Kids News - Current Events

For Taylor Swift fans, December 13, which falls on a Friday this year, will be a day of celebration. It is, after all, their beloved singer's 34th birthday. But for the millions who suffer from paraskevidekatriaphobia — the fear of Friday the 13th — it will be the unluckiest day of the year. The origins of this superstition remain unclear. However, experts have some theories....

"Comedian," a conceptual artwork featuring a banana duct-taped to a wall, fetched an astounding $6.2 million at a Sotheby’s auction on November 20, 2024. Bidding began at $800,000 and quickly surged to $4 million and then $5.2 million, plus $1 million in auction fees. The final price surpassed the $1.2 million pre-auction estimate for the artwork....

A rocket built by students at the University of Southern California (USC) Rocket Propulsion Lab (RPL) has shattered a 20-year record. Aftershock II, launched from Nevada's Black Rock Desert on October 20, 2024, reached an altitude of 470,000 feet (143.3 km). This was 90,000 feet (27.4 km) higher than the previous amateur rocket altitude record of 380,000 feet (115.8 km). It was set by the Civilian Space eXploration Team’s GoFast rocket in 2004....

Hanukkah, one of the most widely observed Jewish holidays, is a joyous eight-day winter festival. It begins on the 25th day of Kislev, the ninth month of the Hebrew calendar. This usually falls between late November and late December. In 2024, Hanukkah celebrations will start at sundown on December 25, coinciding with Christmas Day, and conclude on January 2, 2025. This overlap of the two holidays last occurred in 2005 and will not happen again until 2035....

With Christmas just around the corner, your neighborhood is likely aglow with beautiful lights. But those displays pale in comparison to nature's dazzling light show — the Geminids. Nicknamed the "900-pound gorilla of meteor showers" by NASA, the Geminids outshine others with dust streams that are 5 to 500 times more massive. The "shooting stars" are also easier to spot because they travel through the skies at about 22 miles (35 km) per second. This is about half the speed of the Perseid meteors, which zip by at about 37 miles (60 km) per second every year in August....

On September 21, 2024, Tara Dower set a new speed record on the Appalachian Trail (AT) in the Eastern United States. The 31-year-old American ultrarunner completed the 2,189-mile (3,522 km) trail, which runs from Georgia to Maine, in an incredible 40 days, 18 hours, and 5 minutes. Before Dower’s trek, the record was held by Karel Sabbe. It took the Belgian runner 41 days, 7 hours, and 38 minutes, or about 13 hours more, to finish the trail in 2018....

LignoSat, the world’s first satellite made mostly from wood, reached the International Space Station (ISS) aboard a SpaceX cargo capsule on November 5, 2024. The palm-sized satellite, named after the Latin word for “wood," will be launched from the ISS into Earth’s orbit later this month. Its mission is to determine if wood can withstand the harsh conditions of space. If successful, LignoSat could pave the way for more environmentally friendly spacecraft designs....

The days following Thanksgiving — Black Friday, Small Business Saturday, and Cyber Monday — are filled with deals to jump-start the holiday shopping season. However, GivingTuesday, which falls on December 3 this year, has a more altruistic purpose. The "Global Day of Giving" encourages individuals and businesses to give back in meaningful ways. This can include charitable donations, volunteer work, or simple acts of kindness....

An estimated 46 million unlucky turkeys will be the centerpiece of Thanksgiving dinner tables across the US on November 28, 2024. However, Peach and Blossom, two gorgeous white toms from Minnesota, will not be among them....