Technologies

Blue Origin sends Good Morning America’s Michael Strahan to space and back

Also aboard the successful third crewed flight: the eldest daughter of Alan Shepard, the first American in space.

Blue Origin successfully completed the 19th flight of its New Shepard rocket on Saturday, and for the first time a member of the Shepard family was aboard.

Laura Shepard Churchley, eldest daughter of Alan Shepard, the first American in space, joined former NFL titan and current Good Morning America host Michael Strahan as honorary guests for the flight. «It’s almost like an out-of-body experience,» Strahan told a reporter after the flight. «It’s hard to even believe it happened.»

Four paying customers were also in the crew cabin, marking the first time a full group of six passengers has made the trip to the edge of space and back with the help of billionaire Jeff Bezos’ side gig.

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The mission, dubbed NS-19, also featured four paying customers: space industry executive Dylan Taylor (CEO of Voyager Space Holdings and founder of nonprofit Space for Humanity); investor Evan Dick; and Bess Ventures founder Lane Bess and Cameron Bess.

«Lane and Cameron Bess will become the first parent-child pair to fly in space,» Blue Origin said in a statement prior to launch.

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The New Shepard rocket blasted off from the company’s West Texas launch facility at 7 a.m. PT. The flight was originally set for Wednesday, but forecast winds delayed it.

Within minutes of launch, the booster stage lofted the crew capsule to a high altitude where it separated and continued on to more than 62 miles (100 kilometers) above the Earth, the commonly accepted beginning of outer space (though that’s complicated).

While the crew enjoyed a few minutes of weightlessness and an unparalleled view, the booster returned for a successful landing near the launch pad. The newly minted astronauts then reentered earth’s atmosphere for a soft landing back in the high desert with the help of multiple parachutes.

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The whole thing was over in just about 15 minutes, but Strahan tweeted that it was «surreal» and «unbelievable.»

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NS-19 is the third launch of a New Shepard to carry humans to space. The first crewed launch carried Bezos, his brother, and aviation pioneer Wally Funk, along with one paying customer. The second saw a Blue Origin employee, two paying customers, and sci-fi legend William Shatner in the crew cabin.

No word yet on who might be up next.

Other players in the game of commercial spaceflight include Elon Musk’s SpaceX, which in September sent the civilian crew of its Inspiration4 mission orbiting around the Earth nearly 50 times, and Richard Branson’s Virgin Galactic, which in July sent the British billionaire and others on a brief jaunt to the edge of space.

Technologies

Today’s NYT Mini Crossword Answers for Sunday, May 18

Here are the answers for The New York Times Mini Crossword for May 18.

Looking for the most recent Mini Crossword answer? Click here for today’s Mini Crossword hints, as well as our daily answers and hints for The New York Times Wordle, Strands, Connections and Connections: Sports Edition puzzles.

Today’s NYT Mini Crossword offers up two golf-computer clues, which sound confusing, but are pretty easy once you give them some thought. Need some help with today’s Mini Crossword? Read on. And if you could use some hints and guidance for daily solving, check out our Mini Crossword tips.

The Mini Crossword is just one of many games in the Times’ games collection. If you’re looking for today’s Wordle, Connections, Connections: Sports Edition and Strands answers, you can visit CNET’s NYT puzzle hints page.

Read more: Tips and Tricks for Solving The New York Times Mini Crossword

Let’s get at those Mini Crossword clues and answers.

Mini across clues and answers

1A clue: Golf shot that’s also a piece of computer hardware
Answer: CHIP

5A clue: Golf shot that’s also a piece of computer hardware
Answer: DRIVE

6A clue: Screenwriter Sorkin
Answer: AARON

7A clue: Nonreactive, chemically
Answer: INERT

8A clue: «Bye-bye!»
Answer: SEEYA

Mini down clues and answers

1D clue: Origami bird
Answer: CRANE

2D clue: Person added to the staff
Answer: HIREE

3D clue: Material used to plate the skin of the Parthenon Athena and the statue of Zeus at Olympia
Answer: IVORY

4D clue: Five: Prefix
Answer: PENTA

5D clue: Speaker’s platform
Answer: DAIS

How to play more Mini Crosswords

The New York Times Games section offers a large number of online games, but only some of them are free for all to play. You can play the current day’s Mini Crossword for free, but you’ll need a subscription to the Times Games section to play older puzzles from the archives.

Technologies

Today’s NYT Connections: Sports Edition Hints and Answers for May 18, #237

Hints and answers for the NYT Connections: Sports Edition puzzle, No. 237, for May 18.

Looking for the most recent regular Connections answers? Click here for today’s Connections hints, as well as our daily answers and hints for The New York Times Mini Crossword, Wordle and Strands puzzles.

The blue group in today’s Connections: Sports Edition puzzle played on my Gen X heart. If you know your classic video games, you’re golden here. Read on for hints and the answers.

Connections: Sports Edition is out of beta now, making its debut on Super Bowl Sunday, Feb. 9. That’s a sign that the game has earned enough loyal players that The Athletic, the subscription-based sports journalism site owned by the Times, will continue to publish it. It doesn’t show up in the NYT Games app but now appears in The Athletic’s own app. Or you can continue to play it free online.

Read more: NYT Connections: Sports Edition Puzzle Comes Out of Beta

Hints for today’s Connections: Sports Edition groups

Here are four hints for the groupings in today’s Connections: Sports Edition puzzle, ranked from the easiest yellow group to the tough (and sometimes bizarre) purple group.

Yellow group hint: Not lose.

Green group hint: A baseball out.

Blue group hint: Glass Joe.

Purple group hint: Think Chicago.

Answers for today’s Connections: Sports Edition groups

Yellow group: Win

Green group: Strike out

Blue group: Classic sports video games

Purple group: Associated with Michael Jordan.

Read more: Wordle Cheat Sheet: Here Are the Most Popular Letters Used in English Words

What are today’s Connections: Sports Edition answers?

The yellow words in today’s Connections

The theme is win. The four answers are dub, triumph, victory and W.

The green words in today’s Connections

The theme is strike out. The four answers are fan, K, ring up and whiff.

The blue words in today’s Connections

The theme is classic sports video games. The four answers are NBA Jam, NFL Blitz, Punch-Out and Tecmo Bowl.

The purple words in today’s Connections

The theme is associated with Michael Jordan. The four answers are 23, 6 rings, His Airness and Last Dance.

Technologies

Today’s NYT Connections Hints, Answers and Help for May 18, #707

Hints and answers for Connections for May 18, #707.

Looking for the most recent Connections answers? Click here for today’s Connections hints, as well as our daily answers and hints for The New York Times Mini Crossword, Wordle, Connections: Sports Edition and Strands puzzles.

Today’s Connections puzzle is a mix of difficult and easy. The purple category does what most purple categories do, and makes you really break down how you think about the words. Read on for clues and today’s Connections answers.

The Times now has a Connections Bot, like the one for Wordle. Go there after you play to receive a numeric score and to have the program analyze your answers. Players who are registered with the Times Games section can now nerd out by following their progress, including number of puzzles completed, win rate, number of times they nabbed a perfect score and their win streak.

Read more: Hints, Tips and Strategies to Help You Win at NYT Connections Every Time

Hints for today’s Connections groups

Here are four hints for the groupings in today’s Connections puzzle, ranked from the easiest yellow group, to the tough (and sometimes bizarre) purple group.

Yellow group hint: School days.

Green group hint: About there!

Blue group hint: Sure, let’s go.

Purple group hint: The Scarlett Letter.