College Football Championship, moon landing, and clean sheets.

Adam Rogers
January 09, 2024

Happy Tuesday! Today’s edition is 975 words, a 3 ½ minute read.

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Big Stories

The No. 1 Michigan Wolverines beat the No. Washington Huskies 34-13 in the college football national championship Monday night.

Despite suspensions and a sign-stealing controversy during the regular season, Michigan completed a three-year climb to win its first national championship since 1997. They ended the 2023 season as the only undefeated team in college football.
The Wolverines dominated early, with Donovan Edwards making big plays in the first quarter, rushing for 174 yards. Running back Blake Corum played a key role, running for 134 yards and two fourth-quarter touchdowns. A crucial interception by Will Johnson and Corum's late touchdown sealed the championship.
After coaching his alma mater for nine seasons and making his third straight playoff appearance, Michigan coach Jim Harbaugh finally brought home the title that many expected he would when he took over the team in 2015. However, he missed six regular-season games due to separate suspensions and he could be punished further in 2024.

The first U.S. moon landing attempt in over 50 years by the Pittsburgh-based company Astrobotic Technology encountered a major setback.

Astrobotic’s spacecraft, named Peregrine, sprung a critical fuel leak just hours after its Monday launch. The propulsion system failure – which helps with maneuvering during lunar descent — could interfere with the spacecraft’s ability to soft land on the moon. The company is currently looking at alternative options for the mission so it’s not a total failure.
Astrobotic, aiming to be the first private company to successfully land on the moon, received a $108 million contract from NASA for the Peregrine lander. NASA has recently partnered with private companies to explore the moon before astronauts arrive, delivering technology, science experiments, and cargo for various purposes. NASA acknowledges the added risks associated with using private companies for lunar missions but said the learning opportunities from both successes and setbacks are worth it.
The U.S. has not launched a moon landing mission since 1972, but NASA aims to send astronauts back to the moon in the next few years. Several countries, including China and India, have had successful moon landings recently. The U.S. will have a second attempt at a lunar landing this winter with SpaceX set to launch a spacecraft carrying a lunar rover for Houston-based Intuitive Machines in February.

An Israeli airstrike in southern Lebanon killed a high-ranking Hezbollah commander, Wissam al-Tawil, on Monday.

Israel’s airstrike hit an SUV that was transporting the commander. Al-Tawil is the most senior Hezbollah militant killed since the Oct. 7 Hamas attack triggered skirmishes between Israel and the Lebanese militant group. The incident is part of an increasing series of strikes along the border, raising concerns about the potential for another conflict in the Middle East.
Secretary of State Antony Blinken has been working to keep the war from spreading during his talks in the Gulf countries over the past two days. Israel and Hezbollah have tried to limit their conflicts over the past three months. However, the recent killing of Hamas' deputy leader in Beirut has raised tensions —Hezbollah responded with a large rocket attack on an Israeli air traffic base. Israeli leaders are growing impatient with the attacks and are threatening war if diplomatic efforts fail.
Meanwhile, Gaza’s health system is hanging on by a thread. Staff, patients, and displaced people have fled from Al-Aqsa Hospital, central Gaza’s main healthcare facility. Doctors Without Borders and other aid groups have also left, saying it was too dangerous due to heavy Israeli bombardment. Only 13 of the territory’s 26 hospitals are even partially operational, according to the U.N.

Pope Francis spoke out against surrogacy on Monday, calling for a worldwide ban on the practice. He described surrogacy as "despicable" and a serious violation of the dignity of women and children, where financial needs are exploited. The Pope emphasized that having a child should not be part of a business deal and urged the whole world to join in prohibiting surrogacy. (More)

United Airlines said that it found loose bolts during inspections of its 737 Max 9 fleet after the Federal Aviation Administration grounded all Max 9s for inspections in the wake of a door plug getting blown out of an Alaska Airlines plane over the weekend. The discovery will lead to hundreds of canceled United flights over the next few days. (More)

Donald Trump is asking a judge in Georgia to dismiss a criminal case against him, where he's accused of trying to corrupt the 2020 election results. He argues that he should be immune from prosecution because his actions, like calling Georgia's Secretary of State and asking him to change the vote count to overturn Joe Biden’s victory, were part of his official duties as president. (More)

Tiger Woods and Nike ended their 27-year partnership on Monday. Woods has worn the iconic swoosh since he turned pro in 1996, signing multiple extensions with the company throughout his career. He is still working his way back from a car crash injury in 2021 but plans to play at the Genesis Open on Feb. 15. (More)

A new study found that the average bottle of water contains nearly 250,000 tiny plastic particles called "nanoplastics." These particles are so small that they can potentially disrupt human cell functions. The tiny plastics have researchers worried because they have been linked to various health risks that affect important systems in our bodies, including the communities of microbes in our gut. (More)

A doctor explains when (and why) to wash your bedsheets.

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