To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web
browser that supports HTML5
video
A jaw-dropping photo taken with an iPhone 250 miles above Earth has captured the incredible sight of a super typhoon over the Pacific Ocean.
The image was taken by Nasa astronaut Anil Menon while aboard the International Space Station (ISS), offering a stunning bird’s-eye view of the colossal storm system churning across the ocean below.
The picture, which was taken on August 2, reveals a tightly wound spiral of towering cloud bands wrapped around a clearly defined eye as the cyclone made its way across the western Pacific.
While the dramatic photo looked like it had been photographed using specialist camera equipment, it was actually taken on an iPhone – a capability made possible after Nasa recently began allowing astronauts to carry personal smartphones on missions.
Sharing the image, Menon wrote: ‘The Pacific Ocean this morning from the cupola with an iPhone.’
The super typhoon as seen from space – and it’s breathtaking (Picture: Anil Menon/Cover Images)
Sign up for all of the latest stories
Start your day informed with Metro’s News Updates newsletter or get Breaking Newsalerts the moment it happens.
Viewed from orbit, the immense scale of the weather system becomes clear, with the storm dominating hundreds of miles of open ocean in a single frame.
He didn’t identify the storm by name, but Menon’s image is believed to have captured Super Typhoon Dolphin, which rapidly strengthened over exceptionally warm waters before moving towards Japan earlier this week.
A tree submerged in a river after Typhoon Dolphin hit China’s Zhejiang province (Picture: AP)
China has evacuated more than 1,000,000 from their homes after the typhoon brought heavy rain and strong winds, triggering a red alert.
Winds hit 94mph when it hit the Zhejiang province on Sunday.
The photograph was taken from the ISS’s Cupola – a seven-window observation module widely regarded as offering astronauts the best views of Earth.
Solana is currently trading above $76, following a recovery of more than 6% over the past week, along with the rest of the top crypto market.
With several bullish signals now aligning, one analyst believes $SOL could be headed toward a level not seen since February 2026 if the current setup confirms a breakout.
Constructive Picture
According to Ali Martinez, Solana appears to be trading within a parallel channel, and $78 has emerged as an important level. A break above the mid-range near this level could push $SOL toward the channel’s upper boundary around $100.
The analyst also identified a buy signal from the TD Sequential on the crypto asset’s daily chart. The setup typically anticipates a 1-4 candle upswing or the start of a new “bullish countdown.” The resistance trendline at $78.7 is near the mid-range, which makes it a crucial level for confirmation.
At the same time, the MACD has printed a golden cross, adding another sign that $SOL may be approaching an upside breakout. If these signals are confirmed, Martinez says that the altcoin could be on its way to $100.
Trader Pepesso previously said that $SOL had one of the cleanest setups in crypto. At the time, he pointed to the $45-$60 range as the area to watch, while explaining that the same zone had triggered the asset’s 2023-2024 bull run. A move back into that range would still fit the accumulation view, as long as $45 held on a retest. A decisive break below it would invalidate the setup.
On the upside, Pepesso identified $100 as the first major confirmation point. If $SOL reclaimed that level, the $150-$200 range would come into focus, followed by a potential move toward the previous cycle high.
Ethereum Stays on Top of RWA Market as Solana Strengthens Its Position
Base Passes Solana in Curated Capital Milestone (Flash News)
Big Moves
Away from the price chart, the blockchain had a busy week on the network side. For example, BlackRock also brought another investment product to Solana with the launch of BRSRV, a money market fund designed to support stablecoin reserves.
Meanwhile, Western Union’s launch of Stablecard also added another real-world use case for the blockchain. The digital wallet and Visa-secured credit card use USDPT, a US dollar-backed stablecoin issued by Anchorage Digital Bank on Solana.
Take-Two Interactive also brought tokenized TTWO shares to the network through Backpack Securities, with each token backed 1:1 by the underlying stock.
Additionally, Solana processed a record 1.01 billion non-vote transactions in a single week. Tokenized equities also recorded around $1.45 billion in volume in July, giving the network about 82% of the global market share.
Shibarium, the Layer-2 blockchain associated with Shiba Inu, has recorded a sharp rebound in daily transaction activity, with the network processing its highest number of transactions in a month.
According to data from Shibariumscan, the Shiba Inu L2 blockchain processed 4,480 transactions on August 9, marking a one-month high. The figure represents a dramatic recovery from the 738 transactions recorded on August 8. As a result, Shibarium’s daily transaction count jumped 507% within 24 hours.
The latest increase interrupts a prolonged decline in network activity. For context, Shibarium processed 5,170 transactions on July 10. However, daily activity gradually weakened afterward, eventually falling below 1,000 transactions for several consecutive days by August 2.
Therefore, the sharp increase recorded on August 9 represents a notable shift in network activity. Nevertheless, it remains unclear whether Shibarium can maintain this momentum over the coming days.
Shibarium’s Impressive Long-Term Stats
Meanwhile, Shibarium continues to post impressive long-term network statistics despite its recent weakness in daily activity.
Data from Shibariumscan shows that the Layer-2 network has now processed 1.56 billion transactions since launching in August 2023. In addition, the blockchain has recorded roughly 269.93 million addresses, highlighting the scale of its cumulative network usage.
Shibarium has also produced more than 18.47 million blocks, while its average block time currently stands at approximately 8.3 seconds.
Shibarium Transaction Volume Spikes
Shibarium DEX Activity Remains Extremely Weak
Despite the latest surge, Shibarium has yet to see a corresponding increase in decentralized finance activity.
At press time, decentralized exchanges on Shibarium had processed just $0.02 in trading volume over the previous 24 hours. This extremely low figure suggests that the increase in transaction activity has not yet translated into meaningful trading activity.
Similarly, Shibarium’s total value locked (TVL) stood at $25,273, while the network generated only $0.14 in fees and $0.14 in revenue during the same period.
Consequently, the latest transaction spike should not yet be interpreted as a broad recovery in Shibarium’s overall on-chain economic activity.
Shibarium TVL
Shiba Inu Burn Rate Declines 55%
Meanwhile, Shiba Inu’s token-burning activity has also weakened.
The $SHIB burn rate declined by 55% over the past 24 hours. During that period, the community permanently removed 4.72 million $SHIB tokens, worth around $22, from circulation.
The sharp slowdown contrasts with periods of elevated burn activity in recent weeks. However, the latest burn figure remains relatively small compared with the broader $SHIB supply.
$SHIB Slips to 29th in Crypto Rankings
The latest Shibarium developments come as $SHIB struggles to maintain its position among the largest cryptocurrencies by market capitalization.
After climbing to 25th place toward the end of July, Shiba Inu has since slipped to 29th. At press time, $SHIB had a market cap of $2.76 billion and traded at around $0.000004692.
Nevertheless, the token recorded a modest short-term recovery, gaining 1.28% over the previous 24 hours. Despite that increase, $SHIB remained down approximately 2.7% over the past seven days.
Grayscale, one of the largest crypto asset managers based in the US, has withdrawn its ETF applications for three major altcoins.
At this point, Grayscale withdrew its ETF applications for Cardano, Hedera, and Polkadot, three altcoins that have recently caused significant disappointment with their price drops.
Grayscale has filed three Form RW withdrawal requests with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), seeking the withdrawal of S-1 registration statements for the Grayscale Cardano Trust ETF, Grayscale Hedera Trust ETF, and Grayscale Polkadot Trust ETF.
The SEC responded to this request in record time, with data showing that the ETF registrations were accepted just 190 seconds after the application was submitted.
Why Did Grayscale Withdraw Its ADA, HBAR, and DOT Applications?
The documents submitted to the SEC showed that all three applications contained standard and general justifications. Grayscale stated that it did not intend to proceed with the planned distribution of ETF shares under these registration statements. It was also noted that the registrations had not yet taken effect and no shares had been issued or sold.
In this context, neither Grayscale nor the SEC has explained the actual and clear reason for the withdrawal.
Finally, Grayscale currently has pending applications for Bittensor (TAO), Aave (AAVE), BNB, Near Protocol (NEAR), and Zcash (ZEC) ETFs. According to experts, this indicates that Grayscale is becoming more selective in its ETF applications.
The crypto market opened the week on a positive note, with bitcoin $BTC$64,978.83 up 0.54% since midnight UTC at $65,209 and ether $ETH$1,916.58 gaining 0.86% to $1,925 as sentiment stabilized following a turbulent July.
The move was correlated with Nasdaq 100 index futures, which rose by 0.45% since midnight, buoyed by speculation from the Middle East that Iran is ready to strike a deal with Oman to open the Strait of Hormuz.
The altcoin market is delicately poised, waiting to see if bitcoin can drive higher into the $68,000 to $72,000 range before benefiting from capital rotation.
Derivatives positioning
Long-short ratio flips bullish: The long-short ratio for taker volume in crypto futures has flipped bullish, with longs accounting for 52% of the flow. A taker is an entity that removes liquidity from the order book by trading at available prices.
$BTC OI growth remains elusive: Bitcoin futures market activity remains subdued as $BTC attempts to hold above $65,000 amid cooling bets on Federal Reserve rate increases. Open interest (OI) slipped back below 750K $BTC. However, annualized funding rates and 24-hour OI-adjusted CVD remain positive, indicating that the limited interest present in the market is leaning bullish.
$ETH OI slides: De-risking continues in $ETH futures, with open interest falling to 13.35 million tokens, the lowest level since May 3, and a significant drop from the late-May peak of 15.98 million tokens.
Activity picks up in $SOL futures: Renewed activity is appearing in $SOL futures, as open interest rebounds to 64.60 million tokens from a recent low of around 60 million. This points to fresh capital inflows, coinciding with the token’s price recovery from nearly $70 to over $76 and a break above the widely tracked Ichimoku cloud, signaling a potential short-term bullish trend reversal.
Monero leads OI growth: Privacy-focused coin Monero (XMR) has surged 5% over the past 24 hours, briefly topping $400 for the first time since June 12. The rally appears to have staying power, with futures open interest jumping 6% alongside the price gains. The 24-hour CVD is the most positive among major cryptocurrencies, indicating that buyers are acting more aggressively through market orders rather than passive limit orders. In addition, annualized funding rates stand at the highest level among majors at 28%, underscoring growing demand for upside exposure.
BVIV hits 2026 lows: Bitcoin’s 30-day implied volatility index, BVIV, fell to a year-to-date low of 35.59% over the weekend. The drop shows expectations for market calm, although some traders warn that put options offering protection from price losses in $BTC are still trading at a premium to calls.
Calls dominate volume: The 24-hour volume ranking in options shows increased investor bias for bitcoin calls at strikes $68,000 and $70,000. Ether options show a similar profile.
Token talk
Pump.fun PUMP$0.002740 led the altcoin market with a 5.39% gain since midnight UTC, extending a 24-hour run that has pushed its market cap above $1.1 billion.
Ethena (ENA) rose 4.84% to $0.0907, continuing a steady recovery that has seen it gain ground in most sessions over the past two weeks. Still, it remains more than 90% below its all-time high.
NEAR protocol gained 3.79% as AI tokens broadly recovered, with FET adding 2.10% after weeks of underperformance against the wider market.
Lighter (LIT) slipped 0.94%, one of the only notable altcoins in the red as its slide following July’s 200%-plus rally continues to grind lower.
Woldcoin WLD$0.3398 posted a 13% gain over the past 24 hours but remains in a deep downtrend, down 91% from its record high one year ago.
CoinMarketCap’s “altcoin season” indicator is at 37/100, down significantly from last week’s peak of 51/100 as investors focus on bitcoin’s potential move higher.
Payments-focused cryptocurrency $XRP dropped about 5% to $1.03 last week, even as bitcoin BTC$64,992.63, ether ETH$1,918.56, and solana (SOL) each climbed 1% to 4%. The broader crypto market added 1.4%, pushing total market capitalization to $2.19 trillion. $XRP is currently hovering near $1.03.
The underperformance is puzzling because $XRP exchange-traded funds still attracted net investor capital for a fourth consecutive week. The inflows, however, have slowed sharply, collapsing roughly 93% week-over-week to around $1 million, according to data source SoSoValue. Meanwhile, bitcoin and ether funds pulled in hundreds of millions.
Traders and analysts on X and elsewhere point to several overlapping explanations for the price apathy. Regulatory uncertainty tops the list: the Senate has delayed consideration of the CLARITY Act, the legislation many view as key to clarifying $XRP’s status and unlocking broader institutional participation. That vote is not expected until mid-September at the earliest.
On the flow side, the setup currently looks balanced.
“$XRP’s positioning looks patient in its own right, with order flow staying large even as volume metrics turn neutral — quiet absorption rather than capitulation or a confirmed breakout,” Iliya Kalchev,, analyst at Nexo, said in an email.
New York Stock Exchange President Lynn Martin said on Aug. 10 that the exchange is continuing to develop infrastructure for onchain settlement of tokenized securities, months after outlining plans for a dedicated digital trading platform.
Speaking at a National Assembly seminar in Seoul, Martin also confirmed NYSE participated in The Depository Trust Company’s July tokenization initiative.
The remarks provide a fresh update on a project that has moved from an early development announcement into live industry testing. NYSE first disclosed the platform in January, while regulatory filings and its participation in DTC’s July production transactions have since provided clearer details about how tokenized securities could fit into existing U.S. market infrastructure.
NYSE Developing Onchain Settlement Platform for Tokenized Securities
NYSE President Lynn Martin said the exchange is developing an onchain settlement platform for tokenized securities and participated in DTC’s tokenization pilot in July.
Martin said NYSE will continue exploring… pic.twitter.com/XlF5ptE9We
— Wu Blockchain (@WuBlockchain) August 10, 2026
NYSE tokenized securities plan moves beyond January announcement
NYSE parent Intercontinental Exchange first announced the platform on Jan. 19. The planned venue is designed to combine NYSE’s Pillar matching engine with blockchain based post trade infrastructure. ICE said it would support 24/7 trading, immediate settlement, fractional shares, dollar denominated orders and stablecoin funding.
Subject to regulatory approvals, the separate digital venue would support both tokenized versions of traditional securities and securities issued natively in tokenized form. Holders would retain conventional dividend and governance rights. The system is also being designed to support multiple blockchain networks for settlement and custody.
As previously reported in the exchange’s January plans, the project represents a broader attempt to bring blockchain settlement into regulated U.S. equities rather than creating an offshore tokenized stock product. Martin said in Seoul that NYSE views the industry as being at a “critical turning point between traditional finance and DeFi.”
DTC pilot gave NYSE a live production test
Martin said NYSE participated in DTC’s tokenization pilot in July. DTCC independently confirmed NYSE among more than 30 financial and digital asset companies involved in live production transactions completed on July 15. Participants also included BlackRock, Goldman Sachs, JPMorgan, Nasdaq, Circle, Ondo Finance, Citadel Securities and Vanguard.
The DTCC release said the exercise converted securities held at DTC into tokenized representations and used them in real transactions. Tests covered equity delivery versus payment, Treasury and repo transactions, securities lending, collateral pledges, equity transfers and central counterparty margin processes. The transactions ran across DTCC’s private Besu network and the public Canton network.
The July work was therefore more than a technical sandbox. It used DTC’s production environment and followed a December 2025 SEC staff no action letter permitting DTC to operate a three year tokenization program under specified conditions. DTCC plans to launch its broader Tokenization Service in October. As crypto.news reported in recent pilot coverage, the effort brings major traditional and crypto firms onto common settlement infrastructure.
NYSE has also taken a separate regulatory step. An April SEC filing established rules allowing eligible securities to trade in tokenized form on NYSE during DTC’s pilot program. The filing became effective upon submission under the applicable SEC rule process.
Under that framework, tokenized shares can trade alongside traditional shares on the same order book when they have the same ticker, CUSIP, rights and privileges. Eligible securities include Russell 1000 components and exchange traded funds tracking major indexes. The tokenization choice does not alter order priority. In related regulatory coverage, crypto.news previously reported how the proposal keeps the assets inside existing national market rules.
There is an important distinction between that framework and NYSE’s planned dedicated digital venue. Trades handled through the current DTC pilot continue settling on a T+1 basis, according to the SEC filing. By contrast, NYSE’s separately announced digital platform is intended to support immediate settlement and 24/7 trading and remains subject to regulatory approvals described by ICE.
What happens next for NYSE’s onchain platform
NYSE has also been building the infrastructure around the proposed venue. In March, it signed an agreement with Securitize, naming the company as the first digital transfer agent eligible to mint blockchain native securities for issuers on the upcoming platform. Securitize Markets is also expected to participate as a broker dealer, subject to applicable requirements.
The next concrete milestone is DTCC’s planned October launch of its Tokenization Service following July’s production transactions. NYSE’s April rules also state that the exchange will provide members at least 30 calendar days of notice before beginning tokenized trading under the DTC pilot framework.
For the separate 24/7 digital platform, ICE has not replaced its original qualification that the venue is subject to regulatory approvals. Martin’s Seoul remarks instead show that NYSE continues pursuing the project while testing tokenized market infrastructure through DTC. Her comments frame onchain settlement as a potential part of global financial infrastructure, but its broader rollout still depends on regulatory and operational steps.
This week brings a heavy mix of inflation, consumer and energy data that could influence risk assets and crypto prices. Bitcoin is approaching a key resistance zone, while $XRP and Ethereum analysts are watching different technical setups. Here’s what could matter most for the market.
Crypto This Week
The week is packed with economic releases, with inflation data likely to be the biggest catalyst:
Key Events This Week:
1. July Existing Home Sales data – Tuesday
2. OPEC Monthly Report – Wednesday
3. July CPI Inflation data – Wednesday
4. July PPI Inflation data – Thursday
5. July Retail Sales data – Friday
6. August MI Consumer Sentiment data – Friday
It’s a big week…
— The Kobeissi Letter (@KobeissiLetter) August 9, 2026
July Existing Home Sales — Tuesday: Strong figures could show economic resilience but weaken rate-cut bets. Softer results may lift expectations for easier policy and support risk assets.
OPEC Monthly Report — Wednesday: Production and demand forecasts will shape oil-market expectations. Higher crude prices could fuel inflation, while weaker demand may ease price pressures.
July CPI Inflation — Wednesday: The week’s biggest catalyst. Cooler inflation could boost Bitcoin and other risk assets, while a hotter reading may trigger selling.
July PPI Inflation — Thursday: Shows price pressure at the producer level. An unexpected jump could revive inflation fears and keep borrowing costs elevated.
July Retail Sales — Friday: Strong spending would signal a resilient consumer but could limit expectations for aggressive cuts. Weak figures may raise slowdown fears while strengthening easing bets.
August Michigan Consumer Sentiment — Friday: Offers a snapshot of household confidence and inflation expectations. A sharp decline could point to weaker economic activity ahead.
The CPI and PPI figures will be especially important because they could influence expectations around interest rates and broader risk appetite.
Bitcoin Position Right Now: Will it hit $68K?
Bitcoin has pushed toward $64,000, with the $68,000-$70,000 area now seen as the next major zone to watch.
One analyst pointed out that the current move may not be the start of a fresh bull run. Instead, he expects Bitcoin could make one more push toward $69,000 before a deeper correction begins. His projected path is $64K, $69K, $61K, followed by potential moves toward $57K, $53K, $49K and eventually $44K.
🚨 THIS SETUP IS GETTING UGLY
$BTC has already pushed into $64K, with $68K-$70K FVG now in sight
But this move doesn’t look like start of a new bull run$BTC looks like it’s building one final squeeze before real flush begins
Bearish signal: Rejection near $69,000 and break below $61,000
He further expects around 60 days of accumulation before a possible recovery toward $55,000. He also points to previous calls involving Bitcoin’s $126K cycle top in 2025, the $96K, $60K and $83K, $59K sell-offs, and the latest roughly 10% S&P 500 correction.
Will $XRP Revive?
Some $XRP analysts Julia Liberte and Dandelion said the token is following a structure similar to its 2017 cycle. Their roadmap starts with a move from $1.10 toward $0.97, followed by $1.80, then $2.70-$3.20. If the pattern continues, they see a possible move toward $6.50 and eventually $13.
$XRP is repeating the exact same trendline from 2017.
History is repeating itself.
Right before the 70,000% explosion.
The path to the next bull run:
Scenario 1: (AUG-SEP) $1.10 → $0.97 → $1.80
Scenario 2: (NOV-DEC) $1.80 → $2.70 → $3.20
Scenario 3: (JAN-FEB)… pic.twitter.com/e4JhRDAykp
— Julia (@Julia_Liberte) August 9, 2026
Hence another successful support retest could trigger a larger expansion, although these remain technical projections rather than guaranteed price targets.
Ethereum Gets Two Monthly Buy Signs
Ethereum is also attracting attention after On-chain analyst Ali Martinez revealed two TD Sequential buy Indicators on its monthly chart, a black 9 and an S13.
He pointed to previous Cues, including a 236% rise after the September 2022 buy trigger and a 258% gain following the April 2025. If the latest signs are validated, he sees Ethereum potentially moving toward $3,000.
Other Events
Markets are also waiting for the Iran deal that the US said was coming last week. The agreement has still not been announced, leaving geopolitics as another factor traders will monitor alongside this week’s economic data.
Senate Majority Leader John Thune introduced a cloture motion for the Clarity Act, which includes comprehensive regulations for the cryptocurrency market. This move paves the way for a critical procedural vote on the bill after Congress members return from their August recess.
According to an agreement reached in the Senate, the cloture vote on the motion to proceed with the consideration of the Clarity Act is scheduled for Tuesday, September 15.
Passing the Cloture amendment will not automatically enact the Clarity Act. The vote will only limit the debate on the amendment to proceed with the bill’s consideration, allowing the legislation to move forward on the Senate’s agenda.
Related NewsMajor Updates Coming to Ethereum and Solana: What Will Change?
The motion requires the support of 60 senators to pass. Given that Republicans hold 53 seats in the Senate, even with the support of all Republican senators, at least 7 Democrats or independent senators would still need to vote for it.
The Clarity Act aims to clarify the regulatory framework for the cryptocurrency market in the US and more clearly define which institutions will oversee digital assets. However, negotiations are ongoing in the Senate regarding the final version of the bill.
Politicians are reportedly trying to resolve their disagreements, particularly regarding ethical provisions, rules on combating illicit financing, and how to incorporate regulations drafted by the Senate Agriculture Committee into the bill.
The introduction of the Cloture motion is seen as a significant procedural step indicating that the Republican leadership plans to make the Clarity Act a top priority item on the Senate’s agenda in September.
CoinGecko, a cryptocurrency data and tracking platform, has announced the cryptocurrencies that have attracted the most investor interest in the last few hours. Based on search data from the last three hours on the platform, Tutorial ($TUT) topped the list of trending cryptocurrencies.
According to CoinGecko data, Tutorial ($TUT) attracted attention by rising 325.8% in the last 24 hours. Pudgy Penguins ($PENGU) and IoTeX ($IOTX) followed closely behind, with IoTeX gaining 49.3% and Pudgy Penguins 1.7% in the same period.
Related NewsMajor Development for the Clarity Act After a Long Wait—Affects All Cryptocurrencies
Here is a list of the most searched cryptocurrencies and their total market capitalization on CoinGecko in the last 3 hours:
