The US space agency (Nasa) is about to launch its latest mission to the Moon. The unmanned LADEE probe is set to lift-off from the Wallops rocket facility on the US east coast at 23:27 local time (03:27 GMT on Saturday). Its $280m (£180m) mission is to investigate the very tenuous atmosphere that surrounds the lunar body. It will also try to get some insights on the strange behaviour of […]
Virgin Galactic’s SS2 as become the highest commercial winged vehicle and it flexed its ‘feather system’ for the first time The spacecraft was propelled 69,000 feet above the Earth’s surface after a 20 second rocket burn to reach a top speed of Mach 1.43 The spacecraft was piloted by Mark Stucky and Clint Nichols The company said it is ‘on track’ to offer commercial flights into space to members of […]
Maxime, a 59-year-old monk, lives on top of Katshki Pillar in Georgia He has to scale a 131ft ladder if he wants to come down Followers winch supplies up to him because he only leaves the pillar twice a week Maxime decided to make a change in his life after a stint in prison It takes a strong mind and a lot of willpower to become a monk and feel […]
Video smuggled out of Syria by former rebel horrified by brutality of attack Abdul Samad Issa reads passage and says ‘we will take revenge’ Issa, known as ‘the uncle’, fires first bullet at prisoner’s head Bodies are dumped in a well while one gunman smiles at camera Video footage has emerged which shows the moment seven of President Bashar al-Assad’s Syrian soldiers are executed on camera by rebels fighting to […]
Meeting of the leading world economies is being held in St Petersburg this week President Putin warned that action against Syria without UN approval would be ‘an aggression’ President Obama said the credibility of the international community was on the line David Cameron has arrived – already facing suggestions he has been sidelined after ruling out British involvement Mr Obama cancelled a planned one-on-one meeting with Mr Putin in Moscow […]
J.D. Ojeikere took over 1,000 photographs of women’s hair Captured the intricate hairstyles at events throughout 60s and 70s He calls the looks he documented ‘sculptures for a day’ Celebrities and entertainers who style their hair in attention-grabbing ways (think Lady Gaga’s plaited cone or Nicki Minaj’s towering bouffant) are often lauded for their originality. But intricate hairstyles are far from being a contemporary development – as J.D. Okhai Ojeikere’s […]
After Tropical Storm Kong-Rey slammed the nation with rain and wind, rocks are seen sliding down a hill. But as a massive boulder is about to crush the car, it falls in the opposite direction, sparing the passengers. This Taiwanese driver is lucky to be alive after a gigantic boulder tumbled across a road during a devastating landslide. Incredible dashcam footage shows the enormous rock — which weighed hundreds of […]
Asaram had sexually assaulted her for more than an hour inside a room in his Jodhpur ashram as her parents sat outside chanting prayers for the “ritual” her daughter was supposed to be undergoing. Venting her anger at Asaram Bapu, the 16-year-old girl, who has accused the self- styled godman of sexual assault, alleged that he is “a criminal in the garb of a guru”. “ It was a big […]
Africa’s wealthiest man, Aliko Dangote, has signed a multi-billion dollar deal with banks to finance the building of an oil refinery in Nigeria. The refinery would be the largest in Africa, turning Nigeria into a petroleum exporter, he told the BBC. Nigeria is Africa’s biggest oil producer but lacks refining capacity and has to import most of its fuel. The West African state is often hit by fuel shortages, and […]
German President Joachim Gauck has become the first senior dignitary from his country to visit Oradour-sur-Glane in France, where 642 people were killed by Nazi troops in June 1944. The ruins of the village are preserved just as they were after the massacre. President Gauck said that he had accepted a French invitation to visit the site with “gratitude and humility”. More than 200 children were among the victims of […]
