The REAL reason Britain has so many potholes is revealed - and why Labour's pledge to fill an extra million a year won't work
Britain has been blighted by a potholes crisis with dangerous holes, which can injure or even kill motorists and cyclists, popping up quicker than they can be filled.
How Prince Harry and King Charles' long-awaited reunion unfolded - from gift exchange to private tea
Prince Harry and King Charles saw each other in person for the first time in around a year and a half earlier this month. They had a 53 minute meeting at Clarence House.
NASA's New Mission Will Try to Map the Heliosphere After Voyager's Exit
The heliosphere "plays a major role in why life is possible on our planet," reports CNN, "and how it perhaps once existed on others such as Mars." (Basically solar winds create "a constant flow of charged particles" that form "an enormous bubble that protects the planets in our solar system from cosmic radiation permeating the Milky Way".)
NASA says the heliosphere's boundary is three times the distance between Earth and Pluto. (After leaving the heliosphere NASA's Voyager probes collected key data about the heliosphere.) But now there's a new mission to investigate "how that solar wind interacts with interstellar space at the boundary of the heliosphere," CNN reports — called the Interstellar Mapping and Acceleration Probe (or IMAP):
The spacecraft's 10 instruments will also fill gaps in the existing map of the heliosphere, pieced together from data collected by previous missions, and help further explain how the heliosphere largely shields our solar system from damaging cosmic rays, the most highly energetic particles in the universe. Along with two other space weather missions that lifted off aboard the same rocket on Wednesday, IMAP will help scientists better predict when solar storms unleashed by the sun could affect our planet. When aimed at Earth, harsh radiation from the storms, also known as space weather, can pose risks to astronauts on the International Space Station as well as interfere with communications, the electric power grid, navigation, and radio and satellite operations.
"This next set of missions is the ultimate cosmic carpool," said Dr. Joe Westlake, director of NASA's Heliophysics Division, during a news conference on Sunday. "They will provide unprecedented insight into space weather. Every human on Earth, as well as nearly every system involved in space exploration and human needs, is affected by space weather...." The IBEX, or Interstellar Boundary Explorer, satellite has been mapping the heliosphere since launching in 2008. But IMAP can explore and map the boundaries of the heliosphere like never before because it has instruments with faster imaging that are capable of 30 times higher resolution. Once it reaches an orbit about 1 million miles (1.6 million kilometers) from Earth in about three months, IMAP will also capture observations of the solar wind in real time and measure particles that travel from the sun, study the heliosphere's boundary between 6 billion and 9 billion miles (9.7 billion to 14.5 billion kilometers) away, and even collect data from interstellar space.
Also launching was the SWFO-L1 mission, which CNN says is "intended to act as a solar storm detector, providing early warnings to protect astronauts in low-Earth orbit and satellites that provide critical communications on Earth. It's a tool that will be even more necessary as astronauts venture farther into deep space."
NASA streamed the launch live on YouTube.
Read more of this story at Slashdot.
The best (and worst!) places to live in England REVEALED... according to data on crime, house prices, transport links and even broadband speeds
According to our eight metrics, which also consider transport links, deprivation, air quality, income and access to green spaces, the best neighbourhood in England scores 85.2 out of 100.
Revealed: How much the cast of The Summer I Turned Pretty REALLY earned - as MOLLY CLAYTON breaks down the stars' salaries
While fans of The Summer I Turned Pretty commiserate over the hit tv show ending Molly Clayton looks back at how much the stars earned over the three seasons.
My hair's been falling out in clumps - how can I stop it? DR ELLIE says sudden hair loss CAN be reversed, these are the treatments you need to know about
For the past four months my hair has been falling out. I'm taking a multivitamin but it doesn't seem to help. What can I do to stop this distressing problem?
The Essex village so perfect it’s almost too good to be true
The village was recently named the best place to live in Essex
Jake Knapp breaks silence on girlfriend Makena White's death at 28 in agonizing statement
The news was announced on her Instagram account on the opening day of the Ryder Cup. No other details regarding the cause of death or where she was when she died were revealed.
Boy, 15, seriously injured after fight near Rayleigh Asda as police hunt for three wanted teenagers
Essex Police want to speak to three teenage boys about the incident
YouTube Music is Testing AI Hosts That Will Interrupt Your Tunes
YouTube's new "Labs" program plans to "offer a glimpse of the AI features it's developing for YouTube Music," reports Ars Technica.
But Ars Technica adds that this future "starts with AI 'hosts' that will chime in while you're listening to music. Yes, really." (YouTube says the AI aims to "deepen your listening experience"...)
The "Beyond the Beat" host will break in every so often with relevant stories, trivia, and commentary about your musical tastes. YouTube says this feature will appear when you are listening to mixes and radio stations. The experimental feature is intended to be a bit like having a radio host drop some playful banter while cueing up the next song. It sounds a bit like Spotify's AI DJ, but the YouTube AI doesn't create playlists like Spotify's robot...
After joining, the YouTube Music app will get a new button on the Now Playing screen with the familiar Gemini sparkle logo. Tapping that will allow you to snooze the commentary for an hour or the remainder of the day. There is no option to completely disable the AI host in the app, so you'll have to opt out of the test if you decide Beyond the Beat is more trouble than it's worth.
YouTube calls it "a way for users to take our cutting edge AI experiments for a test drive," promises that "a limited number of US-based participants can test early prototypes and experiments and influence the future of YouTube. Sign up at YouTube.com/New."
Ars Technica believes "This is still generative AI, which comes with the risk of hallucinations and low-quality slop, neither of which belongs in your music. That said, Google's Audio Overviews are often surprisingly good in small doses."
Read more of this story at Slashdot.
Jimmy Kimmel takes swipe at Trump's United Nations escalator 'sabotage'
The 57-year-old comedian - whose late night talk show returned on Tuesday after being pulled off the air - referenced to the incident by sharing an Instagram post on Friday.
Manhunt launched after person attacked in Hockley in broad daylight
Contact Essex Police if you have any information
Former London bus driver is arrested in Dubai for 'running sick sex ring where girls are forced to carry out disgusting fetishes for rich men'
Charles 'Abbey' Mwesigwa was filmed by an undercover reporter claiming women under his control would do 'pretty much everything' clients asked.
Tragedy at UK zoo as rare lion known for its 'loud, booming calls' and 'regal, majestic presence' is found dead
Asiatic lion Iblis had outlived the usual lifespan of a creature of his kind when he was found deceased aged 18 at Chester Zoo, staff said.
New data reveals the world's health tourism hotspots - and one country is treating 200,000 Britons a year
Over half a million Britons are travelling abroad for medical treatment, according to new figures.
Horoscopes: Which star sign needs to readjust their boundaries?
Your stars for this week by Jemima Cainer
We live in the only bungalow on millionaire's row: Couple's house is worth less than their neighbour's CAR collection... but they would never dream of moving out
Defiant pensioners David and Jo Willsher, 77, have revealed what it's like to live in the sole bungalow on a street of mansions - and why they are refusing to leave.
Britain's biggest knotweed jungle: Explosion of destructive weed stretches THREE MILES along river bank as families warned it could leave their homes unsellable
For years the invasive species has been exploding along The River Roding, Barking intertwining with native reeds and causing ecological havoc.
Ellen DeGeneres mourns fan with heart condition whom she called her 'only boyfriend' after his death at 19
During his health battle as a little boy, he made a string of heartwarming guest appearances on The Ellen DeGeneres Show, calling her his 'girlfriend.'
LIZ JONES'S DIARY: He texts on my birthday and says he has a big decision to make… Is it about me?
The hotel staff think I am on my honeymoon.