Scientists find strongest evidence yet of alien life on distant planet
Scientists have detected an encouraging potential sign of life on a planet in a different solar system in what they believe is the “strongest indicator” that life exists beyond Earth.
Researchers analyzing the planet K2-18b, which orbits a star 120 light-years from Earth, have found a molecule that on Earth is associated with living organisms in the planet’s atmosphere.
The potentially Earth-shattering study was published Wednesday in the Astrophysical Journal Letters.
“This is the strongest evidence yet there is possibly life out there. I can realistically say that we can confirm this signal within one to two years,” astronomer Nikku Madhusudhan, a professor at the University of Cambridge and the lead author of the new study, told the BBC.
The findings could even suggest that K2-18b is covered with an ocean, a potential home to living organisms.
Madhusudhan’s team observed large amounts of chemicals that, when found on Earth, are produced by marine phytoplankton and bacteria. The quantity of these molecules found in K2-18b’s atmosphere is thousands of times higher than what’s on Earth, he said.
“So, if the association with life is real, then this planet will be teeming with life,” he told the BBC. “If we confirm that there is life on K2-18b it should basically confirm that life is very common in the galaxy.”
“It is in no one’s interest to claim prematurely that we have detected life,” Madhusudhan told the New York Times.
Mans Holmberg, a co-author of the study and a postdoctoral researcher at the Space Telescope Science Institute, told The Washington Post that the observations suggest the planet could boast a hydrogen-rich atmosphere and an ocean deeper than any on Earth.
“Everything about this system is quite alien. We don’t have anything like it in the solar system,” he said.
Other experts in the field remarked on the potential magnitude of the discovery, but urged caution before drawing any sweeping conclusions.
“It’s not nothing,” Stephen Schmidt, a planetary scientist at Johns Hopkins University, told the Times. “It’s a hint. But we cannot conclude it’s habitable yet.”
“I think this is one of those situations where extraordinary claims require extraordinary evidence,” Laura Kreidberg, an astronomer at the Max Planck Institute for Astronomy in Germany, told NPR. “I’m not sure we’re at the extraordinary evidence level yet.”
There’s an ongoing debate about the presence of the molecules on the planet as well as what they could mean, and if they are in fact there. For example, the chemicals could relate to a process unrelated to living organisms on K2-18b.
The research team agreed.
“Either we are looking at a new chemical process that we haven’t seen before … or we’re witnessing the first signs of biological activity outside of Earth,” Holmberg said.
British tourists banned from bringing meat and cheese back from Europe
British tourists have been banned from bringing meat and dairy products back from Europe in a blow to travellers getting away for Easter.
Under new rules, travellers returning to the UK will not be able to carry beef, pork, lamb, mutton, venison, goat meat or dairy products.
It means tourists travelling to the continent for the long Easter weekend will no longer be able to bring back small amounts of cheese and meat – such as a wedge of French brie or a German sausage – to give as gifts or to enjoy upon returning.
“If you’re travelling over Easter weekend, check what you can and can’t bring back before you go,” the government warned.
A post on X, formerly Twitter, from the government’s official account sought to play down the impact of Brexit on the changes, stressing that the measures “are to protect farmers from the spread of foot and mouth disease” amid rising cases on the continent. There are currently no cases in the UK.
Farming minister Daniel Zeichner said: “This government will do whatever it takes to protect British farmers from foot and mouth.
“That is why we are further strengthening protections by introducing restrictions on personal meat and dairy imports to prevent the spread of the disease and protect Britain’s food security.”
Hundreds of thousands of British tourists are planning to flock to the continent over the Easter weekend, and the Port of Dover alone said it expects to process around 5,500 cars embarking on outbound ferry sailings between 6am and 1pm on Good Friday. Meanwhile, aviation analytics company Cirium said 11,282 flights are scheduled to depart from UK airports between Good Friday and Easter Monday.
Under the rules, the government has warned travellers that declared goods will be seized and “destroyed” by Border Force officers at customs.
Travellers discovered with undeclared meat or cheese face potential prosecution or fines of up to £5,000.
The rule change is the latest post-Brexit headache to hit travellers between Britain and the EU, and comes after the casualty of the famous booze cruise – a tradition of British households hopping on ferries to stock up on cheap French wine.
Restrictions since Britain left the EU mean travellers can no longer return to the UK with as much wine as they like. They now have a limit of 18 litres or 24 bottles of wine per person; for beer, the limit is 42 litres.
Liberal Democrat MP Caroline Voaden told The Independent: “The January reports of foot-and-mouth cases in Germany brought back chilling memories of 2001. Following those cases, I questioned the farming minister about whether the government would accelerate negotiations for a veterinary agreement with the EU.
“While he assured me no extra impetus was needed, three months on, we still lack any substantial agreement, and the government is now banning the personal imports of meat and dairy products from the EU.
“Let’s be clear: this is a blunt move which won’t help to secure our long-term biosecurity. While no one wants to see foot-and-mouth on our shores again, the government must realise that these bans are not the solution. We urgently need a veterinary agreement with the EU, not just to boost biosecurity, but to slash the red tape our farmers and fishers deal with every time they want to export to our biggest trading partner.”
Arsenal create own Champions League magic to script new story
Arsenal indeed “write their own history”, with the extra flourish that the only remontada was Bukayo Saka’s. The forward overcame his early penalty miss to score the divine goal that has ultimately eliminated the European champions, with Gabriel Martinelli then killing any dying belief that Real Madrid had to turn a great night into a great win. There was even the literal lovely touch of how Saka’s penalty was a lifted Panenka gone wrong, only for the forward to lift it over Thibaut Courtois in even better fashion.
Arsenal have now ascended to the Champions League semi-final for just the third time in their history. Perhaps it is fitting that they will return to Paris, where they lost their only Champions League final in 2006, to add to that sense of history building.
Belief will only grow with it, as Madrid may now be developing a complex about Arsenal. They are the only club to have played Madrid twice in the history of European competition and not been knocked out once.
That’s the kind of scale Mikel Arteta can now talk about. Arsenal may not have reached the performance heights of their pulverisation of Madrid in the first leg, but this was almost as impressive in its own way. Arteta’s side so professionally withstood Madrid’s attack to more consummately withstand all of the psychology around the remontada. The European champions never got close. They couldn’t. William Saliba’s atypical slip for Vinicius Junior to make it 1-1 stood out all the more because it was so rare in this match.
Arsenal did a number on Madrid. They also looked more than the sum of their parts. Put bluntly, they are much more of a team, with more players obviously needed. That’s even more to the manager’s credit given he was missing Gabriel Magalhaes at one end and any kind of striker at the other. For all of Madrid’s experience and expensive talent in that exact area, though, they badly missed a Martin Odegaard. He was supreme, offering one of those individual performances that are always essential parts of great team nights like this. Jurrien Timber, Myles Lewis-Skelly and Jakub Kiwior were also up there, not to mention the irrepressible Saka.
No-one was up there with Declan Rice, though. He offered a career display, not just standing up in an arena like the Bernabeu but rampaging all over it. Almost every time Madrid even offered a suggestion they might work a way through, there was Rice. He was either just winning the ball or, more symbolically, winning it and driving the ball up the field. This was captain stuff, reminiscent of Patrick Vieira or Roy Keane.
And to think that’s where Madrid have some of their most energetic talent. That might be one of the issues.
Madrid have the fastest attack in world football, where the very names can strike fear, but there’s an obvious issue with it. They don’t currently have the other players to maximise them. The forward line can move fast, sure, but it can’t really move with much variety.
There is no one directing the play. It made the pre-game tifo of a wizened figure playing chess all the more ironic. Madrid just didn’t have any kind of grand master moving the pieces. You can really see how crucial both Toni Kroos and Luka Modric together were to their entire Champions League era. They imposed a style, and more sophisticated patterns of play. Without them – or at least without a prime Modric – Madrid just repeated the same pattern. The ball was played out wide for one of Vinicius Jr or Rodrygo to run at Arsenal’s full-backs, only to run out of space.
The weapon they seemed to be relying on most was psychology, and the idea of what might happen when they scored. When they eventually did that, Arsenal had already got one themselves, and it was telling they needed to rely on Arteta’s side suddenly being unusually casual.
It wasn’t like it came out of general play. Saliba didn’t see Vinicius coming from a slightly strange moment, and the Brazilian was left to force it into an empty net.
The 67th-minute strike represented a rare moment when Arsenal gave them anything. The entire backline had been so assured, generally keeping their positioning so well but also offering significant interventions when necessary. One Kiwior interception as the second half built was superb and, dare we say it, Rice-like.
The issue wasn’t just where Madrid’s attack moved, though. It was how they moved. Their running stats represented a huge theme before the game when it was revealed Arsenal had clocked 14km more in the first leg. Bellingham even spoke about the need to up it and put it in, which were words somewhat undercut by actions. When Odegaard typically glided past the midfielder in the first half, Bellingham didn’t chase.
Later on, as Arsenal started to build the play that eventually led to Saka’s goal, the star trio were seen strolling around up front. You could say they were waiting to use their speed in the most effective way. Except, without proper modern pressing at this level, you’re likely to be left waiting.
That was almost their entire game. One description of the Bernabeu on nights like this is of a “torture chamber”, and almost worse than the worst actually happening is the wait, the build-up. It’s how the fascinating psychology of this works. It was just as well Arteta had evidently done his research on it, and drilled his team so well.
For less focused teams, a 3-0 might not feel like a 3-0 when Vinicius is running at your goal at pace. It’s not just the threat of a goal. It’s the threat of what a goal would mean. It wouldn’t just be 1-0, it would be one less, with the wave building.
That’s how it happens. There’s an ebb and flow to these occasions, with every turn having a wider effect on what follows. That is what Arsenal so impressively withstood, which was all the more impressive given the early emotional swing with the penalties back-and-forth.
Arsenal had a slightly tetchy opening, with Rice often having to drive the ball out of defence. They were then offered the opportunity to not just settle their nerves but settle the tie. Mikel Merino was pulled down by Raul Asencio, and Arsenal were awarded a penalty after a delayed VAR check. It very much wasn’t a home-town decision, but it was impossible not to wonder if the circumstances affected Saka’s decision. He opted for a Panenka, only to undercut their value by going to the side. Courtois palmed it away.
It would have been easy for Arsenal to allow some intrusive thoughts, especially with the knowledge of how these things can go. This is how it starts. It then picked up when Madrid were awarded an even softer penalty for an adjudged Rice push on Mbappe.
They needed it, because they had been creating so little. David Raya’s most frenetic activity was running his goalkeeping coach during the long wait over VAR. It eventually overturned the penalty.
And after that, Madrid had so little. Arsenal had more to give, with Martinelli putting the crown on it.
It’s the sort of performance that will only engender belief about putting the grandest trophy of all in the cabinet. A dangerous Paris Saint-Germain come first, but that can wait. This is to be savoured.
This was exactly what Arteta wanted, in every sense.
Robotics approved for use in NHS surgeries across England
State-of-the-art robotic systems approved for use on the NHS could transform treatment for thousands of people across England.
The technology, given the green light by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (Nice) under its early value assessment programme, offers a range of applications, from helping remove tumours to replacing a patient’s knee.
The rollout is expected to reduce hospital stays, faster recovery times, and a lower risk of complications.
A total of 11 systems have been approved, including five for soft tissue surgeries, such as removing tumours, repairing hernias and removing gallbladders and six for orthopaedics, including knee and hip replacements.
Some allow surgeons to perform operations using mechanical arms controlled from a console, while others are hand-held.
Dr Anastasia Chalkidou, programme director of Nice’s HealthTech programme, said: “These innovative technologies have the potential to transform both soft tissue and orthopaedic surgical care in the NHS.
“Robot-assisted surgery may help overcome key limitations of conventional techniques through precise movements and enhanced 3D visualisation, potentially transforming surgical options and outcomes for NHS patients.
“Both applications could benefit patients who might not otherwise be candidates for minimally invasive approaches.”
Under the guidance, the 11 systems can be used over the coming three years while more evidence is collected.
Among the issues Nice will look at are how the technology affects the length of hospital stays and waiting lists, as well as the resources used for training staff and the costs of implementing the systems.
Each of the systems costs between £500,000 and £1.5 million, according to the NHS spending watchdog, and are usually deployed in specialist centres where hundreds of operations take place each year.
Dr Chalkidou added: “The data gathered over the next three years will allow us to evaluate exactly how these technologies can improve patient care and help ensure NHS resources are directed toward interventions that deliver meaningful clinical benefits and long-term value to our health service.”
In 2011-12, the majority of robot-assisted procedures were for urological cancer, which can include cancer in the bladder, kidney, prostate and testicles, according to Nice.
By last year, almost half of these operations were for other conditions, with a surge in the use of robotic surgeries for bowel cancer, which now accounts for a quarter of all robot-assisted procedures.
There has also been a jump in the use of the technology in orthopaedics, with 4,000 robot-assisted surgeries taking place last year, up from 300 in 2018-19.
Making greater use of digital technologies in the NHS is one of the three shifts set to be outlined by the Government in its forthcoming 10-year health plan.
It is also expected to focus more on sickness prevention and moving care from hospitals into the community.
Professor Sir Stephen Powis, national medical director at NHS England, said: “This is fantastic news for patients and shows that the NHS continues to find new ways to utilise the latest technological innovations to improve care.
“This will be a vital element of the 10-year health plan which will be published in the coming months.
“Robot-assisted surgery is crucial to the future of high-quality healthcare – and with benefits including shorter stays in hospital, faster recovery for patients and less invasive procedures, these advancements will have a knock-on effect throughout the system and help patients get treated quicker.
“This is an important step forward as we continue to work to ensure everyone is able to get high-quality care when they need it.”
Nuha Yassin, a consultant colorectal surgeon and Royal College of Surgeons of England council member, described the Nice guidance as a “significant step forward”.
“The potential for faster recovery times, reduced complications and increased access to minimally invasive procedures could transform patient care,” she said.
“It remains important that, in introducing these new technologies, NHS trusts and surgical teams ensure they are working within the guidelines set out by the Royal College of Surgeons of England, so that they are implemented in the safest way possible for patients.”
Teacher awarded five-figure payout after pupil threw laptop at her
A teacher has been awarded a five-figure settlement after a pupil threw a laptop at her head, union figures show.
The payout to the woman, who was injured and lost consciousness, was among several awarded to teachers over issues such as injuries or discrimination in the workplace.
The figures, which were released ahead of the NASUWT union’s two-day annual conference in Liverpool, revealed the teaching union secured nearly £15.2 million in compensation for its members last year.
In one case, a teacher was awarded a six-figure settlement after he was hit by a car while directing traffic in the school car park.
He sustained a fractured left heel bone, which required surgery after he was propelled over the car bonnet and hit the floor.
The NASUWT also supported a pregnant teacher with an employment tribunal claim for breaches of the pregnancy/maternity provisions of the Equality Act 2010.
The employer’s treatment of the woman was mishandled from the time she advised them of her pregnancy, the union said.
The NASUWT also assisted a teacher in securing a five-figure settlement after his employer had been unsupportive when he requested time off for a family emergency.
The member had worked at his school for 30 years and had only ever had three days off sick.
He was warned that if he did not accept the agreement, he was likely to be made redundant through a restructure that had not been announced by that point, the union said.
Patrick Roach, general secretary of the NASUWT, said: “If all employers took seriously their duty of care and legal responsibilities to their employees, we would not be forced to pursue legal remedies to get redress for members.
“Behind every successfully concluded case is a teacher who has suffered months, and in some cases years, of mental distress and anxiety.
“Some members are no longer able to return to teaching due to the physical injuries they have sustained or the psychological impact of the treatment they have experienced.
“We will not hesitate to pursue justice and redress for members where they are injured, made ill or suffer unfair and discriminatory treatment at work.”
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Murder arrest as woman, 93, found dead in house
A murder probe has been launched after 93-year-old woman was found dead in a leafy suburb of Manchester.
Police found the pensioner’s body inside the semi-detached home in Gatley near Stockport at 9.38am on Wednesday.
A 39-year-old woman was arrested at the scene on suspicion of murder and remains in custody, Greater Manchester Police (GMP) said.
The force confirmed it had referred itself to the Independent Office for Police Conduct due to previous contact with the victim.
However, following an initial assessment by GMP’s Professional Standards Directorate, all officers remain fully operational.
Forensic officers were seen examining the semi-detached property which had one window broken.
Neighbours said that gas engineers had been called to the property before the victim was found dead.
Tom Morrison, Liberal Democrat MP for Cheadle, said: “I am deeply saddened to learn of the tragic incident in Gatley this morning, in which a 93-year-old woman has sadly lost her life. My thoughts are first and foremost with her family and loved ones at this incredibly difficult time.
“I have been in contact with Greater Manchester Police and will continue to support them in any way I can. I want to thank Greater Manchester Police officers for their swift and professional response.”
Detective Inspector Adam Hitchen, the senior investigating officer, said: “The priority for our investigation is understanding the full circumstances which led to this tragic incident and getting justice for the victim.
“Our thoughts are with the victim’s family, who are aware and are being supported by specialist officers.
“We recognise that this investigation may cause concern within the local community, but I want to assure the public that this is an isolated incident, with a swift arrest made, and no wider threat.”
Anyone with information is urged to contact police on 101 quoting log number 726 of April 16 2025, or contact Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.
The US needs to understand truth and trade are not interchangeable
When negotiating a trade deal in normal circumstances, governments tend to concentrate on what might be termed, sometimes literally, “bread and butter issues”.
Tariffs, quotas, regulations… these are the matters that occupy the negotiators for months if not years – as the Brexit process rather painfully proves. In the case of the current trade talks between the UK and the US, these are not proceeding in the usual manner.
The putative components of an ambitious transatlantic agreement have been kicked around, on and off, for some years, albeit with limited success. Only now, with the second coming of Donald Trump, has Britain been asked to exchange truth for trade. Yet that is, in effect, what the Trump administration will require of Sir Keir Starmer if he is to achieve what has eluded all of his predecessors since the Brexit vote in 2016.
As The Independent exclusively reveals, for the first time in such trade talks, Britain will be asked to adopt a political, indeed “Trumpian”, view of the world quite at odds with its traditions and democratically approved laws.
President Trump’s America is a world of truth-twisting, hypocrisy and increasing authoritarianism, where Congress is sidelined and even the rulings of the Supreme Court are brazenly ignored by the administration. Independent checks and balances on the excesses of executive power are being slowly but surely eroded – the media, universities such as Harvard, even the Kennedy Center and the Smithsonian – all bullied and extorted. As former president Barack Obama says, the unprecedented decision to freeze more than $2bn in federal funds for research and teaching at Harvard University is “unlawful and ham-handed”. Joe Biden, breaking his own silence, talks of the “destruction” wrought by Mr Trump.
We have seen all too much of the kind of populist, hard-right ideology that the Trump administration now seems intent on exporting to the UK. It will take all of the wit and skill of the prime minister and his senior colleagues to resist the drive to undermine Britain’s culture of tolerance and its well-established multicultural society. That is more precious than any conceivable trade concessions. We must seriously question whether a deal that sacrifices truth is worth it.
However, the nightmare proposition is real enough for the government to have to take it seriously. The Independent’s reporting shows that sources close to the vice-president, JD Vance, have indicated that the British government will have to repeal hate speech laws in order to get a trade deal over the line. Mr Vance has been surprisingly upbeat in public about the prospects for some sort of economic accord with the UK, even as President Trump has unleashed his erratically conducted trade war on the world. But such an exceptional deal with the British would, say Mr Vance’s allies, come at a particular cost. As one puts it: “No free speech, no deal. It is as simple as that.”
In practice, pushed to the maximum extent, that would mean the repeal of laws against hate speech, including abuse targeting LGBT+ groups or other minorities, as a condition of any accord. In principle, such a demand could also extend to the civil police orders prohibiting silent protest in the vicinity of an abortion clinic, relevant clauses in the new Online Safety Act, and changing the laws used to prosecute those involved in the civil disorder last summer, after the Southport murders. Elon Musk, still close to Mr Trump, has long complained in lurid terms about what he sees as draconian restrictions on freedom of speech in the UK, including on his social media platform, X.
Mr Vance’s views carry weight in the US-UK trade talks. During Sir Keir’s visit to the Oval Office in February, in front of the television cameras, Mr Vance declared that “there have been infringements on free speech that affect not just the British – what the British do in their own country is up to them – but also affect American technology companies and by extension, American citizens”. Sir Keir pushed back at that point, defusing the controversy, but Mr Vance isn’t dropping his objections.
Earlier this year, at the Munich Security Council, Mr Vance delighted in telling the assembled European allies that the greatest threat to their security wasn’t Russia or China but their own migration policies. Last summer, while he was running for office, Mr Vance said he was “beating up” on Britain and “joked” that “the first truly Islamist country to get a nuclear weapon” might be “actually the UK since Labour just took over”.
Such, then, is the scale of the hostility and the personal challenge awaiting the prime minister as he sets out to win a historic trade deal. He will set about it in his usual serious manner. As President Trump said in a backhanded compliment, when Sir Keir tried to stop him from imposing steel tariffs, “he was working hard, I’ll tell you that. He earned whatever the hell they pay him over there.” Sir Keir does indeed argue hard, is usually in command of his brief and is persuasive, and the whole of his team will have to emulate those qualities in the coming weeks.
The British should be open, in principle, to a deal that eases trade on cars, steel, agricultural products, digital services, biotechnology, AI and much else – and which declares mutual respect for the rule of law and freedom of expression. It could be consummated during the president’s planned state visit at the invitation of the King.
However, importing Trumpism would be neither desirable nor practical, and Sir Keir will need to say as much, in as velvety, oblique, delicate and diplomatic a fashion as possible. Fortunately for Britain, President Trump likes Sir Keir, which counts for much – and Mr Vance is not the president (yet).