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Fin Whale Washes Up Dead on Israel Beach

People stand near the body of a dead fin whale in Israel. Reuters/Amir Cohen
People stand near the body of a dead fin whale in Israel. Reuters/Amir Cohen
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Fin Whale Washes Up Dead on Israel Beach

People stand near the body of a dead fin whale in Israel. Reuters/Amir Cohen
People stand near the body of a dead fin whale in Israel. Reuters/Amir Cohen

Israeli officials are investigating the cause of death of a fin whale that was found washed up on a beach in southern Israel.

The 17-meter-long whale was found on Thursday on the beach in the Nitzanim nature reserve, south of Tel Aviv on the Mediterranean coast.

The whale's body is "quite rotten, so it's impossible to say for certain the cause of death ... samples will be taken for research," said David Halfon, of the Israel Nature and Parks Authority.

The Authority’s CEO Shaul Goldstein said a “tar pollution” incident was plaguing area waters in the eastern Mediterranean Sea. He called for an investigation and prosecution of those responsible for the pollution.

A similar whale washed up dead in the area in 2016.

With rainy weather giving way to periodic sunshine on Friday afternoon, some Israelis walked down to the nature reserve's coastline to see the whale up close and take photos with it.

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World's First Wooden Satellite Launched Into Space

LignoSat, a satellite made from wood and developed by scientists at Kyoto University and Sumitomo Forestry, shown during a press conference in May, 2024. STR / JIJI PRESS/AFP/File
LignoSat, a satellite made from wood and developed by scientists at Kyoto University and Sumitomo Forestry, shown during a press conference in May, 2024. STR / JIJI PRESS/AFP/File
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World's First Wooden Satellite Launched Into Space

LignoSat, a satellite made from wood and developed by scientists at Kyoto University and Sumitomo Forestry, shown during a press conference in May, 2024. STR / JIJI PRESS/AFP/File
LignoSat, a satellite made from wood and developed by scientists at Kyoto University and Sumitomo Forestry, shown during a press conference in May, 2024. STR / JIJI PRESS/AFP/File

The world's first wooden satellite has blasted off on a SpaceX rocket, its Japanese developers said Tuesday, part of a resupply mission to the International Space Station.
Scientists at Kyoto University expect the wooden material to burn up when the device re-enters the atmosphere -- potentially providing a way to avoid generating metal particles when a retired satellite returns to Earth, AFP reported.
These particles may negatively impact both the environment and telecommunications, the developers say.
Each side of the box-like experimental satellite, named LignoSat, measures just 10 centimeters (four inches).
It was launched on an unmanned rocket from NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, Kyoto University's Human Spaceology Center said.
The satellite, installed in a special container prepared by the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency, "flew into space safely", it said in a post on X.
A spokeswoman for LignoSat's co-developer Sumitomo Forestry told AFP the launch had been "successful".
It "will arrive at the ISS soon, and will be released to outer space about a month later" to test its strength and durability, she said.
Data will be sent from the satellite to researchers who can check for signs of strain and determine if the satellite can withstand extreme changes in temperature.
"Satellites that are not made of metal should become mainstream," Takao Doi, an astronaut and special professor at Kyoto University, said at a press conference earlier this year.