Do the all-female Blue Origin rocket crew count as astronauts? And what Katy Perry sang in space

Do the all-female Blue Origin rocket crew count as astronauts? And what Katy Perry sang in space

It's been more than 60 years since a woman travelled into space without a man. And now six of them are blasting off from Earth.Popstar Katy Perry, author Lauren Sanchez, journalist and TV presenter Gayle King, civil rights activist Amanda Nguyen, former rocket scientist Aisha Bowe and filmmaker Kerianne Flynn are due to launch in Jeff Bezos' Blue Origin rocket today.It will be the latest flight of the New Shepard programme, named NS-31, and is aiming to "create a lasting […]

12/04/2025 3

Tech

Nintendo Switch 2 launches straight into Trump’s trade war

It was going to be the revivifying event the video games industry desperately needed - instead, thanks to Donald Trump's tariffs, the launch of the Nintendo Switch 2 is experiencing a troubled birth. Barely had Nintendo announced the pre-order date and price point of the hotly awaited new handheld console when the US president slapped tariffs on China and Vietnam, among others, prompting the Japanese gaming giant to immediately suspend US pre-orders of the Switch 2.Today, Nintendo invited Sky News to […]

11/04/2025 1

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Brothers’ lives saved by home spit test that could ‘turn the tide on prostate cancer’

A new spit test for prostate cancer which can be done at home may be better than current testing methods, a study suggests.Experts have developed a simple saliva test which analyses genetic variants in a man's DNA, which appears to perform better than the current method for assessing prostate cancer risk.Currently, the prostate-specific antigen (PSA) blood test is used to check for prostate conditions, including prostate cancer or an enlarged prostate.Routine testing is not currently available on the NHS, but […]

09/04/2025 10

Tech

Six second AI video requires eight times more more electricity than it takes to charge mobile phone

The amount of electricity needed to power the world's data centres is expected to double in the next five years, according to an International Energy Agency (IEA) report.Most of the increase is being driven by the development and use of increasingly powerful AI models.By 2030, data centres could consume 945TWh (terawatt hours) of electricity each year, the report found - three times more than the entire UK.The rise in demand, predicted to be highly concentrated around the world's tech and […]

09/04/2025 1

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‘Concerning’ levels of E.coli found in Thames before Boat Race, campaigners say

E.coli has been traced in multiple water samples from the stretch of the River Thames that will host the famous Boat Race on Sunday, campaigners say.Campaign group River Action, which started testing for the bacteria in the Thames on 10 March, said almost a third of samples (29.5%) exceeded safe limits for entering the water.Water quality would be classed "poor" by official standards if it were a bathing water site, according to the campaigners.In response, Thames Water said rivers were […]

09/04/2025

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Watchdog to investigate ‘suicide forum’ – in first use of power under new online safety laws

Ofcom is investigating whether the provider of a suicide forum has failed to comply with its duties under the Online Safety Act.It's the first investigation into an individual service provider under the new laws.The act was passed in 2023 and requires firms to reduce illegal and harmful content, but its protections are only just taking effect through Ofcom codes of practice.The watchdog said it was looking at whether the forum failed to have appropriate measures to protect users from illegal […]

09/04/2025 3

Tech

Girl who thought she had sickness bug ended up with part of skull in stomach

A girl has relearned how to walk, talk and swallow after undergoing an operation rarely carried out on children, in which doctors stored part of her skull in her stomach.Ellie Morris-Davies, who is now 16, had nine surgeries in the space of 13 weeks last year after being diagnosed with a cavernoma - a cluster of abnormal blood vessels that looks like a raspberry - which does not often have symptoms.At one point, she worried she would "never go home" […]

09/04/2025

Tech

The good, the bad and the ugly in Trump’s coal plans

While wealthy Western countries have been weaning themselves off coal for the last two decades, Donald Trump is now trying to take the US in the opposite direction.The president is issuing further orders to start digging and burning more of what he calls "beautiful, clean coal"."All those plants that have been closed are going to be opened, if they're modern enough, (or) they'll be ripped down and brand new ones will be built," he said on Tuesday.The goodWhy? The "good" […]

08/04/2025 15

Tech

Instagram owner announces new restrictions for teenage users

Instagram owner announces new restrictions for teenage users | Science, Climate & Tech News | Sky News Meta is expanding its Teen Accounts system and rolling it out to Facebook and Messenger.Tuesday 8 April 2025 16:39, UK Image: Pic: iStock Why you can trust Sky NewsTeenagers using Instagram will be prevented from using some of its features without parental permission as part from an update to the app.Instagram owner Meta has announced users who are under 16 will not be […]

08/04/2025

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