December 11, 2020

Daily COVID deaths reached a record high of 3,100 yesterday in the United States, with a total number of 106,600 patients hospitalized nationwide–the highest number ever according to the COVID Tracking Project. The total number of deaths has reached 289,529, and the average of daily new cases is over 200,000. Over the past week, there have been 1.2 million new cases. According to the Minnesota-based Center for Infectious Disease and Research Policy (CIDRAP), the World Health Organization’s weekly epidemiological report showed just under 4 million reported cases worldwide in the last seven days, half of which are in the Americas. 

According to the New York Times a third of Americans now live in areas which don’t have enough ICU capacity. Hospitals serving more than 100 million Americans have fewer than 15% ICU beds available. Total COVID cases in the U.S. now amount to 15,285,261 according to the Johns Hopkins COVID dashboard.

A team of 45 medical personnel has been deployed to Wisconsin by the Defense Department to augment medical staff in hospitals overwhelmed by a flood of COVID19 patients. The facilities are in an area of Wisconsin with some of the highest and most sustained rates of COVID-19 infections. The Marshfield Clinic system, which oversees the facilities receiving help, has been utilizing volunteers from a state emergency assistance program “but the need for more staff to meet patient demand remains a challenge,” Marshfield Clinic Health System CEO Susan Turney said, reported the {Milwaukee Journal Sentinel}. “Because of the prolonged and intense nature of this crisis, many hospitals are near full capacity and medical staff is exhausted,” she said in a Dec. 9 statement. Wisconsin  Gov. Tony Evers called the military support “crucial” and thanked the DOD for providing it.

The Americas showed a 12% increase in cases over the previous week After the U.S., Brazil showed the next highest number of new cases with 295,000 –a 35% increase over the previous week.  Dr. Carissa Etienne, Director of the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO), the regional adjunct of the WHO,  warned in a Dec. 9 press conference that Brazil’s health and hospital system is at the breaking point, and that Colombia and Paraguay are also struggling to deal with increasing cases. Dr. Etienne reported that the Americas are  experiencing “the highest levels of COVID-19 cases since the start of the pandemic.” It is crucial now, she said, to boost hospital capacity, and  “redouble preventive measures,” especially as the region heads into the  holiday season.

The SpaceX Starship prototype Sn8 made a test flight on Wednesday which demonstrated the maneuvers which will be used in descent and landing back on Earth from deep space destinations.  At roughly 12 kilometers altitude the stainless steel vehicle flipped over 90 degrees to become roughly parallel to the ground, and used its flaps and fins to slow and control descent before reigniting its engines and flipping back 90 degrees to be perpendicular to the ground for a propulsive landing at its intended landing pad. On the test flight the propulsion was not enough to sufficiently slow the vehicle to the intended speed of touchdown, so the vehicle hit hard and exploded. 

However, all involved were ecstatic as everything else went according to intention.  SpaceX, which aims at producing a vehicle every two weeks in its Boca Chica, Texas plant, has been rapidly testing systems to failure and is lining up the next vehicle for further testing.  Better than reading this account, would be to watch one of the YouTube videos which YouTube has not yet figured out how to ban.  Here is a good ten minute one.