The first ever spacecraft to fly directly toward the Sun is poised to blast off Saturday, on a mission to plunge into our star’s sizzling atmosphere and unlock the mysteries of the center of the solar system.   NASA’s car-sized, $1.5 billion Parker Solar Probe is scheduled to launch on a Delta IV Heavy rocket from Cape Canaveral, Florida during ...

Anchorage, Aug 11 : The National Park Service has ended attempts to recover bodies and wreckage of a small airplane that crashed on a near-vertical mountain within Alaska’s Denali National Park. The agency says it has determined that recovery of the bodies and the aircraft would exceed an acceptable level of risk. A ranger hauled in with a line below ...

Honolulu, Aug 11 : A U.S. judge in Hawaii says a federal agent can’t be tried a third time for shooting and killing a man in a Waikiki McDonald’s restaurant. U.S. District Judge Derrick Watson ruled Friday that Hawaii prosecutors may not proceed with a retrial against U.S. State Department Special Agent Christopher Deedy. Watson’s ruling directs Hawaii officials to ...

Lawyers want minister called to inquiry over allegation he intervened in investigation Lawyers representing child abuse survivors have called for the environment secretary, Michael Gove, to be called before a public inquiry over an allegation he intervened in a sexual abuse investigation at a boarding school. Two child abuse professionals have testified at the ongoing independent inquiry into child sexual ...

Chancellor says Chequers white paper lets UK remain linked to EU economy in way that works for both sides The British chancellor, Philip Hammond, has called on Brussels to accept Theresa May’s Brexit blueprint, saying it offers a “fair and sensible” way forward. Hammond said the controversial plan hammered out at Chequers last month would enable the UK to remain ...

The council is tackling kerb crawling by giving offenders one chance to avoid being prosecuted by attending an educational programme, “Stop and Think”, which aims to prevent reoffending. Kerb crawlers who are caught by council enforcement officers (THEOs) or the police must pay £200 to attend the programme, which has been hailed a success in reducing reoffending by community safety ...

A rescue helicopter with nine people aboard crashed on Friday in a mountainous area in central Japan during a training flight, officials said.   Aerial footage broadcast on Japanese TV showed the wreckage of the crashed helicopter surrounded by trees in Gunma prefecture, northwest of Tokyo, and officers in navy uniforms examining the site.  “Eight people were found near the ...

The death toll in Kerala due to heavy rains and landslides rose to 26 forcing authorities to open two more of the five sluice gates of the Idukki reservoir Friday morning to release excess water. Gushing water from the dam inundated many areas downstream although human casualty was restricted to an extent due to good planning, a senior revenue official ...

Beppu, Aug 10 : Malaysia’s leader called Thursday for more international exchanges among young people as a way to prevent war and terrorism, as he received an honorary degree from a like-minded university in Japan. Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad said that eradicating terrorism requires more than a good defense. “I believe that merely fighting against terrorism will not put an ...

Yangon, Aug 10 : Myanmar sharply rejected an attempt by the International Criminal Court to consider the country’s culpability for activities that caused 700,000 minority Rohingya Muslims to flee to Bangladesh for safety last year. The office of the nation’s leader, Aung San Suu Kyi, said in a statement posted online Thursday that the court in the Netherlands has no ...