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NASA's New Horizons set to ring in new year with fly-by past icy planetary object NASA’s New Horizons spacecraft, which has yielded the first close-up views of Pluto, was poised to ring in the new year by flying past the ancient icy object “Ultima Thule” some billions of miles away from Earth. via FOX NEWS https://fxn.ws/2CIYZqw

Rare 'super blood Moon' eclipse to put on stunning display in January: What to know Stargazers will witness a trio of lunar events in the New Year — a total lunar eclipse, a super blood moon and a "wolf moon," an old nickname that follows a full moon that takes place in the middle of winter. via FOX NEWS https://fxn.ws/2Aq3x3C

Scientists explore Antarctic lake 'twice the size of Manhattan' buried under 3,500 feet of ice Scientists in Antarctica got a unique gift this holiday season: access to a mysterious lake buried under more than 3,500 feet of ice. via FOX NEWS https://fxn.ws/2F0nIsN

NASA to make historic New Year's Day flyby of mysterious 'Ultima Thule' As 2018 draws to a close and a new year dawns, one group of people plans to celebrate something far more unusual — a flyby of the most distant solar system object ever explored. via FOX NEWS https://fxn.ws/2AnaXoy

China pushes for primacy in space China is poised to realize an ambitious mission to the far side of the moon, the most immediate of many planned milestones in its effort to challenge America’s half-century-long supremacy in space. via FOX NEWS https://fxn.ws/2F0Tq9w

China pushes for primacy in space China is poised to realize an ambitious mission to the far side of the moon, the most immediate of many planned milestones in its effort to challenge America’s half-century-long supremacy in space. via FOX NEWS https://fxn.ws/2Vkoi9P

New Horizons beyond Pluto: What lies in Ultima Thule's realm? The constellation of Sagittarius, the Archer, is a common sight in the winter sky, easily recognizable by the "teapot" asterism that makes up its front half. via FOX NEWS https://fxn.ws/2EZOCkQ

Family tree forensics: Are there risks to using popular DNA testing kits to investigate your ancestry? Some legal experts are raising privacy concerns over law enforcement use of genetic genealogy to investigate cold cases; Morgan Wright, senior fellow at the Center for Digital Government, weighs in. via FOX NEWS http://bit.ly/2QbkhAQ

NASA pioneer Nancy Grace Roman the ‘Mother of Hubble,’ dead at 93 NASA pioneer Nancy Grace Roman the ‘Mother of Hubble,’ died at the age of 93. Roman was the first chief of astronomy in the office of space science at NASA headquarters. via FOX NEWS http://bit.ly/2SnzLUa

NASA pioneer Nancy Grace Roman, the 'Mother of Hubble,' dead at 93 Nancy Grace Roman, known as the "mother" of the Hubble Space Telescope and the first woman to hold an executive position at NASA, died on Christmas Day at the age of 93. via FOX NEWS https://fxn.ws/2GNQzT7

First right whale calf of season seen by endangered-species observers, Florida wildlife officials say Wildlife officials in Florida celebrated the spotting of a right whale calf, which they said was the first one of the season. via FOX NEWS https://fxn.ws/2SrPYb4

Rare, nearly extinct duck finds new home at lake in Madagascar A species of duck that was once thought to be extinct for more than a decade has found a new home on a lake in northern Madagascar, the Wildfowl & Wetlands Trust (WWT) in the U.K. announced this week. via FOX NEWS https://fxn.ws/2EUb1z9

Mysterious, century-old shipwreck unearthed on Jersey shore A shift in sand levels unearthed the remnants of a 25-foot shipwreck dating to the 1800s at Stone Harbor beach in New Jersey. The ship's origins are unclear, but some locals have reportedly speculated that the wreck may be the remains of a vessel that sank near the Hereford Inlet in 1800s. via FOX NEWS http://bit.ly/2EOQtYE

Mysterious, century-old shipwreck unearthed on Jersey shore A unique holiday mystery is unfolding on the storm-battered beaches of the New Jersey shore. via FOX NEWS https://fxn.ws/2ENcxTz

Ohio zoo announces Asian elephant calf dies following ‘sudden illness’ An Asian elephant born to the Columbus Zoo in Ohio in early December has died, zoo officials announced Wednesday. via FOX NEWS https://fxn.ws/2EV2EnR

Texas man ‘freaked out’ after finding more than 30 rattlesnakes slithering under shed A Texas man was shocked to find more than 30 rattlesnakes hiding under a dilapidated hunting cabin at his ranch.  via FOX NEWS https://fxn.ws/2ER2DBd

National Zoo's Christmas post of giant panda rolling around in snow goes viral The National Zoo in D.C. took to Facebook on Christmas Day to share a video of the giant panda Bei Bei rolling around in the snow. via FOX NEWS https://fxn.ws/2LBLonY

Sending astronauts to Mars would be stupid, says Apollo 8 pilot One of the first astronauts to orbit the Moon said on Wednesday that it's "stupid" to plan human missions to Mars.  via FOX NEWS https://fxn.ws/2Q5FzzM

NASA’s Hubble telescope captures stunning cosmic 'holiday wreath' image NASA's Hubble Space Telescope recently captured a stunning image that resembles a holiday wreath in the cosmos.  via FOX NEWS https://fxn.ws/2EPRhxe

‘Potentially hazardous’ hippo-shaped asteroid a mile long skims past Earth A rogue asteroid shaped like a wading hippo has just skimmed past Earth. via FOX NEWS https://fxn.ws/2Cx7nJG

Safari ranger trampled to death by sexually-charged elephant A sexually charged elephant broke into a game park in South Africa and trampled a top safari ranger in a fatal rampage, according to reports. via FOX NEWS https://fxn.ws/2QRGbyl

Brain of mysterious 'Little Foot' human relative was half-man, half-ape The brain of one of the oldest Australopithecus individuals ever found was a little bit ape-like and a little bit human. via FOX NEWS https://fxn.ws/2RklgTI

Petrified horse remains found in stable near Pompeii Archaeologists in Italy have uncovered the petrified remains of several horses in the stable of an ancient villa in a suburb of Pompeii, near Naples. via FOX NEWS https://fxn.ws/2SiAupw

Tennessee scientists unearth fossils of prehistoric pig-like creatures in stunning discovery In a thrilling discovery, scientists with East Tennessee State University (ETSU) have recently confirmed the prehistoric fossils found in an area known as the Gray Fossil Site belonged to two different species of ancient peccaries, a pig-like creature. via FOX NEWS https://fxn.ws/2PRnlC5

‘Refrigerator-sized’ meteor zooms over Minnesota in one of the ‘biggest events of the year’ Late-night stargazers in Cambridge, Minnesota and beyond may have noticed a massive fireball that streaked across the sky earlier this week. via FOX NEWS https://fxn.ws/2GB81tJ

Christmas on Mars? Spacecraft captures 50-mile-wide icy crater on the Red Planet A winter wonderland sits in the middle of a sandy Martian surface — at least, that's the story new images released by the European Space Agency (ESA) from the Red Planet seem to tell. via FOX NEWS https://fxn.ws/2rQg2RC

‘Girthy’ 500-pound alligator in Florida captured by trappers It took two hours for alligator trappers in Parrish, Fla., to wrangle a massive 12-foot, 500-pound gator that was lurking in a waterway there. via FOX NEWS http://bit.ly/2R9ycvS

‘Girthy’ 500-pound alligator in Florida captured by trappers It took two hours for alligator trappers in Parrish, Fla., to wrangle a massive 12-foot, 500-pound gator that was lurking in a waterway. via FOX NEWS https://fxn.ws/2PUVilg

Ancient Antarctic ice sheet collapse could cause a global flood As climate change conditions continue to increase, new research put forth by geologists suggest that the West Antarctic ice sheet could melt and cause a massive global flood. via FOX NEWS https://fxn.ws/2EIjtC2

Saturn's rings are disappearing, NASA warns Saturn’s famous rings are vanishing, so enjoy them while they last. According to NASA scientists, the rings– which are made of mostly of ice and rock, some chunks which are as big as a house– will be completely gone in less than 100 million years. via FOX NEWS https://fxn.ws/2EJBNee

Ancient Aramaic incantation describes 'devourer' that brings 'fire' to victims A 2,800-year-old incantation, written in Aramaic, describes the capture of a creature called the "devourer" said to be able to produce "fire." via FOX NEWS https://fxn.ws/2BzAOsX

130-million-year-old insects trapped in amber right when they were born Researchers have uncovered insects trapped in amber from 130 million years ago. While this would ordinarily be an exciting find, the discovery has added impact as it has captured the exact moment in time the insects burst through their eggs. via FOX NEWS https://ift.tt/2R7O55U

Winter solstice 2018 accompanied by full Moon, meteor shower: Everything you need to know While some parts of the U.S. have already experienced bone-chilling temperatures, the official start of winter doesn't occur until Friday — the date of this year's winter solstice. via FOX NEWS https://ift.tt/2Lu5jVZ

Tomb raiders 'spotted' from space as satellite data reveals looting of ancient sites Scientists are using high-resolution satellite imagery to identify places where looters have been ransacking ancient tombs. via FOX NEWS https://ift.tt/2PSlahk

Florida man’s 18-foot, 150-pound python breaks record in state A Florida man now holds the record for capturing the largest Burmese python in the state after he ensnared a massive 18-footer over the weekend. via FOX NEWS https://ift.tt/2A8g1N6

NASA's InSight Mars Lander 'listens' for marsquakes on the Red Planet NASA's InSight Mars Lander has deployed its first instrument, a seismometer, on the surface of the Red Planet. via FOX NEWS https://ift.tt/2SduI8C

Soyuz crew returns to Earth after a memorable 6 months in space Three space station crewmembers returned to Earth today (Dec. via FOX NEWS https://ift.tt/2UZ6IYT

Scary venomous snake, 'translucent' spider and 5 other new species discovered in 2018 Some of the creatures first discovered in 2018 were sought by researchers — on missions to make historical finds in the depths of the ocean or deep in a cave — while others were an unexpected surprise. via FOX NEWS https://ift.tt/2V6S4Po

NASA looks to private companies for help building reusable Moon landers for astronauts NASA has serious plans to send astronauts back to the moon by 2028, and the agency is looking for help from U.S. companies to develop technology to accomplish this feat. via FOX NEWS https://ift.tt/2PPUnlS

Meteor is cause of mysterious light over SF Bay Area, observatory says A mysterious light with a twisting, smoking tail appeared in the early evening sky over the San Francisco Bay Area on Wednesday, but local astronomers had a scientific explanation. via FOX NEWS https://ift.tt/2A7elDP

WATCH: Australian lizards engage in epic battle A pair of sand goannas were caught on video last week, apparently duking it out with one another in Australia. via FOX NEWS https://ift.tt/2ScqWMO

Australian lizards caught in bloody battle Male sand goannas seen in epic fight at Koorana Crocodile Farm. via FOX NEWS https://ift.tt/2A9BfKH

Scientists study fossil evidence of shark hunting flying reptile mid-air Researchers have discovered fossil evidence that at least one shark in the Cretaceous age caught its food — a flying reptile — in midair. via FOX NEWS https://ift.tt/2UV4PMI

Scientists study fossil evidence of shark hunting flying dinosaur mid-air Dinosaur researchers have discovered fossil evidence that at least one shark in the Cretaceous age caught its food — a flying reptile — in midair. via FOX NEWS https://ift.tt/2ScT42j

Apollo 8 astronauts Frank Borman and Jim Lovell recount NASA's epic first mission to the Moon Apollo 8 astronauts Frank Borman and Jim Lovell spoke with Fox News about NASA's first mission to the moon on Dec. 21, 1968. via FOX NEWS https://ift.tt/2rUQov3

Astronaut describes watching the Moon landing with President Nixon in the White House On July 20, 1969, NASA astronaut Frank Borman watched with President Nixon in the White House as his colleague Neil Armstrong took his historic first steps on the Moon. via FOX NEWS https://ift.tt/2ECqeFD

Mysterious sea creatures that washed ashore in 2018 Here are all the mysterious sea creatures that washed ashore in 2018. via FOX NEWS https://ift.tt/2LpFh61

Apollo 8 astronauts recount NASA's epic first mission to the Moon On the morning of Dec. 21, 1968 NASA’s Apollo 8 spacecraft lifted off atop a Saturn V rocket from Launch Complex 39 at Kennedy Space Center on humanity's first journey to another world. via FOX NEWS https://ift.tt/2UWm54d

Florida’s red tide blamed for lousy stone crab season An unusually long toxic algae bloom, also known as the red tide, is likely to blame for a shortage of stone crabs (a popular delicacy during the holiday season) in Florida this year. via FOX NEWS https://ift.tt/2QD878Z

Mysterious sea creatures washed up in 2018, from shaggy-haired 'globster' to 'contracting' blob Beachgoers across the world discovered stunning sea creatures this year — as strong currents and storms pushed them to the surface. via FOX NEWS https://ift.tt/2Sa8uV7