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2 cheerleaders were shot in a Texas supermarket parking lot after one opened the door to the wrong vehicle. A suspect is under arrest
Two teenage cheerleaders were shot after one said she mistook the suspect's vehicle for her own in a supermarket parking lot near Texas' capital -- one of at least four incidents this week in which young people who'd made an apparent mistake were met with gunfire.
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More severe storms could erupt today as rescue work continues after 2 died in Oklahoma amid tornadoes reports
More severe storms are threatening some 50 million people from Texas to Wisconsin after the same system left at least two people dead in Oklahoma, with a dozen tornadoes reported across three states and search-and-rescue still underway in some places.
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SpaceX's Starship rocket lifts off for inaugural test flight, but explodes midair
Originally Published: 20 APR 23 09:45 ET Updated: 20 APR 23 10:51 ET By Jackie Wattles and Ashley Strickland, CNN (CNN) -- SpaceX's Starship, the most powerful rocket ever built, took off from a launch pad on the coast of South Texas on Thursday at 9:28 a.m. ET, but exploded midair before stage separation. Thursday's launch marked the vehicle's historic first test flight. "As if the flight test was not exciting enough, Starship experienced a rapid unscheduled disassembly before stage separation," SpaceX tweeted. The massive Super Heavy rocket booster, which houses 33 engines, lifted off and sent a massive boom across the coastal landscape as it fired to life. The Starship spacecraft, riding atop the booster, soared out over the Gulf of Mexico. About two and a half minutes after takeoff, the Super Heavy rocket booster was scheduled to expend most of its fuel and separate from the Starship spacecraft, leaving the booster to be discarded in the ocean. The Starship was meant to use its own engines, blazing for more than six minutes, to propel itself to nearly orbital speeds. The flight reached its highest point 24.2 miles (39 kilometers) above the ground and the explosion occurred about four minutes after liftoff, according to SpaceX. SpaceX said that "teams will continue to review data and work toward our next flight test." Defining success for Starship Although it ended in an explosion, Thursday's test met several of the company's objectives for the vehicle. Clearing the launch pad was a major milestone for Starship. In the lead-up to Thursday's liftoff, SpaceX CEO Elon Musk sought to temper expectations, saying, "success is not what should be expected...That would be insane." "With a test like this, success comes from what we learn, and today's test will help us improve Starship's reliability as SpaceX seeks to make life multi-planetary," SpaceX tweeted after the explosion. Musk congratulated the team on "an exciting test launch" in a post-launch tweet and said they "learned a lot for next test launch in a few months." SpaceX will need a new launch license from the FAA to make another attempt, but the company does not expect the process to be as laborious as securing the license for Thursday's launch. NASA administrator Bill Nelson took to Twitter to share his congratulations on the flight test. "Every great achievement throughout history has demanded some level of calculated risk, because with great risk comes great reward. Looking forward to all that SpaceX learns, to the next flight test —and beyond." The test flight comes after years of explosive tests, regulatory hurdles and public hyping from Musk. The company has been known to embrace fiery mishaps during the rocket development process. SpaceX maintains that such accidents are the quickest and most efficient way of gathering data, an approach that sets the company apart from its close partner NASA, which prefers slow, methodical testing over dramatic flare-ups. Musk has talked about Starship — making elaborate presentations about its design and purpose — for years, and he frequently harps on its potential for carrying cargo and humans to Mars, though NASA also plans to use the vehicle to put its astronauts on the moon. He's even said that his sole purpose for founding SpaceX was to develop a vehicle like Starship that could establish a human settlement on the Red Planet. Throngs of spectators lined local beaches to catch a glimpse of Starship's takeoff, pouring onto beaches with fold-out chairs, children and dogs in tow. It echoed the turnout on Monday, at the company's first launch attempt, which was ultimately left grounded as engineers worked to troubleshoot an issue with a valve on the Super heavy booster. In the area surrounding Starbase — SpaceX's name for the Starship development site that lies on Texas' southernmost tip — many locals have greeted the rocket with fervid enthusiasm. Throughout the area, there are signs of Starship permeating the local culture: a model Starship in a front yard, a "Rocket Ranch" camping ground filled with diehard enthusiasts, and a billboard advertising Martian beer. What to know about this rocket Development of Starship has been based at SpaceX's privately held spaceport about 40 minutes outside Brownsville, Texas, on the US-Mexico border. Testing began years ago with brief "hop tests" of early spacecraft prototypes. The company started with brief flights that lifted a few dozen feet off the ground before evolving to high-altitude flights, most of which resulted in dramatic explosions as the company attempted to land the prototypes upright. One suborbital flight test in May 2021, however, ended in success. Since then, SpaceX has also been working to get its Super Heavy booster prepared for flight. The gargantuan, 230-foot-tall (69-meter-tall) cylinder is packed with 33 of the company's Raptor engines. Fully stacked, Starship and Super Heavy stand about 400 feet (120 meters) tall.
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Syan Rhodes Joins Harris County Precinct 4 As Press Secretary
Harris County Precinct 4 Commissioner Lesley Briones announced today award-winning journalist and Houston native Syan Rhodes has joined the Precinct 4 team as press secretary.
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The University of Houston-Downtown Announces New Gator Success Institute
The University of Houston-Downtown is establishing its new Gator Success Institute (GSI) in support of its number one priority of Enhancing Student Success, the first goal of its 2022-27 Strategic Plan: A New Paradigm. The new Institute is made possible by a $750,000 grant from the ECMC Foundation.
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Killer Sentenced to 35 Years in Prison After DNA Found on Gearshift of a Car Pushed Into Bayou
A 21-year-old Galena Park man was sentenced to 35 years in prison Tuesday after pleading guilty to murder for shooting an acquaintance, putting his body in the backseat of a car and pushing the car into Hunting Bayou, Harris County District Attorney Kim Ogg announced.
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Free Speech vs. National Security in Proposed TikTok Ban
Libertad de expresión frente a seguridad nacional en la propuesta de prohibición de TikTok
With its dancing cats and lip-synched grandmas, TikTok has gained a massive foothold in the US, but lawmakers here say the platform threatens privacy rights and raises serious national security concerns.
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Photo Credit-Houston Astros
Published on April 20, 2023
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Photo Credit-Houston Astros
Published on April 20, 2023
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Photo Credit-Houston Astros
Published on April 20, 2023
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Postseason Atmosphere Lead Astros To Victory Over Blue Jays
HOUSTON - - On Wednesday, something seemed slightly different at Minute Maid Park. Another type of energy and vibe had the ballpark buzzing with liveliness before the first pitch was thrown in front of the 40,545 people in attendance, which was the fourth home sellout of the season.
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Texas Southern Cheerleaders Make History As the First HBCU to Win the NCAA National NCA Cheer Competition Title in 75 Years
TS, TS, TS, TSU, U,U, U, I thought you knew! If you didn’t know, now you do. The Texas Southern University (TSU) cheerleaders have put Texas Southern University and Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) on the map as the first HBCU to win the 2023 NCAA collegiate National Cheer Association Championship title. In NCA’s 75-year history, no HBCU has ever won the national cheer competition.
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Mayor Sylvester Turner Announces New Houston Poet Laureate, Aris Kian Brown
In celebration of National Poetry Month, Mayor Sylvester Turner is pleased to announce the new Houston Poet Laureate: Aris Kian Brown. Brown is the sixth poet laureate and the youngest to be chosen.
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Fort Bend County Judge KP George to Announce New Office of Homeland Security and Emergency Management Manager
Fort Bend County Judge KP George has announced his appointment for the County’s Manager of Homeland Security and Emergency Management on Monday, April 17, at 10:00 a.m., at the Emergency Operations Center, 307 Fort St., Richmond, TX 77469. Greg Babst is the new Office of Homeland Security and Emergency Management Manager.
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2 Felony Charges For White Man Who Shot Black Teen For Ringing His Doorbell
Everyone should have the right to feel safe within their homes. However, the line between self defense and self incrimination can get a little blurry when the situation becomes race-related.
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Earth Day HTX Comes to Downtown Houston April 17-19
Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner invites everyone to celebrate Earth Day HTX, the largest Earth Day event ever presented by the City of Houston. An environmentally-focused speaker series will take place April 17-18, culminating with an outdoor interactive festival at City Hall on April 19 from 10 a.m. – 2 p.m.
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Mayor Turner Announces City's 2023 Demolition Initiative with Demolition Day Event
Today Mayor Sylvester Turner, joined by the Department of Neighborhoods (DON), City officials, and community representatives, announced the City’s 2023 Demolition initiative at a “Demolition Day” press conference in Kashmere Gardens, one of Mayor Turner's Complete Communities. The initiative calls for the removal of nearly 300 dangerous structures by the end of the year.
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City of Houston Kicks-Off Earth Day HTX
Speaker Series will Continue Tuesday, April 18
The City of Houston will host Day Two of the Earth Day HTX celebration beginning at 9 a.m., Tuesday, April 18, with discussions on Flood Mitigation, Preparedness and Policy, and the Disproportionality of Climate Change Impact on People with Disabilities.
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Artemis Energy Partners CEO and Chair Bobby Tudor delivered a lunchtime keynote on Houston leading the energy transition to a low-carbon world. He also leads …
Published on April 18, 2023
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First Home Run at Minute Maid Park Means A Lot to Home Town Rookie Corey Julks
It has been an exhilarating two weeks for Houston Astros rookie reserve outfielder Corey Julks.
