CaaC (John)

Sydney blue whale: Rare sighting was 'possibly third in 100 years' A blue whale has been spotted off the coast of Sydney in Australia for possibly only the third time in almost 100 years, wildlife authorities say. The whale was seen last month in waters near the beachside suburb of Maroubra in New South Wales. The NSW National Parks and Wildlife Service (NPWS) confirmed the "extremely rare" sighting on Friday. Blue whales - the largest animals on Earth - are rarely seen so close to the shore, it said. "The blue whale is the largest animal on the planet yet despite its size it could have easily slipped by Sydney's coast unnoticed," Andrew Marshall of the NPWS said in a news release. Mr Marshall said the sea creature may have been more than 25m (82ft) in length and weighed more than 100 tonnes (100,000kg). Yet despite their size, blue whales are "largely 'invisible' even to the most avid whale watchers", Mr Marshall said. "They are not often seen because they tend to live very far out to sea, their populations are widely dispersed and we have very limited data on its migration and critical habitat," he said. The rarity of the sighting was not lost on one photographer, who managed to take pictures of the whale as it swam along the coast near Maroubra. "I'm speechless but could blurt out a million things at the same time," the photographer said of the sighting in an Instagram post. "Yesterday watching a lot of humpbacks travel south in my usual spot at Maroubra, one of the great wonders of the magical ocean appeared in-front of me: a blue whale." The photographer said he was "completely mesmerised" by the whale, adding: "I feel like I've hit the jackpot." Mr Marshall said the sighting was "the first verified record of this species off our coast". Unlike the humpback whale, which is showing signs of an annual population recovery of about 10-11%, the blue whale population in NSW's waters remains elusive. "That's why opportunistic sightings like this one are so incredibly valuable," said Mr Marshall. "They improve our understanding of where these species live and suggest if there are measures we need to consider to try to protect them." https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-54030000

'SUPER BACTERIA' survives for three years outside the space station Scientists who attached a strain of bacteria to the outside of the International Space Station have been stunned to find it survived for three years, in open space. The experiment, led by a team of Japanese researchers, involved the bacteria Deinococcus radiodurans, also known as Conan the Bacterium due to its extreme hardiness. Experts say the study could help shape our understanding of whether life might exist on other planets. https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/av/science-environment-54029521

NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory What are some skywatching highlights in September 2020? Spot the Moon together with Mars and Venus, along with the flickering star Fomalhaut, which had itself a planet...until it didn't! Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech MORE

Lol, the video disappeared in your post that's why I removed the heart and to be honest I thought Ingar knew something that I didn't, and it wasn't a moon I put your heart back.

Still beautiful to see.

Coronavirus: 300 people attend a house party in Midlothian Police have launched an investigation after more than 300 people attended a party at a house in Midlothian. Officers were called to The Mansion House of Kirkhill in Gorebridge at 00:20 on Sunday. The party was being run as a commercial event, with those attending ordered to leave and a 29-year-old man being issued with a fixed penalty. Organisers have been accused of showing "blatant disregard" for rules aimed at limiting the spread of coronavirus. First Minister Nicola Sturgeon described the incident as "utterly irresponsible" and urged people not to attend house parties. FULL REPORT

Fire engines battle a huge blaze with giant 'mushroom cloud' A 'mushroom cloud' soared into the skies in Kent this morning as a huge fire tore through an industrial building. Gas bottles were said to have launched hundreds of feet in the air as witnesses reported seeing and hearing two explosions before ten fire engines were scrambled to battle flames in the early hours. FULL REPORT

Scientists have the answer to a tadpole mystery Scientists have discovered how to identify frogs from their tadpoles in a step towards saving amphibians from extinction. Conservation efforts to protect the breeding grounds of endangered frogs has been hampered by the difficulty of telling tadpoles apart. Now researchers have solved the puzzle for frogs living in Vietnam's remote forests. Their work on Asian horned frogs will help stop amphibians being lost. Some survive only in small areas of forests which are fast being altered or destroyed. Benjamin Tapley, curator of reptiles and amphibians at international conservation charity ZSL (Zoological Society of London), said: "These frogs occur in some of the most exploited forests on Earth and are suffering from rapid habitat loss and degradation." Tadpoles are a common sight in streams for several months of the year, but once they become frogs they disappear into the undergrowth or up trees, where they may never be seen again. As frogs and their tadpoles look nothing like each other, It's important to know which tadpole becomes which frog, he explained. "It helps us detect the presence of a species, especially as adult frogs can be seasonally active and difficult to find, and allows us to identify which places might be important frog breeding sites that need protection," said Dr Tapley. The researchers collected geographical data, took photographs and made measurements of tadpoles, comparing their DNA to samples from adults of known frog species. They were able to identify the tadpoles of six species of Asian horned frogs found in Vietnam's mountain forests. The tadpoles are unusual, with funnel-like mouthparts, while the adults, named for the horn-like projections above their eyes, are brown with skin folds that resemble leaf veins helping in camouflage on the forest floor. There are more than 250 species of frogs and toads in Vietnam, many of which are highly threatened yet remain incredibly poorly known. Amphibians are under increasing threat from habitat loss, wildlife trade, climate change and deadly diseases. Killer frog disease wipes out 90 species How frogs could vanish from ponds World's 'loneliest' frog gets a date One disease alone, a type of fungus, has pushed at least 501 amphibians towards extinction, a whopping 6.5% of known species. The research carried out with the charity Indo-Myanmar Conservation, the Asian Turtle Program and the Australian Museum has been published in two papers in the journal Zootaxa. https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-54006016

Europe's small Vega rocket returns to action The European Vega rocket is back in business. An enforced hiatus following the loss of a vehicle in July 2019 ended late on Wednesday with the successful deployment of 53 new satellites. The payloads were dropped off high above the Earth using a new dispenser system that will now become a regular feature on future missions. The aim is for Vega to service a big chunk of the vibrant market now emerging for small satellites. Operators of these spacecraft, who're often just start-ups, SMEs or university departments, can't afford a dedicated launch and look to lower the cost by sharing a ride to orbit. FULL REPORT

Black holes: Cosmic signal rattles Earth after 7 billion years Imagine the energy of eight Suns released in an instant. This is the gravitational "shockwave" that spread out from the biggest merger yet observed between two black holes. The signal from this event travelled for some seven billion years to reach Earth but was still sufficiently strong to rattle laser detectors in the US and Italy in May last year. Researchers say the colliding black holes produced a single entity with a mass 142 times that of our Sun. This is noteworthy. Science has long traced the presence of black holes on the sky that are quite a bit smaller or even very much larger. But this new observation inaugurates a novel class of so-called intermediate-sized black holes in the range of 100-1,000 Sun (or solar) masses. The analysis is the latest to come out of the international LIGO-VIRGO collaboration, which operates three super-sensitive gravitational wave-detection systems in America and Europe. FULL REPORT

Classic That other frog beside him looked at him as if to say "You bastard, give it to me..." and took a bite at him.

What, you got boobs?

China launches second Australian wine probe amid tensions China has begun a second investigation into imports of Australian wine, in a move seen as further escalating tensions between the two nations. The year-long investigation into subsidies follows Beijing announcing a separate "anti-dumping" inquiry into Australian wines two weeks ago. Australia has denied allegations of subsidising or dumping wines in China. China has been accused of imposing a series of economic blows on Australia this year following political tensions. Australia's backing of a global inquiry into the origins of the coronavirus in April had effectively singled out China and "hurt the feelings" of its people, a top Chinese diplomat said last week. In recent months, Beijing has targeted Australian barley, beef and wine products with various actions which have been interpreted as retaliatory. It has also advised students and tourists against travelling to Australia, citing the threat of racism. How reliant is Australia on China? Last week, Australia's federal government said it planned to enact legislation which would allow it to cancel local government deals with foreign countries - a move widely seen as aimed at China. 'China is an important market' China is Australia's largest trading market - accounting for 32.6% of the value of all national exports. China's enactment of an 80% tariff on Australian barley exports followed a year-long "anti-dumping" investigation. A similar investigation under World Trade Organization rules was being conducted on Australian wine exports, said Beijing's announcement two weeks ago. The new "anti-subsidy" investigation would apply to all wine in containers holding two litres or less, Chinese state media reported. Australian Trade Minister Simon Birmingham said he rejected claims that any national initiatives "equate to a subsidy of our wine exports". Australian Grape and Wine - a representative body for winemakers - said they were "well placed to respond to this investigation" and would co-operate fully. "China is an important market for Australian wine and our wine is in demand from Chinese consumers," it said in a statement. Why China's rise exposes Australian vulnerabilities Australia probes alleged Chinese spy MP plot The bulk of Australia's export wealth in China is tied to rare commodities such as iron ore, gas and coal - sectors which have not been affected so far amid the deteriorating relations. But several smaller Australian industries which rely on China's consumer market - such as wine, seafood, education and tourism - have expressed fears that they are exposed to political tensions. https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-australia-53970006

Fossilised dinosaur skull reveals the adorable appearance of baby sauropods The skull reveals surprising differences to adult sauropods. The first 3D scan of a sauropod embryo’s skull has revealed what these gigantic dinosaurs looked like as tiny hatchlings. Sauropods are a family of dinosaurs that are instantly recognisable from their small heads and their long, sweeping necks and tails – Diplodocus and Brontosaurus are two of the best-known examples. The first sauropod embryos were discovered around 25 years ago in an 80-million-year-old nesting ground of titanosaurs (a group of especially large sauropods) at a site called Auca Mahuevo in the Patagonian region of Argentina. The newly-analysed skull also belongs to a titanosaur from Patagonia, although the researchers don’t know exactly where, as the fossilised egg that it was found in was originally smuggled out of the country, and only came to the researchers’ attention later on. The team used an X-ray imaging technology called synchrotron microtomography to analyse the inner structure of the skull’s bones, teeth and soft tissue. This uncovered hidden details such as tiny teeth preserved deeply in the jaw sockets, and what appear to be the remains of chewing muscles. The Titanosaurian embryo skull along with a skull and head reconstruction © Kundrat et al. /Current Biology The position of the embryo’s eye sockets also suggests that, unlike adults, the freshly hatched sauropods may have had a form of binocular vision, in which the slightly different images from each eye give an improved depth perception – perhaps helping it to better detect predators. The embryo also has an unusual horn at the tip of its face, which isn’t present in adults. “Our study revealed several new aspects about the embryonic life of the largest herbivorous dinosaurs that lived on our planet,” said study leader Dr Martin Kundrát, a palaeobiologist at Pavol Jozef Šafárik University in Slovakia. “A horned faced and binocular vision are features quite different from what we expected in titanosaurian dinosaurs.” https://www.sciencefocus.com/news/fossilised-dinosaur-skull-reveals-adorable-appearance-of-baby-sauropods/

The first element of the spacecraft for Artemis III, a NASA astronaut assigned to a future Commercial Crew flight, and a strong storm was seen from space … a few of the stories to tell you about – This Week at NASA!

Manchester City's bid to secure Kevin de Bruyne to a new £350,000-a-week contract has been put on hold after the 29-year-old Belgium midfielder's agent was arrested by Belgian police. (Sunday Mirror)

Man United set to rival Inter Milan for Brescia wonderkid Sandro Tonali Manchester United have reportedly ignited their interest in Italian wonderkid Sandro Tonali after a string of fine displays last campaign. Tonali, 20, is one of European football’s hottest prospects and is widely regarded as the heir to Pirlo’s throne. The youngster enjoyed a superb campaign last season having featured in 35 Serie A matches, scoring once and assisting a further seven along the way. According to a recent report by Corriere dello Sport via Manchester Evening News, the young Italian midfielder has sparked the interest of United boss Ole Gunnar Solskjaer. (Stretty News)