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Contrary to its serene appearance, the clouded globe of Venus is a world of intense heat, crushing atmospheric pressure and clouds of corrosive acid. Photo: NASA/JPL-Caltech To 1950s stargazers, the planet Venus looked like "a forest world where it's always raining", says rock star physicist Dr Brian Cox. We now know that this cloudy-looking neighbour is covered in thousands of volcanoes and hellishly hot. "It's well over 400 degrees Celsius on the surface so lead would melt into molten lead. The pressure is 90 times the atmospheric pressure on Earth. "The clouds are not beautiful clouds of water but they rain sulphuric acid - concentrated battery acid - so it's about as close to hell as you can get." A digital image of Earth's home solar system which is home to eight planets and fi...

By Lisa Richwine, Reuters Photo: CNN Superstar singer Beyonce has topped the list of Grammy Award contenders unveiled, earning 11 nods including an album of the year nomination for her venture into country music, 'Cowboy Carter'. Behind Beyonce, Billie Eilish, Charli XCX, Kendrick Lamar and Post Malone tied with seven nominations each. Pop phenomenon Taylor Swift and newcomers Chappell Roan and Sabrina Carpenter scored six each. Beyonce's nominations brought her career total to 99, more than any other artist. She had been tied for the lead with her husband, rapper Jay-Z, who has 88. Women dominated the album of the year category, the top Grammy honour. Beyonce, despite her lifetime lead in nominations, has never taken home the album trophy. Jay-Z called out that fact at the last Gra...

Photo: CHIP SOMODEVILLA / Getty Images via AFP By Andrew Goudsward, Reuters A US judge has set aside pending deadlines in President-elect Donald Trump's 2020 election subversion case after federal prosecutors said they were grappling with the "unprecedented circumstance" of his impending return to the White House. US District Judge Tanya Chutkan in Washington approved a request from Special Counsel Jack Smith, who is prosecuting the criminal case, to set aside the deadlines, according to a court order, while they weigh its future. Prosecutors wrote the delay was necessary "to afford the government time to assess this unprecedented circumstance and determine the appropriate course going forward consistent with Department of Justice policy". Under a Justice Department policy dating back to...