By Sybille de La Hamaide PARIS (Reuters) -France began vaccinating ducks against bird flu on Monday to try and stem

Nasa has discovered “diverse organic matter” on the surface of Mars, which could change our understanding of the red planet and the search for life in the universe. The Perseverance rover made the discovery in the Jezero Crater on Mars and a number of different explanations for the existence of the material have been posited. The materials could have been formed when water and dust interacted, or was dropped onto the planet by dust or meteors. Authors of the new study also refused to rule out that the materials are “biotic”, or came about due to the existence of life on the surface. Sign up to our free Indy100 weekly newsletter The findings could have a big impact on the continued search for alien life, with research into the organic matter on the surface telling us more about the existence of carbon sources on Mars. The Jezero crater has been explored by The Scanning Habitable Environments with Raman and Luminescence for Organics and Chemicals (Sherloc) instrument on the rover since February 2021. The crater is the site of an ancient lake basin and all 10 target sites explored within it came back with signs of organic molecules. Even if the materials are not biological in origin, research into them could be crucial in the search for alien life, according to the researchers. “Not all organics are biological in origin. Observing spatial relationships between minerals and organics is necessary when evaluating organic origins and potential biosignatures. Everything we know of life on Earth is limited to what is preserved in the rock-mineral record. On Earth, biosignatures are found in certain minerals and some minerals are better at preserving organics than others,” said Ashley E Murphy, a researcher at the Planetary Science Institute and co-author on the new paper. “Mars may have had a similar early geologic history to Earth so we use our knowledge of life as we know it on Earth for where to look for potential evidence of past life on Mars. Mapping organics allows for a better understanding of if the Martian carbon cycle is similar to or different from Earth, and the potential of Mars to host life.” Writing in the Nature journal, the authors said: “Our findings suggest there may be a diversity of aromatic molecules prevalent on the Martian surface, and these materials persist despite exposure to surface conditions. “These potential organic molecules are largely found within minerals linked to aqueous processes, indicating that these processes may have had a key role in organic synthesis, transport or preservation.” The findings are published in a new article, ‘Diverse organic-mineral associations in Jezero crater, Mars’, in Nature. Have your say in our news democracy. Click the upvote icon at the top of the page to help raise this article through the indy100 rankings.

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The Premier League’s summer spending of £2.36billion demonstrates the “incredible pace of growth” in the league’s wealth, according to finance company Deloitte. The £2bn milestone was surpassed for the first time in advance of Friday’s deadline with moves such as Manchester City’s £53million capture of Wolves’ Matheus Nunes then driving the total to new heights. Calum Ross, assistant director in Deloitte’s Sports Business Group, told the PA news agency: “It took 14 summer transfer windows to exceed £1bn and it’s only taken seven more to surpass £2bn, so that just reflects the incredible pace of growth that we’re seeing.” Deloitte’s analysis showed the 2023 summer transfer window exceeded the previous record of £1.92bn, set only last summer, by almost £440m. Chelsea’s spending under Todd Boehly’s ownership group has continued with the £100m signing of midfielder Moises Caicedo from Brighton, £63m for forward Christopher Nkunku and Friday’s £40m capture of Cole Palmer from Manchester City. With Newcastle beating the Blues, Tottenham and Liverpool to a place in this season’s Champions League and Brighton – who pulled off a deadline-day coup with a loan deal for Barcelona star Ansu Fati – also challenging, there are as many as eight teams with realistic top-four ambitions. Arsenal signed West Ham captain Declan Rice for a similar fee to that for Caicedo and Manchester City spent £77m on Croatia defender Josko Gvardiol, while Spurs’ £47.5m move for Nottingham Forest forward Brennan Johnson was another standout move on deadline day. Ross said: “You’ve got that intensity of competition across the league. There are 10 clubs that have spent more than £100m so it’s not all those top clubs. “I think at the moment, more than half of the clubs have spent more than they did last season.” England’s top flight has spent almost as much as the other members of Europe’s ‘big five’ leagues – LaLiga in Spain, Italy’s Serie A, the French Ligue 1 and Germany’s Bundesliga – combined this summer. But a new challenge has emerged with the Saudi Pro League attracting the likes of Neymar, Karim Benzema and Riyad Mahrez to follow Cristiano Ronaldo’s January move to Al Nassr. I think almost half of the transfer fees received by Premier League clubs came from the Saudi Pro League Calum Ross of Deloitte’s Sports Business Group The fees and wages on offer in Saudi Arabia are eye-watering with Liverpool rejecting a £150m deadline-day bid from Al-Ittihad for attacking talisman Mohamed Salah. Ross said: “This is the first time since the summer window of 2016 that one of the big five leagues, LaLiga, doesn’t appear in the top five spenders globally. The Saudi Pro League’s replaced them, I think they’re the second highest at the moment with over 850million euros (£728m). “Also it’s another source of funding though – I think almost half of the transfer fees received by Premier League clubs came from the Saudi Pro League. So having that extra funding from Saudi Pro League clubs and other overseas markets is then providing them with additional funds to redistribute to their transfer targets.” The Saudi window remains open until next Thursday and while clubs could be reluctant to sell with no opportunity to replace departed talent, Ross said: “There is still a chance over the next week or so that we will see further outgoings. “Being able to operate in a financially sustainable manner, as well as complying with the relevant financial regulations, is a key part of their activity. “It’s balancing that need for financial sustainability and profitability with the desire for on-pitch success.” Read More Charity boss speaks out over ‘traumatic’ encounter with royal aide Ukraine war’s heaviest fight rages in east - follow live Ireland boss Andy Farrell says ability to ‘roll with punches’ key for World Cup Mason Greenwood will begin to rebuild career with loan move to Getafe David Moyes enjoying West Ham topping Premier League after Luton win

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Russia may use sea mines to target non-military ships and blame Ukraine for any attacks, the UK Government has said. Declassified intelligence warned last month that the Russian military had attempted a missile strike against a cargo ship in the Black Sea. The UK believes Russia could continue targeting civilian shipping, including by laying explosive devices in the approach to Ukrainian ports. However, Vladimir Putin’s army wants to openly avoid sinking ships in order to blame Ukraine for attacks, the Government said. Foreign secretary James Cleverly said: “Russia’s pernicious targeting of civilian shipping in the Black Sea demonstrates Putin’s total disregard for civilian lives and the needs of the world’s most vulnerable. Our advice to British shipping has not changed - the UK’s maritime security level for Ukrainian ports and waters remains at the highest level due to the threat posed by Russia Foreign Office statement “The world is watching – and we see right through Russia’s cynical attempts to lay blame on Ukraine for their attacks. We and our allies stand united against Putin and his attempts to harm Ukraine, and thus harm the rest of the world.” When the conflict between Russia and Ukraine began in February 2022, around 22 million tonnes of Ukrainian grain meant for export was reportedly stuck. Russia withdrew from the Black Sea grain initiative in July of this year, which had been an effort to ship grain out of Ukraine, one of the world’s biggest wheat producers, to countries in Africa and other parts of the world which could otherwise face famine. Continued targeting of ships would therefore be an attempt to pressure the Ukrainian economy, the UK Government says. It is believed since Russia’s withdrawal, enough grain to feed more than one million people for a year has been destroyed. A statement by the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) said: “We are working with Ukraine and other partners to put in place arrangements to improve the safety of shipping. Our advice to British shipping has not changed – the UK’s maritime security level for Ukrainian ports and waters remains at the highest level due to the threat posed by Russia. “The UK has put in place intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance capabilities to monitor Russian activity in the Black Sea. These capabilities will help us to attribute and call out any further Russian attacks on civilian shipping or infrastructure. “We are committed to ensuring Ukraine can continue to export its agricultural produce through all appropriate routes including its ‘humanitarian corridor’, overland and via the Danube. “The UK will continue to work with Ukraine and a range of international partners to achieve this.” Read More Charity boss speaks out over ‘traumatic’ encounter with royal aide Ukraine war’s heaviest fight rages in east - follow live King Charles to appear on Australian dollar coins before Christmas Voters go to the polls in Rutherglen and Hamilton West by-election What the papers say – October 5