First Thing: Trump accused of ‘threatening possible war crimes’ in Iran post | US news

Good morning.

Donald Trump faced harsh criticism after threatening to destroy Iran’s power plants and bridges in an expletive-filled social media post yesterday.

The US President told Iran that they would “live in hell” if they did not open the Strait of Hormuz. He also told US media that negotiations were ongoing, suggesting there was a “good chance” of a deal ending the five-week war today.

Trump’s post drew criticism from Capitol Hill. Chuck Schumer, a senior Senate Democrat, said: “The president of the United States is screaming like a demented lunatic on social media… Threatening possible war crimes and alienating allies. That’s who he is, but that’s not who we are. Our country deserves so much better.”

• How did Iran react? Iran’s parliament speaker responded by warning that the US president’s “reckless moves” would mean “our entire region will burn.”

• This is an evolving story. Follow the live blog here.

Artemis II crew enters moon ‘domain’ ahead of historic flight

Four astronauts on NASA’s Artemis II mission entered the Moon’s “sphere of influence”; here gravity has a stronger pull on the spacecraft than Earth’s.

The crew made the pass four days, six hours and two minutes into the mission, while approximately 39,000 miles (62,800 km) from the Moon and 232,000 miles (373,400 km) from Earth. The next major milestone will be a journey to the far side of the moon later Monday, a journey deeper than any human before.

“We are all extremely excited for tomorrow,” Lori Glaze, deputy administrator for NASA’s Exploration Systems Development Mission, said yesterday.

The crew are the first astronauts to go to the moon in more than half a century, picking up where the Apollo program left off in 1972.

• What will they see? During the flight, which will last approximately 6 hours, the crew will have to observe the celestial body with their naked eyes along with the cameras they have. The journey promises views of the far side of the moon that were either too dark or too difficult for the 24 Apollo astronauts who came before them to see.

Satellite mirror plans could disrupt sleep and ecosystems worldwide, scientists say

Proposals for reflective mirrors and putting more satellites up to 1 meter into low Earth orbit could have far-reaching consequences for human health and ecosystems, leading sleep and circadian rhythm researchers have said.

The presidents of four international scientific societies, representing nearly 2,500 researchers from more than 30 countries, are among those expressing their concerns in letters to the US Federal Communications Commission (FCC).

The regulator is considering plans by start-up Reflect Orbital to illuminate parts of the Earth at night using reflective satellites, as well as plans by SpaceX that could significantly increase the number of satellites in low Earth orbit.

• What impact could it have? Experts say altering the light-dark cycle could disrupt biological clocks that regulate sleep and hormone secretion in humans and animals, migration in nocturnal species, seasonal cycles in plants, and the rhythms of marine phytoplankton that support ocean food webs.

In other news…

• Meta has just lost a multimillion-dollar legal battle over its failure to prevent children from being sold on its platforms. Here’s how the Guardian uncovered the evidence that became part of the case against him.

• An 18-wheeler fuel tanker crashed into another vehicle, downing power lines and bursting into flames outside Fort Worth. According to local authorities, in the early hours of yesterday morning.

• Rescue teams in Fiji are working to prevent an oil spill after a cruise ship ran aground off the island where the 2000 Tom Hanks movie Cast Away was filmed. The ship ran aground on a reef near the uninhabited Monuriki Island on Saturday, according to Fiji’s marine rescue agency.

Status of the day: Thousands protest border wall through national park in Texas – ‘Big love for Big Bend’

In a sign of bipartisan opposition to the White House’s plans, thousands of people gathered on the steps of the Texas capitol on Saturday to protest border wall construction along the Big Bend. Organizers collected postcards from protesters and delivered them to Texas governor Greg Abbott, who has yet to publicly weigh in on plans to expand the border wall in the Big Bend.

Building power: Billionaires’ wealth reaches all-time highs under Trump. So is the movement to tax them.

A poll last fall found that 70% of respondents across age and party groups agreed that “our economic system is rigged in favor of corporations and the wealthy.” Citizens in at least 10 states are now organizing campaigns to tax wealth to fund schools, prisons and other social services. With these billionaire tax proposals, politicians and advocates hope to capture Americans’ intensifying anger toward the wealthy.

Don’t miss this: Mum, Audrey Hepburn – on the star’s son Sean’s movies, marriages, good deeds and fascist parents

The hero of Roman Holiday and Breakfast at Tiffany’s knew war and poverty, riches and fame, love and betrayal, but still claimed to live an “extremely boring” life. Sean Hepburn Ferrer paints a very different picture of Pamela Hutchinson in his new biography, Intimate Audrey, which takes a “behind the scenes” look at the life of one of the most famous women of the 20th century.

…or this: I was the US soft power czar. Our reputation may never recover from this

America’s global influence has long depended not on military might but on “soft power”—the appeal of its culture, values, and media. Beyoncé always beats the bureaucracy. Taylor Swift is more important than Tomahawk missiles. But Donald Trump’s war in Iran risks driving positivity to historic lows, eclipsing the cultural appeal of what was once defined as “Brand USA,” writes Richard Stengel.

Last Thing: When Suzuki met Suzuki – why is a Tokyo dating agency matching couples with the same name?

Three men and three women calming their nerves at a Tokyo venue on a Friday evening know they have one thing in common: They all share the same surname. The event is the first in a series aimed at getting around Japan’s controversial ban on married couples having separate surnames by bringing together people with the same surname. The meetings highlight growing frustration with the rule as campaigners and businesses press for reform.

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