'Significant' water found on Moon

Nasa's experiment last month to find water on the Moon was a major success, US scientists have announced.

The space agency smashed a rocket and a probe into a large crater at the lunar south pole, hoping to kick up ice.

Scientists who have studied the data now say instruments trained on the impact plume saw copious quantities of water-ice and water vapour.

One researcher described this as the equivalent of "a dozen two-gallon buckets" of water.

"We didn't just find a little bit; we found a significant amount," said Anthony Colaprete, chief scientist for the Lunar Crater Observation and Sensing Satellite (LCROSS) mission.

No doubt

October's experiment involved driving a 2,200kg Centaur rocket stage into the 100km-wide Cabeus Crater, a permanently shadowed depression at the Moon's far south.

At the time, scientists were hoping for a big plume of debris some 10km high which could be seen by Earth telescopes.

The following probe was designed to analyse the debris plume

The actual debris cloud was much smaller, about 1.6km high, but sufficiently large to betray the evidence researchers were seeking.

The near-infrared spectrometer on the LCROSS probe that followed the rocket into the crater detected water-ice and water vapour. The ultraviolet-visible spectrometer provided additional confirmation by identifying the hydroxyl (OH) molecule, which arises when water is broken apart in sunlight.READ MORE

Cleveland accused denies attack

A convicted US sex offender from Cleveland has pleaded not guilty to an attack that led to a search of his house and the discovery of 11 bodies.

Anthony Sowell pleaded not guilty to charges of rape, kidnapping, attempted murder and felonious assault, the Associated Press reports.

The charges were made after Mr Sowell's arrest last month.

The 50-year-old suspect spent 15 years in prison after being convicted of attempted rape.

Judge John O'Donnell set a bond of $1m (£600,000) on the charges and continued Mr Sowell's $5m bond from last week, when he was charged with five counts of aggravated murder.

He also appointed a lawyer for Mr Sowell. The lawyer, Brian McGraw, had no immediate comment.READ MORE

Major fire at Russia arms depot

At least two people have been killed after a series of explosions and fires at a weapons depot in central Russia, officials say.

The blasts ripped through the defence ministry navy depot on the outskirts of Ulyanovsk when soldiers attempted to decommission munitions.

The officials later said that 43 people who were feared dead had been found safe in a bomb shelter near the site.

Some 3,000 people were evacuated from the surrounding area.

The depot is about 900km (550 miles) south-east of the capital Moscow.

'Like fireworks'

Two fire-fighters died at the Arsenal 31 depot after the blasts and fires, Ulyanovsk Governor Sergei Morozov told the BBC.

Mr Morozov was earlier quoted in Russian media as saying that at least 10 people were taken to hospital.READ MORE

MoD probes new Iraq abuse claims

The Ministry of Defence has said it is investigating new allegations of abuse by the UK military in Iraq.

Lawyers acting for former Iraqi detainees are calling for a full public inquiry into 33 abuse claims made during UK military involvement there.

One allegation is that two soldiers raped a 16-year-old boy in 2003.

Armed forces minister Bill Rammell said such claims were taken seriously but formal inquiries must be held "without judgements being made prematurely".

"Allegations of this nature are taken very seriously. However allegations must not be taken as fact," he said.

Mr Rammell told the BBC "about seven of them have come in within the last month".

"The rest of them are cases that date back significantly beyond that period and they are being investigated. Any allegation of abuse is taken with the utmost seriousness."READ MORE

Brazil proposes carbon cut target

The Brazilian government has announced that it aims to achieve a reduction of at least 36% on its carbon emissions by the year 2020.

President Lula says climate change is the world's most challenging issue

If it meets its pledge, greenhouse gas emissions would be near 1994 levels.

The proposal, which is not a binding target, was revealed in advance of the major UN summit on climate change to be held in Copenhagen in December.

Brazil hopes to put pressure on richer nations to declare their intentions and break the deadlock in the negotiations.

Details of the government's proposals were unveiled following a meeting involving President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva and some of his senior ministers.

'Ambitious' target

In common with other developing nations, Brazil is not setting a binding target for reducing carbon emissions, but is instead proposing to take voluntary action.READ MORE

Peru and Chile in 'spy' scandal

A new diplomatic row has erupted between Peru and Chile after a Peruvian court ordered the arrest of two Chilean military officers over alleged spying.

The court accused the officers of paying a Peruvian air force officer to reveal national secrets.

The officer, Victor Ariza Mendoza, has been arrested and charged with spying.

Peru's President Alan Garcia said he was leaving the Asia-Pacific summit in Singapore a day early over the espionage row.

He also said he had cancelled planned talks with his Chilean counterpart, Michelle Bachelet, at the Apec summit.

"I am returning 24 hours earlier than scheduled so I can obtain complete and sufficient information (on the issue) and to be able to speak from Peru," Mr Garcia said, quoted by AFP new agency.

Reports in the Peruvian media said Lima had recalled its ambassador to Chile for talks.

Lima-based El Comercio reported that Mr Ariza had worked at the Peruvian embassy in Santiago in 2003.

Tensions are already strained between the two countries following a military exercise staged by Chile last month near its disputed border with Peru.READ MORE

New York 9/11 trial ignites row

Senior US Republicans have condemned the Obama administration's move to try alleged 9/11 mastermind Khalid Sheikh Mohammed and four others in New York.

Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell said bringing the suspects from Guantanamo into the US would put "Americans unnecessarily at risk".

The five will be tried in a civilian court near Ground Zero. The prosecution says it will seek the death penalty.

Democrats hailed the decision, while families of 9/11 victims are divided.

The move is part of US President Barack Obama's efforts to close the Guantanamo detention centre for terror suspects.

"The Department of Justice will pursue prosecution in federal court of the five individuals accused of conspiring to commit the 9/11 attacks," US Attorney General Eric Holder told a news conference.

"I fully expect to direct prosecutors to seek the death penalty against each of the alleged 9/11 conspirators."

But Republican leaders immediately criticised the move.READ MORE

Obama affirms commitment to Asia

US President Barack Obama has welcomed a bigger role for China on the world stage and pledged to pursue greater co-operation with Asian countries.

Speaking in Tokyo, he said the US would not be "cowed" by North Korea's nuclear threats and that his commitment to the security of Asia was "unshakeable".

Mr Obama also called on Asian leaders to pursue balanced economic growth.

Early on Saturday, he flew to Singapore for an Asia-Pacific economic summit a few hours earlier than planned.

His trade representative Ron Kirk, who is already at the Apec meeting, says the US wants barriers to trade and investment removed to promote an open global trade system.Mr Obama will round off his week-long Asian tour with stops in China and South Korea.READ MORE

Asia offers Obama a warm welcome

Asian leaders welcomed the election of Barack Obama as the next president of the United States - as did the region's financial markets.

Some regional leaders said Mr Obama's victory in the US poll was the start of a new, more hopeful era.

Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd said the victory represented a message of hope not just for America, but for the rest of the world as well.

Many regional stock markets rose sharply on the news.

Hong Kong's Hang Seng index initially increased by 5.2% and Japan's Nikkei 225 stock average jumped by 4.5%.

Indonesia's pride

The Australian prime minister's hope that Mr Obama's victory would help solve pressing global problems was shared by other leaders in the Asia-Pacific region.READ MORE

Obama seeks to reassure Asia allies

There seems to be a "first" to everything that President Barack Obama is, or does.

The first black leader of the US is also the first American president who has lived in Asia as a child - the first president with an "Asia-Pacific orientation", as US officials put it.

President Obama will try to capitalise on this during his week-long trip to the region.

He wants to build on and improve crucial relationships with allies and rivals across the Pacific.

He will be tackling a broad range of issues - some of them thorny, like global trade, China's currency and US debt, and how to deal with countries like North Korea and Burma, not to mention climate change.

He will also be the first US president to attend a summit of the Association of South East Asian Nations (Asean) in Singapore.READ MORE

Storm blamed for Brazil power cut

A severe storm has been blamed for widespread power cuts in Brazil which lasted more than five hours, the government said.

The strong winds, heavy rain and lightning brought down a power line in Brazil, cutting two other lines and ultimately shutting Itaipu dam.

In the worst blackout to hit Brazil in years, up to a fifth of the population was left without power on Tuesday.

Neighbouring Paraguay was also briefly left in the dark.

Initial suspicion had focused on the Itaipu hydroelectric plant, which supplies 20% of Brazil's power, but officials there said the facility was working normally.

Grid 'strong'

Energy Minister Edson Lobao said the bad weather cut the transmission lines in Sao Paulo state, leading the huge Itaipu dam to shut down automatically.

"Our grid is strong and resistant, but there are moments that the system simply can't withstand," he told reporters in the capital Brasilia.

The outage caused chaos on the streets of major Brazilian cities, including Sao Paulo and Rio de Janeiro, which will showcase the 2014 World Cup and host the 2016 Olympics.READ MORE

Mexican purge axes corrupt police

Mexican authorities have dismissed almost a quarter of all traffic police in the city of Monterrey for failing corruption and competence tests.

It is the latest move by the Mexican government to clean up its police forces, many of which are suspected of having links to organised crime.

At the end of last month all 1,142 traffic police in Monterrey were pulled off duty to undergo extensive tests.

The tests assessed their honesty, mental aptitude and medical condition.

Their living circumstances were also reviewed - to see whether any evidence of possibly unlawful additional income emerged.

The end results have not been good.

More than 270 officers failed the exams outright. They have been dismissed.

Another 500 have been sent for more training. And, in a final insult, over half have been told they are overweight.READ MORE

US envoy opposed to Afghan surgey

US envoy opposed to Afghan surge

The US currently has some 68,000 troops in Afghanistan The US ambassador in Kabul has written to the White House arguing against sending thousands more American troops to Afghanistan. In a leaked cable, Karl Eikenberry said President Karzai's government should first prove it would tackle corruption. The message arrived amid intense debate over strategy, with President Obama yet to make a decision on troop numbers. This dramatic intervention would put the ambassador at odds with generals seeking reinforcements. On Wednesday, President Obama held his eighth meeting to discuss the question of whether to send tens of thousands more troops to confront the Taliban. Mr Eikenberry, a former American commander in Afghanistan, sent the secret cable in the past week, according to US media reports. Expressing concern about corruption in Afghanistan, he said it was "not a good idea" to send more soldiers, the BBC has been told.READ MORE

Adobe lays off one in 10 workers

US software company Adobe Systems has announced it is cutting 680 jobs, almost 10% of its workforce.

The software firm, best known for Photoshop, Flash and Acrobat, said the cuts were necessary to cut costs.

It added it that would be hit with pre-tax restructuring charges of between $65m (£39m) and $71m as a direct result of the cuts.

The lay-offs will not affect employees of web analytics firm Omniture, which was recently taken over by Adobe.

More than 7,000 people work for Adobe Systems.READ MORE

El Salvador facing food shortage

About 10,000 people in El Salvador are in need of food aid after devastating floods washed away crops.

Three days of national mourning are being held following the deaths of at least 140 people in the floods.

Thousands are living in shelters as a result of the disaster and large parts of the country are without electricity and clean water.

The areas around the capital, San Salvador, and the central province of San Vicente were hit hardest.

President Mauricio Funes has declared a national emergency.

At least 49 of the dead are believed to be children.

The torrential rains washed away crops across the region, leaving thousands of survivors to face the dangerous lack of a stable food supply, the UN World Food Programme says.

It hopes to deliver 90 tonnes of aid to the area in the coming days.READ MORE

Brazil minidress woman readmitted

A Brazilian student who was expelled from university for wearing a short dress has been readmitted.

Geisy Arruda was expelled after an incident on 22 October

Bandeirante University, a private college in a suburb of Sao Paulo, reversed its decision, following a public outcry and government criticism.

Videos of people jeering and swearing at the student, Geisy Arruda, have circulated widely on the internet.

They show the 20-year-old being led off by security guards on 22 October with a long, white coat covering her dress.

The university said in a statement on Monday it was reinstating Ms Arruda, without offering an explanation.

Earlier, it had said it had expelled her for disturbing classes through "a flagrant lack of respect for ethical principles, academic dignity and morality".READ MORE

FBI sued over Ethiopian jailing

An American man is suing the FBI for mistreatment while he was held in jail in Kenya and Ethiopia in 2007.

Mr Meshal says his constitutional rights were violated by the interrogations

Amir Meshal was arrested on the Kenyan border as he fled Somalia after the ousting of the Islamist administration.

According to the lawsuit, FBI agents interrogated him there, saying he had received al-Qaeda training in Somalia.

Mr Meshal says he was then returned to Somalia and sent on to Ethiopia for three months where US agents threatened him with torture and death.

He repeatedly denied the allegations and was released in May 2007 and returned to the United States after media inquiries and protests from human rights groups.READ MORE

New PC to encourage older users

A new computer aimed at people aged over 60 who are unfamiliar with PCs and the internet has been unveiled.

The simplified desktop - called SimplicITy - has just six buttons directing users to basic tasks such as e-mail and chat.

The computer comes pre-loaded with 17 video tutorials from television presenter Valerie Singleton

More than 6 million people over the age of 65 have never used the internet, according to government figures.

'Social benefit'

Each made-to-order computer takes two weeks from request to delivery and can be ordered by post.

The computer has been developed in partnership with Wessex Computers and a website aimed at older people called discount-age, set up by Ms Singleton.

She said she was shocked by the number of older people who do not have computers - a survey by the Office for National Statistics in August 2009 revealed that 6.4 million people over 65 have never used the internet.READ MORE

Microsoft disconnects Xbox gamers

Thousands of gamers may have been cut off from Microsoft's online gaming service Xbox Live for modifying their consoles to play pirated games.

Xbox Live allows gamers to play against one another

Online reports suggest that as many as 600,000 gamers may have been affected.

Microsoft confirmed that it had banned a "small percentage" of the 20 million Xbox Live users worldwide.

Microsoft said that modifying an Xbox 360 console "violates" the service's "terms of use" and would result in a player being disconnected.

"All consumers should know that piracy is illegal and that modifying their Xbox 360 console to play pirated discs violates the Xbox Live terms of use, will void their warranty and result in a ban from Xbox Live," Microsoft has said in a statement."The health of the video game business depends on customers paying for the genuine products and services they receive from manufacturers, retailers, and the third parties that support them."READ MORE

Washington sniper is put to death

The man behind the 2002 sniper attacks in and around Washington DC has been executed after a final appeal was thrown out.

John Allen Muhammad's lawyers say he was mentally ill, but Virginia Governor Tim Kaine rejected a plea for clemency.

On Monday, the US Supreme Court quashed an appeal for a stay of execution.

Muhammad, 48, was injected with a lethal drug for the murder of Dean Harold Meyers, one of 10 people killed during the attacks.

Muhammad's accomplice, Lee Boyd Malvo, who was 17 at the time of the shootings, is serving a life sentence in jail.

The pair killed 10 people during three weeks of attacks in Maryland, Washington and Virginia.READ MORE

Obama in Afghan troop level talks

US President Barack Obama is to discuss US policy in Afghanistan with his national security team, as speculation mounts over a decision on troop levels.

A White House spokesman said Mr Obama was considering four options as he headed into the meeting.

He denied reports that the president had already settled on a figure and said a decision was still weeks away.

The top US military commander in Afghanistan has asked for at least 40,000 more US troops there.

Wednesday's meeting comes as an exhaustive review of US strategy in Afghanistan, including troop levels, appears to be drawing to a close.

Reports citing anonymous officials have suggested that a figure somewhat below the 40,000 suggested by Gen Stanley McChrystal is likely to be chosen.READ MORE

Major power failures hit Brazil

A power blackout in Brazil left tens of millions of people sitting by candlelight, after plunging its two largest cities into darkness.

Underground railways, traffic lights, street lamps, lifts and electric gates in Sao Paulo and Rio de Janeiro were all affected.

It was several hours before the problem could be fixed.

The authorities believe it could have been caused by a fault at the giant Itaipu hydro-electric dam.

AT THE SCENE Gary Duffy, Sao Paulo Walking around on the streets near my home, there was absolute chaos, with drivers pulling over to the side of the road and asking what had happened, and did anyone know what was wrong. The traffic lights were out of order, traffic wardens were trying to maintain the flow of traffic, radio stations were appealing to people to drive carefully. There was chaos in the metro system as well, some reports that people had to walk along the tracks because trains had come to a halt, that bus drivers were being called in to provide an emergency service. The night the lights went out

The underground railway systems in Rio de Janeiro and Sao Paulo shut down when the power cuts hit soon after 2200 (0000 GMT), leaving many passengers stranded.

Thousands of rail passengers had to walk down underground tracks to reach stations.

No traffic lights or street lights were working, causing traffic to stop or slow to a crawl.

Extra police were put on the streets to prevent a surge in crime.

Electricity supplies in Paraguay, which shares power from Itaipu, were also disrupted for a short while.

The power system lost 17,000 megawatts after the massive plant went offline, possibly because of a storm.

The director of the dam said it had lost its entire hydro-electric output.READ MORE

Anglicans welcome offer from Rome

The Vatican has published details of its plan to ease conversion for Church of England clergy unhappy about the ordination of women bishops.

The proposal offers them what amounts to their own dioceses within the Roman Catholic Church.

The Vatican also said they could continue with Anglican traditions, such as some church services.

Anglican clergy claim the rules set out in the document make the offer seem more generous than it first seemed.

Fr Geoffrey Kirk, the national secretary of Forward in Faith, which represents Anglicans sympathetic to Catholicism, said more clergy would probably convert as a result.

"Of the 450 parishes I knew would take it (the Pope's invitation) seriously, I said between 150 and 200 would convert. Now I think it'll be more than 200."

The details published today confirm that Church of England priests who are married will be allowed - on a case-by-case basis - to serve as Roman Catholic priests.

That could lead to an influx of married priests to a church where clergy have traditionally been celibate READ MORE

EU negotiates names for top jobs

Sweden's prime minister, the current chair of EU summits, says he is half-way through consultations to determine a shortlist for the new EU top jobs.

Fredrik Reinfeldt said he expected to be ready soon to call a special EU summit to appoint the permanent EU president and foreign policy chief.

The Belgian Prime Minister, Herman van Rompuy, has emerged as a frontrunner for the post of EU president.

UK Foreign Secretary David Miliband is not seeking the foreign affairs job.

He had been seen as a frontrunner for the job - among the institutional changes created by the Lisbon Treaty - even though he had said he was not "available".

But, amid continuing speculation, the BBC understands Mr Miliband told the head of the European socialists' group he was not interested in the job.

Friends have indicated Mr Miliband "sees his future in British politics".READ MORE

Japan to boost aid to Afghanistan

Japan's government has pledged $5bn (£3bn) in new aid to Afghanistan over the next five years.

The decision comes days before US President Barack Obama visits Tokyo.

Japan's centre-left government has said it will end a naval refuelling mission in support of US-led efforts in Afghanistan.

Since coming to power in September the government also said it was working on a plan to offer more civilian aid instead.

Japan's government has been working on a plan to offer more aid to Afghanistan since announcing it would end a mission by the Maritime Self Defence Force to supply fuel to assist US-led operations in the country.

Now there is a figure - $5bn (£3bn) over the next five years.READ MORE

Penis tissue replaced in the lab

Tissue created in a laboratory has been used to completely replace the erectile tissue of the penis in animals.

The advance raises hopes of being able to restore full function to human penises that have been damaged by injury or disease.

Rabbits given the engineered tissue by the scientists from Wake Forest University in North Carolina had normal sexual function and produced offspring.

The study appears online in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

Professor Anthony Atala said: "Further studies are required, of course, but our results are encouraging and suggest that the technology has considerable potential for patients who need penile reconstruction.

"Our hope is that patients with congenital abnormalities, penile cancer, traumatic injury and some cases of erectile dysfunction will benefit from this technology in the future."READ MORE

Russia to resume ISS construction

Science reporter

Russia could eventually convert its modules into the core of a new station

After a hiatus of almost a decade, Russia is set to resume construction of its share in the International Space Station (ISS) with the launch of a new module this week.

A Poisk ("Quest") Mini-Research Module-2 (MIM-2 in the Russian abbreviation) is set for launch from Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan on Tuesday at 1422 GMT.

The spacecraft is essentially a twin of another Russian module - the Pirs Docking Compartment - added to the outpost in September 2001.

In the intervening years, economic problems kept further Russian pieces of the station on the ground and forced a significant scaling down of the Russian segment in comparison to its originally conceived architecture.

The MIM-2 module is only the first of three long-term components which Russia plans to add to the station over the next three years.READ MORE

Last chance' for tuna authority

Environment correspondent, BBC News website

Tsukiji market in Tokyo is the final destination for a large proportion of bluefin

The annual meeting of the body charged with conserving Atlantic tuna opens on Monday to warnings that this is its "last chance" to manage things well.

The International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas (Iccat) is criticised for setting high quotas and not tackling illegal fishing.

Stocks of bluefin tuna are at about 15% of pre-industrial fishing levels.

US Commissioner Rebecca Lent said her country and others feel this is Iccat's last chance to put things right.

"We think Iccat is the body that should be managing bluefin tuna, and this is its chance to prove it can do so effectively," she told BBC News from the meeting in Recife, Brazil.READ MORE

Live UK football for iPhone users

Pay-TV provider BSkyB is to show live Premier League matches on Apple's iPhone.

Users can watch live sports on Sky Sports and ESPN as well as Sky News over a wi-fi connection for £6 a month.

Besides the Premier League, users can also watch Scottish football, cricket and golf via Sky's new application.

BSkyB, which is 39%-owned by Rupert Murdoch's News Corp, has been launching applications for news and sports to try to expand its reach on mobile devices.

To watch sports on a normal television, Sky charges from £26.50 a month for Sky Sports 1 or 2, or £35 for its total sports package - excluding ESPN.

Sky Mobile TV, the latest application, is free to download.READ MORE

US media on Fort Hood shootings

Thirteen people have been killed and 30 injured in a shooting at a military base in Texas. News of the shooting has dominated the US media.

America has been mourning those who died in the shooting

Most newspapers focus their attention on the gunman and speculate about his possible motives for turning on his army colleagues. But the effects of the shootings on the military community in Fort Hood also feature prominently.

Ann Scott Tyson in The Washington Post looks at thegrowing strain multiple deployments to Iraq and Afghanistan have had on the men and women stationed in Fort Hood, with suicide rates and post-traumatic stress disorder hitting record highs.READ MORE

US major contacted radical cleric

US authorities knew that an army major accused of killing 13 people at a military base had been in contact with a cleric sympathetic to al-Qaeda.

Intelligence agencies monitoring the e-mail of Yemen-based Anwar al-Awlaki said he had communicated with Maj Nidal Malik Hasan on 10 to 20 occasions.

However, it was decided that this did not merit further investigation.

US officials say Maj Hasan apparently acted alone in carrying out Thursday's massacre at Fort Hood base in Texas.

President Barack Obama is due to visit Fort Hood later on Tuesday for a memorial service for the 13 people who died in last week's shootings.READ MORE

Korean naval ships clash at sea

A South Korean warship has exchanged fire with a North Korean naval vessel, reports from both countries say.

Officials in Seoul say the South Korean vessel opened fire when the Northern ship crossed a disputed sea border. The North Korean vessel then fired back.

North Korea insists its ship did not cross the border, and has demanded an apology, according to news agency KCNA.

The two navies have engaged in deadly exchanges twice along their western sea border in the past decade.

The incident comes days before US President Barack Obama visits Asia, with North Korea seeking direct talks on its nuclear programme.READ MORE