Large asteroid to pass by Earth today

An asteroid estimated to be 1.2 miles wide is expected fly by Earth today but it’s not expected to collide with the planet. The asteroid, called 52768 (1998 OR2), will pass within 3,908,791 miles of Earth, moving at 19,461 miles per hour. Nasa says if it did strike our planet, the asteroid would be “large enough to cause global effects”.

French Nobel prize winner says Covid-19 was ‘made in a lab’

A French Nobel prize-winning scientist says Covid-19 was created in a lab. Luc Montagnier, who won the Nobel Prize in 2008 for his work on HIV, said “the virus has come out of a laboratory in Wuhan, which has been specialising in these types of coronaviruses since the beginning of the 2000s”. He condemned scientists for doing “the work of a sorcerer’s apprentice”. However, many experts have rubbished Montagnier’s claim, saying that it “does not make sense”. The World Health Organization has also said that there is no evidence that the virus was created in a lab in China.

The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Sign up

Cheers as fish wash up on Mexican beach

Thousands of fish have mysteriously washed up on a Mexican beach. Video filmed at Acapulco beach in the south-western state of Guerrero shows the huge school of fish lying dead on the sand. Local residents cheered their arrival on the beach because fish traders and markets have been closed during the lockdown.

–––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––For a round-up of the most important stories from around the world - and a concise, refreshing and balanced takeon the week’s news agenda - try The Week magazine. Start your trial subscription today –––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––