Texas
Fort Worth's Sky Elements Will Be Droning North Texas with Fourth of July Celebrations
Last month, the Fort Worth-based drone light show company Sky Elements put their dazzling nighttime sky skills on national TV with an appearance on “America’s Got Talent,” earning a “golden buzzer” from Simon Cowell himself.
The 400-foot-tall, 300-foot wide display in the skies outside the the show’s studio featured a rocket liftoff and an image of Cowell in the sky as a waving, space-walking astronaut, capped by the AGT logo.
“It was really patriotic,” Cowell told the Sky Elements team after the demonstration. “And I think the way you told the story, the use of music, whether you’re 3 years old, whether you’re 100 years old, I think you’re absolutely going to love that audition.”
You can watch that AGT clip here for a cool, behind-the-scenes look at how the team’s drone show takes off.
See for yourself this coming week
Or you can watch Sky Elements in action yourself all over North Texas in the next week:
Tomorrow, Saturday June 29 at Toyota Stadium, Sky Elements will give a performance during FC Dallas’ 7:30 p.m. game against FC Cincinnati.
On Wednesday July 3, Sky Elements will perform Fourth of July shows in two local cities. The first will be the Denton Independence Day celebration at Quakertown Park, with “flight times” at 9:15 p.m. and 11 p.m.
The second will be held Wednesday during day 1 of a 2-day Sparks & Stripes celebration in Irving, with a drone and fireworks show at 9:20 p.m. at Levy Event Plaza over Lake Carolyn.
First drone light show to get FAA fireworks approval
In May, Sky Elements announced that it had become “the first U.S.-based drone light show company to receive FAA approval to attach fireworks to drones.”
The company had been working on obtaining the waiver for 26 months before the FAA finally granted its approval. The FAA green light allows Sky Elements to legally attach and launch fireworks from drones during their shows, creating what they call “pyro drone shows.”
It’s not the first time Sky Elements has made history. On Fourth of July 2023, the company snagged a Guinness World Records title for the largest aerial formation of words created by drones (by using 1,002 drones). Then last December, the company broke two more Guiness World Records with a 1,499-drone show in North Richland Hills.
And when Major League Cricket held its historic opening night last July in Grand Prairie, Sky Elements was there to mark the occasion with a drone light show.
Not just all over North Texas—all over the U.S., too
The DFW shows coming next week are just a glimmer of the stunning amount of events Sky Elements is booked for across the U.S. You can check out the company’s master list of performances by going here—including a patriotically astounding amount of shows it’s doing around this year’s July 4th.
Get on the list.
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Texas
Austin weather: Slight risk for severe storms in Central Texas
AUSTIN, Texas – Rainy, stormy and cooler times are ahead and all the ingredients are coming together for the best chances of rain we have seen in the last two months.
A cold front along with a potent upper low will collide with the warmth and moisture to turn on the spotty light rain during the day and heavy rain and storms tonight.
There is a marginal to slight risk of severe storms and localized flooding.
After the front pushes through, the weather will be wonderful for Election Day with sunny, cooler and drier conditions. Then here comes the next Pacific low to bring back the clouds and rain by the end of the week.
Buckle up, the weather pattern is turning very active all of a sudden.
Most of the rain and storms will happen tonight. The Storm Prediction Center has upgraded us to a SLIGHT risk of severe storms. This means isolated severe storms are possible generating moderate sized hail and damaging winds.
Two rounds of storms are possible:
- First round: 3 – 5pm (isolated coverage)
- Second round: 6pm – 12am (numerous coverage)
Threats will be quarter sized hail, wind gusts of 50 – 60mph and there will be a low tornado risk.
The highest risk for hail will be along I-35 corridor and the highest risk of damaging winds from Austin to La Grange.
Rain totals are expected to be about .5 to 1″ with isolated spots possibly getting 1-2″.
Minor flooding with low-water crossings possible.
Texas
Where can I watch the College Football Playoff rankings for Texas A&M football?
Mike Elko refutes reports that comments directed at Jimbo Fisher
Texas A&M coach Mike Elko’s postgame comments caught fire on social media. But Elko says they weren’t about Jimbo Fisher or any other coach.
Texas A&M football may have lost on Saturday to South Carolina, but they’re still in the running for one of the 12 spots in the College Football Playoff.
The Aggies are one of five teams in the Southeastern Conference with one conference loss. LSU, Alabama, Georgia and Texas also have one loss, opening the teams to some very complex tiebreaking scenarios.
This Tuesday, the CFP selection committee will release its first edition of the weekly rankings and the first projection of the playoff. Texas A&M is currently ranked 10th in the AP Poll and 11th in the US LBM Coaches Poll, but their recent loss should send them a ways down the standings.
Texas A&M running back Le’Veon Moss suffered an injury to his right leg in the first quarter versus South Carolina, pushing Amari Daniels into the starting role. Texas A&M coach Mike Elko says that Marcel Reed is the “starter now” after the game versus South Carolina, but the redshirt freshman committed multiple turnovers against the Gamecocks.
Texas A&M still has to face New Mexico State, Auburn and Texas. Even with the upcoming projections, there are a lot of different ways this could all play out.
Here’s everything you need to know about the CFP rankings reveal:
How to watch College Football Playoff rankings show
The College Football Playoff rankings show will air on ESPN, with the broadcast starting at 6 p.m. CT on Tuesday, Nov. 5. Fans can also stream the show on Fubo, which is offering a free trial.
College Football Playoff rankings release date
The first rankings will be announced on Nov. 5 A new rankings will be released every Tuesday through Dec. 5.
What time is CFP rankings?
The broadcast will start at 6 p.m. CT on Tuesday.
Texas A&M football CFP rankings projection
Coming into Week 10, ESPN’s CFP Playoff predictor had Texas A&M with a 47% chance to make the playoff, but it hasn’t updated with the recent loss. Those odds fall to less than 40% after the defeat, per pregame projections.
If the Aggies win out and make the SEC title game, ESPN has them as the third-seed with a first-round bye, facing either sixth-seed Georgia or 11th-seed Tennessee.
Losing the title game would give Texas A&M a 67% chance to make the playoff as the 12th-seed. They would face fifth-seed Notre Dame in the first round. If the Aggies lose to the Longhorns in their final game of the season, their odds drop to 13%.
How many teams in College Football Playoff 2024?
There will be 12 participating teams in the College Football Playoff bracket. The teams will consist of the five conference champions ranked highest by the CFP selection committee, and the next seven highest-ranked teams.
How does College Football Playoff format work?
The four highest-ranked conference champions will be seeded one through four and receive a first-round bye. The fifth conference champion will be seeded where it was ranked or at No. 12 if it is outside the top 12 in the CFP rankings. Non-conference champions ranked in the top four will be seeded beginning at No. 5.
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Texas
Texas sees record early voting numbers as poll workers protect the integrity of the process
HARRIS COUNTY, Texas (KTRK) — Millions of Texans will head to the polls on Tuesday, but almost half of all registered voters in the Lone Star state have already cast their ballots.
After a much-criticized election in 2022, Harris County eliminated the election administrator position and returned the authority to the county clerk, Teneshia Hudspeth. She said they are well prepared for Tuesday’s vote.
“It is going to be interesting. It is an important time in our country,” poll worker Garfield Teixeira said.
Teixeria has served on the front lines in more ways than one.
First, she served in the army for 22 years, but now, she’s on the front lines of democracy.
“We’re like Santa’s helpers. We’re like elves,” Teixeira said.
To Teixeira, a polling center is one of Santa’s many workshops.
She’s been helping out in Brazoria County during early voting.
“Friday, we had a lot of first-time voters. We welcomed them, and we tell them we should have a bell. Like, when you buy a car, to ring, to acknowledge them,” Teixeira said.
So far, 8.9 million Texans have voted early, including in-person and mail-in ballots. That’s about 47% of the 18.6 million registered voters.
It is less than the vote percentage in 2020, about 57%, but due to the pandemic, we had an extra week of early voting.
“The turnout has been tremendous,” Teixeira said.
Scrutiny of the election process has grown more intense, increasing the pressure on poll workers to perform flawlessly.
“I always pull up my information and refresh myself because… from one election to another. That is a big span of time,” Shaikil Grisham, who worked as a poll worker before moving to Texas, said.
Election monitors are tools used by the Department of Justice to keep an eye on any violations.
On Friday, top Texas election officials informed the DOJ that election monitors are not allowed in Texas polling places.
The agency had originally announced plans to dispatch machines to eight Texas counties.
The Texas secretary of state will send monitors to Harris County. The County welcomes those monitors as it has in previous elections.
For updates on this story, follow Alex Bozarjian on Facebook, X and Instagram.
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