Thursday☕️

Earth Intelligence

22 May 2025 — 6 min read

Economics & Markets:

Yesterday’s U.S. stock market:

Yesterday’s commodity market:

Yesterday’s crypto market:

Environment & Weather:

Yesterday, May 21, 2025, severe flooding impacted the Taree region of New South Wales, Australia, as evidenced by footage showing vehicles submerged in floodwaters. Taree, located on the Mid North Coast along the Manning River, experienced unprecedented rainfall, with the Bureau of Meteorology recording 491 mm of rain at Taree Airport over 72 hours, including 412 mm in the 48 hours leading up to May 21. This rainfall, five times the monthly average for May, caused the Manning River to rise over 12 meters in just 12 hours, surpassing the previous record flood of 1929 when the river reached 6 meters.

The flooding led to significant impacts, isolating approximately 48,000 people and threatening 9,500 homes across the region. The New South Wales State Emergency Service (SES) responded extensively, conducting 600 flood rescues and handling over 4,600 calls for assistance, with 892 incidents and 130 rescues in the Taree, Wingham, and surrounding areas in the last 24 hours of the reported period. Evacuation orders were issued for low-lying areas of Taree and Dumaresq Island, and 145 schools were closed. Two men have lost their lives, and two others remain missing as emergency efforts continue amidst forecasts of additional heavy rain.

Space:

Yesterday, May 21, 2025, Vandenberg Space Force Base announced on X that its Guardians and Airmen conducted an operational test launch of an unarmed Minuteman III intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) at 12:01 a.m. Pacific Time. The launch was intended to assess the safety and operational readiness of the Minuteman III, a key part of the U.S. nuclear deterrent system. The missile was launched from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California, a site well-suited for such tests due to its Pacific-facing location.

The Minuteman III ICBM does not enter orbit during its flight; it follows a suborbital trajectory. After launch, it travels through a ballistic arc, reaching a peak altitude, or apogee, of 700 miles (1,127 kilometers) above Earth, well below the threshold for low Earth orbit, which starts at around 1,200 miles (2,000 kilometers). Research indicates that during these tests, the missile’s trajectory typically sends it toward a target in the Pacific Ocean, such as the Kwajalein Atoll, covering a distance of about 4,200 miles (6,759 kilometers) in roughly 30 minutes. The U.S. Air Force conducts these suborbital tests to evaluate the missile’s guidance, propulsion, and reentry systems, ensuring reliability without achieving orbital velocity. For further details, the U.S. Space Force’s official website provides additional information on ICBM test procedures.

Science & Technology:

Yesterday, May 21, 2025, OpenAI Developers announced on X that the OpenAI Responses API now supports Model Context Protocol (MCP) servers. This update enables developers to connect OpenAI models, such as GPT-4.1, to remote MCP servers with minimal code, facilitating integration with platforms like Cloudflare, PayPal, Stripe, Shopify, Twilio, Zapier, and others. MCP, an open standard introduced by Anthropic on November 25, 2024, standardizes how applications provide context to large language models (LLMs), acting as a bridge between AI models and external tools or services.

This integration can be used in practical ways. For example, a developer could connect the Responses API to Zapier’s MCP server to automate workflows, such as generating customer support responses by pulling data from Shopify and sending replies via Twilio. Similarly, a business using Stripe could leverage the API to process payments by having the model interpret transaction requests and execute them through Stripe’s MCP server. OpenAI’s adoption of MCP, which began with the Agents SDK in March 2025, aims to simplify these interactions, though the long-term impact of MCP as an industry standard is still unfolding. For implementation details, developers can refer to OpenAI’s documentation or the respective platforms’ guides.
Yesterday, May 21, 2025, xAI announced on X that its Live Search API, now in beta, enables Grok to access real-time data from sources like X, the internet, and trending news, eliminating the limitations of knowledge cutoffs. This update enhances Grok’s ability to provide up-to-date responses by searching live data, making it a more dynamic tool for developers. The API is available for free during its beta phase for a limited time, with xAI encouraging developers to start building by accessing documentation at docs.x.ai/docs/guides/.

The Live Search API can be utilized in various practical scenarios. For instance, developers can integrate it into applications to fetch real-time updates, such as pulling the latest posts from X for social media monitoring tools or retrieving current news articles for a content aggregation platform. Additionally, an app could use the API to provide users with trending topics or recent web data, like live event updates or market trends, ensuring the information is fresh and relevant.

Statistic:

Largest public oil and gas companies by market capitalization:

🇸🇦 Saudi Aramco: $1.683T
🇺🇸 Exxon Mobil: $446.73B
🇺🇸 Chevron: $234.82B
🇨🇳 PetroChina: $200.28B
🇬🇧 Shell: $196.64B
🇫🇷 TotalEnergies: $129.69B
🇨🇳 CNOOC: $111.84B
🇺🇸 ConocoPhillips: $110.01B
🇨🇦 Enbridge: $99.34B
🇺🇸 Southern Company: $98.64B
🇦🇪 TAQA: $96.12B
🇺🇸 Duke Energy: $90.50B
🇨🇳 Sinopec: $89.85B
🇧🇷 Petrobras: $75.30B
🇬🇧 BP: $75.14B
🇺🇸 Williams Companies: $70.73B
🇺🇸 Enterprise Products: $68.94B
🇦🇪 ADNOC Gas: $67.91B
🇨🇦 Canadian Natural Resources: $64.32B
🇳🇴 Equinor: $63.91B
🇺🇸 Kinder Morgan: $61.05B
🇺🇸 Energy Transfer Partners: $60.94B
🇺🇸 EOG Resources: $60.78B
🇷🇺 Lukoil: $57.49B
🇷🇺 Rosneft: $57.13B

History:

Intercontinental Ballistic Missiles (ICBMs) emerged during the Cold War, transforming nuclear strategy with their ability to deliver warheads across continents. Their origins trace to World War II’s German V-2 rockets, but the 1950s U.S.-Soviet arms race drove ICBM development. The Soviet Union led with the R-7 Semyorka in 1957, the first ICBM, which also launched Sputnik. The U.S. followed with the Atlas in 1959, then introduced the Titan and Minuteman series. These early liquid-fueled missiles were complex to launch but revolutionized warfare by enabling rapid, long-range nuclear strikes. By the 1960s, both superpowers stockpiled thousands of ICBMs, cementing a deterrence framework that defined global tensions.
In the 21st century, ICBMs have evolved with advanced technology, emphasizing precision, survivability, and countering modern defenses. Solid-fuel systems, like Russia’s RS-24 Yars and RS-28 Sarmat (deployed in the 2020s, carrying up to 10 MIRVs or hypersonic glide vehicles), offer rapid response and defense evasion. China’s DF-41, operational since the late 2010s, uses road-mobile launchers and MIRVs for flexibility. North Korea’s Hwasong-17, tested in 2022, showcases intercontinental range, while India’s Agni-V, deployed in the 2010s, bolsters regional deterrence. As of 2025, arms control via New START (set to expire in 2026) faces challenges, and concerns grow over AI-driven targeting and cyber vulnerabilities. The U.S. relies on the Minuteman III, operational since the 1970s but modernized with updated warheads and guidance systems, while developing the LGM-35A Sentinel, a next-generation ICBM expected by 2030 to enhance reliability and counter emerging threats like hypersonic defenses and cyberattacks.

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