China on Friday launched a lunar probe to land on the far side of the moon and return with samples that could provide insights into differences between the less-explored region and the better-known near side.

It is the latest advance in China’s increasingly sophisticated space exploration program, which is now competing with the U.S., still the leader in space.

China also has a three-member crew on its own orbiting space station and aims to put astronauts on the moon by 2030. Three Chinese lunar probe missions are planned over the next four years.

Arizona Gov. Katie Hobbs’ signing of the repeal of a Civil War-era ban on nearly all abortions was a stirring occasion for the women working to ensure that the 19th century law remains in the past.

Current and former state lawmakers, and reproductive rights advocates crowded into the 9th floor rotunda outside Hobbs’ office Thursday afternoon, hugging and taking selfies to capture the moment. Some wept.

“It’s a historic moment, and it’s a place and time where thrilling moments all come together,” Democratic Rep. Stephanie Stahl Hamilton said during the signing ceremony. “It’s a time where we are doing away with what is in the past that doesn’t fit the present.”

Stahl and Sen. Anna Hernandez, also a Democrat, were the two current lawmakers chosen to speak at the ceremony for their efforts to ensure repeal of the long-dormant law that bans all abortions except those done to save a patient’s life.

St. Thomas President Robert Vischer sent an email to all students Thursday morning, addressing the protests on college campuses surrounding the Israel-Hamas war.

The email was sent after pro-Palestine protests spread across college campuses nationwide, calling for universities to divest from Israel and cease study abroad programs in the country.

The full story can be read here.

Kevin Strus can be reached at kevin.strus@stthomas.edu.