March 19, 2024

Wednesday's Afternoon Update

What you need to know about Florida today

| 10/27/2021

Will hurricane season end with a whimper? Watch La Niña, scientists warn.

There hasn’t been much happening in the tropics since Hurricane Sam dissipated on Oct. 5. This is rare for the Atlantic in October. It’s just the third time since 1995 the tropical Atlantic did not have a single active storm from Oct. 6 to Oct. 27, according to Colorado State Researcher Phil Klotzbach. It’s also great news for Tampa Bay, which is most susceptible to tropical systems on the back end of a hurricane season that runs from June 1 to Nov. 30. More from the Tampa Bay Timesand WPLG.

Tech company Rapid7 opening ‘major hub’ in Tampa, bringing 100 jobs

Another tech company is expanding into Tampa, pledging to bring 100 jobs along the way. Boston cybersecurity analytics company Rapid7 announced Tuesday that it will open its 10th U.S. office at shared workspace Industrious in Tampa’s Sparkman Wharf. The company said the new office will support more than 100 new employees. It plans to expand to a permanent location sometime in 2022. More from the Tampa Bay Times.

Coke Florida buys 400,000-square foot warehouse, plans $30 million investment

Coca-Cola Beverages Florida is expanding its footprint and reach with a new 407,000-square-foot warehouse in Polk County. The warehouse is in Winter Haven’s Central Florida Intermodal Logistics Center, an industrial hub with access to Interstate 4, U.S. 27 and State Road 60 as well as a CSX rail lines. More from the Business Observer.

NASA, ESA astronauts arrive in Florida ahead of SpaceX Crew-3 launch on Halloween

The crew slated to launch on SpaceX’s next NASA mission to the International Space Station has arrived in Florida. NASA astronauts Kayla Barron, Raja Chari and Thomas Marshburn, along with European Space Agency astronaut Matthias Maurer, touched down at Kennedy Space Center’s Launch and Landing Facility Tuesday afternoon. Their Crew-3 mission is slated for liftoff from pad 39A at 2:21 a.m. Sunday, Oct. 31. More from Florida Today.

93-story Waldorf Astoria of glass boxes wins Miami OK

A tower of glass boxes rising 93 stories on Biscayne Boulevard downtown as home to a Waldorf Astoria hotel has been recommended for approval by the city’s Urban Development Review Board. PMG Downtown Developers LP presented the elaborate plans. The site at the northwest corner of Biscayne Boulevard and Northeast Third Street, directly across from Bayfront Park, would become home to the city’s tallest building. More from Miami Today.

Tech Trends
Energy Harness' fixture uses UV light to kill airborne pathogens

 Cape Coral-based LED lighting maker Energy Harness is getting attention for its Active Airflow UV-C fixture, which uses UV light to kill airborne pathogens, including the COVID-19 virus. The fixture, which underwent testing at Florida Gulf Coast University, works by exposing indoor air to a large dose of high-energy UV-C light as the air passes through the device. LED Magazine named the Active Airflow UV-C a 2021 finalist in its annual Sapphire Awards contest, which honors innovation in the LED industry.

» More from Florida Trend.

 

Out of the Box
Orlando company goes green with fresh, custom salads straight from vending machines

floridaThe EnjoyRise salad vending machine developed by Orlando-based company, EnjoyRise, allows people to order custom salads from a touchscreen and dispenses the meal from a rotating container that drops the ingredients into a bowl placed below. After testing the machine in the company’s corporate office, it will soon move to an Orlando-area Aspire Health facility where staff care for patients around the clock.

» Read more from the Orlando Sentinel.

Tags: Daily Pulse, Afternoon Pulse

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