Today’s Big Story

Soviet Space Junk?

A spacecraft from the ‘70s is due to crash back to Earth this week

This year has been nothing if not unpredictable, right? So I guess this news shouldn’t surprise any of us, but it also feels a little unbelievable: A robotic Soviet spacecraft, which launched in March 1972, was supposed to soar and eventually land on the surface of Venus as part of the U.S.S.R.’s uncrewed Venera missions. But a rocket malfunction left it stranded in Earth’s orbit and, like an old car falling apart in a junkyard, it’s been detonating while adrift in space for the last 53 years.

It was up there so long, it outlived the fall of the Soviet Union. But now the spacecraft known as Kosmos-482 is coming back to Earth. I guess that’s good news: One less piece of space junk clogging up our planet’s atmosphere. However, much about the piece of space debris remains unknown. It’s expected to re-enter the Earth’s atmosphere by the end of the weekend.

“Cloaked in a protective heat shield, the spacecraft, weighing roughly 1,050 pounds, was designed to survive its plunge through the toxic Venusian atmosphere. That means there’s a good chance it will survive its dive through this one, and could make it to the surface at least partly intact.” No one is quite sure where it will land, but the foremost expert on the topic is generally optimistic given that so much of our planet is covered by water.

Jonathan McDowell, an astronomer at the Center for Astrophysics at Harvard & Smithsonian, tells NPR “there's a not-trivial chance that it could hit somewhere where it damages property, and there's a small chance—but it's like one in thousands—that it could hurt someone.” The lander craft has a parachute, though it’s also unclear if it is intact or will work after half a century in space.

While space junk and meteors routinely veer toward a crash-landing on Earth, most of the objects disintegrate as they’re torn apart due to friction and pressure as they hit Earth’s thick atmosphere while traveling thousands of miles per hour. Marlon Sorge, a space debris expert with the federally funded research group, The Aerospace Corporation, told CNN that if Kosmos-482 hits dry land, it’s crucial that bystanders do not attempt to touch the debris. The old spacecraft could leak dangerous fuels or pose other risks to people and property. “Contact the authorities,” Sorge urged. “Please don’t mess with it.”

White House to Announce Trade Deal With Britain

But the president would like everyone to stop asking when the other trade deals are coming

Multiple new sources are reporting that President Donald Trump is expected to announce today that the United States will strike a trade agreement with the United Kingdom. The deal is the first the administration hopes to sign with dozens of trading partners across the world. As you know, Trump announced tariffs on more than 70 countries worldwide in early April, but then implemented a 90-day pause to allow for negotiations before they went into effect.

A British official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to the New York Times, did not offer details, beyond saying that the deal would be good for both Britain and the U.S. “The deal could be a significant win for both countries, which have long sought closer economic cooperation. Both nations have discussed lowering British tariffs on U.S. cars and farm goods, as well as removing British taxes on U.S. technology companies. It also was not clear whether the agreement had actually been finalized.”

A few weeks ago, both Trump and White House aides were boasting that his tariffs would force a legion of foreign nations to rush into new trade deals—and that Trump's prowess would yield more favorable terms for America. But NBC News says the president has changed his tone and his tune in recent days, as it has become clear that trade agreements don't materialize as quickly as he would like and that there aren't dozens in the queue. His shift also comes amid heavy criticism that his tariffs will hike prices for consumers and harm an American economy that had its first negative growth in years in the first quarter.

Are AI Friends Imaginary?

Zuckerberg promotes a future where artificial intelligence is increasingly intertwined with people’s lives

We know that artificial intelligence will be inextricably linked to our everyday lives in the future. And, of course, that future is already here. But Mark Zuckerberg says AI is about to become even more … personal. In the Meta CEO’s vision for a new digital future, artificial-intelligence friends outnumber human companions and chatbot experiences supplant therapists, business agents and digital coders.

Zuckerberg said on a podcast last week that he thinks the average person wants to have more friends and connections with other people than they currently do—and that AI friends are a solution. But as the Wall Street Journal points out: Zuckerberg has had mixed success predicting how people will interact with each other in the future. He struck gold with Facebook in the 2000s and made lucrative acquisitions with Instagram and WhatsApp a few years later. More than a decade later, in 2022, he declared that vast numbers of people in the future would interact in virtual worlds and with augmented reality. That bet has yet to come to fruition.

But there’s no doubt that AI is showing up in more personal spaces. In an Arizona courthouse, a road rage victim spoke to the court via artificial intelligence at his killer’s sentencing in the first-of-its-kind use of the technology. And NBC just announced that when the “NBA on NBC” returns this fall, the network is welcoming back famed NBA narrator Jim Fagan. The twist? Fagan died in 2017. His AI-powered voice will once again be featured in promos, title sequences and show opens, this time teasing stars like Steph Curry, Jason Tatum, and Victor Wembanyama.

Is the Stick-Built House Officially Outdated?

Setbacks can be stepping stones.