WASHINGTON: A SpaceX rocket took off from Florida’s Cape Canaveral on Thursday night carrying Israel’s Beresheet spacecraft, which aims to make history twice: as the first private-sector landing on the Moon, and the first from the Jewish state.
The start of the flight went smoothly, with the first stage entry burn completed uneventfully less than three minutes after lift-off.
The moon landing is scheduled for seven weeks’ time, on April 11.
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SpaceX rocket carrying moon-bound Israeli spacecraft lifts off
SpaceX rocket carrying moon-bound Israeli spacecraft lifts off
- Israel's spacecraft is scheduled to land on the moon landing on April 11
France’s Macron laughs off ‘harmless’ eye condition as he addresses troops
French President Emmanuel Macron joked about a “completely harmless” eye condition on Thursday during a New Year address to France’s armed forces.
“Please pardon the unsightly appearance of my eye,” Macron said at the beginning of his speech. “It is, of course, something completely harmless.”
Macron appeared with a puffy, red eye during his speech at the military base in Istres, in southern France. He earlier wore sunglasses during an outdoor troop inspection.
“Simply see an unintentional reference to the ‘Eye of the Tiger’ ... For those who catch the reference, it is a sign of determination,” he joked, in an apparent reference to the name of the hit theme song by American rock band Survivor from the 1982 Rocky III movie starring Sylvester Stallone.
Macron’s speech addressed key challenges for the military in 2026, from France’s accelerated rearmament and continued support for Ukraine, to the decision to send troops to Greenland in a show of support for Denmark.
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