Dec 31st, 2008 · Tomorrow is the 50th anniversary of the Cuban Revolution. Led by a young Fidel Castro, the revolution wrenched power from the American-backed Batista regime. Today, Cuba remains the only communist nation in the Western hemisphere, making Castro one of the most polarizing figures of modern times. NPR's Tom Gjelten, who spent decades reporting on Cuba, takes a look back.
Dec 5th, 2008 · The Mars Phoenix Lander hasn't transmitted a signal since Nov. 2. With a cold polar winter approaching and declining light levels, the Lander appears to be gone for good. Ira Flatow looks back at the short but productive life of the planetary explorer.
Nov 27th, 2008 · Japanese zookeepers brought a male polar bear to spend time with a female polar bear. They often played together. But they didn't get along in the way that the zoo was hoping. Only later did the breeders notice a problem. Polar bears of both sexes have relatively long hair. Which is why it took the zoo several months to realize that the male polar bear is actually a female.
Nov 21st, 2008 · The Mars Phoenix Lander hasn't transmitted a signal since Nov. 2. With a cold polar winter approaching and declining light levels, the Lander appears to be gone for good. Ira Flatow looks back at the short, but productive, life of the planetary explorer.
Nov 11th, 2008 · NASA has lost contact with the Mars Phoenix probe, and officials say the mission is over. Phoenix landed in the northern polar region of Mars last May. Mission managers knew this day was coming. It's getting to be winter at the Phoenix landing site, and the few hours of daylight aren't enough for the lander's solar panels to recharge the batteries.
Nov 10th, 2008 · The Mars Phoenix probe landed in the northern polar region of Mars last May. Since then, it has been snapping pictures, making weather measurements and doing chemical analysis on the Martian soil. Managers of the mission now say it is dead.
Sep 12th, 2008 · GOP vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin is a polarizing character in an already fractured electorate. Back home in Alaska, where Palin has enjoyed an 80 percent approval rating, women have mixed reactions now that she has been thrust into the international limelight.
Sep 8th, 2008 · If it happened in the U.S., you might think green polar bears were an early St. Patrick's Day shenanigan. But those bears turned green at the zoo in Tokyo. The Tokyo zoo says the apple-green stain over most of the bears' fur started with an effort to conserve water by changing the bears' pond water less often. That led to more algae, which is difficult to wash out of the bears' thick fur.