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Portugal Closes All Schools and Non-Essential Services Ahead of a Major Atlantic Storm

Varieties Heavy machinery clears the debris from a landslide along the Marocos road in Machico municipality, on the Portuguese island of Madeira, due to severe weather caused by the passage of Storm Charles, 11 November 2026. (EPA)

Portugal Closes All Schools and Non-Essential Services Ahead of a Major Atlantic Storm

Portugal closed all schools and shuttered non-essential public services on Wednesday as a major Atlantic storm headed for the country's mainland. Streets…

Varieties The S.S. United States crossed the Atlantic more than 800 times. (Getty Images)

Once the World's Fastest, Ocean Liner Will Become Largest Artificial Reef

An ocean liner that is longer than the Titanic and was once the fastest on the seas is headed to a final home on the floor of the Gulf of Mexico as the world's…

Varieties Celine Dion. (AFP)

Medical Breakthrough for People with Same Disorder as Celine Dion

People suffering from stiff person syndrome (SPS), which affects Celine Dion, the singer, could soon benefit from a new medicine which improves symptoms. …

Varieties View of a flooded area after storm Leo passed by Alcacer do Sal, Portugal, February 5, 2026. (Reuters)

Portugal Storm Alert Closes Schools

Portugal will shut schools and non-essential public services on Wednesday, with the government urging people to shelter from winds potentially reaching 140…

Varieties British author John Harrison poses after winning the 2026 Booker Prize for his novel "The End of Everything" at the awards ceremony in London, Britain, 09 November 2026. (EPA)

British Writer John Harrison Wins 2026 Booker Prize for ‘The End of Everything’

British author ‌John Harrison has won the 2026 Booker Prize for his novel, "The End of Everything," a dystopian satire that the prize says probes the…


Varieties © Philip FONG / AFP

Japan Sweats Through Hottest July on Record

Japan sweltered through its hottest July since records began in 1898, the weather agency has reported, warning of further "severe heat" in the month ahead. …

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Varieties This handout photo taken and released on August 1, 2025 by Indonesia's Geological Agency shows Mount Lewotobi Laki-Laki spewing lava and volcanic ash up to approximately 10 kilometers high during its eruption as observed from the monitoring post in East Flores, in East Nusa Tenggara province. (Indonesia's Geological Agency / AFP)

Indonesia Volcano Belches Six-mile Ash Tower

An Indonesian volcano spewed a 10-kilometre (6.2-miles) molten plume of ash topped by lightning into the Friday night sky, weeks after another huge eruption…

Varieties Border Guard search and rescue teams in Haql, Tabuk Region - SPA

Border Guard Rescues Three Swimmers in Haql, Tabuk

Border Guard search and rescue teams in Haql, Tabuk Region, rescued three people from drowning, provided them with the necessary assistance, and transported…

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Varieties Microplastics are everywhere, but data is still lacking about how they could be affecting our brains. Fred TANNEAU / AFP/File

What Are All These Microplastics Doing to Our Brains?

Tiny shards of plastic called microplastics have been detected accumulating in human brains, but there is not yet enough evidence to say whether this is doing…

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Varieties A NASA helicopter with armed security escorts the Crew-11 motorcade to launch pad LC-39A at Kennedy Space Center ahead of the Crew-11 Mission in Cape Canaveral, Florida, on July 31, 2025. (AFP)

US, Russian Space Chiefs Talk Moon, ISS Cooperation in Rare Florida Meeting 

NASA's new temporary administrator on Thursday held a rare face-to-face meeting in Florida with Russia's space agency chief, where they discussed cooperation…

Varieties Pope Leo XIV (C) rides on the Papamobile as he greets the faithful during his weekly General Audience in St. Peter's Square, in Vatican City, 30 July 2025. (EPA)

Vatican Strikes Solar Farm Deal to Become the World’s First Carbon-Neutral State 

Italy agreed Thursday to a Vatican plan to turn a 430-hectare (1,000-acre) field north of Rome, once the source of controversy between the two, into a vast…

Varieties Rhinos are photographed at a rhino orphanage in Mokopane, South Africa, Thursday, July 31, 2025. (AP Photo/Alfonso Nqunjana)

Scientists in South Africa Are Making Rhino Horns Radioactive to Fight Poaching 

A South African university launched an anti-poaching campaign Thursday to inject the horns of rhinos with radioactive isotopes that it says are harmless for…

Varieties Lightning strikes over the grey sky during monsoons in Patna on July 16, 2025. (Photo by Sachin KUMAR / AFP)

Lightning Megaflash of 829 Kilometers Sets New World Record

A new world record for the longest distance lightning flash was declared on Thursday -- a megaflash that stretched for 829 kilometers (515 miles) across the…

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Varieties Taif's countryside is a thriving hub for tourism and entertainment. (SPA)

Taif's Countryside: A Thriving Hub for Tourism and Entertainment

The Taif countryside has emerged as a vibrant destination for tourism and entertainment, offering visitors a unique blend of comfort and authenticity amid…

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Varieties The Klyuchevskoy volcano, one of the highest active volcanoes in the world, erupts in Russia's northern Kamchatka Peninsula, Russian Far Esat, Oct. 28, 2023. (AP)

Volcano Erupts After Quake in Russia's Far East

A volcano in Russia's far east erupted on Wednesday, Russian scientists said, hours after a major quake prompted evacuations and tsunami alerts across parts of…

Varieties  This undated image provided by the Institute of Deep-sea Science and Engineering, Chinese Academy of Sciences shows tubeworms in an ocean trench. (Institute of Deep-sea Science and Engineering, Chinese Academy of Sciences via AP)

A ‘Vibrant Oasis’ of Chemical-Eating Creatures Found in the Deep Pacific

Scientists diving to astounding depths in two oceanic trenches in the northwest Pacific have discovered thriving communities of marine creatures that get their…

Varieties The Kingdom previously took part in the inaugural INSO, securing four awards: one silver and three bronze medals. - SPA

Saudi Team Participates in International Nuclear Science Olympiad in Malaysia

The Saudi nuclear science team is participating in the second edition of the International Nuclear Science Olympiad (INSO 2025), held in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia…

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Varieties A passerby walks past a cooling mist station during a heatwave in Tokyo, Japan, 24 July 2025. (EPA) 

Japan Sees New Record High Temperature of 41.2C 

Japan sweltered in a new record temperature of 41.2C on Wednesday, with the mercury also hitting 40C in the ancient capital of Kyoto for the first time since…

Varieties In this photo provided by Gilmour Space Technologies an Eris rocket is launched on Wednesday, July 30, 2025, near Bowen, Australia. (Gilmour Space Technologies) 

Australian-Made Rocket Achieves Liftoff with Vegemite Payload 

An Australian aerospace company on Wednesday celebrated the short-lived test launch of an orbital rocket carrying a jar of Vegemite in its nose cone. After…

Varieties A smoke plume billows on the horizon behind sunflower fields, in the Donbas region on August 11, 2022, amid the Russian invasion of Ukraine. (AFP via Getty Images) 

Locusts Spread in Ukraine’s South as War Disrupts Control Measures 

A massive locust invasion is threatening sunflower and other crops in Ukraine's southern regions, largely caused by the war against Russia's invasion that…

Varieties People use umbrellas and raincoats to shield themselves from heavy rain and high winds, after Tropical Storm Co-May made landfall in a nearby city, in Shanghai, China July 30, 2025. (Reuters)

Shanghai Relocates More Than 280,000 People Due to Tropical Storm 

Shanghai has relocated more than 280,000 people since Tuesday night as a safety precaution, China Central Television (CCTV) reported on Wednesday, in…

Varieties A 4,853-year-old Great Basin bristlecone pine tree known as Methuselah is growing high at Ancient Bristlecone Pine Forest in the White Mountains of Inyo County in eastern California, United States on November 28, 2021. (Getty Images)

California Forest Has Oldest Living Tree Located in Closely Guarded Secret

High in the arid mountain forests of eastern California there is a living tree that's older than the pyramids of Giza and the ancient city-state of Babylon,…

Varieties  29 July 2025, Nuremberg: A demonstrator from Animal Rebellion is arrested by the police and the zoo's security service after entering the grounds of Nuremberg Zoo. (dpa)

German Zoo Kills 12 Baboons That It Didn’t Have Enough Space to House, Despite Protests

A zoo in the German city of Nuremberg said it killed 12 baboons on Tuesday despite protests, capping a saga rooted in concerns that the zoo had too little…

Varieties This satellite image provided by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) shows Hurricane Iona forming in the central Pacific Ocean, Monday, July 28, 2025. (NOAA via AP)

Hurricane Iona, Tropical Storm Keli Rumble in the Central Pacific off Hawaii

A major hurricane was churning across the Pacific Ocean but was several hundred miles south-southeast of Hawaii and posed no threat to the islands, forecasters…

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Varieties The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia Pavilion at Expo 2025 Osaka has received the WELL Health-Safety Rating - SPA

Saudi Pavilion Earns Exclusive WELL Health-Safety Rating at Expo 2025 Osaka

The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia Pavilion at Expo 2025 Osaka has received the WELL Health-Safety Rating, making it the only international pavilion to achieve this…

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Varieties A general view of the burning forest during wildfires in the Harmancik district of Bursa, early on July 28, 2025. (AFP)

Türkiye Faces a ‘Very Risky Week’ for Wildfires as Flames Also Scorch Parts of Southeast Europe 

Türkiye faced a "very risky week" for wildfires, an official said Monday, as blazes across parts of southeast Europe and the Balkans damaged homes and led to a…

Varieties People push baby strollers along a business street in Beijing on July 13, 2021. (AFP)

China to Offer Childcare Subsidies in Bid to Boost Birth Rate 

China's government will offer subsidies to parents to the tune of $500 per child under the age of three per year, Beijing's state media said Monday, as the…

Varieties It's common to see people in Tunis weighed down by bags of plastic bottles along the roadside. FETHI BELAID / AFP

Tunisia Plastic Collectors Spread as Economic, Migration Woes Deepen

A towel draped over his head, Hamza Jabbari sets bags of plastic bottles onto a scale. He is among Tunisia's "barbechas", informal plastic recyclers whose…

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Varieties Customers walk around plush figures and toys on display in the first Pop Mart store selling Labubu toys in Berlin, Germany, 25 July 2025. (EPA)

Labubu Fans Dote Over Ugly-Cute Doll Trending at Comic-Con 

San Diego Comic-Con is the latest location where the ugly-cute dolls named Labubu have been trending, with fans carrying the plushies globally popularized by…