Three Things for Jan. 31

1. Former NASA astronauts to receive Congressional Space Medal of Honor

Two former NASA astronauts will receive the Congressional Space Medal of Honor from Vice President Kamala Harris Tuesday at the Eisenhower Executive Office Building. 

After both joining the NASA team in 2000, Douglas Hurley and Robert Behnken began their stints as pilots in the military. Hurley served in the Marines and Behnken served in the Air Force. 

In 2020, the pair was the first to pilot a crewed launch from SpaceX and the first to launch to orbit the U.S. in nearly a decade. The launch was apart of NASA’s inaugural Commercial Crew Mission to the International Space Station. 

The ceremony will be the first Congressional Space Medal of Honor awarded since 2006. 

For more information on the Ceremony, click here.

2. The CEO of TikTok will testify before Congress amid security concerns about the app 

Shou Zi Chew, the CEO of Tik Tok, is set to testify before Congress on March 23 about the concerns of privacy and effects on young people’s mental health. 

According to NPR, the committee alleged the app is linked to the Chinese Communist Party, and said in a statement, "Americans deserve to know how these actions impact their privacy and data security, as well as what actions TikTok is taking to keep our kids safe from online and offline harms."

Under the Trump presidency, there was an executive order to enforce a nationwide ban of the app, and the order was approved by President Biden just last month. 

For more information on the testimony, click here.

3. Dallas Zoo believes monkeys were stolen following string of suspicious activity

The Dallas Zoo discovered two emperor tamarin monkeys had been possibly stolen on Monday, Jan. 30.

Zookeepers reported an “intentional compromise” occurred to the enclosure where the animals were held. The emperor tamarin’s nature is to stick close to their home, so the keepers find it odd they would run away. 

This is the fourth time this month the zoo has found unusual tampering with their enclosures. One resulted in a strange death of a vulture within the last week. 

The zoo is offering $10,000 for any information regarding these tamperings, especially any leading to the death of the vulture. 

For more information about the investigation, click here.