Three fire engines from Bolton North and Bolton Central attended the incident on Barlow Park Avenue at around 6.50pm on Wednesday (August 5), after a fire broke out inside the disused building.

(Image: Will Philips)

The building, located just beyond the entrance to the park, is believed to be a former changing room.

Witnesses said they saw smoke coming from the property before firefighters arrived and extinguished the blaze.

(Image: Will Philips)

A spokesperson for Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service said: “At 6.50pm on Wednesday 5 August, three fire engines from Bolton North, Bolton Central attended an incident on Barlow Park Avenue, Bolton.

“The fire involved rubbish in a derelict building. Crews used specialist equipment to extinguish the fire and were in attendance for around 20 minutes.”

(Image: Will Philips)

Witnesses also reported seeing an ambulance at the scene.

After firefighters left, the building remained accessible and was not cordoned off.

Residents have since raised concerns about the condition of the derelict property, saying it contains broken glass, rubbish and other debris and warning that it poses a potential safety hazard as people can still enter the site.

(Image: Will Philips)

The cause of the fire has not been confirmed.

The North West Ambulance Service has been contacted for comment.

The recent confirmation of an atmosphere around a rocky exoplanet called LHS 1140b has created a wave of interest within the astronomy community. The planet orbits within the habitable zone around its parent star – a red dwarf located some 48 light years from Earth.

The habitable zone is the region around the star where temperatures are just right for water to remain liquid at a planet’s surface. Astronomers detected helium being lost from the upper atmosphere of LHS 1140b. But heavier chemical compounds, such as water, which is a key ingredient for life, could exist lower in its atmosphere.

Observing distant exoplanets using telescopes opens new doors for science, but will it ever be possible to travel to these worlds and observe them up close? While this has generally been seen as the stuff of science fiction until now, emerging technologies allow us to imagine a future where such missions are possible in the decades ahead.

There is particular interest in miniaturised spacecraft for interstellar voyages. In large part, this is because it’s easier and cheaper to propel a small spacecraft to another star system – and have it get there within a person’s lifetime – than it is to do the same with a large vehicle.

Miniaturisation of sensors has seen great advances, for example through smart phone technology where highly capable cameras with low mass, power and volume are routinely used. Researchers have even developed “smart dust”; sensors that are millimetre-scale in size or smaller that can detect light, temperature or chemicals.

The space probe itself would need a form of propulsion capable of accelerating it to mildly relativistic speeds, say 10-20% of the speed of light. After a travel time of many decades, the sensors would pass through a target star system without stopping, making in-situ observations and then very slowly drip data back to Earth.

This isn’t quite Star Trek, but it’s a potentially plausible idea that would enable us to study neighbouring stars and their planets up close. This kind of concept has been actively pursued by a philanthropically funded venture known as Breakthrough Starshot. This programme investigated the key technologies required for an interstellar journey using small probes.

Lights sails are seen as one of the most suitable forms of propulsion for such a mission. As the name implies, these are thin reflective membranes.

For interstellar travel, directed energy from a laser could be used to push the spacecraft forward. Photons, the quantum packets of energy of which light is composed, transport momentum as well as energy. Therefore, when light reflects off a mirror it exerts a pressure on the mirror.

In most circumstances the pressure due to light is imperceptibly small. However, for an intense enough beam of light, and an ultra-lightweight membrane mirror, light pressure can act as a means of spacecraft propulsion.

In order to accelerate a light sail to relativistic speeds, a hefty laser would be required, with an effective power of tens of gigawatts. This wouldn’t be a single device. Instead, it would probably comprise an array of separate laser devices synchronised together to generate a beam of coherent light.

Accelerated to the stars

Pushing a reflective light sail a few metres across with such a laser would accelerate the sail to its cruising speed in a matter of minutes.

The advantage of beam-power propulsion systems is that the laser assembly is left behind and only a small payload is accelerated to the stars. In contrast, conventional rockets have to haul their own propellant, which puts them at a severe disadvantage for such ultra-high energy missions.

The disadvantage of beam power propulsion is that the payload can’t easily stop, so a probe would pass through its target star system in only a few days.

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While multi-gigawatt laser-pushed light sails may seem to be a bit of a stretch at present due to the colossal scale of such a venture, advances in miniaturisation could pave the way for tiny intelligent sensor nodes to be our first interstellar voyagers.

Perhaps we’ll first travel to the stars with an AI asleep at the wheel for decades, until it awakens for a few days of frantic activity as our machine proxies get their first glimpse of alien worlds.

Aside from pushing light sails with gigawatt lasers, reflective membranes can also be pushed by light pressure from the Sun. These “solar sails” have a long and rich history and were first proposed in the 1920s by Konstantin Tsiolkovsky and Friedrich Tsander, two of the great Russian pioneers of astronautics. Tsiolkovsky wrote of using “tremendous mirrors of very thin sheets”.

Tools for exploring

While laser-propelled light sails are for the future, solar sails are for the present. A number of small solar sails have already been launched into Earth orbit for technology demonstration purposes. Scaling up solar sails for deep space missions could deliver a new set of tools for exploring our solar system.

First, since solar sails do not need to carry propellant, they are capable of high-energy, long-duration missions, some of which are just about impossible for conventional spacecraft. For example, to rendezvous with a long period comet on an elliptical or highly inclined orbit about the Sun requires significant energy.

Moreover, returning a surface sample from such a comet to Earth becomes even more difficult. For conventional rocket propulsion, the spacecraft needs to haul propellant for the return journey all the way to the target comet.

For solar sails, returning to Earth is little different to reaching the comet in the first place. Solar sails can “tack” by tilting the sail to gain momentum and so spiral away from the Sun, or flipping the sail to lose momentum and spiral back inwards towards the Sun.

Solar sails can also move along unconventional orbits with light pressure used to offset gravity. For example, this could allow a solar sail to hover stationary high above the poles of the Earth.

Solar sails and light sails are stepping stones from the present to the future, and from exploring our own solar system to exploring distant stars. Perhaps exoplanet LHS 1140b will be visited by a light sail at some point in our future.

The devasting wildfire at Llanwonno Wildfire has been stood down from major incident status on Thursday evening.

Firefighters will remain at the scene for the coming days to damp down any hotspots, South Wales Fire and Rescue Service said in an update.

All local roads that were closed have now been re-opened.

“Following successful aerial firefighting support from Natural Resources Wales (NRW) and the continued efforts of firefighters and partner agencies, significant progress has been made in bringing the incident under control,” SWFRS said.

” We are pleased to confirm that all properties in the area remain protected. Firefighters will continue to maintain a presence at the scene over the coming days to dampen down remaining hotspots, and tackle the ongoing peat fire on Penrhys Mountain.

“Our Fire Crime Team will remain in the community, providing fire safety advice and support to residents affected by the incident. South Wales Police will also continue their routine patrols in the area. All local road closures have now been lifted.

“We would like to express our sincere thanks to the local community for their patience, understanding and support throughout this incident. We are particularly grateful for the many kind messages received as our crews, alongside partner agencies, worked tirelessly to bring this challenging wildfire under control.”

Amanda Knox, who was convicted and later acquitted of murdering British student Meredith Kercher in Italy in 2007, has defended her solo comedy show following calls for it to be cancelled.

The sold-out show called Cartwheel, which Knox will perform at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe, discusses motherhood and how she will explain the case to her daughter.

Knox told the BBC she is not the first person to use comedy to talk about traumatic events and said her material focuses on “how the world is unsafe and unfair towards women”.

But Stephanie Kercher, the victim’s sister, said she is concerned it will “normalise and trivialise” violence against women, and Meredith, in particular.

Speaking on BBC Breakfast, Stephanie Kercher, said: “What I would say [to Knox] is to think about the family here, think about her friends and to turn the tables if it was your sister that this had happened to, because I know you have a sister as well.”

Responding to the comments, Knox said: “The interesting irony of that is that my daughter is a huge motivation for me doing this show.

“It’s about how the world is unsafe and unfair towards women and what it means to raise a daughter in that world, knowing how bad it can be.

“If they [Kercher’s family] saw my show, they would recognise that.”

A petition against the show, set up by a friend of Meredith, has been signed by nearly 5,000 people.

It states the show disrespects her memory and risks making light of such a harrowing event.

Senator Mitch McConnell has been discharged from a medical rehabilitation center, he announced on Thursday.

“Earlier today, I was discharged from the rehabilitation center to continue my recovery at home,” McConnell said in a statement. “Elaine and I are grateful for the many well wishes and support from friends, colleagues, and Kentuckians, and for the attentive care I’ve received from excellent doctors, nurses, therapists, and hospital staff.”

The Kentucky Republican was hospitalized in mid-June and has been out of Congress since, prompting alarm and widespread speculation over his health.

Weeks after entering the hospital, McConnell disclosed he was admitted after a fall and had since developed a case of mild pneumonia.

“My doctors have confirmed that I didn’t break any bones or suffer a concussion,” McConnell said in a statement at the time. “I didn’t have a heart attack or a stroke. I don’t have any tumors or hemorrhages. But I was briefly unconscious and was taken to the hospital.”

After his discharge, the 84-year-old will not be returning to Capitol Hill just yet.

“On the advice of my doctors, I’ll maintain an intensive regimen of physical therapy from home during the state work period, and I’ll continue to engage with my staff and colleagues on important Senate business,” McConnell wrote in his statement on Thursday.

McConnell’s lengthy absence from the Senate has been a subject of intense interest and debate in Washington and beyond, as the Trump administration looks to lock in any final legislative wins ahead of the November midterms, where Democrats could retake control of Congress.

Republican senators and conservative commentators insist they have spoken with McConnell and that he remains engaged and physically sound to carry on in office, though McConnell himself hasn’t appeared in any live video appearances that might assure doubters.

Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear, a Democrat, has called on McConnell to “directly and verbally address the people of Kentucky and provide proof of your capacity to serve, or resign.”

If McConnell resigned his position, or was otherwise incapacitated or died, a special election could be called to replace him.

McConnell’s hospitalization came after a series of past medical scares, including falls and incidents where the senator froze mid-sentence.

His absence, as well as the recent death of Sen. Lindsey Graham, 71, reignited the long-running debate over whether members of Congress are too old to serve.

About 58 percent of Americans think the share of elderly lawmakers in Congress, which is currently one of the oldest in U.S. history, is a major problem, according to a July CNN / SSRS poll.

Senator Mitch McConnell, 84, has returned home since he was hospitalized after a bad fall over 50 days ago.

McConnell wrote in a statement that he was ‘discharged’ from his rehabilitation center today to ‘continue my recovery at home.’ 

He thanked his wife, Elaine, and the ‘excellent’ doctors, nurses and therapists who helped him at the hospital. 

‘On the advice of my doctors, I’ll maintain an intensive regimen of physical therapy from home during the state work period,’ he added.  

A fall at his DC residence on June 14 left him briefly unconscious and paramedics rushed him to the hospital. 

But he still has not been seen in public or released a video of any kind. 

Last month, attention quickly turned to McConnell’s wife, former Transportation Secretary Elaine Chao, after she was noticeably absent during his first days in the hospital.

Chao was already in China when the senator suffered his medical emergency, having departed on a long-planned trip on June 12—two days before McConnell was hospitalized.

McConnell, who had polio as a child, is supported by staffers inside the US Capitol in early June

A fall at his DC residence on June 14 left him briefly unconscious. His office released this picture from July 12

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 Rather than cutting the visit short, she continued her itinerary, which included meetings with senior Chinese officials, including Vice President Han Zheng.

Her decision not to immediately return to the United States raised eyebrows, although a spokesperson said the trip had been planned well in advance and insisted that ‘the Senator’s health did not warrant an immediate return.’

On July 12, after weeks of questions surrounding his health, Mitch McConnell’s office released a rare glimpse of the ailing senator while he was still recovering in a rehabilitation facility following his hospitalization.

The image showed the longtime Kentucky Republican sitting upright in a hospital recovery chair alongside his wife, smiling while holding what appeared to be that day’s Washington Post sports section.

The photo was released alongside a statement from McConnell’s team revealing for the first time that his hospitalization was caused by a fall — not a heart attack — and that doctors were also dealing with mobility issues linked to a childhood case of polio.

As speculation swirled over the senator’s condition and whether the image was AI-generated, several Republican allies said they had spoken with McConnell by phone and used those conversations to reassure the public that he remained engaged in Senate business.

Senate Majority Leader John Thune said his office spoke with McConnell on July 6. A spokesperson described the call as ‘A lengthy and substantive conversation that covered a variety of topics, including national security.’

Senate Majority Whip John Barrasso said he spoke with McConnell on July 7 for around 20 minutes, with the pair discussing Senate business, politics and legislative priorities.

A spokeswoman for Barrasso said, ‘Senator McConnell was fully engaged and is eager to get back to the Senate.’

The Kentucky Republican also has not recorded a Senate vote since June 11, bringing his tally of consecutively missed roll call votes to a staggering 47

Republican strategist and longtime McConnell ally Scott Jennings said he also spoke with the senator by phone on July 7, and they discussed politics, foreign policy and Senate history. Jennings described McConnell as engaged while continuing his recovery.

But the reassurance that McConnell was stable wasn’t enough for some Republicans.

Several Republicans called for greater transparency about McConnell’s condition, with some arguing that the public deserved a clearer picture of whether the senator was capable of continuing his duties.

One of the strongest calls came from Senator Tommy Tuberville, who suggested McConnell should make a public appearance to demonstrate his recovery.

‘Somebody needs to do something. Somebody needs to come out and put a little video out,’ Tuberville said.

Tuberville also said senators had received limited information about McConnell’s condition.

‘He lives next door to me, but he’s still in the hospital, doing rehab… I don’t know anything,’ Tuberville said last month.

Representative Thomas Massie questioned the public accounts of McConnell’s condition after Republican leaders said they had spoken with him.

Massie mocked the reports of the phone calls, saying he too had spoken to McConnell- echoing Jennings by listing the same range of topics the two were said to have discussed, including foreign policy and his own political future.

Senator Ron Johnson raised broader concerns about transparency surrounding the health of elected officials, arguing that voters deserve more information about the condition of those holding public office. 

The Kentucky Republican also has not recorded a Senate vote since June 11, bringing his tally of consecutively missed roll call votes to a staggering 47, according to GovTrack.US, though he has remotely cosponsored some legislation.