Short Takes – 2-20-25

Trump admin reverses hydropower layoffs that sparked grid stability fears. TechCrunch.com article. Pull quote: “The four power marketing administrations sell and transmit hydropower from a range of federally owned dams, including the Bonneville Dam in the Pacific Northwest and the Hoover Dam in the Southwest. These dams — and the agencies that oversee the sale and distribution of the power they produce — supply electricity to tens of millions of homes across 34 states.”

These feds took Trump’s ‘fork’ deal. Then they got fired — creating a government ‘mess.’ WashingtonPost.com article. Pull quote: ““This is obviously a case of the right hand not talking to the left hand in every possible way,” said Debra D’Agostino, a founding partner of the D.C.-based Federal Practice Group, which represents civil servants. With many supervisors left out of decisions on whom to let go, agencies are likely to have neglected to cross-reference lists of employees who took the resignation offer with lists of those on probation, she said.”

Trump moves hamper bird flu response as egg prices spike. TheHill.com article. Federal communications confusion and funding freeze part of the problem. Pull quote: “Infectious disease experts are also concerned that public health labs, which rely on federal funding, won’t be able handle any increase in testing capacity if the widespread freeze continues. They have called for greatly expanded testing to better understand the virus.”

Leaving Pluto in the dust: New Horizons probe gearing up for epic crossing of 'termination shock'. Space.com article. Pull quote: “"The data from the termination shock encounter will be a treasure trove for space physicists worldwide who are eager to understand how this vast boundary works," Brandt told Space.com. "All these discoveries from pioneering missions like Voyager and New Horizons teach us how little we know about what lies beyond, and pave the way for a future dedicated Interstellar Probe mission," he said.”

NASA lowers impact risk of 'city-killer' asteroid 2024 YR4 to 1 in 67 (phew!). Space.com article. Pull quote: “We might have to wait a while until we have more solid info on 2024 YR4's passage through the inner solar system. The asteroid is currently heading away from Earth, but it is set to swing back toward our planet in 2028, once again becoming visible to ground-based telescopes.”

Elon Musk recommends that the International Space Station be deorbited ASAP. ArsTechnica.com article. Pull quote: “It would also wreck the business plans of multiple US companies working to provide this capability (space stations in low-Earth orbit) for NASA. Moreover, it would shoulder even more responsibility for the US space enterprise onto a single company, SpaceX. This goes against NASA's long-standing policy to have multiple providers and its desire to foster a healthy ecosystem of commercial space companies.”

EO 14213 - Establishing the National Energy Dominance Council. Federal Register.

EO 14214 - Keeping Education Accessible and Ending COVID-19 Vaccine Mandates in Schools. Federal Register.