Finnish Library Book Returned 84 Years Overdue

A book borrowed from a Helsinki library was returned in May -- 84 years overdue, a librarian told AFP on Wednesday.
A book borrowed from a Helsinki library was returned in May -- 84 years overdue, a librarian told AFP on Wednesday.
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Finnish Library Book Returned 84 Years Overdue

A book borrowed from a Helsinki library was returned in May -- 84 years overdue, a librarian told AFP on Wednesday.
A book borrowed from a Helsinki library was returned in May -- 84 years overdue, a librarian told AFP on Wednesday.

A book borrowed from a Helsinki library was returned in May -- 84 years overdue, a librarian told AFP on Wednesday.

A Finnish translation of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's book "Refugees" was received by librarian Heini Strand on Monday at the main desk at the Helsinki Central Library Oodi.

"The due date of the loan was December 26, 1939", Strand said, adding that she had never received a book so long overdue.

The relationship between the person who happily returned the book and the original borrower remained unknown.

"Usually these kinds of loans returned decades after the due date are books found when people go through deceased relatives' belongings", Strand said.

"People want to do the right thing and return the book that is the library's property...I think that is lovely", she added.

A likely explanation for the delayed return was that the due date fell a month after the Soviet Union's invasion of Finland in November 1939, Strand noted.

"The return of the book might not have been the first thing on the borrower's mind when the due date approached".

The so-called Winter War between Finland and the Soviet Union raged between the neighbouring countries until March 1940, when a peace treaty was signed forcing Finland to make significant land cessions.

"If the person survived the war, the person probably had other things on their mind than returning the book", Strand said.

The book is a historical novel published in 1893 and set in 17th century France, written by the British author best known for his stories about the character Sherlock Holmes.

According to Strand, the library may make the book -- an edition published in 1925 -- available to the public again since it was received in such good condition.

"The quality of old books is usually much better than new ones".



SpaceX Starship Explodes During Routine Test

Flames rise as a SpaceX rocket explodes in Brownsville, Texas, US, June 18, 2025, in this screengrab obtained from a social media video. TheRocketFuture via X/via REUTERS
Flames rise as a SpaceX rocket explodes in Brownsville, Texas, US, June 18, 2025, in this screengrab obtained from a social media video. TheRocketFuture via X/via REUTERS
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SpaceX Starship Explodes During Routine Test

Flames rise as a SpaceX rocket explodes in Brownsville, Texas, US, June 18, 2025, in this screengrab obtained from a social media video. TheRocketFuture via X/via REUTERS
Flames rise as a SpaceX rocket explodes in Brownsville, Texas, US, June 18, 2025, in this screengrab obtained from a social media video. TheRocketFuture via X/via REUTERS

One of Elon Musk's SpaceX Starships exploded during a routine test late Wednesday in Texas, law enforcement said, in the latest setback to the billionaire's dream of turning humanity into an interplanetary species.

The Starship 36 suffered "catastrophic failure and exploded" at the Starbase launch facility shortly after 11:00 pm (0400 GMT Thursday), a Facebook post by the Cameron County authorities said, according to AFP.

A video shared with the post showed the megarocket attached to the launch arm, and then a flash and a towering, fiery explosion.

Musk's Space X said the rocket was preparing for the tenth flight test when it "experienced a major anomaly while on a test stand at Starbase," without elaborating on the nature of the complication.

"A safety clear area around the site was maintained throughout the operation and all personnel are safe and accounted for," Space X added on social media.

"There are no hazards to residents in surrounding communities, and we ask that individuals do not attempt to approach the area while safing operations continue."

The Starship was not scheduled for launch on Wednesday evening when the explosion occurred during a "routine static fire test," according to the Cameron County authorities.

During a static fire, part of the procedures preceding a launch, the Starship's Super Heavy booster would be anchored to the ground to prevent it from lifting off during the test-firing.

Starbase on the south Texas coast, near the border with Mexico, is the headquarters for Musk's space project.

Standing 403 feet (123 meters) tall, Starship is the world's largest and most powerful rocket and central to Musk's long-term vision of colonizing Mars.

The Starship is billed as a fully reusable rocket with a payload capacity of up to 150 metric tons.

The latest setback follows an explosion of a prototype Starship over the Indian Ocean in late May.

The biggest and most powerful launch vehicle ever built had lifted off on May 27 from the Starbase facility, but the first-stage Super Heavy booster blew up instead of executing its planned splashdown in the Gulf of Mexico.

The previous two outings also ended poorly, with the upper stage disintegrating over the Caribbean.

But the failures will likely do little to dent Musk's spacefaring ambitions.

SpaceX has been betting that its "fail fast, learn fast" ethos, which has helped it dominate commercial spaceflight, will eventually pay off.

The company has caught the Super Heavy booster in the launch tower's giant robotic arms three times -- a daring engineering feat it sees as key to rapid reusability and slashing costs.

NASA is also increasingly reliant on SpaceX, whose Dragon spacecraft is vital for ferrying astronauts to and from the International Space Station.

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) in early May approved an increase in annual Starship rocket launches from five to 25, stating that the increased frequency would not adversely impact the environment.

The decision overruled objections from conservation groups who had warned the expansion could endanger sea turtles and shorebirds.