World news in brief
Space rock weighing almost 8kg found in South Pole
Researchers in Antarctica have discovered one of the largest meteorites ever found on the continent. The space rock found in December weighs 7.6kg. Finding a meteorite this large is very unusual. Over the past hundred years more than 45,000 meteorites have been found in Antarctica, but the majority have been micrometeorites, which weigh at most a few hundred grams. According to Maria Valdes, a member of the team that
discovered the meteorite and a research scientist at the Field Museum and the University of Chicago, only a hundred or so of the meteorites discovered in Antarctica have been the same size or larger. “Finding a big meteorite like this one is rare, and really exciting,” she said.
Antarctica is a favourite spot for researchers hunting for meteorites. While the continent is not hit by meteorites any more often than anywhere else on Earth, the continent’s cold dry weather helps preserve those that do land. Active glaciers also churn up ancient meteorites buried beneath the ice. The white background also makes spotting the dark rocks easier. The team that found the asteroid also used satellite data about Antarctica’s surface to predict where meteorites would most likely be found.
Warning as radioactive capsule lost in Western Australia
Western Australian authorities are scrambling to locate a tiny radioactive capsule that went missing while being transported from a mine to the state capital Perth. Officials said the small silver capsule containing Caesium-137 was misplaced during transportation from Newman – a small town from Kimberley region – to a storage facility in the northeast suburbs of Perth. An alert has been sounded for a “radioactive substance risk” in several areas, the department of fire and emergency services said. Newman is about 1,200km (750 miles) northeast of Perth.
Exposure to Caesium-137 can increase the risk of cancer due to exposure of high-energy gamma radiation, according to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Internal exposure to the chemical through inhalation or ingestion makes it spread to the body’s soft tissues and exposes them to beta particles and gamma radiation, increasing the risk of cancer, according to the CDC.
Pilot killed after Indian Air Force jets collide
At least one pilot was killed after two Indian Air Force (IAF) jets crashed during a training mission in central India yesterday, officials from the air force said. Two other pilots were injured in the crash, initially said to be a midair collision. “The aircraft were on routine operational flying training mission. One of the three pilots involved sustained fatal injuries. An inquiry has been ordered to determine the cause of the accident,” said a statement by the IAF. The crash took place near Gwalior town in the central Madhya Pradesh state.
Auckland ‘clobbered’ with downpours and flooding
New Zealand’s largest city Auckland has been hit by a recordshattering downpour that led to more than 2,000 emergency calls being made, more than 700 incidents across the region and left at least three people dead and two others missing. The wettest day on record in the city led to the sounding of a state of emergency. Rain that would typically fall in the course of a summer fell in a single day, said weather agencies.
“Auckland was clobbered on Friday and today we start the cleanup,” said Andrew Clark of the Auckland Emergency Management. The downpour caused floods in many areas and reached the city’s international airport, leaving hundreds of people stranded overnight inside terminals and widespread flight cancellations and at least 3,500 homes were left without electricity. The newly appointed prime minister Chris Hipkins made an unscheduled stop in the city to tour flood-hit homes.
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