- New blow for UK's Starmer as growth data disappoints
- China's top banks to tweak mortgage rates to boost housing market
- Muslim women break taboos navigating east London's waterways
- Nepal dam-building spree powers electric vehicle boom
- More than 60 dead from storm Helene as rescue, cleanup efforts grow
- Dozens missing, 9 dead in migrant boat wreck off Spanish Canaries
- Death toll from Hurricane John hits eight in Mexico
- Storm Helene's toll rises as rescue and cleanup efforts gain pace
- SpaceX launches mission to return stranded astronauts
- Storm Helene kills 44, threatens more 'catastrophic' flooding as cleanup begins
- SpaceX set to launch mission to return stranded astronauts
- Storm Helene kills 44, threatens more 'catastrophic' flooding
- Boeing strike grinds on as latest talks fail to reach agreement
- Iran 'news' sites, hackers target Trump ahead of US election
- US ports brace for potential dockworkers strike
- Japan's speedy, spotless Shinkansen bullet trains turn 60
- US hurricane deaths rise to 44, fears of more 'catastrophic' flooding
- Global stocks mostly rise, cheering Beijing stimulus
- Europe en route for Moon with new simulator, says astronaut Pesquet
- Fireworks forecast if comet survives risky Sun flypast
- Argentina judge orders dictionary to delete pejorative definition of 'Jewish'
- Global stocks rise on rate hopes, Beijing stimulus
- S.African woman turns 118, among the oldest in the world
- UK clears $4 bn AI partnership between Amazon, Anthropic
- Barca fans barred from Champions League away game over racist banner
- Chinese stocks extend surge, Europe higher on Beijing stimulus
- Pope says Church must 'seek forgiveness' for child sexual abuse
- China caps week of 'bazooka' stimulus for ailing economy with rate cut
- Cuts, cash, credit: China bids to jumpstart flagging economy
- France's debt weighs heavier ahead of budget debate
- Iran treads carefully, backing Hezbollah while avoiding war
- Return to sender: waste stranded at sea stirs toxic dispute
- 'Broken' news industry faces uncertain future
- On remote Greek island, migratory birds offer climate clues
- Taken from mother by nuns, victim seeks answers as pope visits Belgium
- China cuts amount banks hold in reserve to boost lending
- Hong Kong, Shanghai extend surge as China optimism boosts markets
- Vietnam president reiterates support for Cuba during official visit
- Drought reduces Amazon River in Colombia by as much as 90%: report
- Stay or go? Pacific Islanders face climate's grim choice
- Florida bracing for 'unsurvivable' Hurricane Helene
- Poverty rises to over 52 percent in Milei's Argentina
- Chloe's see-through look may not be for Kamala Harris
- Champagne houses abuzz over English sparkling wine
- Macron, Trudeau pledge to work for 'decarbonized' economies
- Hurricanes, storms, typhoons... Is September wetter than usual?
- China stimulus, tech optimism boost stock markets
- 'Unsurvivable' Hurricane Helene races towards Florida
- Macron meets Trudeau in Canada as both face political setbacks
- South Korea surges in UN innovation index
Europe's Euclid space telescope to launch on July 1
The European Space Agency said on Wednesday its space telescope Euclid is scheduled to launch on July 1, blasting off on a mission to shed light on the mysteries of dark matter and dark energy.
The mission will launch on a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket from Cape Canaveral in Florida, with the broadcast beginning at 1430 GMT, the ESA said in a tweet.
Euclid was originally planned to ride into space on a Russian Soyuz rocket, but last year Moscow withdrew its launchers in response to sanctions over the invasion of Ukraine.
The ESA was forced to turn to its rival SpaceX, the US company of billionaire Elon Musk, to launch the 1.4-billion-euro ($1.5 billion) mission.
The two-tonne Euclid, which is 4.7 metres (15 feet) tall and 3.5 metres (11 feet) wide, will join fellow space telescope James Webb at a stable hovering spot 1.5 million kilometres from Earth called the second Lagrangian Point.
From there, Euclid will chart a 3D map of the universe encompassing two billion galaxies across more than a third of the sky.
Euclid's gaze will stretch out to 10 billion light years away. Because of how long it takes the light from distant stars to reach Earth, that means it will peer back 10 billion years into the cosmic past.
The mission will allow scientists to reconstruct the history of the 13.8-billion-year-old universe via "slices of time," astrophysicist Yannick Mellier told the Euclid consortium earlier this month.
Euclid's main objective is to better understand dark matter and dark energy, which together make up 95 percent of the universe.
The existence of both remains entirely theoretical -- although also necessary for scientists to construct a working understanding of the universe.
Dark matter is invisible, its existence inferred from the motion of objects affected by its gravitational pull.
Dark energy is the name given to the unknown force causing the expansion of the universe to accelerate.
Euclid is not expected to identify the true nature of these dark mysteries, but astronomers hope its unprecedented view of the universe will shed light on how they act and evolve over time.
Euclid's first images are expected to roll in quickly once scientific operations start in October, but it will take scientists longer to sift through the massive amount of data.
D.Avraham--CPN