Star Tribune
Researchers launch new Minnesota state flag and University of Minnesota flag into space
Two months after Minnesota’s new state flag went up poles across the state, it went up into outer space.
A group of students and instructors at the University of Minnesota’s Department of Mechanical Engineering sent American, Minnesotan and school flags above the atmosphere earlier this week, as part of a research mission.
The photos, posted to several social media sites, show the three flags high above a cloud-spotted Earth. It inspired pride among commenters and thousands of likes, comments and reposts.
“Well that’s friggin sweet,” Gov. Tim Walz posted on X.
The flags stowed away with a “research payload” from the Laboratory for Nano Optics and Mechanics at the university.
About a half-dozen students led by Profs. Ognjen Ilic and James Flaten launched Wednesday morning from Montgomery. The payload hung from a balloon above the state for several hours before returning to Earth.
Ilic said the group is researching nanocomposite materials — strong but lightweight materials that could be used in “next generation” spacecraft and satellites — and how they react in the colder, radiation-heavy environment of space.
Similar projects have been carried out before by the university, but the state’s recent decision to adopt a new flag inspired the team to include it this time.
“We have a new state flag and we were excited to represent the U and of course it kind of felt like it would look awesome,” Ilic said. “Then we thought it would be nice to share with everyone else.”
Some Minnesotans admitted they are still warming up to the new flag. Seeing it high in the cosmos has helped.
“I’ve had a hard time accepting the new flag … but gotta say that in space it looks cool,” one Reddit commenter wrote, adding a thumbs-up emoji.
“I don’t even know why, this just really gave me a warm fuzzy feeling to see!” another wrote.
Of course, others would have preferred to see the famous “Laser Loon” design that ultimately was not chosen as the state’s new flag. Ilic agrees it would have been “awesome,” but he said he was thrilled to see the photos inspire such enthusiasm.
“We share that very much,” he said.
A participant in an inline skating race held Saturday on Saturday died following the race, race officials announced on a Facebook page Sunday.
Mike Lufholm, 36, of Minneapolis, was remembered in Northshore Inline Marathon organizers’ Facebook post as an active member of the rollerblading community. He died following an apparent medical incident at the race course.
“Mike was a true ambassador for inline skating with a passion for the sport,” one commenter said. Another recalled seeing him in Duluth before the race with his wife and newborn daughter Friday.
Lufholm grew up in northern Minnesota and began skating in middle school, according to his team member profile on Rollerblade.com.
Race officials thanked participants who came to Lufholm’s aid, first responders and medical professionals who helped provide care.
“Our hearts go out to his wife, daughter, family, and all those who were close to him. He made such an impact on the rollerblading community,” the Facebook post said.
A 27-acre wildfire believed to be caused by human activity near Ely in the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness was 25% contained Sunday morning, according to the U.S. Forest Service.
The Wood Lake fire was discovered around 10 a.m. Tuesday on an island on Wood Lake, a news release from the U.S. Forest Service-Superior National Forest said. It caused the closure of an entry point on the lake, as well as several nearby lakes and portages.
“Firefighters made good progress yesterday with higher humidity levels, continuing to reinforce the fire’s containment line,” the news release said Sunday, noting that firefighters are making contingency plans around Moose Lake.
Firefighters from Connecticut are assisting in fighting the fire.
The fire is under investigation, and Superior National Forest law enforcement are seeking any information about how the fire started.
A sheriff’s deputy wounded a man during a standoff in western Minnesota early Sunday.
The Yellow Medicine County Sheriff’s Office was called for a welfare check at a house near Clarkfield, south of Montevideo, Saturday afternoon, the agency said in a news release. When officers arrived, the man they meant to check on fled into a farm field with a rifle, the release said.
Sheriff’s deputies rushed neighbors out of the house next to the field, and said the man pointed his rifle at them before running into the just-vacated house.
Deputies surrounded the house and tried to talk to the person, but called a SWAT team when they could not persuade him to come outside. Members of the Kandiyohi-Meeker-Willmar SWAT team arrived and also tried to talk the person out of the house.
The man fired at the SWAT team, according to the sheriff’s office. A member of that SWAT team shot back, hitting the man in the leg. The standoff continued.
Two other SWAT teams relieved the Kandiyohi-Meeker-Willmar team after about eight hours, according to the sheriff’s office.
Just after 6 a.m. Sunday, the man left the house and shot a long gun at the SWAT teams. Another SWAT team member shot back and hit the man.
The man was taken to HCMC by helicopter and was in stable condition Sunday afternoon.
