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Northrop Grumman saw some fiery drama during a test of a more powerful version of the solid rocket booster that would be used if NASA’s Artemis program ever gets to its ninth launch using the beleaguered Space Launch System rocket.

During a Thursday live stream by NASA of a static fire of the 156-foot-long Booster Obsolescence and Life Extension (BOLE) solid rocket motor, the end nozzle blew apart, sending debris flying across the camera followed by a black plume of smoke rising up from Northrop’s Promontory, Utah test site.

“Whoa,” said one of the test controllers during the stream, just after the 100-second mark of the hot fire. Laying on its side, the booster was burning through the same amount of fuel that it would as if used on a launch.

Northrop Grumman officials addressed the nozzle’s demise in a press release later Thursday.

“Today’s test pushed the boundaries of large solid rocket motor design to meet rigorous performance requirements,” said Jim Kalberer, Northrop Grumman’s vice president of propulsion systems. “While the motor appeared to perform well through the most harsh environments of the test, we observed an anomaly near the end of the two-plus minute burn.” read more

By BERNARD CONDON

NEW YORK (AP) — Europeans still aren’t buying Teslas with figures out Wednesday showing sales plunged for a fifth month in a row in May, a blow to investors who had hoped anger toward Elon Musk would have faded by now.

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Tesla sales fell 28% last month in 30 European countries even as the overall market for electric vehicles expanded sharply, according to the European Automobile Manufacturers’ Association. The poor showing comes after Tesla’s billionaire CEO had promised a “major rebound” was coming last month, adding to a recent buying frenzy among investors. read more

Q. In a recent column, you indicated that I could use the qualified charitable distribution (QCD) option at 70 1/2. I am confused. I thought I did not have to take required minimum distributions (RMDs) for a few more years. If I take a QCD when I reach 70 1/2, am I required to take required minimum distributions? Why would I use the QCD option if I am not required to take required minimum distributions yet?

A. Taking a QCD at 70 1/2 does not mean that you are required to take required minimum distributions (RMDs) then. As long as you intend to make a charitable contribution at 70 1/2, there is still a tax advantage in doing so. For example, if you made a charitable contribution of $200 to a qualified charity, and your marginal tax bracket for the year you made the contribution was 22%, you would be able to save $44 in federal taxes (the amount of your contribution multiplied by your marginal tax bracket). If you used the standard deduction on your tax return, because you did not have enough deductions to itemize your deductions, using the QCD option would reduce your federal taxes. read more

A federal judge has upheld a ruling directing OpenAI to preserve logs and data slated for deletion after news outlets including the Orlando Sentinel suing the technology giant accused the company of hiding evidence of copyright infringement.

The new ruling, issued Thursday in Manhattan Federal Court, denied the company’s objection to an earlier court order directing OpenAI to keep any data used to train its artificial intelligence bots — logs which plaintiffs say may contain details of widespread content piracy.

OpenAI executives have maintained that they are merely safeguarding users’ privacy by objecting to any data retention request or order.

But lawyers for the plaintiffs said the privacy argument is nothing more than a distraction.

“This is like a magician trying to misdirect the public’s attention,” said Steven Lieberman, a lawyer representing the Sentinel and several other media outlets.

“That is absolutely false. The judge has made clear and plaintiffs have made clear that they don’t want to receive information that personally identifies the users of these conversations. If data is turned over, it will only be turned over anonymously. And OpenAI knows that. No one’s privacy it’s at risk.” read more

By KEN SWEET

NEW YORK (AP) — All the major banks passed the Federal Reserve’s annual “stress tests” of the financial system, the central bank said Friday, but the test conducted by the central bank was notably less vigorous than it had been in previous years.

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All 22 banks tested this year would have remained solvent and above the minimum thresholds to continue to operate, the Fed said, despite absorbing roughly $550 billion in theoretical losses. In the Fed’s scenario, there would be less of a rise in unemployment, less of a severe economic contraction, less of a drop in commercial real estate prices, less of a drop in housing prices, among other metrics compared to what they tested in 2024. read more