Good morning, it’s Tuesday, which might be masquerading as Monday in a short workweek if you had yesterday off. You know how I feel about four-day workweeks – in short, my feelings are decidedly mixed – so I won’t revisit that particular topic here.
We’re only about a month and a half into 2026 and it has been decidedly rocky – frigid temperatures, frightening headlines dominating the news on the regular. If you, like me, need something wondrous to look forward to, this post is for you.
The first solar eclipse of the year takes place today. Technically speaking, this is an annular eclipse, which means the moon will cover the sun’s center as it passes between the sun and the Earth, creating a so-called “ring of fire” effect. At its peak, a bright ring of sunlight will be visible around the outside of the moon – hence, the name.
As an aside, not all ring of fire eclipses look the same, with the thickness of that bright circle depending on how far the moon is from the Earth.
You might recall the sensation that the last ring of fire caused back in Oct. 14, 2023, when people traveled from around the globe to get into the path of totality from Oregon to Texas so they could view this incredible celestial phenomenon. This happened again on April 8, 2024, when the path of totality stretched from Texas to Maine.
Here’s the bad news for all you sky watching fans out there: Today’s eclipse will only be physically visible over a remote part of Antartica and the ocean waters around it.
All told, only about 2.17% of the world’s population will be able to see this particular ring of fire, (there are reportedly only two habited locations in the path of totality), though it will be partially visible throughout most of Antarctica, parts of South Africa, the southern tips of Chile and Argentina, Madagascar, and Mauritius.
If you happen to be in one of those areas – perhaps on a cruise ship in the vicinity of the Antarctic Peninsula – remember the the cardinal rule about eclipse viewing: Do NOT look directly at the sun with the naked eye. Remember that standard sunglasses, Never use regular sunglasses, cameras, or telescopes without proper filters do not provide sufficient protection to avoid burning your retinas.
The good news is that you WILL be able to watch the eclipse online, and you can do so safely without any glasses or pinhole cameras and from the comfort of your own home or office. But you’re going to have to be quick about it, because the whole show (formally known as the annularity period) will only last just under two minutes – 1 minute and 52 seconds, to be exact.
The NASA website is probably your best bet, but you can also find live updates here.
Today is also the Lunar New Year, which might be more familiar to you as Chinese New Year, though the two are not directly interchangeable – the first is a festival observed by many Asian cultures, while the second is, well, specifically referring to the Chinese version of that celebration.
This is the year of the Fire Horse, representing a year of big energy, passion, speed, hard work, and activity in the Chinese zodiac. The addition of “Fire” to year of the Horse is a once-in-60-years phenomenon that is a time for breaking out of old cycles and galloping ahead.
The Lunar New Year, also known as the Spring Festival, is a 15-day period of feasts, family reunions, and traditions that are focused on attracting good fortune – like deep cleaning the house, setting off fireworks, exchanging cash in red-and-gold envelopes, and decorating with red lanterns.
It’s going to be cloudy today with unseasonably high temperatures in the low 40s. Don’t get too comfortable, though, because it looks like winter isn’t quite done with us just yet.
In the headlines…
The Rev. Jesse Jackson, whose impassioned oratory and populist vision of a “rainbow coalition” of the poor and forgotten made him the nation’s most influential Black figure, has died at the age of 84.
Jackson, a former presidential candidate, died peacefully surrounded by his loved ones, his family said in a Facebook statement. They said he “elevated the voices of the voiceless” and left an “indelible mark” in history.
“Our father was a servant leader — not only to our family, but to the oppressed, the voiceless, and the overlooked around the world,” his family said.
Robert Duvall, who won an Oscar for “Tender Mercies” and was nominated for his roles in films including “The Godfather,” “Apocalypse Now,” and “The Great Santini,” has died. He was 95.
Thomas J. Pritzker, 75, a billionaire heir to the Hyatt Hotels fortune, stepped down from his role yesterday as executive chairman of the Hyatt Hotels Corporation, becoming the latest person felled by an association with the disgraced financier Jeffrey Epstein.
Columbia University has punished two people affiliated with its dental college after documents released by the Justice Department revealed that they had bypassed the normal process to help Epstein’s girlfriend gain admission.
Mayor Karen Bass of Los Angeles said that Casey Wasserman should resign as the chairman of the 2028 Olympics in the city after his name surfaced recently in the Epstein files.
“I cannot fire him,” the mayor said, noting that only the nonprofit board of directors that oversees the Los Angeles Olympics can replace him. “I do have an opinion. My opinion is that he should step down.”
The mayor’s remarks came after Wasserman, 51, who helped craft the winning bid for the Games, announced he was selling his business because his “limited interactions” two decades ago with Ghislaine Maxwell and Epstein had become a “distraction.”
For the second time in the excruciating weeks since Nancy Guthrie vanished, Friday’s burst of law enforcement activity signaled a possible break in a case that has transfixed the country. But, once again, the authorities later announced a disappointing result.
Members of the Guthrie family, including Nancy Guthrie’s three children and their spouses, have been cleared as possible suspects, Sheriff Chris Nanos of Pima County, Ariz., said in a statement.
Gov. Kathy Hochul and state health officials are now scrambling to overhaul the Essential Plan in a way that will minimize the loss of coverage without blowing a hole in the state budget.
New York’s House Republicans are demanding that Hochul opt New York in for a federal tax credit scholarship program that’s drawn the ire of the powerful teachers union.
A former top aide to AG Letitia James runs a liberal nonprofit that helps fund anti-ICE trainings, some urging demonstrators to disrupt federal immigration enforcement and use encrypted channels to avoid sharing “incriminating” information.
Long Island Rep. Laura Gillen is facing a Democratic Party primary challenge as liberals rage over she voted to continue funding federal immigration enforcement.
The state will send an additional $1.5 billion in aid to New York City over the next two years to help close its multibillion-dollar budget gap, Hochul said.
The surge in new funding includes more than half a billion dollars in recurring funding targeted at costs that city officials say shifted from the state to New York City in recent years, including youth programming, restored sales tax revenue and public health.
The governor’s office said the state will now pick up the tab for some initiatives that had costs shifted to the city, including $300 million for youth violence programs and another $60 million for public health.
“A strong New York City means a stronger New York State. This investment protects services and puts the city on stable financial footing,” Hochul said in a press release.
Mamdani will waltz into City Hall today with his first preliminary budget plan, but the City Council and its speaker Julie Menin will soon take the floor.
Mamdani has tapped a former Biden administration official to audit six municipal agencies for violations of local sanctuary laws — an effort aimed at defending the city against President Donald Trump’s immigration crackdowns.
The heartbroken dad of a teen football star shot dead outside a Bronx McDonald’s angrily claimed that Mamdani is failing to keep New Yorkers safe — and has yet to offer him condolences.
Recent police shootings of people in mental health crises have raised the stakes for Mamdani’s push to take the NYPD out of mental health responses.
Coffee cart prices are creeping up as NYC vendors scramble to keep up with ever-increasing supply costs – leaving caffeine-starved commuters and tourists groaning about another pinch on their wallets.
Steven Fulop, the newly minted president and CEO of the Partnership for New York City, wants to lead the “premiere centrist advocacy organization in the city.”
The Big Apple’s first lady Rama Duwaji briefly posed for the paparazzi as she made an appearance at New York label Diotima’s show during Fashion Week yesterday – one of the few times she’s been snapped at a public event since her husband was sworn in.
Riverkeeper, an environmental advocacy organization, has filed a federal lawsuit against the owners of a scrap metal recycling facility in Catskill, alleging the company has been illegally discharging stormwater runoff into a Hudson River tributary.
Meteorologist Jordan Due has said goodbye to News10ABC. Her final day on air was Sunday. While she’s no longer part of the regular team, the station confirmed you may still see her on-air occasionally, filling in when other meteorologists are off.
A 21-year-old woman died last Thursday while hiking near the summit of Mount Marcy, the state Department of Environmental Conservation confirmed.
Fish populations in Adirondack headwater streams grew significantly in diversity and density during the decades of recovery from acid rain, according to a new study from fisheries scientists with the United States Geological Survey.
In 2025, the 20 highest-paid City of Saratoga Springs employees were firefighters and police officers who sometimes earned more than twice their base salaries when overtime and other payouts like comp time were factored in.
Photo credit: George Fazio.
