On Tuesday, Aug. 11 at 11:30 a.m. Arizona time, NASA's OSIRIS-REx spacecraft will begin its final sample retrieval rehearsal on the asteroid Bennu, currently some 170 million miles from Earth. This four-hour rehearsal is in preparation for the spacecraft's attempt at collecting dust and rocks from the surface of the asteroid in October. If successful, OSIRIS-REx will be the first American spacecraft to bring samples of an asteroid back to Earth.

This final rehearsal involves the spacecraft testing its sampling acquisition system, collecting data from the asteroid's surface, and using its thrusters as it orbits the rock.

OSIRIS-REx will not land on Bennu's surface to capture its sample. Instead, it will use the Touch-And-Go Sample Acquisition Mechanism to shoot a jet of nitrogen, dislodging particles from the asteroid. The spacecraft is expected to be able to capture upwards of 60 grams worth of carbonaceous dust and rock ejected from Bennu's surface.

The number of Arizona’s confirmed novel coronavirus cases topped 188,000 as of Tuesday, Aug. 11, according to the Arizona Department of Health Services.

Pima County had seen 18,381 of the state’s 188,737 confirmed cases.

A total of 4,199 Arizonans had died after contracting COVID-19, according to the Aug. 11 report.

The number of hospitalized COVID cases continues to decline. ADHS reported that as of Aug. 10, 1,574 COVID patients were hospitalized in the state, down from a peak of 3,517 on July 13.

A total of 949 people visited ERs on Aug. 10 with COVID symptoms. That number peaked at 2,008 on July 7.

A total of 510 COVID-19 patients were in ICU beds on Aug. 10. The number in ICUs peaked at 970 on July 13.

Vice President Mike Pence visits Tucson today

Vice President Mike Pence is scheduled to make an appearance at La Paloma today.

Pence will receive an endorsement from the Arizona Association of Police in an event that C-SPAN will carry live at 11:30 a.m.

Pence will then travel to Mesa for another event.

The latest police data show reported crimes fell in Phoenix and Tucson during the second quarter of the year, a period in which Arizonans were largely confined to their homes by the governor’s COVID-19 stay-at-home order.

But while property crimes in both cities fell, violent crime in Phoenix rose sharply in the quarter, driven largely by a 14.6% increase in aggravated assaults compared to the first three months of the year.

Tucson also saw a rise in aggravated assaults, but not large enough to offset the overall drop in other violent crimes – murders, rapes and robberies.

Michael Scott, a criminology professor at Arizona State University, said the increase likely reflects a “rising tide” of stress, frustration and anger among Arizonans during the pandemic.

“Because a high percentage of these crimes are between acquaintances, intimate partners or family members, the increase is most likely due to the added emotional stress and anger attributable to people being confined to their homes with one another, and from lost household income,” Scott said.

I’ve been bitching about the Go-Go’s not being in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame for years. They, along with Pete Townshend solo, Smashing Pumpkins and Tommy James and the Shondells should’ve been first-ballot inductees, but nope, Bon Jovi is in there instead.

Now that I’ve ranted, let me tell you about The Go-Go’s, a super fine documentary from director Alison Ellwood that covers the band from their punk rock days up until the present. Yes, the group only had four albums, but when you are talking about trailblazers, you have to put the Go-Go's at the forefront of rock and roll history.

The first all-girl band that played their own instruments to have a number one album (the classic Beauty and the Beat) started from the L.A. punk rock scene, and they were one sloppy band. Belinda Carlisle, Jane Wiedlin, Charlotte Caffey started in the original group, with bassist Kathy Valentine and drummer Gina Schock starting soon thereafter. After witnessing a totally shitty Sex Pistols show, the girls decided that they should tighten up their act, and the pristine pop sounds of “Our Lips Are Sealed” and “We Got the Beat” soon arrived.

Ellwood, with full participation from the band, culls together great archival audio and video, along with fun interviews, to tell their stories. Caffey’s drug addiction, Schock’s health scare, and Wiedlin pulling a Pete Townshend and temporarily leaving the band did a lot to stall their momentum, but they have reformed many times over the years. They had a Broadway show before the pandemic, and current plans for more touring and music, so they have not called it quits.

And, as this film proves over and over again, it’s time the band gets their place in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame if that institution wants to be regarded as anything close to relevant. They were the first, they were one of the best, and their music is timeless. Long live the Go-Go's!

Currently Streaming on Showtime Anytime

The number of Arizona’s confirmed novel coronavirus cases topped 187,000 as of Monday, Aug. 10, according to the Arizona Department of Health Services.

Pima County had seen 17,996 of the state’s 187,523 confirmed cases.

A total of 4,154 Arizonans had died after contracting COVID-19, according to the Aug. 10 report.

The number of hospitalized COVID cases continues to decline. ADHS reported that as of Aug. 9, 1,575 COVID patients were hospitalized in the state, down from a peak of 3,517 on July 13.

A total of 987 people visited ERs on Aug. 9 with COVID symptoms. That number peaked at 2,008 on July 7.

A total of 506 COVID-19 patients were in ICU beds on Aug. 9. The number in ICUs peaked at 970 on July 13.

Pima County launching pop-up COVID testing centers this week

The Pima County Health Department is rolling out new drive-thru COVID-19 testing events beginning next week that will be available in areas of the county that have had limited testing availability.

Through their partnership with the Arizona Department of Emergency and Military Affairs, Pima County will offer a minimal contact testing operation for free at the following times and locations. Pre-registration is strongly encouraged and can be completed at www.pima.gov/covid19testing.

Here’s a list of where the test sites will be available:

For more Claytoonz, click here.

• The number of Arizona’s confirmed novel coronavirus cases topped 185,000 as of Friday, Aug. 7, according to the Arizona Department of Health Services.
• The Pima County Health Department today announced new drive-thru COVID-19 testing events beginning next week that will be available in areas of the county that have had limited testing availability.
• County Recorder F. Ann Rodriguez had completed signature checks on the ballots that arrived by mail and had shipped them over to the Elections Department to tabulate them.
• The devil can’t stand mockery, as the adage goes, but fans of Fish Karma know humor can be used to overcome all manner of hardship.
• Arizona renters may have breathed a sigh of relief last month when Gov. Doug Ducey extended the state moratorium on residential evictions to Oct. 31.

WASHINGTON – Arizona renters may have breathed a sigh of relief last month when Gov. Doug Ducey extended the state moratorium on residential evictions to Oct. 31.

But for some of them, Oct. 31 could come as soon as later this month if they don’t act.

In his July 16 executive order, Ducey said that renters who wanted to defer a pending eviction have until Aug. 21 to notify their landlord in writing of a COVID-19 hardship and request a payment plan.

“After August 21, renters will need to provide their landlord or property owner a copy of their completed pending application for rental assistance through a state, city, county or nonprofit program” in order to defer eviction, the order says.

When Ducey announced the extension of the first residential eviction moratorium, state efforts to provide assistance to renters were lagging. Just 1,266 out of 18,784 applications for rental assistance had been approved at the time, an approval rate of 6.7%.

Those numbers have improved, but only marginally. By this week, three weeks after Ducey announced the extension, the number of approved applications had risen to 1,380, but the total number of applications had also risen, to 20,313, an approval rate that was just under 6.8%.

Applications for the Rental Eviction Prevention Assistance program are being processed by 11 community action agencies around the state, according to Janelle Johnsen, communications director for the Arizona Department of Housing.

As of this morning, Pima County has just a few thousand ballots left to count.

County Recorder F. Ann Rodriguez had completed signature checks on the ballots that arrived by mail and had shipped them over to the Elections Department to tabulate them.

Rodriguez still had about 3,000 provisional ballots to review.

Given the small number of ballots left to count, it appears that every race in Pima County has been resolved except for the Ovo Valley Town Council, where third-place finisher Tim Bohen is leading fourth-place finisher Bill Rodman by just 74 votes.

In what remains the biggest shocker of the primary election, former state lawmaker Matt Heinz has knocked out Pima County Supervisor Ramon Valadez, who has served on the board since he was first appointed in 2003. Heinz, who also works as an emergency room doctor, captured 53 percent of the vote to Valadez’s 34 percent in District 2, which stretches from downtown Tucson to Sahuarita.

In the general election, Heinz will face Republican Anthony Sizer, who has previously run unsuccessfully for the Arizona Legislature.

In the four-way District 1 GOP primary to replace Republican Ally Miller, Steve Spain came out on top, winning 33 percent of the vote. A political newcomer who had the endorsement of Miller, Spain defeated Oro Valley Town Council member Rhonda Piña, former state lawmaker Vic Williams and former Pima County Republican Party chair Bill Beard.

Spain will now face Democratic candidate and former school administrator Rex Scott in the general election for this northside district that includes Marana, Oro Valley, Casas Adobes and the Catalina Foothills.

In District 3, Pima County Supervisor Sharon Bronson held off a primary challenge from Juan Padres, capturing 58 percent of the vote. She’ll face Republican Gabby Mercer in the general election.

In District 5, TUSD Board member Adelita Grijalva, daughter of Congressman Raul Grijalva, defeated Sunnyside School Board member Consuelo Hernandez. Grijalva, who captured 67 percent of the vote, will face Republican Fernando Gonzales in the race for the board seat formerly occupied by the late Richard Elias.

In District 4, Supervisor Steve Christy defeated challenger John Backer in the GOP primary with 65 percent of the vote. Christy will face Democrat Steve Diamond in this GOP-leaning district that includes Tucson’s east side, Vail and Green Valley.

In countywide races, Laura Conover won the Democratic primary for Pima County Attorney. The defense attorney captured 58 percent of the vote against two prosecutors who were seeking the office, Jonathan Mosher, who won 36 percent, and Mark Diebolt, who captured 6 percent.

In the Democratic primary for Pima County Sheriff, Chris Nanos, who was appointed the seat in 2015 but lost it after a procurement scandal erupted on his watch, captured 67 percent of the vote against Deputy Kevin Kubitskey, a union leader whose campaign erupted in scandal in July after his daughter accused him of abusing her.

Nanos’ win sets up a rematch against Republican Mark Napier, who defeated Nanos four years ago.

In the race between two Democrats who are seeking to replace the retiring F. Ann Rodriguez as Pima County's chief keeper of records, Gabriella Cázares-Kelly, an organizer with Indivisible Tohono, won 64 percent of the vote against Kim Challender, who has worked as Rodriguez’s chief deputy.

Cázares-Kelly will face Republican Benny White, a longtime GOP activist who has served on the county's Election Integrity Commission.

In the primary to replace the retiring Assessor Bill Staples, Suzanne Drobie won 58 percent of the vote against Brian Johnson and Dustin Walters. She faces no Republican opposition for the seat.