Calling all stargazers! Break out the binoculars and dust off your telescopes, this weekend is your best opportunity to sneak a glimpse of the Comet 12P/Pons-Brooks before it moves out of our view. Affectionately known as the “devil comet“, thanks to its horseshoe-like appearance, Comet 12P/Pons-Brooks will be at its perihelion, or closest point to the sun, this Sunday, April 21. Comet 12P/Pons-Brooks is not exceptionally bright, even at its near-peak brightness, so sky conditions are going to be key to maximal viewing. Saturday evening is expected to be mostly clear, while Sunday looks partly ..read more

A man set himself on fire outside the courtroom where former President Donald Trump is facing charges in a hush money case, witnesses and officials said. The person, identified as Maxwell Azzarello, set himself aflame after walking into Collect Pond Park around 1:30 p.m. Friday, in the designated protest area across the street from the courthouse in lower Manhattan where Trump’s trial is taking place, according to NYPD Chief of Department Jeffrey Maddrey. He started shuffling around his clothes and opened a backpack, taking out pamphlets and throwing them around the small park. Azzarello then ..read more

What to Know The Queens Crew is a new 19-member and co-ed hype team for the Mets that will be entertaining crowds at Citi Field Long Island mother Gina Mormando is the head coach and choreographer of the squad, made up of members from the New York City metro area The Mets join other MLB teams, such as the Braves and Astros, in launching their very own dance team The New York Mets are bringing a new type of entertainment to Citi Field that will have fans dancing from the Jackie Robinson Rotunda to the dugout. Meet The Queens Crew, a 19-member co-ed hype team for the “Amazins” aimed ..read more

We have a play call from Taylor Swift: “Call the amateurs and cut them from the team!” The second-to-last song on “The Tortured Poets Department,” “The Alchemy,” is one of the only pure love songs on an album that skews melancholy. This is a story of a love that “happens once every few lifetimes,” Swift’s narrator sings. Alchemy refers to the quest in ancient and Medieval times to find a philosopher’s stone, which would make it possible to turn any substance, like lead, into gold. In the context of relationships, like this song, alchemy could suggest the meeting of two people to form something ..read more

A New Jersey school district that canceled classes a day ago out of an abundance of caution after getting an emailed bomb threat has received another one, authorities said Friday. Marlboro Township Schools opted to delay school openings by two hours as authorities investigated. Details on the nature of the threat weren’t clear, though the superintendent said it was similar to the threat made on Thursday. The delayed opening was the initial plan for the district, which enrolls nearly 5,000 students in pre-K-8th grade, that day but administrators chose to close to allow a thorough investigation ..read more

The final jurors were seated Friday in Donald Trump’s hush money trial, and an appellate judge rejected the former president’s latest bid to halt the case as a hectic day in court set the stage for opening statements to begin Monday. The panel of New Yorkers who will decide the first criminal trial of a former U.S. president took final shape after lawyers spent days quizzing dozens of potential jurors on whether they can impartially judge Trump in the city where he built his real estate empire before being elected in 2016. The trial thrusts Trump’s legal problems into the heart of his hotly co ..read more

Taylor Swift shocked her fans early Friday morning by releasing a second half of her much-anticipated album “The Tortured Poets Department.” After the first 16 songs were made available at midnight, a countdown appeared on her website indicating something else would be coming at 2 a.m. ET. Shortly after 2 a.m., Swift announced that “Tortured Poets” is a “secret double album.” “I’d written so much tortured poetry in the past 2 years and wanted to share it all with you, so here’s the second installment of TTPD: The Anthology. 15 extra songs. And now the story isn’t mine anymore… it’s all yours ..read more

When it comes to deciphering clues, Swifties are only second to Sherlock Holmes. Taylor Swift has given her fans plenty to speculate about in the run-up to the release of her new album, “The Tortured Poets Department.” Last week, the singer released five Apple Music playlists, each featuring a selection of her own past songs, that correspond to the five stages of grief (denial, anger, bargaining, depression and acceptance) and may hint at the themes of her upcoming album. Then, on April 13, Apple Music marked the final countdown to her 11th studio album, which drops April 1 ..read more

The sound. The sensation. The subway sleepiness. No doubt you’ve been there after a long day at work or school, or any long day. Grabbing a seat on the train, you start scrolling through your phone, and as the subway rumbles forward, your eyes grow heavier and heavier.  Suddenly, you’re awake. Your phone is gone. Your apps, your pictures, your contacts, your personal information all gone as well. Sadly, you would not be alone in having this happen to you — and the NYPD is sounding the alarm on the trend.  “It’s one of the lowest levels of theft. If you think about like it’s just some ..read more

Israel carried out a military strike in Iran early Friday morning , according to NBC News, but Iranian officials played down the impact of the attack.   The Israeli strike was limited and officials were assessing the effectiveness and the damage caused, a source familiar with the situation told NBC News. “A lot will depend on how much damage was done inside of Iran,” former CIA Director John Brennan said on MSNBC. “What CIA is doing right now is trying to determine exactly what that damage is, and trying to then see how the Iranians are going to react,” Brennan added. A spokesperson for t ..read more