Latest news with #Ophelia
Yahoo
5 days ago
- Science
- Yahoo
All-girl team from Rockford middle school wins national STEM competition
ROCKFORD, Ill. (WTVO) — A group of Rockford 6th graders has scored first place in the national Cal Ripken Sr. STEM Challenge. The all-girl Team Zip Zoom is from Marshall Middle School, including Victoria McCallister, Adalia Moyer, Zoe Fosse, Ophelila McClellan, and Lydia Ruffner. 'We really got introduced to this challenge by our teacher, who, like, told us about it, and we were interested in it. So we were like, 'Let's give this a shot,'' said Zoe. The competition challenges teams from around the nation to create a device that helps reduce pollution or cleans up the environment. 'We drew a lot of inspiration from our experiences with the Rock River and all of the other rivers in town,' said Ophelia. The team created a 4-step process to address shoreline pollution. 'The first part is Ziggy, our mascot. The next step is Zip, which is a drone that has a light on the bottom so it can locate any trash or shoreline pollution. Zoom is a rover that we built. Its job is to collect the trash that was located by Zip, the drone. Zap is a recycling center that will recycle the trash brought in by Zoom,' the group explained. When the team learned they would be advancing to the final competition in Baltimore, Maryland, what started as a fun lunchtime activity became more serious. 'I think, before, our goals were just like, 'How will we just try and get as far as we can?' But once we learned that we were going to Baltimore, we were like, 'Let's win this thing!'' Ophelia said. They ended up securing first place in the competition. 'It also felt kind of like surreal because like the other groups also got this far and it was actually really awesome to have like the entire giant board, just like applauding, showing that kids are awesome,' Victoria said. Teacher and Coach Stacey Wallace said the competition helped all the girls grow as engineers. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
5 days ago
- General
- Yahoo
Wisconsin zoo: Escaped otter 'made the decision' to be wild
June 5 (UPI) -- A Wisconsin zoo announced it has called off the search for an otter on the loose since March, explaining the animal "has made the decision to be a wild otter." The New Zoo & Adventure Park in Green Bay previously revealed two otters, Louie and Ophelia, escaped from their enclosure during a snowstorm March 20. Ophelia was recaptured and returned to the zoo April 2, but Louie has proved to be more elusive. "At no point during his time away has Louie been spotted (and reported to us) repeatedly in the same yard or waterway, which is what would have been required to set traps to bring him home," the zoo said on social media. "We did, however, receive enough reports of sightings in similar areas that lead us to believe that he is healthy and surviving well." The zoo said Louie was born in the wild and is believed to have all of the skills and instincts he would need to survive on his own. "We expect that he's doing just fine out there," the post said. The zoo said it is working with the North American River Otter Species Survival Plan to try to find a new mate for Ophelia.
UPI
5 days ago
- General
- UPI
Wisconsin zoo: Escaped otter 'made the decision' to be wild
June 5 (UPI) -- A Wisconsin zoo announced it has called off the search for an otter on the loose since March, explaining the animal "has made the decision to be a wild otter." The New Zoo & Adventure Park in Green Bay previously revealed two otters, Louie and Ophelia, escaped from their enclosure during a snowstorm March 20. Ophelia was recaptured and returned to the zoo April 2, but Louie has proved to be more elusive. "At no point during his time away has Louie been spotted (and reported to us) repeatedly in the same yard or waterway, which is what would have been required to set traps to bring him home," the zoo said on social media. "We did, however, receive enough reports of sightings in similar areas that lead us to believe that he is healthy and surviving well." The zoo said Louie was born in the wild and is believed to have all of the skills and instincts he would need to survive on his own. "We expect that he's doing just fine out there," the post said. The zoo said it is working with the North American River Otter Species Survival Plan to try to find a new mate for Ophelia.
Yahoo
03-06-2025
- General
- Yahoo
‘He has made the decision to be wild': NEW Zoo & Adventure Park provides update on missing otter Louie
SUAMICO, Wis. (WFRV) – After over two months of searching and awaiting the return of runaway Louie, the NEW Zoo and Adventure Park says it has ended efforts to locate the missing otter. Louie and Ophelia went missing after escaping their habitats on Thursday, March 20, but on March 28, the . Wisconsin Department of Transportation warning residents of fake DMV link scams Unfortunately, the search for Louie has been unsuccessful, and as of May 30, the NEW Zoo and Adventure Park said that they will no longer continue search efforts for the missing otter. 'Due to the length of time that Louie has been missing, we believe he has made the decision to be a wild otter,' the post said. 'We accept this, although we would, of course, welcome him home if he decides to return.' In the nearly 2.5 months since Louie's adventure away, he has not been spotted in the same yard or area of search efforts. Had he been spotted, traps would've been set to bring him home. However, the NEW Zoo and Adventure Park mentioned that enough reports of sightings in similar areas lead staff to believe Louie will be just fine to survive as a wild otter. Door County Sheriff's Deputy rescues fawn born after mother deer hit by a car Instead, the staff is working with the North American River Otter Species Survival Plan to find another male otter to mate with Ophelia. Additional details will be provided as they become available. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Time Out
28-05-2025
- Climate
- Time Out
New Yorkers can expect a harsher-than-normal hurricane season this year—here's what to know
Pack an umbrella—and maybe start stockpiling batteries. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) has just dropped its 2025 Atlantic hurricane season forecast, and it's sounding the alarm: New Yorkers, brace for a stormier-than-usual stretch between June 1 and November 30. This year, there's a 60-percent chance of an above-normal hurricane season along the Atlantic coast, with 13 to 19 named storms expected. Of those, six to ten could become hurricanes, and three to five might intensify into major ones, packing winds of 111 mph or higher. Yikes. The culprit is a perfect cocktail of storm-brewing conditions: bathtub-warm Atlantic waters, low wind shear and a feisty West African Monsoon system, which often births the biggest, baddest hurricanes. The usual Atlantic hurricane dampener, El Niño, isn't swooping in to save the day either. We're in a 'neutral' ENSO year, meaning nothing's stopping storms from spinning up. 'This outlook is a call to action: be prepared,' said National Weather Service Director Ken Graham. The message is clear: don't wait until a hurricane's on your doorstep to check your flashlights. If this sounds like a rerun of the past few years, well, it kind of is. In 2023, Tropical Storm Ophelia flooded Brooklyn. In 2021, the remnants of Ida turned subways into swimming pools. And who could forget 2012's Sandy, which turned Lower Manhattan into Venice-on-the-Hudson? The good news? NOAA is beefing up its forecasting muscle. This season, storm advisories may come as early as 72 hours before landfall, and a new radar system (nicknamed ROARS) will scan hurricane guts from hurricane hunter planes. There's even an experimental rainfall tracker that could give you a three-day heads-up before flash floods hit. Still, while tech helps, it doesn't replace common sense. Make your prep list now: batteries, water, pet food, backup chargers and yes, more snacks—because in a city where storms can shut down subways and flood entire neighborhoods overnight, being unprepared just isn't an option.
