Good morning, it’s Tuesday.
So here we are in summer – unofficially speaking – though it really depends on your definition of “summer”.
As a reminder: astronomical summer in the Northern Hemisphere – which relies on the Earth’s position in relation to the suns and starts on the Summer Solstice, marking the longest day and shortest night of the year – won’t happen until Sunday, June 21.
Meanwhile, meteorological summer, based on the annual temperature cycle and used by climate scientists and meteorologists, falls on June 1.
The Memorial Day weekend is the cultural start of summer, though this year’s left a lot to be desired in the weather department, bringing unseasonably cold and wet weather until the very tail end – just in time to wrap things up and get back to work.
Luckily for us, we’ll have plenty of time to make up for lost time, as Summer 2026 is really GIVING. The stretch between Memorial Day and Labor Day is unusually long this year, with the former occurring on the earliest possible day (May 25) and the latest taking place as late as possible (Sept. 7).
In case you’re counting that 15 whole weeks – or 106 days – of summer fun. This boon, caused by a quirk in the calendar, won’t occur again until 2037.
Memorial Day, remember, falls on the last Monday in May. That’s thanks to the Uniform Monday Holiday Act, passed by Congress in 1968, which relocated a number of federal holidays to Mondays in order to maximize the number of three-day weekends (good for retailers, good for the tourism industry, good for government employees’ morale).
Until the Uniform Monday Holiday Act took effect in 1971, Memorial Day was observed on May 30.
Labor Day, meanwhile, has fallen on the first Monday in September since it was designated a federal holiday by Congress in 1894. Because Sept. 1 falls on a Tuesday this year, the first Monday won’t occur until almost a full week later – Sept. 7, which is the latest possible Labor Day date.
Temperatures will warm up considerable today, with highs reaching into the low-to-mid 80s, and skies will be partly cloudy, there is (for a change) no rain in the forecast.
Before we get down to the business of catching up on a curated round-up of things that happened over the holiday weekend, let us pause to remember a great American – Dr. Sally Ride, who, in 1983, became the first American woman, youngest American astronaut, at the tender age of 32, and first known gay astronaut, ever to fly into space.
Ride was born on this day in 1951. She joined NASA in 1978 and sadly died too young – at the age of 61 – on July 23, 2012, after a 17-month battle with pancreatic cancer.
In the headlines…
Hours after Iranian negotiators arrived in Qatar for talks on ending the war, U.S. forces struck missile launch sites in Iran and boats trying to emplace mines, American officials said last night.
Tensions remain high between Iran and the United States today, threatening to upend fragile diplomacy efforts as Iranian officials warned of retaliation after American strikes overnight.
These strikes were intended “to protect our troops from threats posed by Iranian forces” — specifically boats attempting to lay mines and missile launch sites, Navy Capt. Tim Hawkins, a US Central Command spokesperson, said.
President Donald Trump indicated earlier Monday that talks aimed at producing a longer cease-fire had been productive, but warned again that he was willing to order more strikes against Iran
Tehran has cautioned against expectations of a rapid breakthrough in peace talks, with Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokesman on Monday saying progress had been made in the negotiations, but stressed that it does not mean a deal is “imminent”.
Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche asked in a court filing late Sunday to resume construction on the White House ballroom, arguing that the nearby shooting over the weekend underscores the need for security the ballroom will provide.
The gunman was killed after allegedly opening fire on a U.S. Secret Service checkpoint near the White House Saturday evening, officials said. Secret Service officers returned fire, hitting the suspect, who later died at a hospital. A bystander was also wounded.
An industrial tank in Southern California containing about 7,000 gallons of a highly flammable toxic chemical has cracked, officials reported. The development was interpreted as a possible sign that a catastrophic explosion or rupture might yet be averted.
The evacuation zone around a failing chemical tank in Southern California is shrinking after officials said the “worst-case scenario” of a catastrophic explosion has been averted. About 16,000 people remain under evacuation orders.
Officials lifted evacuation orders last night for more than half of the 40,000 Southern California residents living near an unstable chemical tank that they had feared would explode.
Pope Leo XIV’s major new teaching on safeguarding humanity in the age of artificial intelligence is a forward-looking document, arriving at the precipice of what many see as a new technological age that will profoundly reshape human life.
“Magnifica Humanitas,” or “Magnificent Humanity,” is the American pope’s first encyclical, a document that is considered one of the most significant papal teachings.
Elements of Gov. Kathy Hochul’s proposed changes to auto insurance laws emerged in the most recently passed part of the state budget, though some proposals have been eliminated and the fates of others remain unknown.
A deal between Hochul and state lawmakers would lower the retirement age for teachers and reduce pension contribution costs while boosting overtime-related retirement benefits for police, firefighters and other public employees.
Hochul has struck a final sweetheart pensions deal with public service unions — and Albany is only footing a fraction of the $557 million bill.
Legislative leaders and Hochul agreed on significant new protections for immigrants, but the legislation doesn’t limit informal collaboration between local police and federal authorities, which has funneled New York residents into immigration detention.
Trump issued a warning to Hochul when he intimidatingly asked her to watch herself in her upcoming match-up with Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman, the GOP gubernatorial nominee, adding yet another chapter in their prolonged rivalry.
Striving to appeal to voters in one of the most competitive House races in the country, Trump on Friday campaigned for Rep. Mike Lawler in Rockland County, taking aim at Hochul and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries in the process.
Trump mocked Hochul after mentioning his opposition to congestion pricing — calling her a “nice woman” who “is never going to take you to the promised land.”
Blakeman dared Hochul to try and stop him from assisting Immigration and Customs Enforcement in defiance of new sanctuary bills largely barring local cops from working with federal immigration authorities.
Blakeman snagged an endorsement from Puerto Rico’s Gov. Jennifer González-Colón at a strategy meeting earlier this week alongside crypto-mogul Brock Pierce.
Hochul says she’s pushing for the Winter Olympics to come back to Lake Placid for the first time since 1980, when the United States upset the Soviet Union in the “Miracle on Ice” game.
“I’ve actually been having significant meetings on this, putting together the individuals who I would want to be part of a committee. It’s complicated, but we are up for it,” Hochul said in an interview with The Athletic.
The next clear opening to host the games would be 2042, with France to host 2030, Salt Lake City to host 2034 and Switzerland in exclusive dialogue with the International Olympic Committee to land 2038.
New York state officials say that they have already surpassed their goal to fill 175,000 statewide, which Hochul announced in April, with state crews filling 250,000 as of last month.
An overhaul of the state’s 2019 climate law proposed by Hochul would alter how the potent greenhouse gas methane is measured.
Hochul has announced revisions to the state’s greenhouse gas emissions targets that will push off its 2030 deadline. Organizers believe residents are already suffering.
Republican members of the New York State Senate are calling on Hochul to temporarily suspend state taxes on gasoline and diesel fuel, arguing the move would provide financial relief to New Yorkers facing rising energy and living costs.
The New York state comptroller debate last week erupted in clashes among the Democratic candidates that were so heated that Spectrum News NY1 moderators repeatedly intervened as they attempted to restore order.
New York State’s budget is the most delayed it’s been since 2010. That means legislators have gone without pay, creating financial hardships familiar to many New Yorkers.
Collectively, data centers proposed across the state could require levels of electricity approaching the power demand of New York City, according to a Times Union review of data from the NYISO, which manages the state’s electric grid.
Two New York Democrats running in a hotly contested congressional primary pledged federal funding for “Drag Story Hour” — as records show city and state taxpayers have paid nearly $700,000 to boost the program.
Mayor Zohran Mamdani intends to release a comprehensive housing plan today that will, among other things, address longstanding problems at the New York City Housing Authority.
The plan will also call for using modular housing to modernize construction and build new units faster and cheaper, in an effort to to make affordable housing more investor-friendly for manufacturers and create more local jobs.
City Hall will explore land use changes to allow residential development in neighborhoods with the lowest rates of affordable housing production, and citywide zoning reforms to permit more housing to be built near public transit, among other initiatives.
As Mamdani moves forward with plans for city-owned grocery stores, economists and local business owners warn the proposal could crush small grocers while leaving taxpayers with a hefty bill.
The Mamdani administration is facing some pushback from Brooklyn residents over its plans to open two temporary homeless shelters inside hotels in Brooklyn.
Activist and artist Scott LoBaido created a bronze-patinated statue of a hand with its middle finger raised, facing New York City Hall in protest of Mamdani last week.
A wave of antisemitic incidents across the city has created a sense of escalating crisis for many Jewish New Yorkers. Mamdani responded to incidents as they occurred, but struggled to connect with many Jewish leaders, who are overwhelmingly pro-Israel.
For the first time since 1999 and just the sixth time since 1970, the New York Knicks are going to the NBA Finals.
The NYPD made multiple arrests outside Madison Square Garden late yesterday after a celebrating crowd became unruly as it became clear the New York Knicks were heading to the NBA Finals, police said.
The police say that celebrations outside of Madison Square Garden have gotten out of control. Fans and insiders say the chaos has been driven by social media influencers.
Moments after the Knicks clinched the win in Game 4 of the Eastern Conference finals last night, Mamdani acknowledged the Knicks’ 4-0 series victory by tagging New York City’s sanitation account on social media, writing: “I’d like to report a sweep.”
A high-ranking NYPD officer was involved in an off-duty shooting incident in suburban Rockland County, police officials confirmed.
The Park Slope Food Co-op, a socially conscious grocery store in a liberal neighborhood, has devolved into dysfunction ahead of a vote today on the proposed boycott of Israeli products.
Mamdani is searching for a new speechwriter for his team at City Hall. The Mayor’s Office posted a job opening for an “Associate Speechwriter” in April, and it’ll be available through June 15, according to the city jobs site.
Crown Heights Assemblyman Brian Cunningham met this past weekend with Mamdani at City Hall, raising major questions for Jewish residents and Brooklyn voters.
Registration for the World Cup tickets lottery that Mamdani launched is seemingly closed, reaching its limit for daily entries in just three minutes.
Data shows that more young people die from street violence on Staten Island during the summer months. So in an effort to get ahead of the numbers, Mamdani recently met with a local violence-interrupter group to discuss ways the city could help.
Rain pushed the Intrepid Museum’s Memorial Day ceremony indoors, but did not dampen the solemn ritual at the center of the commemoration: the laying of five ceremonial wreaths into the Hudson River in honor of those who died in service to the country.
A series of explosions on a barge at a commercial shipyard on Staten Island on Friday afternoon killed one person and injured 34 firefighters and emergency medical workers. The explosions led to a fire that was under control, but continued to burn Friday night.
Gov. Mikie Sherrill of New Jersey, a Democrat who has clashed with the Trump administration over immigration policies, joined protests outside a detention center in Newark yesterday in support of detainees participating in a hunger strike.
With one-third of the Adirondack High Peaks in its confines, the town of Keene is perhaps the greatest pressure point in the yearslong battle to bring structure to overrun trailheads.
A fire that destroyed a rescue engine and gutted the Village of Menands firehouse, forcing the fire department to pause operations, may have been ignited by an electronic device inside the truck, Mayor Brian Marsh said.
If a state proposal makes headway to temporarily ban the material from being used as fertilizer, Rensselaer County officials fear the process to get rid of contaminated sewage from its wastewater treatment plant will be much costlier.
Albany Mayor Dorcey Applyrs’ office said the threat of steady rain forced the cancellation of Monday’s Memorial Day Parade.
Childcare facility Our World Montessori will be getting a newer, larger home this September in Niskayuna Commerce Park.
After 11 long years, the Albany City School District is finally going to be able to bus students who live one to 1.5 miles away from their elementary school.
For the sixth time in two decades, the Saratoga Springs city charter is under review, and one proposed amendment in particular, which deals with the number of Saratoga County supervisors the city will elect, is eliciting dissent.
Photo credit: George Fazio.
