The Trump administration can strip temporary deportation protections from 350,00 Venezuelans, the Supreme Court said Monday.

Why it matters: The Venezuelan immigrants are still challenging the Trump administration's decision to remove their Temporary Protected Status in a lower court, but the Supreme Court's order means those protections can be revoked while the case continues.

• A federal judge in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California had blocked the Trump administration from removing the deportation protections, but the Supreme Court overturned that decision on Monday.
• Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson would have denied the request, per the court's order.
• As many as 350,000 Venezuelans are covered by the Temporary Protected Status, according to court filings.

Catch up quick: Outgoing Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas had extended the deportation protections for Venezuelans until 2026 in the waning days of the Biden administration, but current DHS Secretary Kristi Noem revoked that decision in February.

• In its request to the Supreme Court, the Trump administration said the district court judge's nationwide stay overstepped its authority.
• "The court thus wrested control of the nation's immigration policy away from the Executive Branch," the administration said.

Editor's note: This is a breaking news story and will be updated with more information.

• Some of the most beautiful sights in nature are also mysterious.
• These include sand dunes that seem to sing and a dazzlingly pink lake in Australia.
• While researchers have theories for many of them, questions remain.

Whether it's the cause of a flamingo-pink lake or the source of splotchy circles in the desert, nature holds countless secrets that scientists are still trying to figure out.

While people have cited UFOs or legendary creatures to explain some aspects of these unusual sights, scientists have called on physics, genetic testing, and other scientific methods to develop theories.

Such research has gone a long way in solving some of these mysteries, but often, questions still remain.

Here are nine natural mysteries across the world that scientists have yet to fully explain.

Eternal Flame Falls, New York

In New York's Chestnut Ridge Park, a flickering fire lends its name to the Eternal Flame Falls. Protected from the waterfall in a rocky alcove, it can burn on its own indefinitely, though it does sometimes go out.

It's an extremely rare phenomenon. There are fewer than 50 eternal flames around the world, geologist Giuseppe Etiope told National Geographic in 2024. Flammable natural gas, created when extremely high temperatures cook organic materials, seeps out from underground, constantly fueling the flame. Humans, forest fires, or lightning might set them alight.

What's unusual about the flame in New York is that its source, over 1,300 feet below the surface in the Rhinestreet Shale formation, is comparatively cool.

"The traditional hypothesis of how natural gas forms is, you have to heat to more than boiling water," researcher Arndt Schimmelmann told State Impact Pennsylvania in 2013. "But our rock here is not that hot and has never been that hot."

One of the researchers' theories was that minerals like iron or nickel could provide the flame's catalyst.

European eels, Sargasso Sea

Ancient Greek philosopher Aristotle wrote, "Eels are derived from the so-called 'earth's guts' that grow spontaneously in mud and in humid ground."

Over 2,000 years later, scientists knew that wasn't true, but they still had no idea how eels reproduced. Danish biologist Johannes Schmidt traced migrating European eels to what he believed was their spawning location in the Sargasso Sea. Some travel over 3,000 miles to reach the region of the North Atlantic bounded by four currents.

That discovery was over 100 years ago, and scientists still have questions about how European eels travel, including how they navigate, their routes, and how quickly they swim.

Learning more about how these eels reproduce is critical because the number arriving in Europe has plummeted by 95% since the 1980s.

In 2022, scientists published a paper describing how they had tagged eels and confirmed that adults do migrate to the Sargasso Sea, possibly to spawn. Despite years of research, no one has found adult eels or eggs at the location, causing some to doubt it's the site of reproduction. Slippery as an eel, indeed.

Savonoski Crater, Alaska

Fly over Katmai National Monument in southwestern Alaska, and you'll see a lake that looks almost too perfect not to be human-made. It's over 1,600 feet across and more than 360 feet deep.

Melting snow and rain have filled in a crater, which formed sometime during or before the last ice age. In the 1960s and '70s, scientists studying the Savonoski Crater tried to find evidence of a meteoric impact. It does seem possible a meteor caused the deep, round hole.

However, receding glaciers likely took any remnants of the impact with them.

The crater could also be the result of a volcanic maar, which University of Alaska Fairbanks professor T. Neil Davis described as a "volcano that tried but failed" in a 1978 article on the mysterious Savonoski puzzle.

When a magma pipe hits a water table near the earth's surface, it erupts in an explosion of steam, forming a rock pit. The maar continues to spew smoke and ash before subsiding due to a lack of pressure.

Singing sand, China

In Josephine Tey's 1952 novel "The Singing Sands," a police inspector gets caught up in a murder investigation involving an enigmatic poem: "The beasts that talk, The streams that stand, The stones that walk, The singing sand…"

While the story is fiction, singing sand is very real, found in Indiana, Japan, Egypt, and California. Many, like those in Dunhuang, China, have become tourist attractions.

A low, vibrational hum emanates from sand spilling down dunes in these locations, sometimes loud enough to be heard 6 miles away. Certain conditions, like the size, shape, and silica content of the sand, have to align to produce the singing, according to NOAA.

Just why the frequencies of the tumbling sand sound like music is still a mystery, according to a 2012 study.

Fairy Circles, Namib Desert

For decades, barren patches in the Namib Desert's arid grasslands have baffled scientists. Nicknamed "fairy circles," they stand out against the surrounding Southern Africa's green vegetation.

Some scientists have suggested that colonies of termites consume the plants and burrow in the soil, creating a ring that grows larger and larger. In a 2022 study, a group of researchers said they found no evidence of the insects in the circles they studied. Instead, they used sensors to monitor the plants' moisture uptake.

Their results suggested that ecohydrological feedback caused the bare circles. Essentially, these patches sacrificed having vegetation to divert more water to areas with grasses.

"These grasses end up in a circle because that's the most logical structure to maximize the water available to each individual plant," Stephan Getzin, an ecologist who led the study, told CNN in 2022.

Other researchers have posited that microbes could be a potential culprit for similar circles in Australia.

Devil's Kettle, Minnesota

For years, curious visitors to Judge C. R. Magney State Park flung sticks, ping-pong balls, and colorful dyes into the Brule River to try and trace its flow. As it moves through the park, it spills out into several waterfalls, including the Devil's Kettle.

Part of the water cascades into a hole, and no one knew exactly where it went afterward. Some thought it might stream underground toward Canada or Lake Superior.

In 2017, hydrologists compared the amount of water above and below the falls, and it was almost identical. In other words, the water wasn't leaving at all but fed right back into the river at the base of the waterfall.

Scientists think they have a pretty good idea where the water reemerges, but they don't know for sure, hydrologist Jeff Green told Vice's "Science Solved It" podcast in 2018.

So where did all those ping-pong balls end up? The powerful, swirling currents would have smashed them to pieces, Green said.

Earthquake lights, Mexico

When a 7.0 magnitude earthquake hit near Acapulco in 2021, people in Mexico City, hundreds of miles away, used their phone cameras to capture strange lights in the sky. Blue flashes lit up the sky like lightning.

Not all experts are convinced that earthquake lights exist, though they've been documented for centuries all over the world. Some scientists thought the flickers were from a damaged power grid or rainstorm, NPR reported.

Others are studying the phenomenon in hopes of using the lights, which sometimes occur prior to the earthquake, as a kind of early warning signal.

First, though, they would need to figure out why these flashes occur. A recent paper examined several possible causes of the lights, including escaping methane gas ignited by static electricity.

Lake Hillier, Australia

Off the coast of Western Australia is the vibrantly pink Lake Hillier. It looks surreal, as if someone dumped a massive amount of Pepto-Bismol into its super-salty waters.

Biologists have hypothesized that pigment-producing microbes are responsible for the lake's bright shade. In 2022, researchers published a study after looking at the water's microbiome. They found a number of bacteria, viruses, and algae. Some produced purple sulfur, and others were associated with a red-orange color. Together, they combined to make the pink color.

Researchers noted that other organisms could contribute, and further studies would have to be done.

That same year, there was a huge amount of rainfall, diluting the saltiness that's also a key factor in the color. Today, the lake is only tinged pink, but scientists think the brightness will return as more water evaporates, the Australian Broadcasting Corporation reported earlier this year.

Fosse Dionne, France

People have used the Fosse Dionne for centuries, drinking in the turquoise waters without ever knowing where the rushing spring originated. In the 1700s, residents built a laundry around it to take advantage of the flow, which pours out over 82 gallons a second.

Located in Tonnerre, France, the spring feeds into a basin. Depending on the weather and other factors, its hue can change from green to blue to brown, the city's mayor told the BBC in 2019. Local legends said a mythical, snake-like basilisk once made the pit its home.

About a quarter mile of its course is known, but divers have lost their lives exploring the flooded cave along the route.

A professional diver, Pierre-Éric Deseigne, has reached unexplored areas of the cave but couldn't find the Fosse Dionne's origin, the BBC reported in 2019.

The U.S. government's fiscal situation has been worrying in a sort of abstract, long-term way for years. Now it's getting real.

The big picture: There are emerging signs that global investors are losing patience with a U.S. government that shows no intention of narrowing deficits to more sustainable levels.

• At this point, it isn't a debt crisis or even the kind of mini-crisis that cost U.K. Prime Minister Liz Truss her job in 2022, when the British currency and bonds sold off after an ill-fated budget proposal.
• But there are signs everywhere — in bond market moves, credit rating agency actions, currency markets — that U.S. policymakers have less room to maneuver than they may have thought.

Driving the news: Moody's downgraded the U.S. government's credit rating Friday, the last of the major rating agencies to strip the U.S. of its top-tier status.

• "Successive US administrations and Congress have failed to agree on measures to reverse the trend of large annual fiscal deficits and growing interest costs," Moody's said.
• Treasury bonds were selling off Monday, pushing the 30-year Treasury yield up 0.07 percentage point to 4.97% as of 11:50am ET. It hovered near the highest levels seen since 2007, other than a few days in the fall of 2023.

Between the lines: The Treasury market is perhaps the most scrutinized on Earth, and Moody's analysts don't have special insight that fixed-income strategists and hedge fund managers around the world lack.

• But the fact that bonds sold off following the downgrade suggests global investors who fund U.S. debt are becoming more wary of the long-term fiscal outlook — as reflected in diminished demand for the longest-dated securities.
• Notably, when S&P downgraded the U.S. government's credit rating in 2011, Treasury yields paradoxically fell, reflecting the dominant view then that they represented the ultimate safe haven in times of turmoil.

State of play: Congressional Republicans are making progress on legislation that front-loads tax cuts and backloads spending cuts. Fiscal watchdogs believe it would add trillions to the national debt relative to current law.

• The Yale Budget Lab, for example, calculates it would add $3.4 trillion to cumulative deficits over the next decade if tax cuts expire in 2028 and 2029 as scheduled, or $5 trillion if they are extended.
• The Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget calculates that the legislation could cause the government's debt service costs to approach $2 trillion and more than 4% of GDP, which would be the most on record. (It was 3.1% last year and 1.5% as recently as 2021.)

This represents a turnabout from the pattern of the last 25 years, when there was little evident resistance from bond buyers as the U.S. government looked to borrow.

Zoom out: At other key moments in the recent past when the U.S. considered deficit-enlarging fiscal action, markets gave a big flashing green light.

• That includes the post-2001 global war on terror, the 2008 financial crisis, with President Trump's 2017 tax law, plus the pandemic response under both Trump and former President Biden.
• Now, it is at best a yellow light.

Flashback: Consider the state of play when the 2017 Trump tax cuts were being debated.

• The national debt then was 75.7%. Now it's approaching 100%. The government's debt service costs were 1.4% of GDP. Now it's 3.1% and rising.
• The 10-year Treasury yield averaged 2.3%. Now it's 4.5%.

What they're saying: Russel Matthews with RBC BlueBay Asset Management wrote in a note that "there is limited desire or ability for any US politicians to present a roadmap for a serious reduction in the fiscal deficit.

• "We don't see any contraction in the deficit over the foreseeable future, and the risk is that it increases from the current level around 6.5% of GDP," he added.
• "If this dynamic is unchecked, it is inevitable that the US has some kind of Liz Truss moment; a spike in rates volatility and yields moving substantially higher, particularly at the long end of the curve. However, predicting when we reach this tipping point is extremely difficult," noted Matthews.

• Wendy McMahon is quitting CBS News, citing disagreement with parent Paramount's direction.
• Her exit follows that of "60 Minutes" vet Bill Owens, and raises concerns about the show's future.
• CBS is facing legal issues with Trump, affecting its merger plans with Skydance.

"60 Minutes" is left without another key ally as CBS News head Wendy McMahon has quit, citing disagreement with the company's path forward.

Her exit is the latest shocking turn of events in CBS parent Paramount's ongoing face-off with President Donald Trump.

"It's become clear that the company and I do not agree on the path forward," McMahon, president and CEO of CBS News and Stations and CBS Media Ventures, wrote in a memo obtained by Business Insider. "It's time for me to move on and for this organization to move forward with new leadership."

Her departure comes a month after "60 Minutes" longtime executive producer Bill Owens quit the prestigious news program, saying he could no longer run the program independently.

At the time, Owens said McMahon had "60 Minutes'" back, while McMahon praised Owens for his "unwavering integrity, curiosity, and a deep commitment to the truth." She said then that CBS remained committed to "60 Minutes" and would ensure that its mission and the work remain a priority.

"It is not a good sign," a "60 Minutes" employee told BI. "She and Bill were very close. Feels like he was the first target and they wanted her gone, too. But they spread it out. Also, they waited until the '60 Minutes' season was over, by hours."

The employee expressed concern that the promises McMahon made to preserve the work of "60 Minutes" and promote from within to succeed Owens could go by the wayside.

CBS is in talks to settle a $20 billion legal battle with President Trump. Last year, he sued the network over its "60 Minutes" pre-election interview with then-Vice President Kamala Harris.

The legal trouble has cast a shadow over the CBS parent company Paramount's long-standing plan to sell to the Hollywood production company Skydance, which requires FCC approval.

Trump and his allies have repeatedly targeted the mainstream press.

CBS CEO George Cheeks praised McMahon in a memo that was also seen by BI, saying her contributions improved the network's local news, competitiveness, and streaming operations. He said CBS News president Tom Cibrowski and CBS Stations president Jennifer Mitchell will report directly to him going forward.

For CBS Media Ventures, which McMahon also oversaw, Cheeks said Scott Trupchak, who heads advertising sales, and John Budkins, who oversees programming and production, will report to Bryon Rubin, CBS's chief operating officer and CFO.

Here's the text of McMahon's full memo to staff:

Hi everyone,

Today, I am stepping down from my position as president and CEO of CBS News and Stations and CBS Media Ventures.

This has been one of the most meaningful chapters in my career. Leading this extraordinary organization has been the honor of a lifetime because I got to work alongside all of you. Your commitment to truth, fairness and the highest standards is unassailable.

Championing and supporting the journalism produced by the most amazing stations and bureaus in the world, celebrating the successes of our shows and our brands, elevating our stories and our people ... It has been a privilege and joy.

At the same time, the past few months have been challenging. It's become clear that the company and I do not agree on the path forward. It's time for me to move on and for this organization to move forward with new leadership.

I have spent the last few months shoring up our businesses and making sure the right leaders are in place; and I have no doubt they will continue to set the standard.

You are in incredibly good hands with Tom, Jennifer, John, Matt and Robert. They are phenomenal leaders and people who will continue to protect and celebrate your work. I am sure of it.

To George: Thank you for this opportunity.

To our viewers: Thank you for your trust. You hold us accountable, and you remind us why this work matters.

To the CBS News and Stations and CMV teams: Thank you for your passion, your professionalism and your partnership. It has been a privilege to walk this path with you.

Wendy