Category: news

Deep Impact’s high resolution camera picks out the storm of particles surrounding Hartley

Analysis of the data gathered by Nasa’s Deep Impact probe at Comet Hartley reveals the object is surrounded by a huge cloud of fluffy ice particles.

The space mission’s chief scientist Dr Mike A’Hearn told reporters some of these “snowballs” were very large.

“We think the biggest ones are at least the size of a golf-ball and possibly up to the size of a basketball,” he said.

Deep Impact swept past the comet on 4 November, getting as close as 700km to the 1.5km-long, peanut-shaped object.

The probe’s visible and infrared instruments returned a wealth of pictures and other data that should give scientists further insight into the diverse properties and behaviours of what are some of the Solar System’s most remarkable objects.

The assessment of the cloud of material surrounding Hartley suggests the presence of a wide range of particle sizes. For every 25cm particle, there might be a thousand 2.5cm particles, said Dr Pete Schulz, a mission scientist from Brown University.

“To me this whole thing looks like a ‘snow globe’ that you’ve just simply shaken,” was how he described the environment around the comet’s nucleus.

Carbon dioxide is driving the jets seen at the ends of the comet

But the team stressed these particles were not solid chunks of ice in the sense most people might understand. Rather, they are collections of small grains.

“We know that the ice [grains] on a fundamental level can’t be bigger than somewhere between one and 10 microns in size,” explained Dr Jessica Sunshine, the mission’s deputy principal investigator.

“That’s about the thickness of our hair. What that means is that the snowballs are not what we thought to begin with – we’re not seeing hail-sized particles. What we’re seeing are fluffy aggregates of very small pieces of ice. They’re akin more to a dandelion puff than an ice cube.”

Deep Impact is on an extended mission, having been re-tasked to visit Hartley following its successful flyby of Comet Tempel 1 in 2005.

On that primary mission, the spacecraft released an impactor that crashed into Tempel’s nucleus kicking up thousands of tonnes of icy debris.

Comets are thought to contain materials that have remained largely unchanged since the formation of the Solar System. They incorporate compounds that are rich in carbon, hydrogen, oxygen and nitrogen.

Intriguingly these are the elements that make up nucleic and amino acids, the essential ingredients for life as we know it; and there are some who believe comet impacts in the early years of the Solar System could have seeded the Earth with the right chemical precursors for biology.

As well as Tempel 1, spacecraft had previously visited comets Borrelly, Wild 2, Halley and Grigg-Skjellerup (although no close pictures were taken of Grigg-Skjellerup). All are bigger than Hartley, several considerably so.

COMETS PREVIOUSLY IMAGED UP-CLOSE BY PROBES

Halley’s nucleus was by far the biggest seen – 15km in lengthComet Borrelly was about 8km in its longest dimensionWild 2’s dusty shroud (coma) was sampled by the Stardust probeTempel 1 was Deep Impact’s primary mission “target”Comet Grigg-Skjellerup was passed by the Giotto probe but not imaged

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This article is from the BBC News website. © British Broadcasting Corporation, The BBC is not responsible for the content of external internet sites.

An underwater radio show, the world’s fastest rollercoaster and it all kicks off in the Argentinian parliament. It’s the week’s weird and wonderful video stories in Newsbeat’s Odd Box with Dominic Byrne.

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At least 17,000 cholera cases have been reported across Haiti

Protests linked to the outbreak of cholera in Haiti have spread to parts of the capital, Port-au-Prince.

Police fired tear gas as demonstrators set up barricades and threw rocks at United Nations vehicles. On Monday, clashes between residents and UN troops in the north had left two people dead.

Some Haitians blame UN peacekeepers from Nepal for bringing cholera to the country – a claim denied by the UN.

US health experts say Haiti is vulnerable to further outbreaks.

Sporadic gunfire could be heard on Thursday as protesters took to the streets of Port-au-Prince, which was devastated by a massive earthquake in January.

Hundreds of youths erected barricades of burning tyres and attacked vehicles belonging to the UN mission (Minustah).

The protesters shouted slogans like: “Cholera: It’s Minustah who gave it to us!” and “Minustah go home!”

Cholera is present in all 10 of Haiti’s regions. About 1,100 people have died from the disease since it emerged in the country last month.

Most of the 38 deaths recorded in the capital have been in the slum district of Cite Soleil.

In its latest update, the Atlanta-based Centers for Disease Control (CDC) said the course of the disease was “difficult to predict” as it was the first cholera outbreak in Haiti for more than a century.

“The Haitian population has no pre-existing immunity to cholera, and environmental conditions in Haiti are favourable for its continued spread,” it said.

The CDC said about 1.3m Haitians remained in camps following the earthquake and the camps’ “ability to provide centrally treated drinking water, adequate sanitation, handwashing facilities, and health care varies”.

Just 17% of Haitians had access to adequate sanitation before the quake, the CDC said, adding that the situation had considerably worsened since then.

The first cases of cholera – a water-borne disease – were reported near the Arbonite River north of Port-au-Prince. However future outbreaks could result from tainted food, the CDC warned.

It is unclear how cholera reached Haiti. There are claims that it originated from septic tanks at a base for UN peacekeepers from Nepal, but the UN says there is no evidence for this.

Cholera causes diarrhoea and vomiting, leading to severe dehydration. It can kill quickly, but is treated easily through rehydration and antibiotics.

At least 17,000 cases have been reported across Haiti.

The CDC and other agencies are trying to distribute oral rehydration solutions to combat the spread of the disease.

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Emergency services are put to the test in fake flood rescue exercises where fictional holiday makers are rescued from their campsite.

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The new service will start rolling out to users globally right away

The once dominant MySpace has turned to the company that stole its crown, Facebook for help to drive users to its ailing site.

The two launched Mashup with Facebook, to let MySpace users log into their Facebook accounts through their MySpace page.

This means users can port over their likes and interests listed on Facebook.

In turn users will get a stream of entertainment content based on these preferences.

“We feel this is a complimentary service to Facebook,” said Mike Jones, MySpace chief executive officer.

“This new feature is a great illustration of our strategy around social entertainment and enabling the real-time stream.”

MySpace is among more than a million websites letting Facebook members extend their social graph on the world’s biggest social network to other parts of the web.

Facebook’s vice president of partnerships Dan Rose said the sharing of information is a strategy that “makes a lot of sense.”

“Sharing entertainment and music interests is part of many of our friendships, online and off.

“MySpace is giving people an easy way to bring their favourite bands, celebrities and movies from Facebook to create a personalised experience on MySpace from the start,” added Mr Rose.

Wins and loses

Is this partnership an illustration that MySpace has conceded supremacy to Facebook?

Both companies said there is no financial component to the Mashup

Industry analyst Augie Ray of Forrester Research told BBC News there were gains for both companies with this deal.

“People have come to think of MySpace in a certain way and while I don’t think this deal will help them attract a lot of users it is necessary that those people on the site enjoy the MySpace experience and I think this helps.

“This is also a good opportunity for Facebook to demonstrate that the information you have about yourself and about your friends belongs to you. In many respects this is about Facebook changing attitudes over ownership of data than anything else.”

Adam Ostrow of social media news site Mashable.com said he believed the arrangement underlines who rules this world.

“It’s official acknowledgement on the part of MySpace that Facebook has indeed become top dog in the social networking space, and its better to be with them than against them at this point.”

MySpace which is owned by Rupert Murdoch’s News Corp has an estimated 130 million users while Facebook has over 500 million.

Facebook’s demise ?

And what of Facebook’s future?

According to one internet expert, the world’s biggest social network only has five years left before it starts to see users drift off the way they did with MySpace and other social site Bebo.

At a marketing conference in Sydney, Australia this week, Dr Jeffrey Cole claimed that Facebook will not fare any better at holding onto its audience than these sites have in recent years. Appearing at the same Ninemsn Digital Marketing Summit four years earlier, Dr Cole predicted the demise of MySpace.

“The same thing will happen to Facebook but it’s going to take a lot longer,” said Dr Cole a director of the World Internet project which tracks how the internet affects media consumption.

“And it’s not going to be replaced by one big social networking community but it’s going to fragment.”

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Singer Susan Boyle achieves a notable double as her new album, already number one in the UK, reaches the top spot in the US as well.

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The Italian prime minister personally authorised the restoration

Italy’s prime minister is under attack for authorising what amounts to plastic surgery on two Roman marble statues.

The statues, which depict the naked gods Venus and Mars, are on show in Silvio Berlusconi’s Rome residence.

Mr Berlusconi ordered a replacement for the missing penis on the statue of the ancient god of war, and a missing hand for Venus.

Art experts say it is tasteless and aesthetically wrong to replace the missing body parts.

The additions to the two ancient statues, dug up near Rome nearly 100 years ago and now adorning the courtyard of the prime minister’s official residence, were ordered personally by Mr Berlusconi.

The statues were formerly kept in a Rome museum.

What has angered art lovers is that this type of cosmetic restoration – which cost more than 73,000 euros ($100,000) – carried out on many damaged ancient Roman and Greek statues from the 17th Century onwards, has now gone out of fashion.

Mr Berlusconi has failed to respect the rules of art restoration as practised by Italian restorers – that you do not try to restore perfection to ancient works of art.

Mr Berlusconi has ordered massive cuts of more than 40% to Italy’s fine arts budget next year as part of an austerity programme.

Although the new body parts are described as being “removable”, one art critic pointed out that Italian art restorers who are being paid by the government to restore ancient works of art in China teach the Chinese not to disguise the difference between what is old and what is new.

But Mr Berlusconi’s tastes for the perfect nude triumphed over the opinion of art experts employed by his own culture ministry.

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The serial number can be found on the back of the heater

UniPart and Calor have recalled a number of portable gas heaters sold since August 2010 over safety concerns.

The heaters have been emitting carbon monoxide above the permitted level.

The models affected are: Royal Class, Calor Classic and Calor Compact. The heaters should be switched off and returned to where they were purchased.

The information line for customers who are worried about their heaters is 028 9045 5588 or 0800 181 4522. A full list is also on the Calor website.

Customers in the Republic of Ireland can call 1850 812 470.

The affected heaters were sold through independent retailers both in the UK and in Ireland.

Calor believes the number of products affected and sold to date to be about 800 across the entire island of Ireland.

A full list of the serial numbers affected can be found on the company’s website.

Apologise

Any affected customers will be offered a replacement product where stocks allow or a full refund.

A spokesperson from UniPart said: “Whilst there is perceived to be minimal risk, our customers’ safety is paramount, so we have decided to carry out a product recall.

“The malfunction could lead to the heaters emitting carbon monoxide marginally above the allowed levels.

“Royal Classic, Calor Classic and Calor Compact portable heaters which have been purchased after the 1st August 2010 must be switched off immediately, and returned to the point of sale.

“We wish to thank our customers for their co-operation and apologise for any inconvenience caused.”

“The heaters have been imported from UniPart in the UK by a number of Irish based distributors.”

Irish retailers of these products have been notified of the fault, and sales have been suspended. No other products are affected.

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A theatre project which saw live plays being relayed to more than 300 cinemas around the world wins a business award for innovation.

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Extra money will be available to fight “troubling” security threats to Northern Ireland, the prime minister promises on Thursday.

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The Irish Republic’s Finance Minister says the country has nothing to be ashamed of on policy – but it now needs help.

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Is Westminster Abbey the natural royal wedding choice?

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Police are appealing for information after a 25-year-old man has been shot in both legs in a suspected paramilitary style attack.

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Alcock must serve at least 21 years in prison

A man has been jailed for life for murdering his former partner’s 15-month-old daughter in Oldham.

Gary Alcock, 28, was found guilty of murdering Violet Mullen. Claire Flanagan, 22, was convicted of causing or allowing her child’s death.

Violet had suffered “catastrophic internal injuries” in the weeks before her death, prosecutors said.

At Manchester Crown Court, Alcock was told he must serve at least 21 years. Flanagan was jailed for five years.

Violet was punched, slapped and pinched by Alcock in the three weeks leading up to her death.

On 12 January, he delivered a fatal blow to her stomach which tore her internal organs.

Paramedics were called to their home, on Huddersfield Road, and rushed Violet to the Royal Oldham Hospital where she was pronounced dead. She had suffered a cardiac arrest.

Doctors were concerned about bruising on Violet’s face and body and alerted the police, who arrested Alcock and Flanagan on suspicion of murder.

Flanagan was cleared of murder at Manchester Crown Court last month.

She was found guilty of causing or allowing the death of Violet by ignoring the obvious signs of abuse.

The court heard how she put her desperate need for a man in her life ahead of her daughter.

Violet Mullen suffered “catastrophic internal injuries”, prosecutors said

Alcock was told he must serve a minimum of 21 years before he can be considered for parole.

Neighbours told officers they had heard Flanagan shouting and swearing at the children, though no noise was heard on the day Violet died.

Senior Investigating Officer in the case, Vinny Chadwick, said: “The pathologist’s report made some disturbing conclusions about how much Violet suffered before her death.

“Alcock was supposed to care for her but he abused his position and caused her death.

“We are pleased that justice has been done for taking away a completely innocent life, and our thoughts remain with Violet’s family, as they continue to come to terms with her death.”

This article is from the BBC News website. © British Broadcasting Corporation, The BBC is not responsible for the content of external internet sites.

Anti-terrorism police and bomb disposal units have been called to a wooded area in West Dunbartonshire which is thought to have been damaged in an explosion.

Strathclyde Police were called to reports of an explosion in Garadhban Forest, near Gartocharn, at about 1200 GMT on Wednesday.

The area, to the south east of Loch Lomond, has been sealed off.

Police said enquiries were ongoing to establish the full circumstances surrounding the incident.

Ch Sup Calum Murray, of Strathclyde Police, said: “As you would expect, when we are dealing with a situation where we suspect that explosives may be involved, it is our immediate priority to assess the situation and to call on expertise where we think it is appropriate.

“By its very nature, this type of assessment and investigation is complex and does take time. I can confirm that we are currently being assisted by agencies from across the UK.

“I would stress that the site is secure and that there is no risk to public safety.”

This article is from the BBC News website. © British Broadcasting Corporation, The BBC is not responsible for the content of external internet sites.