A satellite delivers new photos in record-breaking time  December 1, 2025

 

What's up, sunshine? Rise up. It is the most wonderful time of the year. Hope those of you who had a Thanksgiving break came away with lots of love, hugs, and grub.

 

grub [grʌb] n.【口】食物

 

I'm Coy Wire, happy to be back with you. Feels good. And today marks my favorite time of the year.

 

It is Monday, December 1st. And on this day in history, December 1st, 1959, 12 countries signed the Antarctic Treaty, one of the most important international agreements ever created. It set aside the entire continent for peaceful purposes and scientific cooperation.

 

set aside 拨出，留出（金钱或时间）

 

After several countries had been actively exploring the Arctic region, dozens of research stations were established. But in order to mend relations after the Cold War, heads of state determined a treaty would stop any territorial disputes and prevent any militarization of Antarctica.

 

To this day, the treaty has mandated no military bases, no weapons testing, and a ban on nuclear experiments.

 

Now that 50 nations have signed onto the treaty, it also promotes scientific cooperation, making Antarctica a natural laboratory with no national borders.

 

Speaking of Antarctica, a new satellite is giving scientists an all new look at the icy continent. It's part of a program that's capturing amazing photos from some of the planet's most remote regions.

 

Our Patrick Cornell has more on how it all came together.

 

Starting from up above, rapidly returned images of Earth, courtesy of the European Space Agency's new eye in the sky, the Copernicus Sentinel-1D satellite, such as this stunning view of the Tierra del Fuego, South America's southern tip, contrasted using multiple types of radar waves to showcase the land in yellow and snowy mountain peaks in blue.

 

Copernicus [koˋpɝnɪkəs] n. 哥白尼（天文学家）

sentinel [ˋsɛntən!] n. 步哨；哨兵

Tierra del Fuego (智利) 火地群岛

contrast [kənˋtræst] v. 形成对照

 

About 600 miles south, the Antarctic Peninsula in black and white contrasts the ocean and the continent's icy landscape.

 

The satellite launched in early November and started returning these stunning images within 50 hours, something the space agency says is likely a record launch to data delivery time for such a satellite.

 

The Copernicus program is intended to supply night and day imagery of Earth's surface and all weather conditions for scientific observation, as well as aiding in emergency response and humanitarian crises.

 

In economic news,today is Cyber Monday, which means the holiday shopping season is in full swing.

 

Cyber Monday 網路星期一（美國的一項常年促銷項目，在感恩節之後的第一個星期一）

 

The National Retail Federation estimates a record 187 million shoppers flocked to stores or bought something online between Black Friday and today.

 

That makes it the busiest retail weekend of the year. According to Adobe Analytics, online shoppers spent nearly $12 billion on Black Friday alone.

 

analytics [͵æn!ˋɪtɪks] n.【数】解析学；【逻】分析论

 

But another key shopping day, Small Business Saturday, was especially important this year for communities like Altadena, California, which was devastated by wildfires earlier this year. Our Julia Vargas Jones got a look at how small businesses are helping the community continue to recover.

 

A lot of these businesses are opening for the first time since the fires.

 

I want to show you just behind me, this is one of the buildings that has not yet recovered from that fire, but along this strip, so many small businesses coming together, getting their community out to support them and help them get back on their feet.

 

So far, we've heard from some of these business owners, they're saying they're overwhelmed with the amount of people that have come out, some of them saying they've actually sold out of items, and we spoke to one of them specifically. Take a listen to what she said.

 

It's awesome to see people walking in the door, just seeing cars on the street, and I intentionally wanted to reopen for this season to give people a reason to come up here.

 

I think everyone needs to see and and see the rebuild and or just be patient with all the businesses here who are trying to make it. Small businesses, supporting small businesses is like, you know, it's our true passion to be a little small mom pawnshop, so we love it.

 

pawnshop [ˋpɔn͵ʃɑp] n. 当铺

 

Now I have to say it is striking to see such warmth and positivity in this very intersection. 11 months ago, this intersection was being ravaged by fire. We were here reporting on that fire, and now to see it full of people, families, literally a holiday choir singing behind us, it is truly heartwarming, and some of these vendors are saying that this can really make a difference for their business until the end of the year.

 

choir [kwaɪr] n.（教堂的）唱诗班

 

Pop quiz hot shot. How do elephants communicate across long distances?

 

Whistling, ground vibrations, trumpeting, or ear flapping?

 

It's just a good vibration. If you said ground vibrations, stomp your feet.

 

stomp [stɑmp] v. 跺脚；重踩，重踏

 

Elephants create low frequency vibrations that travel through the ground. Specialized pads in their feet and trunk pick up these signals, lets them sense danger or find other elephants, even when they're far away.

 

Congratulations are in order to two Asian elephants at the Smithsonian National Zoo in Washington D.C. The zoo just shared this video of 12-year-old mama Nai Lin getting an ultrasound of her calf.

 

order [ˋɔrdɚ] n. 状况；良好的状况

calf [kæf] n.（鲸、象等的）仔

 

Staff are carefully monitoring the calf's fetal development, heartbeat, and movement. If all goes as planned, this would be the first Asian elephant calf born at the zoo in 25 years.

 

fetal [ˋfit!] adj. 胎儿的；胎的

 

But every birth is a celebration for this endangered species because fewer than 50,000 Asian elephants remain in the world.

 

The average pregnancy of an elephant lasts 22 months, the longest of any land mammal. Staff say they are cautiously optimistic they will see a new baby elephant in 2026.

 

Now to an inspiring story that turns tragedyinto heroism multiple times over.

 

heroism [ˋhɛro͵ɪzəm] n. 英雄气概，勇气

 

More than 100,000 people in the U.S. are currently waiting for a life-saving organ donation. A new person is added to this wait list every eight minutes, but just one person who becomes an organ donor can help many people. Our Stephanie Elam has an incredible example of how the death of one Sacramento police officer started a movement.

 

donor [ˋdonɚ] n. 赠送人；捐赠者

 

25 years ago, the Chirez family was waiting for their youngest son Joe to get home from work and celebrate a late Thanksgiving.

 

We know you get off at five o'clock. I said we'll have a turkey at five o'clock.

 

Joe, just 24 years old, had been training to become a Sacramento police officer.

 

He wanted to help everybody.

 

But that Thanksgiving day, Jess and Teresa Chirez got a call from the chief of police.

 

While making an arrest, Joe collapsed from an aneurysm. The family rushed to UC Davis Hospital. I told myself all of this doesn't look good.

 

aneurysm [ˋænjə͵rɪzəm] n.【医】动脉瘤

 

Joe was on life support and doctors said he wasn't going to survive.

 

My spirit is already telling me Joe is not here. He's gone.

 

But Joe's father recalled a conversation he'd had with his son months before.

 

He goes, if anything ever happened to me out on the street, I want to donate my organs.

 

Faced with that decision, Jess was initially torn.

 

I said, God, what do I do? And he told me if I honored my son, I'll be honoring him.

 

Joe Chirez, badge 238, was taken off life support and his heart, lungs, liver, kidneys, and pancreas were all donated, saving four lives. But Joe's legacy doesn't end there.

 

Devastated by the loss, his father, Jess, struggled for years until finding inspiration.

 

I just said, you know what? I'm going to do what my son envisioned. Let me see what I can do and try to help other people.

 

envisio n[ɪnˋvɪʒən] v. 想象，展望

 

Jess became an advocate for organ donation. For the last two decades, he has given speeches, interviews, attended events, all to generate as much attention on the cause as possible.

 

He will never say no to a speaking engagement. If he's available, he's there.

 

The more speaking I did, the better I felt inside.

 

Jess has carried on his son's legacy by connecting with hundreds of thousands of people.

 

His son's death gave him new purpose. Joe, by donating his organs, he helped save four lives and it actually saved me.

 

Today's story getting a 10 out of 10or maybe an 11.

 

One Stranger Things superfan giving his family's home an epic holiday makeover. Colorado teen Jared Meisner is celebrating the hit Netflix show's final season by trading traditional holiday decor for something straight out of the upside down.

 

Probably 10 out of 10 on Stranger Things fan.

 

The unique display makes you feel like you've stepped into Hawkins, Indiana and Jared and his family made it all from scratch.

 

So all the arms here are PVC pipe. These teeth are made out of modeling clay. Max is hung by a hundred pound fishing line coming from the roof.

 

The project took more than two months and while mom and dad still aren't sure if it counts as Halloween or Christmas decor, they say it has been a huge hit.

 

I mean, we usually get at least 40 cars a night that come by.

 

We found out there's a lot more fans around and they love coming out.

 

That's all for today. Thanks for joining us.

 

Our first shout outs of December go to Mr. Morgan at Robert Blue Middle School in Eagle Grove, Iowa. Thank you for checking out our bonus content on YouTube over the break.

 

grove [grov] n. 树丛，小树林；果林；果园

 

And the shout out goes to Mrs. Kalberg who is watching us all the way from the island nation of Timor at the QSI International School.

 

Timor [ˈtimɔr] n. 帝汶

 

Thank you for all the love from afar and soak up those final moments before retirement. Congratulations. And thanks to all of you for tuning in today.

 

I will see you right back here tomorrow. I'm Coy Wire and we are CNN 10.