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Europe Names World’s First Disabled Astronaut 

ESA Astronaut Class of 2022 Meganne Christian (L), John McFall (C), and Rosemary Coogan (R) pose during a ceremony to unveil the European Space Agency new class of career astronauts in Paris on November 23, 2022. (AFP)
ESA Astronaut Class of 2022 Meganne Christian (L), John McFall (C), and Rosemary Coogan (R) pose during a ceremony to unveil the European Space Agency new class of career astronauts in Paris on November 23, 2022. (AFP)
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Europe Names World’s First Disabled Astronaut 

ESA Astronaut Class of 2022 Meganne Christian (L), John McFall (C), and Rosemary Coogan (R) pose during a ceremony to unveil the European Space Agency new class of career astronauts in Paris on November 23, 2022. (AFP)
ESA Astronaut Class of 2022 Meganne Christian (L), John McFall (C), and Rosemary Coogan (R) pose during a ceremony to unveil the European Space Agency new class of career astronauts in Paris on November 23, 2022. (AFP)

The European Space Agency on Wednesday named the first ever "parastronaut" in a major step towards allowing people with physical disabilities to work and live in space. 

The 22-nation agency said it had appointed British Paralympic sprinter John McFall to take part in a feasibility study during astronaut training to assess the conditions needed for people with disabilities to take part in future missions. 

The announcement came as ESA appointed a new set of astronauts for the first time since 2009 after whittling down 22,500 valid applications. 

ESA posted openings last year for people fully capable of passing its usual stringent psychological, cognitive and other tests who are only prevented from becoming astronauts due to the constraints of existing hardware in light of their disability. 

It received 257 applications for the role of astronaut with a disability. 

McFall will work with ESA engineers to understand what changes in hardware are needed to open professional spaceflight to a wider group of qualified candidates, the agency said.  

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Captain Cook Statue in Sydney Defaced Ahead of Australia’s National Day 

A statue of Captain James Cook is covered in red paint after being vandalized, in Randwick, Sydney, Australia, 24 January 2025. It is the second time in 12 months that the statue has been vandalized. (EPA)
A statue of Captain James Cook is covered in red paint after being vandalized, in Randwick, Sydney, Australia, 24 January 2025. It is the second time in 12 months that the statue has been vandalized. (EPA)
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Captain Cook Statue in Sydney Defaced Ahead of Australia’s National Day 

A statue of Captain James Cook is covered in red paint after being vandalized, in Randwick, Sydney, Australia, 24 January 2025. It is the second time in 12 months that the statue has been vandalized. (EPA)
A statue of Captain James Cook is covered in red paint after being vandalized, in Randwick, Sydney, Australia, 24 January 2025. It is the second time in 12 months that the statue has been vandalized. (EPA)

A statue in Sydney of British explorer James Cook, captain of the first Western ship to reach the east coast of Australia, was sprayed with red paint and damaged two days before Australia's national day, authorities said on Friday.

It was the second time the statue has been defaced and vandalized in the last year. Police said that they had begun an investigation and that several items had been found near the statue.

Local councilor Carolyn Martin said the vandals may have scaled a fence around the statue using a ladder, which they left behind.

"It's an absolute mess," Martin told radio station 2GB. "They have splattered paint all over it, then they have managed to get to the top of the statue and they've knocked his hand off and also part of his face and nose."

For many Indigenous Australians, who trace their lineage on the continent back 50,000 years and make up about 4% of the country's population of 27 million, the Australia Day holiday is known as Invasion Day, symbolizing the destruction of their cultures by European settlers.

Many Indigenous groups want Australia to drop celebrations or move the date, which marks the anniversary of the arrival of the British First Fleet in 1788.

Every year on Jan. 26, protesters rally against the mistreatment of Indigenous people, who are by most socio-economic measures the most disadvantaged people in the country.

A survey by the Sydney Morning Herald newspaper on Friday showed the support to keep Jan. 26 as Australia's national day surged to 61% from 47% over the past two years, signaling a shift in voters' sentiment.