More than 9 million US workers are getting a raise on Jan. 1. Here's where.

Kate Gibson
Updated Mon, December 30, 2024 



Millions of low-wage earners are getting a raise in 2025 as 21 states are slated to hike their minimum pay starting Jan. 1.

State laws that index the minimum wage to inflation are behind 13 of the January increases, according to the Economic Policy Institute, or EPI, a nonprofit think tank. Legislation spurred the coming pay hikes in six states, while ballot measures ushered in wage gains in two.

Nearly one in five, or 20%, of the more than 9.2 million impacted workers reside in households below the poverty line, while nearly half, or almost 49%, have family incomes below twice the poverty line, EPI estimates.

Meanwhile, the federal minimum wage of $7.25 an hour hasn't budged since 2009, and it remains the law in 20 states. Since then time, that base rate has lost 30% of its purchasing power due to inflation, according to Sebastian Martinez Hickey, a state economic analyst at EPI.

"The truth is the number of workers that earn $7.25 per hour is quite low, but that still means with inaction we are leaving tens of millions of workers out to dry," Martinez Hickey told CBS MoneyWatch.

Almost one-third of workers live in states that have a $15 minimum wage, and by 2027 that percentage will expand to nearly half, the Martinez Hickey said.

Ohio's minimum pay is increasing to $10.70 from $10.45 due to an inflation adjustment, but there is not a single county in the state where a worker can make less than $17.73 an hour and maintain a modest but adequate standard of living, EPI noted.

Oklahoma voters will get the chance to vote on gradually increasing the state's base hourly wage to at least $15 an hour, but not for another year and a half. Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt in September signed an executive order setting the vote for June 2026.

In Maine, the minimum wage will increase to $14.65, rising 50 cents. The rise comes due to Maine law and a a 2016 citizens referendum, with the state required to make an annual adjustment based on the cost-of-living index for the Northeast Region.

Other states with increases going into effect in 2025 are:

• Alaska's minimum is going to $11.91, up 18 cents, thanks to an inflation adjustment.
• Arizona workers will make a minimum of $14.70 come January, up 35 cents, due to an inflation adjustment.
• California's minimum is going to $16.50, up 50 cents due to an inflation adjustment.
• Colorado's base hour wage is rising to $14.81, up 39 cents, due to inflation.
• Connecticut workers will make an hourly minimum of $16.35, up 66 cents, and adjusted for inflation.
• Delaware's minimum is going to $15.00, up $1.75, due to legislation passed by the state.
• Illinois is taking its minimum to $15.00, an increase of $1.00, due to legislation.
• Michigan's minimum wage is slated to be $10.56, up 23 cents, due to legislation.
• Minnesota's minimum is making an inflation-adjusted move to $11.13, up 28 cents.
• Missouri is taking its base hourly rate to $13.75, up $1.45, thanks to a ballot measure passed by voters.
• Montana's minimum is due to increase to $10.55, up 25 cents, due to inflation.
• Nebraska employers will have pay at least $13.50 as of January, up $1.50 due, to a ballot measure.
• New Jersey's hourly base is climbing to $15.49, up 36 cents, due to legislation.
• New York's minimum will be $15.50, up 50 cents, due to legislation. It's $16.50 in New York City, Long Island and Westchester.
• Rhode Island is taking its minimum up a buck to $15.00, the result of legislation.
• South Dakota's minimum is set to hit $11.50 in 2025, up 30 cents, due to inflation.
• Vermont is looking at $14.01 for a minimum hourly rate in the new year, up 34 cents after an inflation adjustment.
• Virginia's minimum is going to $12.41, up from $12.00, due to inflation.
• Washington's minimum will reach $16.66, up 38 cents, due to inflatio

More than $8bn wiped off Boeing in wake of South Korean crash

Matt Oliver
Mon, December 30, 2024 

Boeing has offered to help South Korean aviation authorities investigate the cause of the crash - REUTERS/Kim Hong-Ji

Almost $8bn (£6.4bn) has been wiped off the value of Boeing as the embattled plane maker faces an investigation into the deadliest air disaster in South Korean history.

The company’s shares plunged by as much as 6pc after authorities launched an investigation of all of the Boeing 737-800s – the model involved in the Jeju Air crash – operated by South Korea’s domestic carriers.

It knocked $7.9bn off the US giant’s value, which previously stood at $135bn, and caps off a torrid year for the company.

The losses pared later on Monday but still left Boeing nursing a multi-billion dollar hit as Wall Street digested the news.


All 175 passengers and four of the six crew aboard a Jeju Air Boeing 737-800 were killed in the crash on Sunday.

The aircraft landed on its belly before skidding along the runway and crashing into a wall at Muan International Airport.

Beforehand, the pilots had warned air traffic control that the aircraft had suffered a bird strike and issued a mayday warning.

They are thought to have abandoned a first landing attempt before coming in for a second try.

However, experts have raised several questions about the disaster, including why the plane appeared to be travelling so fast and why its landing gear did not appear to be lowered as it hit the tarmac.

Investigators are examining the possible impact of bird strikes, whether the aircraft’s control systems were disabled, and the apparent rush by the pilots to attempt a landing soon after declaring an emergency as possible factors in the crash, authorities said on Monday.

Choi Sang-mok, South Korea’s acting president, said his country’s transport ministry would “conduct an emergency safety inspection of the entire aircraft operation system to prevent recurrence of aircraft accidents.”

Boeing has said it is in contact with Jeju Air and ready to support the airline.

The jet’s flight data recorder was recovered but appeared to have sustained some damage and it was not yet clear whether it could be properly analysed, officials said.

Under global aviation rules, South Korea will lead the civil investigation into the crash. It will also involve the US National Transportation Safety Board, since the plane was designed and built by Boeing in America.

The Boeing 737-800 jet involved in the crash is an aviation industry workhorse that is widely seen as one of the most reliable aircraft in the market, with more than 4,000 in service globally.

It predates Boeing’s troubled 737 Max jets, a later iteration, which were involved in crashes in Indonesia and Ethiopia that were just five months apart.

The 737 Max’s safety was further called into question when a door plug blew off an Alaska Airlines jet at 16,000 feet, triggering a corporate crisis at Boeing that forced the departure of chief executive Dave Calhoun.

Jeju Airline’s 787-800 jet was 15 years old and was brought into service by the airline in 2017, having previously been operated by low-cost carrier Ryanair from 2009.

It was configured to seat as many as 189 passengers.

The plane had seen regular maintenance and there were no signs of malfunction before Sunday’s incident, Jeju Air has said.

According to the Aviation Safety Network, the death toll exceeds an Air China plane crash near Busan in 2002 that killed 129 people – making it South Korea’s deadliest aviation accident.

A top US missile-defense system was just used in combat for the 1st time to defend Israel

Jake Epstein
Mon, December 30, 2024

A US air defense system in Israel was just used in combat for the first time since it was deployed.


It's unclear if the THAAD battery successfully intercepted the incoming threat.


The battery was reportedly used against a Houthi ballistic missile late last week.

A top US air defense battery deployed to Israel was recently used in combat in what appears to be the first known instance that the system fired an interceptor since it arrived in the country two months ago.

The THAAD (or Terminal High-Altitude Area Defense) battery was used in theater over the past couple of days, a US defense official confirmed to Business Insider on Monday. They did not elaborate on the circumstances of the incident, the kind of missile attack THAAD was designed to counter.

Footage shared on social media Friday purported to show the launch of a THAAD interceptor in Israel against an incoming ballistic missile fired by the Houthis in Yemen. 

A US soldier can reportedly be heard in the background of the video saying, "Eighteen years [I've] been waiting for this."

It's unclear whether the THAAD shot was successful. The Israeli military said early Friday local time that a missile launched from Yemen was intercepted before crossing into Israeli territory. It did not specify which air defense system was actually used to take down the threat.

A THAAD launcher positioned at an undisclosed location in the Middle East.US Army

The US deployed a THAAD battery and around 100 soldiers to Israel in October following a massive Iranian missile attack on the country at the start of the month. The Pentagon said then that the system would supplement Israel's advanced and multi-tiered air defenses.

THAAD, which is made by US defense contractor Lockheed Martin, is designed to defeat short-, medium-, and intermediate-range ballistic missiles during the final phase of their flight. The system can engage targets at ranges of 93 to 124 miles inside and outside the atmosphere and eliminates an incoming threat by hitting it rather than exploding nearby.


The US Army began developing THAAD in 1992, and it now has seven batteries, several of which are outside the continental US. A typical battery consists of nearly 100 soldiers, six truck-mounted launchers, an advanced radar, and a fire control and communications element.

A THAAD launcher fired a missile during a test in July 2017.

US Missile Defense Agency

THAAD's first operational intercept in combat came in January 2022 when a battery used by the United Arab Emirates took down a Houthi ballistic missile. Though it has rarely seen combat, THAAD is still considered to be one of the top air defenses in the world; Israel's equivalent to the THAAD, the Arrow 3, has also proved its worth in combat.

Last year, the US sent a THAAD battery to the Middle East to protect American troops after Hamas carried out its Oct. 7, 2023, massacre in Israel. The October deployment strengthens Israel's vaunted air-defense shield against missiles, consisting of David's Sling and the Arrow systems. The widely touted Iron Dome, by contrast, is designed to counter rockets and artillery shells.

Israel is retiring the US-made Patriot battery. The Israelis soured on the Patriot after their early version failed to defeat Scud missiles fired by Iraq in 1991. Later upgrades would transform Patriot into a critical defensive asset for Ukraine in its war against Russia.

The recent employment of the THAAD battery comes amid a notable uptick in Houthi missile and drone attacks on Israel over the past few weeks. Israeli forces have bombed the rebels in Yemen in retaliation.

Opinion - Does Putin believe in God?

Alexander J. Motyl, opinion contributor

THE HILL
Tue, December 31, 2024 


When asked at a recent press conference whether he believes Russia’s war with Ukraine will end in 2025, Vladimir Putin gave an odd answer. “I believe in God,” he said, “and God is with us.”

A self-confident leader who believes the war is going well for his side would have answered with a forceful yes or no, perhaps even making a fist and waving it triumphantly — as did Donald Trump after the failed attempt on his life in Butler, Pa.

Instead, Putin invoked God, a response that smacks of uncertainty and doubt. Why call on the Almighty’s supposed support if you know you’re winning and believe you’ll win? Why reach out to the heavens, if earthly matters are OK? Perhaps the war is going badly and Putin knows it?

Now, it’s remotely possible that Putin is a sincere believer, a tried-and-true enthusiast of the Russian Orthodox Church’s brand of Christianity, a devotee of the divine who can’t resist constantly calling on God in the course of his everyday labors.

That said, there’s really no reason to believe in his religious sincerity. For one thing, he’s a Russian street tough who clawed his way into the notoriously bloodthirsty KGB; neither his behavior nor his affiliation with a godless criminal institution bespeaks inordinate religiosity.

For another, one doesn’t have to be a cynic to suspect that Putin is obviously playing the religious card in order to reach out to ordinary Russians and underpin his crumbling legitimacy, just as Joseph Stalin did after Nazi Germany’s attack on the Soviet Union in June 1941 revealed that many Soviets greeted the advancing Wehrmacht as their liberator from the communist hell.  UKRAINIAN AND POLISH NATIONALIST SCUM

For a third, and only half-jokingly, is it reasonable to think that Putin has ever cracked open what Trump claims is his favorite book, the Bible? At least Trump has been photographed holding it. Has Putin? Does he, like Trump, have favorite passages that he just can’t recall?

So, does Putin really believe in God? If one considers that just about everything he utters is a lie, then the answer would have to be no. Certainly, the god he believes in, if he believes in some god, is not the God who gave humanity the Ten Commandments or delivered the Sermon on the Mount.

“Thou shall not kill” doesn’t quite go with a genocidal war against innocent Ukrainians and the targeted killing of one’s political opponents. The Beatitudes are equally at odds with Putin’s style: “Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth.” “Blessed are the merciful, for they shall receive mercy.” And this one above all: “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God.”

Putin’s god might be the God of the Old Testament, who can be vengeful and wrathful, or he might be a pagan god — Zeus, perhaps, or the Slavic version thereof, Perun. In either case, Putin is no Christian. That makes him an Orthodox apostate, a heretic who has no business crossing himself or consorting with clergy — with the exception of the equally criminal Russian Orthodox Patriarch, Kirill, rumored to have been a KGB agent in Soviet times.

Putin may be sincere in believing that God supports the “special military operation,” but how could he possibly know — unless of course God speaks directly to him, perhaps while he’s sleeping the sleep of the monstrously guilty.

And if Putin is sure that God does in fact speak to him, this can only mean that Russia’s dictator is a saint with a direct line to the Almighty. But sainthood for Putin seems like a strange choice for God to have made in light of his continued disregard for the Commandments and Beatitudes. Saints rarely lived perfect lives, but they all experienced conversions and thereupon turned their backs on their sinful lives — something Putin has yet to do. Or did he have a Pauline conversion as his tanks rumbled down the road to Damascus?

So, no, Putin almost surely doesn’t believe in God and God almost surely is not “with” him and his genocidaires. But what if Putin believes he’s God or at least godlike? Blasphemy isn’t a hard sell for an old KGB hand, and delusion is right up the alley for a tyrant who’s held power for 25 years. Ancient emperors regularly believed in their own divinity, so why not Putin?

The question may strike us as outlandish, but only at first glance. Putin fashions himself as the savior of Russia and the world. He’s never wrong. He has a coterie of apostles. Russians worship him. And if he keeps Russia from losing the Ukraine war, he will have performed a miracle.

All that would be left is a crucifixion.

Alexander J. Motyl is a professor of political science at Rutgers University-Newark. A specialist on Ukraine, Russia and the USSR, and on nationalism, revolutions, empires and theory, he is the author of 10 books of nonfiction, as well as “Imperial Ends: The Decay, Collapse, and Revival of Empires” and “Why Empires Reemerge: Imperial Collapse and Imperial Revival in Comparative Perspective.”

Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. 

Archaeologists Found 115,000-Year-Old Human Footprints Where They Shouldn’t Be

Caroline Delbert
Mon, December 30, 2024

Fossilized footprints in Saudi Arabia show human traffic on the cusp of a subsequent ice age.

Like carbon dating, scientists use isotopes and context clues to calculate the approximate age of fossils.

These human prints were surrounded by animals but not hunted animals, indicating humans were just thirsty.

A uniquely preserved prehistoric mudhole could hold the oldest-ever human footprints on the Arabian Peninsula, scientists say. The seven footprints, found amidst a clutter of hundreds of prehistoric animal prints, are estimated to be 115,000 years old.

Many fossil and artifact windfalls have come from situations like this special lakebed in northern Saudi Arabia. Archaeologists uncovered the site, deep in the Nefud Desert at a location nicknamed “the trace” in Arabic, in 2017, after time and weather wiped the overlying sediment away. It’s easy to imagine that a muddy lakebed was a high-traffic area in the Arabian Peninsula over 100,000 years ago.

When populations move on, these prints are left behind until they’re covered over. In the far, far older Burgess Shale event, some of the oldest organisms ever found were preserved intact because they likely fell into a mudslide and were killed instantly. An entire armored nodosaur was found in unprecedentedly good shape because it was encased in mud and in the cold of the ocean floor. If there were a finder’s fee for incredible archaeology, a lot of it would be paid to mud.

In their paper, the scientists actually examine why that ancient mud was so special at all:

“An experimental study of modern human footprints in mud flats found that fine details were lost within 2 days and prints were rendered unrecognizable within four, and similar observations have been made for other non-hominin mammal tracks.”

That means their special, tiny batch of preserved footprints were made in unique conditions that also form a kind of “fingerprint” for pinning them all to the same timeframe. From there, scientists started to look at who made the footprints. Homo sapiens weren’t the only upright humanoid primate in the game, but the evidence, the scientists say, suggests we were the ones traipsing through the drying lakebed:

“Seven hominin footprints were confidently identified, and given the fossil and archeological evidence for the spread of H. sapiens into the Levant and Arabia during [the era 130,000 to 80,000 years ago] and absence of Homo neanderthalensis from the Levant at that time, we argue that H. sapiens was responsible for the tracks at Alathar. In addition, the size of the Alathar footprints is more consistent with those of early H. sapiens than H. neanderthalensis.”

The lake that forms Alathar today was likely part of a prehistoric highway that drew all the large animals in the area, forming a corridor dotted by freshwater rest areas that living things could travel on as they migrated with the weather or the changing climate. In this case, scientists found very little of the other factors that accompany prehistoric human travel, like knife or tool marks on animal bones indicating hunting.

“The lack of archaeological evidence suggests that the Alathar lake was only briefly visited by people,” the scientists conclude. “These findings indicate that transient lakeshore use by humans during a dry period of the last interglacial was likely primarily tied to the need for potable water.”

These Homo sapiens could be the last ones on their way through a temperate place as an impending ice age descends. That would also explain why their tracks weren’t tracked over by another group, at least not before an entire fresh layer of sediment accumulated.

Remains of 3,000-year-old dead city discovered on South China’s Silk Route

Maria Mocerino
Mon, December 30, 2024

Archaeologists unearthed a 3,000-year-old Shang city in Southern China, making it the oldest ever found in the region of Lingnan, famous for marking the departure point of the Silk Road.

At the top of the famous trade route, the ancient site boasts an impressive size of 75,790 square feet. At first glance, however, the land appeared unused; thus, plans to develop it had been diffused.

Once patterned bricks and broken pottery shards surfaced, all work stopped. Archaeologists were brought in to investigate further, and they unearthed a wealth of remains and relics.

After a three-month dig, they confirmed the remarkable grounds belonged to the latter as the region’s very first city, marking a significant point of evolution in societal development.

Niuluchong site / South Morning China Post
Archaeologists uncover walls, pottery, and stone tools

First discovered in 2022, construction workers halted operations because they had unexpectedly found signs of archaeological remains. At first, there didn’t seem to be much there.

Once archaeologists arrived swiftly at the scene, they began to uncover well-preserved walls, as He Anyi, lead archaeologists, said via South China Morning Post. One of which is even a few feet tall.

“The north and west walls of the entire city site are well preserved, among which the west wall is the best preserved, and the highest part of the west wall may be about 1.4 metres,” Anyi said.

Upon first review back in April, they had believed that the Niuluchong site dated between the late Neolithic and early Shang dynasties upon the first review. Soon, it became clear that the ancient city more accurately belonged to the latter.

Along with double walls, according to The Sun, archaeologists confirmed the presence of ash pits, pillar holes, pottery, and stone tools. They even recovered a “severely rusted” bronze sword, they believe, as per SCMP. It has yet to be confirmed due to the preservation state of the relic. Moats, they mentioned, were unusual in comparing Niuluchong to other early settlements, which indicates an advancement or a new feature rarely seen at that time.

An ancient city on the future Silk Road

As the earliest city from the Shang dynasty, excavations are planned to continue. The ancient city may hold an even greater wealth of artifacts that could supply archaeologists with new information about China's second oldest rulership (c1600-1050BC) and the region.

Later seen as a “barbarian land” by the Chinese court, the Lignan region originally spanned Hong Kong and Northern Vietnam. But it would reach new heights of stature at the dawn of the Silk Road, around the second century BCE. The Han dynasty established the Silk Road as the Shang rose to prominence around 1750 BCE. Still, they did invent writing, developed a stratified government, and advanced bronze technology, according to Stanford University.

For Chinese history and culture, the Shang significantly contributed to the evolution of the civilization. The site, aside from being at the beginning of the Silk Road, holds a profound relevance as the oldest center of the dynasty with signs of advancements in urban development might bring to light other contributions the Shang made.

1,100-year-old stone-carved female genitalia unearthed from Viking burial site

Maria Mocerino
Mon, December 30, 2024 

Archaeologists uncovered “an unusually rich treasure trove” inside the graves of three wealthy women from the Viking Age, offering a window into their lives and activities in the 9th century.

At a “remarkable burial ground” in Norway believed to house up to 20 graves, three have been excavated thus far, archaeologists found so many items of luxury that they ran out of time to explore the third fully.

Among the belongings buried with these high-status women were mosaic glass beads that even came from foreign territory, coin jewelry, one of which is extremely rare, and, interestingly enough, a stone in the shape of a vulva.

Though the graves don’t reveal anything new about Viking burials in the 9th century, they do provide a clear but increasingly intriguing snapshot of the Viking world at a time of transition through a female lens.

The three graves excavated in Skumsnes, Fitar / University Museum of Bergen via Science Norway

Women could get rich in the 9th century

The burial site sat on a “strategic farm," lead archaeologist Soren Diinhoff explained to Science Norway. In the 9th century, local kings would have these surrounding grounds, which might begin to reveal why these graves appeared particularly affluent.

Situated along the coast in Fitar, Norway, they might have been able to generate additional income by providing sailing travelers shelter. Furthermore, textile production on these farms was “prestigious,” Diinhoff said.

Thus, the most opulent grave with stones arranged in the shape of a boat, remarkably, also held a plentiful supply of tools to make textiles. This grave, in other words, belonged to a woman of a notably high class who might have been responsible for that operation. Wool shears, a hetchel, a spindle whorl, and a weaving sword were found along a bronze key, which signifies that she was the head of a household.

“Through textile work, women could accumulate wealth during the early Viking Age,” archaeologist Unn Pedersen continued, an expert. All signs point to this farm being well-endowed.

All the graves brimmed over with costume jewelry and broaches that they used to fasten their apron dresses, according to Science Norway. Some of these goods even originated from England and Ireland, suggesting these women had contacts abroad. However, the most impressive burial and artifacts came from the “head of household.”

Stones in the shape of a 13-foot boat surrounded it. Inside the stones were boat rivets. Archaeologists uncovered 46 colorful glass beads from around the world, as they were sold in Viking shops in the “big cities” or towns. They confirmed that the amount was “a lot.”

A triangular brooch with glass mosaic and gold enamel / University Museum of Bergen via Science Norway

A rare coin found

The “most remarkable find,” Diinhoff says, was a rare silver coin from the town of Ribe or Hedeby. “A silver coin like this on a bead necklace shows that the Viking Age was a time of transition,” an expert explained to Science Norway.

Similarly to the Viking jewelry, the coins also reflect a variety of origins, reflecting their international contacts. But the Hedeby coin, once upon a time clasped to a bead necklace, indicates that a “new form of trade was emerging.” It speaks to the larger network that these women belonged, and they might not have even been from the area.

“Both of these women had contacts outside Norway. It's probably no coincidence. Perhaps they came from abroad and married into the local community,” Diinhoff suspects, as per Science Norway.

Archaeologists couldn't finish the dig, too many treasures

Archaeologists didn’t find any human remains, as they naturally disintegrate in the acidic Norwegian soil, so that wasn’t out of the ordinary.

However, some jewelry appeared to be stored in a leather satchel, which didn’t survive either. But it would have been unusual that she wouldn’t have worn it, leading archaeologists to wonder whether these Viking graves were actually memorials.

Strikingly, a stone in the shape of a vulva, or female genitalia, was placed at the mast of the boat in the head of the household’s grave, leading them to further deduce that they might not have been buried there.

With such a successful discovery on their hands, archaeologists couldn’t even finish investigating the third grave. And there appears to be many more where they came from.

 China unveils monster explorer ship with 17,261-mile-range, ice breaking power

Christopher McFadden

Mon, December 30, 2024 




China's first-ever, domestically developed deep-sea multi-functional exploration ship has officially entered service. Called the Tansuo-3 (Exploration-3), the ship has now been commissioned in Sanya City in south China's tropical island province of Hainan.

She joins China's existing fleet of other icebreaker ships, including the Xuelong, Xuelong 2, and Jidi, belonging to the Ministry of Natural Resources.

The announcement came on Sunday (Dec 29), and the ship will begin conducting deep-sea research missions in the first half of 2025. This news now significantly expands China's manned submersible exploration capabilities.

The ship will now be operated by its new owner, the Institute of Deep-sea Science and Engineering. According to state news sources, she was jointly designed by researchers from the Sanya Institute, China State Shipbuilding Corp's Guangzhou Shipyard International Co., and other research entities.
Tansuo-3 is now ready for service

"More than 100 domestic institutes, universities, and enterprises participated in the ship's research, development, and construction. Designers and engineers developed a lot of new technologies and equipment through the project, according to the Sanya Institute," the People's Republic of China State Council said in a press release.

Construction began on the Tansuo-3 in June of 2023 at the Guangzhou shipyard, and the main body was completed in April. She also completed an eight-day sea trial in late October and returned to her shipyard for final fit-out.


According to reports, the ship will carry a full-ocean-depth Human Occupied Vehicle (HOV) known as Shenhai Yongshi (Deep Sea Warrior) for regular scientific research operations. This will also enable the Tansuo-3 to conduct deep-sea trials and archaeological studies in the South China Sea and beyond.

The ship also has world-class scientific equipment, such as advanced deep-sea sonar and release systems for crewed and robotic submersibles. She also carries equipment to perform underwater excavations and recovery.

According to other reports, the ship is hoped to commence manned deep-sea submersible operations in abyssal oceans in the second half of 2025. The ship is also theoretically capable of deep-sea exploration in various environments, including polar regions, thanks to its for and aft icebreaker features.
Boosting China's deep-sea exploration capabilities

The Tansuo-3 measures 104 meters long and has a displacement of 10,000 tons. She was independently designed and built exclusively using Chinese contractors.

The vessel can reach a top speed of 16 knots (30 kilometers per hour) and has a designed range of 15,000 nautical miles (around 27,780 kilometers). She has a crew capacity of around 80.

The Tansuo-3 also features a 6-meter by 4.8-meter moon pool (opening at the base of the hull) to ensure scientific exploration operations on floating ice and under challenging maritime conditions.

"The new ship's deployment is expected to improve the country's deep-sea scientific exploration efforts, helping scientists better understand the deep-sea ecosystem, geological structures, and distribution of marine resources, according to researchers," the People's Republic of China State Council added.

Tansuo-3's commissioning marks a significant breakthrough in China's autonomy in developing key core technologies, featuring not only domestically developed equipment but also independently developed key control systems.

Biden moving to ban oil and gas leases for 20 years in Nevada region, just weeks before Trump inauguration

Aubrie Spady

FOX NEWS
Tue, December 31, 2024 at 8:42 AM MST·2 min read


The Biden administration is attempting to implement last-minute restrictions on oil and gas drilling in the west just weeks before President-elect Donald Trump's inauguration.

On Monday, the Department of the Interior announced plans to pursue a 20-year ban on oil and gas leases in 264,000 acres of Nevada's Ruby Mountains.

The administration submitted an application to withdraw the acreage from any potential leasing, which initiated a two-year ban on new mineral leases in the area during the approval process. The proposal now heads into a 90-day public comment period, which will fall under the Trump administration.

"The Ruby Mountains are an iconic landscape with exceptional recreation opportunities and valuable fish and wildlife habitat worth preserving for the future," Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack said in a statement. "Today’s action honors the voices of Tribal communities and conservation and sportsmen’s groups and marks another important step to protect a treasured landscape."

The Biden administration's lease limitation does not put restrictions on mining in the region.

Scotus Hears Arguments In Case That Could Reshape Environmental Law

During Trump's first administration, the Forest Service conducted a study to determine whether 54,000 acres could be leased for oil and gas drilling in the Ruby Mountains.

The proposal was eventually rejected in 2019 after the public comment period saw "thousands of comments from the local area, the state of Nevada, and from across the nation" opposing the idea, according to William Dunkelberger, the forest supervisor who signed the decision.

Great Basin, Nevada, Elko County, Ruby Mountains, Lamoille Canyon.

Jenna Padilla, the geologist for the Humboldt-Toiyabe Ruby Mountains ranger district at the time, said that geological surveys "show there is low to no potential for oil" in the region, the LA Times reported in 2018.

It is unclear whether the Trump administration will consider potential leases in the region, but such actions could face roadblocks following the Biden administration's new proposal.

Outgoing Biden Interior Department announces flurry of new wilderness protections

Zack Budryk
Mon, December 30, 2024

The Biden administration proposed two rounds of new environmental protections for sites in the Western U.S. on Monday, beginning a process that would extend into the forthcoming Trump administration.

The first protections announced apply to Nevada’s Ruby Mountains and would protect the range from mining for 20 years, beginning with a two-year segregation period during which no new mining claims would be allowed on an area spanning about 264,000 acres.

“The Ruby Mountains are cherished by local communities for their scenic value, cultural heritage, numerous wildlife and benefit to the local economy through a thriving outdoor recreation industry,” Interior Secretary Deb Haaland said in a statement Monday. “Today, we are taking an important and sensible step to pause new mining claims to ensure that we have the science and public input necessary to inform proposed protections of the Ruby Mountains area for future generations.”

The new protections will be subject to a 90-day public comment period, which will stretch into the first months of the second Trump administration.

The department also announced permanent protections in Grand Teton National Park and the $100 million purchase of a 640-acre parcel of land from Wyoming. Prior to the sale, it was the biggest unprotected swath of land within the national park. The land includes the beginning of a key migration corridor for the pronghorn, an antelope-like mammal with a habitat range spanning from Canada to parts of Texas.

“People from every state come to Grand Teton National Park each year to enjoy the stunning landscapes and iconic wildlife protected in the park,” National Park Service Director Charles Sams said in a statement. “We are grateful for the support of countless stewards in the park’s local community, Wyoming and across the nation who contributed their voices leading to this incredible conservation achievement that will benefit generations to come.”

In his first term, President-elect Trump rolled back Obama-era protections for two Western national monuments: the Bears Ears and Grand Staircase-Escalante monuments. President Biden restored those protections in 2021.

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Serbia enters new year with student protests over train station tragedy

AFP
Tue 31 December 2024 

Thousands marched in Belgrade and two other Serbian cities during a New Year's protest, demanding accountability over the fatal collapse of a train station roof

 (OLIVER BUNIC) (OLIVER BUNIC/AFP/AFP)

Thousands of students marched in Belgrade and two other Serbian cities during a New Year's Eve protest that went into Wednesday, demanding accountability over the fatal collapse of a train station roof in November.

The accident in the city of Novi Sad occurred on November 1 at a newly renovated train facility, killing 14 people -- aged six to 74 -- at the scene, while a 15th victim died in hospital weeks later.

Public outrage over the tragedy has sparked nationwide protests, with many blaming the deaths on corruption and inadequate oversight of construction projects.

In Belgrade, university students held a protest march through the capital city's centre late Tuesday, where local authorities had organised New Year's Eve celebrations with music and performance programmes.

"There is nothing to celebrate," the students said in a message sent before the protest started.

Alongside the Belgrade march, students in Nis, a university centre in the south of the Balkan country, also held a march to disrupt concerts, while Novi Sad -- which did not have New Year's Eve celebrations -- had a student demonstration.

In Belgrade and Nis, students stood in silence for 15 minutes at midnight to honour the 15 victims, bowing their heads solemnly as fireworks could be seen going off to ring in the new year.

In Novi Sad, students placed black ribbons on its City Hall.

Residents gathered at the central city square at the invitation of students, with some carrying banners that read "For the New Year, I wish for justice".

Before midnight, which they welcomed in silence and holding up the lights of mobile phones, the students recited poems and sang songs.

The protests come on the heels of 13 people being charged in connection with the tragedy, including former transport minister Goran Vesic, who resigned days after the incident.

The Serbian government has seen eight weeks of nationwide demonstrations following the deaths, with many protesters accusing the authorities of corruption and inadequate oversight.

Faced with public pressure, the government made all documentation related to the controversial reconstruction of the train station public, followed by the Prosecutor's Office doing the same.

Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic reiterated earlier Tuesday that "all student demands had been met" and claimed this is now "a matter of politics".

In a bid to abate public anger, the authorities over past weeks have promised various subsidies for young people.

Students, however, continued to protest, and almost all faculties at state universities across the country remain blockaded.

They say that responsibility has not been adequately assumed, and their anger has been further fuelled by government representatives accusing them of "protesting for money" and "serving foreign intelligence."

Tensions remained high during the New Year's protests, which continued after midnight in Belgrade.

"The students have risen," they chanted, carrying banners that read "This is our country too" and "stop lying".

oz/dhc/

“There is No New Year — You Still Owe Us for the Old One.”

Instead of partying, thousands turn New Year celebration into anti-government protest in Serbia

DUSAN STOJANOVIC
Tue, December 31, 2024 
 

BELGRADE, Serbia (AP) — Instead of the traditional boisterous street partying on New Year's Eve, tens of thousands of protesters led by university students gathered overnight in Belgrade and other Serbian cities to demand political reforms and justice in the Balkan country.

The protesters have been actively demonstrating following the tragic collapse of a concrete canopy in the northern city of Novi Sad’s central train station on Nov. 1, which resulted in 15 fatalities.

The tragedy has been attributed to corruption and substandard construction practices by the populist Serbian leadership, leading to a widespread public outcry and demands for accountability.

Students from various Belgrade universities have organized the protest under the slogan “There is No New Year — You Still Owe Us for the Old One.”

The loud crowd, chanting “We Want Justice,” went silent at 11:52 p.m. with 15 minutes to honor the victims of the Novi Sad tragedy. Many were holding banners with a red handprint, which has become a symbol of the antigovernment protests, telling the authorities that they have blood on their hands.

Earlier, they marched past a state-sponsored concert where the crowd danced to folk music tunes. Police guarded the area where the concert was taking place and set up metal fences while directing the protesting crowd to other streets nearby to avoid contact between the two groups.

The antigovernment protesters emphasized that, despite the festive season, their commitment to seeking justice remains unwavering. The student-led movement has garnered support from various societal groups, including professors, farmers and actors, reflecting broader discontent with autocratic President Aleksandar Vucic's leadership.

Thousands of people also gathered in Novi Sad and the southern city of Nis for parallel gatherings also led by university students in those cities.

In Belgrade, state-sponsored concerts and other New Year celebrations were organized in the city center and in a newly built high-rise Belgrade Waterfront neighborhood, which Vucic has claimed is his own project together with the United Arab Emirates investors.

Belgrade has become a favorite partying destination for tourist on the New Year's Eve celebrations with street partying and huge fireworks.

The crowds in Belgrade braved very cold weather and fog to join the students. The New Year's Eve protest comes just over a week after tens of thousands rallied together with the students in what was one of the biggest gatherings in recent years in the Serbian capital.

Serbia’s public prosecutor on Monday indicted 13 people, including a former minister, over the collapse of the concrete canopy. The protesters say that is not enough as the indictment does not include charges of possible corrupt deals during a renovation of the the Novi Sad train station that was part of a wider deal with Chinese companies.

Vucic earlier told pro-government Prva TV that all student demands have been fulfilled.

“I have always been ready to talk, I am asking them now but they won’t talk to me, they have no arguments, the prosecutors fulfilled the last of their demands, all documents they wanted have been published and nothing happened,” Vucic said, adding he won't be toppled by street protests.

___

Associated Press writer Jovana Gec contributed to this report

New Year's Eve Serbia
Students march on New Years Eve during a protest that erupted after a concrete canopy fell two months ago and killed 15 people in Belgrade, Serbia, Tuesday, Dec. 31, 2024.

 (AP Photo/Darko Vojinovic)

Former Serbian minister among 13 charged over fatal train station accident

AFP
Mon 30 December 2024 


Thousands of people protested in Belgrade on December 22, blaming government corruption and inadequate oversight for the station roof collapse (Andrej ISAKOVIC) (Andrej ISAKOVIC/AFP/AFP)

Serbian prosecutors on Monday charged 13 people, including a former transport minister, over the fatal collapse of a train station roof in the city of Novi Sad last month that killed 15 people.

The fatal accident at the northern city's station occurred on November 1, following extensive renovation work at the facility.

Fourteen people, aged six to 74, were killed at the scene and a 15th victim died in hospital weeks later.

Public outrage over the tragedy has sparked regular nationwide protests, with many blaming the deaths on corruption and inadequate oversight of construction projects.

"The indictment was submitted to the Higher Court in Novi Sad, accompanied by the complete documentation collected during the pre-investigation and investigation process, as well as all other evidence," the prosecutor's office in the northern city said in a statement.

Former Serbian transport minister Goran Vesic, who resigned over the disaster, was among those charged.

The prosecutors requested that the 10 people currently in custody over the incident remain there and that three people who had been released pending the investigation -- including Vesic and the former director of railway infrastructure, Jelena Tanaskovic -- be taken into custody.

Serbia's Prime Minister Milos Vucevic said the filing of the indictments less than two months after the accident was "proof that no one obstructed the case".

"In a very short period, this was accomplished... which confirms that absolutely no one obstructed the case," Vucevic said in a statement to local media.

"It will be a challenging court process, but this is proof that no one intends to hide, cover up or obstruct anything," he said.

The latest major protest over the disaster gathered tens of thousands of people in Belgrade on December 22.

Protesters are demanding that the authorities take responsibility for the roof collapse, the resignation of the prime minister and the prosecution of those found responsible.

Students have also been holding near-daily demonstrations, shutting down the operations of most universities in Serbia for a month and calling for a transparent investigation and accountability.

oz/yad/js