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ACROSS THE NATION

NASA's newest space telescope launches on a quest to explore the hidden universe

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) -- NASA's newest crown jewel blasted off Sunday to hunt for planets around other stars, explore secret dark energy and survey the cosmos like never before.

SpaceX launched the $4.3 billion Roman Space Telescope shortly after daybreak aboard a triple-the-firepower Falcon Heavy rocket. Roman blazed toward an observation point 1 million miles away that's home to the Webb Space Telescope, one of NASA's other big-ticket eyes in the sky.

The bus-sized telescope -- named after the late Nancy Grace Roman, NASA's first chief astronomer -- will take more than three months to reach its destination. Once there, it will cast the widest gaze yet on the hidden parts of the universe from space, uncovering the unimaginable with unsurpassed speed.

"It's going to find thousands of supernovae, tens of thousands of planets, billions of galaxies and tens of billions of stars," said NASA science mission director Nicky Fox. "It's going to be able to do things that we've never been able to do before with its massive field of view."

Several minutes after the thunderous launch from Kennedy Space Center, the rocket's two reusable side boosters descended tail-first in a thrilling scene, producing sharp sonic booms as they landed back at Cape Canaveral. Soon afterward, the telescope separated successfully from the rocket's upper stage, drawing applause from ground controllers.

Fox was in tears watching the action unfold. "It's such a good day!" she said.

NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman was in the middle of a news conference a couple hours later, predicting that the Roman Space Telescope would soon become a household name, when his cellphone rang. President Donald Trump was on the line, offering congratulations.

"Boy, it looked beautiful on television," said Trump, fresh off his visit to Houston's Johnson Space Center on Friday to honor the Artemis II moon crew. "You're the hottest in space."

Investors prosper and consumers pay as the Iran war exacts an uneven economic toll 6 months in

NEW YORK (AP) -- As the U.S. and Israel relentlessly bombed Iran in the opening days of war, the most dramatic predictions of the conflict's toll were unsparing: surging oil prices, worldwide recession and economic catastrophe.

But six months into the conflict, the direst predictions haven't come true even if no corner of the world's economy has been untouched.

"So far, the global economy has pulled off the financial equivalent of a 'Mission Impossible' scene," said Michael Ashley Schulman, an investment strategist with Cerity Partners.

Here's a look at how the global economy has weathered the war, and who have been the winners and losers:

Winner: Investors who didn't panic

Stock markets hate uncertainty, and the decision by the U.S. and Israel to attack Iran on Feb. 28 delivered heaps of it. Columns of smoke rose from Tehran, frantic Iranians clogged roadways trying to escape, and mounting deaths, including of children, made headlines. It was enough for any investor to feel squeamish.

Oil prices surged and Wall Street began a retreat that would begin five consecutive losing weeks. The Dow and Nasdaq entered corrections. The S&P 500 had its worst month since 2022.

But a major turnaround has unfolded since the market bottomed in late March. The Dow has gained nearly 19%, the S&P is up almost 22% and the Nasdaq has surged 27%. If those gains survive the waning months of 2026, all three indexes would post their fourth consecutive year of gains.

The International Monetary Fund, in a July report, said the economy was "being shaped by two major forces, pushing in opposite directions." The war has strained growth, but enthusiasm over artificial intelligence has offset the drag.

Main Street may be paying more for fuel, food and travel. But Wall Street, so far, is shrugging it off.

Loser: Anyone on the move

The war's most obvious economic consequence has been its impact on oil. With tanker movement through the Strait of Hormuz slowed to a crawl, the price of Brent crude climbed from a prewar close of about $72 a barrel to as high as nearly $120. Although prices have eased, they are still up about 20% from before the war.

Oil's price affects everything from crayons to cosmetics, but it hits anyone on the move especially hard.

Jet fuel is expected to cost, on average, 70% more than in 2025, according to the International Air Transport Association. Airlines, in turn, have raised ticket costs, hiked baggage fees and slapped on fuel surcharges while slashing flights or backing off from plans for added routes. Lufthansa Group, for one, cut 20,000 short-haul flights. Spirit Airlines, though troubled for years, evaporated.

"The likelihood that fuel surcharges are going to be rolled back and airfares are going to be brought down is very low over the next few months," said Brett House, a Columbia University economist. "There is less choice for consumers and less competition between airlines, and therefore, less pressure to rein in fare increases."

Meep, meep. 'Coyote vs. Acme' opens with $15.5 million, 'Spider-Man' stays No. 1 for fifth weekend

NEW YORK (AP) -- Three years after Warner Bros. abruptly canned "Coyote vs. Acme," the Looney Tunes feature film that was given a new lease on life by Ketchup Entertainment debuted with an estimated $15.5 million in ticket sales over the weekend.

For the fifth weekend in a row, "Spider-Man: Brand New Day" topped the North American box office. It grossed $22.2 million in U.S. and Canadian theaters, according to studio estimates Sunday, bringing its worldwide total to $2.33 billion and making it the fourth highest-grossing film of all time.

"Coyote vs. Acme," which had been relegated to the dust heap, fared best of the newcomers, debuting in second place.

The Ridley Scott action drama "The Dog Stars," starring Jacob Elordi, flopped. The film, about a pilot and German Shepherd who survive a global pandemic, opened in fifth place with $8 million for 20th Century Studios. It added $11.3 million overseas, a poor result for a film that cost between $70 million and $100 million to make.

"Coyote vs. Acme," however, scored a decent, hard-earned opening. In 2023, Warner Bros. canceled any release of the completed film, preferring to take a tax write off on a movie originally produced for its streaming service, HBO Max. Warner also shelved "Batgirl" and "Scoob! Holiday Haunt," both of which remain unreleased.

"Coyote vs. Acme," based on an Ian Frazier "Shouts and Murmurs" New Yorker column, is about Wile E. Coyote suing the Acme Corporation for its faulty products. It stars Will Forte, John Cena, Lana Condor and Eric Bauza.

The film, a hybrid of live-action and animation directed by Dave Green, cost $70 million to make. But despite good test screening scores, Warner Bros. opted to ax the completed film. After an outcry, the studio put the film up for sale. Early last year, Ketchup Entertainment acquired worldwide distribution rights for about $50 million.

Karina becomes a Pacific hurricane well away from land and is forecast to become a major storm

MIAMI (AP) -- Hurricane Karina formed Sunday in the Pacific Ocean and could become a major storm within days, forecasters said. The cyclone's center was at far out to sea and was not threatening land.

Karina had maximum sustained winds of 80 mph, the Miami-based National Hurricane Center said, making it a Category 1 hurricane.

The storm is expected to undergo steady or rapid strengthening as it moves over open Pacific waters and is forecast to become a major hurricane in another day or so, the center said. A major hurricane is a Category 3 or greater with maximum sustained winds of at least 111 mph.

On Sunday, Karina was located about 820 miles southwest of the southern tip of Mexico's Baja California Peninsula and was moving northwest at 15 mph. Its forecast path was farther out into the Pacific.

While Karina was expected to stay well away from land, swells from the storm were likely to cause dangerous surf and rip current conditions along parts of southwest Mexico and the Baja California Peninsula, the hurricane center said.

Elsewhere in the Pacific, Tropical Storm Lowell was 1,150 miles southeast of Hawaii. It also posed no immediate threat to land.

Volunteers rescue climber stranded on small ledge in California's Sierra Nevada

MAMMOTH LAKES, Calif. (AP) -- Volunteers carried out a more than 15-hour operation to rescue a man who got off route in the Sierra Nevada and was stranded on a small ledge, the Mono County Sheriff Search and Rescue Team said.

A four-person team carried out the rescue last weekend near Mammoth Lakes, California, in a precarious gully. The challenge came in having no time to spare with thousands of feet of vertical exposure below, said team spokesperson Mitchell Quiring.

The stranded climber had only one foot fully on the 6-inch ledge and was shaking out his legs and switching them to avoid tiring, said Quiring, who was part of the rescue team.

"Any fall would almost certainly be fatal," the team wrote on its Facebook page.

Quiring said he credits the climber, Rob Martin, with having the strength and will to live.

"He was not going to give up. He was going to push until there was a solution," Quiring said. "It's what we train for, so there's a lot of trust in leaning back on that."

The volunteer group has long trained to carry out technical rescues. The rescuers are among those dispatched the Mono County Sheriff's Office in the Sierra Nevada, about 200 miles east of San Francisco.

Influencer pleads guilty to criminal impersonation for viral pranks at Arizona businesses

PHOENIX (AP) -- A social media influencer known for posting viral videos of pranks has pleaded guilty to criminal impersonation in Arizona for posing as an employee of businesses in a Phoenix suburb and orchestrating brief but chaotic takeover attempts.

The outcome was welcomed by observers who said it could serve as a reminder to seekers of viral fame that stunts that cross the line legally can lead to serious ramifications.

Heston James Cobb, who posts as "Heston James," was arrested in July 2025 after police in Tempe say he and others went into businesses posing as workers, entered employee-only areas and refused to leave when asked to do so. He entered his plea Friday.

In one video Cobb, wearing a Chipotle Mexican Grill shirt, told restaurant staff he was going to "clean house" before a group of men wearing dark shirts flooded into the eatery and ignored requests to leave. One man posing as an employee cleaned a tabletop with a mop.

Investigators said the videos had millions of views and potentially generated large amounts of income.

Vicki Lopez, an attorney representing Cobb, declined to comment Saturday. The Associated Press left a message with Cobb's TikTok account seeking comment.

Steve Chucri, president of the Arizona Restaurant Association, said he hopes Cobb's punishment is "severe" to deter copycats.

"There's no place for it," Chucri said. "That's the last thing we need to put up with in the restaurant industry. The amount of money it takes to operate today is expensive."

Chucri said the association does not offer any formal training or advice to restaurants on dealing with social media pranksters, and he hopes it does not come to that.

"We're a society of civility," Chucri said. "We shouldn't have to."

Tom Cruise announces a follow-up film to ‘Days of Thunder’ to hit theaters in 2028

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (AP) -- Tom Cruise stood up from his chair in front of 40 race-car drivers, jumped over a row of potted plants and directly onto a stage.

It was his first of many stunts to come at Daytona International Speedway.

The 64-year-old Cruise announced Saturday he will reprise his role as NASCAR driver Cole Trickle in a follow-up to “Days of Thunder.” He waved the green flag on it hours before the Cup Series’ regular-season finale at Daytona and then showed up for the pre-race drivers’ meeting.

“It’s not just about racing,” Cruise told the packed room that included NASCAR executives, fans, corporate sponsors and military personnel. “It’s about the community and the people here. There’s something very special about racers and the whole community. It’s a culture, and I was very proud to be able to reflect that in the first ‘Days of Thunder,’ and I am honored to share it with the world. …

“That’s basically what we’re going to really go for with this one. Give the audience that opportunity to understand what it is as a team, as a community, what it is for NASCAR, and the speed, the excitement and all that danger and stuff.”

Anne Hathaway will co-star as a team owner and engineer in the film scheduled to be released by Paramount Pictures on June 2, 2028.

Cruise will serve as a producer alongside Jerry Bruckheimer and Tommy Harper. Jonathan Levine is set to direct the script written by Will Staples. Bruckheimer, Harper and Staples joined Cruise at the drivers’ meeting.

Cruise posed for pictures with anyone who asked and shook hands with military members before getting whisked away in a black SUV. He was expected to spend some time during the race on pit road -- about as close to the action as possible without being behind the wheel.

The Hollywood Reporter reported in November 2024 that Cruise had talked to Paramount about a follow-up to his 1990 NASCAR racing film. The original was a critically panned summer blockbuster that was largely lampooned throughout the NASCAR industry for its exaggeration and overindulgence.

It has since become a cult favorite in NASCAR circles and is still quoted by race fans to this day.