Stories by Paul Caine

NASA’S Ingenuity helicopter takes flight on Mars. We get an update on the space agency’s most ambitious mission to date on the Red Planet from local astronomer and space enthusiast Mark Hammergren. 

U.S. Attorney John Lausch was hospitalized Saturday after suffering from stroke-like symptoms, according to the spokesperson for the U.S. attorney’s office for the Northern District of Illinois. Lausch, 51, returned to work on Monday, his spokesperson said.

We learn about the new, free showcase with Greg Ward and Jumaane Taylor, the saxophonist and tap dancer with the Hyde Park Jazz Fest who are performing in the series.

The number of local home sales has skyrocketed, driving prices in the Chicago metro area to all-time highs. That’s translated into lightning-fast turnover as people put their homes up for sale — as well as a decline in inventory.

A real estate boom has homebuyers hustling. A trip to Mars — and a fascinating celestial show to watch from Earth. Our Spotlight Politics team on the mayor’s email hack and infighting in the GOP.

Devontay Anderson has been charged in federal court with fleeing Illinois to avoid prosecution for the killing of 7-year-old Jaslyn Adams outside a West Side McDonald's last month, according to an FBI affidavit.

It’s illegal to forage in Cook County forest preserves. Every year, 100 citations are issued for poaching, a significant number of which involve ramps, the wild leek that gave Chicago its name.

Ald. David Moore (17th Ward) is one of three Chicago elected officials running for secretary of state in 2022.

There is no gasoline shortage, according to government officials and energy analysts. But there is a problem getting the fuel from refineries on the Gulf Coast to the states that need it, and officials are scrambling to find alternate routes to deliver that fuel.

Stuart Nitzkin, the former head of a suburban nonprofit supporting physically and psychologically challenged children, pleaded guilty to stealing money from the organization and using it to pay for golf, family vacations and tickets to sporting events.

As schools across Illinois welcome back more students for in-person learning, state officials have announced a new investment to increase access to COVID-19 testing “at low or no cost.”

The Enjoy Illinois campaign targets residents of Illinois’ border states and seeks to capitalize on what officials say is an increasing desire from those weary of the pandemic to travel by car.

A Minnesota judge has ruled that there were aggravating factors in the death of George Floyd, paving the way for the possibility of a longer sentence for Derek Chauvin, according to an order made public Wednesday.

Approximately 12.6 million U.S. households got a new pet last year after the pandemic was declared in March 2020, according to a COVID-19 Pulse Study by the American Pet Products Association.

A new WBEZ series examines how Chicago’s institutions interact with its residents. Sasha-Ann Simons, the station’s new host of “Reset,” joins us.

Although five Democrats are already jockeying to replace Secretary of State Jesse White, Ald. Walter Burnett (27th Ward) told WTTW News he will not run to replace his political godfather. 

U.S. births dropped to their lowest level in more than 40 years in 2020, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. How the pandemic is impacting family planning. 

For extra help with its massive $2.1 billion modernization project, the CTA hired a joint venture made up of three firms, including a locally owned company that started in a South Side attic. Rashod Johnson tells us about his company and his love of civil engineering.

Vaccine eligibility is expanding. We speak with Dr. Allison Bartlett, a pediatrician and associate professor of the pediatrics section of infectious diseases at University of Chicago Medicine, to learn more about vaccinating young people.

A cyberattack on a critical U.S. pipeline is sending ripple effects across the economy, highlighting cybersecurity vulnerabilities in the nation’s aging energy infrastructure.

Chicago’s top doctor says cases of COVID-19 are now concentrated among young, Black Chicagoans who live on the city’s South Side.

Members of Congress on Middle East tensions and more. Where to get kids 12 and up vaccinated. Declining birth rates in the U.S. The race to replace Jesse White. And meet WBEZ’s new afternoon host.

A trio of U.S. Army soldiers in Tennessee have been charged with funneling illegal firearms to Chicago that were found after a mass shooting earlier this year that left one person dead and several others wounded on the city’s Southwest Side.

The second-longest serving alderman on the City Council missed the deadline to pay a $5,000 fine to resolve charges that she accepted $48,500 in excessive campaign contributions. The Chicago Board of Ethics voted unanimously Monday to refer the matter to the city’s Law Department.

As the shutdown of a major fuel pipeline entered into its fifth day, efforts are under way to stave off potential fuel shortages, though no widespread disruptions were evident.

Figures released Tuesday by the American Gaming Association, the casino industry’s national trade group, show the nation’s commercial casinos took in over $11.1 billion in the first quarter of this year.