75. Clark, who’d been housed at San Quentin Rehabilitation Center, died Wednesday at an outside medical facility, according to a statement from the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation. Clark and his accomplice Carol Bundy were dubbed the Sunset Strip Killers following a series of murders around Los Angeles starting in 1980. The victims included teenage girls and female sex workers. Clark was convicted of multiple charges including murder, attempted murder and sexual contact with human remains. The Marin County Coroner’s office will determine Clark’s official cause of death. Bundy died at Central California Women’s Facility in 2003.The Associated Press

NATO member Romania finds more drone fragments on its soil after Russia again hits southern Ukraine

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:14:48 GMT

BUCHAREST, Romania (AP) — Romanian authorities said Thursday they found a crater from a suspected drone that may have exploded on impact on its territory near the border with Ukraine, reviving concerns about possible spillover of Russia’s war in Ukraine onto a NATO member country.The pre-dawn discovery of the crater three kilometers (1.8 miles) west of the village of Plauru, which sits across the Danube River from the Ukrainian port of Izmail, was made after the Romanian Defense Ministry said it detected a series of drones heading toward Ukrainian river ports.The ministry said the drone possibly exploded on impact but it was not immediately clear when or from where the drone was launched. An investigation was under way.“Heinous Russian attacks on Ukraine’s civilian infrastructure had again serious consequences on Romania’s territory,” Romanian Foreign Minister Luminita Odobescu wrote on X, the social medial platform formerly known as Twitter, adding that “new evidence of impact was ...

After tour of fire devastation in N.W.T., Trudeau promises new homes for Yellowknife

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:14:48 GMT

YELLOWKNIFE — Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says there will be 50 new affordable homes in Yellowknife under the federal government’s rapid housing project. Trudeau says it’s a jointly funded project between the federal government and the Northwest Territories, with the City of Yellowknife providing the land.“Work on a construction site is already underway,” Trudeau told reporters in Yellowknife on Thursday. He said the rapid housing project is in the third round of funding, with more than 15,000 homes to be built nationally. He acknowledged remote communities face unique challenges with supplies and workers.“The people who are, of course, hardest hit by this lack of supply are vulnerable people including seniors, Indigenous peoples and those experiencing homelessness,” he said.“Housing is a complex issue and we have to tackle it from different angles.”Trudeau was in N.W.T. touring communities ravaged by recent wildfires.The territory saw nearly 70 per cent of its population ...

Taylor Swift concert movie breaks Cineplex record for event pre-sales

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:14:48 GMT

TORONTO — Taylor Swift’s concert movie is proving to be a fairy tale for Canada’s largest cinema chain.The film “Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour,” which hit theatres Thursday, generated $6.2 million in pre-sales for Cineplex Inc., making it the Toronto-based company’s most successful event for pre-sales.Sara Moore, Cineplex’s executive-vice president and chief marketing officer, said she and the company were “giddy” about the film’s première. It was originally set to open on Oct. 13 before Swift moved up the release by a day, citing “unprecedented demand.” The star announced the earlier release date on X, formerly known as Twitter, Wednesday evening, catching even Cineplex by surprise.“We found out about the same time as everybody else did when Taylor posted it last night, so obviously we were thrilled and jumped on it right away because the interest has been so strong,” said Moore.The chain managed to find sp...

B.C. Real Estate Association says sales activity impacted by high cost of borrowing

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:14:48 GMT

VANCOUVER — Home sales in British Columbia were up in September by more than 10 per cent from the same time last year. However, the B.C. Real Estate Association says sales activity is clearly being affected by the Bank of Canada’s policy on interest rates and the subsequent rise in interest rates. Chief economist Brendon Ogmundson says home sales are trending at below average levels as potential buyers struggle with the high cost of borrowing.Active listings in the province were up slightly month-over-month at just over 33,000 total listings and were 8.1 per cent higher year-over-year.The average residential price in the province was $966,530 in September, up 4.8 per cent compared with September 2022, while total sales in dollar volume were $5.3 billion, a 15.7 per cent increase from the same time last year.Year-to-date figures point in a different direction with residential sales dollar volume down 15 per cent to $57.9 billion, compared with the same period in 2022. This repo...

Man accused in London, Ont., attack on Muslim family tells court of childhood abuse

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:14:48 GMT

The man accused of killing four members of a Muslim family in an alleged act of terrorism took the stand in his own defence on Thursday, telling a jury that his “fundamentalist” Christian upbringing was marked by isolation and abuse at the hands of his mother.Nathaniel Veltman testified that he and his five siblings, including a twin sister, were raised in Strathroy, Ont., by a largely distant and “introverted” father and a “religious fanatic” mother who homeschooled the kids and regularly spanked him until the age of 12.Under questioning from his lawyer, Christopher Hicks, in the Windsor, Ont., courtroom where the trial is taking place, Veltman said his upbringing made him increasingly angry, especially as he developed obsessive thoughts and what he said he later understood to be signs of mental health issues.“I began obsessing over not thinking evil or violent things, which inevitably led me to think the worst thing a person could think,&#...

'I'm going to fall': Northwest Indiana woman accused of letting kids ride on roof of car; daughter injured

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:14:48 GMT

PORTAGE, Ind. — A Northwest Indiana woman was arrested on a warrant this week after allegedly letting her children joyride on top of her vehicle, injuring her daughter.On the night of Aug. 3, Portage police responded to the 100 block of Coral Avenue on the report of an injured child.A 911 caller told authorities they observed a woman, later identified as Katy Newboles, 35, of Portage at the time, allegedly driving with two children hanging on the roof of her vehicle.At the scene, a police report states an officer made contact with a young girl who was suffering from lacerations and several road rash injuries. Newboles told the officer that she lets her children, a boy and a girl, hang onto the back of her vehicle while on skateboards at around 5 miles per hour, police stated.When the officer asked the injured girl where the skateboards were, she reportedly replied, "what skateboards?" No skateboards were found at her home.The girl was transported to an area hospital and the officer ...