Preliminary results raise hopes experimental coronavirus vaccine could help end pandemic

The combination of anti-vaxxers on the march and a government with woeful health messaging could be lethal for Britain

More than 140 teams of researchers are racing to develop a safe and effective coronavirus vaccineResearchers around the world are racing to develop a vaccine against Covid-19, with more than 140 candidate vaccines now tracked by the World Health Organization (WHO). Continue reading...

Researchers say SNG001 can reduce need for ventilation and improve survival chances

4,000 music fans to attend gig as part of study into how virus spreads in large gatherings

Ruth May tells MPs she was told she was no longer needed after failing to back Johnson adviser

Mixed messages from government don’t help, but face masks must become a social norm to have an impact on coronavirus

The narrative is that Covid-19 patients are either hospitalized near death, or ride out a ‘mild’ Covid flu at home. The reality is more complex

Government says agreements ensure Britain has best chance of protecting those at risk

Twenty-two new cases reported day after ‘wartime’ measures introduced in Urumqi

Sprinkling rock dust on fields can suck up some carbon − but reducing emissions must be the mainstay of our effortsWhat should we do? The world is rapidly approaching 1.5C of warming above pre-industrial levels − the target limit of the Paris agreement − and is on track for 3C unless we take action. So what is the best action to take?In 2018, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) predicted that to have a good chance of limiting heating to 1.5C, we should reach net-zero CO emissions by around 2050, give or take five years. In fact, for any stable climate we’ll need to reach net-zero emissions at some point in our future. Continue reading...

Planetary scientist Sarah Stewart Johnson describes how the latest mission to Mars builds on centuries of discoveries about the red planet, our nearest neighbourNasa plans to launch its latest mission to Mars this month, which aims to place the Perseverance rover on the surface of the planet in February 2021.It is the latest attempt to explore a planet that has loomed large in the popular imagination for centuries. As the planetary scientist Sarah Stewart Johnson tells Rachel Humphreys, there is a long history of hopes, theories and fictional representations of life on Mars. But so far none has been discovered. Continue reading...

A rocket carrying the unmanned probe, known as Al-Amal in Arabic, joins China and US in race to red planetThe first Arab space mission to Mars has blasted off aboard a rocket from Japan, with its unmanned probe – called Al-Amal, or Hope – successfully separating about an hour after liftoff.A live feed of the launch showed the rocket carrying the probe lifting off from the Tanegashima Space Centre in southern Japan at 6.58am (9.58pm GMT). Continue reading...

South Africa fatalities pass 5,000; Sport stars attack NFL over lack of Covid plan; France to issue fines for breaches of mask rules. This blog is now closed

Life Sciences-Charity Partnership Fund aims to reverse impact of Covid-19 on study into biggest killersAt least 50 cross-party MPs are calling on the government to back a UK medical research fund they say will reverse the devastating impact of Covid-19 on research into the UK’s biggest killers, including dementia, coronary heart disease and cancer.The Life Sciences-Charity Partnership Fund, developed by the Association of Medical Research Charities (AMRC), has the support of politicians including Labour’s Hilary Benn, Ed Davey from the Liberal Democrats and the Conservatives’ Sir Roger Gale. They are asking the government for £310m, which would be matched by funding from charities for at least three years. Continue reading...

Researchers claim system could save lives in situations like the Whakaari/White Island eruption in 2019, which killed 21 peopleNew Zealand scientists say they have invented a warning system to predict volcanic eruptions that may prevent future tragedies such as the blast that killed 21 people on White Island/Whakaari in 2019.University of Auckland academics David Dempsey and Shane Cronin say their research “shows patterns of seismic activity before an eruption that make advance warning possible”. Continue reading...

Neowise, one of the brightest comets since Hale-Bopp, can be seen with the naked eye, but you’ll need binoculars to see the tailThere’s only one thing to see this week: comet C/2020 F3 Neowise. Discovered on 27 March on images taken by the Nasa NEOWISE space telescope, by the beginning of this month the comet had grown in brightness to become visible to the naked eye. It passed its closest approach to the sun on 3 July and this week, on 23 July, it will make its closest approach to Earth.To see the comet from the UK, look north in the early hours of the morning. Find the Plough, which is conveniently located between the bright yellow star of Capella to the east, and the orange star of Arcturus to the west. The comet will appear as a misty spot, close to the horizon. Its tail will be pointing straight up, although you are unlikely to see this with the naked eye. The best you can hope for is a slight elongation of the central patch of light. However, if you take binoculars with you, this will increase the amount of detail you can see. Unfortunately, the comet is too far north to be visible from the southern hemisphere. It is one of the brightest comets since comet Hale-Bopp in 1997. Continue reading...

Exclusive: Curators seek answers about puzzling photos, devices and other objects

Curators of the Science Museum Group collection are keen for the public to help better understand the purpose of the items they care for on behalf of the nation

Lam says situation out of control, while Melbourne makes face masks compulsory

Pay attention to your thoughts and apply logic. We’re often caught up in draining and irrational patterns of thinkingWhen was the last time you were really scared? You might think, that time I lost my child in a shopping centre, or the moment the doctor told me it was serious, or the night I was followed home from the bus stop, or as I was walking up to the stage to give my big speech.All of those moments can prompt good old-fashioned fear, but what you probably won’t instantly recall is all the other times when fear has been present inside you: the many moments when fear has been controlling you, without you knowing it. It’s there when you feel unfulfilled, as if there’s something missing; when no amount of success is quite enough. And it’s also there when you feel jealous, judge people, are overcome by perfectionism, or feel the need to crush a colleague. Continue reading...

PM says reimposition of national measures is ‘nuclear deterrent’ he hopes never to use

How seasonal viruses interact with the coronavirus is unknown – it may lessen or sharpen the pandemic – so flu vaccinations are vital

Your questions answered on what type of mask to wear to cut the risk of getting Covid-19

Mercury retrograde? It recently came for me and, for a while, I refrained from mocking astrologyBarely had the last scoop of topsoil been patted into place when the rain came. And in an unfathomable half hour, it destroyed both a fortnight’s work and what was left of our lockdown cheer.And all we could do was stand there, watching torrents of water lift up great clods of our newly harrowed field, transport them merrily over our equally new storm drain and then carve deep channels in the steep earth banks at the back of our house. Eventually the sky cleared, leaving us only the task of clearing tons of mud from the paving outside the kitchen, repairing the ruined slopes and reseeding the couple of acres we’d been readying for the arrival of the sheep. Such are the ways of life in rural Ireland. No biggie. Continue reading...

A long and difficult period for the firm looks set to conclude in a bust-up with the unions over job cutsBritain’s biggest energy supplier faces a “lost year” due to the coronavirus outbreak, which threatens to erode demand for gas and electricity and leave many homes and businesses unable to pay their bills.Investors are braced for Centrica, the owner of British Gas, to lay bare the toll of the pandemic on the struggling business this week, amid tense talks with trade union representatives over plans to cut 5,000 employees from its workforce. Continue reading...

Health secretary finally bows to pressure to hand over full facts about positive tests to council health officials

Australian scientists have found evidence of antibiotic resistant bacteria in about a dozen species, including bats, penguins, sea lions and wallabiesFor 13 years now, scientist Michelle Power has been grabbing samples of human waste and animal poop from Antarctica to Australia to try and answer a vital question.Has the bacteria in humans that has grown resistant to antibiotics – an issue considered to be one of the world’s greatest health challenges – made its way into wildlife? Continue reading...

Conditions include: no goal celebrations, no shared equipment and clean gloves

Without clear leadership from the top, employers will simply not risk a full return to the workplace this yearThere is little chance of the economy staging a full recovery by the middle of the decade, let alone by Christmas, as Boris Johnson believes is possible.Speaking with the optimism of a first world war general, the prime minister said on Friday that most restrictions on business activity would be lifted by December. This, he intimated, meant that for much of the population there will be a return to pre-coronavirus ways of working by the end of the year. Continue reading...

More than 140 teams of researchers are racing to develop a safe and effective coronavirus vaccineResearchers around the world are racing to develop a vaccine against Covid-19, with more than 140 candidate vaccines now tracked by the World Health Organization (WHO). Continue reading...

After months apart, Jade Bentil was reunited with her grandmother, in time to see the BLM protests unfold. She reflects on a history of repressionIt is Saturday 13 June 2020 and the world is on fire. I’m sitting with my grandma, Esther, in her living room in south London for the first time in three months. She’s reclining in her favourite chair, occasionally sitting up to gesticulate at the TV and pepper the air with comments as we watch the 24-hour newsreel. The scene is achingly familiar; we have sat together in this way, usually with my mum, every year since my grandma was the first person to hold me in her arms in the wake of my arrival into this world, in November 1992. Yet, even while this moment is comforting in its familiarity, there is also something wholly unprecedented about the afternoon, as we watch the images flicker before our eyes.From her living room, we’re seeing history unfold. We are bearing witness to the protests that are part of the war for black life on the streets of London, Minneapolis, Atlanta, Paris and each and every space marked by the constellations of black existence. We can’t be out on the streets ourselves because, at 84, my grandma is particularly vulnerable to Covid-19. Yet even as we’re shut away from the action, the revolution has still found its way into her home. We cheer on all those who, against the background of a global health crisis – the perils of which have extended the long shadow of death always hanging over black life – have risen up. Continue reading...

The finger-prick tests were found to be 98.6% accurate in secret human trials held in June, according to the Daily TelegraphCoronavirus latest updatesThe UK government is planning to distribute millions of free coronavirus antibody tests after successful secret trials, according to reports.The finger-prick tests, which can tell within 20 minutes if a person has ever been exposed to the coronavirus, were found to be 98.6% accurate in human trials held in June, the Daily Telegraph reported. Continue reading...

With good sense having belatedly prevailed, the policy’s success is dependent on the degree and quality of complianceOn 24 July it becomes compulsory to wear face masks in shops and supermarkets in England. What determines how we can expect such measures to play out? Largely, three things: how confident we can be in the available evidence, the size of the estimated effect among a compliant population, and the degree of compliance.While a lot of attention has focused – rightly – on the first two of these, the third is equally important. Compliance not only encompasses questions of whether there is adherence to the guidance, but also the quality of the adherence. It is instructive, then, to compare the case of face masks with that of another very recent public health intervention: the recommendation of handwashing to stop the spread of Covid-19. Continue reading...

The main stumbling block is over vetting procedures to access aid from the planned economic recovery fundCoronavirus latest updatesEU leaders have failed to agree on a massive stimulus plan to breathe life into economies ravaged by the coronavirus pandemic, and will try again to find an agreement whe talks resume on Saturday. .Many of the 27 heads of government declared on arrival for their first face-to-face summit for five months that a deal was crucial to rescue economies in free fall and shore up faith in the European Union. Continue reading...

With close to a million Australians unemployed, the government’s next run of decisions will need to be right, or at least right enoughScott Morrison has been musing out loud about crossroads. The brief foray into symbolism was prompted by the cluster of coronavirus infections at the Crossroads hotel in Casula in New South Wales. So far, state authorities seem to be on top of that outbreak. Victoria continues to battle its second wave.Morrison touched on the crossroads to contrast success (touch wood) in NSW and struggle in Victoria – a delicate exercise for a prime minister who wants that contrast squarely in the public domain, but not forcefully enough to blow up his relationship with the Victorian Labor premier, Daniel Andrews. Continue reading...

Boris Johnson suggested that England could see something like normality by Christmas. Don’t count on it

Patrick Vallance warns of ‘very high probability’ of second wave; PM unveils plan to return England ‘to normality’ by Christmas; UK death toll rises by 114. This blog is now closed - please follow the global live blog for the latest updates6.29pm BSTThis live blog has now closed - please follow the latest updates in the global live blog.Related: Coronavirus live news: Barcelona residents told to stay home after cases rise6.02pm BSTRelated: How prepared is Boris Johnson for a winter resurgence of coronavirus? Continue reading...

Martin Clavane on what reports about Russian hacking reveal about how the world responds to threats such as Covid-19Reports about Russian hacking into Covid-19 research are very revealing (Russian state-sponsored hackers target Covid-19 vaccine researchers, 16 July). They raise fundamental questions about how the world should collectively respond to such existential threats to humankind.Why is it natural that medical research into a vaccine for the Covid-19 virus should be a secret? Do the interests of big pharma come before protecting human life? Surely the world should be freely collaborating to protect humanity from a threat to all nations and people. No nation can be safe from it while any is not. What this therefore demonstrates, albeit unintentionally by those peddling the Russian threat, is that geopolitics are at the heart of their interests, and not stopping the virus. Continue reading...

PM sets out workplace guidelines and gives local authorities powers to close premises and cancel events

Government unveils measures after marathon emergency cabinet session as infections rise

Warning as anxiety and lack of routine lead to rise in inquiries at clinics

Your questions answered on what type of mask to wear to cut the risk of getting Covid-19

More than 140 teams of researchers are racing to develop a safe and effective coronavirus vaccineResearchers around the world are racing to develop a vaccine against Covid-19, with more than 140 candidate vaccines now tracked by the World Health Organization (WHO). Continue reading...

Comet Neowise was discovered on 27 March by Nasa’s Near-Earth Object Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer (NEOWISE) mission. Scientists say the comet is about 3 miles across. Its nucleus is covered with sooty material dating back to the origin of our solar system 4.6bn years ago. It is the brightest comet visible from the northern hemisphere in 25 years Continue reading...

Even though all the vaccinologists are flat out like a lizard drinking it’s going to take some time. Hang in there everyone

Highest one-day total as Democrats urged to skip convention; restrictions reimposed in Mexico, Spain and Israel

Country’s death toll tops 76,000; Spain reports 580 new cases; Covid-19 direct cause of death among 89% of the pandemic’s victims in Italy

Pubs, restaurants, bars will remain closed in city, but restrictions on schools lifted; Patrick Vallance says government was advised to impose lockdown week before it did; 66 coronavirus deaths recorded in UK