On July 8, 2021, Zaila Avant-garde outspelled 11 finalists to clinch the prestigious Scripps National Spelling Bee title. The 14-year-old from Harvey, Louisiana, is the first African American and only the second Black winner in the national competition's 93-year history. The first was Jody-Anne Maxwell from Jamaica, who won in 1998 at the age of 12. Avant-garde is also Louisiana's first spelling bee champion!...

Modern-day rhinos, which weigh anywhere from 1,800 to 5,100 pounds, are no lightweights. However, they pale in comparison to their prehistoric cousin that roamed China about 26 million years ago. The massive mammal weighed 46,000 pounds — almost as much as four large African elephants. Standing at a height of 23ft (7m), it was also taller than a giraffe....

Our seemingly calm Sun can have a nasty temper that comes in the form of powerful explosions. The star's unpredictable outbursts can disrupt satellites in orbit and be dangerous for astronauts. Though the flares are well-documented, researchers have never been able to pinpoint the cause of the erratic behavior. Now, the Sun's incredible multi-staged "tantrum" may help scientists get closer to solving the long-standing mystery....

Magawa, an African giant pouched rat trained to sniff out concealed explosive devices, has retired. The rodent, who received British veterinary charity PDSA's gold medal for bravery in 2020, was one of Belgian non-profit APOPO's most successful HeroRATs. During his illustrious five-year career, Magawa discovered more than 71 landmines and helped clear over 2,420,000 sq. feet (225,000 sq. meters) of land in Siem Reap, Cambodia....

Here is some good news for those wilting in the sweltering summer heat — July is National Ice Cream Month! The "cool" holiday can be credited to Proclamation 5219, signed by former US President Ronald Reagan on July 9, 1984. The decree urges citizens to observe the entire month, or at the very least the third Sunday of July — designated National Ice Cream Day — “with appropriate ceremonies and activities."...

Some artists seem to excel at impressing the world with artwork that can only be called unusual at best. First, there was Maurizio Cattelan's Comedian, a series of three sculptures — each comprising a single banana affixed to a wall with duct tape — that sold for $120,000 apiece in 2019. Now, contemporary Italian artist Salvatore Garau has managed to sell an immaterial, or imaginary, masterpiece to an anonymous buyer for an astonishing 15,000 euros (about $18,000)!...

A group of wandering wild elephants, nicknamed "The Northbound Wild Elephant Eating and Walking Tour," have become an overnight Internet sensation in China and globally. The pack first captured the attention of the locals in March 2020, after they suddenly left their home in the Xishuangbanna National Nature Reserve....

This year's US Independence Day celebrations promise to be extra special due to the arrival of a second, smaller Statue of Liberty from France. The bronze replica, nicknamed "Little Sister," is expected to reach New York City in time for the Fourth of July festivities. The statue will be displayed on Ellis Island – across the water from the original Statue of Liberty, which sits on Liberty Island — from July 1 through 5, 2021. It will then be moved to the French Embassy in Washington, DC, where it will remain until 2031....

The East African country of Kenya has been at the forefront of the global war on plastic since 2017, when officials outlawed plastic bags. In June 2020, the government upped the ante with a ban on single-use plastics in protected areas. Unfortunately, the preemptive measures have barely made a dent. Hundreds of tons of industrial and consumer polymer waste continue to get dumped into landfills daily. However, if 29-year-old Nzambi Matee has her way, the unsightly plastic heaps will soon be transformed into colorful bricks....

Father's Day, which will be celebrated on June 20, 2021, promises to be extra special this year. The Earth will join in the festivities with the June solstice, kicking off the Northern Hemisphere's first day of summer. Conversely, Southern Hemisphere residents will celebrate the astronomical start of winter, or winter solstice, with the shortest day of 2021....

Juneteenth — a combination of the words June and nineteenth — is one of the oldest known holidays commemorating the end of slavery in the United States. It was on June 19, 1865, that the nation's last enslaved people — a group in Texas — learned that slavery had been outlawed and that they were free. The events leading to what many call "America's true Independence Day" began with the Emancipation Proclamation, signed by President Abraham Lincoln on January 1, 1863....

The icy waters surrounding Antarctica have long been called the Southern Ocean by scientists, the media, and even the US Board on Geographical Names. However, it never received the official recognition it deserved - until now. On June 8, 2021, the National Geographic Society, which has been making maps since 1915, announced that from now on, there would be five oceans: the Atlantic, Pacific, Indian, Arctic, and Southern Ocean. Fittingly, the decision was revealed on World Oceans Day!...

Since being introduced to chess at the tender age of six, Tanitoluwa "Tani" Adewumi has had one goal. He wants to become the world's youngest-ever Grandmaster. This is the second- highest title a chess player can achieve after World Champion. The record is currently held by Russian chess player Sergey Alexandrovich Karjakin, who qualified for the title in 2002 at the age of 12 years and seven months....

In the early hours of June 5, 2021, astronauts aboard the International Space Station (ISS) welcomed some unusual visitors: 128 baby bobtail squids and 5,000 tardigrades. The micro-animals were part of SpaceX's 22nd cargo resupply mission that delivered over 7,300 pounds of equipment and supplies — including treats like fresh apples and oranges — to the station. NASA researchers hope that the tiny critters will enable them to better understand the impacts of space travel on the human body....

On the heels of the spectacular May 26, 2021, total lunar eclipse comes another celestial spectacle. On June 10, 2021, some lucky stargazers will witness this year's first of two solar eclipses. Since it is an annular, not a total, eclipse, the Sun's edges will be visible around the Moon, transforming the star into a stunning "ring of fire."...

Donut lovers, rejoice! Friday, June 4, 2021, is National Donut Day. That means it is your civic duty to consume at least one — or even a dozen — of the delicious confections. The fun US holiday, observed annually on the first Friday of June, was started in 1938 by the Salvation Army to help raise funds for those in need....

Antarctica is surrounded by icebergs. However, the finger-shaped chunk of ice that recently broke loose from the western side of the Ronne Ice Shelf — one of the world's most extensive ice platforms — is worthy of a mention. Measuring approximately 105 miles (170 km) long and 15 miles (25 km) wide, it boasts a surface area of 1,660 sq miles (4,300 sq km) and is currently the world's largest iceberg....

While scientists have managed to recover and examine thousands of meteorites, finding their origin or even whether they are from icy comets or rocky asteroids has proved elusive. Now, for the first time, a team of international researchers has traced the source of a boulder-sized rock that landed in Botswana to an asteroid named Vesta. Boasting a diameter of about 326 miles, it is one of the largest and brightest rocks in the asteroid belt that circles the Sun between Jupiter and Mars....

Simone Biles, the world's most decorated gymnast, is well-known for performing moves so tricky and unique that many have been named after her. On May 22, 2021, the 24-year-old phenom made history again by becoming the first woman to perform a Yurchenko double pike in a competition. Even more impressive, the US Classic in Indianapolis, where Biles' accomplished the feat, was the gymnast's first meet since the COVID-19 pandemic caused all events to be canceled in early 2020....

The quarter dollar is both the most commonly-used coin in the American currency and the most unique. Since 1999, the coin's reverse, or "tails," side has showcased all 50 US states, as well as the breathtaking beauty of the country's national parks. Now, the US Mint plans to use the silver canvas to celebrate female leaders who have played a crucial part in shaping the nation's history....

Memorial Day, which will be celebrated on May 31, 2021, is one of the most important American holidays. Observed annually on the last Monday of May, it honors the brave men and women of the US Army, Navy, Marine Corps, National Guard, Air Force, and the Coast Guard who sacrificed their lives to defend America's freedom. Meanwhile, Veterans Day, which takes place each year on November 11, honors all veterans — living or dead—but mainly gives thanks to living veterans who served their country honorably during war or peacetime....

While total lunar eclipses are always spectacular, the one on May 26, 2021, promises to be particularly memorable given that it coincides with a supermoon. This means that the Moon — which will be at perigee, or its closest distance to Earth — will appear about 7 percent larger and 15 percent brighter than a standard full Moon. The eclipse will be most visible from the western parts of the Americas, Australia and New Zealand, and Eastern Asia. In the US, the best views will be reserved for Hawaii, Alaska, and the western states....

Given that white was one of the first colors used in art in the 15th century, one would think that there is little room left to improve its "whiteness." It turns out that is far from the case. A team of researchers led by Xiulin Ruan, a professor of mechanical engineering at Indiana's Purdue University, recently revealed an "ultra-white" paint that they believe could even help combat climate change....

A collection of 1,000 prehistoric structures dubbed mustatils — the plural form of the Arabic term for rectangles — scattered across 124,274 miles (200,000 kilometers) in northwest Saudi Arabia may be the world's oldest monuments. A team of archeologists from the University of Western Australia (UWA) reached this conclusion after radiocarbon dating of charcoal found inside the courtyards indicated they were constructed in 5,000 BC — or about 2,000 years before the Egyptian pyramids or monuments like Stonehenge in southern England....