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U.S. and Israel carry out airstrikes on Iran  March 2, 2026

 

What's up, sunshine? I'm Coy Wire here with your news for Monday, March 2nd. We've got a lot to cover today and only 10 minutes to do it, so let's get to it.

 

We begin in the Middle East where tensions are high after a series of major United States and Israeli military strikes on Iran over the weekend.

 

U.S. President Donald Trump announced the strikes early Saturday morning and indicated the strikes could continue through the week.

 

A short time ago the United States military began major combat operations in Iran. Our objective is to defend the American people by eliminating imminent threats from the Iranian regime.

 

Later that same day, Iran announced that Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, the country's supreme leader for nearly four decades, had been killed during a strike in the capital city of Tehran.

 

ayatollah [ˌaɪjǝˈtolǝ] n. 伊朗回教什叶派的宗教领袖

 

Iran responded with a series of deadly strikes of their own targeting Israel and U.S. military bases in countries throughout the region. Iranian officials formed a transitional council to lead the country in the wake of Khamenei's killing.

 

The conflict has caused destruction at major air hubs and densely populated civilian areas, and it has disrupted worldwide oil shipments. The decision to strike Iran is being seen as a controversial one. It follows weeks of deliberations stemming from mass protests across Iran earlier this year.

 

Our Fred Pleitgen has more on how this situation is unfolding.

 

The current confrontation between the United States and Iran essentially kicked off during that crackdown on protests that had turned violent in Iran at the beginning of this year, specifically starting on January 8th, January 9th, and January 10th of this year.

 

Now, we recall that President Trump back then claimed that help was on the way for Iranians and started putting U.S. assets into the region, first the carrier strike group around the Abraham Lincoln, then later the Gerald Ford, but of course other assets as well, including a lot of U.S. fighter jets and tanker aircraft.

 

At the same time, a diplomatic process was also kicked off, led by U.S. Special Envoy Steve Whitkoff and also Jared Kushner, the president's son-in-law.

 

envoy [ˈɛnvɔɪ] n.全权公使

 

Those talks centered around Iran's nuclear program, obviously the U.S. wanting Iran to stop nuclear enrichment, the Iranians saying that they have a right to enrichment.

 

enrichment [ɪnˈrɪtʃmǝnt] n.（放射性物质）浓缩过程

 

In the end, both sides acknowledged that there was some progress in those talks, but it didn't seem as though that was enough for President Trump.

 

In the past couple of days, President Trump has been quite negative about how those talks were going and then launched the attacks. The Iranians are now saying that their retaliation is in full swing, but while they were in this diplomatic process, at the same time they were also preparing for war and it certainly seems as though they were a lot better prepared this time than in June when they faced off with the Israelis, with a lot of Iranian retaliation coming not just against Israel, but against states in the Gulf and specifically U.S. military installations in the Gulf region as well.

 

Lots of big space news recently and coming tomorrow, many of us will be able to witness a total lunar eclipse known as Blood Moon, when the moon appears red.

 

It will be visible in Asia, Australia, the Pacific Islands, and the Americas. Remember, a lunar eclipse is when Earth passes between the moon and the sun, casting a shadow on the moon, while a solar eclipse occurs when the moon passes between the sun and Earth, casting a shadow on Earth.

 

So, go online and research when will be the best time to look up tomorrow based on where you live.

 

Scientists say those of us in the eastern time zone will be able to witness the phenomenon at 6.04 a.m. This will be the last total lunar eclipse visible from North America until 2028.

 

Our next story is making waves, a reef-freshing reminder that it's still plenty left to discover under the sea. A mother-daughter diving duo in Australia uncovered the largest coral colony ever recorded in the Great Barrier Reef, stretching more than 40,000 square feet.

 

The massive Pavona coral was discovered by citizens of the reef marine coordinator Sophie Kalkowski-Pope and her mother, underwater photographer and conservationist Jan Pope, during a reef survey expedition.

 

I knew right from the minute that we hopped in that it was something special and this was no no ordinary super coral. This might be the coral.

 

The discovery was part of the Great Reef Census, a global citizen science effort bringing together divers, sailors, researchers and local communities to monitor reef health. And this coral lossle find comes as reefs worldwide face widespread bleaching and warming oceans.

 

Everyone is playing their part in gathering really critical data to help look after this extraordinary place which is under so much pressure.

 

Scientists say massive corals like this can keep growing if conditions are right, offering hope that even under pressure some reefs are still finding ways to thrive.

 

Many of us might dream of travelingaround the world but probably not on a bike. One world traveler has been biking for five years on a mission to cross all seven continents.

 

CNN caught up with Ian Anderson in Tokyo, and he is facing some unexpected challenges on his trek.

 

All right, I bike from Portugal across Europe all the way to Asia. I bike to Japan, baby!

 

Ian Anderson just traversed six continents on his bike.

 

It took five years to do it. His latest leg was through 20 countries from Portugal to Japan. Anderson documented his journey along the way.

 

The stars are unbelievable this morning. I'm curious about the world, people in the world, different cultures, exploring. I was curious about places like Iran, Russia, what the people were like there, and so I biked to them.

 

He said he was most surprised by Afghanistan.

 

I was just so caught off guard, surprised by their generosity. It felt like every day they were inviting me into their home, offering me food, tea.

 

caught off guard 措手不及; 猝不及防; 大吃一惊

 

While he faced his biggest challenge in Iran, getting stuck in the country after Israel launched a series of deadly strikes in June last year.

 

More bombs are falling. We got our bed in there.

 

Unsurprisingly, he says it's now time for a break, but not for long. He says next up and the last continent to cross is Antarctica. He plans to do it later this year.

 

Pop quiz, hot shot! Satoshi Tajiri attributes his creation of Pokemon to what childhood hobby?

 

Playing video games, collecting insects, playing cards, or solving puzzles.

 

If you said collecting insects, raise your hand, Tana. Growing up in rural Japan, Tajiri loved searching for rare bugs and trading them with friends. His friends nicknamed him Dr. Bug.

 

Gamers and collectors aroundthe globe celebrated the 30th anniversary of a beloved crew of characters. The Pokemon franchise has thrived for 30 years and it's still evolving from trading cards to TV shows, video games, to global fandom.

 

fandom[ ˈfændǝm] n. 影迷；运动迷；粉丝圈

 

Pokemon has captured hearts across generations and the legacy keeps growing.

 

Today, Pokemon turns 30. It started in 1996 when a Japanese game designer who loved collecting bugs as a kid created Pocket Monsters for the Nintendo Game Boy.

 

It launched in Japan on February 27th. Soon, the name was shortened to Pokemon. Within three years, the creatures exploded into a global phenomenon.

 

TV shows, movies, trading cards, more than 75 billion cards have been produced. Laid end-to-end, they'd stretch to the moon and back eight times. The franchise has generated over a hundred billion, reportedly making it the highest-grossing media franchise in the world.

 

And as demand exploded during the pandemic, prices surged, with some top cards rising more than 6,000% since the early 2000s. The boom has even led to store fights, museum chaos, and armed robberies targeting rare cards. The surge was aided by the success of Pokemon Go in 2016.

 

Within two months, it hit 500 million downloads, turning streets, parks, and cities into real-world hunting grounds. Pokemania was back. For millennials, it's nostalgia.

 

nostalgia [nɑsˈtældʒɪǝ] n. 怀旧之情

 

For kids today, it's discovery. And for some collectors, it's life-changing money. But at its core, it's still about that feeling, opening a pack, hoping for Charizard.

 

30 years later, we're still trying to catch them all.

 

Today's story, getting a 10 out of 10,one California teen overcoming a rare disease and forging a way forward on the track. Xavier Marsh was just 13 when he was diagnosed with labor hereditary optic neuropathy.

 

hereditary [hǝˈrɛdǝˌtɛrɪ] adj. 遗传的

neuropathy [nʊˈrɑpǝθɪ] n. 神经病变

 

The extremely rare genetic mutation left him legally blind, but he hasn't let that stop him.

 

And he turns to me and he says, I'm gonna figure out how to live with this thing. You and mom, go figure out how you can help fix this.

 

Xavier began running track to cope with the diagnosis, and now he's blazing his own trail. Incredibly, even without most of his sight, Xavier is able to use his peripheral vision to compete against his sighted peers.

 

peripheral vision 周边视力; 周边视野; 余光

peripheral [pǝˈrɪfǝrǝl] adj. 周围的；外面的; （神经）末梢的

 

Although I started because I lost my vision, I continued because I actually truly loved it and I found a passion with it.

 

Off the track, Xavier and his parents are working with nonprofits to help other families dealing with the disease. And while there's no cure, Xavier isn't letting that define him. He says his future is bright.

 

And one day we may even see him competing at the Paralympics.

 

How's that for some motivation Monday? Let's bring this show home. This first shout out is going to Mrs. Hart at Sandstone Middle School in Hermiston, Oregon.

 

Your colleague, Ms. Woodward, reached out to us to say how much you inspire her and all of your students rise up.

 

And this next shout out is puzzling. And I absolutely have to share with you, Mr. Beard at Norton Middle School in Norton, Massachusetts.

 

His Rubik's Cube Club carefully positioning 600 Rubik's Cubes into this mural. Consider my mind boggled. Thank you for the love.

 

boggle [ˈbɑɡḷ] v. 惊奇；惊恐

 

And thanks to all of you for reaching out and commenting on our CNN 10 YouTube channel. We'll see you right back here tomorrow. I'm Coy Wire and we are CNN 10.