COTALAND water park, restaurant news: 6 trending Austin-area stories | Bastrop - Cedar Creek  Community Impact

Blackhawks star Connor Bedard 'trending toward' season debut Tuesday  Reuters

Arizona is trending for one of the nation's best safeties closing in on a decision  On3

Trending stocks this week as investors weigh Fed outlook, AI concerns  Seeking Alpha

Jeremiyah Love 'trending well' to play despite ankle reinjury  ESPN

1. Apple 'Welcome Home' Launch: Everything to Expect Tomorrow  MacRumors
2. Apple Is About to Close the Biggest Hole In Its Ecosystem With HomeView  Bloomberg.com
3. What to expect from Apple's October 13 'Welcome home' releases  AppleInsider
4. New Apple TV 4K, HomeView, and HomePod Mini: 16 Details Just Leaked  MacRumors
5. Apple's all-new HomeView smart home hub leaked ahead of tomorrow's event — alongside new Apple 4K TV and HomePod mini 2  Tom's Guide

1. Fitbit Edge is Google’s middle ground between Fitbit Air and Pixel Watch  TechCrunch
2. Google Fitbit Edge: Our all-new smartest fitness tracker ever  blog.google
3. Google Debuts $180 Fitbit Edge Tracker in Continued Health Push  Bloomberg.com
4. Google announces the Fitbit Edge, a middle ground between Pixel Watch 5 and Fitbit Air  Ars Technica
5. Fitbit Edge May Be the Sweet Spot for Smartwatch Noncommittals  CNET

1. You can now start the iPhone Duo pre-order process  9to5Mac
2. Apple iPhone 18 Pro vs. iPhone Duo: Don't Buy Apple's Foldable Until You Read This  PCMag
3. How to set up your iPhone Duo pre-order to make checkout faster  AppleInsider
4. "iPhone Duo is a waste of money" Carl Pei, Nothing CEO says  PhoneArena
5. Apple increases iPhone Duo orders by 30%: report (AAPL:NASDAQ)  Seeking Alpha

1. First Impressions: Dell XPS Googlebook and the Googlebook OS  John Scalzi's Whatever
2. Android is the best and worst thing about Googlebooks  The Verge
3. Googlebooks mark the end of the old Google  Fast Company
4. Google’s new kind of laptop blends Android and Chromebook  KTLA
5. Googlebook OS review: A post-smartphone PC, if Google can keep it  9to5Google

1. Google releases officially refurbished Pixel 9 devices starting at $499 with an extra perk  9to5Google
2. You can now get a refurbished Pixel 9 Pro directly from Google and save up to $400  Android Authority
3. Google cuts prices on refurbished Pixel 9 phones and throws in a free AI subscription to sweeten the deal  Digital Trends
4. Google Launches Certified Refurbished Pixel Phones in Japan with Up to 45% Off  BigGo Finance
5. Google now sells refurbished Pixel 9 phones from $499  Gagadget.com

NASA experiments focused on human and plant health and drug-resistant organisms will travel to the International Space Station aboard SpaceX’s 35th Commercial Resupply Services mission for the agency from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida, advancing research that benefits life on Earth and future exploration.

This research supports astronaut health during long-duration missions through four investigations from the agency’s Biological and Physical Sciences division, including 3D models of the human brain, a crop disease study, a faster way to assess astronaut health, and an analysis of antibiotic-resistant bacteria aboard the space station.

Tiny brain models, big questions

A new precision health investigation helps address a key question: What happens to the human brain in space?

The experiment sends small, lab-grown models of the human brain to the orbiting laboratory for five weeks. Researchers compare tissue models that traveled to space with identical ones kept on Earth to determine how a short spaceflight affects the human brain at the cellular level.

The effort could deepen our understanding of how the human brain responds to stress and help lay the groundwork for methods that counter risks to brain health that astronauts may face on future missions to the Moon and beyond.

Disease-resistant crops for space

A space crops investigation tests whether crop diseases develop faster and more severely in microgravity.

The experiment compares molecular and structural changes between Earth-grown and space station-grown plants infected with a disease-causing fungus. The findings could guide plant breeding on Earth to produce disease-resistant crops and help minimize yield losses in future space agriculture systems.

Space crops provide nutrition, increase dietary variety, and offer psychological benefits for astronauts during extended missions. They also absorb carbon dioxide, produce oxygen, and recycle water, which will become increasingly important as human missions extend farther from Earth.

Analysis helps astronauts thrive

The spacecraft also carries the first test of a compact microplate reader that arrived aboard the space station earlier this year.

The Commercially Enabled Rapid Space Science initiative experiment tests the device’s ability to detect and measure certain biomarkers such as antibodies, antigens, and proteins.

Use of the plate reader would allow scientists to analyze samples aboard the space station and obtain data quickly, rather than wait for the samples to return to Earth for analysis.

Ultimately, the research aims to support the timely detection of infections and other health issues in astronauts while expanding science capabilities in remote exploration locations where resupply will be more difficult.

Tracking antibiotic-resistant bacteria

A precision health investigation returns for its fourth and final planned stay aboard the space station to study how antibiotic-resistant bacteria survive and evolve in microgravity.

As part of the investigation, astronauts repeatedly sample surfaces throughout the space station to monitor for drug-resistant organisms.

The work could help develop ways to protect astronauts against bacterial infections during long-duration missions. On Earth, the findings could provide insight into how superbugs develop from the overuse of antibiotics.

To learn more about NASA’s biological and physical research in space, visit: https://science.nasa.gov/biological-physical/

This story is an update to the Antarctic sea ice feature in our World of Change series tracking long-term change on Earth’s surface through satellite imagery.

Unlike the Arctic—an ocean basin surrounded by land—the Antarctic is a large continent surrounded by an ocean. Because of this geography, sea ice has more room to expand during the winter. However, that ice also stretches into warmer latitudes, leading to more melting in the summer. Antarctic sea ice usually peaks in September, around the end of the Southern Hemisphere’s winter, and retreats to a minimum in February.

According to NASA and the National Snow and Ice Data Center (NSIDC), Antarctic sea ice in 2026 likely reached its annual maximum extent on September 14 (above). On that date, the ice covered an estimated 17.59 million square kilometers (6.79 million square miles), making it the third-lowest maximum on record.

The maps below show the average concentration of Antarctic sea ice for the month of September (left) and the following February (right) from 1990 to 2026. Opaque white areas indicate the highest concentrations, and dark blue areas are open water. The images include only areas where ice concentration was at least 15 percent, a threshold scientists commonly use to count an area as ice-covered in satellite data. Scientists refer to the total area of these regions as the “sea ice extent.”

From Record Highs to Record Lows

From 1979 until 2014, total Antarctic sea ice increased by about 1 percent per decade. Whether the increase was a sign of meaningful change is uncertain because ice extents vary considerably from year to year around Antarctica. For three consecutive years, from 2012 to 2014, satellites observed new record highs for winter sea ice extent. These highs occurred while Arctic ice was in steep decline.

The climb came to an end in 2015, and significant decreases in sea ice around Antarctica started to occur in 2016. There have since been years with small rebounds, but overall, Antarctic sea ice coverage has largely remained lower than normal. Both the record low minimum and record low maximum occurred in 2023. Scientists will continue to observe the area each year to find out if the decline is part of a long-term change or a statistical fluctuation.

Seeing Through the Clouds

To determine sea ice extent, scientists rely on satellites with passive microwave sensors that measure the microwave energy Earth naturally emits. Sea ice emits more of this energy than open water, so it stands out in microwave images. Because microwaves pass through clouds, the satellites can observe sea ice regularly, regardless of weather.

The record began in late 1978 with data collected by NASA’s Nimbus-7, followed by Defense Meteorological Satellite Program (DMSP) satellites starting in 1987, and by NASA’s Aqua satellite between 2002 and 2011. In 2025, scientists began using observations from the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency’s GCOM-W satellite. 

NASA Earth Observatory images by Michala Garrison, using data from the National Snow and Ice Data Center.

References & Resources

• NASA Earthdata (2026, October) Sea Ice. Accessed October 8, 2026.
• NASA Earth Observatory (2026, October 6) World of Change: Antarctic Sea Ice. Accessed October 8, 2026.
• NASA Earth Observatory (2016, September 16) Sea Ice. Accessed October 8, 2026.
• NASA Earth Science (2026, September 23) Arctic Sea Ice Reaches 2026 Annual Minimum Extent. Accessed October 8, 2026.
• National Snow and Ice Data Center (2026, September 23) Arctic sea ice has reached minimum extent for 2026; Antarctic sea ice maximum most likely reached as well. Accessed October 8, 2026.
• National Snow and Ice Data Center (2026, March 9) Antarctic sea ice extent arrives at a near-average minimum. Accessed October 8, 2026.

As part of the agency’s Inspiration Tour flyover, NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman will pilot one of three F-5 fighter jets to kick off the New York Jets vs. Cleveland Browns game in East Rutherford, New Jersey, on Sunday, Oct. 11.

NASA team members will engage with fans at the agency’s Experience Zone, located at the Jets Tailgate Zone outside the stadium, from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. EDT before the game. Fans can learn more about NASA’s return to the Moon under the agency’s Artemis dome, enjoy interactive games, and capture photos with a large, inflatable SLS (Space Launch System) rocket.

Isaacman will be available for limited media interviews during the game. To arrange interviews, please contact Camille Gallo at: camille.m.gallo@nasa.gov or 202-531-8057.

With stops across the nation, NASA’s Inspiration Tour convenes academic, industry, and public sector stakeholders to connect the agency with the people, technologies, and organizations that drive American leadership in space.

The tour will culminate in MAX POWER, a public exposition of American air and space innovation, Saturday, Nov. 7, and Sunday, Nov. 8, on and near the agency’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Held in honor of America’s historic 250th anniversary, the multi-day, family-friendly event will showcase the next-generation aircraft, spacecraft, autonomous vehicles, and technologies that will help define the future of transportation in air and space.

For more information about MAX POWER and the agency’s missions, visit:

https://www.nasa.gov/maxpower

-end-

Camille Gallo / Jessica Taveau
Headquarters, Washington
202-358-1600
camille.m.gallo@nasa.gov / jessica.c.taveau@nasa.gov

Where Muse Spark aimed to be a lightweight model that could perform at low latency, the Wonder models are larger and said to be more capable, with higher benchmark scores and better results on complex tasks like coding.

A Silicon Valley startup that uses weather balloons and AI to predict the weather won a U.S. military contract worth almost $50 million.

Journalists, entrepreneurs, and even some public relations professionals will tell you that the PR process is broken. But could AI actually make things better?

Microsoft president Brad Smith calls for urgent AI regulation, saying milk and washing machines have more oversight than AI companies.

Blueprints AI, a bootstrapped startup based in Santa Monica, developed software that produces code-compliant construction blueprints from a photo, PDF, or sketch.