Good morning from Iowa Capital Dispatch.
“… [D]ecades from now, when the history books look back on this moment — the moment humanity became a true spacefaring civilization — the people responsible, the generation that will have made it happen, are represented right here in this room.” — National Aeronautics and Space Administration Administrator Jared Isaacman, encouraging Iowa State University students to direct their education and skills toward NASA’s moon base program.
NextEra Energy staff are working to upgrade systems at Duane Arnold Energy Center, pictured here on Sept. 8, 2026, as the plant seeks to be recommissioned. (Photo by Cami Koons/Iowa Capital Dispatch)
The U.S. Department of Energy has closed on a loan of up to $1.9 billion to support the restart of Iowa’s only nuclear energy station, Duane Arnold Energy Center.
U.S. Deputy Secretary of Energy James Danly said Tuesday in Palo the “unmothballing” of sites like Duane Arnold are part of a larger strategy from President Donald Trump to “quadruple” the amount of nuclear energy in the nation by 2050.
NASA Moon Base Project Manager Carlos García-Galán speaks at Iowa State University Sept. 8, 2026, about the mission to establish a permanent base on the moon. (Photo by Brooklyn Draisey/Iowa Capital Dispatch)
State and federal officials connected to U.S. space exploration detailed plans of eventual moon habitation Tuesday to a room packed to the brim with Iowa State University students, hoping to entice their interest in using their education to aid in the newest space race.
National Aeronautics and Space Administration Administrator Jared Isaacman and Moon Base Project Manager Carlos García-Galán toured the Ames National Laboratory and then held a presentation for ISU students to show the three phases of moon base development.
With a statewide average weekly temperature of 79.8 degrees Fahrenheit, Iowa had one of its hottest starts to September on record, according to State Climatologist Justin Glisan.
The University of Iowa has launched a national search for a new financial leader, with plans to shift other leadership responsibilities.
Canada’s retaliatory tariffs on American goods kicked in Tuesday, escalating a trade war with one of the largest U.S. trading partners that President Donald Trump continued to antagonize over the holiday weekend.
The hotly contested U.S. Postal Service rule restricting mail-in voting usurps Congress’ authority, as well as states’ power to administer elections, more than 250 current and former members of Congress said in a filing to the U.S. Supreme Court on Tuesday.
Three states this year have enacted laws that require or allow schools to use mobile, wearable, wireless or silent panic alarms to quickly summon emergency responders, Stateline reports.
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