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Dan Bagwell Research Director Birmingham Business Journal
Jan 4, 2017
What do Birmingham, Madagascar and the Great Barrier Reef have in common?
They're all among the 52 Places to Go in 2017, the newest edition of an annual
list of the top global destinations published by the
New York Times.
The list spotlights a diverse mix of cities and countries that are ideal places to visit in a particular year based on recommendations from hundreds of Times contributors from around the globe.
NASA gave Boeing and SpaceX orders Tuesday for
four more crew flights each to the International Space Station.
The missions are part of $6.8 billion in contracts already awarded the companies in 2014, and the Boeing award is good news for Alabama. Huntsville Boeing employees are working on the company's crew capsule, and Decatur United Launch Alliance workers will build the Atlas V rocket it will ride to space.
Neither capsule will be ready to fly before 2018, according to the latest reports. That means NASA will have to buy four more seats on Russia's Soyuz rocket this year for astronauts scheduled to go to the station. Those seats cost more than $80 million each, and Boeing and SpaceX say they can beat that price.
SPORTING LIFE: Tuscaloosa sees big economic impact through hosting sporting events
By Becky Hopf Special to The Tuscaloosa News
Jan 4, 2017
Tuscaloosa has a long-standing affection for softball, one that goes back at least half a century when men's leagues drew hundreds of fans.
Decades later, softball is still a major draw and a major boost to the city.
According to Jay Kasten, Director of Sports at Tuscaloosa Tourism and Sports, hosting the National Pro Fastpitch Championship Series in August at the University of Alabama's Rhoads Stadium led to also hosting, simultaneously, the Select 30 All-American Camp at Bowers Park. That event drew about 600 elite-level softball players from 38 states.