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NASA astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams hold a news conference from the International Space Station on 13 September. Photo: AFP PHOTO / NASA TV Two astronauts who flew to the International Space Station for eight days and ended up staying months were aware of the risks and will be being kept busy, a retired astronaut who knows the pair says. NASA astronauts Sunita "Suni" Williams and Barry "Butch" Wilmore crewed Boeing's Starliner which left earth on 5 June for what was meant to be an eight-day test mission. They're now expected to return in February on a different spacecraft. Retired astronaut Michael Fossum told Nine to Noon what happened to Wilmore and Williams was "pretty jarring" - to go from an eight day mission to months spent in space. But this was a test flight, he sa...

By Ben Blanchard, Reuters Hsu Ching-kuang (L), head of Taiwanese company Gold Apollo, speaks to the media outside the company's office in New Taipei City on September 18, 2024. Photo: AFP / YAN ZHAO The model of pagers used in detonations in Lebanon were made by Budapest-based BAC Consulting, Taiwanese pager firm Gold Apollo said on Wednesday, adding it had only licensed out its brand to the company and was not involved in the production of the devices. At least nine people were killed and nearly 3000 wounded when pagers used by Hezbollah members detonated simultaneously across Lebanon on Tuesday. According to a senior Lebanese security source and another source, explosives inside the devices were planted by Israel's Mossad spy agency. Images of destroyed pagers analysed by Reuters s...

Phillip Mehrtens was kidnapped in February 2023. Photo: Facebook Rebels in Indonesia's West Papua region have proposed the terms of release for the New Zealand pilot taken hostage almost 18 months ago. The armed faction of the West Papua National Liberation Army kidnapped Phillip Merhtens in February last year after he landed a small commercial plane in a remote, mountainous area. The group has tried to use Mehrtens to broker independence from Indonesia. It is now asking the New Zealand government, including the police and army, to escort the pilot and for local and international journalists to be involved in the release process. Both Foreign Affairs and the minister's office say they are aware of the proposed plan. In a statement, they say their focus remains on securing a peaceful res...

Sergio Perez crashed at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix. Photo: Screengrab / Formula1 Sergio Perez's father was stable in hospital in Mexico City after he collapsed at home following the Red Bull Formula One driver's heavy crash in Sunday's Azerbaijan Grand Prix, local media reported on Tuesday. A statement from the Scuderia Perez race organisation said Antonio Perez Garibay, 65, would remain under close medical supervision for several days. "Everything happened after the accident," the Mediotiempo website quoted him saying from the hospital. "It may be that the shock of the accident triggered it. They are already checking my heart to see why I fainted." Photo: PHOTOSPORT Perez and Ferrari's Carlos Sainz were battling for third place in Baku when they collided and ended up in the wall, w...

Virgin Australia was forced to reinstate the cabin crew member following a ruling by the country's Fair Work Commission. Photo: 123RF/ Ryan Fletcher An Australian airline which fired a staffer after a Grindr hookup while on 'fatigue leave' probably would not have taken such action if he was married and straight, an employment law expert says. Virgin Australia was forced to reinstate the cabin crew member, Dylan Macnish, following a ruling by the country's Fair Work Commission. Macnish was dismissed after the airline obtained hotel CCTV footage and room swipe card records, the Guardian reported, after he had asked for a roster change due to fatigue. During a stressful shift the previous day, he had been urinated on by a passenger suffering a suspected stroke. Early the next morning, Macn...