X-37B mission: What to know about secret Space Force space plane launch this week
A secret space plane from the U.S. Space Force is set to fly on its eighth mission − one aimed at demonstrating critical space technology for deep space exploration.
Just under six months post-landing, the Boeing-built X-37B Space Force space plane is slated to fly again no earlier than 11:40 p.m. Thursday, August 21, from NASA's Kennedy Space Center Pad 39A.
SpaceX and the Space Force haven't revealed an exact launch time, but the Federal Aviation Administration advisory suggests the launch window runs until 5:11 a.m. Friday, Aug. 22.
The space plane's next mission is referred to as USSF-36. Very little has been revealed about the X-37B, yet occasional details about its missions are dropped by the Space Force and Boeing.
Melbourne aims to solve downtown parking shortage with enforcement of three-hour rule.
Melbourne will begin enforcing a three-hour time limit on parking in designated spaces downtown, as a first step toward dealing with parking problems in the area.
Other possible future solutions include charging to park on some city streets.
The three-hour time limit already is in place in sections of downtown, but it's not being enforced. But the City Council has given city staff the green light to begin vigorously enforcing the policy.
The recommendation of stepped-up enforcement of the three-hour rule comes from THA Consulting, a municipal parking consulting firm that Melbourne hired, as the first step to free up more parking spaces downtown.
The city plans to hire a parking management contractor to handle enforcement, but when the enforcement company would be hired and when enforcement would begin is still to be determined.
Judge shifts venue in Alligator Alcatraz legal fight, dismisses immigration court claim
On Aug. 18, a federal judge ruled that a battle about legal representation for people at an immigrant-detention center in the Everglades should move to a different court while also declaring part of the lawsuit moot.
U.S. District Judge Rodolfo Ruiz issued a 47-page order that resolved some issues in the high-profile lawsuit alleging First Amendment violations at the detention center dubbed “Alligator Alcatraz.” Detainees and their attorneys contend, in part, they have been prevented from having proper confidential communications to discuss cases.
In his order, Ruiz transferred the case to a different court, which results in a different judge being assigned to the fast-moving lawsuit.
In addition to the First Amendment issues, the plaintiffs also argued in the lawsuit that the federal government had violated their rights by not identifying an immigration court that would handle their claims.
In his order, Ruiz dismissed the immigration-court allegations in the lawsuit, saying they were moot after the federal decision saying judges at Krome North Processing Service Center would handle the detainees’ cases.
Brevard Schools superintendent on not rehiring teacher: 'I stand firmly by this decision'
Brevard Public Schools Superintendent Mark Rendell said he "stands firmly by" his decision to not rehire an ousted Satellite High teacher who was cleared to return to the classroom by a state department of education committee in July.
Comments from members of the public took up the vast majority of a four-hour-long school board meeting on Aug. 12, with most of them pleading for Melissa Calhoun to return to teaching. Calhoun’s contract was not renewed after a complaint from a parent that she used a student’s preferred name without parental approval, which violated a 2023 school board ruling that requires a signed form from the parent if a child wishes to go by a name other than their legal name.
On Aug. 5, Rendell told media she would not be employed. And despite calls from community members — and a motion by board member John Thomas to reconsider hiring her, which ultimately failed — he stood by his decision.