Millions told to evacuate as Hurricane Ian approaches Florida

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Wednesday 09.28.22

The world's first all-electric passenger aircraft has successfully taken to the sky with battery technology similar to that of an electric car or a cell phone. The zero-emission plane -- named Alice -- traveled at an altitude of 3,500 feet for eight minutes during its inaugural flight on Tuesday. Now, the company behind the plane is working on developing an FAA-certified aircraft. Here's what else you need to know to Get Up to Speed and On With Your Day.

By Alexandra Meeks

Frederic Herodet and Mary Herodet board up their Gulf Bistro restaurant in St. Petersburg Beach, Florida, on Tuesday.

Hurricane Ian

More than 2.5 million people have been urged to evacuate as Hurricane Ian barrels toward Florida, threatening catastrophic flooding and life-threatening storm surge. Ian has strengthened to a Category 4 hurricane with sustained winds of 140 mph, the National Hurricane Center said today. Projections had Ian on track to hit Tampa Bay, which would have been the first direct hit in 100 years, but the hurricane's path has since shifted south, with residents in Orlando and Daytona Beach now bracing for impact. Schools, supermarkets, theme parks and hospitals have all announced closures. Hundreds of flights have been canceled, the Navy is moving its ships, and people are boarding up their homes while others are leaving in droves on congested highways.

January 6

The House select committee investigating the January 6, 2021, attack on the US Capitol postponed its hearing scheduled for today in light of Hurricane Ian heading toward Florida. The panel had originally set the hearing to reveal new information it has uncovered since its last hearing on July 21. Separately, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell announced Tuesday he would support legislation that would make it harder to overturn a certified presidential election in response to the January 6 attack. McConnell's endorsement will bolster the bill's chances for passage in his chamber and will likely put him at sharp odds with former President Donald Trump, who has called on GOP senators to oppose the plan.

Nord Stream leaks

Leaders of several Western countries say leaks in two Russian gas pipelines are likely the result of sabotage. Swedish authorities sounded the alarm on Tuesday about leaks in the Nord Stream gas pipelines -- which run under the Baltic Sea near Sweden and Denmark and have been major flashpoints in the energy war between Europe and Russia. The two affected pipelines were not in operation when the leaks were found, but both still contained gas under pressure. Swedish Prime Minister Magdalena Andersson said in a news conference that the leaks were "likely a deliberate action" but "not an attack against Sweden." Other European leaders made similar comments and vowed a strong response as investigations continue.

Immigration

US officials and representatives of 19 countries in the Western Hemisphere gathered at the White House this week amid concerns over mass migration in the region, a senior administration official told CNN. This comes less than three months after the countries signed an agreement that the governments would expand temporary worker programs, bolster legal pathways like refugee resettlement and family reunification, provide support to countries hosting large migrant populations and crack down on human smuggling networks. Administration officials have specifically stressed the need for countries to help alleviate the flow of migrants as authorities along the US-Mexico border continue to encounter more people from Venezuela, Nicaragua and Cuba -- marking a shift from previous years when officials mostly encountered migrants from Honduras, Guatemala and El Salvador.

NASA

A dazzling spiral galaxy has been captured in "unprecedented detail" in a new photo released by NASA's James Webb Space Telescope. The galaxy, named IC 5332, is located 29 million light-years away and is about one-third the size of our home galaxy, the Milky Way. To capture the image, the Webb telescope used one of the observatory's four powerful tools to investigate the cosmos, according to the European Space Agency. Compared with other telescopes, Webb's massive mirror can see faint, distant galaxies and has the potential to enhance our understanding of the origins of the universe. Some of Webb's first images, released in July, have highlighted the observatory's capabilities to reveal previously unseen aspects of the cosmos, like star birth that has previously been shrouded in dust.

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$164.90

That's how much standard monthly premiums will be for Medicare beneficiaries in 2023, a decrease of $5.20 from 2022. This will be the first time in more than a decade that seniors will see a tab lower than the year before, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services announced Tuesday. The message comes six weeks before the midterm elections, as President Biden continues to tout Democrats as the party that will protect Social Security and Medicare.

I hope someday you'll forgive me. I know you hate me.

-- Capitol rioter Kyle Young, addressing former Washington, DC, police officer Michael Fanone Tuesday after receiving a 7-year jail sentence for attacking him during the January 6, 2021, insurrection at the US Capitol. Fanone was beaten by rioters during one of the most brutal assaults on police protecting the Capitol that day. He was tased and eventually lost consciousness during the attack, where he had begged rioters for his life and told them he had children. Fanone has since left the Metropolitan Police and is now a CNN contributor. Young was the individual who handed another rioter the stun gun used to electrocute the officer.

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