Rocket engines: A team of mechanical engineering professors at LSU is working with NASA to develop better materials for space launches, according to an LSU announcement. Funded by NASA’s Established Program to Stimulate Competitive Research and a Louisiana Board of Regents grant, LSU professors Shengmin Guo and Michael Khonsari are researching new metal alloys to reduce the cost and time it takes to produce components used in rocket engines. Read more about the project.
Added strain: An explosion at a Freeport LNG production facility in Texas could knock the plant offline for at least three weeks, company officials said Thursday, roiling global energy markets at a time when supplies are already stretched thin, The Washington Post reports. The natural gas liquefaction plant is one of the largest in the world and is a major exporter to Britain and other parts of Europe. A prolonged closure of the Freeport facility could have a significant effect on energy prices, experts warn. Read more.
Spending cuts: The federal budget ran a $66 billion deficit during May, a 50% decline from a year earlier as the government slashed spending on pandemic programs, according to The Wall Street Journal. Federal outlays in May fell by 24% to $455 billion, not adjusting for calendar differences, the Treasury Department reported this morning. Read more.
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