Good News Today | 26 August 2022

Wrapping up the week with an eclectic bundle of positive news nuggets.

Jupiter photographed by JWST — JWST NIRCam image of Jupiter from three filters | NASA/ESA/CSA with image processing by Judy Schmidt

Unprecedented Detail

With giant storms, powerful winds, auroras, and extreme temperature and pressure conditions, Jupiter has a lot going on - and NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope has captured some incredible new images of the planet. “We hadn’t really expected it to be this good, to be honest,” said planetary astronomer Imke de Pater, professor emerita of the University of California, Berkeley, who led the observations of Jupiter with Thierry Fouchet, of the Paris Observatory.

Celebration Pose

If you've always wanted some Usain Bolt branded merchandise, it seems likely you'll soon be getting your chance, as the former Olympic and world 100m champion has moved to trademark a logo of himself in his familiar celebration pose. The application for the logo, which depicts Bolt pointing skywards in silhouette, has been filed in the US. “The mark consists of the silhouette of a man in a distinctive pose, with one arm bent and pointing to the head, and the other arm raised and pointing upward,” the trademark application states. The filing suggests Bolt plans to use the logo on a number of products, not just clothing.

Acrocanthosaurus

Dinosaur tracks from around 113 million years ago have been discovered in a Texas state park after a severe drought dried up the river. The three-toed footprints are leading down into the riverbed at the Dinosaur Valley State Park. Normally, the prints are hidden under water and filled with sediment. The footprints are thought to have been left by an Acrocanthosaurus, which stood about 15 feet tall and weighed close to seven tonnes. The state park - located in an inland area south-west of the city of Dallas - was once on the edge of an ancient ocean, and dinosaurs left footprints in the mud.

Riddle

Where is the only place where today comes before yesterday?

(Answer at end of page)

Kemp's Ridley

Endangered sea turtles have hatched on a chain of barrier islands off Louisiana for the first time in 75 years. The authorities found evidence that endangered Kemp’s ridley turtles had hatched in the Breton National Wildlife Refuge of the Chandeleur Islands, which is good news both for the turtles and the islands they were found on (which are recovering from the 2010 Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill).

Phillipine Moratorium

The Manila Bulletin reports that the Phillipines has confirmed that the moratorium on new coal power plants announced in October 2020 by the Duterte administration will remain in place under the new Marcos administration. Apparently insurers do not want to support new coal projects, and investors are “finding it difficult.” Indeed.

World First

In a world’s first, a commercial hydrogen-powered cargo vessel will make its maiden voyage later this year - and is set to be deployed on the river Seine in Paris. The hydrogen cargo vessel will operate on compressed hydrogen produced from electrolysis, paving the way for more local zero-emission transport to be developed in the near future. The vessel will be tasked with moving goods on pallets and containers along Paris’s iconic urban river.

Quote of the Day

“If you change the way you look at things, the things you look at change.”

Wayne Dyer

On this Day

26 August 1498: Michelangelo is commissioned to carve the Pietà sculpture by French Cardinal Jean de Bilhères. It's housed in St. Peter's Basilica, Vatican City.