A Chinese national has been charged with acting as an illegal agent for Beijing when serving as the campaign manager for an unnamed local California politician.

A cryptocurrency entrepreneur who had bought a piece of conceptual art consisting of a simple banana, duct-taped to a wall, for $6.2 million last week ate the fruit in Hong Kong on Friday.

A piece of conceptual art consisting of a banana duct-taped to a wall has sold for $6.2 million at an auction in New York.

The decision by New York prosecutors to charge a former aide to the New York governor this week with acting as an illegal agent for the Chinese government has raised concerns about China’s efforts to influence U.S. politics.

The arrest of a former aide to two New York governors highlights a broad effort by the federal government to root out covert agents advancing China’s interests on American soil.

Federal prosecutors say a former aide to two New York governors has been charged with acting as an undisclosed agent of the Chinese government.

Amazing weekend conditions before we significantly heat up

Plenty of sun today, with rain returning later this week.

A new program is fighting food insecurity. Virginia’s SUN bucks provides eligible kids with a $120 credit for groceries.

The WNBA annual Commissioner’s Cup gets underway this week using a new format for the in-season tournament.

If you’ve ever spotted cars with chameleon, chrome-like finishes, patterns such as stripes and camouflage, or just an off-beat pink or lime green, you’ve likely seen a vinyl wrap.

Space weather forecasters have issued a geomagnetic storm watch through Monday.

It all has to do with Earth's non-circular orbit around the sun

Astronomers have discovered what may be the brightest object in the universe.

North Korea says it's hosting a Chinese government delegation led by Vice Foreign Minister Sun Weidong, as it continues its efforts to strengthen ties with Beijing and Moscow.

A new study suggests water on Mars may be more widespread and recent than previously thought.

Temperatures rise to around 80 before rain arrives

Sun and Spruce Soaps is a Roanoke, Virginia based small batch soap company established in 2020 by husband/wife team Krissy and Wes Reynolds. The dream began while hiking and talking in rural West Virginia; we came home and made it a reality!

Pongal Festival Celebration by Roanoke Valley Indian Community “Pongal - The Festival of New Beginning” Roanoke Valley Tamil language speaking families of Indian community are planning to celebrate this year Pongal Festival on 28th January between 11 to 3pm at Lions Club located at Roanoke Southwest County. On this day, a traditional Pongal prayer in Tamil heritage followed by traditional Banana leaves special meal with Cultural programs by children is planned.

Astronomers have discovered the closest known black hole to Earth, just 1,600 light-years away.

Happy Monday and welcome to another edition of Beyond The Forecast!

Happy Monday and welcome to another edition of Beyond The Forecast!

WNBA enters final month of the season with 11 of 12 teams in contention for playoff spots and five franchises within three games of each other atop the standings.

The Select Committee is investigating the January 6th attack on the United States Capitol.

Scattered storms return to the forecast Tuesday and Wednesday

Last week's storm system comes back onshore to send more rain our way

Trimetazidine, known as TMZ, is a drug used to treat angina and other heart-related conditions. Why is it banned in sports?

Happy Tuesday and welcome to another edition of the Beyond The Forecast newsletter! You can thank our recent snow for the one-day delay.

A NASA spacecraft has officially “touched” the sun, plunging through the unexplored solar atmosphere known as the corona.

Temperatures reach the 80s in parts of the area in the second half of the week

China won the women's team event at the Olympics for the fourth straight Games.

Happy Monday and welcome to another edition of Beyond The Forecast!

Chen Meng won an all-Chinese matchup to take the gold medal in women's table tennis Thursday at the Tokyo Olympics.

A new study says there are lots of stars and planets in our galactic neighborhood that can get a good glimpse of Earth and its civilization.

(AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein, File)GENEVA – The Swiss supreme court explained Friday why it has ordered a retrial for Olympic swimming champion Sun Yang in a doping case, citing anti-China bias related to killing dogs for food by one of the judges in the case. Hostile social media posts on Twitter by Court of Arbitration for Sport judge Franco Frattini persuaded the federal court he should not have presided over banning the Chinese swimmer. “In his tweets, the arbitrator (Frattini) castigates a Chinese practice of dog slaughter and denounces the consumption of this meat at a local festival in China,” the Swiss court said in a statement. After CAS published its verdict last February, Sun's lawyers appealed to the Swiss supreme court. The 10-hour hearing in Montreux, Switzerland, was a rare CAS case held in open court, at the three-time Olympic champion’s request, and streamed live online.

At stake in a second CAS hearing would be Yang’s chance to compete at the pandemic-delayed 2020 Tokyo Olympics now set for July 2021. The Swiss court ruling appears to have swung on an objection by Sun’s lawyers to the chairman of the three-judge panel, former Italian foreign minister Franco Frattini. It is even possible to overturn a CAS verdict in the federal court and still lose the re-trial. When Canas went to federal court, Swiss judges ruled his right to be heard had been breached and sent back the case. Immediately, Sun said he planned to appeal to the Swiss Federal Tribunal, which is Switzerland’s highest court.

FILE - In this Tuesday, Oct. 13, 2020 file photo, actor Tom Cruise wears a face mask to prevent the spread of COVID-19 as he greets fans during a break from shooting Mission Impossible 7, along Rome's Fori Imperiali avenue. Tom Cruise has launched an expletive-laden rant at colleagues on the set of his latest Mission: Impossible movie after he reportedly spotted two workers failing to abide by social distancing rules. (AP Photo/Andrew Medichini, file)LONDON – Tom Cruise has launched an expletive-laden rant at colleagues on the set of his latest "Mission: Impossible" movie, after he reportedly spotted two workers failing to respect social distancing rules. Many movies have either been delayed until after the pandemic is over or because of COVID-related delays on set, including the seventh instalment of the “Mission: Impossible” franchise. During his outburst, Cruise notes the higher costs for insuring a movie in these times.

ROANOKE, Va. - Hope you kept your solar eclipse glasses from a few years ago, because they'll be put to good use on Monday, November 11. This is when the planet, Mercury, will move in between the earth and Sun. (Mercury and Venus are the only two planets to do so). Mercury is so small in comparison to the sun, so binoculars and/or a telescope will help. When using these methods, make sure you're using the proper solar films on the front lens; not on the eyepiece.

The United Launch Alliance Delta IV Heavy rocket launches NASA's Parker Solar Probe to touch the Sun from Launch Complex 37 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station on August 12, 2018 in Cape Canaveral, Florida. (CNN) - NASA's Parker Solar Probe launched a year ago on a mission to touch the sun. He was the first the theorize solar wind, the flow of charged gases from the sun, present in most of the solar system. WISPR has returned images of the solar wind streaming out from the sun from its first pass in November. The mission's objectives include "tracing the flow of energy that heats and accelerates the sun's corona and solar wind, determining the structure and dynamics of the plasma and magnetic fields at the sources of the solar wind and explore mechanisms that accelerate and transport energetic particles."

SOUTH KINGSTOWN, R.I. (AP) - An Iowa man police say came to Rhode Island with a backpack full of burglary tools to visit Taylor Swift has been held without bail pending a competency hearing. The Sun of Westerly reports 32-year-old David Page Liddle was held at a court hearing Thursday after authorities said there were concerns he was a flight risk and had previously been accused of stalking the singer. He had been held on $10,000 bail after his arrest July 19 not far from Swifts beachfront mansion. The Des Moines man is charged with possession of burglary tools and possession of a weapon other than a firearm. Police Chief Shawn Lacey says Liddle told officers he was looking to catch up with Swift and knew her personally.

The first coast-to-coast total solar eclipse in 99 years zooms across the country. No need to break out the eclipse glasses this year (unless you live within the path of totality): Astronomy lovers can livestream Tuesday's total solar eclipse over South America from the comfort of just about anywhere with WiFi. Along with Argentina and Chile, Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia, Paraguay and Uruguay will experience a partial solar eclipse, as well as parts of Colombia, Brazil, Venezuela and Panama, according to NASA. August 2017 marked the last time all of North America caught a glimpse of a total solar eclipse. The path of totality ran from Oregon to South Carolinathe first time in 99 years a total solar eclipse crossed the Atlantic and Pacific.