Lightnews — Scholar-powered news

Patty Wetli

@pjdubs.bsky.social

Eyes on the sky 2nite/2morrow! Gotta love space weather! Shout out to NOAA for staying on the job.
news.wttw.com/2025/11/11/s...

Severe Solar Storm Hurtling Toward Earth Means Chicago Could See Northern Lights This Week

The national Space Weather Prediction Center has issued a "severe" alert as solar particles speed toward Earth. The geomagnetic activity could produce auroras visible as far south as Alabama.

news.wttw.com

November 11, 2025 at 11:22 PM

Reposted by Patty Wetli

WTTW - Chicago PBS

@wttw.bsky.social

Sears' legacy still looms large in North Lawndale, where the community has, bit by bit, reclaimed remnants of its industrial past and turned the story of abandonment into reinvention.

Next up on the restoration agenda: the historic Sears Sunken Garden. https://to.wttw.com/4qp2iZZ

Restoration of Historic Sears Sunken Garden Underway in North Lawndale, With a Design From Lurie Garden Mastermind

It's been 50 years since Sears traded in its sprawling headquarters campus on Chicago's West Side for a tower in the Loop. But the retail giant's legacy still looms large in North Lawndale.

to.wttw.com

October 23, 2025 at 10:20 PM

Patty Wetli

@pjdubs.bsky.social

I give you Comet Lemmon! Oh Chicago, if the light pollution doesn’t get you, the cloud cover will. 😂 Beautiful night anyway. 🌃

October 21, 2025 at 12:55 AM

Patty Wetli

@pjdubs.bsky.social

Bat signal? (Has this always existed?)

October 18, 2025 at 12:15 AM

Patty Wetli

@pjdubs.bsky.social

Lights out Chicago! Intense bird migration forecast for tonight. If you have exterior Halloween lighting, unplug tonight.

October 14, 2025 at 10:31 PM

Patty Wetli

@pjdubs.bsky.social

Those are INSECTS!!! Nature is wild.

news.wttw.com/2025/10/09/h...

Has Your Tree Sprouted Warts? The Cause Is Absolutely Gall-ing

Ever seen a tree that looks like its leaves have sprouted warts or are suffering from a really bad rash? Welcome to the wild, wonderful world of plant oddities known as galls.

news.wttw.com

October 10, 2025 at 2:06 PM

Patty Wetli

@pjdubs.bsky.social

This was every sewer grate I passed last night before the really heavy rain fell.

October 7, 2025 at 12:56 PM

Patty Wetli

@pjdubs.bsky.social

Han Solo will be sharing the limelight with fellow honoree David Willard, aka, the ornithologist who’s spent 50 years studying bird collisions, and making Chicago safer. Congrats!

news.wttw.com/2025/09/30/h...

Harrison Ford Will Receive Conservation Award at Field Museum’s Half-Earth Day in October

Harrison Ford is one of the most famous people on the planet. David Willard has spent a career and his retirement cataloguing dead birds. Both will be recognized as conservation superstars during Octo...

news.wttw.com

September 30, 2025 at 7:49 PM

Patty Wetli

@pjdubs.bsky.social

Han Solo will be sharing the limelight with fellow honoree David Willard, aka, the ornithologist who’s spent 50 years studying bird collisions, and making Chicago safer. Congrats!

news.wttw.com/2025/09/30/h...

Harrison Ford Will Receive Conservation Award at Field Museum’s Half-Earth Day in October

Harrison Ford is one of the most famous people on the planet. David Willard has spent a career and his retirement cataloguing dead birds. Both will be recognized as conservation superstars during Octo...

news.wttw.com

September 30, 2025 at 7:49 PM

Patty Wetli

@pjdubs.bsky.social

We’ve seen the Chicago River is fit for swimming. But how about raising a family?

news.wttw.com/2025/09/22/b...

Baby Fish Shed New Light on Health of the Chicago River in First-of-Its-Kind Study

The Chicago River has proven itself fit for swimming. But what about raising a family? No one’s ever tallied the number of larval fish in the waterway, until now.

news.wttw.com

September 27, 2025 at 2:59 PM

Patty Wetli

@pjdubs.bsky.social

You’ve gotta fight for your right to COMPOOOOOST!

Proposed amendment would prohibit HOAs and landlords from adopting rules that keep people from subscribing to compost services.

news.wttw.com/2025/09/22/c...

Chicagoans’ Right to Compost Could Get a Boost From City Council

The Chicago City Council could make it easier for people to keep organic waste out of landfill.

news.wttw.com

September 23, 2025 at 1:03 PM

Patty Wetli

@pjdubs.bsky.social

Will the real allergen please stand up?

news.wttw.com/2025/09/15/r...

Ragweed vs. Goldenrod: One of Them Makes You Sneeze, the Other is the Bee’s Knees

If your fall allergies have kicked in, ragweed is the likely culprit, but goldenrod often takes the blame.

news.wttw.com

September 16, 2025 at 4:54 PM

Patty Wetli

@pjdubs.bsky.social

Chicago's porches and balconies could be the next biodiversity hot spots.

news.wttw.com/2025/09/09/p...

Prairie in a Pot: Chicago Plant Scientist Tackles Challenge of Native Gardening on an Urban Balcony

Jeremie Fant, director of conservation at Chicago Botanic Garden, has spent 15 years experimenting with growing native plants in containers on his 10-foot by 5-foot Chicago condo balcony.

news.wttw.com

September 9, 2025 at 8:53 PM

Patty Wetli

@pjdubs.bsky.social

I'm OBSESSED.

"I had no idea that something like this was so close to Chicago, a world-class fossil location."

news.wttw.com/2025/09/04/t...

There’s a Mother Lode of Fossils in Chicago’s Backyard, and It Could Hold Clues to the Evolution of Life on Earth

Mazon Creek is one of the most significant fossil sites in the world, and it’s in Chicago’s backyard. The Field Museum is behind a push to reinvigorate research at the site, with the help of community...

news.wttw.com

September 4, 2025 at 1:17 PM

Patty Wetli

@pjdubs.bsky.social

Who needs pick-me-up? Who doesn’t?! This Waterlily Weigh-off is a blast! Horticulture gone WILD.

news.wttw.com/2025/08/21/w...

Water Lilies Flex Their Muscles in Global Botanic Garden Weigh-Off Challenge. How Do Chicago’s Contestants Stack Up?

Now in its third year, the Waterlily Weigh-Off has bulked up to more than 40 competitors across eight countries. The winner will be announced Aug. 28.

news.wttw.com

August 21, 2025 at 6:23 PM

Patty Wetli

@pjdubs.bsky.social

Gonna need a “No Wake” sign over here. There’s a drain there — somewhere.

August 12, 2025 at 10:12 PM

Patty Wetli

@pjdubs.bsky.social

Spotted: Dead Man’s Fingers!!!! Such a cool sighting on a neighborhood stroll.

August 10, 2025 at 10:04 PM

Patty Wetli

@pjdubs.bsky.social

This rodeo is less “ride ‘em, cowboy” and more “yehaw, let’s catch some bad guys.” Whatever it takes in the fight against invasive species.

news.wttw.com/2025/08/07/w...

This Weekend’s Rusty Rodeo Is All About Wrangling the Invasive Rusty Crayfish

On Saturday, people of all ages are invited to join the rodeo in Kane County and wrangle the rusty crayfish, an invasive species that's infiltrated local waterways.

news.wttw.com

August 8, 2025 at 7:59 PM

Patty Wetli

@pjdubs.bsky.social

If you want to swim in the Chicago River — and yes, this is really happening — the deadline to apply is Monday.

news.wttw.com/2025/08/07/c...

Chicago River Swim Announced for September, and This Time Organizers Have the City’s Approval

The event will mark the first open water swim in the Chicago River in nearly 100 years, according to organizers.

news.wttw.com

August 8, 2025 at 4:26 PM

Patty Wetli

@pjdubs.bsky.social

It’s a matter of when, not if, armadillos will show up in Chicago. And they may be closer than suspected. 😱😱😱

Climate change has enabled their northward progress. How will local ecosystems respond?

news.wttw.com/2025/08/06/a...

Armadillos Are Coming. Is Chicago Ready?

Armadillos have been making a slow but steady push north. At this point, it’s a matter of when, not if, they’ll turn up in Chicago, according to one expert.

news.wttw.com

August 6, 2025 at 3:03 PM

Patty Wetli

@pjdubs.bsky.social

R-E-S-P-E-C-T. That’s what community stewards want from the Chicago Park District when it comes to management of natural areas.

news.wttw.com/2025/07/25/c...