New York governor Kathy Hochul declared a state disaster emergency as measles cases rose across rural parts of the state and neighboring areas. The order broadens the group of health professionals authorized to administer vaccines and allows more people to order measles tests, supporting local efforts to contain transmission. New York has recorded 108 confirmed cases so far in 2026, compared with one in 2023, 15 in 2024 and 48 in 2025. Of this year’s cases, 101 were outside New York City; 92 have occurred since 15 July in underimmunized rural communities.
The increase is part of a wider outbreak: Pennsylvania has reported 198 hospitalizations and five deaths, and passed 1,000 cases, while Ohio has also seen a rise. The United States has recorded nearly 3,900 cases this year, its worst measles year since 1991. Lower vaccination rates, including in communities with sizable Amish populations, have helped the disease spread after it was eliminated from domestic US transmission in 2000. Public health officials say at least 95% of a community must be vaccinated to prevent outbreaks. Hochul framed the emergency measures as a way to prevent serious illness and death from a vaccine-preventable disease. State senator Gustavo Rivera attributed the surge to declining childhood vaccination driven by misinformation, while federal health secretary Robert F Kennedy Jr has faced criticism over his response and his public appearance at an anti-vaccine conference.
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An amateur astronomer used Claude Code and other AI tools to sift through TESS data and identify a possible planet orbiting star TIC 4206066, about 116 light-years away. Repeated brightness dips suggest a planet roughly 1.4 times Earth’s size with a 3.18-day orbit, but the discovery still requires scientific confirmation. (gizmodo.com)
An 80-cent maternal drape collects and measures blood during childbirth, helping midwives detect dangerous postpartum hemorrhage early. In a Kano hospital, staff used the warning to treat a mother quickly, illustrating how the low-cost tool is helping prevent maternal deaths across Africa. (nytimes.com)
Colorectal cancers in younger patients show distinct cellular and genetic features compared with cancers in older patients. These differences could help researchers develop more tailored ways to detect and treat the disease. (dana-farber.org)
Mars’s Valles Marineris canyon system remains tectonically active, with recent marsquakes indicating that faults in the region still move. Researchers link this activity to ongoing stresses in the planet’s crust, rather than to plate tectonics like Earth’s. (lamont.columbia.edu)
Sad nipple syndrome describes brief sadness or unease triggered by light nipple stimulation, such as drying off or changing clothes. It is not a recognized medical condition, and research is limited; doctors suspect hormonal pathways may be involved. (en.wikipedia.org)
CNN’s page is inaccessible, so its claims about humans halting the next ice age can’t be verified from the provided content. The headline suggests human activity has disrupted the natural climate conditions that would begin another ice age. (cnn.com)
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