UK Heat Wave Could Claim Nearly 600 Lives This Week, Experts Warn
Scientists have warned the elderly and other vulnerable groups in the UK are at risk of heat-related deaths this weekend, as a new study shows recent high temperatures could claim 570 lives in just over four days.
Researchers at the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine and Imperial College London published on Saturday a real-time analysis calculating the number of heat-related deaths expected from Thursday to Sunday.
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Macron says Europe must become 'space power' again
President Emmanuel Macron said Friday that Europe must again become a global space power, warning that France risked being squeezed out of the global low-orbit satellite constellation market. Macron spoke at the Paris Air Show in Le Bourget outside the French capital a day after France more than doubled its stake in satellite operator Eutelsat, the EU rival to Elon Musk's Starlink. Macron called for more investment as the European space industry struggles to remain competitive in the face of US and Chinese rivals. "SpaceX has disrupted the market, Amazon is also getting involved. China is not far behind, and I think we all need to be very clear-headed," Macron said. Europe must become "a space power once again, with France at its heart", he said. He warned that Europeans were "on the verge of being completely" squeezed out of the low Earth orbit (LEO) satellite constellation market. Orbiting just a few hundred kilometres above the Earth, low Earth orbit satellite networks can play a crucial role in various fields including telecommunications, emergency response, space exploration, and defence. Growing geopolitical tensions have forced countries to focus on the independence of their satellite infrastructure. Macron said France and its partners should not be reliant on non-European constellations in low orbit, calling it "madness". He called non-European players to team up with France. "This must be the solution for our major strategic partners in the Gulf, India, Canada and Brazil," he said. "We really need to succeed in increasing our collective investment effort," Macron added, noting the importance of private investors and public-private collaboration. He also said France planned to organise a space summit in early 2026 to "mobilise our public and private partners across the globe." As part of the overall deal with other investors worth 1.35 billion euros ($1.5 billion), the French state is set to become Eutelsat's largest shareholder. The European satellite operator is vying to be seen as an alternative to Starlink, as companies in Europe and elsewhere look askance at Musk's manoeuvrings and seek to secure sovereign solutions. Boasting more than 600 satellites since merging with British firm OneWeb in 2023, Eutelsat is the world's second-largest operator of low Earth orbit satellites, behind Starlink. fff-tq-as/ekf/js
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5 hours ago
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David Hopkinson obituary
My friend and former colleague David Hopkinson, who has died aged 89, was director of the Medical Research Council's human biochemical genetics unit at University College London from 1976 until its closure in 2000. Hoppy, as he was universally known, had joined the unit at its inception in 1962 because in an earlier, more junior, position he had been one of the first medical scientists to describe molecular differences in human enzymes, long before DNA sequence differences were known about. The unit was established to research the extent and significance of genetic variation to human health. As its head, Hoppy expanded its focus to gene mapping and disease genetics while also moving into the new science of gene cloning and DNA sequencing. Born in Chesterfield, Derbyshire, to Albert Hopkinson, an iron and steelworks foreman, and Lilian (nee Siddal), a dressmaker, he went to Chesterfield grammar school, which fostered his early interest in organic chemistry. After completing a natural sciences degree at Cambridge University he qualified in medicine at the London hospital in 1959, working there until he joined the human biochemical genetics unit three years later. Hoppy was recruited by its inaugural head, Prof Harry Harris, becoming his right-hand man responsible for many of the unit's innovative experimental approaches, including developing novel methods of enzyme detection and electrophoresis. The unit moved in 1965 from its initial base at King's College to UCL, where I joined the unit three years later to study for a PhD under Harris. Hoppy remained there for the rest of his career. He published widely, and played an important part in teaching and supervision, being made full professor of London University in 1990. Twenty five years after his retirement, his role as mentor is remembered with great warmth by his former staff and students. Hoppy read widely and appreciated drama and music. A practical man who took pleasure in manual labour, he was an accomplished gardener and delighted in propagating plants and growing vegetables. He also enjoyed summers hiking in the Swiss Alps, and was a keen birdwatcher. In retirement, he studied architecture and German, and gained a first-class degree in geology at the Open University. He also spent many years as a volunteer at Chilterns' Citizens Advice in Chesham, Buckinghamshire. He is survived by his second wife, Prof Yvonne Edwards, and by three children, Paul, Susan and Ian, from his first marriage, to Josephine (nee Manze), which ended in divorce, and four grandchildren.
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Weight loss pill shows promise in new trial
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