Mick's Morning News- Friday

NASA Conducts Wet Dress Rehearsal For Artemis 2

(Cape Canaveral, FL) -- NASA can celebrate a milestone in its Artemis 2 mission. A successful wet dress rehearsal was held yesterday at Kennedy Space Center. More than 700-thousand gallons of liquid propellant were loaded into the rocket, a closeout crew went to the launchpad to demonstrate closing the Orion spacecraft's hatches and two runs of terminal count were completed. The Artemis Two crew was able to watch part of the test from the Launch Control Center. The crew will enter quarantine late today in Houston before taking their trip around the moon. No launch date has been set.    

NWS Releases Dry Season Forecast

(Melbourne, FL) --The drought shows no signs of ending in Central Florida. The National Weather Service released its latest Dry Season Forecast yesterday.The NWS expects drier than normal conditions to continue through April, and temperatures are expected to be above normal, too. That's expected to create a heightened wildfire threat into the spring.

Deadly Deputy-Involved Shooting In Osceola County

(Kissimmee, FL) --A man is dead after he was shot by a deputy in Osceola County. It happened last night in Poinciana at a Walmart on Cypress Parkway. The sheriff's office says three men were shoplifting when the deputy confronted them and they ran. One apparently had a gun and was shot to death. Deputies say the other two suspects fled the scene, and no arrests have been announced. The deputy who fired his weapon was off-duty and working for Walmart as a loss prevention officer at the time.        

AG Uthmeier Defends UF Salary

(Tallahassee, FL) --Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier is defending his side job at the University of Florida. Uthmeier is a part-time law professor at UF, and he makes 100-thousand dollars a year teaching two hours a week. He's the highest paid adjunct professor at the law school. FloridaPolitics-dot-com reports the average salary for an adjunct professor is five thousand dollars.

Man Steals Three Boats From Bass Pro

(Nashville, TN) --A man is under arrest in Nashville, accused of stealing boats from the local Bass Pro.  Police say 32-year-old Dustin Nicholson was caught on camera stealing the boats with his white Chevy Silverado last summer. Two of the boats were found on a property in Lewisburg, along with other stolen items. Nicholson faces eight counts of property theft, in addition to probation violations and past theft charges. He's being held on an 80-thousand-dollar bond.

FL Report: International Shark Bites Near Average

(Gainesville, FL) --New data out of Florida shows global shark bites were close to average last year, with 65 unprovoked incidents reported worldwide in 2025. According to the Florida Museum of Natural History at the University of Florida in Gainesville, the United States accounted for the most activity. Florida once again led the nation with eleven bites, with more than half in Volusia County -- known as the "shark bite capital of the world." The report says there was an eleven percent drop in U.S. bites compared with 2024. Officials note the chances of being bitten by a shark remain very low.

Today in History

1962, astronaut John Glenn became the first American to orbit Earth.

1944, the "Batman and Robin" comic strip appeared in newspapers for the first time.

1792, President George Washington signed the Postal Service Act.