Corn sweat. Sounds funky, but it's a natural process – and it's making heat worse. Kamala Harris is surging ahead of Donald Trump in the polls. And an effort to vaccinate kids in Gaza for polio could bring a pause in fighting.
👋 Hey, Thursday! Laura Davis here. Ready to get caught up on the news? It’s time.
It's corn! A big lump with knobs. It has the juice. And in some areas of the Midwest, vast fields of cornstalks are actually making this week's record-setting heat hotter.
What is corn sweat? Officially known as evapotranspiration, "corn sweat" is a natural process where water evaporates from plants and enters the atmosphere, boosting humidity levels in the air. In regions where there are millions of acres of corn and soybean crops, this can make hot summer days even more miserable. It does not involve any actual sweating of the plants – just, you know, everybody and everything else. 🌽 What you should know.
This cyclist is basically riding through a giant agricultural sauna. Joseph Cress/Iowa City Press-Citizen
Exclusive poll: Harris makes gains on Trump
Fueled by big shifts among some key demographic groups, Democrat Kamala Harris succeeded in doing what President Joe Biden never could do this year: Lead ahead of Republican Donald Trump. Harris' support against Trump is at 48%-43%, a new USA TODAY/Suffolk University Poll found.
By the numbers: The findings reflect an eight-point turnaround from late June when Trump had led Biden in the survey by nearly four points.
Big shifts: Among those with annual incomes of less than $20,000, the biggest change was a three-point Trump edge over Biden in June, which became a 23-point Harris advantage over Trump in August. 👉 See more from the survey.
Two crucial crewed SpaceX missions could be in jeopardy after federal regulators grounded the company's Falcon 9 rockets after a landing mishap Thursday.
Uncertain futures: SpaceX has been looking for a viable window to launch four private astronauts into orbit on the already-delayed Polaris Dawn mission. And next month, two NASA astronauts were scheduled to travel to the International Space Station on Crew-9, a mission that would in February also bring home the stranded crew from the Boeing Starliner.
Fiery landing: The Federal Aviation Administration ordered that no Falcon 9 launches can take place until they figure out what happened to a rocket booster from an uncrewed SpaceX mission that tipped over and exploded upon landing at the Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida. 🚀 Here's what we know.
As the U.N. prepares to vaccinate an estimated 640,000 children in Gaza against polio starting Sunday, the World Health Organization said Thursday it has a preliminary commitment for "area-specific humanitarian pauses" in fighting to allow for the campaign.
Baby paralyzed: The WHO confirmed on Aug. 23 that at least one baby has been paralyzed by the type 2 poliovirus, the first such case in the territory in 25 years.
What to know: The plan calls for a three-day pause in central Gaza, followed by similar pauses first in southern and then northern Gaza, officials said, and a fourth day could be added if needed. 👉 Here's what we know about the situation.
A Palestinian girl is examined by a doctor amid fears over the spread of polio, at Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital in the central Gaza Strip on Aug. 18. Ramadan Abed, REUTERS
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